Customer reviews for Lenovo ThinkPad T430 - New!
14” powerhouse with productivity-ready features & leading wireless options.
Average customer rating:
(43 Reviews) 41
Rating Snapshot (43 reviews)
5 stars
25
4 stars
11
3 stars
3
2 stars
3
1 star
1
37 of 43(86%)customers would recommend this product to a friend.
Review 1 for ThinkPad T430 - 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
MichaelH
Owned Product:Less than a month
Processor:Intel Core i5
Memory:4 GB or more
Solid, lightweight, durable laptop
Date:09 May 2013
Pros: Warranty, Processor, Durability, Keyboard/peripherals, Display resolution
Cons: case partially blocks usb 3.0 ports
"Great laptop! Small, light, durable, and very fast. Keyboard is top-notch. Easy to carry, 5+ hour battery life with standard battery, and easy access to memory and mSATA slot.
USB 3.0 ports are overhung by the case on the left side. Not a deal-breaker for me, but it's something to be aware of.
Thinkpad build quality is worth the money! I can LEAN on this laptop when working and not worry about hurting it. The Lenovo outlet has really good deals, and minimizes the price difference.
Several of the options I chose and recommend:
Skip Nvidia graphics if battery life is a major concern
1600x900 screen is brighter, has better color, and shows more than the lower-resolution option."
Skip Nvidia graphics if battery life is a major concern
1600x900 screen is brighter, has better color, and shows more than the lower-resolution option."
Review 2 for ThinkPad T430 - 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
ElTee68
Owned Product:1-6 months
Processor:Intel Core i5
Memory:4 GB or more
T Series forever!
Date:27 April 2013
Pros: Battery, Weight, Processor, Security Features, Durability, Memory, Wireless card, Keyboard/peripherals, Screen size, Build Quality, Storage, Display resolution
"Pretty similar to the old ThinkPad (had one that just died after 5 yrs). I love the chiclet keyboard - was so used to the old keyboard but had absolutely no issues transferring over. I think the keys are actually easier to type on. I got the base model computer because I'm cheap, and it's super fast and I love the rapid boot - boots in a minute or less. I also LOVE the fact that you can still get a matte LED screen, I absolutely detest the new screens on laptops these days, they have so much glare. The roll cage feature is great - I dropped my last ThinkPad 3 times, each time from several feet high, and NOTHING happened to it. It's also very light, and battery life is pretty good, been getting about 3.5 hours with full brightness and everything running."
Review 3 for ThinkPad T430 - New!
OverallOverall Rating
Performance
5
out of
5
Mobility
5
out of
5
Design
3
out of
5
Features
4
out of
5
Value
4
out of
5
Reliability
5
out of
5
FINAID
Owned Product:7-12 months
PERFECT FOR MY JOB
Date:13 April 2013
Pros: Battery, Processor, Wireless card, Build Quality
"This thinkpad was the solution for all the problems that Ihad with my PC.
I can process on batch db of more tan 50K registers and keep working on Excel, Word and otutlook at the same time without problem."
I can process on batch db of more tan 50K registers and keep working on Excel, Word and otutlook at the same time without problem."
Review 4 for ThinkPad T430 - New!
OverallOverall Rating
Performance
5
out of
5
Mobility
4
out of
5
Design
5
out of
5
Features
4
out of
5
Value
4
out of
5
Reliability
5
out of
5
theaverageguy
Owned Product:1-6 months
Processor:Intel Core i7
Memory:4 GB or more
Exactly what I wanted (except the camera)
Date:26 March 2013
Pros: Battery, Processor, Security Features, Durability, Video card, Keyboard/peripherals, Build Quality, Display performance
Cons: Included Software, the camera
"The laptop is excellent. It has a great keyboard, processor, and if you include the Nvidia (switchable) graphics card the graphics are great as well. The only thing that would have made the laptop perfect would be a better front-facing camera, compared to the competitors the quality is low and insufficient for any web conferencing you may wish to do with it. And if you are deciding on the operating system, between windows 7 & 8, I would definitely go with windows 7. This is because windows 8 is not useful if you don't have a touchscreen! The amount of extra stuff that Lenovo installs on your machine is also very annoying; if you decide on windows 8, most of it was designed for windows 7 and the other stuff is useless."
Review 5 for ThinkPad T430 - New!
OverallOverall Rating
Performance
4
out of
5
Mobility
4
out of
5
Design
4
out of
5
Features
3
out of
5
Value
4
out of
5
Reliability
4
out of
5
Deeds
Owned Product:2 years+
Processor:Intel Core i5
Memory:4 GB or more
Consistently dependable
Date:26 March 2013
Pros: Weight, Screen size
"We've always used Thinkpads at my companies for our mobile salesmen; the build is durable and stylish, and the trackpoint nub is always in demand them."
Review 6 for ThinkPad T430 - New!
OverallOverall Rating
Performance
4
out of
5
Mobility
5
out of
5
Design
5
out of
5
Features
4
out of
5
Value
5
out of
5
Reliability
5
out of
5
BCgirl1960
Owned Product:7-12 months
Processor:Intel Core 2 Duo
Memory:1 GB
Great Computer for kids and everyone
Date:14 March 2013
Pros: Processor, Memory, Video card, Screen size, Display resolution
Cons: Display resolution, Keyboard/peripherals
"if you are looking for a great price and reliability then look no longer this is a great unit and does everything, great package , love it"
Review 7 for ThinkPad T430 - New!
OverallOverall Rating
Performance
4
out of
5
Mobility
5
out of
5
Design
1
out of
5
Features
3
out of
5
Value
3
out of
5
Reliability
4
out of
5
MikZ
Owned Product:1-6 months
Processor:Intel Core 2 Quad
Memory:4 GB or more
Bitterly disappointing keyboard layout change
Date:05 March 2013
Pros: Weight, Warranty, Processor, Memory, Bluetooth, 4g modem
Cons: Input/Output compatibility, Keyboard/peripherals, keyboard layout
"For professionals, keyboard layout is important! We shouldn't have to look at a keyboard to see where Page Up, Page Down, Home and End have gone; they should be in the right place! Removing hibernate, the context menu key (useful for mapping to Compose) and the extremely convenient Forward and Back browse keys is unacceptable! If Lenovo thinks trendy mousepad gestures make those obsolete, their designers need to brush up on Fitts' Law.
I've been trying to 'just get used to it' for 2 months, but every time I pick my T430s, I'm disappointed. A tool so essential to my business should be a pleasure to use; instead, I curse it daily. Lenovo has squandered >10 years of loyalty. My next laptop will be another brand."
Review 8 for ThinkPad T430 - 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
skipray
Owned Product:1-6 months
Processor:Intel Core i5
Memory:4 GB or more
Like a tank, but lighter!
Date:03 March 2013
Pros: Battery, Input/Output compatibility, Weight, Warranty, Processor, Security Features, Support, Durability, Memory, Video card, Wireless card, Keyboard/peripherals, Screen size, Build Quality, Storage, Display resolution, Display performance
"I had the T400 before I got my T430, and the thing I like most about these laptops is that they are built rugged!
I work in IT and we now recommend the Lenovo T series because it stands a better chance than most other laptops of getting through airport security in one piece than other brands we have dealt with.
My favorite thing is that I have not had to deal with broken hinges on the T series yet and I'm loving it.
Lenovo has a pretty good warranty program as well. We usually get it because one of their techs will show up the next day with the part and we can keep working on something else."
Review 9 for ThinkPad T430 - New!
OverallOverall Rating
Performance
5
out of
5
Mobility
3
out of
5
Design
5
out of
5
Features
4
out of
5
Value
5
out of
5
Reliability
5
out of
5
william
Owned Product:7-12 months
Processor:Intel Core i5
Memory:4 GB or more
everything just works !
Date:24 February 2013
Pros: Input/Output compatibility, Processor, Screen size, Build Quality, Display resolution, linux friendly
Cons: Battery, Weight
"I initially wanted to buy the t430s, but I could not get it delivered on time (I don't live in the US).
being a huge fan of linux, and seeing that the hardware is certified by ubuntu. I jump on it !
being a huge fan of linux, and seeing that the hardware is certified by ubuntu. I jump on it !
My hardware config:
-core i5
-6G RAM
-128Gb SSD+320Gb (a hdd caddy)
-1600x900 screen res.
-core i5
-6G RAM
-128Gb SSD+320Gb (a hdd caddy)
-1600x900 screen res.
Now, I am using this laptop for 6 months now. I really have no complaints except the weight and the battery life. Most of time I use the charger but when I need to work outside the battery last probably 4 or 5 hours for developer usage (Java compilation).
what make this laptop a very good one, is that they use standard hardware (intel based etc ...)
making the experience on Linux painful-less"
what make this laptop a very good one, is that they use standard hardware (intel based etc ...)
making the experience on Linux painful-less"
Review 10 for ThinkPad T430 - New!
OverallOverall Rating
Performance
4
out of
5
Mobility
3
out of
5
Design
2
out of
5
Features
3
out of
5
Value
3
out of
5
Reliability
2
out of
5
userjoe
Owned Product:1-6 months
Processor:Intel Core i7
Memory:4 GB or more
Expected more from a ThinkPad
Date:22 February 2013
Pros: Battery, Software compatibility, Video card, Display resolution
Cons: Weight, Keyboard/peripherals, Processor, Build Quality, Durability
"I'm a computer programmer and was looking for a high performance laptop with great keyboard, top build quality and flawless Linux support.
- Dual-core processor is nowadays not enough in a machine of this class.
- The new chicklet keyboard is a disaster and literally so. After few months a key has just fallen off due to broken key cap hook during normal typing! Such failure should not happen with ThinkPad. Never.
- Overall build quality is worse than with T420. Plastic under the wrist bends and squeaks due to the gap above the CD-drive. Speaker grating catches dirt like crazy. Rubber coating has worn off on the corners just after putting the laptop in and out of the backpack a few times. The lid is hard to keep clean."
Review 11 for ThinkPad T430 - New!
OverallOverall Rating
Performance
3
out of
5
Mobility
3
out of
5
Design
4
out of
5
Features
5
out of
5
Value
2
out of
5
Reliability
1
out of
5
BoneyC
Owned Product:1-6 months
Processor:Intel Core i5
Memory:4 GB or more
Keyboard
Date:07 February 2013
Pros: Battery, Processor, Support, Memory
Cons: Build Quality, Durability
"I've had the T430 for 6 months and had three keyboards and one motherboard. Customer service has been great and helped with taking care of the problems."
Review 12 for ThinkPad T430 - New!
OverallOverall Rating
Performance
4
out of
5
Mobility
5
out of
5
Design
5
out of
5
Features
5
out of
5
Value
4
out of
5
Reliability
5
out of
5
Senzog
Owned Product:1-6 months
Processor:Intel Core i5
Memory:4 GB or more
Neat Little Laptop, hope it holds.
Date:18 January 2013
Pros: Input/Output compatibility, Durability, Video card, Keyboard/peripherals, Screen size, Build Quality, Display resolution, Display performance
Cons: Battery, heat (under stress)
"As far as specs go, this little guy packs a decent punch, (base i5 model w/ Nvidia KVS5400, 8GB RAM, 180GB SSD), and is in no way sold as a gaming laptop, but it does play most modern games at at least low settings. The IntelHD doesn't cut it for gaming, but with the KVS card turned on, here's a few of the games i've played on it....Minecraft - Max Settings - ~70FPS
FarCry3 - Low Settings - ~40FPS
Planetside2 - Low Settings - ~30FPS
Borderlands2 - Medium Settings - ~30FPS
LeagueOfLegends - Max Settings - ~30FPS
My only complaint is the heat. When you turn the Nvidia card on it, and actually push the little thing to it's limit, I'm hitting around 80C in 10 minutes of gaming."
FarCry3 - Low Settings - ~40FPS
Planetside2 - Low Settings - ~30FPS
Borderlands2 - Medium Settings - ~30FPS
LeagueOfLegends - Max Settings - ~30FPS
My only complaint is the heat. When you turn the Nvidia card on it, and actually push the little thing to it's limit, I'm hitting around 80C in 10 minutes of gaming."
Review 13 for ThinkPad T430 - New!
OverallOverall Rating
Performance
4
out of
5
Mobility
5
out of
5
Design
5
out of
5
Features
5
out of
5
Value
4
out of
5
Reliability
4
out of
5
AuntBee
Owned Product:7-12 months
My favorite
Date:10 January 2013
Pros: Keyboard/peripherals
Cons: Included Software
"I like it a lot"
Review 14 for ThinkPad T430 - New!
OverallOverall Rating
Performance
4
out of
5
Mobility
4
out of
5
Design
5
out of
5
Features
4
out of
5
Value
4
out of
5
Reliability
5
out of
5
Zhang
Owned Product:Just got it
Processor:Intel Core i5
Memory:4 GB or more
Overall good but the a little noisy
Date:27 December 2012
"This is my second thinkpad laptop and my first one is an a SL400. Compared to my old Sl series, my T430 is more compact and delicate. But to my surprise, the fan has a not loud noise but which makes me feel quite unpleasant. I don't know how to deal with it."
Review 15 for ThinkPad T430 - New!
OverallOverall Rating
Performance
5
out of
5
Mobility
4
out of
5
Design
5
out of
5
Features
4
out of
5
Value
5
out of
5
Reliability
5
out of
5
ijoy
Owned Product:1-6 months
Processor:Intel Core i7
My first laptop purchase ever
Date:18 December 2012
Pros: Battery, Input/Output compatibility, Weight, Processor, Security Features, Support, Durability, Software compatibility, Memory, Bluetooth, Video card, Screen size, Build Quality, Storage, Display performance
"no comments"
Review 16 for ThinkPad T430 - New!
OverallOverall Rating
Performance
5
out of
5
Mobility
4
out of
5
Design
3
out of
5
Features
5
out of
5
Value
2
out of
5
Reliability
4
out of
5
MDTexas
Location:Houston, Tx
Owned Product:1-6 months
Processor:Intel Core i7
Memory:4 GB or more
Follow-Up Review
Date:06 December 2012
Pros: Security Features, Bluetooth, Video card, Wireless card, Screen size, Display performance, Display resolution, Battery, Input/Output compatibility, Processor, Memory, Keyboard/peripherals, Storage
Cons: Build Quality, Durability
"I am following up from my initial review from when I originally purchased my custom spec T430 from Lenovo. I am still very please with the laptop. My only complaints are that I feel that these newer generation T-Series are really lacking in the durability department. Where the old IBM's were built like tanks and were VERY sturdy, I don't get that feeling with the newer generation units. They feel too "plasticy" like most low quality electronics these days unfortunately... Also, the hinge is not as sturdy as you would think, from my IBM T23 to this T430, the T23 definitely takes the cake. Also on my T430, the plastic part on top of the lower half shell, directly below the screen, seems to be warped up a little bit because when you look at it the plastic sort of arches up. By no means am I trying to nit-pick every little detail, but I really did appeal to the no-nonsense look of the older IBM units. Performance wise, everything runs perfectly, the battery (extended) lasts me roughly 6 hours with average use. While I'm not a big fan of the new island keyboard look, it definitely does help with typing allot faster since there is a little space between each key. All-in-all, I really still like my unit, I just hope that Lenovo starts to drift back toward the higher quality builds that had very strict tolerances as opposed to trying to cut cents here and there. I'm sure people who buy the Think-Pad line would not mind paying an extra $50-100 so as long as they saw an ACTUAL improvement in durability and saw their money being put to it's value. Please improve the Build Quality and Materials for the ThinkPad lineup, Lenovo."
Review 17 for ThinkPad T430 - New!
OverallOverall Rating
Performance
5
out of
5
Mobility
4
out of
5
Design
5
out of
5
Features
3
out of
5
Value
4
out of
5
Reliability
5
out of
5
Mike
Location:TN
Owned Product:7-12 months
Processor:Intel Core i5
Memory:4 GB or more
Reliable, solid machine. A few downsides
Date:04 December 2012
Pros: Durability, Build Quality, Battery, Processor, Memory, Storage
Cons: Keyboard/peripherals
"I've been using the T400 series (T420) for about a year now. Overall, fantastic computer: you get what you pay for. A little on the expensive side, but nothing will break on a Lenovo. My previous Lenovo lasted me 5 years, and I got it used from another memeber of my lab, so I don't even know how long it was going for.
My only complaint is the track pad. I don't like the "bumps"/"ridges" on the track pad. I much prefer a smooth surface. Not only is it not great on the fingers, this one doesn't have good sensitivity. I almost always carry a USB mouse with me for that reason. This isn't a crucial feature to me, so I still definitely recommend this computer (and this brand) to everyone. They make excellent products.
I opted to upgrade to the 9-cell battery; great choice. You get really good battery life. The only downside is you have some battery sticking out the back of your computer. Still fits in the 14" sleeve no problem. Definitely worth it for me since I travel a lot and hate having to find a plug in."
Review 18 for ThinkPad T430 - 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
jinze
Location:Pittsburgh
Owned Product:Just got it
nice one
Date:30 November 2012
"today i got this machine, i buy it in black friday, and most of my friends introduce me thinkpad.Thinkpad is very useful, practical, durable. And T serie always be the typical represention of thinkpad.nice"
Review 19 for ThinkPad T430 - New!
OverallOverall Rating
Performance
4
out of
5
Mobility
2
out of
5
Design
2
out of
5
Features
3
out of
5
Value
3
out of
5
Reliability
2
out of
5
toughbookfan
Location:Germany
Owned Product:1-6 months
Processor:Intel Core i7
Memory:4 GB or more
I expect more for 1500€
Date:19 November 2012
Pros: Weight, Warranty, Software compatibility, Bluetooth, Video card, Screen size, Display performance, Display resolution, Input/Output compatibility, Processor, Memory, Storage
Cons: Wireless card, Support, Keyboard/peripherals, Build Quality, Durability, Battery, Included Software
"The wifi card was almost DOA (disappeared when waking up from standby), the clip of the optical drive broke quite fast and I just get about 4 hours of battery life instead of the promised 10...15hrs with the 9-cell-battery.
The performance was quite okay for the price, but I encounter massive lag since the last bios update which makes me think about using my old satellite 300 again...
Another annoying point is the missing num block, which is unacceptable for a 1500€-machine.
The included Software is useless rubbish and the support isn't really better."
The performance was quite okay for the price, but I encounter massive lag since the last bios update which makes me think about using my old satellite 300 again...
Another annoying point is the missing num block, which is unacceptable for a 1500€-machine.
The included Software is useless rubbish and the support isn't really better."
Review 20 for ThinkPad T430 - 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
cesarev
Location:Serbia, Belgrade
Owned Product:1-6 months
Processor:Intel Core i5
Memory:4 GB or more
If you need laptop for business choose Thinkpad
Date:14 November 2012
Pros: Weight, Security Features, Durability, Screen size, Build Quality, Display performance, Battery, Processor, Memory
"I bought Thinpad T430 3 months ago. It is definetely the best laptop for business there is on the market. I am running simultaneously making a web page encoding video running pdf and word files and all that without glitch. Battery life is great about 8 hours of normal work. Excelent screen with high resolution. And the most important reliability. Nothing can destroy it, it had fallen few times from my lap, I spilt once water on it and it is still working like the first day. It is the notebook that you can relly on every day in any situation. And the security solutions and thinkvantage software is the best solution for business there is. If yo need business notebook don't think about it buy thinkpad!"