Non-Gamer : T61 V.s HP dv6500t : which 1 would you get?

ThinkPad T61- T7500, 1 GB + turbo, 160GB, AGN, 7 cell, DVD+/-, 14.1 WXGA+, Cam, 128MB Nvidia NVS 140M = $ 1,502.96 w/tax
Versus
HP dv6500t- T7300, 2 GB ,160GB, AGN, 12 cell, DVD+/-, 15.4" WXGA, Cam, 383MB NVIDIA GeForce 8400M GS = $1479.11 w/tax

The Facts:
* As far as i'm concerned the two are nearly identical, except for the gpu which i think is better on the HP ( i do stress that i don't do games), and the HP is a little bigger.
* I now have two orders
* place T61 order on may 29 ship is est aug 31
* placed HP order june 8 ship is june 18
* plan on using the machine away from home 30-40%
* i don't play games but like to try (no time what-so-ever)
* i use photoshop and watch movies
* i feel as if i can't wait any longer (just because?)
* to be honest i like simplicity of design (major issue with HP and their pretty lappies)
* I like reliability


The Question:
Is it worth the extra money to order the t61 at Euclid for $1,663.00 ( like 160 bucks more) w/tax + ship. I planed on getting some more ram on my own and getting a car charger for work/school reasons (district sales trainer). But this is really getting expensive!
I am so damn torn right about now cause i've got some money on the line and i need a solution now. ( i'm stuck at home and need mobility) but at what cost?
Can anybody tell me why i shouldn't just go jump off my 1st story porch and pretend to die on the lawn. I have spent the last month reading and comparing and i'm still clueless. technology is cool but toys ROCK!!!!

(huhhhh) Sorry if you had to read this but I just wanted to get this off my chest.......

 

why must you pretend? there are plenty of dangerous objects in a typical household that will help you die on your lawn for real

whats this Euclid? wat are they offering extra? is it warranty?

the T61 has better build quality but as u can see u pay for that

if ur not a gamer then u can save some money by going for the intel X3100 on either laptop which can play some games but not such a great gaming card.

obviously the HP has better options, twice the RAM, larger screen and bigger battery and u will get it sooner

waiting about 3 months for a T61 that doesnt look very special to me is ridiculous! why do they want u to wait that long? has lenovo fired all their workers and now the CEO is personally building all their laptops now?

 

I honestly don't see why you need a dedicated GPU; GMAX3100 graphics will be just fine for your needs.

Personally if I had to choose between the two, I'd get the T61, for its robust build quality, and I also just like the general look of ThinkPads.

 

but wud u wait for 3 months to get it? somethings wrong with that delivery estimate!

 

HP looks beautiful... oops, wrong forum hehe..

 

this is the ad that i'm referring to. T61 in stock and ready to ship.

http://www.euclidcomputers.com/frameset.cgi?finditem+laptop+Lenovo+766417U+cnet+6%2f9%2f2007-0%3a23+2

The only reason that i'm considering both of these system with the dedicated gpu is that i'm a freak when it comes to multi-tasking. I don't want a machine that will stall for lack of video memory.
My current setup is an IBM Aptiva (explains why i love IBM/Lenovo) 2.4GHZ 1GB, nVidia RIVA TNT2 64mb pro. (yup, this is from the stone age).
i am one to browse, do photoshop, utorrent, then itunes on top of that. when i switch between windows, it can be slow to redraw. So, i want power to play!

Also, because i study engineering (mostly math now, i'm only into my 1st year, and crossing my fingers) i think I'm gonna need 3D capabilities sooner rather then later.



BTW = i learn something new everyday being on this forum. What "wud" (Hint: i'm trying to highlight the aformentioned word) the english language be without imagination?

 

how will a dedicated GPU help with that? cuz integrated takes some memory from RAM? u can adjust that memory in the BIOS so the amount it takes is minimal. also u shud get 2GB of RAM as that is the ideal for Vista right now.

the link doesnt tell u what video card is included though, but im guessing its the X3100 so in essence u are spending more to get less really. they are probably hiking their prices cuz they know if u order off lenovo, the CEO has to backorder cuz he is busy building everything by hand!

seriously 3 months wait :S

 

I just caught that. this deal stinks! I just realized that this third option is just what u assumed (x3100, integrated).

 

I had an HP DV9000t, DV6500t's big brother. Well, even though I didn't have any problems with the DV9000t, I still wish the build quality on the HP could be better. Especially annoying is the fact that the plastic hinges on the DV9000t started to wobble somewhat after about 6 months of use. Plus every time you pick it up, you can always hears creaks coming from somewhere on that laptop.

 

Personally if you're looking at 14.1 machines such as that T61 you picked out, IMO the competitors to look at would be the HP 6910p or the Dell D630 (both of those are in the respective company's business lines, not the consumer line like the HP you are looking at now). As such, they are reasonably comparable to Thinkpads in terms of quality (some people will say that Thinkpads are in their own class, and maybe they are, but even if so most folks seem to agree that the ones I mentioned are not far behind). I think you could get the former from costcentral.com or other places on line right away, and I think the latter could be had from costo right away. Something else to look at would be the V1J or V2J (I always forget which one is the 14" model) from Asus, though they would be a bit more $.

 

No, but they did fire their IBM bred CEO named Ward and replaced him with a Dell guy.