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Thinkpad turns 25 – A look at the Thinkpad 25th Anniversary Edition Ultrabook

Thinkpad is known throughout the enterprise and consumer markets as Lenovo’s rugged, minimalistic, and business-oriented laptops, tablets, and mobile workstations division. Started under International Business Machines (IBM) in 1992, Lenovo acquired the division in 2005 and has owned the company ever since.  For 25 years, Thinkpads have been beloved by power users, demanding businesses & corporate environments, enthusiasts and even astronauts on the International Space Station (ISS). Today we take a brief look at the Thinkpad 25 Anniversary Edition, and the features that have persisted through the years of one of the longest continual laptop series.

Looking at the Thinkpad 25, there appear to be more similarities with modern Thinkpad laptops than the older era of Thinkpads it is supposed to be reminiscent of. The Thinkpad 25 comes with ULV 15w 7th gen Intel Processors, NVMe storage, a 1080p display, Nvidia 940MX dedicated graphics, the beloved trackpoint, and the distinctive minimalist black matte finish. The Thinkpad 25 also comes with a separate box of documentation and items that look back upon the series’ history and development, 25 years of such.

https://www.laptopmag.com/images/uploads/5280/g/lenovo-thinkpad-25-004.jpg
Source: laptopmag.com

The biggest difference in the Thinkpad 25 has to be the keyboard. The inclusion of a seven-row keyboard in the Thinkpad 25 when almost all modern computers are six row keyboards is nothing short an industry nod to when the seven-row keyboard reigned supreme. The Thinkpad 25 keyboard also has other references to earlier models, such as the blue enter key, dedicated page up and down keys, the delete “reference” key and traditional, non-island styled/chiclet keys. Omitted from the Thinkpad 25 are several antiquated technologies from over the years, such as the Thinklight, legacy ports (Serial, VGA, expresscard), and handle batteries.

To many enthusiasts, the Thinkpad 25 was a letdown; essentially a T470 with a seven-row backlit illuminated row keyboard.  The Thinkpad 25 is also expensive, at nearly $2,000 fully configured, and with such minimal specifications, many businesses will shy away from these devices. So, who is the Thinkpad 25 meant for then? This device was nothing but a limited-quantity device, for enthusiasts and collectors who yearn for a nostalgic legacy; for those who stubbornly resist modern design and technology implementations such as shiny plastic or brushed aluminum with a certain illuminated fruit. For those that have stood by the Thinkpad line through two and a half decades of cutting-edge innovation and performance, and are willing to pay the price for a computer that nods to this era of computing, then the Thinkpad 25 may be a worthwhile investment.