Let's review my 14.1" WXGA+ T61

Background

I spent about 4 weeks thinking about which computer to buy. On my shopping list:
- WXGA+ 1440x900 screen
- Webcam
- Thin & light
- Intel or AMD processor. Santa Rosa wasn't a big issue.
- Vista
- Light gaming (eg. Quake, COD, MOHAA, older stuff)

My benchmark machine was an HP nc6400 business laptop with 2G RAM, 100G HD, WXGA+ and Windows XP. That's my work machine, and I love it! Previously I have used a little Compaq 386 and later my wife's 12" Dell 700m (Pentium M 1.5Ghz, 1280x800 in a 12" screen.)

Ordering

At first I ordered a Dell 1420. It was brand new, and everyone was raving about it online. However, no one actually had one in their hands. After a couple weeks with the order pending, I happened to see one at a mall and immediately I knew it wasn't for me - it was too thick, too big, too heavy, and the keyboard was too slick and had wobbly keys.

I really wanted an HP nc6400 or a 6910p at this point, but they were always either $1800 or they didn't have the WXGA+ as an option. As of this writing the nc6400 is supposedly discontinued, but I have never been able to configure the 6910p the way I wanted either.

A little later I decided on the T61. There were some good sales back in July, with -7% Amex and -10% Lenovo. I also had ESPP, and I didn't even bother with fatwallet because I get another 20% off through my work. I got an ultrabay battery and a 90W travel charger too, and I still got a great deal!

I waited two weeks for my first order, but then decided to upgrade the HD when lenovo had a special, and cancelled the first one. From my final order on 7/20, it took exactly 10 days for the machine to ship and another two days to arrive. UPS managed to mess up a little on the day of delivery and misrouted the package, but they showed up later in the afternoon anyway. All in all, a pretty good experience. I know many others have had worse luck.

Specs

- T7300 2GHz
- Intel X3100 integrated graphics
- 1 G RAM as ordered (added $25 Crucial 1G stick later)
- 160G 5400rpm Hitachi 5K160 hard drive:
http://www.hitachigst.com/portal/site/en/menuitem.dac393208bfae6f199558fe7eac4f0a0/
- LG screen
- Non NMB keyboard (support struts look like "/", I don't care to look up the model.)
- Vista HP32 as ordered (upgraded to 64 with $5 DVD from Compusa)
- BT, Atheros ABG, Fingerprint
- Express card, PC card
- 4-cell, plus Ultrabay
- DVDRW

Ergonomics

Keyboard
The T61 keyboard is the best KB I have used, bar none. The HP kb is very good too, but it's mushy compared to the T61 and worse, it's off-center!

Mouse/trackpad
The T61 trackpoint is actually usable and I like it a lot. The blue trackpoint on the HP behaves like a small unpowered force-feedback joystick that won't bounce back to the middle position.

Screen
The displays are fairly equivalent. Light leakage is the same on both (can be seen upon boot, but not afterwards.) Brightness is about the same. The tint of the T61 is more 'white' than the HP, which is actually a little yellow compared to the T61. When I use either by themselves I like either display. I've never noticed any graininess or sparkle, but when the are side by side, the HP looks like it might have a little. The T61 display is not as good as some of the glossy screens, but it's still pretty good.

The off-center screen is simply not an issue. On the HP, since the KB is off center, the relative typing position is actually worse than the T61! The offset only looks strange in pics, but in normal use I don't notice it.

Size & weight

These two machines are almost the same in terms of dimensions. I haven't weighed either of them, but the HP feels lighter. The T61 is just a little thinner, about as much as a credit card.

Fan noise, heat

When plugged in, both machines sound about the same - slight fan noise. When unplugged, the T61 is quieter and the fan seldom runs. Both hard drives are very quiet.

Both machines are also very cool. I would say the HP is a little warmer.

Fit & finish

The T61 is not as bad as people say - it is a well built machine overall. I don't have any creakiness or softness in the case that I would call bad, but then again I don't go out of my way to poke and prod. My biggest gripe about it is the left latch on the display - I wish they could have made it a little tighter.

I have also noticed the slight bulging of the display when the case is closed, which thinkpad veterans swear is by design. It causes an uneven gap to be visible in the back of the machine between the case and the display. I've noticed this also on the T60 to a lesser extent and even the HP has a gap there. This bothered me at first, but not any more. Both of these machines are pretty solid, but the HP has the upper hand in my opinion. When comparing either of them to something like the Macbook, the mac seems more solid.

Performance/Vista

So far I have been pleased with Vista64. I only kept 32 on there long enough to backup all my installation files and then repartitioned the HD using Knoppix. In fact, Vista seems somewhat more stable than even my XP machine! Shocking, yes. Boot time and shutdowns are slower in Vista, but it's not an issue for me since I seldom actually shut it down (I use suspend.)

Battery life

Things look good here, too. I have the 4-cell, and I could probably get about 2:30 from it. With the ultrabay I could probably get another 1:30. The HP has an internal 6-cell and when it was new it gave me 4 hours, but now it's closer to 3.

Gaming

Thankfully, it runs my older games! I've tried COD and MOHAA and both are fine. The only trouble is scaling them to 1440x900, but it's not a big deal. I rarely have time to play.

Bottom line

I think the T61 is an excellent machine and I have no regrets! Saved at least $500 over the HP as well. If money were no object, I still might have liked to get the HPnc6910p. It has a few additional ports, feels a little more solid and would otherwise be an equivalent machine. On the downside I don't think I could have specified a webcam.

Some pics:

 

Well, they say, it's a feature not a defect but you can take it as you wish.
http://www.lenovoblogs.com/insidethebox/?p=19

And, thanks for that review.

 

Great review!
Thanks!