I finally bought a laptop, went with a W500!

Well I have been on these forums for a long time looking at laptops. I had decided a few days ago to go with the M4400 because of the very nice screen and powerful graphics card. When the Dell rep didn't call me back like she promised after a dropped call I looked again at the W500 and saw that it had the P9500 processor. This was the turning point for me and caused me to go with the W500.

This is what I got:

15.4" WSXGA+ CCFL
Intel P9500 (2.53Ghz / 6MB L2 / 1066Mhz FSB / 25W)
Windows Vista Home Basic
1GB DDR3-1066 (1 DIMM)
ATI FireGL V5700 + Intel X4500HD Hybrid
160GB 5400RPM SATA HDD
DVD-ROM / CD-RW
Intel Wifi 5300 + Integrated Bluetooth
3 year warranty upgrade

$1284.83

It was about $600 cheaper than the Dell with the WUXGA RGB LED! I am going to replace the 1GB memory with 4GB and the 160GB 5400RPM drive with an Intel 80GB SSD (already ordered both from Newegg).

 

Nice specs. At first glance, it looks like you're getting more than you're paying for. Kudos.

 

Good looking setup, at a pretty good price too.
Congrats.

 

Dude, glad to hear you’re not getting a Dell.

 

I think you made a good move and got a good price. Congrats!

 

Yeah, I just hope the ISV driver issues have been cleared out. CATIA performance is very important to me.

It says the estimated ship date is Jan 1st. Hopefully it ships out sooner.

 

so whats the deal with SSDs. dont care about size really, but performance-wise, whats the best SSD out there?

i'm thinking about replacing the 160gig in my T400 with a SSD...

 

The Intel 30GB is currently the fastest SSD with 170MB/s write and 200MB/s read with very good random performance. It is around $700. Next would come the Intel 80GB MCL drive with 200MB/s read and 70MB/s write. It is around $500. OCZ is releasing a new line of SSDs in 30, 60, 120, and 250GB. They should rival the Intel performance at a much lower price.

 

Congrats on the purchase. Why you didn't opt for the wuxga on the w500 since you were looking at it on the dell? Just curious since I had a tough time deciding which res to choose.

 

From what I read, the WUXGA on the Lenovo has a lower brightness (165nit compared at 220nit on the WSXGA+). The Dell monitor wasn't just a WUXGA but it was also a LED and full color gammut screen.

 

The newest Thinkpad can't support the full transfer speed of the X25-E. Using it right now in my X200s, and the speed is capped at around 150MB/sec for both read and write.

 

Yeah but you still benifit from the X25-E because of the increased write performance. Is the drive really fast? Like opening programs, files, and booting windows?

 

Opening programs, files, and booting windows depend heavily on read, not on write. But yes, it is fast. Small improvement from Samsung SLC SSD, but huge irmprovement from traditional SSD.

 

Just bought a W500 myself! Can't wait till it gets here.

Intel Core 2 Duo processor T9400 (2.53GHz 1066MHz 6MBL2)
Genuine Windows Vista Business
15.4" WSXGA+ TFT, w/ CCFL Backlight
ATI Mobility FireGL V5700 with 512MB VRAM
2 GB PC3-8500 DDR3 SDRAM 1067MHz SODIMM Memory (1 DIMM)
UltraNav (TrackPoint and TouchPad)
250 GB Hard Disk Drive, 5400rpm4
DVD Recordable 8x Max Dual Layer, Ultrabay Slim (Serial ATA)
Integrated Bluetooth PAN
Intel WiMAX/WiFi Link 5350 (AGN)
6 cell Li-Ion Battery60
4058: 1 Year Depot Warranty

1298.70 After shipping/tax (thank god for coupon codes)

 

I am pretty excited, I just got a news letter than now CATIA supports Windows Vista and 64 bit. This means that now I can use the W500 with Vista (so I can have hybrid graphics) and I can make use of my 4GB of ram).

 

I was delighted to see that the laptop shipped this morning despite an estimated ship date of 1/1/09. I doubt I will get it Friday and I don't know if UPS delivers on Saturday or not (I don't think they do), so I expect to get it Monday.

I also got my laptop case, bluetooth mouse, and memory in today.

I still am waiting patiently on the OCZ SSD's to be released but I may jump on the Intel SSD. I don't want to crawl around in the 5400RPM drive and I don't want to have to reinstall all of my software and have activation issues because I change my hard drive.

 

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What laptop case did you buy?

 

Yeah my case arrived before the computer too. I guess it's nice to receive your order quickly, but really, what am I going to do with the case when my new computer is still in China?? lol

 

I got this sleeve from Newegg (not Lenovo).

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16834990021

I accidently ordered 2 and was planning on returning it. Let me know if you want it, I will cut you a good deal. It is still in the (shipping) box, never opened.

Chances are the case you received shipped from the USA.

 

Well the laptop left Anchorage, Alaska about 5PM local time. I am really hoping it gets delivered tomorrow. I have my memory, mouse, and computer case on hand (they arrived the 24th) and I just placed my order for an Intel X25-M SSD from newegg with next day shipping!

 

Got it today! Wow that was fast shipping! Ordered Dec 20th, shipped Dec 24th from Honk Kong and arrived in Florida Dec 26th at 10AM!

Got my 4GB memory installed and I am loving it. It is a little slow with the 5400RPM drive but the X25-M is inbound from Newegg, so it won't be long before that is rectified.

I like the LCD screen. I don't have real picky eyes, but it looks bright and even to me. In (indoor) light I light the brightness around 80% and when it is dark I prefer 40% brightness, so it is plenty bright.

Great laptop so far, I am really pleased.

Also, the laptop is now cheaper by about $80. Do I just send Lenovo an email with a quote of an identical system to get a price match?