Lenovo ThinkPad T16 Gen 3 review – Fast Performance, Great Display, But Can Get Hot

The Lenovo ThinkPad T16 Gen 3 is a refreshed version of last year’s Gen 2 machine. The new one is offered with 15W (for better battery life) or 28W Meteor Lake CPUs (for bumped performance). Also, these chips have NPU units for AI-assisted productivity (unlike the Raptor Lake-based previous-gen model).

This time around, you can also pick a device with Wi-Fi 7 but this will cost you an extra amount of money. Speaking of which, there are a whole bunch of optional goodies. The list is long and it includes an IR Web camera, the keyboard’s backlight, an NFC module, a fingerprint reader, a bigger battery, a Smart card reader, eSIM support, and a vPro CPU. If you order a laptop with all these features, the end price will be high but if you need these extras and money isn’t a problem why not?

Still, the base layer of security features seems enough for normal office work – a privacy shutter, a Lock slot, a dTPM 2.0 chip, and a self-healing BIOS. The port selection remains good with four USB connectors. The Gen 2 device may have an optional dGPU (MX550) but it was a mess when it comes to RAM configurations (LPDDR5 memory for the dGPU laptops and just one DDR4 or DDR5 slot for the iGPU-only machines). The Gen 3 sibling is always offered with a pair of SODIMMs which makes it future-proof.

You can check the prices and configurations in our Specs System: https://laptopmedia.com/series/lenovo-thinkpad-t16-gen-3/

Contents


Specs, Drivers, What’s in the box

Lenovo ThinkPad T16 Gen 3 - Specs

  • B160UAN01.K (LEN41B7)
  • Color accuracy  4.8  1.6
  • HDD/SSD
  • up to 4000GB SSD
  • RAM
  • up to 64GB
  • OS
  • Windows 11 Pro, Windows 10 Pro
  • Body material
  • Plastic / Polycarbonate, Carbon
  • Dimensions
  • 359.7 x 250.8 x 19.64 mm (14.16" x 9.87" x 0.77")
  • Weight
  • 1.66 kg (3.7 lbs)
  • Ports and connectivity
  • 1x USB Type-A
  • 3.2 Gen 1 (5 Gbps)
  • 1x USB Type-A
  • 3.2 Gen 1 (5 Gbps), Sleep and Charge
  • 2x USB Type-C
  • 4.0, Thunderbolt 4, Power Delivery (PD), DisplayPort
  • HDMI
  • 2.1 (4K@60Hz)
  • Card reader
  • Ethernet LAN
  • 10, 100, 1000 Mbit/s
  • Wi-Fi
  • 802.11be
  • Bluetooth
  • 5.4
  • Audio jack
  • 3.5mm Combo Jack
  • Features
  • Fingerprint reader
  • optional
  • Web camera
  • 5.0MP + IR discrete, with privacy shutter, fixed focus
  • Backlit keyboard
  • optional
  • Microphone
  • Dual-microphone array, 360 far-field, Dolby Voice
  • Speakers
  • 2x 2W Stereo Speakers, Dolby Audio
  • Optical drive
  • Security Lock slot
  • Kensington Nano Lock

All Lenovo ThinkPad T16 Gen 3 configurations

#CommissionsEarned

Drivers

All drivers and utilities for this notebook can be found here: https://pcsupport.lenovo.com/gt/en/products/laptops-and-netbooks/thinkpad-t-series-laptops/thinkpad-t16-gen-3-type-21mn-21mq/downloads

What’s in the box?

Inside the box, you’ll find the laptop itself and a bit of manuals. Depending on the CPU model, you get a 45W, 65W, or 100W Type-C adapter.


Design and construction

The ThinkPad T16 Gen 3 looks clean and stealthy in Black color. The matte finish feels nice and soft to the touch. Still, the lid is full of visible fingerprints after a day of usage. On the flip side, the base is a bit more smudge-proof. The overall rigidity is above average. You can slightly flex the lid if you want and you can also bend the base a bit in the zones below the Arrows and above the touchpad. This is possible only when you apply more pressure than usual. The keyboard deck remains intact during harsh typing.

You can’t open the lid with a single hand. The device is made of a mix of plastic and (20% of) carbon fiber. This has its positive side and that’s the weight. The iterations with the smaller 52.5Wh battery stop the scales at 1.66 kilos while the ones with the optional 86Wh unit are heavier – 1.83 kg. The profile thickness is 19.64 mm.

The upper bezel is a bit more thicker than the other three.

The protrusion on the top is also called a “communications bar”. That’s because it houses a dual-mic 5MP Web camera with a privacy shutter. An IR unit (with the same resolution) for Windows Hello + Ultrasonic Human Presence Detection is also available.

The max opening is flat.

The keyboard and the touchpad seem the same as the ones of the ThinkPad L16 Gen 1. You get a nice full-sized board with a NumPad, TrackPoint, and not-too-small Arrows. The round Power button doubles as an optional fingerprint reader. The touchpad size is fine for normal usage (67.7 x 115 mm). The Mylar surface is smooth and the accuracy is surprisingly good for the class.

We can spot numerous ventilation grills, three rubber feet, an emergency reset hole, and a pair of speaker cutouts on the bottom panel. The hot air is guided via a single vent on the back that is positioned close to the display’s bottom bezels. That’s why the heat makes its way to the screen during heavy processor loads.

Ports

On the left side, you get a pair of 40 Gbps Thunderbolt 4 / USB4 ports that support Power Delivery 3.0 and DisplayPort 2.1 (for up to 8K@60Hz external screens), an HDMI 2.1 for up to 4K@60Hz external displays, a USB Type-A 3.2 (Gen. 1) port with an Always On function, and an Audio combo jack. On the right side, we can spot a Kensington Nano Security Slot, LAN,  another USB Type-A 3.2 (Gen. 1) port, an optional Nano-SIM card slot, and a Smart card reader (option).


Display and Sound Quality, Get our Profiles

Lenovo ThinkPad T16 Gen 3B160UAN01.K (LEN41B7)
Diagonal16.0 inches (40.6 cm)
Panel TypeIPS
Resolution1920 x 1200 pixels
Max Refresh Rate60 Hz
Aspect Ratio16:10
Pixel Density141 PPI
‘Retina’ DistanceGreater than or equal to 61 cm

Viewing Angles

Viewing angles are good. We take photos from different angles to evaluate the quality.

Also, a video with locked focus and exposure.

Color Coverage

The whole “sail-shaped” map below (Fig. 1) consists of all the colors we can see, while the black crooked line shows all the colors from real-world scenes and nature around us.

Then, we’ve drawn some of the most important and interesting color spaces, compared to the colors the panel of Lenovo ThinkPad T16 Gen 3 can show:

Standard/For Web: sRGB – widely used color space for most consumer devices, ideal for Web design and development
For Print: AdobeRGB – used in professional photo editing, graphic design, and print
For Photographers/Video Editors: DCI-P3 – used in high-end film production, post-production, and digital cinema
Premium HDR: Rec.2020 – the widest consumer ITU color standard, covering a massive 75.8% of the visible spectrum, a benchmark for premium HDR content

Lenovo ThinkPad T16 Gen 3: the yellow dashed triangle (– – – – – –) represents the range of colors this monitor can display.

In our tests, we calculated the total color coverage of the monitor at 98% of the sRGB color gamut and 83% of the DCI-P3 color gamut.

(Fig.1) Lenovo ThinkPad T16 Gen 3 covers 98% of the sRGB gamut

Brightness and Contrast

The maximum brightness in SDR mode is 435 cd/m² in the center of the screen and 427 cd/m² averaged across the surface with a maximum deviation of 7%.

The Correlated Color Temperature (CCT) on a white screen at maximum brightness is 5990K.

The contrast ratio is 1840:1.

Uniformity: Luminance, Contrast, and Color Deviation

The figure below shows the results from our uniformity test across different sections of the screen. It’s measured at 181 nits (Windows slider = 76%) — a brightness level we consider typical for standard working conditions.

DeltaE values below 4.0 are acceptable for regular users. For those working with colors, screens with DeltaE values no higher than 2.0 are recommended.

Color Accuracy

Let’s check the difference between real colors and those you’ll see on the Lenovo ThinkPad T16 Gen 3. We measure that distance in DeltaE – the higher the number, the more different they look.

Values below 4.0 are acceptable for regular users, while values below 2.0 are suitable for color-sensitive work. A value below 1.0 means the difference is indistinguishable to the naked eye.

For the next graph, we’ve selected 24 common colors, including dark/light skin, blue sky, green grass, etc.

Before our calibration of the Lenovo ThinkPad T16 Gen 3, the Average color accuracy was 4.8 dE (Fig. 2), and with our Design and Gaming profile, it lowered to 1.6 dE (Fig. 3).

(Fig. 2) Lenovo ThinkPad T16 Gen 3 in its factory condition

(Fig. 3) Lenovo ThinkPad T16 Gen 3 with our display profile

Comparison in the sRGB color space (primaries and D65 white point specified in ITU-R BT.709, sRGB encoding curve).

Here’s an illustration of what the Design and Gaming profile aims to deliver:

Left: No Profile | Drag the slider to see the difference | Right: Design & Gaming Profile

Visibility in dark scenes

Have you ever watched a movie with dark scenes where you could barely see anything? This often happens because many display panels struggle to differentiate the darkest nuances, making them appear the same.

The next figure illustrates how well the display reproduces these dark nuances. The left side of the image shows the display with stock settings, and the right side shows it with our Design and Gaming profile activated.

On the horizontal axis are the grayscale levels, and on the vertical axis – the corresponding display brightness.

You can also check how your display handles the darkest nuances but keep in mind that this also depends on the settings of your current display and the surrounding light conditions.

Response time (Gaming capabilities)

We test the reaction time of the pixels with the usual “black-to-white” and “white-to-black” method from 10% to 90% and vice versa.

We recorded Fall Time + Rise Time = 19.4 ms. Short pixel response time is a prerequisite for a smooth picture in dynamic scenes.

After that, we test the reaction time of the pixels with the usual “Gray-to-Gray” method from 50% White to 80% White and vice versa between 10% and 90% of the amplitude.

Health Impact: PWM (Screen flickering)

Some use PWM to regulate their brightness, which means that instead of reducing the light intensity, they pulse or flicker. Our brain merges the image, so it appears darker, but this strains both it and our vision, especially when the frequency of the pulses is low. You can read more about that in our dedicated article on PWM.

In the graph below, you see the intensity of light at different brightness levels—on the vertical axis is the brightness of the emitted light, and on the horizontal axis—time.

The light from the backlight of the Lenovo ThinkPad T16 Gen 3 display is not pulse-width modulated, providing visual comfort in the discussed aspect.

Health Impact: Blue light emissions

Installing our Health-Guard profile not only eliminates harmful PWM when the laptop uses it to control brightness but also reduces harmful Blue Light emissions while keeping the colors of the screen perceptually accurate.

If you’re not familiar with the Blue light, the TL;DR version is – emissions that negatively affect your eyes, skin, and your whole body. You can find more information about that in our dedicated article on Blue Light.

Health Impact: Screen Reflectance

Glossy-coated displays can cause eye fatigue in high ambient light conditions due to reflections. We measure the level of screen reflection with the display turned off, at a 60° angle.

The reflectance of the ThinkPad T16 Gen 3’s screen is 56.2 GU.

High Gloss: >70 GU
Medium Gloss: 30 – 70 GU
Low Gloss: <30 GU


Get our profiles

Since our profiles are tailored for each individual display model, this article and its respective profile package are meant for Lenovo ThinkPad T16 Gen 3 configurations with B160UAN01.K (LEN41B7), 1920 х 1200, IPS panel.

*Should you have problems with downloading the purchased file, try using a different browser to open the link you’ll receive via e-mail. If the download target is a .php file instead of an archive, change the file extension to .zip or contact us at [email protected].

Read more about the profiles HERE.

In addition to receiving efficient and health-friendly profiles, by buying LaptopMedia's products you also support the development of our labs, where we test devices in order to produce the most objective reviews possible.

Office Work

Office Work should be used mostly by users who spend most of the time looking at pieces of text, tables or just surfing. This profile aims to deliver better distinctness and clarity by keeping a flat gamma curve (2.20), native color temperature and perceptually accurate colors.

Design and Gaming

This profile is aimed at designers who work with colors professionally, and for games and movies as well. Design and Gaming takes display panels to their limits, making them as accurate as possible in the sRGB IEC61966-2-1 standard for Web and HDTV, at white point D65.

Health-Guard

Health-Guard eliminates the harmful Pulse-Width Modulation (PWM) and reduces the negative Blue Light which affects our eyes and body. Since it’s custom tailored for every panel, it manages to keep the colors perceptually accurate. Health-Guard simulates paper so the pressure on the eyes is greatly reduced.

Get all 3 profiles with 33% discount

Sound

When we subjectively listen to a sound file through the built-in speakers, the sound quality offered by Lenovo ThinkPad T16 Gen 3 is good. There is, however, a noticeable rise in the high frequencies in the frequency response chart.


Performance: CPU, GPU, Storage

All benchmarks and tests were conducted with the “Best performance” preset activated in the Windows “Power & Battery” menu. Also, the “Scheme for AC” in the BIOS is set to “Maximize Performance”.

CPU options

This device is offered with Core Ultra 5 125H, Core Ultra 5 125U, Core Ultra 5 135U, Core Ultra 5 135H, Core Ultra 7 155H, Core Ultra 7 155U, Core Ultra 7 165U, or Core Ultra 7 165H.

Our laptop has a 125U chip.

GPU options

All machines of this Lenovo series rely on iGPUs.

In our case, that’s the Intel Graphics (4-Cores).

Lenovo ThinkPad T16 Gen 3 GPU variants

Here you can see an approximate comparison between the GPUs that can be found in the Lenovo ThinkPad T16 Gen 3 models on the market. This way you can decide for yourself which Lenovo ThinkPad T16 Gen 3 model is the best bang for your buck.

Note: The chart shows the cheapest different GPU configurations so you should check what the other specifications of these laptops are by clicking on the laptop’s name / GPU.

Results are from the 3DMark: Fire Strike (Graphics) benchmark (higher the score, the better)

Results are from the 3DMark: Wild Life (Graphics) benchmark (higher the score, the better)

Results are from the Unigine Superposition benchmark (higher the score, the better)

Gaming tests

Counter-Strike 2HD 1080p, Low (Check settings)HD 1080p, Medium (Check settings)HD 1080p, Very High (Check settings)
Average FPS113 FPS73 FPS26 FPS

Gears 5Full HD, Low (Check settings)Full HD, Medium (Check settings)Full HD, High (Check settings)Full HD, Ultra (Check settings)
Average FPS40 FPS28 FPS21 FPS16 FPS

Storage performance

Our device has a 512GB WD PC SN740 SDDQNQD-512G-1201. Its speeds are above average and it doesn’t get too toasty during benchmarking.


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Temperatures and comfort, Battery Life

Max CPU load

In this test we use 100% on the CPU cores, monitoring their frequencies and chip temperature. The first column shows a computer’s reaction to a short load (2-10 seconds), the second column simulates a serious task (between 15 and 30 seconds), and the third column is a good indicator of how good the laptop is for long loads such as video rendering.

Average P-core frequency; Average E-core frequency; Average LP E-core frequency; CPU temp.; Package Power

Intel Core Ultra 5 125U (15W Base Power)0:02 – 0:10 sec0:15 – 0:30 sec10:00 – 15:00 min
Lenovo ThinkPad T16 Gen 33.77 GHz @ 3.19 GHz @ 2.09 GHz @ 101°C @ 51W3.09 GHz @ 3.01 GHz @ 2.09 GHz @ 100°C @ 43W2.27 GHz @ 2.02 GHz @ 1.12 GHz @ 77°C @ 22W
Lenovo ThinkBook 16 Gen 7 (Intel)3.95 GHz @ 3.19 GHz @ 2.03 GHz @ 90°C @ 60W3.41 GHz @ 3.19 GHz @ 2.09 GHz @ 96°C @ 50W2.88 GHz @ 2.41 GHz @ 1.39 GHz @ 72°C @ 30W
Lenovo ThinkPad L16 Gen 13.54 GHz @ 3.00 GHz @ 1.80 GHz @ 75°C @ 43W3.45 GHz @ 2.95 GHz @ 1.77 GHz @ 88°C @ 43W2.00 GHz @ 1.89 GHz @ 1.10 GHz @ 67°C @ 21W

The 15W Core Ultra 5 125U isn’t exactly a powerhouse but it still requires a decent cooling when its cores are highly clocked. In this case, the ThinkPad T16 can sustain impressively high frequencies in short and medium loads, especially for a single-fan thermal system.  This is possible at the expense of whooping 100°C temperatures. In the long run, the thermals are normal and the clocks aren’t bad at all.

Comfort during full load

Just like many other Lenovo business devices, the performance presets are integrated into the default Windows power plans. The fan remains near quiet in long 100% CPU stress in “Best Performance” mode.

Even if you torture the CPU with 3D rendering, the keyboard becomes just warm. Its hotspot reaches 40°C. The zone of the display’s bottom bezel that is in front of the rear exhaust hits 49°C.

The fan is literally quiet in “Balanced” mode during heavy stress because the rotation speed is 700 RPM less than the “Best Performance” preset. You also end up with ~ 1.45 GHz / 1.40 GHz P and E-core clock.

In idle, the fan speed is the same (~2200 RPM) for the two abovementioned presets.

Battery

Now, we conduct the battery tests with the Windows Best Power Efficiency setting turned on, screen brightness adjusted to 180 nits and all other programs turned off except for the one we are testing the notebook with. The 52.5Wh battery lasts for around 12 hours of video playback. To achieve that, you have to apply the “Battery Saver” preset in the Windows “Power & Battery” menu and set the “Scheme for Battery” to “Balanced” mode in the BIOS.


Disassembly, Upgrade options, and Maintenance

Seven captive Phillips-head screws are standing in the way between you and the internals. When the screws are out of the equation, pop the two zones behind the hinges with a lever tool. Fully pry the rear and then the sides. It’s not necessary to pop the front. Just tilt the panel and lift it away from the chassis.

The bottom panel houses dust filters for the ventilation grills.

Our laptop has a base 52.5Wh battery. You can opt for the 86Wh model if you need a longer autonomous life. The connector is built into the battery. The unit is held in place by two captive screws. Don’t forget to wear gloves to keep yourself safe from electric zaps. After that, just raise the front side of the battery. The capacity is enough for around 12 hours of video playback.

The RAM section is covered by a metal cap.

To remove it, hold the fabric handle in the middle and pull it upwards.

According to Lenovo, the two SODIMMs support up to 64GB of DDR5-5600MHz RAM in dual-channel mode. However, since the CPU can support up to 96GB, this laptop likely wouldn’t have issues running a larger amount of memory than the official manufacturer’s specified limit. The WWAN slot for optional 4G or 5G connectivity is placed beneath the fan, and the soldered Wi-Fi card is positioned close to the cooling’s heat spreader.

Sadly, there is just one M.2 slot compatible with 2280 Gen 4 SSDs. On the bright side, the NVMe drive here is additionally cooled by a long thermal pad from below.

The thermal system is rather basic, with only one fan, heat pipe, heat sink, and a heat spreader.


Verdict

The Lenovo ThinkPad T16 Gen 3 is a solid business offer. Its chassis is rigid, the input devices are comfortable, and you also get a 5MP Web camera with a privacy shutter. The device feels snappy even with the Core Ultra 5 125U which is the least powerful CPU for this Lenovo series. This is possible because processor clocks are high in short and medium loads (and still acceptable in longer stress). Because of that, the basic cooling is pushed to its limits and the CPU reaches 100°C after just 30 seconds of max stress. On the bright side, the fan isn’t loud and the keyboard feels slightly warm, not hot.

The port selection is adequate with a pair of Thunderbolt 4s and two Type-As. The upgradability is almost good – two SODIMMs and an optional WWAN. The con here is the single M.2 slot.

The 1200p display (B160UAN01.K (LEN41B7)) transforms this device into a multi-purpose workhorse. The IPS screen has 98% sRGB coverage, 435 nits of max brightness, and 1840:1 contrast ratio. When you apply our “Design and Gaming” profile, the color accuracy is three times better – from 4.8 to an average dE score of 1.6 which is enough for professional color-sensitive work.

The Gen 3 model of the ThinkPad T16 offers good comfort under load, long battery life, a PWM-free display, and a modern port selection.

You can check the prices and configurations in our Specs System: https://laptopmedia.com/series/lenovo-thinkpad-t16-gen-3/

Pros

  • Good build quality
  • Feels fast for normal work
  • The fan is near quiet during max CPU stress in “Best Performance” mode
  • PWM-free panel (LEN41B7)
  • Comfortable viewing angles (LEN41B7)
  • 435 nits of max brightness + 1840:1 contrast ratio (LEN41B7)
  • 98% sRGB coverage + good color accuracy when our “Design and Gaming” profile is applied (LEN41B7)
  • 5MP Web camera with a privacy shutter
  • Modern port selection with two Type-C ports
  • Comfortable keyboard and touchpad
  • 2x SODIMMs
  • vPro CPU, IR Web camera, fingerprint reader, Nano-SIM card slot, Smart card reader, Wi-Fi 7, NFC  (all are optional)
  • High CPU clocks in short and medium loads but…


Cons

  • ….At the expense of 100°C chip temperature
  • Plethora of optional features
  • Just 1x M.2 slot + soldered Wi-Fi card

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