Not that impressed with T400 build

I just received my new T400 and despite some positive comments about quality/build on this board I have to say I'm not overly impressed and consider it a bit of a step back from my T61 in some ways. The main problems build-wise include:

Keyboard flex -- if this is the "improved" keyboard then it's still pretty bad and I hate to think what the even flexier one felt like. The left side has a lot of give with very little pressure and it sometimes creaks if I hit a key hard. My T61 keyboard is rock solid from left to right. I find any loss of keyboard quality to be a a little sad because a quality keyboard is one of the few features that makes Thinkpads stand out from the crowd (and it was the reason that I became a thinkpad fan many years ago)

Palm rest flex -- I have the expresscard slot and 7-1 media card reader and any pressure on the left side of the palm rest causes the expresscard blank to pop out slightly and the plam rest itelf to sag noticeably into the slot. My T61 has some flex here but nowhere near as much as the T400. Short of using tape to hold the blank in place to provide some support, does anyone have any tips for making this area more solid?

Crummy plastic -- I can just tell the plastic quality has dropped. In various places I see molding marks (like the smooth piece of plastic around the on/off & volume buttons, for example) and overall the skin of the machine just feels thinner/less dense. I expect the keys to start going shiney in about two months and the palm rest in about three.

Overall, however, the machine feels solid when closed. The off-center screen is dumb but is not really a big deal. The 6-cell battery has zero wiggle (I must be the only one). But the plastics/keyboard disappoint.

 

I had the same palmrest flex issues on my T61...sent it in to get it fixed, and it came back a little better, although there is still some flex.

You're lucky to have a non-wiggling battery...both my 4 and 9 cell batteries have lots of movement while in the bay.

-->Wonders why Thinkpads can't be built nearly as well as the Unibody Macbook Pros.

 

Okay, I agree that the build quality of the T400 is not the best it could have been, but I knew what I was getting for $750. I realize that there is a little bit of flex in the keyboard and outer body but why does it receive so much attention?

Lenovo made a very sturdy laptop by placing a plastic body over a reinforced chassis. The fit and finish could be a little better (it is no longer IBM), but I am totally content. The build of the T400 is the antithesis of the Mac Unibody and shouldn't be "built as well as" the Mac because of their opposite approach in durable design of a laptop.

I own a T400 and would recommend it to anyone looking for a college/business rugged laptop.

Josh

 

T400 build is not that great. there are gaps, flex and plastic feels cheap.

If you want much higher build quality you have to pay extra and get a T400s or X301. I just received a T400s and the build quality is absolutely wonderful. No flex anywhere, keyboard is much better than T400 (I have the t61 keyboard replacement there), and the touchpad is very improved. The downside, however is rather flimsy screen lid which reminds me of the one on Sony Z. There is noticible flex when opening/closing it and its very easy to create ripples. Durability wise, in my opinion vanilla T400 wins.

 

I have a new X200 and I have to say there are no manufacturing problems of any kind on this machine. The molding errors you mentioned are not present. There's no keyboard flex but this may be a result of the smaller dimensions.

 

Build quality on my T400 is actually better than on my T61. Keyboard is better (my T61 keyboard was more flexy, and some of the keys appeared slightly warped) and has less palmrest flex than my T61. Hinges are also tighter on my T400, and the 14" WXGA+ display is definitely brighter than my T61's WXGA LCD.

My T61 isn't a bad notebook. However, my T400 is just a bit tighter in every way. Maybe it's luck of the draw.

 

The T400s wold have been an option if it had discrete graphics. Sadly it does not. I guess otherwise there's a bit of the luck of the draw to deal with. My T61 was probably better than most because it used the old 4:3 chassis. It just makes it harder for me to fend off the Mac fanboys in the office with my flexy T400

Anyone know of a tip to fix the popping-out expresscard blank and associated palmrest flex? Is it worth whining to Lenovo about?