Customer reviews for Lenovo ThinkPad T430s - New!
Slim, light & extra-durable 14" laptop with non-compromising features.
Average customer rating:
(45 Reviews) 40
Rating Snapshot (45 reviews)
5 stars
22
4 stars
11
3 stars
6
2 stars
1
1 star
5
32 of 45(71%)customers would recommend this product to a friend.
Review 1 for ThinkPad T430s - New!
OverallOverall Rating
Performance
2
out of
5
Mobility
2
out of
5
Design
2
out of
5
Features
3
out of
5
Value
3
out of
5
Reliability
3
out of
5
DissaponitedCustomer
Owned Product:1-6 months
Processor:Intel Core i7
Memory:4 GB or more
T430s severe quality issues!
Date:11 May 2013
Pros: Weight, Screen size, Display resolution, Display performance
Cons: Battery, Keyboard/peripherals, Included Software, Build Quality, Durability
"I bought a T430s in Dec 2012. Right out of the box, the laptop had following issues:
1. Bad CAPS lock key.
2. Wobbly screen: wobble of around 0.5 inc at the top of the screen
3. Warping and flexing at the bottom edge of the screen.
4. unreliable wifi connection.
1. Bad CAPS lock key.
2. Wobbly screen: wobble of around 0.5 inc at the top of the screen
3. Warping and flexing at the bottom edge of the screen.
4. unreliable wifi connection.
Within one week the Lenovo lettering on the top of the laptop started coming apart, one actually nicked my finger!
The laptop cooling fan runs continiuosly, even if I am just web browsing and the CPU utilization is <5-7%!!
Now to get to the the mSSD does not seem to help. The windows experience score is 5.9
The battery lasts for around 2.5 hours on 50% screen brightness while browsing. Playing a video cuts it down to around 1hour 15 minutes."
Review 2 for ThinkPad T430s - New!
OverallOverall Rating
Jgip
Owned Product:Less than a month
Processor:Intel Core i5
Memory:4 GB or more
Awesome machine!!!
Date:10 May 2013
Pros: Battery, Weight, Durability, Software compatibility, Screen size, Build Quality, Storage
"Originally ordered a Dell, but it had extremely poor battery life and would often overheat. I sent it back and found a refurbished T430s on the Lenovo outlet site. I run Ubuntu as my primary OS, but have it dual-booting with Windows 7. Great battery life ~5-6 hours if just surfing and/or word processing, ~3-4 hours if streaming a lot of music and/or video. Runs Ubuntu like a dream. Backlit keyboard is great. I don't use the trackpoint, but it doesn't get in the way at all. I actually have Ubuntu installed on the 16gb mSata SSD, but the home folder is on the regular hdd with Windows 7. As a result, bootup time in Ubuntu is ridiculously fast. Overall, the build quality is lives up to the Thinkpad T-series reputation, but as the "s" indicates, it's not as big and bulky as the regular T430."
Review 3 for ThinkPad T430s - New!
OverallOverall Rating
Performance
1
out of
5
Mobility
2
out of
5
Design
2
out of
5
Features
2
out of
5
Value
2
out of
5
Reliability
3
out of
5
Jason
Owned Product:1-6 months
Processor:Intel Core i5
Memory:4 GB or more
Terrible T430s
Date:09 April 2013
Cons: Display performance
"The screen is so bad. It's not the Lenovo we estimated. I had a t400, which is much better than T430s.
Lenovo should improve the performance of screen."
Review 4 for ThinkPad T430s - New!
OverallOverall Rating
Performance
5
out of
5
Mobility
5
out of
5
Design
5
out of
5
Features
5
out of
5
Value
5
out of
5
Reliability
5
out of
5
Wishihadacat
Owned Product:2 years+
Processor:Intel Core 2 Duo
Memory:4 GB or more
Every Author's Best Friend
Date:04 April 2013
Pros: Weight, Warranty, Security Features, Durability, Software compatibility, Video card, Wireless card, Screen size, Build Quality, Display resolution, Display performance, Battery, Input/Output compatibility, Processor, Support, Memory, Keyboard/peripherals, Storage
"I have been writing novels on my Lenovo T400s since 2011. It is by far the most comfortable and reliable writing and research tool available for serious authors, and professionals in every field!"
Review 5 for ThinkPad T430s - New!
OverallOverall Rating
Performance
5
out of
5
Mobility
5
out of
5
Design
4
out of
5
Features
5
out of
5
Value
5
out of
5
Reliability
5
out of
5
Kyle
Owned Product:1-6 months
Processor:Intel Core i7
Memory:4 GB or more
6-Month Review
Date:31 March 2013
Pros: Input/Output compatibility, Weight, Processor, Support, Memory, Display performance
Cons: Battery, Keyboard/peripherals, trackpad
"I've had this computer for 6-months now.
I've upgraded all features of the computer + 160GB SSD, and 16GB RAM - both a must.
Pros: Never crashes. Super fast with upgrades. Lightweight. Versatile (graphics, gaming, processing).
Example: Handles 40+ FF Tabs, Skype, 5+ Word Tabs, PS5, Ill5, Drmw5, Downolads, Music Streaming - all without a single hick-up in performance. Extremely fast with the upgrades.
Cons: Batter issue when first bought (corrected by Lenovo pretty quickly). Trackpad wearing down after 6-months - doesn't work for 2-4seconds at a time. Screen colors not so sharp. Keyboard not good, battery not great. Need upgrades to experience the performance."
Review 6 for ThinkPad T430s - New!
OverallOverall Rating
Performance
5
out of
5
Mobility
5
out of
5
Design
5
out of
5
Features
5
out of
5
Value
5
out of
5
Reliability
5
out of
5
BCgirl1960
Owned Product:Less than a week
Processor:Intel Pentium Dual Core
Memory:1 GB
Perfect for anyone user friendly
Date:25 March 2013
"I have used for demo for work , very nice and would consider buying when the time comes"
Review 7 for ThinkPad T430s - New!
OverallOverall Rating
Performance
4
out of
5
Mobility
4
out of
5
Design
4
out of
5
Features
4
out of
5
Value
5
out of
5
Reliability
5
out of
5
James
Owned Product:Less than a month
Best Laptop, but need improvement
Date:21 March 2013
Pros: Input/Output compatibility, Warranty, Processor, Security Features, Support, Durability, Software compatibility, Memory, Bluetooth, Wireless card, Keyboard/peripherals, Screen size, Build Quality, Storage, Display resolution
Cons: Video card, Battery, Weight, Display performance
"I purchased this T430S on last Christmas. It is very good 14" thin laptop. I have had my 15" T61 for many years and love it.
But, I did not keep this T430S because of its quality of sound and display. The sound is not easy on the ear compared with T61 that I have. Another is the color of display. I am happy with anti-glare screen with high resolution. But, the color on the screen looks pale.
Though T Series is for business design, not for entertainment use, as T series is so famous for its reputation as ThinkPad. I wish Lenovo can offer more flexible on Display when customers do "customize" online.
I am waiting for coming T440/T440S/T540S to any different.
Overall, ThinkPad T series is still the best laptop if you compare with other brand."
Review 8 for ThinkPad T430s - New!
OverallOverall Rating
Performance
4
out of
5
Mobility
5
out of
5
Design
5
out of
5
Features
4
out of
5
Value
3
out of
5
Reliability
5
out of
5
1feraluser
Owned Product:1-6 months
Processor:Intel Core i7
Memory:4 GB or more
My first laptop
Date:10 March 2013
Pros: Battery, Input/Output compatibility, Warranty, Processor, Security Features, Durability, Memory, Bluetooth, Wireless card, Keyboard/peripherals, Screen size, Build Quality, Display resolution, Display performance, design
Cons: Support, Included Software, full documentation of all features
"Since my first computer in 1988 I always built and maintained my own desktop computers feeling that this was the best way to spend my money. Recently I decided that laptops now fulfill the roll of most desktops and with peripheral devices, can exceed most for the average advanced user.
Now when I travel I can take the same device with me. When I was made the decision on what laptop to purchase that was easy to travel and yet had the technology to operate as a full desktop while at my desk, the T430 model was the best designed laptop and was backed by serious programs and options giving it everything I need."
Review 9 for ThinkPad T430s - New!
OverallOverall Rating
Performance
5
out of
5
Mobility
5
out of
5
Design
2
out of
5
Features
3
out of
5
Value
5
out of
5
Reliability
5
out of
5
L2TW
Owned Product:1-6 months
Processor:Intel Core i7
Memory:4 GB or more
great laptop terrible keyboard
Date:09 March 2013
Pros: Build Quality
Cons: keyboard layout
"perfect laptop, except this terrible layout for keyboard buttons. i'm not sure what is the purpose of changing the buttons layout.
old layout was a replica of a normal keyboard. new one have all major "sensitive" buttons (like the insert button) side by side, so very often you would find yourself clicking the wrong button..
old layout was a replica of a normal keyboard. new one have all major "sensitive" buttons (like the insert button) side by side, so very often you would find yourself clicking the wrong button..
lenovo should offer the 2 layouts, the old thinkpad and this new one, and let people choose.. if it was my call i would fire the engineers who dumped the old keyboard for this one"
Review 10 for ThinkPad T430s - New!
OverallOverall Rating
Performance
4
out of
5
Mobility
5
out of
5
Design
3
out of
5
Features
4
out of
5
Value
3
out of
5
Reliability
3
out of
5
Valli
Owned Product:1-6 months
Processor:Intel Core i7
Memory:4 GB or more
Dont go with T430s
Date:08 March 2013
Pros: Weight, Screen size
Cons: Wireless card, Battery, Keyboard/peripherals
"problems with the Laptop,
keyboard is worst one i saw up to now, and battery life.
keyboard is worst one i saw up to now, and battery life.
the response of the keys are too bad,
And arrangement of keys are also very bad.
few keys are arranged up and down. what the quality testing process they follow before handover the product to customer we don't know
Before that I used DELL latitude, it is too rough and tough, I am feeling very bad for my decision.
And arrangement of keys are also very bad.
few keys are arranged up and down. what the quality testing process they follow before handover the product to customer we don't know
Before that I used DELL latitude, it is too rough and tough, I am feeling very bad for my decision.
second thing battery, wow it is another super problem, they announced 7hrs but even 2hrs is not working.
the guys who want to just see the slim Laptop go with the T430s other wise go with other one.
What we will do even my system is full powerful, solid and etc.... without KEYBOARD for Laptop. worst keyboard.
Thanks,
Valli"
Valli"
Review 11 for ThinkPad T430s - New!
OverallOverall Rating
Performance
4
out of
5
Mobility
5
out of
5
Design
5
out of
5
Features
5
out of
5
Value
5
out of
5
Reliability
5
out of
5
RStan
Owned Product:Less than a week
Processor:Intel Core i5
Memory:4 GB or more
Great Investment
Date:24 February 2013
Pros: Input/Output compatibility, Weight, Processor, Security Features, Durability, Video card, Wireless card, Keyboard/peripherals, Build Quality, Display performance
Cons: included memory
"After being a Mac user for a number of years, I finally decided that I needed something more business-oriented for work and school. I chose the T430s for two key reasons:
1. The keyboard. The Keyboard on the ThinkPad is the #1 feature hands down. It isn't even a contest. Everything else simply feels cheap. I type faster, make fewer mistakes, and notice less fatigue than I do on lesser keyboards.
2. Durability. I do not feel like I have to baby my ThinkPad. I try to, but it has to go everywhere with me.The quality of the construction, and the solid feel of the ThinkPad make it so that I do not have to worry about destroying it."
1. The keyboard. The Keyboard on the ThinkPad is the #1 feature hands down. It isn't even a contest. Everything else simply feels cheap. I type faster, make fewer mistakes, and notice less fatigue than I do on lesser keyboards.
2. Durability. I do not feel like I have to baby my ThinkPad. I try to, but it has to go everywhere with me.The quality of the construction, and the solid feel of the ThinkPad make it so that I do not have to worry about destroying it."
Review 12 for ThinkPad T430s - New!
OverallOverall Rating
Performance
1
out of
5
Mobility
4
out of
5
Design
4
out of
5
Features
4
out of
5
Value
2
out of
5
Reliability
1
out of
5
laser
Owned Product:1-6 months
Processor:Intel Core i5
Memory:4 GB or more
bad USB
Date:21 February 2013
"bad USB"
Review 13 for ThinkPad T430s - New!
OverallOverall Rating
Performance
5
out of
5
Mobility
5
out of
5
Design
5
out of
5
Features
5
out of
5
Value
5
out of
5
Reliability
5
out of
5
Molly
Owned Product:7-12 months
Processor:AMD
Memory:4 GB or more
Teaching Partner
Date:06 February 2013
Pros: Battery, Input/Output compatibility, Weight, Processor, Support, Durability, Software compatibility, Memory, Video card, Wireless card, Keyboard/peripherals, Screen size, Build Quality, Storage, Display resolution, Display performance
"I bought a T series Thinkpad over the summer and it has become my constant companion ever since. It has been the most reliable, powerful, and all around awesome laptop I have ever owned. When I bought it, I had originally purchased it as a school/work device, something I could do my work on and do some light gaming with. When I started teaching first grade, this laptop became my best friend. I carried it from meeting to meeting, planned on it, used it for solar system demonstrations, everything. Now, it is mainly used as a teaching buddy. I almost always have it hooked into my Promethean Board and I am constantly using it to teach with. I have been so impressed with how much of a workhorse this computer has been, especially compared with the apple laptops the school provides us."
Review 14 for ThinkPad T430s - New!
OverallOverall Rating
Performance
4
out of
5
Mobility
5
out of
5
Design
4
out of
5
Features
5
out of
5
Value
5
out of
5
Reliability
5
out of
5
colin1898
Owned Product:1-6 months
Processor:Intel Core i5
Memory:4 GB or more
Great Products but bad battery
Date:19 January 2013
Pros: Weight, Processor, Security Features, Durability, Software compatibility, Memory, Bluetooth, Video card, Wireless card, Screen size, Build Quality, Storage, Display resolution, Display performance
Cons: Input/Output compatibility, Battery
"This is my fourth Thinkpad laptops. Currently I have T400, X230 and T430s. T430s is very light and windows 8 is super fast; windows metro is interesting but not very useful to me. You need some time (about one week) to get used to windows 8. The new keyboard and its layout is not that bad, though not as good as the previous keyboard. Also I like the 1600×900 screens and the backlit keys.
The only big problem I have is with the battery. It runs out at in less than two hours, about half capacity of my T400 laptop and this is not desirable. In addition, two USBs are at the back side of the laptop, and one foot-pad is on the battery so I cannot remove battery when plugging in!"
Review 15 for ThinkPad T430s - New!
OverallOverall Rating
Performance
4
out of
5
Mobility
4
out of
5
Design
3
out of
5
Features
3
out of
5
Value
4
out of
5
Reliability
5
out of
5
MikeG
Owned Product:1-6 months
Processor:Intel Core i7
Memory:4 GB or more
Nice hardware, but wish it had an IPS screen
Date:13 January 2013
Pros: Input/Output compatibility, Weight, Support, Keyboard/peripherals, Build Quality, serviceability
Cons: Included Software, Display performance, windows 8
"Starting from the high bar of being a Thinkpad, here are the low points:
Windows 8: terrible enough that I ended up returning the machine and getting one with Windows 7. (No penalty, thank you Lenovo).
Keyboard feel: great.
Keyboard layout: worse than past, but livable.
Keyboard layout: worse than past, but livable.
Screen: very poor. Vertical angle is bad (banding even when straight on), horizontal is worse. Wish it had an IPS option, or I had bought a different model with IPS. Almost a deal-breaker.
Bloatware: excessive, including sadly some Thinkvantage tools.
Extended battery warranty only allows ONE battery swap. Caveat emptor.
Overall, it's a Thinkpad, which makes it a nice machine to begin with, but the rough edges spoil things a bit."
Review 16 for ThinkPad T430s - New!
OverallOverall Rating
Performance
5
out of
5
Mobility
3
out of
5
Design
1
out of
5
Features
4
out of
5
Value
4
out of
5
Reliability
5
out of
5
Erty
Owned Product:Less than a month
Processor:Intel Core i5
Memory:4 GB or more
Compact and powerful working horse
Date:24 December 2012
Pros: Processor, Durability, Video card, Keyboard/peripherals, Storage
Cons: Input/Output compatibility, Battery, Screen size, Display performance
"The laptop is both portable and powerful enough to replace a desktop. Unfortunately, there are some nasty cons as well. The screen is a disappointment. Colors are distorted and viewing angles are awful. Moving your head few cm affects what you see. Look at the center and you will see color distortion near the corners. This is ok when you work with text, but watching movies is already a bit unpleasant. The screen is not suitable for any graphics related job. It is a bad joke to match such a screen with discrete graphics. Mobility is fair, but not great: battery life below average (with ultrabay battery ~7-8 hrs for normal activity and brightness). The laptop is large for 14'' screen, its case can support 15'' as well. Connections on the rear and stone-age design do not need any comments."
Review 17 for ThinkPad T430s - New!
OverallOverall Rating
Performance
4
out of
5
Mobility
4
out of
5
Design
4
out of
5
Features
4
out of
5
Value
4
out of
5
Reliability
4
out of
5
kenneth
Location:Philadelphia, PA
Owned Product:Less than a week
Most features have improved, but mouse is terrible
Date:16 December 2012
Pros: Battery, Processor, Keyboard/peripherals, keyboard backlight
Cons: Build Quality, mouse
"I just upgraded to the T430s from the T410s.
In most respects this is a much better machine: I love the "chicklet" keyboard, the CPU is faster, it now wakes from sleep mode almost instantly, and the new keyboard backlight is great.
However, the buttons on the mouse no longer work reliably. I never used an external mouse with the T410s, but the internal mouse works so poorly on the T430s that I have no choice."
Review 18 for ThinkPad T430s - New!
OverallOverall Rating
Performance
5
out of
5
Mobility
5
out of
5
Design
3
out of
5
Features
5
out of
5
Value
5
out of
5
Reliability
5
out of
5
aliensthetruth
Location:Philadelphia, PA
Owned Product:1-6 months
Processor:Intel Core i5
Memory:4 GB or more
Great laptop, not so great keyboard
Date:04 December 2012
"I have loved Lenovo products for years and am constantly excited to see the latest offerings. My employer's official platform is Lenovo, so I've used your machines for nearly all of my 13+ year career here. Our latest model is the T430S, from a performance standpoint, it's great.
The only drawback I have found is the keyboard. I much prefer the keyboard from the T420S. I do not like the placement of the home, end, insert, delete, page up and down. I liked having the back and forward buttons around the arrows, the new top right corner is different from all of our previous models. T43, T60, T400, T410, T420, etc.
It is not information technology focused as I often use page up/down, home insert and delete. At work I use a docking station with multiple monitors, with a regular keyboard. However, while away from work I often have to turn on the light to be able to see the keys since they are no longer isolated at the top right. The T420 had the extra large delete button, which was great, as I found the use of it to be much more frequent than insert. Now, there's no way to identify it without memorizing the new placement or looking."
Review 19 for ThinkPad T430s - New!
OverallOverall Rating
Performance
3
out of
5
Mobility
5
out of
5
Design
2
out of
5
Features
2
out of
5
Value
1
out of
5
Reliability
1
out of
5
ems3
Location:Baltimore, MD
Owned Product:1-6 months
Processor:Intel Core i5
One of the worst laptops I have ever had
Date:02 December 2012
Pros: Weight, Screen size, Display resolution
Cons: Build Quality, Durability, Storage, fingerprint scanner
"I have had this laptop since August. The fingerprint scanner died. The speakers are not great. The computer has already had a virus and I have never had a virus on any of my other computers before. The hard drive is already filled there is not enough memory on it. Overall really disappointed in this computer for the price."
Review 20 for ThinkPad T430s - New!
OverallOverall Rating
Performance
5
out of
5
Mobility
5
out of
5
Design
5
out of
5
Features
5
out of
5
Value
5
out of
5
Reliability
5
out of
5
ThinkPadMania
Location:Tempe, AZ
Owned Product:Less than a week
Processor:Intel Core i7
Memory:4 GB or more
Another great Lenovo ThinkPad!
Date:01 December 2012
Pros: Weight, Software compatibility, Build Quality, Input/Output compatibility, Processor, Memory, Keyboard/peripherals, Storage
Cons: Included Software
"This is my second Lenovo ThinkPad. I still have my almost-six-year-old IBM Lenovo ThinkPad Z61m which is rather slow for today's standard. It was a beast five or six years ago (Core 2 Duo, T7200 2.0 GHz, 1 GB RAM, 128 MB ATI Graphics Card, 120 GB HDD), but it has been too bulky and too heavy for my shoulders, apart from being slow. As an academic -- in humanities, not in engineering -- working in a university and now doing graduate studies, I walk and travel a lot with my backpacks, so my old Z61m needs more rest at home and I like my T430s: literally much slimmer and lighter than my Z61m. ThinkPad X1 Carbon is also very light, but it lacks a built-in Ethernet port. Moreover, to date, X1 Carbon does not provide i7+8GB RAM in its configuration -- either i7+4GB RAM or i5+8GB RAM. Lenovo allows me to configure T430s with i7+(at least) 8GB RAM.
I only miss a 16:10 screen. All ThinkPads are now 16:9. My late "sweety 1680x1050" screen -- it was dead 2 years ago :( -- of my relatively very durable Z61m might now smile in heaven for its wider viewing angle and spacious -- recall its 16:10 ratio -- than that in T430s. I read some comments on the graininess of T430s screen. Well, while it is (marginally) true, so far it doesn't bother me. Most importantly, its matte screen prevents it from reflecting too much light inside or outside a bright room.
I wish I had T530 or W530, too. Its 15.6-inch FHD screen in one of its possible configurations exceeds that of my 15.4" Z61m. Quad core processors are also available for T/W530. But as a road warrior, T430s is way more suitable for me. It's not too small as the 12.5" ThinkPad Twist or X230(t) for my purpose and preference.
Having a Thunderbolt port in T430s -- with an integrated graphics Intel HD 4000; not with NVidia Optimus -- is a great investment. The backlit keyboard besides the ThinkLight is my favorite! I don't mind the chiclet-style keyboard at all. After all, it's ThinkPad, and to me whether it's chiclet or not, ThinkPad keyboard feels and looks better than other non-Lenovo laptops I have tried and/or owned. Above all, I have enjoyed the red TrackPoint, which is absent in most other PCs as well as in Mac! -- objectively speaking. With the TrackPoint, I don't have to move my hands to the touchpad to navigate Windows and other applications.
Maybe because I love classical music, I also love anything vintage, including the way T430s looks, which maintains the classic black, boxy design of ThinkPad since years, if not two decades, ago. Looking "fancy" and "stylish" may be preferable for some people, which they find absent in ThinkPads, but such fanciness and stylishness do not appear classic; at worst, they seem like toys, not laptops whose aesthetic value I cherish. Way to go, Lenovo ThinkPad, especially T430s!
Concerning classical music, Dolby Home Theater v4 boosts my enjoyment with listening to Beethoven symphonies, piano sonatas, and concertos. Well, do not depend on T430s's built-in speakers, but use at least a decent pair of headphones. The Dolby rocks! My AKG K240 55-ohm headphones are sufficiently amped with the Dolby system. My Z61m's audio system can't amplify my headphones adequately, btw.
128 GB SSD + 500 GB HDD 7,200 rpm combine the best of two-storage worlds. The SSD is very snappy, thanks to my 8 GB RAM and i7 processor, too, and the HDD allows me to store many, many things!
Included software is actually okay, so long as my SSD's storage space is not reduced by more than 25%. Can't I have the option to get Windows 7, Skype, Adobe Reader, and Lenovo-related software only and nothing else, for example?
Last but not least, I hope my T430s will be at least as durable as my old Z61m."