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You ever tried to buy an IBM Thinkpad? There are like 20,000 configurations displayed on the same single website page. It’s a disaster shopping for pre-assemble

You ever tried to buy an IBM Thinkpad? There are like 20,000 configurations displayed on the same single website page. It’s a disaster shopping for pre-assembled PC’s.

Godel_unicode 6y ago
First, IBM doesn't make thinkpads and hasn't for close to a decade. Second, this is just because they know who their market is. They're deliberately not marketing their laptops to people who don't want to have to handle a little bit of complexity in exchange for flexibility. Apple is the Sony rx100; good but not great sensor, good but not great lens, good but not great audio. Everything is fixed and you can only make superficial changes. Thinkpad is the Red Komodo; everything is optional, but it doesn't even include vital components in the box unless you know to order them. You can get decent results with the former, and it requires very little thought or experience to buy and use. There is a much higher ceiling for getting exactly what you want with the latter, but it requires you to know exactly what you're doing and be willing to do some work on your setup. Neither option is objectively better.
- kazen44 6y ago
  Also, thinkpads are still a bussiness line of laptops aimed at the corporate market. having a ton of options makes a lot of sense when it allows you to bring the price down. Making a change that saves you 50$ of a 1000$ laptop might not seem like a big deal, but it adds up if you buy a couple of hundred of them.
Krasnol 6y ago
I'm sorry, I am just unable to see the disaster in having a choice. You also don't have to make the choice yourself. Ask somebody who knows what he/she's talking about...like people who sell those things or look up opinions online. This is the 21st century. There are ways. If you care...but as I said: I have the feeling many don't care and that's ok. If you have the extra money and don't care, go for it. That's the great thing about capitalism but please don't try to sell the possibility of choice as something bad. It just doesn't make any sense at all.

You ever tried to buy an IBM Thinkpad? There are like 20,000 configurations displayed on the same single website page. It’s a disaster shopping for pre-assembled PC’s.

Godel_unicode 6y ago

First, IBM doesn't make thinkpads and hasn't for close to a decade. Second, this is just because they know who their market is. They're deliberately not marketing their laptops to people who don't want to have to handle a little bit of complexity in exchange for flexibility. Apple is the Sony rx100; good but not great sensor, good but not great lens, good but not great audio. Everything is fixed and you can only make superficial changes. Thinkpad is the Red Komodo; everything is optional, but it doesn't even include vital components in the box unless you know to order them. You can get decent results with the former, and it requires very little thought or experience to buy and use. There is a much higher ceiling for getting exactly what you want with the latter, but it requires you to know exactly what you're doing and be willing to do some work on your setup. Neither option is objectively better.

kazen44 6y ago
Also, thinkpads are still a bussiness line of laptops aimed at the corporate market. having a ton of options makes a lot of sense when it allows you to bring the price down. Making a change that saves you 50$ of a 1000$ laptop might not seem like a big deal, but it adds up if you buy a couple of hundred of them.

Krasnol 6y ago

I'm sorry, I am just unable to see the disaster in having a choice. You also don't have to make the choice yourself. Ask somebody who knows what he/she's talking about...like people who sell those things or look up opinions online. This is the 21st century. There are ways. If you care...but as I said: I have the feeling many don't care and that's ok. If you have the extra money and don't care, go for it. That's the great thing about capitalism but please don't try to sell the possibility of choice as something bad. It just doesn't make any sense at all.