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Posted by Dom Masters
 - Today at 11:03:27
Please bring back the mouse buttons. I cannot get used to the haptic ones. They have a life of their own for those of us who use the trackpad some of the time and the pointer the rest. I've really tried.
Posted by RobertJasiek
 - February 25, 2026, 17:08:19
Quote from: 128 GB of memory on February 25, 2026, 16:20:20I'd like to see the support for up to 128 GB RAM

Good wish, except currently too expensive:)
Posted by 128 GB of memory
 - February 25, 2026, 16:20:20
To quote from the review of its predecessor:
Quote from: notebookcheck.net/Lenovo-ThinkPad-P1-Gen-7-review-Without-TrackPoint-buttons-with-Nvidia-GeForce-RTX-4060.901578.0.htmlThe predecessor with more inefficient DDR5 memory did offer up to 96 GB, though the SO-DIMM modules also took up a lot more space.
Very disappointing that LENOVO reverted back [and didn't fix in this Gen 8] to up to 64 GB RAM, because: In the age of LLM self-hosting and data privacy, I'd like to see the support for up to 128 GB RAM (128 GB per LPCAMM2 module should be possible, as the required DRAM memory densities exist now).
128 GB RAM would fit e.g. a high quality huggingface.co/unsloth/Qwen3.5-122B-A10B-GGUF quant or Gpt-Oss-120B, both with a lot or full context.
Posted by pelican-freeze
 - January 31, 2026, 03:47:01
Quote from: veraverav on December 26, 2025, 00:27:23well, I powered up my P1 Gen 8 .. 265H/OLED/64GB RAM/2TB NVMe .. looks like that 5.5 hrs of battery life might be accurate at least on the "Balanced" profile for mixed-use. Haven't tried the one power setting below that "battery efficient". Not sure if the article mentioned which profile they used.

OLED is beautiful, but found latent image retention in darker environments where the brightness is at 25%. "After images" show up on dark grey and remain for minutes after. Possibly a defective panel.

Machine runs extremely cool and quiet. Lenovo has bee aggressive with power limits on the CPU. The one comment on YT with the guy who bough the non-dGPU one which doesn't use LM -- clearly getting a dGPU is the way to go if you want cool and quiet. Will the fans ramp up if you do something intense for extended periods, yes it will, but way better than my P1 Gen 2.

Did you return your OLED P1 Gen 8 / buy an IPS variant? I bought the OLED version and returned it due to all of the OLED issues discussed, but I'm curious how much better the IPS variant would be for battery life in addition to the overall quality of life improvements - no flickering, no image retention, no OLED text quality issues, better matte coating quality, no non-standard 3.2k resolution quirks etc..
Posted by Nasty matte OLED?
 - January 22, 2026, 08:44:55
QuoteMatte RGB isn't as crisp as we would like
QuoteSubjectively, the matte tandem OLED screen on our test unit appears grainier than a traditional glossy alternative especially when displaying an all-white image.
Judging the close-up picture: Nasty. What's the purpose of using an OLED then.

I'm a glossy QD-OLED TV user and its especially awesome when gaming (in Game Mode, 144 Hz, Warm2), but if the battery life in laptops is decreased vs IPS and you have a lot of static content/burn-in risk (is it still a concern)? (nothing on my QD-OLED TV so far), then maybe go with the good old IPS after all, especially if you want its matte/anti-glare coating and the 4K one is 100% DCI-P3.

The PWM frequency on this OLED seems not of concern(?)

The OLED in SDR is "566 nits", the 4K IPS is "800 nits". I think Apple uses 500 nits in SDR as well (1000 nits in HDR only). So, maybe at least when it comes to nits, it might not be an issue, regardless which display option one chooses.

Yes, report back what you think of the 4K IPS.
Posted by Philm
 - January 21, 2026, 20:33:22
Quote from: veraverav on January 19, 2026, 07:42:34I am returning it and the P1 Gen 8 with the 4k IPS panel is on its way already. I knew they wouldn't tell us about the Gen 9 at CES since they were so late launching this model.

I'll be interested to know what you think of the 4k IPS display. I'm torn between that and the OLED.
Posted by veraverav
 - January 19, 2026, 07:42:34
Quote from: pelican-freeze on January 11, 2026, 15:54:13Did you end up getting a resolution that you were happy with? Either a replacement with an OLED without the retention issue you mentioned or a swap for IPS?

After having the laptop for a while could you share some more impressions of the display and general quality of life experience using it in day to day use? Have you been able to tweak some settings to improve the battery life?

Still trying to decide whether or not to keep mine (Lenovo's Holiday return window in the US closes January 27th, 2026). I was hoping for some more exciting laptop announcements at CES that would encourage me to return the P1 G8 and wait for newer releases, but was a bit disappointed by the new product announcements.

Next gen Panther Lake CPUs don't seem like a proper generational leap for anything other than webcam quality (new ISP) outside of combined CPU / GPU scenarios where panther lake is being configured to take up less of the overall power budget / allow for more of the overall power budget to be allocated to higher GPU wattage. So panther lake seems to be an extremely minimal upgrade on the performance / efficiency / IO front unless you're ok with relying entirely on Intel's new integrated GPU or you have a discreet GPU that could see a significant performance increase if it were fed an additional 10-15w in combined CPU / GPU load scenarios.

There very few panther lake laptop announcements at CES featuring tandem OLEDs too and the ones that were announced all had major issues - limited 2.8k or lower resolutions, cost saving low quality anti-reflective coatings / full on mirror finishes, no thunderbolt 5, poor overall port selection, integrated intel GPU only etc..

I am returning it and the P1 Gen 8 with the 4k IPS panel is on its way already. I knew they wouldn't tell us about the Gen 9 at CES since they were so late launching this model.
Posted by pelican-freeze
 - January 11, 2026, 15:54:13
Quote from: veraverav on January 07, 2026, 06:47:03I'm asking them to replace it with the 4k IPS version, which they refuse, even though its cheaper. They only want to replace it with an identical machine with the OLED screen. I'm not sure what to do. I love the machine aside from this OLED issue. Am I rolling the dice asking for a replacement?

I ran PCMark10 office battery life test which got 10hrs of battery life.

I'm trying to escalate my issue to see if someone can send me the 4k IPS instead. So far no luck.

I got the TB5 7500 Smart Dock and it works very well with the machine as well.

Did you end up getting a resolution that you were happy with? Either a replacement with an OLED without the retention issue you mentioned or a swap for IPS?

After having the laptop for a while could you share some more impressions of the display and general quality of life experience using it in day to day use? Have you been able to tweak some settings to improve the battery life?

Still trying to decide whether or not to keep mine (Lenovo's Holiday return window in the US closes January 27th, 2026). I was hoping for some more exciting laptop announcements at CES that would encourage me to return the P1 G8 and wait for newer releases, but was a bit disappointed by the new product announcements.

Next gen Panther Lake CPUs don't seem like a proper generational leap for anything other than webcam quality (new ISP) outside of combined CPU / GPU scenarios where panther lake is being configured to take up less of the overall power budget / allow for more of the overall power budget to be allocated to higher GPU wattage. So panther lake seems to be an extremely minimal upgrade on the performance / efficiency / IO front unless you're ok with relying entirely on Intel's new integrated GPU or you have a discreet GPU that could see a significant performance increase if it were fed an additional 10-15w in combined CPU / GPU load scenarios.

There very few panther lake laptop announcements at CES featuring tandem OLEDs too and the ones that were announced all had major issues - limited 2.8k or lower resolutions, cost saving low quality anti-reflective coatings / full on mirror finishes, no thunderbolt 5, poor overall port selection, integrated intel GPU only etc..
Posted by veraverav
 - January 07, 2026, 06:47:03
Quote from: pelican-freeze on December 28, 2025, 23:11:16Any more thoughts? Are you happy enough with the P1 Gen 8 to keep it?

I'm asking them to replace it with the 4k IPS version, which they refuse, even though its cheaper. They only want to replace it with an identical machine with the OLED screen. I'm not sure what to do. I love the machine aside from this OLED issue. Am I rolling the dice asking for a replacement?

I ran PCMark10 office battery life test which got 10hrs of battery life.

I'm trying to escalate my issue to see if someone can send me the 4k IPS instead. So far no luck.

I got the TB5 7500 Smart Dock and it works very well with the machine as well.
Posted by Fortis
 - December 29, 2025, 14:24:06
Lenovo made a cardinal sin by putting clickpad without buttons on a ThinkPad. What's the point of doing so if you have already a ThinkBook P version?
Posted by pelican-freeze
 - December 28, 2025, 23:11:16
Quote from: veraverav on December 26, 2025, 00:27:23well, I powered up my P1 Gen 8 .. 265H/OLED/64GB RAM/2TB NVMe .. looks like that 5.5 hrs of battery life might be accurate at least on the "Balanced" profile for mixed-use. Haven't tried the one power setting below that "battery efficient". Not sure if the article mentioned which profile they used.

OLED is beautiful, but found latent image retention in darker environments where the brightness is at 25%. "After images" show up on dark grey and remain for minutes after. Possibly a defective panel.

Machine runs extremely cool and quiet. Lenovo has bee aggressive with power limits on the CPU. The one comment on YT with the guy who bough the non-dGPU one which doesn't use LM -- clearly getting a dGPU is the way to go if you want cool and quiet. Will the fans ramp up if you do something intense for extended periods, yes it will, but way better than my P1 Gen 2.

Any more thoughts? Are you happy enough with the P1 Gen 8 to keep it?
Posted by veraverav
 - December 26, 2025, 00:27:23
well, I powered up my P1 Gen 8 .. 265H/OLED/64GB RAM/2TB NVMe .. looks like that 5.5 hrs of battery life might be accurate at least on the "Balanced" profile for mixed-use. Haven't tried the one power setting below that "battery efficient". Not sure if the article mentioned which profile they used.

OLED is beautiful, but found latent image retention in darker environments where the brightness is at 25%. "After images" show up on dark grey and remain for minutes after. Possibly a defective panel.

Machine runs extremely cool and quiet. Lenovo has bee aggressive with power limits on the CPU. The one comment on YT with the guy who bough the non-dGPU one which doesn't use LM -- clearly getting a dGPU is the way to go if you want cool and quiet. Will the fans ramp up if you do something intense for extended periods, yes it will, but way better than my P1 Gen 2.
Posted by pelican-freeze
 - December 21, 2025, 16:27:08
I picked up a P1 Gen 8 with the 3.2K Tandem OLED during the Black Friday sale to try it out, since Lenovo's holiday return window means no restocking fees even on opened units.

It's turned out to be more of a mixed bag than expected, and at this point I'm leaning toward returning it.

I was looking for a quality‑of‑life upgrade from my P1 Gen 4 (4K IPS, 3080, 11950H) — something that closed the gap a bit with a 16‑inch MacBook Pro in display quality, battery life, chassis temps, and performance. Unfortunately, even fully loaded, the P1 Gen 8 just doesn't narrow that gap as much as I was hoping.

The P1 Gen 8's Tandem OLED is surprisingly good for productivity, and text clarity versus a 4K IPS panel is less of a downgrade than I expected. Windows at 125% scaling on the 3.2K panel gives you effectively the same usable workspace as 150% scaling on a 4K IPS panel.

The big problem is the matte coating, which largely kills the usual OLED black‑level and "infinite contrast" advantages for content consumption. On the plus side, for video you get excellent color (100% DCI‑P3, with BT.2020 coverage in the "good but not QD‑OLED" tier) and extremely high HDR highlight brightness. But those strengths are undermined by the washed‑out perceived contrast and elevated blacks you get from a matte OLED, which is exactly the opposite of why people want OLED in the first place. As Notebookcheck points out, the matte graininess is more noticeable in brighter scenes, so in high APL HDR scenes where the panel really lights up, a lot of the "wow" factor is lost in a combination of grain and contrast washout.

Given that the matte coating wipes out two of the main benefits of OLED for media, and the 4K IPS option is arguably better for pure workstation use, it's hard to disagree with Notebookcheck's conclusion that the IPS panel is the more sensible choice here. The Tandem OLED is compelling in theory, but the coating plus the higher power draw make the trade‑offs tough to justify. I really wanted to like it - without true OLED blacks and contrast, though, this panel ends up feeling like a bit of an odd option. On top of that, there's a slight green tint from the AOFT touch layer. Ideally, a future P1 Gen 9 would offer a better‑thought‑out Tandem OLED option - true 4K resolution (so no text clarity downgrade), a MacBook‑class glossy anti‑reflective coating, and no annoying visible AOFT touch layer. If Lenovo can ship a Tandem OLED configuration that's actually suited for content consumption, it would be very high on my list.

Battery life is also poor (likely a combo of Tandem OLED and the Nvidia GPU), and chassis temps are much hotter than expected when used on a lap, since the bottom air intake is very easy to block. My P1 Gen 4 also gets extremely hot in "couch mode," but I was really expecting the P1 Gen 8 to be an improvement here, so the fact that it feels even more uncomfortably hot to the touch is a real letdown.

So overall I think it's hard to imagine keeping the P1 Gen 8. Maybe next year panther lake will helps with the temp issues and Lenovo will start offering 4k Tandem OLEDs without the blur filter / vaseline look applied. Matte coatings can definitely be a great fit for IPS panels, but it just seems like a crime to put one on top of a $$$$ Tandem OLED like this.

EDIT: The more I think about my HDR experience with the P1 Gen 8's 3.2k Tandem OLED, the more I've realized it's nearly impossible to properly evaluate a Windows laptop's HDR display capabilities. HDR on Windows remains poorly implemented compared to macOS. After more testing, only Netflix and Apple TV+ actually deliver 4K or HDR streams on Windows - everything else (Disney+, Max, Paramount+, Peacock, etc.) is stuck at 1080p SDR.

And with Windows HDR toggled on, any SDR content looks washed out (grainy blacks, elevated contrast) until you manually disable it.

So while I still have issues with these new tandem OLED panels - especially the matte coating impairing the true OLED blacks - I suspect many negative comments about these new panels around the web stem from Windows' broken HDR pipeline plus the majority of streaming services sending inferior 1080p SDR video streams to to PC browsers/apps compared to the superior streams (4K/HDR) sent to TVs, streaming sticks, and high-end tablets (often higher bitrate 1080p HDR).
Posted by Worgarthe
 - December 17, 2025, 22:36:43
Quote from: pelican-freeze on December 15, 2025, 23:16:13FWIW there's a much bigger difference between the higher-end mobile GPU options for everything that isn't gaming, so it can absolutely make sense to spend more on P16 Gen 3 GPU upgrades even if the chassis is TGP‑limited.

RTX Pro 2000 / 5060 mobile – 1 NVENC encoder, 128‑bit bus, 8 GB VRAM
RTX Pro 3000 / 5070 Ti mobile – 1 NVENC encoder, 192‑bit bus, 12 GB VRAM
RTX Pro 4000 / 5080 mobile – 2 NVENC encoders, 256‑bit bus, 16 GB VRAM
RTX Pro 5000 / 5090 mobile – 3 NVENC encoders, 256‑bit bus, 24 GB VRAM

For video editing specifically, the RTX Pro 4000 mobile is the real workstation sweet spot: it delivers desktop 5080‑class encoding (100% more NVENC encoders vs the RTX Pro 3000 / 5070 Ti mobile) while staying relatively reasonable on cost and power.

The RTX Pro 5000 / 5090 mobile can then give you essentially "5090‑class" video encoding throughput, since it has the same three NVENC encoders as the desktop 5090, but for the big price jump over the RTX Pro 4000 mobile you're only getting 50% more NVENC encoders and there's zero further improvement to the memory bus.

All of these mobile parts use the same single NVDEC decoder, so you don't gain extra decode hardware by moving up the stack. On desktop, the 5080 and 5090 each have two NVDEC decoders, which can help with heavier multi‑track timeline video decode. The desktop 5070 Ti desktop by comparison only has a single NVENC encoder / NVDEC decoder so it's a bit limited as a workstation GPU.
I knew many of those things, but not all of those things; fantastic comment, thank you! It's a great start to go into an interesting rabbit hole and learn more stuff, thanks for posting this 🙏

And yes, I agree with you about the "everything that isn't gaming" part! The whole discussion about gaming (and eGPU) started because of this exact comment though (as that guy is spamming the exact same crap under pretty much every existing review around here):

Quote from: 2k for 8GB VRAM gg on December 11, 2025, 10:08:06
Quote8 GB VRAM
2000 for only 8 GB VRAM? Nice trolling.
Even games have a problem with only 8 GB VRAM: youtube.com/watch?v=ric7yb1VaoA: "Gaming Laptops are in Trouble - VRAM Testing w/ ‪@Hardwareunboxed‬"
Most big games are made for consoles first in mind and the PS5 has 16 GB VRAM, minus 4 GB for the OS, and games expect your GPU to have at least 12 GB VRAM.
Posted by pelican-freeze
 - December 15, 2025, 23:16:13
Quote from: Worgarthe on December 14, 2025, 21:47:40I mean, again, and this is now a rhetorical question - why in the world would one pay +2980€ to go from 245HX + Blackwell 1000 to 245HX + Blackwell 5000 (that previously linked P16 Gen 3 configuration on Lenovo's site) when a 740-780€ 5070 Ti is simply going to destroy that Blackwell 5000? ¯\_(ツ)_/¯
Sure if they simply NEED to play Battlefield 6 on battery when they commute to work then ok, go crazy and get that Blackwell 5000, or they can save money and go with Blackwell 4000 (16 GB) for "just" +1420€ (and get even more obliterated by a 740-780€ 5070 Ti), but yeah...

FWIW there's a much bigger difference between the higher-end mobile GPU options for everything that isn't gaming, so it can absolutely make sense to spend more on P16 Gen 3 GPU upgrades even if the chassis is TGP‑limited.

RTX Pro 2000 / 5060 mobile – 1 NVENC encoder, 128‑bit bus, 8 GB VRAM
RTX Pro 3000 / 5070 Ti mobile – 1 NVENC encoder, 192‑bit bus, 12 GB VRAM
RTX Pro 4000 / 5080 mobile – 2 NVENC encoders, 256‑bit bus, 16 GB VRAM
RTX Pro 5000 / 5090 mobile – 3 NVENC encoders, 256‑bit bus, 24 GB VRAM

For video editing specifically, the RTX Pro 4000 mobile is the real workstation sweet spot: it delivers desktop 5080‑class encoding (100% more NVENC encoders vs the RTX Pro 3000 / 5070 Ti mobile) while staying relatively reasonable on cost and power.

The RTX Pro 5000 / 5090 mobile can then give you essentially "5090‑class" video encoding throughput, since it has the same three NVENC encoders as the desktop 5090, but for the big price jump over the RTX Pro 4000 mobile you're only getting 50% more NVENC encoders and there's zero further improvement to the memory bus.

All of these mobile parts use the same single NVDEC decoder, so you don't gain extra decode hardware by moving up the stack. On desktop, the 5080 and 5090 each have two NVDEC decoders, which can help with heavier multi‑track timeline video decode. The desktop 5070 Ti desktop by comparison only has a single NVENC encoder / NVDEC decoder so it's a bit limited as a workstation GPU.