fractalbrain

I got my y410p around November 1st. I use the Intel graphics almost exclusively, unless I have a specific need. Also, when I'm on battery I keep the CPU clock around 1.6GHz. That brings it in line with a mainstream business sort of laptop. Battery life? I get around 8 hours. Don't know if I'm the only one, but that is certainly a difference.

Is the behavior the same if your are plugged in, or on battery (relates to grounding)? Anyway you can change the touch sensitivity (i.e. if the screen is somehow interfering with the touchpad)? Ah, now I'm seeing the date on this! Did you find a solution?

I suspect antennas tuned to 2.4GHz will be close enough to a multiple of frequencies used in the 5GHz band that it wont matter too much. Plus, the antennas are so close to other components in the laptop that a properly tuned antenna would go out of tune. The proper way of doing it would be to install two dual band antennas that are carefully tuned while IN the case. I'll bet most manufactures don't do that. I'll bet they simply buy something that will fit. Careful antenna tuning is more important for higher end APs that can deal many clients that are relatively far away. My AP (A Mikrotik) has 2 radio cards with each having two antennas. One radio per band and antenna gains of 7Db. The focus is have a good AP, while the laptop/phone/tablet is focused on mobility and power.

For me: -Glossy: Seems to work well only in darker interior rooms. They look "crisp" and pretty. It is absolutely obnoxious anywhere there is anything bright. Windows, lights, and the sky are enemies. All of that is exacerbated if you are working with someone and letting them look at your screen. Anti-glare mineral coatings are sometimes applied to very hard plastics or glass. They can help quite a bit. -Matte: The best if you plan on anything out and about, around windows, or lights. I've ended up working at the coffee shop with my screen pointed down at my stomach just so I can read. Plus, if anyone else wants to look at it you have to turn the laptop so THEY dont see it. I see this whole issue as an annoying marketing issue for manufactures to differentiate between business grade and consumer grade.

I also bought a Lenovo y410p to be a "workstation" that would easily fit in my backpack. It was about $830. I then swapped out the HD with a 250GB SSD. Now I have my own amazingly fast "workstation." So, lots of bang for the buck, BUT I ran straight into Lenovo's attempts to stop people like me making "poor persons workstations." Here are the limitations I ran into, and what I am doing to mitigate them: - Could not boot the Windows recovery USB I made using Windows instructions. Either I did something wrong, or Lenovo really wants you to buy their CD recovery media. I've never run into such restrictions. I ended up cloning the HD and changing partition sizes. My recovery media is the original hard drive. I guess I don't really own my windows installation. It might be easier to plan on buying your own Win 8.1 media and do a fresh install. - The wifi card is whitelisted, meaning you cant swap it out with another. There is a modified BIOS you can flash: http://forum.techinferno.com/lenovo-ibm/4668-lenovo-y410p-y510p-unlocked-bios-wlan-whitelist-mod-vbios-mod-28.html - The screen is glossy glossy glossy. I ordered a matte screen protector. I'll see if it works. Glossy is fine in a darkened room, but for work out and about, naaaa. - Case is not as sturdy as a business line laptop, but it is decent. I ordered a Bihn top-loading case with hard sides to compensate. Do those things and you end up with something that fits the niche of much, much, more expensive laptops. However, it is clear Lenovo WANTS you to buy the more expensive option. You have to work for your "workstation." When I'm on battery I don't need the Nvidia graphics or the top processor speed. With power saving on I get about 7-8 hours battery.

Allright, I've been motivated by techinferno to switch from "lurking" to posting :-). I've been keeping an eye on this thread for awhile and just got my y410p a few days ago (has bios v. 2.07). swl7, thank you so much for helping everyone out! As soon as I get my post contribution in I'll be flashing as well and tossing you a beer (or whatever that equates to...that's an excellent idea by the way). Honestly, and I recognize I'll be kicking myself if I brick this thing, but this thread and your efforts are why Lenovo is not getting a return from me. Thank you!