What is Looria?Sign up

Apple MacBook Air (2020) vs Lenovo ThinkPad T540p

Apple MacBook Air (2020)

Apple MacBook Air (2020)

137 reviews

View Product Details

Lenovo ThinkPad T540p

Lenovo ThinkPad T540p

32 reviews

View Product Details

Consumer Reports · Best Laptops for College Students

RTINGS · The 7 Best Laptops

Wirecutter · The 3 Best MacBooks of 2021

#30 most mentioned

Reddit · r/thinkpad

Great portability

Strong performance with M1 processor

Up to 12.5 hours of battery life on a single charge

High quality case and good panel

Good optimization for macOS

Great price-to-value ratio

Solid construction and easy to upgrade

Excellent keyboard and integrated 10-key

Linux-compatible

Red TrackPoint for easy pointing

Not suitable for those who need more multitasking power or storage space

Windows laptops offer more performance at a lower price point

No significant design updates since 2018

Not the best battery life

Clunky and unreliable touchpad

Verdict

The Apple MacBook Air (2020) is a great choice for those looking for a highly portable laptop with strong performance. It features an M1 processor, 8GB of RAM, and 256GB of solid state storage. The battery life is also impressive, lasting up to 12.5 hours on a single charge. However, the base model may not be suitable for those who need more multitasking power or storage space. Additionally, some Windows laptops offer more performance at a lower price point.

Verdict

The Lenovo ThinkPad T540p is a powerful laptop with an excellent price-to-value ratio. It has a solid construction and is easy to upgrade, with a great keyboard and integrated 10-key. It is also Linux-compatible and has a red TrackPoint for easy pointing. However, the touchpad is clunky and unreliable, and the battery life is not the best.

Reviews by Topic

Our analysis shows how reviewers feel about different topics. Please note these are not full reviews.

Battery Life

All it needed was a totally new keyboard and faster processors

2GHz to get something done and then ramp it back down to 1.1GHz to preserve heat and battery life. This is a pretty normal strategy now.

Negative

I then installed both windows 10 technical preview and kubuntu 14.10, which performed excellently. Battery- This uses a haswell processor, so the CPU draws significatly more power (37w TDP vs 13w TDP) then the latest-generation intel mobile CPUs (the new broadwell parts are soldered to the socket, which is a deal-killer for me as I intend to upgrade the CPU later). However, lenovo packs a big ass battery in there, and you can get the 57++ which will give you apx

Performance

Verdict – The Core i3 is the better choice for everyday tasks

There are also noticeable advantages in terms of the emissions, and especially the fan is much quieter with a slower maximum speed. This means the i3 MacBook Air is quieter for longer periods of time, even when you stress it.The MacBook Air with the dual-core i3 processor is the better device for basic workloads. The subjective performance impression is very good in these scenarios, the fan is quieter, and you can still enjoy the good display as well as the improved keyboard

Neutral

notebookcheck.net

I can't believe it is a Thinkpad T!

And the greatest surprise is that I cannot feel it faster than my C2D 1G memory windows XP laptop. It will become slow when you turn on several programs. I will try to add another 4G memory to see the difference. Generally, I am disappointed although I still wish it is very durable

Keyboard

Magic Keyboard makes the new $999 MacBook Air

In 2018, the system finally got a much-needed reboot, adding a high-res screen, slimmer bezels and Touch ID. But at the same time, it also added the much-maligned butterfly keyboard and kicked the price up. I always felt that was a mistake -- $999 is an important psychological and financial barrier, especially for students, writers and anyone who needs maximum reliability and usability on a budget. Keyboard evolution Now that I've had a chance to go hands-on with the new MacBook Air, the keyboard really stands out as a major selling point

Neutral

Great keyboard and build quality; Odd touchpad

I have to say the keyboard is a true joy to type on, by far the best laptop keyboard I've ever used. I fully expect this Thinkpad to outlast my need for it..

QUICK QUESTION!

Got an opinion on a product you've used?
If so, we want to hear from you! Write an authentic longevity review about the product and share your experience with our community. You'll have the chance to win a $100 gift card.

You might also like

More Alternatives

Apple MacBook Air (2020)

Apple MacBook Air (2020)

Dell XPS 13

Acer Swift 3

Acer Aspire 5

LG Gram 17

Microsoft Surface Pro 8

Microsoft Surface Pro 8

More Alternatives