New Thinkpad T60P

Whats up guys

After hearing so much about the legendary T60 series, I've decided to switch over to the Thinkpad side! I was contemplating between the T60 and the 60p, I feel that the x1400 is just not enough for my needs especially coming from the x1600 thats in my Asus right now. I've only had the W2j for only 3 months and it has been great to me, build quality, reliability, just everything, except that 17" is just a tad big for me to lug around despite it being so thin and sleek. and also being the cover and palm rest is the beautiful brushed aluminum I often find myself constantly polishing and cleaning to the point of being OCD. Brushed aluminum looks a lot better than plastic (even very high quality) but I feel that I need something where I don't have to be as careful and I think the T60 series just fit my bill perfectly. Of course watching DVDs on it def. will be a bit of a downgrade going from a 17" widescreen to a 15 standard. but I don't watch movies on it too often.

Being that I've never had any experience with the thinkpads, maybe someone here that owned or owns the t60/p can let me know what to expect or your own experience on it as this is def. not a cheap laptop. Here are the specs copied from site and price that I ordered from buy.com

T2600 2.16GHz
Intel PRO 10/100/1000Mbps Gigabit Ethernet
100GB SATA 5400rpm
1 x IrDA Infrared
1 x RJ-11 Modem
1 x RJ-45 Network
3 x 4-pin Type A USB 2.0 - USB
1 x Mini-phone Microphone/Audio In
1 x VGA
1 x Mini-phone Audio Out
1 x Docking
Windows XP Pro
CD-RW/DVD-ROM
1 x 9-cell Lithium Ion (Li-Ion) Standard Battery
1GB RAM
Standard Warranty 3 Year(s) Limited
Display Screen 15" UXGA Widescreen Active Matrix TFT Color LCD with FlexView
Bus Speed 667MHz
Graphics Controller ATi Mobility FireGL V5200 256MB GDDR3 SDRAM PCI Express (Is is correct that this is comparable to the x1600 even though its mainly designed for CAD?)
Maximum Memory 4GB
Memory Technology DDR2 SDRAM
Display Resolution 1600 x 1200 (Internal) / 2048 x 1536 (External)
Weight 6 lb

$2,625 including shipping. Is this price fair?

Here's something I don't understand. On Lenovo's site, there are no 15" T60p, only on the 60. and it seems that only the T60 can be ordered with the 15" flexview IPS screen panel, but you have to upgrade to the 2.33 cpu in order to do that. So when I looked at 3rd party vendors, all of them have the T60P with the 15" flexview screen and some even have the 2.0 cpu. Can someone clue me in as to why? I do believe Lenovo offers somewhat better pricing but I've heard too many horror stories where they delay shipping to god knows when. With buy.com, I'm pretty sure I can get it by next week. Can't wait. Comments are welcome.

 

You can customize your own Thinkpad through this link: https://www-03.ibm.com/lenovo/shop/personalpages/public/public/products/dsp_feature_product.cfm?display=main&cat_id=24. Unfortunately, they currently don't offer the 15" screen with the slower processors. The reason why you see many stores carrying the 15" with slower processors is because they have inventory purchased in bulk in advance, probably months ago. I bought my Laptop on August 25 through the link above, and they allowed you to get the 15" Flexview screen with the 1.83ghz/2ghz/2.16ghz/or 2.33ghz processors. You have to understand Lenovo is trying to reduce inventory at the moment and preparing for Merom (aka Core 2 Duo) in October, and it's possible they sold out all the 15" with the slower processor speeds. My theory is that they are trying to get rid of the remaining core duo processors before Core 2 Duo is implemented in Thinkpads, cause Lenovo knows they'll have to lower the price of regular Core duos then. So they are trying to maximize profits now with these "sales" rather than suffer a significant lost later on, with inventory of old Core Duo processors nobody will want anymore since "Core 2 Duo" will be in Thinkpads. Of course, this is all speculation, and to just to let you know, I am paranoid about a lot of things.

 

well that def. makes a lot of sense. merom sounds very nice but for what I'm running, it really won't be a noticeble gain. I'll be happy with the t2600 that I can get my hands on right now. How would you compare your flexview with other lcds that you have used?

 

The Flexview has the clarity, sharpness, and crispness of glossy screens without the glare. It doesn't look grainy or pixelated....very smooth....

 

It also has extremely wide viewing angles, and full color depth so you don't have any noticeable gradation. Colors don't wash out at high brightnesses like some panels, and I haven't noticed any ghosting at all. I do have a bit of light leakage at the very bottom, but it's really insignificant and something that appears to vary between samples.

Compared to the desktop LCD's I've used it's in the upper tier, but somewhere near it's bottom. But most of the LCD's that I've used are designed for graphics artists so colors are usually calibrated out of the factory for accuracy rather than vibrance, and backlighting is typically perfect.

 

thats the consensus that I'm getting from most people that own this laptop, that the premium is def. worth the admission. I jumped on a great deal that has slightly different specs than the one I listed previously, let me know what you think of the new one. I'll just list the differences.

its the 2623DDU T60p
T2500 (know I won't notice any difference vs. the T2600)
100gb @ 7200rpm vs. 5400rpm (WILL notice a difference)
DVD+/- DL Burner vs. CDRW (a nice plus)

I do believe these are the only differences, everything else remains the same. and oh, I went with another retailer and the total price came out to $2279 which is $346 cheaper and I believe I'm getting a lot more aside from the 2.16ghz which I could care less.

 

Nice laptop..you'll be more than happy I'm sure. I have a T60P on order, mine was placed on the 9/6 thanks to another member who made me stop analyzing all the options. I am checking my order status sometimes twice a day, jeeeeze I'm pathetic.

Funny you want to get rid of the W2JB, I am looking at getting one of these for my wife. We have heard there is a WSXGA+ screen coming on these soon. I can't seem to find out exactly when though. Today she said, just order the Sony AR series, I'm tired of waiting! I just don't know what to do. I think she would be happier with the ASUS.

 

If you are familiar with Asus, you will know the rave reviews that the V6Va screen gets. It is nearly impossible to get and is simply an amazing screen. That screen is the only IPS screen for Asus. Flexview screens on Lenovo computers use the same IPS type screen. That gives you excellent color rendition, decent brightness and amazing viewing angles.

You will definitely be pleased. Mine hasn't even arrived yet
You can always upgrade the hard drive later pretty easily to a 7200 RPM drive. By then you may be able to get much larger capacities too. As for the CPU, I agree you probably won't notice much difference. The W2J has a Pentium-M 2Ghz so you will notice a significant improvment. But I doubt any normal person could tell the difference between a T2500 and a T2600.

 

actually, the w2j has a t2500 2ghz, not a pent M. But yes, Asus has excellent build quality and has many types of notebooks for different people. I've always been intrigued with the thinkpad, its rugged and has that old school look but with modern tech underneath the hood.

one question about the thinkpads. first, I see there are many mfr#'s of the t60p, but mostly differ in just the cpu or hdd rpm or graphics. my question is, is that the ONLY difference? are all parts used the same?

another question is nits, that I couldn't find any answers on. how can you tell whats the nits of a screen? for the 15" ips screen, are they all 200nits? or some are higher and some are lower?

 

I'm pretty sure 15" IPS screens are all 200 nits. I remember reading it on a chart, but I don't have the link.

 

The parts aren't all the same, panels will be made by different manufacturers, as well keyboards. If you do some searching on keyboards (NMB is a good term) you'll find some rather strong preferences. Some people have been unhappy with their Chiconis keyboards, while NMB is generally accepted as a little better than the rest. I love my Alps, wouldn't trade it for the world. But these differences don't vary by part number, it's just luck of the draw.

Most people won't notice the difference. I feel I got lucky pulling a Seagate hard drive and Alps keyboard.

I'm sure all the panels will be rated at 200 nits. If they actually are I don't know. My Flexview sure is bright enough. It's still comfortable at 4 or 5 of 7 brightness. Personally, I have it max brightness on a/c and use the Gnome battery daemon turn it down to 80% on battery.

 

sounds good. yeah I wasn't talking about the manufacturer of the parts, I know the keyboards are made by 3 diff companies and so is the screen, and its a luck of the draw. I was actually talking about how there are just different manufact. numbers for various t60p's even though some have the exact same specs right down to the last detail, but the prices are different, for example, whats the differences between 270096U and 270093U? I see no differences in specs just the price.

 

there is a wsxga coming soon, how soon, no one knows, not even resellers, it could be this year or it could be next year, asus wants NA to deplete its supplies of current w2j before sending in the new batch. well, I needed to sell the w2j to finance the thinkpad and also, I have no use for 2 laptops, being I already have a desktop. but the w2j is the best "looking" laptop I have ever used or seen. its qualities are second to none imo. I will def. miss watching movies on her.

 

2007-93U/96U? I'm not seeing a 2700.

The 93U has a DVDRW while the 96U has a combo.
The 93U has a fingerprint reader while the 96U does not.
The 93U also has a global warranty.

 

check out this http://www.superwarehouse.com/IBM_Laptop_Screen_Size/b/112/c/2032
its where i got the differ part #

 

It says 2007 now, the must have fixed it.

 

i would get 14' T60 and a good LCD monitor.
better portability.. and lcd quality will be better on lcd monitor.

 

good for portability but I dont lug it around everyday, just once a week, so the extra weight is negligible and one big reason is for the flexview which only comes in 15s.

 

no matter what configuration you put in I figure you'd love it mate.

By simply opening the lid and seeing how solid it is, or

- or holding it to feel is ruggedness
- typing on the keyboard
- using trackpoint

you'll realize what's the deal with thinkpad and how it is different from other notebooks. The legendary T-series is by far the best balance between portability and power.

You'll love it mate.

 

outrigger... how was it going from an XGA 17" screen to a UXGA 15" screen? that must have been an adjustment.

 

well, I don't actually have it YET. but it should be here by tomorrow or tues the latest. I have never seen a thinkpad in person except an old one that my friend has. but with so many people raving about the quality, performance and reliability of the machine, there's gotta be some truth to it. and honestly, I was always interested in a business oriented machine that has the capability to be multimedia when needed. I have a desktop machine at home that I use for every kind of multimedia so I dont need one for a laptop as well, I mainly got the w2j for its appearance and fit and finish. I also like the fact that the thinkpads are so unique looking like the panasonic toughbooks that you can't mistaken it for anything else, plus for some reason, I really dig the old school look.

from going to a 17 to a 15 I'm actually looking forward to, I had an old dell 8500 15.4" so only had the 17" for a couple of months. I am a bit worried about the uxga on a 15 though. we're talking about 1600 x 1200. I know the color and representation will be awesome, but reading text, I'm a bit worried, but we'll have to see. they didn't have the sxga for the 15" with the specs I was after. all in all, I'm looking forward to something smaller and standard ratio screen.