Lenovo Announces ThinkPads Preloaded With XP

BBCWatcher writes "Lenovo just announced new ThinkPad T61 models preloaded with Microsoft Windows XP. Ironically they're called ThinkPad T61 'TopSeller' models. Lenovo says they're aimed at small and medium-sized businesses. The XP TopSellers are available immediately, and the part numbers are 6465-03U, 7658-04U, and 7664-06U (PDF links). "Lenovo recommends Windows Vista Business"? Not so much."

Consumer demand..?

[ricebowl]

So the news is that a company selling computers is selling something that the consumer's been asking for? Who'd've thought it? While I'm glad that another company, following Dell and some others, has bucked the Microsoft line, I'm not sure that it's particularly astounding.

On the other hand though, kudos to them for doing so. Now if only they'd lose the '$Company recommends Windows Vista $model' branding I'd be even more impressed. Why claim to recommend something that you fairly obviously don't? I'm aware that there are provisos from Microsoft for supplying lower-cost OEM software to these companies but, surely, at some point the marketing/PR departments are going to realise that trying to play on both sides of a particular game isn't going to look too good for them?

Ah, me and my optimism...

Re:Consumer demand..?

[Entropius]

Selling what the customer's asking for *is* astounding in today's world. It shouldn't be, but it is.

Re:This is news?

[Anonymous Psychopath]

I just bought one last week and had the choice of Vista or XP. I think the news is probably that they have now have canned SKUs for XP where maybe they didn't before? As in, you could always go on and customize a laptop to have anything you want, but companies buying in large quantities probably just use a canned SKU that has the bundle they want with everything, to save time. Just guessing, though.

Vista to XP - upgrade or downgrade?

[jkrise]

http://www-307.ibm.com/pc/support/site.wss/VSTA-DWNGRD.html [ibm.com]

The only downgrade from Vista to XP is the price.. .and hassles besides. Why does everyone insist XP is inferior compared to Vista? As far as the user eXPerience is concerned XP is way ahead of Vista, so it is an Upgrade.

Re:This is the end I tell you!

[Constantine XVI]

Actually, staying on XP does, indirectly, have a negative impact on MS. Since Vista went over so poorly, shareholders get irritated that all that money they spent on R&D isin't making much of a return, and thus don't want them to take a risk like this again. Vista must succeed for the shareholders to be happy.

Re:Heh great name

[geekoid]

Like any relationship, it takes more then a beautiful face to live with someone day in and day out.

Re:Posted from a T61

[afroborg]

That has always annoyed me too. Why can't you buy a laptop with plain old windows installed on it? Why does it have to have a dozen irritating utilities, all of which insist on having a taskbar icon, and most of which simply duplicate functionality that already exists within the OS?

Why would I need a branded wireless LAN config utility? The OS already does that
Why would I need a "Modem Helper" utility? The OS already knows how to work a modem
Why would I need a sound mixer utility? The OS has one already
etc...

And so many of them are bundled / built in with the drivers for the hardware, so you can't even get rid of them!

Re:This is news?

[petermgreen]

Did you actually read my post?

Most big companies are going to reimage anyway. If they buy with vista then they can easilly downgrade to XP without paying any extra but if they buy with XP then when they want to put vista on them (which they probablly will evenutally) they will have to pay to do so.