T400 dilemma..buy now/wait or get a x200??

I am currently trying to spend some of my tax return and a new laptop is something i can really use. Right now i have an Asus g1s-a1 which runs extremely hot and has absolutely no battery life. Additionally the reports of fried GPUs have me currently scared, because my GPU runs 75C idle/95+C load, which will probably kill it soon.

T400 with high nit LED panel seems like a good choice for me right now as it offers good battery life and seems to be sturdy enough to take some abuse. My big question now is whether it is smart to wait for new refresh of centrino platform which is due to come out this year or just go ahead and buy what is available now. Right now the t400s are kind of heavily discounted, so it is rather tempting to just go ahead and buy one now. When the new models of thinkpads come out, are they usually as discounted or do they go for full price at first?

Also, would it be worth waiting for the wxga+ LED panels to come back or just go and buy the high nit lower res version? The recent review gave that high nit panel some praise, while i keep hearing about problems with the higher resolution one. I am used to 15.4" with 1680x1050 resolution, so would going to wxga panel be a drastic noticible decrease?

Of course another option altogether would be to get the x200, but i am kind of worried about sturdiness of that laptop and no option for bright LED panel. The discounts are not as good on x200 either. The laptop will be used mostly for work related stuff and possibly some imaging.

 

I have an X200 and I can safely say that it's the greatest computer I've owned. It is extremely well built so you need no worry about the build quality. The screen is ample bright. It runs virtually cool and is barely audible.

It's a tough choice. Both the T400 and X200 are great machines and you can't go wrong with either. It really all comes down to how portable you want the machine to be. The X200 is around 3 lbs where as the T400 (I believe) is around 5 lbs.

 

I have been without a laptop since November. I have been waiting on the T400/500 since January. Most people say you will not have a refresh untill October. I am still waiting and now taking a second look at some HPs and Dells.

 

It's almost never worth it to wait from a performance perspective. 14" WXGA+ and 15.4" will have very similarly sized text. There's nothing magical about LEDs. While they are bit brighter and offer a little longer battery life, they do not enhance image quality and have the same crappy viewing angles as TN panels. I'd say if you have and like WSXGA+, WXGA+ is the way to go if you want a 14" screen.

 

The x200 is built fine...why that would even be a concern, I don't know.

What do you mean by "imaging."

It isn't worth to wait because you'd be waiting for 3+ months for a refresh and then another 2-3 for better pricing. There is nothing revolutionary.

Your x200 vs t400 depends on your valuation of portability if you mainly just use it for work related activities (assuming that is office).

 

Unfortunately the T400 is not available with WXGA+, only with WXGA. From 1680x1050 to 1280x800 you will notice a large reduction in screen real estate.

I agree that it usually is never worth waiting. And the T400/X200 debate is a bit silly: you should ponder whether you need a full fledged notebook or an ultraportable "quasi-netbook". Will you be typing a lot?

 

What the...quasi-netbook? Them fighting words .

 

Sorry about that, no offense intended...

I meant quasi-netbook in a good way: the x200 is a very portable laptop that you can just throw into your backpack or even purse when you go somewhere. The T400 is considerably bulkier and heavier, so what I meant was that the original poster should consider whether he is willing to sacrifice power, screen size, ports and keyboard for larger portability.

 

What, so you think typing is any more difficult on the X200? You realize it has the same full-sized keyboard as the T400. And how can you say the X200 is a quasi-netbook? It has ever bit of power as the T400. You had better meant quasi in term of size and not power.

Edit: Sorry, slow at typing...

 

No worries, I am just kidding. I obviously have a bias again netbooks .

 

No wonder, I'm typing in a real notebook while you are using a netbook.

Heheheh sorry it was too good to pass up

 

Well in truth the non tablet version of the X200 is really not a netbook it's a full laptop just like the MacBook Air is a laptop not a netbook. The tablet X200 I WOULD call a quasi-laptop. The only thing the X200 is missing is 3D horse power of a discrete chipset.

 

While discrete graphics are not mandatory to constitute a laptop...that is an option the t400 has over the x200. Also the optical drive.

 

Haha well played, well played...

 

by imaging i mean processing/analyzing images of histology slides (very large images) and just general confocal images which are rather large in size and involve 3D reconstruction of the whole specimen. That is primarily why I am kind of concerned about going with just integrated graphics. Thats is also the reason why i am concerned about having a decent panel. The one i have on G1S is nice, but a bit too dim. My wife's LED backlit Chimei panel on her aluminium macbook looks a whole lot brighter (which i absolutely love), so i am a bit reluctant to get another laptop with ccfl panel. That panel has viewing angles that are not very ideal, but the bright backlight seems to compensate for it.

I use a 2x 22" NEC s-ips monitors on my desktop, and while i will probably not get a screen of that quality on a laptop, i want it to at least come close and be usable in bright environments. The picture of the panel in the review at least seemed to have decent viewing angles, which is always a plus. I really wish they measured color accuracy and contrast on that panel like people who review laptops on notebookcheck.net do.

 

An LED screen is bright enough to be used outdoors. This goes for any brand (Lenovo, Dell, ...).

Since 3D reconstruction is involved, you should be careful on which graphics card you choose. Not only in power (the HD3450 in the T400 is roughly equivalent to the Nvidia Quadro NVS 160m on the E6400), but more subtle differences. ATI FireGL and Nvidia Quadro are optimized for OpenGL (which is what most 3d rendering softwares use) while ATI Radeon and Nvidia GeForce are optimized for DirectX (which is basically for gaming). I read somewhere that you can lose about half of the performance if you use a GeForce for CAD instead of the equivalent Quadro, so you should investigate a bit.

Perhaps you could post here which software you use and we may be able to help you. Or just ask your IT department, they might know.

 

If viewing angles, color accuracy and contrast are a concern, I would advise you look into the x200 Tablet instead of the x200/T400.

Both the x200/T400 (as well as x200s, T500, x300/x301) use 6-bit TN panels with color accuracy, contrast, and viewing angles that would be defined as fair at best. Conversely, the x200 Tablet uses IPS/FFS displays (LED available) that will rival your NEC S-IPS monitors in terms of quality if not in size.

Granted, you will have to pay a moderate price/weight premium for the tablet, but I think it's definitely worth it if you value color accuracy and contrast ratios.

Also, ignore the comments above about the keyboard. The keyboard on the x200(s/t) is every bit as good as the keyboard on the T400/T500. In fact, I would argue that the typing experience is superior because there isn't a TouchPad polluting the palmrest.

The only thing you need to ask yourself now is about the GPU. Do your applications really depend on a proper discrete GPU for accelerating rendering/output. If they do, then the T400/T500/w500 is probably a better choice due to the superior GPUs. However, if your concern is mainly desktop level apps and/or video playback, then the GMA 4500 is perfectly adequate.

 

yeah i've heard about the tablet being the only IPS panel available on laptops. The bad news is that i cant afford to dump $2k on a computer right now. The attractive thing about t400/x200 is that i can get a decently upgradable config for around $900 right now. I think i am left with a choice of lesser of two/three evils when it comes to the panel. I could get a t400 with the wsga+ LED panel through state contract, but that is actually more expensive right now than sales on regular web site, and frankly, the reports of those crummy samsung panels kind of scare me from the whole thing.

I am beginning to wonder if all laptops use TN panels instead of IPS to reduce heat/power. My IPS NECs get really hot pretty fast.

I am not particularly concerned about keyboard (i am not a keyboard snob by any means), as i adjust between different keyboards just fine. I dont even have trouble typing on my wife's macbook half-arsed keyboard. The lack of a touchpad, however, is a definite drawback for me (i hate carrying a mouse with me at all times).

 

I am a resolution junky, as it sounds like you are too. The more I can fit on a screen the more productive I am, at least to the point where things are readable and that varies by a person's vision. If you go to a 12" screen X200 with WXGA resolution you might find yourself literally pulling at the edges of the screen in hopes you might be able to stretch it out and "see more stuff". Don't get me wrong, I love the X200 as a travel laptop, the X200s being even more awesome for its incredibly light weight and higher res WXGA+ screen, but it's a very big deal moving down from 15.4" screen with WSXGA+ to 12.1" with WXGA. It means you'll only see about 50% of what you could fit on the WSXGA+, for a guide on the gain you get with various screen sizes and resolutions check out this chart:

http://www.prismo.ch/comparisons/notebook.php

You just need to decide what's more important, mobility and light weight or having a larger sized screen to be more efficient with your particular type of work.

 

Why don't you try out the track point?
For me it is much more comfortable and efficient than a touch pad.

 

I agree with assisterah. I actually like the trackpoint much better than the touchpad. It's easier on the wrists, less movement required, and you don't get those nasty wear spots as you would with touchpads (which will not only hurt the appearance but the resale value as well). They are also very precise.

 

I think TN is only used because it's cheaper and to the vast majority of people it is acceptable. The LED AFFS+ display on my x200 Tablet uses very little power (2-6 watts depending on brightness) and I don't have any heat problems.

 

well after all i ended up getting a t400 after i saw this deal on ebay which i grabbed.

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ssPageName=STRK:MEWAX:IT&item=230335901447

So far it seems that it has the LG WXGA+ LED panel (42T0498) and the T61 style keyboard (42T3109)..... good deal or did i pull the trigger prematurely?

 

That seems like a very good deal as it has about the best general cross section of parts and configuration options available. Namely, a LG WXGA+ LED, T61 style keyboard, P8600 CPU (less heat, better battery life), and switchable graphics.

You may want to consider upgrading the HDD, RAM, and/or battery in the future, but it overall looks like a solid configuration at a good price.

 

Hi

I have been following his other auctions and it seems as if most ofthem have CCFL backlighting and not LED backlighting. Just double check even though it has been explicitly stated!

 

well if i do part lookup on L3A9008 which he says is the serial number, it does show the LED panel FRU. I can only hope that he is not lying about the serial.

 

I was watching that item as well. I believe it's a good deal. I am a bit stubborn and did not pull the trigger because I want the finger print reader and integrated webcam. I wouldn't mind the ATT 3G built in either and 3Gigs ram. P9* series would be sweet as well but i'm pretty sure that hasn't been offered in the T series yet (offered for the W though).

 

Be careful with the warranty. When you get it, call Lenovo and ask to transfer ownership to you, so that in the future you can ask for service if you need it. This will involve some action by the original owner, so the sooner you do it, the better.

Other than that, it seems like a good deal, especially since LED 1440x900 screens disappeared from the Lenovo website options a while ago (not sure if they are back).