The ThinkPad Edge series also offers several features for a smoother, more effective user experience. The full size keyboard and Lenovo ThinkPad W700ds battery numeric keypad allows comfortable numeric and text data entry. Lenovo’s Rapid Boot technology reduces boot times by up to 30%, allowing you to get to work faster. The ThinkPad Edge E530 notebook is fitted out with hardware that delivers the high performance levels that SMB users require.
The build quality is above average providing for the necessary protection of the computer’s internal parts. The build quality should be acceptable for users moving the laptop around on a frequent basis, even after a couple of years. The external parts might however wear out after medium-term usage , resulting in cracks or squeaking sounds.
Most notebooks in this price range stick to cheaper, more common, glossy panels that glare in bright light, so it’s a treat to see a matte display on a budget business notebook with Lenovo ThinkPad W700ds AC adapter. The glossy notebook bezels are distracting while in bright light, but don’t diminish usability.
The display only offers a 1366 x 768 resolution, which makes for a cramped experience while editing documents side-by-side, but is easier to overlook thanks to the price of the notebook and matte finish.
Since the E430 is a smaller sized laptop it will not have room to offer a built-in number pad like you can get on the E530. The E430 is targeted towards small business users that need a portable laptop at a budget friendly price but without making a bunch of quality sacrifices. You still get the ThinkPad pointing stick, top notch keyboard and strong build Lenovo ThinkPad W700 AC adapter you’d expect from any laptop sold under the ThinkPad line. The ThinkPad E420 we reviewed was very popular and actually found a strong interest from students.
The Edge uses the AccuType keyboard, which is now used across both the ThinkPad Edge and standard ThinkPad lines. The keyboard is pretty impressive and makes up for the poor trackpad. The keys are large and finger-friendly which make it perfect for long typing sessions. They are responsive too. Besides, you get dedicated keys that serve as a shortcut to launch the Calculator, My Computer, Windows search box and the lock/log-in screen of Windows. It offers a roomy island-style layout that provides good definition between keys. Key travel is excellent. Overall, the typing experience provided by the E530 is on par with current ThinkPads.
It also includes built-in HD 4000 graphics which is Lenovo ThinkPad W700ds AC adapter undoubtedly better than the previous HD 3000 from Intel. Additionally, you get NVIDIA GeForce GT 630M graphics adapter. This makes the notebook perform well for most of the tasks that a laptop is used for. Reviewers who have tested this laptop found that it performs well with MP3 encoding test which it completed in a respectable 48 seconds.
The hard drive, with its 5400rpm spin speed, produced decent transfer rates in CrystalDiskMark; it read at a rate of 99.86 megabytes per second (MBps) and wrote at 97.79MBps. In our own transfer tests, where we duplicate data from one location on the drive to another, it recorded a more modest 37.85MBps. We would have liked a faster drive in this unit, perhaps even an SSD. In saying that, the 1TB capacity is definitely a drawcard and still reasonably quick thanks to its high data density.
Still, the Lenovo proved both sturdy and serviceable, and it comes with a strong complement of expansion ports Lenovo ThinkPad W700 adapter and security options, including a fingerprint reader for keeping intruders out. All in all, while the ThinkPad Edge E530 offers little to thrill small-business shoppers, it's as safe a buy for them as the company's more costly ThinkPads are for corporate IT departments.
Many small business buyers and students are on a budget and can’t afford the $1,000+ ThinkPad T530. If that’s the case for you, the ThinkPad Edge E530 is a nice alternative. You still get great build quality and a top notch keyboard. Granted, it’s not quite on par with the more expensive enterprise focused T530, but it’s better than an average consumer grade laptop. You might even prefer the design of the E530 over the T530 as it’s less boxy, using curved edges and having different lid color options. You also get an HDMI port, Lenovo G550 battery, something not offered in the T530, and yet it’s a port that many people look for when buying a laptop.