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I've been lurking at the X1 carbon for years, but now I'm finally considering getting one I can't decide between the T480s this year! On one side, the light we

I've been lurking at the X1 carbon for years, but now I'm finally considering getting one I can't decide between the T480s this year! On one side, the light weight and light size of the X1 is really appealing, on the other the larger ram, graphic chip and lower heat of the T480s makes it look like a wiser choice... At this price, it is a hard decision. I unfortunately can't get my hand on both machines before buying one in the part of the world I am in, did anyone had the chance to compare them both side by side? Is the difference of size/weight noticeable in hand? Another aspect is the display. The new 500nits HDR screen looks awesome, but I've been thinking a mate, 300nits display would be better for programming? I don't think I have seen a mate screen on a laptop for years... Is it really better for outdoor use? Would it make sense to privilege it, even being 200nits lower?

willtim 9y ago
The X1 Carbon has low power LPDDR RAM which means it can sleep for a lot longer with minimal battery drain. This is a very useful feature for me, as my laptop is almost permanently sleeping.
- deleted 9y ago
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- rasz 9y ago
  Why sleep when you have 2read 1write GB/s SSD in there? suspend is couple of seconds.
steveklabnik 9y ago
I previously had an X1 Carbon, but have been using a T460s for the past two years. This is exactly my situation as well. I still haven't decided yet. I've been quite happy with both.
smoyer 9y ago
I'm typing this on an X1 Carbon and have to say that if I was going to love a computer, this would be the one. Battery life, ruggedness, weight ... it's all just perfect (and I'm a firm believer in the adage that 90% is generally good enough).
lorenzhs 9y ago
Have a look at the Notebookcheck reviews, they’re very thorough and test things like thermal throttling/efficacy of the cooling system which aren’t mentioned in most other reviews. I was in the same position last year (T470, T470s, X1C5?), but ruled out the T470s rather quickly because its cooling system was barely better than the X1C5’s, nowhere near that of the T470. I have no idea if the T480s was improved in this regard so don’t apply last year’s reasoning to this year’s lineup :) I went for the X1C5 because of the much nicer screens vs the T470 and because it seemed more future proof (2x TB3/USB-C instead of 1x and more PCIe lanes to the Thunderbolt controller). Plus, a year later and I’m still fascinated how light it is. Overall I’m extremely happy with mine.

willtim 9y ago

The X1 Carbon has low power LPDDR RAM which means it can sleep for a lot longer with minimal battery drain. This is a very useful feature for me, as my laptop is almost permanently sleeping.

deleted 9y ago
[deleted]
rasz 9y ago
Why sleep when you have 2read 1write GB/s SSD in there? suspend is couple of seconds.

steveklabnik 9y ago

I previously had an X1 Carbon, but have been using a T460s for the past two years. This is exactly my situation as well. I still haven't decided yet. I've been quite happy with both.

smoyer 9y ago

I'm typing this on an X1 Carbon and have to say that if I was going to love a computer, this would be the one. Battery life, ruggedness, weight ... it's all just perfect (and I'm a firm believer in the adage that 90% is generally good enough).

lorenzhs 9y ago

Have a look at the Notebookcheck reviews, they’re very thorough and test things like thermal throttling/efficacy of the cooling system which aren’t mentioned in most other reviews. I was in the same position last year (T470, T470s, X1C5?), but ruled out the T470s rather quickly because its cooling system was barely better than the X1C5’s, nowhere near that of the T470. I have no idea if the T480s was improved in this regard so don’t apply last year’s reasoning to this year’s lineup :) I went for the X1C5 because of the much nicer screens vs the T470 and because it seemed more future proof (2x TB3/USB-C instead of 1x and more PCIe lanes to the Thunderbolt controller). Plus, a year later and I’m still fascinated how light it is. Overall I’m extremely happy with mine.