Please help me decide, w500 or t500

W500 vs. T500.
Pretty much the same configuration. Surprisingly, W500 is cheaper!
Do W500 and T500 only differ at graphics? Which one should I choose?


ThinkPad T500 - $1,110

Intel Core 2 Duo processor T9600 (2.8GHz 1066MHz 6MBL2)1
Genuine Windows Vista Business12
15.4" WSXGA+ TFT, w/ CCFL Backlight
ATI Mobility Radeon 3650 with 256MB with Intel AMT
2 GB PC3-8500 DDR3 SDRAM 1067MHz SODIMM Memory (1 DIMM)8
UltraNav (TrackPoint and TouchPad)
160 GB Hard Disk Drive, 7200rpm4
DVD Recordable 8x Max Dual Layer, Ultrabay Slim (Serial ATA)5
Integrated Bluetooth PAN
Intel WiFi Link 5300 (AGN) with My WiFi Technology10
Integrated Mobile Broadband upgradable65
6 cell Li-Ion Battery60
2081: 1 Year Depot Warranty - TopSeller7


ThinkPad W500 - $1096

Intel Core 2 Duo processor T9600 (2.8GHz 1066MHz 6MBL2)1
Genuine Windows Vista Business12
15.4" WSXGA+ TFT, w/ CCFL Backlight
ATI Mobility FireGL V5700 (512MB VRAM) with Intel AMT
2 GB PC3-8500 DDR3 SDRAM 1067MHz SODIMM Memory (1 DIMM)
UltraNav (TrackPoint and TouchPad)
160 GB Hard Disk Drive, 7200rpm4
DVD Recordable 8x Max Dual Layer, Ultrabay Slim (Serial ATA)5
Integrated Bluetooth PAN
Intel WiFi Link 5300 (AGN) with My WiFi Technology10
Integrated Mobile Broadband upgradable
6 cell Li-Ion Battery60
4058: 1 Year Depot Warranty - TopSeller7

 

If they're the same price go for the w500. It will perform substantially better in CAD/3D modeling and should perform the same in everything else. Besides it should improve resell value if you ever decide to sell it.

The only differences are graphic RAM and drivers (the basic GPU is the same), display options (WUXGA for w500 and WXGA LED for T500), and the logo on the outside of the machine.

 

Thank you. Please help me for two more things:

1. PC card slot or smart card slot?
Currently I do not use either of these two. Just want to know which one is potentially more useful.

2. vista 32 or vista 64?
will there be a win7 32 and win7 64?

 

wow how are you getting those prices.

 

cpp+USESAVETHINK

 

1.- PC card, unless you are getting it for a government or corporate (rare) job that requires authentication through a smart card. But if you were, you would already be using it. In short, the PC card is far more useful.

2.- Vista 64. Pretty much all the negatives of 64-bit Windows has been ironned out, and there are very few drivers that are not yet compatible. Out of all my hardware, for example, I was only unable to use my old printer, which only had Windows 32-bit support (but then again, that was a really old printer).

Yes, there will be Windows 7 32-bit and 64-bit editions. I believe getting the Vista 64-bit edition will get you the 64-bit upgrade.

 

Thanks for the code, wish I had it 3 hours ago when I ordered. Can I still get in I the discount by calling or should I cancel and reorder?

 

Seconded. You also need 64-bit to address >3 GB of RAM [all current Thinkpads support 8GB). To clarify, every upgrade or retail box of Win 7 includes BOTH 32-bit and 64-bit editions.

 

I did this for my T61p.


Build your system the same as you ordered it, and save it as a quote, so they can look it up in their system.


Call them up and ask them to match the quote.

 

Oh man, good luck. Levono's price is always changing, and you get different price through different roads. What kind of strategy is this? Do they have some kind of economic theory to back up what they are doing?

Thank you all for your help. Right now I would like to order another 2G ram, any suggestion? What brand does W500 use?

 

Don't really have to worry about brand, just make sure to get ram that matches your specs and one with a lifetime warranty.

 

I bought a stick of Crucial, and it's the exact same stick they have.

My 2gb was Micron, the 1gb I pulled was Elpida

 

This, this, this, or anything with identical specs is fine.

 

i called and it worked out smoothly, they just updated my order with the code in effect.

and yeah i got a crucial from the egg. talk about price flucuation, newegg kicked up the price of that stick like 5 bucks.

 

I'm deciding between the w500 and t500 now as well. W500 seems to be the better buy, but my concerns have grown after a bit of research. Mainly it is the graphics card. I'm not completely sure of all the discussion that is going on in this thread ( http://forums.lenovo.com/lnv/board/message?board.id=W_ThinkPads&thread.id=144 ) , but apparently there's something wrong.

As far as I know, the graphics card has an identity issue and from http://forums.lenovo.com/lnv/board/message?board.id=W_ThinkPads&thread.id=4732 there's no driver updates? I was just wondering if anybody can clarify if W500 is a safe buy that I won't have to constantly look for tech support.

On a last note, if it has a flexy keyboard....how do I go about fixing that?

Much thanks in advance.

 

If you read the first link, there isn't any issue with the GPU. The T500 and W500 are basically identical, except the W500 uses the workstation variant. The amount of memory makes no difference in gaming. If you aren't doing any CAD/OpenGL designing then you don't need a W500, but if the W500 is cheaper than the T500, then go for it. The driver issue is more of a concern. I'm not sure how often these are updated, but again if you don't do 3D design work, it doesn't matter. If you get a flexy keyboard then tell Lenovo, and they will replace it for you (or send a replacement keyboard).

 

I hope the graphics card identification problem has been solved. This is my biggest concern about W500 right now. As for the keyboard, I don't think it will be easy to let Lenovo replace it for free. It's not expensive anyway. If I get a bad one and lenovo doesn't want to replace it for me, I think I will just buy a T61 keyboard on ebay.

I had some bad experience on buying a Thinkpad. About a month ago, I bought a brand new T500. Unfortunately, not only the keyboard was flex, but also there were at least 4 bad pixels on the screen (WXGA LED). After several calls, Lenovo agreed to replace the screen, but they refused to replace a T61 keyboard for me. Finally I decided to return the machine. I was very upset about Lenovo at that time, but after some research on laptops of other brands, I still think T500/W500 is the best I can get in the market. Now, I am waiting for my new W500 to come, and I really really hope I have good luck this time.

 

Have you looked at the Dell Precision M4400 or HP EliteBook 8530w?

 

For about the same configuration, it seems M4400 is much more expensive than T500/W500, isn't it?

 

The Dell outlet has had some great deals and with coupons can be cheaper. HP has a 24% off coupon from their online configuration. I'm not sure if HP also has some sort of outlet...