I recently finished my masters and started my PhD, so I decided to treat myself to a bunch of new gear to help with the journey. First up: the brand‑new ThinkPad!

ThinkPad T14 Gen 5 AMD (Ryzen 7 8840U) Link to heading

Even though I’ve been using the Framework 16 for over a year, I realized it just isn’t the right laptop for me. I spent some time on the ThinkPad X1 Carbon 6th Gen that my lab (SSRG at Virginia Tech) loaned me, and I fell in love with its long battery life, lightweight chassis, and stellar display—probably the best screen I’ve ever seen on a laptop. The downside? Age. DDR3 RAM and a 7th‑gen i5 made it feel sluggish.

I started looking for a modern, light notebook with great battery life. After a bit of Reddit lurking, the ThinkPad T14 series popped up. The Gen 5 AMD model caught my eye because it offers a better CPU than my Framework 16 (the 7840HS vs. 8840U) and has user‑replaceable RAM, battery, and SSD. The Wi‑Fi card and ports are soldered, but everything else is modular. A brand‑new unit would set me back about $1.3 k.

Redditors often recommend buying refurbished ThinkPads on eBay, and there’s even a handy ThinkPad Blue Book guide for it. I scored a fantastic deal:

It weighs roughly half of my Framework 16 (1.3 kg ≈ 2.86 lb vs. 2.4 kg ≈ 5.29 lb), has a huge battery, stays cool, and feels much faster. The only trade‑off is the lack of a dedicated GPU, but I don’t game much on a laptop these days. CAD and basic video editing run just fine, so I’m not losing any productivity. For gaming I’ve got a beast of a desktop hooked up to the TV in my new house—everything from AAA titles to VR and driving sims runs there.

I swapped the 32 GiB DDR5‑5600 RAM sticks from my Framework 16 into the ThinkPad and installed a brand‑new WD Black SN850X 2 TB SSD I grabbed from Walmart. After a clean install of Windows, I discovered the laptop came with a Windows 11 Pro OEM license that was already activated—nice touch. While loading drivers, I also learned I have three years of on‑site warranty, meaning a Lenovo tech can show up at my door and fix the machine the same day if something goes wrong (coverage details here). After a few years of electronic mishaps, that peace of mind is golden.

Build quality vs. modularity Link to heading

iFixit gave the ThinkPad a 9.1 / 10 for durability and serviceability, while the Framework scores a perfect 10 / 10. The ThinkPad feels like a solid slab of metal—nothing flexes, and the chassis has that classic “built‑to‑last” vibe. The Framework, on the other hand, feels a bit Lego‑ish: the modular design is fantastic for swapping parts, but the overall feel is lighter and a touch less rugged.

That modularity also shows up in the GPU department. With the Framework I can bolt on an external RTX 5070 (or any other eGPU) whenever I need serious graphics horsepower. The ThinkPad’s design doesn’t support an external GPU (or any internal upgrade beyond RAM, SSD, and battery), so I’m stuck with the integrated Radeon 780M. It’s fine for my day‑to‑day work, but it’s a reminder that the Framework still wins on pure flexibility.

Experience so far Link to heading

Even though it was refurbished, it had only about 15 charge cycles and looked brand new! I love the fingerprint reader, the IR camera, the touchpad, and the classic red TrackPoint. The TrackPoint allows me to use my laptop outdoors in the cold while I’m wearing gloves, only the touchpad becomes unusable, which is exactly what I’d expect.

The screen is a slight downgrade compared to the Framework 16 (1080p 60 Hz vs. 1440p 165 Hz), but it’s an IPS panel, so it’s excellent for productivity, and we don’t really need more than 60 Hz for work. The speakers are a noticeable upgrade, and I now have Dolby Audio. Fingerprint authentication works smoothly. I also appreciate the 1 Gbps Ethernet port on a thin chassis—something the X1 Carbon lacked. It allows me to do some quick sys-admin work if needed.

The Wi‑Fi adapter (Qualcomm Technologies, Inc. QCNFA765) is a bit flaky across operating systems. The 6 GHz band is a little slow on Windows but generally reliable; on Linux it’s fast, though occasionally my SSID doesn’t appear. I primarily run Arch Linux with KDE Plasma and dual‑boot Windows for Fusion 360 and other Windows‑only applications. After three weeks, the laptop has really grown on me, and I wish I’d gotten a ThinkPad sooner.

I’ve also picked up a Framework desktop, a telescope, and a few other toys. More on those in future posts!

Until next time, Srikar