Lenovo ThinkPad T16 Gen 1 (AMD) Review

A review of the Lenovo ThinkPad T16 Gen 1 (AMD) 16-inch business laptop. (AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 6850U, 32GB DDR5 6400MHz, 512GB PCIe Gen4 NMVe M.2 2280 SSD, AMD Radeon 680M GPU)
As more and more 16 inch laptops come on the market, Lenovo, have added to their quintessential business laptop ThinkPad T series, the T16 Gen 1 workhorse. Available in Intel or AMD processor variants, today we will be looking at the AMD model with a Ryzen 7 PRO 6850U. Is it worth your corporate capital outlay?
00:00 Introduction
00:29 Design
01:31 Display
02:12 Connectivity
02:56 Keyboard & Touchpad
03:29 Audio & Webcam
03:57 Performance
04:33 Benchmark Results
06:03 Target Audience
06:14 Graphics
06:31 Gaming
06:53 Security
07:25 Battery Life
07:54 The Good, The Bad and the Really Bad
07:56 Solid Performance
08:07 Battery Life
08:19 Good I/O
08:30 No USB4
08:39 No SD Card Reader
08:45 Soldered RAM
08:56 Expensive
09:24 Competition
09:48 Summary
10:34 Outro
If you wish to purchase or need support for this device (UK only), please contact us at www.dovecomputers.com. We are Microsoft / Lenovo Partners.
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UK Review model - Part Number : 21CHCTO1WWGB2
£895 + VAT (£1,074 inc. VAT) at time of review purchase
£1151.25p + VAT (£1381.50p inc. VAT) 22.04.2023
Competition::
HP EliteBook 865 G9
Apple MacBook Pro 16 inch
Dell Vostro 16 AMD
ASUS Vivobook Pro 16X OLED
Lenovo ThinkPad Z16 G1
#Lenovo #ThinkPadT16Gen1 #ThinkPad

[@danielsunday2958]

Great review. Very detailed

[@RM-el3gw]

very nice narration

[@udayanchelva8394]

Is it easy to open the Laptop screen, as I purchased the latest E15 (which I am not returning for multiple other reasons) and it is not easy to open the screen and you have to pry it open with both hands.

[@872nishant]

How about e14 gen 5? And is it advisable to buy Lenovo extended warranty on e series ThinkPad laptops?

[@ioguapin]

Waiting for the Gen 2 review!

[@Dovecomputers]

Next review out is the ThinkPad T14s Gen 4 with the same processor/iGPU. Should be out next week. 👍

[@underhul]

If I have the 52Wh battery model, can I upgrade to a 86Wh?

[@tamegaming1768]

Very good video! I just bought a refurb one, unfortunately with the 52wh battery but it was a good price. Definitely interested in upgrading it to the 86wh haha

[@Dovecomputers]

Glad it was helpful!

[@b.c.2177]

It has serious problems with additional RAM, at least the models with Intel processors. Another problem is that it loads Windows very long time.

[@moezmedia98]

Just a question out of curiosity, what is a good reason to buy a ThinkPad over the generally cheaper Ideapads or similarly priced but more powerful Legions? They seem to offer similar keyboards and pristine build quality just like the Thinkpad but the value proposition seems more legit.

[@Dovecomputers]

Yes you are right, it is generally subtle differences. ThinkPad's are aimed at business/corporate users. So they get better security features, rugged design, etc. IdeaPads are great value laptops but the memory is soldered on, although more ThinkPads are going in that direction too. Gaming laptops are getting to a point where they are a 'cheaper' option to mobile workstations for the same performance. For example I use a Legion 5 Pro as my daily 'content creator' laptop.

[@moezmedia98]

@@Dovecomputers Thanks you for the response from a legion user as well, great review by the way and very thorough explanation.

[@MnemonicCarrier]

I'm very interested in this model. With the larger 86Whr battery, no operating system, 32GB of RAM, 2560x1600 400 nits 100% sRGB panel, it's currently only £1,082.88. I might grab one, I'm just a little worried about the soldered RAM. I'm not a gamer, I'm a Linux user, and this looks like it could be my dream Linux workstation. There's even an option to buy it with Ubuntu pre-installed! (although I use Arch).

[@blobert1461]

I'd get another year or two of warranty if you're worried about the board dying. I wish I could get a P16s AMD without OS here. Is that some sort of university discount?

[@MnemonicCarrier]

@@blobert1461 Looks like the gen 2 model will be released any day now 😄The gen 2 Intel model is already available.

[@j.shishani6808]

@@MnemonicCarrier came to comment on this . its now available in the lenovo psref page , with the mighty 7840u . hopefully we can see the reviews vert soon

[@MnemonicCarrier]

@@j.shishani6808 Thanks for letting me know! I'm going to cancel my order - it keeps getting delayed anyway. Again, thank you so much for letting me know!!

[@j.shishani6808]

@@MnemonicCarrier my pleasure sir . i know you will be grateful of your decision for canceling the order of the now older gen . that 7840u model is waaaaaaaay faster

[@dillon5906]

I am interested in buying this laptop with the i5 but 32gb memory. Will the integrated graphics be enough for Esri ArcGIS software?

[@Dovecomputers]

Ideally you need a laptop with a dedicated GPU.

[@heartking101]

why you only focusing on Lenovo Thinkpad or HPZook , can you please do on the new dell precision 3581 mobile workstation?

[@fakcofee]

Shame that the keyboard has a number pad and a trackpad off center without an option. Thanks

[@popokatapetl6995]

Can't wait you get t14s Gen 4 from AMD and t16 gen 2

[@Dovecomputers]

Waiting to hear from Lenovo to my hands on them for review. 👍

[@popokatapetl6995]

​@@Dovecomputersalso try to get grey one instead of black for a change just to see how does it looks like Thanks in advance

[@drishalballaney6590]

Man I really wish that the T16 had come with an H series processor with RX gpu as well, basically the Z16 but in a T series body btw, I am curious, how much difference of a benchmark does it have with T14(s) and T16? Also how well have they managed the thermals?

[@rwinkler4321]

It's a good question, with the AMD CPU and dual heat pipes proven to work well in other models, like the p15v G3 AMD, I would expect no troubles with thermals.

[@Dovecomputers]

Not much in it between the T16 and T14s. The 6850U has excellent thermal capabilities. Both models are aimed at the business power user, so battery life is more important than max. performance, hence the integrated GPU. For dedicated GPUs, Lenovo have the P range for that.

[@drishalballaney6590]

@@Dovecomputers ah so basically the difference between T14 vs T16 AMD is basically if one wants a 16in or 14in screen ig

[@Dovecomputers]

@@drishalballaney6590 Correct. 👍

[@danielsunday2958]

If Lenovo did that, it might affect sales of the Z Series Thinkpads.

[@kingforkings]

the vram is soldered due to the need of speed for the AMD apu so the gpu part of it.

[@joshuawang5859]

With 1.8mm or 1.5mm key's travel?

[@Dovecomputers]

A lot of modern ThinkPad's like the T16 are now 1.5mm key travel.

[@joshuawang5859]

@@Dovecomputers Thanks for the reply! one of the biggest reason to buy a ThinkPad is the feeling of typing, hope that 1.5mm doesn't disappoint the users

[@MnemonicCarrier]

@@joshuawang5859 I've owned so many T series ThinkPads, right up until the T480. Then I switched to a Lenovo Legion 5 (with the Ryzen 7 4800H). It has a "True Strike" keyboard, which I think has 1.5mm travel. It's great! Personally, I don't know if I could go back to the deeper travel ThinkPad keyboards now. I guess you get used to it 😉

[@zhaltys]

Ryzen cpus dont work with external gpu, like that legion box you have, right?

[@RM-el3gw]

Great laptop, but disappointing to see that the processor is U-series, and that the prices are horrifically expensive for what's being offered.

[@popokatapetl6995]

In some cases U procesor is better then rest of them

[@virtuatony]

I wish it did not have a number pad. I would buy one.

[@Oleg__]

If it didn't have a numpad, I would never buy it. For me a numpad is an absolute must, I won't even look in the direction of laptops that don't have a numpad. I love numpads, without them working on a computer is incomplete.

[@RM-el3gw]

You have the X1 extreme and the Z16 as good alternatives, in that case. Both 16 in and without numpad.

[@trueleowdeo]

Soldered memory is so bad. So bad memory chip, u buy new laptop instead of memory module 😕

[@hornmakara334]

Good, can it add NVidia?

[@Dovecomputers]

The Intel model has one with NVIDIA® GeForce MX550 GPU.

[@jamesrichardson645]

The P16s is the same laptop as this, but comes with an RTX A500. It should be similar to a GTX 970 in performance (slightly slower than a GTX 1060). The MX 550 is about as fast as a GTX 960 4gb, or a GTX 1050Ti.

[@radisplayground]

It's funny when you say there is hardly any flex on the keyboard deck while pushing down on it in the vid, and it visibly flexes. Build qualtiy keeps going downhill for most laptops.

[@Dovecomputers]

Most laptops will have a bit of flex if you push on it hard enough. Most laptops should last a while 'if' you look after it.

[@hoanganhvu9885]

Soldered RAM? Bye 🥺

[@DigitalSamTV]

Whats the quad resolution display res?

[@Dovecomputers]

16" WQXGA (2560 x 1600), IPS, Anti-Glare, Non-touch, 100% sRGB, 400 nits.