Replacement for HP EliteBook 2570P

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  scrimshaw on 11/05/2018 - 20:15

  The 14" Lenovo T480 should have what you want.
  https://www3.lenovo.com/au/en/laptops/thinkpad/thinkpad-t-se…

  • Discrete Nvidia MX150 DX12 graphics
  • 1x 2.5" SATA bay
  • 1x M.2 bay for Solid state storage
  • i7-8650U Processor (8M Cache, 1.9 GHz, 4.2 GHz max) with vPro
  • Docking option
  • Thunderbolt ports
  • removable battery, upgradable to a heavier 6 cell. The stock config is 3 cell non removable with a 3 cell removable one.

  There's also a cheaper, more plasticky, for "prosumer" model, the Thinkpad E480, which takes it a notch down on premium business features, but it does gain a pretty respectable Radeon RX550 GPU that's a tad faster than the MX150. It still retains the dual storage option and also backlit KB upgrade.

  • 

    josetann on 11/05/2018 - 20:52

    Correct me if I'm wrong, but it looks like the main M.2 bay is shared with the 2.5" bay. The additional M.2 is half-size (made for WWAN), which makes it virtually unusable (but not technically impossible). The Dell Latitude 7490 I was looking at was somewhat similar, except it didn't have an option to use a 2.5" drive at all. Two M.2 slots, one made for SSD and the other for WWAN (which MIGHT work with a non-SATA SSD, but can't find anyone that actually tested that). At least there are reports of people using an SSD drive in the WWAN port on the Lenovo, so that's something.

    I like that it's powered by USB-C. Love the battery life. Hate the touchpad (specifically I want mouse buttons below the touchpad, I don't like pushing the touchpad itself in lieu of buttons).

    Just to give an idea of what I'm comparing it to, here's a Dell Latitude 7490 that's currently available from the US Outlet Store for $1,146 USD ($1,516 AUD). I'm visiting next month, so I can either purchase one there and bring back, or purchase one here and avail of the TRS.

    Intel Core 8th Generation i7-8650U Processor (Quad Core,1.90GHz,8MB Cache,15W) + Type-C
    Windows 10 Pro
    256GB Solid State Drive
    16 GB DDR4 Non-ECC SDRAM 2400MHz (1x16GB)
    14 inch FHD (1920 x 1080) WVA Embedded Touch Anti-Glare with Camera & Microphone
    Intel UHD Graphics

    Really seems like a no-brainer EXCEPT…I have to shell out nearly $500 USD for a 2TB SSD (since I can't just throw my current 2.5" mechanical in there). And I really need more space, not less (my boot drive is nearly full, and my 2TB has a few hundred GB of free space).

    • 

      scrimshaw on 11/05/2018 - 22:59

      If you must have a 2.5" inch bay, then I recommend the Latitude 5490.

      It is a more lower end Latitude series — I believe none of the Latitudes nowadays have discrete graphics processors, meaning you won't be gaming. You'll have to buy either a Dell Precision, Inspiron or XPS / Alienware model for that.

      However, the upside is that the 2.5" inch bay is still there so you won't have to fork out for a new SSD. The major downside is that to keep the laptop at a lower price, Dell didn't put in NVME SSD support, so you are limited to using M.2 SATA drives.

      , here's a Dell Latitude 7490

      If you want a thin and light high end notebook like that, which still supports the following:

      • dual storage
      • kick ass GPU

      • premium form factor

        many manufacturers nowadays have ditched the 2.5" drive bay because these bays make the laptop much thicker and less portable (and in some respects ugly when compared to their competition).
        It makes sense for flagship compact laptops to ditch older storage standards in favour of M.2

      The only other laptop that I know of that has dual M.2 2280 slots is the Gigabyte Aero 14 (or Aero 14X) and the Aorus X3 Plus, possibly even the Razer Blade

      These are of course gaming machines, but if "Overkill" storage solutions are what you are after with the combination of a fast graphics card, this is actually what you have to aim for.