A worthy successor to the ThinkPad X1 Extreme – Lenovo ThinkPad T1g Gen 8 review

[Redaktion]

Lenovo's ThinkPad T1g Gen 8 steps in as the successor to the much-loved ThinkPad X1 Extreme, delivering a highly capable multimedia laptop with powerful hardware, a matte tandem OLED touch display and what may well be the finest keyboard Lenovo has ever put into a ThinkPad.

https://www.notebookcheck.net/A-worthy-successor-to-the-ThinkPad-X1-Extreme-Lenovo-ThinkPad-T1g-Gen-8-review.1210033.0.html

[Dg]

4k for a laptop 5070 (desktop 5060).

Lmao.

[disappointed]

maximum of 64 GB RAM

I agree, if this is the successor to the Extreme, how come it only supports up to 64 GB RAM. With 96 GB RAM, Gpt-Oss-120b (with almost full context*) or GLM-4.5-Air (quant) could be run.

* = go to huggingface.co/spaces/oobabooga/accurate-gguf-vram-calculator, paste huggingface.co/unsloth/gpt-oss-120b-GGUF/blob/main/gpt-oss-120b-F16.gguf into the calculator, set context to full and see the required RAM size.

Also, only 8 GB VRAM for 4500 bucks? Imagine what kind of desktop PC one could build for this sum + getting a much cheaper laptop with still 8 GB VRAM.

@ Dg
right

[Aland11]

What about the mass storage performance?
In addition, it appears that it is better to just get the Yoga Pro 9i with a better screen for almost half the money. I dont really see what value we get for an additional USD2,000

[szg]

Although the article states that this model supports PCIe 5.0 connectivity for SSD drives, Lenovo's technical specifications indicate that the motherboard only supports the 4.0 standard. It is strange that 5.0 drives can be requested for higher-end versions, but in reality, these are also connected to the system with 4.0 standard.

Max Storage Support[1]: Up to two M.2 2280 Gen 5 Performance SSD; up to 8TB, 4TB each
Storage Slot[2]: Two M.2 2280 PCIe® 4.0 x4 slots

[LLMs cause Brain rot]

Disappointed, any thoughts of the medical research showing increased usage and exposure to LLMs is causing a decline in cognitive intelligence for not only kids but even fully grown adults with developed brains?

[M2026]

Only an idiot will buy this for 4500...you can buy a full spec XMG for less (275HX, 5090, 128/96GM!)

[pierre Geeregat]

I agree with most other reviews that €4500 for 8V RAM and an underclocked graphics card for a 4K screen is insufficient. I don't understand why it has such a high rating for a price that doesn't seem justified. The Zypherus or the Asus ProArt seem much better for a lower price, not to mention plenty of other cheaper alternatives. Only a few watches with professional graphics cards reach such a high price. The processor is also the slowest in its class and its performance decreases over time. The same goes for the graphics card, which is the slowest in its class. No games are tested at the screen's native resolution...

[sbpnt]

Looking forward to the P16 G3 review on this site.

[Brothers]

Every single mobile dgpu laptop is either overpriced or lacks vram. There's only 1 vendor making the gfx here and it's a monopoly with no competition. Has been like this for several years now. Protesting your disdain for one over another is a lost cause. None of these companies care. Just go eGPU route w/ a desktop card if it matters that much to you, problem solved.

[FlexUser]

Only an idiot will buy this for 4500...you can buy a full spec XMG for less (275HX, 5090, 128/96GM!)

Why the insult?

re: to understand the difference between this Thinkpad and the XMG we need to wait 5 years. Many top-end laptops look overpriced when you compare the specs. But there is more than specs. This Thinkpad is very silent. Does not heat. Has a superb keyboard and touchpad. Everything but the wifi module is replaceable. Battery runs long.

If you want a battle specs MSI will always win. I know because I played that game, went with a MSI (best specs for the money) and I dumped it 18 months later. Man did I hate that laptop. It heated the room, was noisy as hell, and the screen had less contrast than white against pure white.  I was coming from a Dell that ran for 10 years, and it was replaced by another Dell (this time a XPS) that is 8 years old and is still going well.

This T1g gen 8 can be had with an IPS screen (my preference) with 32gb of RAM and a 5060 for around 2900€ which is still a lot of money, more than a Yoga Pro 9 but the build quality is probably what the buyer would be paying for.

[sbpnt]

Only an idiot will buy this for 4500...you can buy a full spec XMG for less (275HX, 5090, 128/96GM!)

Why the insult?

re: to understand the difference between this Thinkpad and the XMG we need to wait 5 years. Many top-end laptops look overpriced when you compare the specs. But there is more than specs. This Thinkpad is very silent. Does not heat. Has a superb keyboard and touchpad. Everything but the wifi module is replaceable. Battery runs long.

If you want a battle specs MSI will always win. I know because I played that game, went with a MSI (best specs for the money) and I dumped it 18 months later. Man did I hate that laptop. It heated the room, was noisy as hell, and the screen had less contrast than white against pure white.  I was coming from a Dell that ran for 10 years, and it was replaced by another Dell (this time a XPS) that is 8 years old and is still going well.

This T1g gen 8 can be had with an IPS screen (my preference) with 32gb of RAM and a 5060 for around 2900€ which is still a lot of money, more than a Yoga Pro 9 but the build quality is probably what the buyer would be paying for.

There are many things you are paying extra for. Lenovo's Thinkpad warranty, especially the premium on-site one. Very likely better drivers and support. RHEL, Fedor Linux certification (yes, it is nice to have). There is also obviously a premium to be paid for a Thinkpad product.

But very importantly, if this question is being asked, you might not be the right buyer for this laptop. This is intended to be sold mainly through b2b channels, where you get an enterprise discount through your sales rep. I speak (write) out of experience. You would get a 15-25% discount on this machine with a good rep.

[Philm]

Can anyone explain why the P1 gen 8 has half the battery life of the T1g according to notebookcheck when they are virtually identical machines with the same tandem oled display?

[pelican-freeze]

Has anyone done a head-to-head on the P1 Gen 8 or T1 Gen 8 Tandem OLED (3.2K) vs their 4K IPS panels? Kinda surprised Notebookcheck reviewed the OLED versions of both and then griped about the same OLED downsides twice—what's the point there?

I tried the P1 Gen 8 with the 3.2K Tandem OLED and ended up returning it. Build quality, performance, and keyboard were all top-notch, but that OLED display just tanked the whole experience for me.

The non-standard 3.2K resolution means streaming services like Netflix and Prime cap you at 1080p because they don't see it as "true 4K." The matte coating makes bright HDR scenes look grainy and washed out, and there are tons of Reddit reports about flickering and image retention that I also experienced so it seems that many units (all units?) are affected by these issues. Text clarity takes a hit too compared to IPS, especially being 3.2k / having a sub-4K resolution, and fine details in photo editing look noticeably blurrier.

If Lenovo drops a 2026 Panther Lake version with a native 4K Tandem OLED that has a decent anti-reflective coating and fixes the flicker/retention issues, it'd be an absolute beast of a laptop. Right now though, this OLED config just isn't workable for either content consumption or productivity. Zero stars for the Tandem OLED. I'd strongly recommend avoiding any variants using this substandard display option.