ThinkPad X1 Extreme (Gen 3) Review // It's Time for a Change!

[@MatthewMoniz]

What do you guys think of the X1 Extreme? I still think it's solid but I'm hoping for some changes in 2021. Hit me up on discord.gg/mattmoniz if you have any questions.

[@hiteshrohira7968]

So now I have to go to discord to ask you to use an egpu with it....hmmm

[@zaneearldufour]

The main thing I'm hoping for is that Lenovo expands the number of laptops that can be purchased with fedora Linux pre-installed and fully supported 🐧

[@abhishek_ender]

Hey Matt. As a user of the ThinkPad for both work and home use, I think a lot of tech reviewers get productivity screen sizes off. For the same screen height I would much rather have a wider screen than a taller screen. That's cause most enterprise users are using things like Excel and word side by side and a wider aspect ratio makes more sense. Something like the surface book/XPS which is more prosumer I think a taller aspect ratio may make more sense to view webpages. But as an enterprise user 90% of my time is spent with two windows side by side. And the 16:9 form factor is a lot more helpful for readability with the same screen height than a 3:2. Also 16:9 makes the neatest split between webpage content and movies and youtube videos which are in 2.2:1 or 18:9 or 16:9. 3:2 is an odd ratio for media consumption too.

[@zaneearldufour]

@@abhishek_ender that's an interesting point. For me, it would def be two apps or two columns in a text editor side by side

[@hiteshrohira7968]

@@zaneearldufour Huzzah...a man of quality

[@thanhavictus]

needs 16:10, 1440p touchscreen, high refresh to be easy on the eyes, ryzen processor, top-firing speakers, and you wouldve had the perfect laptop of the year.

[@alexlu9564]

Why do you need high refresh?

[@alexlu9564]

@@notpreacher1564 it's a thinkpad I don't think they'll add that anytime soon

[@mini9503]

MSI has granted our wish! Creator Z16 laptop has all this and a RTX 3060.

[@saraansari69]

I don't know about you, but I think this is truly an ultra "port"able design (Pun and seriousness intended).

[@utkarshsharma7336]

Imagine this laptop with 16:10 screen and an amd 4000 series processor. (The battery is fucked but assuming a 1080p panel and amd cpu will improve it).

[@claudiotaffarel4005]

So let me add something: _ 16:10 Aspect ratio _ Minimum of 7 hours of REAL usage (Lenovo says 14 on the Italian website and I think we should sue them) _ AMD option !! _ Possibly a 1440p option _ Possibly a 120Hz option (image 1440p 120Hz that'd be my dream) _ Bigger, better trackpad _ Bigger, better vents _ Upward, better speakers _ Better camera and microphone I mean, we all love Thinkpads, we are all looking for an excuse to call this the king of laptops, and for me, even if accomplishing only the first two points would be it.

[@720whip]

You want 7 hours of real usage and a 1440p 120hz panel? Not very realistic expectations.

[@AlejandroLZuvic]

There's no way Lenovo puts a 120Hz screen in a ThinkPad, it's not a gaming machine and Lenovo doesn't want to advertise it that way.

[@claudiotaffarel4005]

@@AlejandroLZuvic Fair enough

[@MrFlock9]

Why would ANYONE in late 2020 buy a laptop with 2.5 hrs battery life, when the competition is like 8+ hrs. WTF Lenovo?

[@MatthewMoniz]

Ya battery is pretty bad, could be just the 4K model

[@cameronbosch1213]

@@abuboss246 Well, that's what you get with an OLED screen and a H-series Intel CPU!

[@matthewkwong3365]

Well, that's a 4k OLED display, what do you expect? Plus I have no idea why would anyone opt-in for 4k on a 15/17" monitor.

[@Abdulrahman11799]

@ Who wouldn't get a laptop for work? What will you use instead? a freaking iPad?

[@DonnyP87]

@ can't bring a desktop to a cafe, a friend, co-working space or bed man. So yeah, a laptop is quite a logical option for a lot of people. Curious why you think almost no one should buy a laptop though!

[@LTT.Official]

Matty Mo, still my favorite canadian bacon reviewer.

[@MatthewMoniz]

Haha thanks man ❤️

[@kriselien7820]

I just ordered an x1 extreme gen 3 i9 old. Can wait to get it. Keep me update on daily usage. Great review. Thanks

[@mehoprelivoda]

prepare some eggs to boil as well - i9 is an overkill, even i5 is constantly heat and power throttled...

[@kriselien7820]

@@mehoprelivoda took too long to get it. I went with the P1

[@Hgood1]

I got the gen 3 and I’m in love.,after I used Lenovo display optimizer to switch from NATIVE to STANDARD I was even more in love. Out of the box display optimizer is set to NATIVE and colors are neon but when set to STANDARD colors are natural and beautiful. I got an i7 processor and after initial loud fan noise when updates were loading I haven’t heard the fans at all in 2 weeks. The 4K carbon thread display looks super premium and makes the 1080p lid look cheap by comparison. Did IPS 4K. BTW

[@Porformer]

Without 16:10 display, this device will not make a lot of money. they have done a better job with the x nano. ;-)

[@gasanweb]

I really like more ports on a laptop. No need to bring dongles or loose them. That's a plus design amongs other competitors.

[@Nicomanism]

Bought the first Gen based from your review two years ago; received a defective unit, and immediately sent it back to China - receiving my money back . Built a custom pc and did not look back to high-end laptops.

Who needs a laptop?

[@rightwingsafetysquad9872]

@ People who go places.

[@cshevlin]

As a Mac guy for years I have just ordered an X1 Carbon. Its the right size and should do the trick. Great vid.

[@ozilsmith5413]

Damn the keyboard looks amazing to me. It looks like scientist's laptop, all ThinkPads do

[@123Suryasis]

I think they should upgrade the cooling solution too, probably introduce a Valid chamber cooling which is better in these thin & light form factor, like the new Envy 15 did this year. They probably kept the 16:9 aspect ratio due to still having the OLED Option which is only available at 16:9. XPS was able to provide 16:10 as they have ditched that OLED Option altogether.

[@sbtmri]

Matt, thanks for the review🍁🇨🇦❤ I got the first gen after your live online review of the unit and I'mso happy with it.

[@MatthewMoniz]

You're very welcome! glad to hear you're still happy with it. Hope you're doing well!

[@icanpooptwiceadayyay8771]

🍁

[@mehoprelivoda]

A Must have list for Gen4 is: AMD cpu option Less power consumption for 4k panels. 16:10 Screen ratio better cooling and better throtling management gtx3060 graphics option IMHO: All of the above is possible to implement but they are probably not going to do any of it. Ryzens are in ideapad, 16:10 is in yoga and nano, better cooling and better graphics (gtx 2080) is in T15G...

[@r0sco_1]

I've got the X1 Extremes sibling the P1 Gen 2. Lots to love about it. Very fast, love the ports, keyboard etc. Matthew is right though, the battery life needs serious improvements and improved cooling. Would definitely consider an upgrade to this at some point in the future with those two improvements. Until then I will happily keep my P1 Gen2 for many years. Will just have to make sure I am never too far away from a Power outlet.

[@limchyesoon8]

Hi Mat, do you think the 4K IPS matte display will suffer from pwm flickering?

[@rightwingsafetysquad9872]

I'm pretty sure the XPS and MBP are the only two laptops with H-series processors and decent battery life.

[@MrAkiyamamio]

what about the most important sticker placement?!

[@usmannaeem]

So glad they are still sticking to 16:9 aspect ratio. I do not want a 16:10.

[@erncollects]

My gen 2 has so many problems. The heating is AWFUL. Had to undervolt and repaste thermal to reasonably use it. The battery is atrocious as well. I was hoping gen 3 would fix a lot of this. Time to pass until they do a revamp :(

[@MatthewMoniz]

Oh man that’s awful! I’m sorry to hear that Ernest. I agree wait for a redesign

[@ajjaatarskywalker917]

Thanks for pointing out how important screen ratio is. casual users might not realize it but people who use their machines for work or study really need some extra vertical space. I never got why laptop brands made it such a big deal to make 16:9 a standard. Come on!! just for watching videos?? laptops are not only meant for watching videos. Are you telling me mac users dont watch videos? or its somehow a worse experience to watch it on 16:10??? watch it on a tv if you think its the end of the world to watch videos on 16:10. When will the manufacturers realize it? 16:10 should be the standard going forward, only screens smaller than 14 inches should be considered for 3:2 but anything at 14 or above need to be 16:10! no debate on that! just on a side note, it needs to be clear that when the screen size is so big that it already has enough vertical space, it can do fine with 16:9. like anything above 19 inches I guess. Anyway im only ranting so you can actually forward this to all laptop manufacturers. Coz they really do care about what reviewers have to say about their products. Thanks.

[@D3DM4N007]

solid words

[@sourabh3584]

I love your reviews, you're doing very good!!

[@MatthewMoniz]

Thank you !!❤️

[@Ferroza-m8d]

Why Lenovo bring hdmi instead of DP or miniDP port?

[@alainalvain1730]

Matt you need to review the Gen 4. Lots of changes. So much so I might actually buy a laptop.

[@rolinychupetin]

Can I draw on the screen with a stylus?

[@BudiLaksono]

Thinkpad extreme gen 3 still worth it in 2022?

[@hfawki]

Great review. What do you think, X1 Extreme or Thinkpad P series?

[@mehoprelivoda]

its the same, diff are the graphics, if you ocationaly do game take x1 gen1 - undervolt it, repaste it and save the monies :)

[@theena]

This saddens me. I was looking at this range as my next buy, but that battery life is atrocious. Just for context, my XPS 9750 with the 8th gen processor, and with everything else pretty much the same as this model including the 4K touch screen, gets me 5 hours. Matt, could you please review some of Lenovo's workstation range? Particularly the P15?

[@johnle7705]

I think the P1 has better battery with other better features as well

[@stronghold10a]

Need that 16:10 screen. Its a must...

[@НахШвайц]

For me now the biggest quesion - will they go for AMD - CPU(and may be GPU) in the future? It can be great for pricing. It can start(with the special deal) from 1250$ and than they gonna sell A LOT of units. What you think? P.s. I am currently using E495. With 16GB of RAM and 3700U on board and with updated grafic card drivers is a beast(even one year after the buy). And I got him only for 750 for special deal from AMD. That's why I am very interesting in the question, which I wrote. Because if I can pay 500$(even 600) more and get Thinkpad Extreme. I will fricking do it.

[@edwardk8477]

Looking for a review of the ThinkPad P1 Gen 3 too. Currently in my place (Singapore), the P1 Gen 3 is around 25% cheaper than X1 Extreme Gen 3 when they have similar specs. I have no idea why there can be such a huge price gap.

[@nicolastorres9993]

Macbook pro m1 vs dell xps 17 or this one to buy?

[@Noodles.FreeUkraine]

So this 16:9 thing gets rekt by a MacBook running Premiere out of all things, is left in the dust by the SB3's anemic CPU and may last a good 2 hours on a charge on a good day. They call it “extreme”. And they're right. It's extremely disappointing. Can't say they lie to their customers.

[@shekcbanny]

That pwm is a deal breaker for someone like me who suffers from strain/headache

[@jon4715]

Agreed. PWM is a nightmare, and it really shouldn't be a thing at all. Can you inagine living in a house with all led fixtures, sitting at your desk with your oled screen, checking your oled phone, oled tv playing in the background, and they're all flickering rapidly at different rates? This sort of thing is subconsciously recognized by all people, not just sensitive people. Your eyes and irises respond to this whether people realize it or not. Flicker free should be a public health mandate.

[@shekcbanny]

@@jon4715 Agreed , more product reviewers should highlight this in device more than resolutions, brightness, etc

[@jon4715]

@@shekcbanny That any mention it at all is a wonder. There seems to be more awareness now, but oled screens have been bothering me for almost 10 years now. They've gotten better, but are still fairly nausea inducing.

[@popokatapetl6995]

Imagine Ryzen 4800U inside this laptop and just a bit better battery..just imagine. Also no need for 4K I mean wtf you guys need more then 400 nits full hd+ or maybe just maybe 120hz and a bit bigger touchpad that would be an awesome laptop for sure

[@toregulbayev1489]

what about 4800h?

[@popokatapetl6995]

@@toregulbayev1489 no need indeed, with 4800U will eat for breakfast all Intel's cpu's and will get much more battery life with no thermal throatling at all..Also if they put 16:10 display they will shut down all competition. Myself prefer 16:9 on 15.6 laptops

[@dnawalahmed2979]

even with a 1080p OLED display that would be great, but no one thinked about that

[@Mohamad_Rashad]

Which laptop were you using the last period Matth?

[@MatthewMoniz]

None really since travel is off the table. So purely desktop right now.

[@prophetzro2146]

Despite having many ports, I'm still fine with it

[@iCrackr]

Said no one ever

[@thebasketballhistorian3291]

@@iCrackr Lol, exactly. Most people need more ports. And for the people who don't use them, there's absolutely no negative effect other than some weird MacBook (standard) fetish of just having one port to look "clean".

[@greliusz]

I have Gen1 - is it worth changing to gen3?

[@Sk-tc1gr]

I bought the 2019 one a few months ago. I was worried I would regret not waiting, but there is litterly no difference.

[@ackyash]

HP Spectre X360 15 (2020 version) is best ultraportable with 15.6 inch screen. I just bought one with the Low power IPS panel and its lovely. Decent battery life too. Only problem is non-upgradebale RAM on the HP.

[@MatthewMoniz]

I just reviewed it a few weeks back. Performance is an issue on that laptop. It’s a hard recommendation

[@ackyash]

@@MatthewMoniz Really , missed that review, but I have been using for a few weeks now and it handles everything I thow at it without any problem. Using office apps, Photoshop, Corel and some light gaming. I think it should last me fine for 3 years. Fingers crossed

[@clarenceteo6833]

Hi I'm interested in the laptop, can you tell me more about heat? Like for example a casual game 🙂 thank you!

[@AirrowRocket]

Great job. Agree with your conclusions.

[@Aeonikst8]

im rocking the gen one still, actually got it from work. it was this one or a few others i could choose from like the Carbon ( all thinkpads) . honestly works great for work I like it alot and have not had one single problem with it. I was thinking of getting something lighter and portable for my own personal computer. I bought an ipad but it just doesn't cut it sometimes. I was thinking xps 13 or the new Thinkpad Nano. What does everyone think?

[@404Anymouse]

Wait, it doesn't have a docking port??

[@testieeklees584]

Speakers are definitely better this time around, decent for down firing type.

[@jaymodi2037]

Can you review Thinkpad P1 Gen 3 too?

I hate the look of all laptops featuring a nipple and mouse buttons. I am not an Apple fan, but I do think MacBooks look the best because if this. I never use the nipple and the buttons anyway, so why are they there? It's a rhetorical question by the way. Outside of work I don't use laptops at all.

[@SahilKumar-jw3uu]

Bruhhh, I like your videos before watching 🤣. You're amazing.

[@MatthewMoniz]

Thank you !

[@ParadiseCity1986]

there is no (mini)ethernet port like on gen2

[@berntanders]

Must be something wrong with 2,5 hrs. Display light on max ?

[@MatthewMoniz]

30 % brightness it’s on the screen when I talk about battery life. Better battery mode

[@Ferroza-m8d]

Waiting it's tiger lake gen

[@arvindynr]

why not Ryzen 4800U?

[@akaRobTheGreat]

Good review. I feel better about targeting a Gen 2. I still wish Lenovo would just put a decent GPU into a regular 15 inch Thinkpad. And I about expanding the track pad. Just extend the The nub buttons left and right about an inch. Anyway, like I said, good review I agree with a lot of your points.

[@deinbleiz]

Less than 3 hours of battery life? Is that really by design?

[@_hypedad]

@Matthew Moniz You thought the battery life on the i7 was bad, I got the i9. 2 hours max.

[@MatthewMoniz]

Ouchhhh

[@KTPurdy]

I'm waiting for a 3:2 Thinkpad

[@roshannair2118]

The Schitt's Creek reference was cool.

[@sinashariatirad]

I'm gonna search "what does the nipple do on thinkpad laptops" right after i finished watching this video

You must be young or ignorant then. Because all laptops had those nipples till not that long ago...

[@tynenharris1256]

@ better than a track pad imo

[@tynenharris1256]

@ yeah oath 100%

[@Drakopiou]

If you do a lot of coding that keep your hand on the keyboard, no need to grab your mouse everytime

[@Drakopiou]

@@notpreacher1564 yes but vim is not usable in all dev environment / programming language, so trackpoint is a perfect addition

[@PerezKique]

Do you guys think it's better to get this or the XPS 17 inch?

[@MatthewMoniz]

Xps 17

[@mattfusion6765]

Hey Matt, if you see this, I'm trying to find a good gaming laptop for around 1200 dollars I can maybe stretch to 1300 (usd) , I'm more worried about how well it runs and aging than rgb and sound quality. Thanks if you respond

[@mca4u]

Dell really need to offer more competitive input options on their new 15 XPS, can't believe how stingy they are. I'm using a GEN 2 32GB for work and the keyboard is a dream!

[@joloriquelme]

I have since a year ago a Gen2 maxed out. And has been a disappointment in terms of quality and performance. Lots of widespread drivers problems, specially with a faulty BIOS that messed the keyboard and took 6 months for Lenovo to resolve, a quality issue with the screws and the notebook materials, problems with excesive fan noise and also problems with a display driver that reduces the brightness of the display around 10% and Lenovo hasn't fixed yet. Also, the performance is good but isn't spectacular compared to rivals. It is better on others. The battery life is horrible too, at least on the 4K version. No longer than 3 hours on normal usage. I don't know if all those problems has been fixed in the Gen3. I asume that yes, because, for example, they removed the right Smartcard slot that produces a vibration on the chassis while typing on the Gen2, and, when you ask for warranty for the keyboard issue, you get a better one as a replacement as were reported by many users affected. But, only because of the drivers and support problem, I can't recommend Lenovo anymore. I suggest to skip this Notebook and the ThinkPad brand, and go for a Dell XPS, on even a MacBook Pro 16 with 9th gen Intel chip and 5500M Radeon graphics. It would be a better and safe choice.

[@rohangowthami]

this laptop that will throttle hard. same problem with the previous-gen laptop too.

[@smilingcopycat]

Best setup is apple MacBook Pro with bootcamp Windows.....cant beat it...

[@dxace1]

Lenovo really lags behind on making faster changes to this X1 series....they really need to speed up to keep up with Dell and others. Still 10th gen? And 2 hours 45 battery....? No thanks.

[@Kkkkk-i5i]

Thank you

[@dhfixlaptopaffairs]

Plus mouse track

[@rodrigonavarro5786]

it only laks ryzen, 144hz and usb4

[@viraj_nayak]

That's awesome

[@MatthewMoniz]

You're awesome

[@helmetculture]

Anyone know why the power cable isn't USB C?

[@claudiotaffarel4005]

USBC cannot deliver the required 135Wh to the laptop. Apple's tops out at 100, Dell manages 170 on the XPS17 (if I'm correct), but it's proprietary. Yes, maybe the question is "why didn't Lenovo build a proprietary USBC power delivery system just like Dell?" I think that's just to cut the costs.

[@monkeycchain]

Never been this early to a video before. Hows everyone doing?

[@MatthewMoniz]

Good and you?

[@ethanlinderman8833]

Doing good my man

[@KevinCarstens]

Lenovo is currently banned from selling most products in Germany. I've ordered a Dell now.

[@haoma9267]

if you want ultra-portable why not buy XPS 15 9500 instead? TP X1E was just staying there and watching his friends far far far away ahead. whole unit is thick with poor cooling. usb-a will be dated soon so what does X1E left when people using usb4.0 ports? answer: nothing.

[@qx4df]

Hey! please see the gen 4 of the x1 extreme they, made it 16:10 finally

[@xanderwang7865]

Awww Schitt's Creek!

[@avneeshchauhan9257]

ThinkPad is my favourite Laptop line series I have never used it but I want this type of laptop Presently I have Acer Swift 3 which a good though Runs well Superb editing and Casual gaming Fast bootup

[@jon4715]

The Gen 2 had a dedicated ethernet port. So it was even better. This thing is a workhorse, but yeah 16x9 sucks.

[@ahmedsharafeldin9367]

Battery is a deal breaker

[@alfredneuman1179]

I really really wanted to buy it for all the reasons said... then came the battery.... it is a joke - ended up with a macbook 16 and bootcamp - which still gives me 2ice the run time... despite the permanently running gpu

[@j0hnnykn0xv1lle]

Looks like I'm stayin in XPS. Damn shame.

[@2fast4u288]

omg less than 3hrs of battery 😵 that would ruin it for me

[@JasonLeaman]

I have the P1 Gen2, good laptop but battery sucks! and lot sof weird issues with them !

[@revtane9]

Lenovo Xiaoxin Air 14 please

[@ToreOnYouTube]

Apples new computers really make the internal design look dated. I hope we will see a real ARM windows soon.

[@thebasketballhistorian3291]

2:09 "[The nipple] still feels very good."

[@r00t8]

i love this brand

[@babakbanijamali5130]

Anyone try a Bellroy or better sleeve to carry it around and protect it? What does anyone recommend. Lenovo only has a neoprene cheap sleeve for this.

[@dhfixlaptopaffairs]

The first sounds better bro

[@renardkabza3917]

Does Apple pay you?

[@njoyidc]

I’d rather have a better key board screen trackpad and speaker than more ports lol

[@lennyizekor809]

Hi

[@dlh4894]

Moniz, why do you always get such low battery life maaaan? What kind of stuff do you do?? Lol

[@jw840]

I returned this laptop, yes the fan is extremely loud

[@mehoprelivoda]

noob - you have silent mode in vantage app

[@james68279]

Yoko Matty! Where's the bacon?!

[@linux_lectures226]

Wait having ports is competitive advantage lol......

[@LandingNow]

Wow..barely 3hrs of battery life? cmon

[@arthasfrost]

-poor battery life well there's always C940 and S940, even the Yoga Slim 7/7i ... there's always 10 other Thinkpads to grab from, i guess