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Comment by _l4jh | Hacker News Reader

This was my experience with a ThinkPad last year. They could not do on-site (in home) service due to the [redacted] lockdown so I had to do mail-in. They even emailed a PDF with instructions on how to remove the drive.

Sadly this is not possible with a modern MacBook. When I have had to send a MacBook to Apple (or a service partner) for repair I was instructed to wipe the machine (along with ensuring I log out of iCloud to disable Activation Lock and disable Find My). While it is good to ensure my personal data is not compromised it isn't user friendly at all to have to wipe my whole machine for a battery replacement :(

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It's not user-friendly at all to require a machine to be sent off for a battery replacement.

For the ThinkPad, it's a 5 minute task which many people can do themselves -- certainly anyone who works in IT.

We've had less strict restrictions than France, but a couple of my colleagues replaced the batteries on their HP laptops. I sent videos, and they saw how easy it was -- less painful than a Covid test.

> For the ThinkPad, it's a 5 minute task which many people can do themselves

Which is still a step backwards. On my ThinkPad I can remove the battery in seconds without looking. Mainly because sometimes I had to disconnect it to reset it completely. If that would take 5 minutes or any kind of tool that's already hard to justify imho. What do we gain from integrated batteries? Nothing that makes up for easy replacement or, in the case of ThinkPads, the option to upgrade the capacity before the purchase.

a few generations ago ThinkPad when to a dual battery setup so unless your ThinkPad is pretty old I bet it has both an internal and removable battery.

as to "What do we gain", they claim they can make them thinner and lighter, but the T14 seems to be the same Thinkness and a T450/T460 so.......

I had a second battery instead of a CD, as well as the 9 cell. Trouble is the latches weren’t fewer, it would often slip out, and that would cause the machine to lose power momentarily knocking it out of “sleep”.

The T480 was the last T-series model with dual batteries. The newer ones all have only the embedded battery.

I appreciate the lower weight and size (and presumably cost) of devices, and I don't need to swap the battery often enough to justify batteries that can be replaced without tools.

Battery replacement is a once-in-a-few-years operation and it's OK for it to take 5 minutes.

Spoken like someone that should probably be using a desktop.

Personally, having backup batteries is a requirement for the places I work.

Yes, that's why USB-C powerbanks exist. I can charge my laptop from one and it's nicer than lugging around laptop batteries, plus the laptop can be thinner.

Such a bizzare way to respond.

Laptop being thinner is a trade off you're willing to make, I am not.

Charging a battery with another battery is extremely inefficient.

Lugging around laptop batteries is exactly the same thing as lugging around power banks, except laptop batteries don't require a dongle and a cable to tether you to a table.

Laptop batteries mean you laptop can continue to in fact work from your lap.

I am a big fan of removable batteries but even I can see the huge advantage of USB-C Powerbanks. An additional ThinkPad battery can cost ~$100 iirc. And this battery will only ever work with this specific laptop model.

A powerbank for the same price will probably have a higher capacity, and be able to charge any USB-C device.

All this is not a reason for integrated batteries, but Powerbanks using a universal interface are clearly more practical.

> I appreciate the lower weight and size (and presumably cost) of devices

The newest T14 is more expensive than my Thinkpad from the same series was - as extra thin, hard to repair notebooks usually are. It is a bit slimmer, but in the display part, not the base with the battery. It is a bit lighter, I'm guessing because of a plastic case? I'm not sure, but the case material is noticeably absent from marketing material and the datasheet, while in the case of mine both mentioned the magnesium case and internal metal cage.

Of course that's just a surface-level comparison. But after my really bad time with the Surface Pro I am absolutely not going to buy a laptop with integrated battery as long as I can avoid it. It's just not worth the pain if something goes wrong.

>... I am absolutely not going to buy a laptop with integrated battery as long as I can avoid it.

Unfortunately it's becoming more and more difficult to find removable battery equipped laptops, what current model lines do have that still?

I have the T470 (with swappable battery) and the T14 (newest T-line Thinkpad without external battery).

Weight difference is minimal, size difference is minimal. Yes, there is a difference, but I don't notice it really. And I'm someone who actually lugs the laptop around, on buses and trains and while riding a bike. Most people don't even really carry their laptops, maybe from car to office and that's it.

As a person who actually carries their laptop around, I appreciate the swappable battery. Train rides are much less anxious, no need to find a seat with a plug nearby, because I know I have an extra battery.

The T14 is definitely less portable. There's less ports as well, which is quite annoying. The only downside of the T470 is the screen - I like to work outside and a higher brightness screen is crucial. If I could have the T470 with a better screen and AMD CPU, I wouldn't bother buying a new Thinkpad.

I don't know why they call ultraportables ultraportables. Are they marketed for people who sometimes lift their laptop off the table and who are bothered by the "extra weight"?

It's better to use T470 in your situation because T14 is just a cheaper T line product. Its design is less cared to be lightweight. Comparing T470 vs X1 Carbon would be better to compare portability by using embedded battery.

These days one can use an external battery over USB-C if the internal battery is not enough. And I can use it to charge all the devices plus there is no need to shutdown the laptop to change the batteries.

Let alone, impossible to do if the device will not even boot.

also relies on it being in working-enough-order to do the erase to begin with.. plenty of machines broken enough to not to power on but still hold data...

I mean it's not like you're ineligible for service if you can't wipe your machine, I imagine there are alternative directions if that is one of your issues.

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