ThinkPad T400s: Key to a Better Experience
I thought it would be useful to follow up on the sneak peek blog I published earlier in the week with more information . Now that the product has officially announced, I can share a lot more of the research methodology and creative thinking that drove the changes to the keyboard. The video is just too short and a bit vague, by design, to share all the details. After all it was a bit of a teaser. Much of the footage ended up on the cutting room floor due to pre-announce concerns from legal and others.
My team felt there was a great opportunity to take the ThinkPad keyboard design and user experience to the next level with the introduction of the T400s. It only made sense, this was to be the best T series ever made. Achieving such a goal was not easy, however, it required a lot of hard work, creative thinking , and most importantly information about how people used their exisiting keyboards.
We thought that taking an updated look at key frequency of use would be a good place to start in order to uncover innovation opportunity. Things do change over the years. Who would ever have predicted the increased use of the @ and tab keys prior to the internet. To gather this kind of critical information we solicited agreement from several dozen internal users to install a special keyboard tracker on their ThinkPad. The request to install a keyboard tracker on peoples’ laptops sounded a bit odd at first, but eventually volunteers lined up once they understood exactly what we were trying to accomplish. We really didn’t want to peer into their lives, we just wanted frequency of use data. After an extended period of time the data was translated into what we call a “heat map”. The more frequently used the key, the more red we used to color it. This visual mapping technique quickly revealed patterns that suggested design changes.
Portion of the heat map based on collected data
The QWERTY section of the keyboard is highly controlled for obvious touch typing reasons. Outside of the QWERTY section, some frequently used keys have larger than normal key tops. Enter, backspace, tab, caps lock, shift, control, and of course the space bar fall into this category. Surprisingly enough this idea has never made it past the 5th row. Frequency of use is not the only driver of increased key size. The style of gesture or stroke used for the function also comes into play. Enter falls into the category of a clear and deliberate action, a sort of salute to completion. There is a certain fervor of emotion connected to it’s use. Sounds very similar to the delete key. Who doesn’t enjoy hammering that one home when the boss sends you some ridiculous note that requires no action. When looking at frequency of use and gesture the delete key became an obvious candidate for increased size. The upward trajectory of movement towards the delete and escape keys also suggested making them taller rather than wider. For example, the enter key is wider for a similar reason, but with a more lateral trajectory.
We didn’t just rely on the frequency of use data collection technique. We also cross checked the data regarding frequency of key use against the occurance of letters in language. For instance e is the most frequently occuring letter in language and it is the most commonly used alphanumeric key. For those of you who are curious, space bar is the overall frequency of use winner by a wide margin. We also did visual inspections of numerous used ThinkPad keyboards to determine wear patterns. If you want to check your own system the glossier the key the more frequently it has been used. The tilde key on my system has no visible wear. Additionally we analyzed responses to a survey that I posted on this topic that allowed us to get even richer data, including respondant comments. Thanks to all who participated.
In the end we decided to change the keyboard for what believe is the better. We increased the size of the delete and escape keys to make them more comfortable to use and mapped the shape to the vertical trajectory of the stroke. Okay we had to move the insert key to make way for a larger delete key, but our data indicated it was far less frequently used. We tested early hardware with real people and have used prototype machines with the keyboard modifications for over a year. As a side benefit we also think that we improved accidental striking of the F1 key by moving it to the right. Nice fix to a known reported issue.
This has been quite a journey for my team, but I think it was worth it. I hope you’ve enjoyed reading about the detailed thinking that went into these changes, and more importantly, like the resulting experience we created.
David Hill
Lenovo Meet the Modder Dean Liou
Lenovo Meet the modder- Chris Blarsky Dairy 2
Lenovo Meet the modder- Chris Blarsky Dairy 1
Lenovo H320 desktop
June 24th, 2009 2:35 pm
For what it’s worth, the ~ key is great for accessing home directories under UNIX.
I get the feeling that the different OSes will have different heatmaps. I’ve solved the F1 ‘problem’ by binding it to do something innocuous like opening up a terminal.
As someone else mentioned in another comment, it would be nice to be able to test the new layouts, or offer the option of the ‘original’ layout.
June 24th, 2009 4:05 pm
That looks like a good change. I used to hate the idea of the delete key taking over the insert key like but since I started using a laptop more and less apps seem to use ctrl-insert that seems less important. In fact it seems quite sensible.
The fix to the escape key is definitely welcome. I hope these changes make it over to the UK keyboard. Well so long as it’s regionalised, you don’t want to do become like the Apple keyboards in the UK where the # key is non existent.
June 24th, 2009 4:10 pm
this must have been predicted by whoever created the JIS (japanese industrial standard) keyboard layout. the @ sign has a dedicated key and doesn’t require the use of shift to type the character.
June 24th, 2009 4:16 pm
It just occurred to me that simply measuring the frequency of using a certain key does not help to detect all patterns of usage. The Esc and Del keys, and some others, are often used repetitively. For Del, that’s clear. Repeatedly hitting Esc shouldn’t be necessary, but users often do so when the software is not responsive. Making the key easy to locate for the first hit in a row by enlarging it is one part of the solution (which I like very much). But once the finger is on the key, is there anything else that could be done to support repetitive usage?
June 24th, 2009 4:47 pm
Something implicit in what you have been saying in these posts is that there is one keyboard design that fits all (or more likely fits all in one country/language).
Since you already have to have interchangeable keyboard layouts, couldn’t you offer after market layouts. For example the Windows keys are useless to this Linux user who could do with bigger ctrl keys, but others swear by Windows keys. Developers in Scandanavian countries need to use {} and [] which are a pain on their national layouts. You have heard about how being able to enter numbers is very important to a small minority. Others using their systems primarily for multi-media are going to want more keys dedicated to that. And finally there are people who to show their dedication to various games/charities/colours/companies in cell phone cases and why not keyboards?
As a data point, I’d be very happy to spend $40 on a layout dedicated to Linux. (BTW Linux users using the vi editor hit ESC a lot including multiple times. Emacs users like me hit Ctrl and Alt a lot. I use the calculator button on my main keyboard a lot while writing code.)
June 24th, 2009 5:00 pm
I’m one of “those” Leen00x g33ks who will not get this machine or any with the “new and improved” keyboard layout. I make heavy use of (ctrl+)insert and this just doesn’t cut it.
I hated when some keyboard makers went for double-sized delete and moved insert to top row and will also hate this.
Also, Fn key should be remappable if it’s impossible to move ctrl to where it really belongs.
(Yes, of course I always keep caps lock mapped as another ctrl.)
June 24th, 2009 6:01 pm
Would it be possible to see some of the data? I think it would be very interesting.
June 24th, 2009 6:23 pm
I’m another Linux user here who would prefer Insert to be left alone. I do, however, really like the Esc key change and the tighter spacing. Chalk me down as a user who would pay $40 to lose the Windows keys.
I would also pay $800 for NVidia graphics in my X200. Seriously. I’d say “any price”, but I’d be lying.
June 24th, 2009 6:25 pm
Would it be possible to get a T400s to review?
June 24th, 2009 6:41 pm
This is great stuff — thanks for posting these details of your research. I was wondering if you could share any information on how you arrived at the touchpad design changes. (Disclosure: I work at Synaptics.)
June 24th, 2009 6:51 pm
I use Ins on my desktop for paste (Shift-Ins), but on my laptop, my hands are usually close enough to use Ctrl-V as (if not more) easily. Same goes for Copy (Ctrl-Ins vs Ctrl-C).
So I didn’t really lament the migration of the Ins key.
Moving the F1 key away from Esc is definitely a win for all corners.
June 24th, 2009 6:52 pm
I, for one, welcome our new large keys overlords.
But seriously, the Esc and Del are the only mistypes I can recall to happen for me on my T60. The first one more frequently, usually I open some help window by hitting F1 instead.
Overall, T400s indeed is a very nice ThinkPad. If only I could afford one…
June 24th, 2009 7:44 pm
I’ll take this excellent opportunity to join the other people in pointing out that windows key is extremely annoying and would also pay to loose it. How hard can it really be ? Really, just make the t43 layout available as an option. I don’t mind any of the new changes though despite being a Linux user too.
June 24th, 2009 11:37 pm
Congrats to David and the Lenovo design team!
The nicely and thoughtfully redone T400s is meeting up a standard set by the X300:
- sleeker, thinner, no battery sticking out
- ports location amendments
- speakers refinishing
- mindful new design & layout of keyboard
- redesign of media keys
- making the trackpad classy and feel good together with the re-introduction of red strips on the new-style trackpoint keys
In every way looks and feels good!
June 25th, 2009 1:25 am
It’s also worth noting that for touch typists the Esc and Del keys, both on the top corners of tke keyboard, are accessed by the pinkie fingers, which I think are the weakest. Hence making them bigger makes sense.
June 25th, 2009 5:13 am
Great news!
Will it also be possible to order/buy such a new keyboard and put it into my T500?
Are those new keyboards compatible with “older” ThinkPads like mine?
Thank you
June 25th, 2009 5:49 am
I suggest another button to look at: the left mousebutton (for trackpoint usage). on my t60, after 2.5 years, the plastic is apparently worn down by my finger/nail:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/9.....otostream/
did you change to a softer plastic compound at some point during the last years?
June 25th, 2009 11:24 am
Erik, the @ symbol has a rather amazing history that dates back to the Italian Renaissance as a shorthand symbol used by merchants.Interesting read on the wikipedia.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/@
June 25th, 2009 2:02 pm
Seems like a well researched and reasonable change to me.
The size of the delete key never bothered me, but I have definitely hit F1 while aiming for Esc on several occasions.
Note to users asking for other keyboard layouts:
The keyboard layout is controlled in software. It is certainly possible to use the layout of your choice on ANY keyboard. Of course this requires that you know what each key really does and will thoroughly confuse anybody that tries to type on your ThinkPad.
The Microsoft Keyboard Layout Creator (MSKLC) is a great program for creating and editing your own custom keyboard layout.
http://www.microsoft.com/downl.....DF57EF19D7
June 25th, 2009 3:16 pm
In praise of the CAPS LOCK!
I work on an older O/S that is case-sensitive yet most of the system commands and programming/ scripting tools use upper-case-only keywords. The early machines this O/S ran on had uppper-case only CRTs (much like old TTYs)! Since this O/S has been around since the early 70’s, most of the code and other user-entered data is in upper case. I also work with C#, which has different casing issues. So, there are a few of us where the CAPS LOCK is a true blessing – can you imagine coding while holding the shift-key down on every keystroke??? UUGGHH!!
June 25th, 2009 3:39 pm
Considering that Lenovo has done a load of research on key usage, it seems strange to me that something was missed. Let’s out the letter and number keys, (E is the most written letter in the English language), and concentrate on the “functional” keys like DEL, ESC, F1 – F10 and all the others.
The windows key needs to dissapear in order to increase the size of the CTRL key making it easier not to miss it. The F1-F3 and F5-F10 keys need to be made even smaller in order that the F4 key can be made larger and easier not to miss it.
How many ebayers have failed to win an auction because they couldn’t get their last second bid in because they hit “windows” and “F3″ by mistake?
If you disagree with my point of view, I will understand, but only if you agree to put the ESC and DEL keys back to how there were. They didn’t need fixing!
June 25th, 2009 3:56 pm
I want one!
Nice job guys.
Staying true, while moving forward
June 25th, 2009 5:06 pm
david – good read on the @ key. it’s an odd duck on the keyboard but does see a lot of use these days. i like having a dedicated key for it.
it’ll be interesting to see how the T400s’ layout pans out. i’m of the minority who wishes it would have stayed the same simply because i’ve used the 7-row thinkpad layout for 17 years and know that overcoming muscle memory isn’t easy.
btw, what software did you use to log usage patterns? i designed a keyboard interface for a touchscreen kiosk a few years back but we never got this technical on usage patterns since it didn’t use a traditional keyboard layout.
June 26th, 2009 3:32 am
Will future Thinkpads have backlit keyboards? Don’t get me wrong, I love Thinklight, I actually use it for all kinds of purposes. However, I just can’t stop dreaming about black classic thinkpad key broads with white backlit.
June 26th, 2009 9:54 am
[...] of Corporate Identity & Design David Hill also posted up on Design Matters and talks about the design process behind the recent keyboard redesign on the T400s. As you can tell from the comments, it certainly [...]
June 26th, 2009 1:51 pm
I must say that my feelings about the keyboard change are mixed.
When thinking of these changes academically, from purely functional point of view, trying to strive only for what’s universally better, disregarding any notions of what’s common, or accepted, the changes are probably 100% beneficial.
Both the affected keys (Esc and Del) are very commonly used, and the Insert key, while not as useless as some people who cannot think outside of their own box might want you to believe, fundamentally is used far less than Delete.
However, when taking into consideration accepted standards and what people are used to, the situation becomes more ambiguous.
The Esc on 99% of the keyboard is located to the left of the F1, not above it, so moving it there makes sense. Furthermore, the current two-row design means that it moves to the left of F1, while simultaneously staying at the very top left of the keyboard, for people who are used to it being there. The only difficulty is that people who have been used to a certain position of the function keys on Thinkpads will now have to get used to them being moved. But overall, I think it is for the best, because the position will now match what is found on most desktop and laptop keyboard, so it is a win-win.
With the Delete key, I am not so sure. I guess, somehow the standard position of the six navigation keys has become somewhat of a “sacred” thing to me. Throughout the years I watched as manufacturers started playing around with them in funny and sometimes stupid ways, and carefully selected only laptops and desktop keyboard where they remain in their standard positions. And while the Insert really hasn’t moved far, it is bound to create confusion for me not only with older Thinkpads, but also with desktop keyboards.
Bottom line, if it was my decision, I’d implement the Esc change, but keep the Ins/Del as they were. And while we’re at it, would make Fn and Ctrl the same size and BIOS-swappable, as was mentioned somewhere in these blogs. This would make it possible to satisfy almost everyone without the need to introduce the overhead of different keyboard layouts for the same laptop.
But of course, it is not and will never be my decision, because the decision was initially based on research, and I guess the results speak for themselves. A recent survey on the thinkpads.com forums has also shown that more people consider the changes welcome than detrimental, so I doubt it will be changed back.
And truly, this change can be adjusted to, and certainly isn’t as terrible as what some laptops have done to these keys (i.e. move them all to the right, make Pgup/Pgdn only accessible using Fn etc.)
Just a final word on how such surveys are conducted. I think that when contemplating a design change, one should take into account not only how many people support it and how many object, but also the strength of support and objection.
Suppose that you have a situation, where everyone seems to be content. Now you find out that if you make a change, it will make 90% people __a bit__ happier, but the remaining 10% will be __considerably__ less happy. Is it smart to make the change? Not so sure.
Not necessarily saying that this is what happened in this case, but just something to think about.
June 27th, 2009 2:45 am
Dear Lenovo,
It would be really really innovative to provide BIOS option to swap Fn and Ctrl keys.
June 27th, 2009 5:17 pm
I’m going to miss function keys because of the highly reduced spacers between them, as well as shift+insert / ctrl+insert shortcuts.
I would rather move win and right click (is it usefull??) keys to the top row
June 27th, 2009 8:15 pm
In the article on USAToday’s site about the new keyboard, it said that 30 Lenovo employees had key-trackers installed. Is that true? You made this change based on the results of keystrokes from only 30 employees at a single company who were probably all running the same corporate pre-load and apps?
http://www.usatoday.com/tech/p.....-key_N.htm
June 28th, 2009 6:12 am
Isn’t this keyboard superior? http://www.laptopking.com/keyboards/311950.jpg
It’s from the Dell XPS M1530 and it might be the best laptop keyboard I’ve ever used.
June 28th, 2009 1:17 pm
why are the linux users dogging the windows key? its convenient to set that to control the window manager leaving ctel, alt, etc for apps. put a lil diamond sticker on it and celebrate the return of the meta key. that windows logo sort of looks like a broken distorted diamond already.
June 28th, 2009 2:25 pm
As previously mentioned the by far biggest issue with Lenovo keybaords is the placement of the FN and CTRL keys, and they need to be swapped.
The left CTRL is heavily used for shortcuts, and having to hunt for it is seriously annoying.
June 28th, 2009 6:18 pm
While I agree the Esc and Del changes are excellent, I was driven here by your final comment at http://www.usatoday.com/tech/p.....-key_N.htm about Caps Lock. Regarding caps I echo Count Darling’s support, for similar reasons. I script and program as well but came up from the ranks of data-entry and our key-punchers are required to enter most data in caps because Oracle’s search and query are case-sensitive. Some fields are mixed-case, some are upper only; input in either upper or lower is fine, but extracting the data efficiently means you need to be able to search any field for XYZ and be certain of retrieving all instances of XYZ, rather than searching for XYZ, Xyz, xyz (at least).
Research that is not sufficiently inclusive of people who use an object, or that weights too heavily a small number of complaints, is to be avoided.
For example, my favorite mouse was redesigned to be less usable by moving a pair of thumb buttons from the base of the mouse to a bit shy of the upper surface. I have no doubt that was driven by user complaints (in life or research), but just because a wheel squeaks it does not necessarily need grease. It was sufficiently difficult getting used to the change that I don’t use those buttons anymore, nor will I get a mouse from that maker again unless it actually meets my needs.
June 28th, 2009 7:08 pm
Hello David
I read all these comments and came up with an idea I believe is a good one.
Move the Fn key!
To the top row, between the Esc and the sound keys.
This would leave room for the left Ctrl and Alt to be as they should be while still having room for Win key. I think that would be good.
But on second thought, I’d love to have Win and Menu keys instead of the back and forth keys, with that function available through Shift. And have Esc somewhere there too. It would suit my needs much better, I don’t know why but I often find myself navigating my computer with one hand.
I think I could make these last changes if I could only find the software for it, but that Fn key is clearly a bigger problem. But not as big as the numpad…
June 29th, 2009 2:47 am
I see all the Linux users mentioning their linux-specific habits, and I think it important to mention that as a Linux user, I _do_ use the Windows key. All my desktop global shortcuts (for KDE and Compiz) are bound to the Windows key. Or, rather, the Tux key, as the sticker on it implies
Lenovo: How about removing the Windows logo from the OS-modifier key? I don’t care what you put there (a penguin would be fine) but don’t put the logo of another company on that key.
June 29th, 2009 4:43 am
I’m another disappointed thinkpad loyalist. I hope there will be alternate layouts available, and a straightforward way to order the “classic US” keyboard instead of this abomination.
I purchased an X200 because its keyboard and form factor more closely matched to my trusty old T41 than the misguided T60 and T400 series have so far. I also purchased USB travel and full-size keyboards in order to have identical key layout and trackpoint input devices in all situations.
In spite of the T400s looking like a great return to the older T-series emphasis on lightweight, powerful machinery, I would shy away from this due to the keyboard change. I hope it does not infect the rest of the thinkpad line over time.
I also suggest that the “study” of 30 employees is suspect at approximating customer usage. I think you will see huge differences across different operating systems, applications, and user communities. As someone who uses Alt-F1 through Alt-F8 frequently on Linux, I will be negatively impacted by this rearrangement, while I have no issue at all frequently using the current Escape key above the function key row. If anything, it should have been extended upward by having more bezel space above the keyboard, rather than intruding downward into the function key row.
If Lenovo continues to tinker with keyboards, I hope they either include keyboard layout as an ordering choice in the normal web ordering forms, or figure out a way to provide full remapping of a more generic keyboard. I.e. not only remap key identities in software, but also the firmware behavior of Fn, and find a way to allow these “innovative” larger keys to be made out of a larger keycap spanning several key positions, while another user can choose to install the regular keycaps and get more keys.
June 29th, 2009 4:44 am
I’ll have to chime in on the rearrangement of Fn/Ctrl/Logo/Alt. I use the keyboard a lot and there’s a high risk of hitting logo instead of alt, which is very disruptive in ms windows, as well as Fn instead of Ctrl because Fn was given the more distinctive placement.
Under Linux the Insert key sees far more frequent use, as shift+insert pastes in the terminal. Ctrl+Insert, on the other hand, I never use.
On the last hand, though. I’m not your target group. I’ve already bought a Lenovo and it’s enough to convinve me not to again, with nil service (including lying to me about calling back), sabotaged hardware (defective DVD reader, BIOS refusing to boot with standard NICs, DVI connector relegated to a very expensive accessory..), and finally breaking down completely when a spill ocurred on the proudly announced spill resistant keyboard. Yes, the keyboard itself received a fatal error (shorting the power switch), and the computer another (refusing to operate off battery).
June 29th, 2009 8:17 am
/. Lenovo Tinkers With Larger Delete and Escape Keys
June 29th, 2009 9:45 am
According to media reports Delete and Escape are the most used keys on the whole keyboard. I can’t really believe, that users use the escape key more than the space key.
Would you please clarify?
June 29th, 2009 12:13 pm
I hope the internal users were using a wide range of operating systems and applications, as the heat maps most likely differ a lot between them. E.g. vi uses the insert key a lot more frequently than other editors, but is widely used if a remote server is accessed via cli. Ctrl+Ins, Ctrl+Del, Shift+Ins and Shift+Del are used to copy, delete, insert and cut in many application, including standard windows applications.
For my personal use, I’d prefer to have the old Ins/Del layout, and there were already suggestions how this could be made possible. Especially having the same layout on my laptop and on a standard keyboard is important for me and makes it easy to switch between laptop and desktop.
For that reason the Esc key change isn’t that significant to me, it’s more a change back to the standard layout.
Overall I think this change makes getting used to the new laptop more complicated for users of old Thinkpads, but the far more critical change in the design for me the removed possibility to use an extended battery. It must be possible to get 8h to 10h from a laptop e.g. when travelling.
Regards,
Lipsia
June 30th, 2009 10:31 am
[...] Hill over at DesignMatters has an excellent post on how Lenovo collected data for a keyboard redesign. Below is an excerpt, but please visit his [...]
June 30th, 2009 2:57 pm
Please create a BIOS update to allow swapping of the Fn and Ctrl key – the placement is really annoying. Please. Please. Please. Please.
June 30th, 2009 3:18 pm
I do not like the larger delete key. i also still do not like the FN vs CTRL Key placement, which is to me far more important than the “esc” and “del” key, which i dont know how they got the 700 key press figures from. i press the ctrl key far more often. then again, i do hit shift+ Del often enough, but i liked the small del. key.
June 30th, 2009 3:43 pm
As many others have noted, the Fn and Ctrl keys need to be swapped. This is hardly a usability issue; it’s more common sense. I encourage you to take a look at the following thread on the Lenovo Community forum:
http://forums.lenovo.com/lnv/b.....amp;page=1
It’s turned away many customers and annoyed countless others. At the very least, a BIOS swap option is desired.
June 30th, 2009 5:43 pm
While I appreciate the effort put into this research, I think you’re fixing a non-existent problem (and ruining the already almost perfect layout).
- Esc’s normal position makes it unmistakeable.
- I’ve never seen anyone use Del a lot, unless doing editing instead of writing, in which case mistaking it is not that much of an issue.
On the other hand, some people – not me, I like it as it is – wanted to switch Fn and Ctrl for years. Why not accommodate them by offering the BIOS option?
To end with my usual rant, I personally would prefer to have large Alt and Ctrl and no Windows keys, and I’m willing to pay extra for that “privilege”.
For people who know what they need, there are applications that can modify keyboard layouts, providing superior functionality to anything offered by OS by default. And if you know you can use keyboard shortcuts, you don’t need MS and Win keys to enable them.
June 30th, 2009 6:58 pm
Make sure to make the FN and CTRL keys swappable for increased usability and increased customer happiness.
July 1st, 2009 8:54 am
I completely support adding an option to swap Fn and Ctrl so that everyone will be comfortable.
And that’s a change that people have actually asked for…
July 1st, 2009 9:20 am
I agree with the sentiments about the Ctrl/Fn key placement. With the current layout, it is really hard to do certain shortcut key combinations. A simple switch in the BIOS would be easy to create and also make many people happy.
July 1st, 2009 1:39 pm
I recently (4 months ago) bought my first ThinkPad and I’m constantly hitting F1 instead of Escape. I’m finally getting used to REALLY reaching up high-left (X61s) for Escape, but this change will be nice if I buy another ThinkPad in the future.
P.S. I am one of the many users who wants Fn and Ctrl switched! It drives me nuts. Ctrl is used much more frequently and I want to be able to blindly hit it by going for the farthest bottom-left key.
July 1st, 2009 1:57 pm
Please create a way for users to swap the Fn and Ctrl keys. It has deterred me from ordering a number of Lenovo laptops for our company.
July 1st, 2009 6:29 pm
What about the ANY key? You know.. hit any key when ready. Created a lot of tech calls in my day.
July 1st, 2009 7:02 pm
No!!! Not the keyboard!
One of the main reasons I use Thinkpads is conservative keyboard layout. I avoid keyboards with enlarged del key and/or reorganized blocks at all costs.
Why did you do that? It wasn’t broken…
July 2nd, 2009 6:18 pm
I got a brand new T500 yesterday. I downloaded the Eclipse IDE and started coding. After 3 lines I hit the ctrl+space combination, or so I thought; instead what I got was the zoom function…
I toggled the desktop zooming feature puzzled for 3 times, until Windows BSODDED (a bug in the desktop zoom, or just a coincidence?) As the computer rebooted I noticed that I had been pressing the Fn button instead.
The positioning of left control is totally unacceptable; Given a choice, I would return this laptop. I can not recommend Lenovo laptops until ctrl and fn are swapped; be it configurable in bios or physically. Furthermore, there are countless people in addition to me, who wait for such bios configuration option eagerly.
July 3rd, 2009 6:01 am
So here we have it. Research has been done to issue a solution no one asked for for a problem no one really complained about, and this solution actually leaves some people frustrated.
And yet the most commonly agreed upon real issue with Thinkpad keyboards since the dawn of times is still there.
Maybe the Thinkpad engineers consider the position of the Fn more sacred that the layout of the navigation keys? I guess I could understand that, since the peculiar Fn positioning is alsmost exclusive to Thinkpads, while the layout of the navigation keys is merely an old-fashioned industry standard, that various manufacturers have been doing away with and trying to cripple in every way possible in the past few years…
All the above is written half-sarcastically, as I’m sure you noticed.
July 5th, 2009 5:08 am
The idea of Esc is great, it will make it easier to reach, more similar to desktop layouts and Esc position will remain backwards compatible with older Thinkpads. The Delete key is weird, I actually use Insert quite often (I’m a programmer) and I agree with dr_st, that those six keys’ position became sort of sacred thing to me and I wanted laptop with them being on standard position.
As for the Win key, the I’m a Linux user but I don’t understand why are other Linux users blaming it. You can use it under Linux in the same was as under Windows or you can use it as another modifier for keyboard shortcuts.
The idea of several keyboard layouts user can choose from would be extremely cool. I would definitely pay some $40 or so for being able to choose from few keyboard layouts (bigger delete key or standard, with/without Win keys etc.)
However, David, I’m really curious why you still don’t allow users to swap Fn/Ctrl keys in BIOS. It’s such an easy thing to do and it’s been demanded by users for so long.
July 7th, 2009 10:41 am
dr_st said it very well. Lenovo is wasting valuable resources for fixing things that don’t need fixing, instead of focusing on REAL problems that users have been complaining about for ages.
I personally have no problem with the Fn-Ctrl position, but I understand why others would be bothered so a simple BIOS swap option would be very welcome.
As for the new layout, had I had the chance I would have only implemented the bigger Esc key and left the “sacred” six keys position alone. As this was not the case, I can only hope I will have the option of choosing between this and the standard layout or better still, the T4x layout (i.e. no Win keys).
July 7th, 2009 2:36 pm
I like the new placement of the F buttons and the esc button on the T400s, but i don’t like the large del key and where the ins key moved.
one thing i would like to see most is a bios switch to swap the ctrl and fn buttons.
I use the Winkey so often that if Lenovo removes it, i will stop recommending them, already that the FN VS CTRL Key placement drives me nuts and drives some customers away.
Current owner of a T400.
Is the T400s Keyboard compatible with the T400?
July 7th, 2009 9:31 pm
If Lenovo is not going to offer a standard keyboard with the CTRL & FN keys in the standard locations, they should at least make a BIOS option available to remap the keys. Plus allow the key tops to be changed to the proper location to reflect the remapped keys.
July 8th, 2009 5:16 pm
Has there ever even been a response or explanation from Lenovo regarding the Fn/Ctrl issue? If so, can someone post a link to it? I don’t personally care very much, but I can’t understand why Lenovo hasn’t listened to the screaming hordes all these years. Is there some kind of counter-argument? I’ve never heard one from a user.
July 8th, 2009 7:53 pm
yeah, there was two counter arguments, only one semi-accepteable
“i use the fn key more often than ctrl”
“its what makes a thinkpad a thinkpad”
the “i use the fn key more than ctrl” i could not understand. the person who said that said they used fn key to brighten and dim teh display, sleep and hibernate. no such thing as ctrl+c or ctrl+v.
“its what makes a thinkpad a thinkpad”
Yes, True, but isnt a thinkpad supposed to be the industry leading class of laptops? to increase productivity? Why is HP Beating Lenovo? Why cant lenovo do like HP and offer a bios switch to change the fn and ctrl key positioning?
The caps change is going to be harder i think, since the placement of the “clips” under the “caps” are not at the same place/not placed for easy swapping of the keys. i think both keys would need to be of the same dimension for that to work. the caps use stickers though, so i guess easy would be to put stickers on the keys
and i like my alt and windows keys. even more necessary to me moving from vista to win7. so much easier to start programs with it. hit win, start typing app name, and bam, its there.
July 9th, 2009 2:56 am
I really don’t see the problem around the fn/ctrl keys but that’s me.
What would make the fn-key even more usable in that position would be a numpad that can be accessed while holding the fn-key instead of toggling it on/off with fn+nmlck.
July 9th, 2009 8:55 am
Yes, it would have been better had they spent their time developing a BIOS or hardware switch to solve the issue that people actually complain about All The Time instead of screwing up the keyboard by monkeying around with keys that no one was complaining about. How they spend their resources is kind of baffling to me. The blinking red LED on the SL lid is another example of this mystery.
July 11th, 2009 8:21 am
Are thinkpad builders that stupid ? It is just astounding that they wont swap the Function and Control Keys. I actually really want to buy a ThinkPad, but I am just not going to buy something I have to break apart to fix. I can barely live with the crazy placement of the USB ports, but I cant live with this.
July 13th, 2009 7:39 am
I love my Thinkpad, but I really hate the FN-Key’s position. For me it is not only a matter of pressing FN instead of ctrl for combos, it is also physically impossible to press Ctrl+Shift anymore to select a whole word at once.
A BIOS-Option is absolutely necessary. I feel like a gossiping housewife when things like the position of one key affect my buying decision for a laptop.
Cheerio
July 13th, 2009 11:27 pm
The number one reason holding me back from ever buying a Thinkpad is the Ctrl/Fn placement.
I do most of my work in Adobe Illustrator and Photoshop — which make heavy use of control-key shortcuts while drawing — and it’s impossible to switch back and forth between a normal keyboard and a Thinkpad keyboard without going crazy.
Please add a BIOS option at the very least.
July 14th, 2009 8:52 am
We have also recently changed from HP to Lenovo Thinkpads, but if nothing will be done about the Fn/Ctrl problem(yes it is a problem!) we will have to go back to HP again… I really hope something will be done soon!
July 14th, 2009 1:52 pm
After having owned both a T41 and now a T500, I’m in complete agreement with many people here: Lenovo, PLEASE implement a simple BIOS option to swap Fn/Ctrl keys. I’m sure that Lenovo’s key-frequency research (mentioned in this blog post) would indicate that people almost NEVER use the Fn key while almost EVERYONE uses the Ctrl key.
To get some perspective on this issue/requested feature, Googling for “lenovo fn ctrl” yields many results of disgruntled customers looking for a way to swap their Fn and Ctrl keys. Furthermore, the comments on this blog post mirror the sentiment seen on many forums and user-group websites.
I understand that having the Fn key in the bottom left is practically tradition for IBM/Lenovo computers and laptops, but let’s buck the tradition and implement a key swapping feature that will greatly increase usability. Heck, isn’t ‘increased usability’ exactly what this blog post was discussing??
Just to get things moving more quickly, I’ve implemented this highly requested feature. Please feel free to copy/paste the following code directly into the BIOS firmware
/* Begin FN/CTRL scan code swap, if enabled */
int new_scan_code = scan_code;
if (swap_option_enabled) {
if (scan_code == FN) {
new_scan_code = CTRL;
} else if (scan_code == CTRL) {
new_scan_code = FN;
}
}
scan_code = new_scan_code;
/* End FN/CTRL scan code swap */
July 14th, 2009 2:07 pm
In the past couple of weeks I happened to walk a bit around laptop displays, and interestingly, the odd Fn/Ctrl placement with Fn on the outside is not as odd as I thought. I’ve seen it on some models from ASUS, MSI, LG. Overall I’d say about 10-15% of the laptops have it this way (including all Lenovo models and the dreadful macs).
But I totally see a BIOS swap as the preferred option (with some adjustment of the keyboard so that the caps are the same size). I think some of these aforementioned laptops have the BIOS swap option.
July 15th, 2009 4:40 am
I’m currently considering a Lenovo for the first time, I hear lots of good things about them. However I’ve been trying one out and the FN and CTRL placement is doing my head in.
I reckon its hit my productivity by 5-10% so over the course of project it easily pays for the extra to get an HP.
I’m also having trouble getting used to the ESC placement. The number of times I’ve started Help is rediculous.
Please allow us the option to at least map FN and CTRL
July 15th, 2009 11:21 am
Actually, over the course of the project, you’d probably adjust to the layout. Having used Thinkpads as my only laptops for 4+ years now, I don’t ever mishit Fn instead of Ctrl, and I’m a touchtypist and use keyboard shortcuts a lot. My fingers have learned where things are. Same thing about the Esc (which BTW the T400s solves).
July 18th, 2009 10:38 pm
I was going to buy a T400 for school this fall but the Ctrl + Fn key really disturbs me; even worse than a glossy screen would…so I will buy a Dell instead until this issue is fixed.
I hope Lenovo will consider customers to be more valuable than their traditional ways.
July 20th, 2009 3:51 pm
Please make it possible to disable Fn key. Its position is ridiculous and does not match desktop keyboards. Maybe if someone only works on a laptop they can get used to it but as not people who use regular keyboards. We should be able to swap Ctrl and Fn or even better, make then both operate as Ctrl and make Fn work when both fn and Ctrl pressed or something like that. Ctrl is used million times more often than Fn anyway.
July 20th, 2009 3:53 pm
Even better make Fn to operate as Ctrl and make Windows key Fn key. I personally never use Windows key anyway.
July 25th, 2009 7:44 pm
I just watched a review of the T400s and I have to congratulate David Hill and his team on the Design of the new Thinkpad!
I really love the thin design and new Keyboard! And the new position of the TWO (!) Mics is fantastic. I work on a T400 at the moment and it is quita difficult to use VoIP while using the Keyboard.
I´m really looking forward to the launch of Intel´s Calpella platform and I hope that I can “update” my T400 by its “next generation Calpella-Model”.
A few things, I would love to see in thies product:
-) at least 128 GB Solid State Drive
-) brighter Thinklight – or maybe a real “BACK LIGHT KEYBOARD”
-) Display-Port, 3x USB, maybe HDMI Port
-) OLED-Display (?!)
-) all the improvements of the T400s (compared with the T400) like the new slim-design, microphones,Display Port, mute-keys, better Keyboard, horizontal USB-Ports, bigger Multitouch touchpad
August 4th, 2009 8:51 pm
Please move the Fn key… Swap Fn with Ctrl and it will be like all the other keyboards in the world
August 12th, 2009 4:22 pm
Please provide a way to swap the FN and CTRL key in the BIOS. It shouldn’t be locked to a particular preference – you should be able to accomodate either. Thank you.
September 17th, 2009 10:35 am
Just to let you know I had the t400s for a couple of months now and the large del and escape keys are extremely annoying and I did not get used to them as I thought I would. I wish the original keyboards were still available. There is less and less incentive to buy a thinkpad with every new model.
September 17th, 2009 11:15 am
What in particular do you find annoying in the keys?
Do you mishit Ins because of large Del or F1 because of the large Esc?
I’m curious as I might experience something similar a bit down the road.
September 25th, 2009 10:49 pm
Will not buy a ThinkPad without a bios option to swap fn and ctrl keys.
October 22nd, 2009 4:31 pm
I am a little late, but in hopes that one of you good ppl at Lenovo might look at the comments…
One thing that is important in the context, is what are the consequences of missing a frequent key and hitting something else instead: One of the most annoying thing about notebooks is accidentally triggering typeover which is next to the frequently aimed-at del key.
Another, radical rerquest, especially for the small keyboards: Move away caps lock so I won’t bne asccidentally hitting it. We multilingual ppl would love to have the much more needed Alt-Gr in its place.
Home and End must have their own keys (Maybe instead of the web back and forward which no one uses)
November 11th, 2009 10:51 am
Tapani:
while I agree that Caps Lock would be better placed elsewhere, you don’t have to suffer from accidentally hitting it if you remap it to something more useful or benign. Mac OS X and Ubuntu both have normal settings for this under keyboard preferences, and I found a set of registry files on the net which allow me to remap it in Windows. (Changes are permanent until you run another regfile.)
What I personally like best is Ctrl in that position, and Caps available via Fn+Tab, as in PFU keyboards. On other keyboards I remap, but that means I have no access to Caps Lock at all.
I have no doubt that what would make the most sense for the *average* user in that key position is Backspace, as seen in the Colemak layout.
November 16th, 2009 1:55 am
Thanks for the post, i enjoyed reading it. blogging is not as easy as many think it is, it’s hardwork. any how thanks.
November 25th, 2009 3:31 am
The new keyboard layout is a general improvement, over old Thinkpad layouts, witch have kept me from switching.
The ESC key is a major improvement (over Lenovo’s old desing), the DEL key should have stayed in its “standard” (thats what the word means) six navigation layout block.
The FN/CTRL need to be switched physically!!! and an BIOS option should be added for the sake of compatibility with Thinkpad users.
The industries best keyboard layout (in my opinion) can be found on Dell’s (old) Latitude D series, Models D600 to D630.
compare: http://yorkspace.com/wp-content/D620keyboard.jpg
Unfortunately even Dell has gone to new designs…
Other IDEA: Backlit keyobards are better than the Think light (although it was good, when first implemented).
November 29th, 2009 6:30 am
Hi there,
I just got myself a brand new T400s and I love the evolution in keyboard design. I’m a software developer and the new design just feels natural. One thing though – I ca’t seem to disable the darn touchpad in linux (Ubuntu 9.10).
December 23rd, 2009 6:25 am
what about the placement ofthe buttons aboue the touchpad.?. will they still be below the keyboard level?.Willwe get themback alligned as in the old IBM thinkpads.{the one with red
January 18th, 2010 9:04 am
[...] mudança foi resultado de um estudo conduzido pela Lenovo sobre a forma como os usuários interagem com suas máquinas, resultante da [...]
February 4th, 2010 11:11 pm
[...] ganha destaque ocupando o espaço de duas teclas de altura e que, segundo David Hill, do blog Design Matters, possui um forte envolvimento emocional com o usuário quase no mesmo nível da tecla [...]
June 22nd, 2010 9:15 am
Yes, make Fn and Ctrl swappable!
Also, I’m one of those guys who actually uses the “Windows” key more under Linux than under Windows, so no reason to remove it imo.
July 19th, 2010 2:52 am
My only thing against this keyboard is the redesign of Insert and Delete. I think the motivation behind this, ie. the hot map, is interpreted false; Insert is often a mode shifting key and by nature isn’t pressed a often as Delete. I think it was a big mistake to break the six key navitation block.
Enlarged Esc is fine, but only because there’s room for it.
Don’t swap Fn/Ctrl unless you make them swapable, please.
Now, if only the rest of the world would conform to this keyboard layout, everyone would be happy. Or preferably the layout of the ThinkPad X30’s keyboard!
July 20th, 2010 3:23 am
Another thing… I’ve always wondered why the emulated numeric keypad was never made accessible though Fn. You know, as in:
Fn + j => 1
Fn + p => *
Fn + m => 0
Fn + 0 => /
etc.
This would actually make the numpad useful!
And since these suggested Fn key combinations aren’t conflicting with anything else, and the current way of using the numpad can be preserved, I think this improvement is a no-brainer — and makes far more sense than messing up the sixblock.
Personally, I really could make good use of the numpad (in Blender3D where a quick press is often necessary to change view and perspective), but I’ve gave up on the thinkpad numpad a long time ago since because its usage pattern is slow, always ends up locking up in the wrong state, and generally is a pain.
Oh, and of course remember to colour the numpad-keys blue like the rest of the Fn-combinations.
What do you say?