Lenovo 14" U410 IdeaPad, 3rd Gen i7-3537U, 2.0GHz, 8GB RAM, 1TB HD + 24GB SSD, 1GB Graphics, Win 8 - $699 after $100 off, Costco.com only from 1/31-2/24.
 

Saw this in the monthly mailer that came yesterday.

The coupon does not list the specs on the screen, but I'm guessing it's only 1366x768 like the current/previous U410 that was released last Fall.

I'm guessing this is essentially the same laptop as the current/prior U410, with some beefed-up specs for Costco customers. The prior U410 that can be found on Amazon has a 1.7GHz chip, 6GB RAM, and a 750GB HD and smaller SSD. So each of these 3 areas have increased in this Costco (only?) model.

This is available only on Costco.com from 1/31-2/24. Returns can be made in-store if necessary however.


May not be slick, but seems to be at least a very good deal. 14" laptops are pretty rare, despite many feeling it's the optimal size. Costco doubles the warranty too.

Update: Buy from Costco here...

http://www.costco.com/.product.10...4-_-lenovo

This post can and should be edited by users like you :)
 

Shipping & Handling: $29.99

Buy from Costco here:

http://www.costco.com/.product.10...4-_-lenovo

Very tempting

Ok, so 3rd gen i7 processor that runs at 1.9 GHz = i7-3517U.

Cores = 2
Threads = 4

Just a little additional information.

At this point, I'm going to assume that Lenovo tries to gain all their profit margin in their laptops through craptastic screens. If enough people don't settle for that trash maybe one day manufacturers will get a clue.

Note to Lenovo, et al....Apple is also the most profitable PC maker in the world. They didn't get there by putting trashing screens in 95% of their products.

Actually the only thing keeping Apple afloat is their mobile division. They would have died off long ago, they have almost no share in the computer market.

Hmmm...no profits from Macbooks or iPads? You may want to check your source.

Also, Lenovo manufacturers everything Apple does. PCs, laptops, tablets, phones.

I'll guarantee that Apple makes more profit on any of those categories. ps. each category has a sort of reputation for the screens Apple uses

needs more specs.


i know if it was a 15.6" i wouldnt buy these specs for $700......EVERYTHING is watered down......if its 14", check the weight, if its over 5lbs....you might as well go for the 15.6"

Based on similar Lenovo models, the graphics card might be a NVIDIA 610M 1GB.

I provided all the specs that the coupon did. It's a 14" screen. The weight isn't listed on the coupon either, but the current U410 14" is 4.1 lbs, so I would assume the same there.

I'm assuming that too.

I'm sure Costco.com will have a full list of specs on 1/31 once the product is actually available for purchase. Right now it's just a really small coupon in their monthly mailer.

Decent deal if it's the one second from the right...except that one has a 32GB SSD: http://shop.lenovo.com/SEUILibrar...80F1FD83F7

Ok. Just a buyer beware,. Just cuz the card is a dGPU. Dont believe the hype.

http://www.notebookcheck.net/NVID...759.0.html

compared to a LAST gen AMD APU card

http://www.notebookcheck.net/AMD-...675.0.html

The APU (integrated graphics) can keep up. Wow....

Coupon says it's a 24GB SSD. So most likely it's this model that Lenovo has for the same price..

http://shop.lenovo.com/SEUILibrar...58BB7E8A5B

Only advantages buying it from Costco would be their 90 day return period and extended warranty.

1366x768! :rolleyes: :vomit:

Lenovo (used to be IBM) has hardly any mobile phones on the market in the U.S. For all purposes, they are primarily a PC/Laptop manufacturer. I think they have 1 current tablet on the market, maybe not even that. Either way it's not really a fair comparison in the first place.

Statistics for you (Apple's mobile division):
Apple currently only has ~25% of the cell phone market with it's iPhone.
Apple currently has ~50% market share with it's iPad.
(These numbers above are the only reason why they are still around)

OSX is currently only being run on 7% of computers worldwide. <--- That's nothing. But they can still turn a profit, since they price gouge every person who buys one.

I find it funny when reading these mobile computing statistics that Apple is only included WHEN they include iPad sales. iPads are not computers, and shouldn't be compared to laptops.

Similar model here [costco.com]. This is using the i7-3317U. It does confirm a 1GB dedicated graphics card, the GT 610M.

I think it's worth saying what graphics card is inside in the title or OP.

If it's the GT 610M inside, like I think it is. Then it might actually be a hair weaker and definitely more power hungry than the integrated HD 4000 that Ivy Bridge CPUs typically ship with: http://www.notebookcheck.net/NVID...759.0.html

Again, the coupon does not list the exact card - it simply says "1GB Graphics Card". For now, everyone's assuming it's the GT 610M. Hopefully Costco will list the exact specs on their website once the product is actually available for purchase on 1/31.

Understood. It's called a logical educated guess based on the information provided.

What. the. f**k? You are seriously comparing a $700 Lenovo laptop to Apple laptops that cost almost twice as much if not more and complaining about poorer specs? Spend $1000 - $1300 and you can get a Lenovo with good specs and a good screen: http://www.lenovo.com/products/us...ries/w530/

But yes, lets bitch about how Lenovo's budget end laptop/ultrabook doesn't stack up in comparison to Apple products that cost twice as much. Do you even stop to think rationally before you begin your rants?

I think it is the similar model as the one on newegg.com http://www.newegg.com/Product/Pro...6834310655 only the hard drive is different. the one on costco is 1TB but the one on newegg is 750GB

I bought it at $729 with a free 750gb portable hard drive last week,

How's your WiFi reception been on your new U410? I've been reading that there's been some issues with the WiFi dropping out back in July 2012, but apparently Lenovo addressed this and fixed it going forward on their next production runs?

I'm just surprised at how these laptops utilize the SSD, the refurb U410 I picked up from the outlet with an even larger (32GB) SSD only had 8GB of it formatted, and that was for hibernation purposes, wtf?

computer took close to 50 seconds to boot with the extrehemely slow 5400 rpm mechanical hard drive, after putting a 120GB SSD in there with clean windows 7 pro install it boots in 14 seconds.

solid machine otherwise, feels very good, a bit heavy but that is to be expected, charger is very light and compact, battery life isn't very good since they skipmed on it a lot, but you will still get 3-4 hours out of it at least, no wi-fi issues from mine

comparing it to a MBP is silly, this is 10x better if you consider specs and price, they even look the same, lol.

I read some review regarding this issue. However, I am still waiting for the laptop, and I hope I can get some luck!:)

Apple is only successful because Americans are idiots (well some of them anyway), who eats whatever Steve Jobs (oh he's dead... aw sorry... he was a SoB anyway, so his successor then) without thinking. If Apple sold a piece of shit, spray painted it white and branded it as iShit, you can be sure they can sell it for $500/lb. And there will a long line of idiots queuing up to buy this iShit.

Is it just me, or does it seem somewhat worthless to have a GT 610M installed in this machine, when Intel HD4000 graphics are just as, if not more, capable? Wouldn't a GT 640M or GT 650M make more sence if you are paying for discrete graphics in the first place? I would rather pay an extra $50 and make it a decent gaming machine.

lenovo has about 15% market share.
I'd say 7% isn't that bad.

Spec sheet for anyone interested: http://www.lenovo.com/products/us...asheet.pdf

Are you saying the only two options are to overpay for a decent screen, or go with typical Lenovo-type garbage? Are you saying a decent screen shouldn't be available for $700? Is that your statement - "No device can have a decent screen for $700". Perhaps you missed the point Mr. Genius.

I guess it's just a matter of timing. If this model of laptop was released before the HD 4000 graphics were first released (Apr of 2012) then it tells me this is an older model of laptop and it would make sense that it has this dedicated card instead of the equivalent HD 4000 graphics card.

Thanks for providing all the info. I'm not really sure how that's relevant to profit, since that is what I was talking about. All I mentioned was profit. Now, can you please provide all the relevant 'profit' figures, since nothing I mentioned was even remotely related to market share.

People are too ignorant about the actual costs of the hardware they buy. Hence, Apple gets away with gouging people, and Lenovo gets away with selling crap. There is a middle ground. Look up the bill of materials on Apple's equipment - you'll be amazed at how little they pay for those retina screens. Then you should immediately be asking "why the hell can't other manufacturers include decent screens if they're that cheap".

For all the uniformed that don't know how inexpensive the displays are that we should be getting in most laptops in 2013, see the following. Apple isn't the only one gouging.

http://9to5mac.com/2012/05/16/rep...-customer/
http://mashable.com/2012/09/19/ip...ring-cost/
http://www.cultofmac.com/201118/w...9-feature/

YOU ARE TOXIC! :mad:

2 cores and shotty dedicated gpu

pass

What are you expecting? In terms of performance this beats out the standard MB/MBP/MBA variant. And costs much less.

What a shame this tread got hijacked by the same sad and pitiful troll, who goes on every laptop thread and complains about his personal single issue of screen resolution. What a childish thing. Every laptop has some balance of features and price. I notice that people who wouldn't buy something other than an i7 don't go on every i5 laptop thread and whine. I notice that people who want an ultrabook don't go on every 6lb laptop thread and hijack and whine. there are a dozen other examples of tradeoffs.
What you never see this troll do is point to a comparable price machine with the same specs and their holy grail of their one pet peeve.


Also "Aggravated" actually used the identical languages as another poster meaning he has two names here because people have gotten so sick of his trolling.

1. Lenovo is massively profitable and has grown phenomenally and now is the number two pc maker in the world, blowing HP, Dell, Asus, Acer, etc out of the water. It deserves that position because it has a very solid line of both premium business class machines and an excellent line of consumer machines.

To claim Lenovo is being hurt by using a screen that allows them to price in the sweet spot is ignorant.

2. this is an excellent laptop for the price with one exception, and it isn't the screen, it is the wifi. If "Aggravated" weren't around that serious consideration would have come up. If you are on a 3 mbps, and in a small home, and/or live in an area without a lot of 2.5 MHz completion, this wont be an issue. If you are used to streaming video in a multiroom home and can see a number of neighbor's 2.5 ghz routers, this may not be the best bet. This is exacerbated by Lenovo's use of bios whitelist meaning replacing their card with a 2.5/5 Ghz is considerable hassle compared with other makers.

I have one of these. I have replaced the card with a 2.5/5 n intel 6xxx. the very latest bios is cracked and around if you care to google, but for the average user the hassle, time and risk is considerable.

One other point on the video card. There is a very good system integrated which allows you to preset which programs use the add on and otherwise you default to the 4000. Mid level games play quite well with this system and you fall back to the 4000 which saves you battery and which is an excellent integrated fro most tasks. You obviously are not buying this to play high end games.

It is a solid build, excellent value.

The fact that this is Costco makes it even more compelling because you can try it out and if you find the wifi wanting you can return it easily. I would not buy this from a company that doesn't allow easy returns due to the wifi.

Yeah, that's what I'm thinking too. Might pick this one up to see how it goes.

When was your U410 manufactured? I've read that Lenovo claimed that the WiFi issue had been resolved for all models made after July. Not sure if that's true though.

No, I did not misunderstand the point. When did Apple sell a laptop with a great screen/hardware for $700...oh, hmm...never?

Yet you decided to flame Lenovo and this specific product by comparing it to Apple and how they are still profitable. Frankly your initial comment made no sense, and your subsequent posts continue to lack any coherent thought process.

As for getting $700 laptops with a good screen...sure, it is possible, but at a $700 price tag, it is always going to be a tradeoff between different components. You put in a 1920x1080 screen into a laptop like that and it will be really shit for $700 because of all the other hardware they would have to get rid of. There is a reason why the better spec laptops tend to also have the better screens/upgrades.

If we were debating over a $1000 laptop, then it would be absolutely fair to blast a company for pushing low res screens on their product.

Wow, I don't even know where to begin. I'd suggest you begin by reading up on Economies of Scale: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Economies_of_scale . Then understand how Apple has successfully leveraged its huge manufacturing scale and demand for product to squeeze exceptionally low costs on components thanks to economies of scale...something that is not available to that extent to other PC/laptop makers. That will also then explain to you why none of the really well spec'd Android tablets have ever been all that price competitive against the iPad.

Then, try to realize, that the larger the screen, the more expensive it gets to make because yields go down as screen size goes up. So making a 10" screen at high res is still easier and cheaper than making a 13" or 15" screen. Those extra costs add up to quite a bit.

Once you get to that point, try to get out of your head, your naive and stupid notion that any product is worth the sum of the "price" of all its hardware components. There are so many intangibles that you cannot account for in that model, that "cost" the company and as a result trickle down into product costs.

And finally, realize that companies don't exist for charity. They have every right to demand and expect a profit from their sales. So if Lenovo or Apple's product costs you more than it costs them to build, please try not to seem so offended. The market will decide the price of products and if they price too high, their product will fail and they will have to adjust their price or product accordingly.

I hope this explanation helps you find a happier place in life with less anger issues against all the laptop manufacturers out there in the world. They aren't evil, and they aren't trying to rip you off. They're just trying to make a living...same as you and me.

PS - I found it hilarious that the links you provided, basically state that the new Retina displays cost more than a 100% over the previous displays...$68 to $140 per screen. And before you say...well they should increase the price by $50-$60 and just provide a better screen...go back up and re-read all that I wrote. Then also consider that the higher resolution screen needs a better GPU to drive all those pixels and a better processor so the laptop doesn't feel sluggish. And that's before we even delve into the fact that Windows has atrocious DPI scaling, and will look terrible on a computer with a "retina" like resolution.

Wow, it must suck to be the #2 PC manufacturer in the world and not have the benefits of Economy of Scale. Apple is so lucky. Lenovo must pay out the ying yang for all these fantastic HD screens at full wholesale costs. Gotta be crazy expensive.

What??!! Bigger screens costs more to make??? I call BS.

You must be an economics major. I thought marketing, R&D, etc were free to everyone. Who knew?


Now this blows my mind. You're telling me all these manufacturers are trying to make...PROFIT? Whoa! Wowzers! Nobel winner here folks! Guess what, just because the market will pay it doesn't mean the market should. Got that? Enlightenment for the masses can actually effect change to our benefit if they realized the pathetic value of what they're getting for their money. But no, they don't. Hence, Apple.

Yup, economies of scale can only apply to Apple and their 7% market share. EACH of the top three OEMs sell millions upon millions more units a year, and are unable to find some way to leverage Economies of Scale for better screens. Really? REALLY? Are you really that stupid? If not, you're just astonishingly ignorant. And it's that willful ignorance that allows manufacturers to sell substandard products, even at costs much less than Apples.

You're saying you need discreet graphics and a "high-end" processor to drive a 1080p display. WHAT THE HELL?? A DAMN ARM PROCESSOR CAN DO THIS YOU #$%@ Ever seen the iPad? Ever heard of the Nexus10? Man, those high end processors are astounding!! Magic even! You just lost all credibility regarding anything electronic. For this statement alone you need to shut the hell up and get off the internet.

Nope, sorry, only one. Apparently I'm not alone. You must be disappointed.


So, you're either a stock holder or an employee. Because no one else could publicly say Lenovo's junk is better than everyone else's junk. One's shit has nuts in it, the other has corn, you can have your preference but it's still shit.

You lack reading comprehension. I never said this. Re-read, or get someone intelligent to read it to you.

Btw, I've owned two Lenovo laptops this past year. Both junk, both needed repairs (hard disk, wifi, trackpad). We just began contracts and have ordered hundreds at work - laptops, desktops, all-in-ones. It's downright appalling how many are defective out of the box. We have a Lenovo tech onsite every week to repair and replace equipment, and we just started purchasing from them. Quality my ass.

I can't even be bothered any more. You are the perfect role model for every moron on this planet. Yeah, lack of enlightenment of the masses is what's making Apple, Lenovo etc., rich :lmao:...and this after you state that you understand the concept of Supply and Demand....the irony of it all is too much to take. Thanks for the amusement...hold on tight to that tin foil hat of yours, you're going to need it a lot as you go through life!

The trumpet call of a defeated fool.

And you are the perfect role model for the idiots that will continue to provide great demand for these crappy resolution displays (don't worry though, Lenovo will be happy to supply them to you for the next 20 years, because they've only got your best interests in mind!)

By the way, next time you get a laptop or tablet, make sure it's got an i7 with a GTX 650 in it so it doesn't "struggle" with that hi-res 1366x768 display!

It's up on the Costco website now:

http://www.costco.com/.product.10...4-_-lenovo

Is this a good buy?

I just wish this had better screen resolution - i must have picked this one up.

For specs and performance, and you plan on using this as a desktop where you use HDMI out or something onto a monitor and as a notebook to take outside, I say yes. Aside from a 1366 x 768 display (although I find it perfectly fine, mine is a 15.6" with this display and I find it perfectly fine) then this is one of the best/better deals posted yet for Price to Performance. Not counting Outlet Deals.

I'm hoping someone here gets this from Costco and reports back on the quality of its WiFi and trackpad.

WiFi drop-out has been a frequent issue for both the U310 and U410 models, but apparently Lenovo "fixed" that after the July 2012 production runs. I'm still a bit skeptical though about it.

The trackpad has also gotten some pretty mediocre reviews too, but that's not uncommon for Windows trackpads. I wonder if the trackpad works better with Win 8 though?

If these two areas check out well, I'll strongly consider buying this from Costco. As you said, the price to performance ratio is very strong.

IDK, I have not had any problems when I used one before. I have a couple people I know who have one. I have used it, I found it all to be normal. I tend to use a external mouse and keyboard 90% of the time, bc my laptop sits on a fan hooked up to my monitor/TV, but when I used it, WiFi was fast, no issues, and trackpad worked just fine.

it does not have optical drive...

Can the graphics card be upgraded to a better card post-purchase? From what I have read, this GPU will be good enough to play some SC2 on low graphics settings, but I wouldnt mind an upgrade to get up to medium settings... I'm no GPU expert. Anyone know?

Normally Graphics Cards in notebooks cannot be upgraded. Those that can be are very rare.

Yeah, that's my understanding. Most of these Ivy Bridge processors have a built-in HD Graphics 4000 card, but since this has the dedicated GPU, I thought there might be a chance. Do they typically solder it to the motherboard?

Thanks for the info, repped.

I just read that they're coming out with the U410 Touch, so maybe that's why they've started blowing these out.

No. The chip is a i7-3537U 2.0GHz actually.

http://www.costco.com/.product.10...4-_-lenovo

Honestly, if they do not make the Touch a swivel, I dont see the point in it...

So that is even better...

Doesn't look like it swivels. And it has the same specs as this Costco U410 model..

http://www.engadget.com/gallery/l...-hands-on/

You're extremely unintelligent. I can't even fathom your warped mindset if that's how you interpreted their post.

Quit the Internet.

You need to learn English. (and maybe something about PCs So that so many people don't mock you here) You got busted using several names to push your private agenda shared by no one and now are whining.

I am not an employee of Lenovo. I have been critical of some aspects you fool. What I said is that your claim that they are losing market share or profits is laughable since they are killing in market share and profits.

we know why you are "aggravated". You had to abandon your last username after being pegged as a constant troll by so many.Would you like our pity?

My guess is you are aggravated by lots of things.

No but you have to flash a hacked bios since it is whitelisted.

whitelisting and weak wifi are the issues with this machine, (not resolution which is perfectly fine and normal for machined at this price point.)

Wow, late reply. No, I have 1 username. Again, that should tell you I am not alone. Is it that so difficult for you to understand that not everyone agrees with you in your self-centered world, and that there are more than one of us? Ponder this for a while and just try to let it soak in.

I, however, know that there are millions of people that don't agree with me, and that's why Lenovo is raking it in. Because they hide CHEAP components behind the main brand name parts commonly listed - Intel CPU, nVidia GPU, etc., the same as the other OEMs. And people buy them by the droves. What does logic tell you moron when a company can sell so inexpensively and STILL make such big profits?? Volume? No, because the sales figures are similar to Dell and HP. Chinese manufacturing? No, same asian manufacturing that makes all the other junk for Dell, HP, etc. They make them cheap by cutting corners wherever they can, whether it's the screens, motherboards, RAM brands, quality control, testing, etc. Are you too stupid to figure this out? That's rhetorical.

ps. The reason I'm aggravated is the abundance of absolute stupidity and ignorance in our society. So yes, you aggravate me easily.

volume because thy crushed dell and hp.

Lenovo is hitting the full mix of what the educated consumer wants. that you don't get it isn't a surprise. :)

gpu not that good for gaming despite being a 1gb. I think it's a class 3 card

I bought one from Costco and immediately returned it. Wifi is still an issue, so am thankful for Costco's return policy, which even refunded my shipping cost. My machine was manufactured 01/26/2013, so I was hopeful--oh well.

thanks so much for this update. i crossed this model off my list after reading all kinds of different reviews online. lenovo claimed they fixed this wifi issue after july 2012, but it's obvious they haven't. many other buyers have said the same thing.

bottom line, lenovo is absolutely not to be trusted outside of the thinkpad line. glad you got all your money back and thanks again for the report.