Products · Product
ThinkPad laptops
Raised as a usability problem by 270 people on Hacker News over 18 years (2009–2026), in 210 threads.
No issue was raised by at least 3 people in 3 threads this year.
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Every issue, all time, most people first
Pointer jumps while typing when palms touch the TrackPointUnreviewed
20092026- Mouse pointer jumps around unexpectedly while typing, unresolved by mouse settings2024-01-08
- Cursor drifts on its own, a problem unchanged for twenty years2023-01-18
- Mouse pointer jumps while typing because palm or fingers touch the TrackPoint2022-05-02
Clickpad fails to register clicks and right-clicking is hardUnreviewed
20092026- Haptic touchpad without physical buttons is tiring; middle button is hard to hit2023-08-30
- Touchpad off-center so right-click is constantly hit as left-click2023-07-08
- Mouse clicks register on the wrong side or jump the cursor to the screen edge2023-03-14
Touch function keys give no tactile feedback, hard to use blindUnreviewed
20092026- Fn-key volume and mute presses give no visual feedback and no error when the driver is missing2020-02-26
- Soft-touch function keys sometimes fail, leaving the user stuck between F-key and brightness/volume modes2019-09-19
- Function keys replaced by a touch strip, which is hard to use blind2018-10-16
Moving hands between keyboard and pointing device is slowUnreviewed
20092026- Trackpad pulls fingers off home row, breaking typing flow and concentration2022-08-10
- Pointer movement is jerky and imprecise on Linux, slowing to about 45 Hz after palm touches2022-05-02
- Keyboard sits close to edge and small touchpad causes wrist strain during long typing2021-03-16
Fn key placement conflicts with Ctrl muscle memoryUnreviewed
20092026- Fn+F9/10/11 media keys don't work on Linux without manual remapping2022-08-29
- Function keys need the Fn key, so alt+F4 is not intuitive to press2022-04-20
- Fn key placement conflicts with muscle memory for the Ctrl key2016-12-31
Keys sit in confusing places and keycaps pop off easilyUnreviewed
20092026- Some keys occasionally fail to register, so typed characters come out wrong2018-01-15
- Home, End, Escape and Delete keys moved; accidental CapsLock activation while typing2017-08-21
- Keys sit in confusing places and keycaps pop off easily2017-07-03
Print Screen takes prime spot while arrow and Home keys are crampedUnreviewed
20092026- Print Screen key sits beside Space, causing frequent misclicks and accidental shifts2018-07-14
- Can't tell where the keys are without looking, splitting attention from the screen2016-10-26
- Print Screen key sits in prime position while arrow, Home and End keys are cramped or missing2016-01-04
Switching graphics modes requires restarting Xorg, HDMI breaksUnreviewed
20092026- Switching graphics modes requires restarting Xorg, and HDMI breaks when GPU is disabled2022-05-02
- Discrete GPU can't be disabled and drivers fail to resume or drive monitors properly on Linux2022-04-20
- Can't turn off the GPU to save battery without losing external HDMI, requires Xorg restart2021-08-15
Unreviewed issues were grouped by machine: Claude Haiku labelled each comment as a usability complaint, named what it's about and summed up the problem in a line, and a small model grouped similar problems. Nobody has checked them by hand. Expect mistakes.
The newest 50 complaints
- Trackpoint too slow on Linux to use properly; raising speed loses accuracy2026-11-02
- Shallow keys with poor feedback make typing unpleasant2026-11-02
- Laptop won't sleep properly, overheats on lid close, and ignores power button shutdown2026-09-09
- Trackpoint too imprecise to use with high-DPI interfaces2026-09-07
- Trackpad clicky buttons are placed so badly the trackpad is almost unusable2026-05-18
- TrackPoint feels too imprecise for clicking dense, high-resolution UI elements2026-03-11
- Trackpad is over-sensitive, making the laptop hard to use2026-03-03
- TrackPoint cursor drifts on its own on modern ThinkPads2026-01-21
- Repeated problems one after another, making the laptop frustrating to use2026-01-18
- Jira and other JavaScript-heavy sites take extra seconds to load; GPU not snappy2026-01-18
- Small middle button is hard to hit when trying to paste2026-01-16
- Speakers too poor to make out movie dialogue2026-01-10
- Touchscreen registers accidental touches from sleeve brushing, with no way to disable it2026-01-08
- Boot stops at a BIOS warning until user presses ESC when not on official charger2025-12-08
- Can't get to the fan to clean it without removing the heat sink2025-11-27
- Bluetooth upgrades ignored; user must force-override system detection to use new chip2025-11-22
- Touchpad gestures with thumb and TrackPoint use with index finger are not intuitive2025-08-26
- Screen auto-dims on battery after 30 seconds and user can't find how to disable it2025-08-23
- Current short dome is hard to push, fingers slip with no grip2025-08-02
- Brightness hotkeys once froze the OS via hidden firmware code, and direct hardware register access can garble the screen2025-05-11
- Selecting Linux silently removes the high-resolution screen option, so the user can't find it2025-04-03
- Non-IBM TrackPoint pointing sticks feel bad to use2025-04-03
- Docking station stopped working after months; USB-C connection becomes finicky2025-04-03
- Trackpad feels unpleasant to use even after configuring extra settings2025-01-19
- Without physical buttons, middle-click paste and quick clicks become harder to do2025-01-19
- Keys are cramped and missing Right Ctrl, hurting touch typing shortcuts2025-01-19
- Policy-mandated security software makes the work laptop absurdly slow2025-01-13
- Trackpad and keyboard layout are poor to use2024-08-28
- Modern ThinkPad screens are unreadable in full sunlight2024-03-21
- Takes a long time to readapt to, and most people won't put in the effort2024-03-06
- Trackpoint crawls unless users manually tweak sysfs and xinput, and settings shift after updates2024-03-06
- Laptop throttles and hangs when loading IntelliJ, making work frustrating2024-03-05
- Mouse pointer jumps around unexpectedly while typing, unresolved by mouse settings2024-01-08
- No way to turn off the bright charging LED2024-01-01
- Dim low-res screen and sluggish processor frustrate daily use2023-12-31
- Trackpad is frustrating to use on a moving vehicle over rough roads2023-12-31
- Trackpad and TrackPoint are awful to use2023-12-31
- Keyboard is horrible to type on2023-10-05
- Fingerprint reader was temperamental and never worked for the user2023-09-27
- Trackpad is described as terrible, with no specific problem stated2023-09-05
- Haptic touchpad without physical buttons is tiring; middle button is hard to hit2023-08-30
- Click buttons work only occasionally and the trackpad is awful to use2023-08-29
- Clickpad buttons work only occasionally and the trackpad is awful to use2023-08-29
- Laptop wakes or fails to wake from sleep unexpectedly, forcing a 30-second power button hold2023-07-17
- Touchpad off-center so right-click is constantly hit as left-click2023-07-08
- Trackpoint middle button needs scrolling workaround; BIOS resets screen to max brightness2023-04-01
- Mouse clicks register on the wrong side or jump the cursor to the screen edge2023-03-14
- Keyboard randomly swallows keypresses, making the laptop keyboard unusable2023-02-24
- Trackpad works briefly, then becomes laggy and unresponsive2023-02-23
- Nub placement is awkward and uncomfortable for large hands during extended use2023-01-18