Any good laptop that use an IPS screen?

Any laptops out there that use IPS screens ( or anything non-TN for the matter) ?

 

HP EliteBook 8540w/8740w have the highest-quality screen on notebooks bar none -- DreamColor 2 (30-bit IPS panel). See here for a review:
http://forum.notebookreview.com/notebook-news-reviews/503121-hp-8740w-review-full-metal-jacket.html
Very expensive though.

Other than that, I believe there is a tablet PC or two using an AAFS panel but that's about it.

 

The Lenovo x200 can be upgraded to an AFFS IPS panel, and its not a tablet. Its probably the only thing you'll find with a decent CPU.

I'm not sure but I think this may be possible with thinkpads t60 and t61? It was with the t42

 

The Dell XPS15 with the optional FHD, has a quite decent screen. Its however not IPS, but tests show that its quite on par with them.

 

Which tests?

TN panels cannot match IPS panels in terms of viewing angles.

 

There are a few of them here:

 

Viewing angles are bad on the RGB LED on the Precision.

 

quote of a response to that review (see comments at bottom of the review):

This. When I was looking into these two machines, people had done some comparisons here on the site (can't find them at the moment) : The M6500 screen didn't look as good in real usage scenarios, and it was bloody obvious when photographed side by side because the M6500 colors looked washed out and had severe banding. The HP Dream Color 2 picture photographed and came out perfect, and I think it's indication that it's going to work and perform better in most real world situations where angle and other conditions aren't perfect.

 

Seeing those reviews makes me smile
I own both the famous Dell RGB LED TN and the 8740w (DC2) and after a few solid months of real life comparison the verdict is very simple -

For an average joe the TN might be a good choice, but for a professional it's a no go. There are quite a few people on this forum who work with color critical applications for living and can comment on this matter so I leave it to them.

In general however, consider the following:

1) The DC2 IPS screen is 30-bit (10-bit per primary color) while the TN RGB LED is only 24-BIT.

2) The IPS screen has perfect viewing angles while TN panels can't come even close with mild deviation of color accuracy even at a few degrees shifts, which may be already unacceptable for photographers.

3) Dream Color 2 Specifications:

Contrast Ratio 800:1 typical
Brightness 210 nit typical
Backlight RGB LED
Viewing Angle ±89° Horizontal, ±89° Vertical (typical)
Technology Type 30-bit In-Plane Switching (IPS)
Color Depth 10-bits/color
Display Colors Over 1 billion colors (native mode)

Color Gamut Coverage CIE1931 (x,y) CIE 1976 (u',v')
NTSC 109% 129%
AdobeRGB 114% 127%
sRGB 154% 148%

Looking at the specs above you should get the picture, - it's not just angles, not only 50X times more colors...
Even in games and applications not supporting 10-bit per color, the IPS naturally provides a photographic image quality. It's a totally different experience.

Just a few cents here.

 

as another multiple owner of a Dell XPS, a Dell Alienware M17X-r2 with the RGB LED, a few Macbook Pros, and the aformentioned Elitebook 8740w with the DC2 screen. Dell and Apples screens are decent ( SAME panel actually )but still look like an out of sync, 20 year old CRT television with rabbit ears compared to the IPS DC2 screen

 

If im not mistaken the HP elitebook 8540w does not use an IPS but a normal LCD panel.

 

IPS is a type of LCD . . .
TFT LCD - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

And the 8540w is available with the DreamColor 2 IPS panel. The DC2 panel on the 8540w and the 8740w are identical in quality/brightness/specs/etc save for the size and resolution (17" and 1920x1200 on the 8740w vs. 15.6" 1920x1080 on the 8540w).

 

This was an interesting read:

See:
HP EliteBook 8740w: IPS on the Go - AnandTech :: Your Source for Hardware Analysis and News

As well as:

See:
IBM's ThinkPad T42 LCD: A Blast from the Past - AnandTech :: Your Source for Hardware Analysis and News


More to it than just viewing angles, % colour gamut of aRGB and maximum contrast.

 

Some Fujitsu notebooks and tablets use mva which is basically a cheaper alternative to IPS that performs almost as good.

 

Yes, it was linked to on the previous page. So far everyone who has seen or owned both the Dell RGBLED and the HP DC2 has said the DC2 is hands-down superior. It is not clear from that review whether the reviewer was using the built-in gamut switcher or not (which makes a BIG difference).

 

Oh! Sorry for repeating previous posts (I usually read the complete thread before I reply).

Can you expand on the built-in gamut switcher for me?

 

Not a problem.

Here's a screenshot (attached). It basically gives you complete control over the panel and its gamut, brightness, etc.

About the Anandtech review comments about the panel looking oversaturated -- of course it does with such a high gamut. The HP MDA allows you to switch gamuts though so it's not a problem. I don't know any 8740w owner that uses their machine in Full Color (Native) mode; I use mine in sRGB, which looks as a monitor "should" without things being oversaturated. I only switch to Adobe sRGB of Full Color mode when running Photoshop or an application that benefits from it.

Here is the HP 8740w owner's lounge:
http://forum.notebookreview.com/hp-...ial-hp-elitebook-8740w-owners-lounge-new.html
Lots of good info in there. Not to sound overly positive about the notebook since I own it, but nearly every owner who has posted in that thread has been extremely satisfied. It's an expensive machine and I'm still reeling from the price, but I wouldn't trade it for any other laptop. I considered the Dell M6500 (very nice machine as well) but the DC2 and a couple other aesthetic factors on the 8740w won me over.

-----

Just going back to the original topic for a sec, other notebooks besides the HP 8740w and the Dell M6500 that *offer* nice screens are the Lenovo W510 and W710; they are high gamut. Dell also offers RGB LED on its M17x.
At the moment, no one offers IPS other than HP on the 8540w/8740w. If you're that desperate for an IPS panel and don't want to spend a premium on a notebook, you can get a budget e-IPS panel from Dell for $200-300 (23").

 

Charles,

Thanks for the screen shot. Wow - this looks amazing for a future purchase (soon!).

Yeah, business class notebooks are in a different league - I still daydream about my (previous) top-end ThinkPAD's when I'm working on some clumsy excuse for a computer that you can almost forgive considering it cost less than 1/2 of the cost of a 90min battery for the IBM premium machines back in the day.

 

Very sad to see no IPS laptops besides the HP and few others. I use an Alpha S-IPS for my desktop and would never ever ever ever ever go back to a TN panel.

For me viewing angles are important on Notebook.

 

Dell M4600 has an IPS panel option. No idea how good it is, but requires you to select the FX2000m ddr3.

 

There is an ips tablet but its not running windows.

http://www.amazon.com/Transformer-T.../B004U78J1G/ref=de_a_smtd/190-3446754-4048402

 

My mom's Acer netbook has excellent viewing angles. Literally, I can look from either extreme side, and nothing washes out or distorts, I am not kidding. I was really surprised by it. Are you saying her atom netbook uses an IPS panel?

 

That is what I was talking about. I'll have to try tilting it the next time I go visit my mom.