Beijing Olympics to get Lenovo-designed torch, seeded clouds

Apparently, Lenovo kept enough staff on board to create the 2008 Olympic torch, as the firm's Cloud of Promise design was recently selected over 300 competing themes and will be "carried by torchbearers around the world in the Olympic Torch Relay preceding the Beijing 2008 Olympic Games." With Lenovo being a China-based firm, the company's chairman (Yang Yuanqing) stated that it was "an honor to have its torch design chosen," and oddly enough, that wasn't the only cloud-related Olympic news coming out of Beijing. Reportedly, meteorologists will be utilizing a process known as "cloud seeding" to force rain out beforehand and subsequently clear the filthy skies and alleviate the purported "50-percent chance of rain during the opening and closing ceremonies." Of course, this isn't exactly a push to become a greener society or anything, but at least the HD feeds from around the area will look a bit better during the competitions.

Read - Lenovo designs Olympic torch
Read - Cloud seeding in China

[Ben @ Apr 26th 2007 8:38PM]

Isn't that an Adobe Photoshop pattern?

[alpha @ Apr 26th 2007 9:03PM]

I think it is an elegant design. Well done Lenovo!

[Used to Live in Pittsburgh @ Apr 26th 2007 9:15PM]

I used to think the Olympic torch was a big deal, 'til I was working in TV news and our cheesy sports anchor* got to run with it. Frakkin' LAME!




_______________
*Andrew "Lawn Jockey" Stockey, I'm lookin' at you, douche!

[LukeA @ Apr 26th 2007 10:22PM]

I can vouch that Stockey=cheesy.

/current Pittsburgher

[John Doe @ Apr 26th 2007 9:24PM]

So it will be bulky, inelegant, and nothing like previous torches. Got it.

[Evan @ Apr 26th 2007 9:45PM]

Looks like something out of Zelda: Windwaker.

[Axiom @ Apr 26th 2007 9:54PM]

Does it have any RollCage(R) technology that can withstand 2 metres of drop?

[Axiom @ Apr 26th 2007 10:07PM]

Does it have any RollCage(R) technology that can withstand 2 metres of drop?

[kingofwale @ Apr 26th 2007 9:59PM]

so... a laptop company's making it? you think it might overheat and explode? ;)

[myscrnnm @ Apr 26th 2007 10:50PM]

Given Lenovo's reputation of ruining the ThinkPad brand, they've made quite a comeback with this torch. It's actually very well designed in my opinion.

[Edward @ Apr 27th 2007 4:17AM]

How have they ruined the ThinkPad brand?
They're still simple, solid business machines.

[Naveed @ Apr 27th 2007 1:54AM]

cant wait to watch the olympics in HD

[zed @ Apr 27th 2007 6:13AM]

The previous torch was better.

[Guinnis @ Apr 27th 2007 8:18AM]

They have ruined the thinkpad brand by cutting all the corners they can to make a product that is a mere glimmer of the old IBM models. There support blows for gettting repairs. overall I hope my company never buys another one.

[eric @ Apr 27th 2007 8:43AM]

So thats where all the customer support agents went...

[myscrnnm @ Apr 27th 2007 6:44PM]

"How have they ruined the ThinkPad brand?
They're still simple, solid business machines."

Okay, ThinkPads are still alright. But they simply don't meet the standards of the IBM ThinkPads. For instance, they've going backwards. The original purpose of having a raised bezel was to eliminate the use of rubber when the notebook was closed. However, Lenovo has changed the design of the notebooks so that it no longer relies this and uses rubber instead. This makes the notebook less secure and more prone to warping.

Also, complaints from other people include the keyboard in particular. Back in the days when the ThinkPad brand was owned by IBM, reviewers would always comment on the solid contruction of the keyboards. However, since the acquisition by Lenovo, many people have described the new keyboards as being "mushy". Another complaint is the customer service. Previously, the IBM PC division had top-notch customer service, with many consumers commenting on how they would buy a ThinkPad in the future. But around the time of the acquisition of the IBM PC division, the location of customer support was changed to cut costs and people said it just isn't up to par anymore.

[tekdemon @ Apr 29th 2007 5:39PM]

Unless you have personal experience with Lenovo customer service, I think it's a little ridiculous to post that you've heard that it's gone downhill. For one thing, I've heard people say that customer service has actually gotten BETTER instead of worse, as Lenovo will often overnight you parts if they break whereas getting those same parts from IBM wasn't particularly easy (this was from someone who worked in an IT department at a corporation that used Thinkpads, so he often had to get parts and whatnot).

So, feel free to trash their support if you've actually had a bad experience, but just because they moved some of their support staff overseas doesn't mean that their support is neccessarily horrible. The thinkpad premium is still largely for the superior support (over the regular Lenovo line) so it'd be quite silly if it didn't have great support.

[bob @ Apr 28th 2007 4:28PM]

I've had an IBM R51 for about 3 years and have had almost no problems, certainly i've never sent it away for repairs. Am i to take it that when i replace this in a year or two i will have to think twice about a thinkpad? this is very disappointing. Are the thinkpads still the most robust laptops or have they been overtaken yet? the comment about the keyboard worries me in particular as i've always been very impressed with this one.