Still Confused X301/ X200s

OK sorry to bring this up again but I have read all the info on here and it's still not clear. I am between an X301 and an X200s. All I need a laptop for is
a lot of typing (mails, Word, Excel, etc), skype, browsing:

1. I am worried about a 1440 x 900 screen on the X301, since I need to do a lot of reading in general, is there anyhow or anywhere where I could see the difference in reading on a X301 and and X200? If I have to look at super small letters like seen on Sony Vaio machines well ... just can't do it. 128 GB hard drive is small as well, but I like stereo speakers.

2. The X200s I am looking at is a model available in Europe, where the X200s comes with a 1280 X 800 screen with webcam. The non-led one I am guessing? Would it be right to assume that the letters will look slightly bigger than on the X301? Am assuming the speed is similar between both machines.
Am a bit worried about the 12 inch screen reading area available. Also I need the speaker but only for skype ... I like to skype without headphones, is the mono speaker OK for that in a hotel room setting?

I like the super light weight of the X200s, and I would buy that with the docking station for home use. Then again has anyone got that set up ? When you dock the X200s is it still comfortable to type on ? I mean the dock seems to make the machine sit so high ? I would also appreciate any recommendation of a lenovo 22 inch screen to connect to X200s.

Thanks for the help. J.

 

13.3" WXGA+ and 12.1" WXGA will have remarkably similar character size.

How about the 22" Dell IPS LCD 2209WA, if it's available over there.

 

Hi ZAZ thanks for the reply ...and here was me thinking that the characters on the 1280 x800 screen would be more legible than the X301 screen ... not what to do ? I am still guessing the X200s may be faster than the X301, the option here is 320 GB SATA.

 

The PPI(Pixels per Inch) for 13.3" WXGA+ is 127 and 125 for 12" WXGA. The X301 comes with a SSD standard, which depending on the tasks, speeds thing up greatly.

 

Zaz... but the X301 has that ULV at 1.4 Ghz and the X200s runs at 1.86 ...so does that make up for the difference SSD versus SATA ? Also I wonder what that speaker on the X200s sounds like ... and the other queries from my top post. thanks,J.

 

Depends on what you're doing. Anything CPU intensive, the X200s will be faster. Most apps don't need that much CPU power.

 

Both of the machines are more than adequate for office related tasks. If you were doing heavy work with media or statistics software you may need something faster, but for your uses either will be adequate.

As Zaz stated, character size will be similar on both. However, the x301 has approximately 25% more pixels (better real estate).

What is the pricing spread between the x200s and x200 in your country? Without the WXGA+ LED screen it is difficult for me to recommend the x200s.

As far as an external monitor, the best 22" Lenovo model available is the L220x ( review). It is a 22" S-PVA panel with 1920x1200 resolution and a rotating base. It was priced quite reasonably for its quality. If you can find it, it would be a great choice (and far better than the TN panels available from almost everyone else).

 

Heard that Dell 22" IPS screen is pretty nice too and less expensive.

 

That's a real bargain for a 22" IPS display. I wasn't aware of that model, but it definitely is worth considering.

The Lenovo L220x is also worth considering if you would like a little more screen real estate as it's 1920x1200 vs. the 1680x1050 on the Dell (both have the same size screen).

Both should be very high quality, but the Dell may be a slightly better choice for color critical work (IPS panels tend to have slightly better color consistincey than VA panels, and both are much better than TN [almost every other monitor you will find is TN]).

 

Jonlumpkin: How heavy is that tablet of yours ? Thanks for all your very informative posts across the board. Honestly if I were a very wealthy man I would buy a number of models and compare them all firsthand ! Unfortunately don't have the cash for that. The X301 is still in my mind ... but I see it has no express card slot ? Wish I could get both and then send one back like in the USA. In Europe bought is bought ... nothing to do about that. I have bought a 13.3 inch X360 Samsung for my lady and it has 1280 X 800 screen, will have a look at that first and see what the letters look like at that resolution.

 

The x200 Tablet is a shade under 4.0 lbs. with a 320GB 5400 RPM HDD, 8 cell battery, pen in the silo, and 8GB SDHC card in the reader. I find the weight to be very manageable, but my previous notebook was a 5.0 lb T40. You could probably get the x200T under 3.5 lbs. with the 4 cell battery and an SSD.

If you look at the picture link in my signature, I have detailed pics of the x200 Tablet including several pictures on a digital scale.

 

Am considering X200S, X301 as well though I think I want the X301.

The Samsung X360 I looked at as well but support and build quality are poor. It does not provide the support that a firm like Dell or Lenovo can provide. Seems to be marketted as a business class notebook but without the support network or options or quality control to back it up.

So any recommendations for buying the X301 if this is the way to go to get it at a nice pricepoint.

 

Adam, it all depends in what part of the world you are. In Europe an X301 will set you back U$2,500 or more. Yes agree the Samsung is a gamble but I will report on it as I will be installing it all for my lady, so I will have a play around with it. It does have a 128SSD and in Europe it costs 50% less than the X301, that is a major price difference for similar specs and performance, and it has so many ports, including express card, and it comes with the external DVD in the same box. That's a good deal. That system will spent most of its time sitting on a desk so it does not need to be of great quality. I would like a Lenovo X301 but it's really above my budget, and I think the X200s is faster and definitely more HDD space (320 GB versus 128 SSD). I wonder how much faster an SSD can be for simple office tasks, skype, some files copying etc ... as long as the computer can do some back-ups of big files without the rest of the system slowing down then I am happy. Dell well I just never liked them, their service in Europe leaves a lot to be desired from what I hear, and really the same with Lenovo. The Samsung I bought from the UK comes with a guarantee they will pick it up anywhere in Europe, and get it back to you within 72 hours ... now that is nice.

 

In the USA there are Samsung X360's too, but the pricepoints are rediculous on the retail pricing and one has to get a large rebate back to get a price that still isn't anything spectacular even with the largest discount pricing. The model is now a full one year old and it is was overpriced from day 1. Only now are they starting to want to unload them at prices that are somewhat resonable. But they still are not that much cheaper than the X301 Lenovo, considering you have to wait for the large rebate check while the X301 may be just a tad higher in price plus you dont have to wait for a rebate, and get a much better machine with true business class support.

I could have pulled a trigger on an X360 with SSD, but decided against it. I need to get the largest discount I can on the X301 with SSD.

Dell Business class and Lenovo business class support are superior in the USA. Samsung is really just a consumer electronics company marketting a notebook computer without providing the support that people really need as well as onsite repair options and the like.

Samsung X360 has a better display than the Lenovo X301 so that is an upside.

Remember Dell Adamo is coming out soon, so more competition will emerge.

I had a great deal on the Samsung X360 but balked because of construction quality fears as well as support fears and it sold out.

With Dell Adamo and other models the market is ripe and it is also the end of life on these products coming soon as Calpella will replace Montevina by 3rd quarter 2009.

So I am in no rush to buy even though Samsung is throwing in a $500 rebate and having good deals from just one vendor. I believe I can and will do better as I wait longer. Notebooks always changed and improve and drop in price over time so if I miss one sale today, there will be another sale tomorrow for a newer and better machine.

Windows Vista itself is an issue and I believe that perhaps just waiting for Windows 7 alone will make sense since the newer laptops will also have touchscreen capabilities. I bet some of the notebooks in this size and weight category will include Windows 7 and likely even touchscreen as well.

So after all this, I decided that March 2009 is close to when its liquidation time for old models, and the best deals will probably be had after this time.

Good luck with the X360. X360 was released on approx September 2008. So it should be getting heavier discounts as time goes on.

 

Adam. Agree with your assessment. I see in the USA through Lenovo Outlet you can pick up an X301 for 50% less than in Europe so about the price of the Samsung X360, that would be a no brainer. Shame Lenovo USA does not send products to Europe. They pretend to have a large European business, but apart from UK, Germany & Holland, Lenovo is not all that easy to come by. I do need a new system as I am on an old Toshiba Portege R205 (Pentium M ULV 1.2 Ghz, 60 GB HDD (probably a 4200)... in other words SLOW ... and cannot deal with 3 web pages, skype, and e-mail open at same time. So really any new system will be a breath of fresh air.

 

It looks like the Adamo is going to be a bust, at least this first 13" version. $2000, 1.2Ghz, and 4lbs without an internal optical drive. It's pretty clear that they're selling style, and it doesn't even look good imho.

http://www.engadget.com/2009/03/17/dell-adamo-announced-1-2ghz-core-2-duo-1-999/#continued

At that weight and price, I would expect an Nvidia chipset to compete with Apple, an optical drive to compete with Lenovo, and a 1.4 or 1.6Ghz processor just because. This is disappointing. Even the battery life claims are awful... 5+ hours, that just isn't competitive unless that's real world, which I doubt.

The only real competitors, as far as I'm concerned, are the E4200 at the cost of CPU speed, trackpoint, and resolution; and the Panasonic Y series at the cost of the trackpoint and increasingly wacky styling. Everything else just gives up too much.