ASUS Z35F -vs- Thinkpad T60...FIGHT!

I'd really appreciate it if you could comment if you have seen both asus & thinkpad laptops before...or have used a transflective laptop screen outside. You could really help out with my decision a lot! ;-)

Here's the situation: I'm a student, and I've been looking at laptops forever, right? And I've virtually settled on 2 extremely good laptops, but it's too tricky for me to decide without being able to examine both of them side-by-side...instead, there is no store or person i know of in my hometown that has either a Thinkpad or an ASUS.

Let me just jump to my 4 overall options...which one would you pick and why?

1) $ 960 IBM Thinkpad T60 w/out Transflective screen
2) $1200 PortableOne SX w/out Transflective screen
3) $1360 IBM Thinkpad T60 with Transflective screen
4) $1600 PortableOne SX with Transflective screen

Pretty difficult choice for me considering I can't see either one of these in stores but will have to use this laptop for at least 3 more years...and i feel like the transflective screen is something I'd just have to see and test around with outside & fluorescent lighting. I just dunno.

Durability, build quality, screen quality, overall feel, & linux compatibility are prolly the largest factors for me but, I have never seen an ASUS laptop, so I have no sense in comparing the two different laptops.

What should I do, guys?

 

Well if you're going to put them in a fight together, at least pick something it's it's own weight class..... I'm not sure if oyu're looking at the 14 or 15" T60, but both are bigger than the Z35.... so that isn't fair at all.

 

I'm definitely only considering the 14"...less than a pound difference between the two. Neither is ultraportable, but both are very portable! ;-)

 

never seen a Z35, but the T60 is built like a beast. I honestly would not feel bad at all punching, kicking, dropping or playing frisbee with my roommate's T60. It is by far the most solid notebook I've ever felt. Not a single part on that thing will flex.

To my knowledge, from asking asus dealers, no Asus notebook can really compare to that. Though, do you really need that kind of build quality? I didn't, and picked my Asus A8Jm for its power, portability and very nice selection/placement of ports.

 

I had a T60 and I chose Asus over it but if I get to do it again, I would definitely go for IBM instead. Asus keyboard wears out after two months of used and it freezes at time.

 

A better comparison would be a Z35 vs the X60, or the A8J or W3J vs the T60.

The Thinkpad X series models always loose in my eyes because they don't include an optical drive - it costs extra. If Asus can include a USB external optical drive with their single spindle systems, I don't see why IBM has to charge you $200 for the X6 dock and $170 for the optical drive.

I went with my Z33 over an X40 mainly due to the optical drive and the cost difference for the configuration I could get. I got a P-M 2.0Ghz and a 7200RPM drive for the price of an X40 with a 1.2 ULV P-M (no other options) and a 4200 RPM 1.8" HD (no other options).

Going on a year and I sure haven't noticed that.

Anyway, the T60 is built like a tank, so if you're careless with your electronics I would suggest getting it along with IBMs accidental damage protection. If you don't tend to break things, I would get an Asus.

PortableOne, if I remember correctly, had one of the highest mark-ups of any of the dealers when I was shopping around. You might get a better price on the Z35 with another dealer.

 

Down, Up, Right, Up, Left + Select

Okay I'm ready.

 

Personally, I'd go with the T60. My friend has a Z35... and although it's a nice laptop, it's by no means spectacular. The T60 is a more complete computer with great build quality.

 

If you want to compare a T60 14" to something - it would be the W3jp..... not the Z35...

 

Honestly I find *new* Thinkpads overpriced for anyone but a true "road warrior" who is constantly abusing their machine.

I frequent a general technology forum where they insist on recommending "Get a T series" to EVERY laptop inquiry. Some guy was looking for a laptop as a gift for a sister the other day and was immediately swamped with people saying "get a Thinkpad." This one was my favorite:

Those specs are PATHETIC for a new laptop at that price, 3-year warrenty or not.

Combine that with the difficult to navigate Lenovo site and IBM can just go sit in a corner as far as new purchases are concerned.

Used is another story... I've had good luck with used Thinkpads. The A31p has proved the most sister-proof of any PC she has had so far.

 

I do travel a fair amount being a student and all...I tote my laptop around daily.

They were actually priced just nice up until a day ago, due to their holiday special. I think my dad can actually get slightly better prices with an employee discount...I still want to see the transflective screen, tho!!

 

I can compare anything I like with anything else I like. My interests are not tied strictly to portability. 5 lbs is plenty portable for me....and widescreen versus standard aspect ratio isn't really that much of a concern either.

I've finally realized that my decision all comes down to the screen:
Transflective -vs- Transmissive/Matte

I had a pure reflective/glossy but don't like them anymore. Strangely, all laptops at Circuit City & Office Depot have glossy screens.

If anybody has used a transflective screen with a laptop...
Could you tell me how they work inside with & without fluorescent lighting and outside with & without direct sunlight? That'd be awesome.

I'm starting to think that the matte screens might be better overall than transflectives...but I can't compare them in certain lighting situations since I don't have a gagillion dollars.

 

You're right... you can do anything you want... you can compare a 600sf apt in manhattan with a 5,000sf mansion in Montana as well... but you shouldn't. If you want to make a comparison that isn't realistic, do it yourself.... don't ask the forum for help. Like I said originally, to go with your "fight" thread theme - you're talking about two different weight classes.... the +'s and -'s for each mean nothing when your comparisons are purely monetary.

The T60 is better than the Z35, but it's like putting the a/v club president against the varsisty quarterback in a football throwing contest..... To have a level for comparison, you need to have something to truly to compare other than money. The W3 would be Asus' answer to the T60 and in that case, the W3 is a better machine and a better value.

 

There is a difference between toting around and what people who swear by these T60s do to them though.... Not everyone needs that or can pay the extra price for it... Blanket recommending a Thinkpad to everyone who asks about a laptop is just wrong.

 

ASUS W3 is not for me because you can't get intel graphics can you? I'm looking for battery life, portability, durability, good value, and the best all-purpose screen. This is why I have selected these two laptops from the 12-14" size range & 4-5 lbs weight class:

$1100 - Thinkpad T60 with Transmissive/Matte screen
-or-
$1600 - PortableOne SX with Transflective screen

Both of them meet my requirements & have virtually the same specs (only problem with the Z35F is that it only has 1 avail ram slot & it'll already be full on arrival). The whole thing rests on the screen & ASUS design and of course, if it's really worth the extra $500 or not...I'm starting to wonder if it is now.

The screen & monetary attributes are the most important aspects to me now! I still have a feeling that the transflective screen will still have a good deal of glare compared to a matte screen under all kindsa various lighting conditions.

 

About the price of a T60, my school is currently offering a T60 with:

14" 1400x1050
T2500
1GB
X1400
100GB

for like $1.5K USD, which is a pretty kickass deal. I'm not exactly sure what my roommate's screen is but it IS matte and it's a good screen. He complains he can't see it in the sunlight though I've seen it and it's no worse than any other laptop.

Again, the thinkpad is a sweet laptop but you ARE paying a premium for that durability. Since it's CHEAPER in this case, I don't see why you would go for the inferior and more expensive model =S

 

They just had a sale and all that with a Core 2 Duo processor was under $1200...my dad can get a little bit better price with employee discount actually.

IMO, matte is better than glossy....but I dunno really how to judge the transflective screen since I can't see it. That's why I think I'm just going to order both and return the one with worse screen/durability/value....

Featurewise, they're pretty much the same...but the PortableOne screen does have better visibility for certain lighting conditions....I think in some lighting conditions the matte would be better, but I'm still not sure. Also, the SX would be at least a pound lighter...and I do believe that 13" widescreen is my personal "hotspot" with screens. Also, I don't want my children speaking Chinese, so I'd prefer to keep my money in America.

But I'm still going to purchase both to compare the screen under various lighting scenarios, overall build quality, value, & linux support...

I'll prolly end up with the Thinkpad T60, but I'm really wanting the PortableOne & transflective screen to just blow my mind away when I do compare them....

Guess I'll still have to wait 2 weeks to finally figure out which screen is better for me.

 

How many versions of the T60 do they may? I thought it was a dedicate graphics model, but I understand you a little bit more now......

In that case...... if you want to compare a 14" with integrated graphics.... why not look at the A8fm then? I prefer the build quality of the V and W series, but right now there is nothing in those series that will fit exactly what you want price and graphics wise. However, if you wanted to compare the T60 with the Z35, the A8fm is about the same built quality as the A8, but at least a 14" to compare better with the T60.

 

Well there are

-14" Regular Ratio T-Series w/ GMA950
-14" Regular Ratio w/X1300
-15" w/ GMA950
-15" w/ X1300
-15.4" Widescreen w/ GMA950
-15.4" Widescreen w/ X1400
-T60p w/FireGL in 14" and 15", but not Widescreen

Confused? You're not alone! It almost makes the Asus model-submodel number/lettering scheme make sense!

 

That's what I thought..... and people complain that Asus' model naming is difficult to understand

 

But do other dealers add transflective screens? That's the question! I'm fairly certain that they are priced pretty dern competitively.

 

No one else that I've seen... Not a feature I was really concerned with when I made my purchase.

 

You know that a transflective screen isn't good inside, correct? It improves clarity in the sun, but limits your brightness and viewing angles as well as contrast while inside...... they look pathetic compared to the colorshine screens on Asus units out of the box...... If you're going to be using it outsidemore then 50% of the time, that may be important to you though.

 

Toughbooks come to mind when I think of transflective screens...

But yes, because of the coating that they use to reflect the ambient light when outside, the brightness inside is decreased because the backlight light can't get through as easily.

The next stage of development is to put the reflective part of the screen only on parts of the LCD which don't transmit backlight anyway, like the transistors and such. Then you could gain some viewability in ambient light without compromising inside brightness... I don't know how effective it will be, though.

 

Transflective screens are good on pocket pc's... there's a reason Asus uses them on those screens and not the notebooks.