T410 and T510 details revealed

Thinkpadtoday has a scoop on the T series refresh. Read on to find out more



Mark your calendars! Launch date set for the Lenovo ThinkPad T410 and ThinkPad T510? The new and much anticipated ThinkPad T410 and the ThinkPad T510 look very much like they are going to debut on, or very close to January 7th 2010, just a couple of days after we have slated the new ThinkPad X100e NetBook to Launch and ready for CES 2010 in Vegas.

Whilst we do not have any definite specifications yet, we do know that the new Intel Calpella equipped ThinkPad T410 and T510 will likely be much slimmer than the existing models and of course much faster because that’s what Calpella focuses on. The whole platform is designed to deliver energy savings, enhanced performance and superior battery life.

And there is nobody better qualified than Matt Kohut, David Hill and the ThinkPad design team to take advantage of what the Calpella platform has to offer.

Because Calpella uses an integrated memory controller and integrated PCI express controller this remove the need for the bottle neck northbridge and older FSB technology.

The Ibex Peak graphics technology optimizes decoding and encoding plus editing and playback of MPEG-4 AVC video used in Blu-ray Technology and HD 1080p video so we expect to see the new ThinkPad T410 and T510 fully HD optimized.

The T410 should have a 14.0 ” HD Wide LED Screen with 1366×768 resolution, and the ThinkPad T510 with 15.6″ HD LED Screens for vibrant HD playback, but more importantly for an enterprise level notebook, strong video editing
capabilities.

Because Calpella supports DisplayPort with DPCP is this likely to be the main method for external video output with maybe legacy support for HDMI and or DVI and VGA? We doubt very much whether Lenovo will dump DVI, but
VGA? Maybe, we’ll see. It depends how brave they are.

Expect Intel Core i5/Core i7 processors based on the Nehalem Micro architecture with the Quad Core i5-750 2667 MHz being the likely starting point.

What else do we know? Well Calpella supports DDR3 memory exclusively and given that DDR3 technology offers the ability to provide higher memory bandwidths using less power we can expect a further performance boost here.

With Hybrid Drive support, integrated memory controller and PCI controller, Ibex Peak Graphics, DD3 memory, Nehalem based Quad processors and superb HD capabilities, the new ThinkPad T410 and ThinkPad T510 promise to set the benchmark for enterprise level notebooks in 2010.

More news on the exciting new Lenovo ThinkPad T410 and ThinkPad T510 as it breaks.

 

16:9 screen!

 

as i thought, the Lenovo Thinkpads will be using the 16:9 format screens, like many of the new Latitude line of the Dell... it is time to buy the current thinkpads before times run out.

 

That's not good. Nevertheless, i want't to see some pics, pls.

 

im interested in the gpu. also does it support hybrid sli?

 

not sure but probably not

 

Considering Arrandale is the next upcoming mobile CPU from Intel, and Arrandale is only dualcore AFAIK, we probably wont see a Core i5 being quadcore anytime soon? (I know you copy/pasted from thinkpadtoday, so no offense to #1, just wondering how it should be quadcore )

EDIT: Clarksfield is an option as well, but the 45w TDP is probably gonna get tough if the T510 is going to be slimmer than W500. Also, Clarksfield ranges from 1,6Ghz to 2,0Ghz at the moment, 2,66Ghz will be quite a jump.

 

You know, because most business users really need native 16:9 resolution for their HD video editing..

 

Definitely purchased my T500 at the right time. Of course any future purchases will be even more difficult if not impossible to get a decent screen, next they will using glossy ones.

 

Does this mean that both T410 and T510 will be 1366×768?

 

No, I would imagine they would keep a higher option for the T510, 1600 x 900 or something like that.

 

Personally, I've seen the SL410 and it looks ugly, it no longer looks like a Thinkpad. As stated above, time to get a 16:10 before they are gone, I plan on getting a T400 next year even though I'm broke right now.

 

After these things are released I may get a W500 on the cheap...

 

I was hoping for a compelling GPU option for the T510 to give me something to consider, but now I may opt to keep the last of the 16:10 ThinkPads instead, because unless the 15.6" screen is 1920x1080, tiny pixel pitch be damned, it's a downgrade over what I have now.

 

16:9 is here to stay it would seem. 16:10 we hardly knew ye. My guess as to resolutions:

T410 - 1366x768 (small chance of 1600x900 option as well)
T510 - 1366x768, 1600x900 (small chance of 1920x1080)
w510 - 1600x900, 1920x1080

The future does not look great for vertical space.

 

any info on the GPUs?

 

It's still possible (from the road map)

It's probably a typo, there are no 32nm quad core models planned for 2010 (though they might have a refresh of Clarksfield). But definitely not for Jan 2010.

 

Is 16:9 that terrible?

 

and the loss of vertical resolution continues
let's hope there's a 1600x900 option
maybe the screens will be halfway decent this time if they are going with a more commonly available size

 

16:9 should be better resolution wise at all resolutions except the highest:

1280x800 vs. 1366x768
1440x900 vs. 1600x900 (though a bit worse than 1680x1050)
1920x1080 vs. 1920x1200

Personally, I think the 1600x900 is an excellent compromise between WXGA+ and WSXGA+.

 

I don't need reading glasses yet so a higher resolution screen would definitely be better! Any wager on the T410 having the resolution around 1600x900? I guess the better question to ask is, have you ever seen a laptop with a 14" 1600x900 screen?

And another million dollar question (I can't be the only person that likes desktop integration equipment) like docking stations, batteries, drive bays, etc? Anyone think these will change?

 

oh i'm not too worried about that...the SL-series never looked like a thinkpad.

 

Yikes, vertical resolution really stinks because of 16:9. Its no better than old displays that used 4:3 XGA in terms of vertical resolution on the low resolution displays!

 

The 150 pixels in vertical space lost (and 80 horizontal) dropping from 1680x1050 to 1600x900 is bigger than the 120 lost from 1920x1200 to 1920x1080, so the most bitter pill is for WSXGA+ users like me.

I don't think there's any surprise that this switch was going to happen, but I also didn't think it would happen with the T?10 generation. I expected the switch to happen with the T?20 generation.

All this really does though is give me more time to build my new desktop. A year ago, I never meant for my laptop to take on a bigger role than mobile computing for the sake of convenience, but now, it's my HTPC, my gaming PC, and it alternates duties with my desktop as either the VPN machine/remote desktop or my home ISP PC when I work from home.

Chances are that I'll just wait and see if the T520 is worth a lick in a few years. If not, then I'll start upgrading my T500 to the limit and go back to doing almost all my GPU-intense gaming on my desktop.

I think all of that is almost certain to change. The current Advanced Mini-Dock that supports the T400/T500 goes back pretty far. It doesn't have DisplayPort or eSATA, and it will need USB 3.0 if Lenovo wants a dock to last longer than one ThinkPad generation.

 

I did some snooping. I thought, "Well if I can buy an LED 14" 1600x900" screen now for a laptop that's shipping, there's a much better chance the T410 won't be stuck at some crappy low-res 16:9 display. Turns out the latest Inspiron 14 can be purchased in a 14" 1366x768 or a 14" 1600x900 both in LED. The Dell Studio 15 can be purchased with a 720p, 900p, 1080p 15.6" LED.

Neither of these models are particularly pricey, and I think are cheaper than Dell's Latitude series, so I don't think the particular LED sizes would be too costly if Lenovo were to adapt the same sizes for the Tx10.
Lenovo seems to like having multiple resolutions for their T-series machines, they've done so for a long time. So I'm going to go out on a limb and say I'm not worried of getting stuck with a low-res 16:9 T-series laptop...

For accessories: In regards of USB 3.0, eSATA, DisplayPort: The last II-series dock was around for 4-generations for the T-series. That docking station was VERY antiquated before IBM switched. About USB 3.0: Forget about it. Don't even think about it. Intel won't support it until 2011, which means Calpella for certain will NEVER have it. They'll be another chipset revision and Lenovo refresh before then. I'm surprised someone even brought up USB 3.0. I remain skeptical whether Lenovo will add eSATA. If anything, I think they would only consider adding DisplayPort. You don't need a new dock for that.
Companies hate having re-buy all their business equipment, and they like generational consistency with stuff like that. SO I don't see any significant reason to re-create a docking station.

I doubt Lenovo will change bays drives, or docks, though batteries could definitely change. Though this is just my educated guess based on what they've done before of course, Lenovo could always pull a mad curve ball (but again as a business oriented laptop, doubtful).

 

The only new information in the scoop is the release date and the 16:9 screen. The rest of the scoop are features of Calpella, which had already been widely published. I will accept a 16:9 screen if it is a good screen.

hceuterpe: it has been confirmed that the 2010 ThinkPads will all standardize on the Series 3 docks (like T400s). Since T400s is incompatible with any of the older docking stations, I assume the 2010 ThinkPads will also be incompatible with the older docking stations.

 

The only reason why I think any of that could happen is because I consider the T400s and all of its new accessories to be that curveball. There's really no telling whether the T?10 series will get the chassis improvements of the T400s, but they made a new dock, battery, and I think drive bay for the T400s.

Actually, what will probably happen is that the dock for the T400s becomes the new standard dock for the T?10. Yeah, what ckx said.

 

i doubt batteries would change - t400s uses a special battery due to the size. tx10 would have the battery in the back - the only way to fit a 9-cell battery

Snakecharmed : drive bay on t400s is a slightly modified ultrabay slim, but afaik only the old harddisk adaptor doesn't fit. everything else, battery, odd, works fine

 

As long as they don't have 720p displays for the ultra portables...

 

This will be fun to watch, but I'm quite pleased with my new T500. I'm not sure any of the anticipated new features would enhance my productivity, but I enjoy seeing innovations unfold. It will be four or five years before I upgrade again. No telling what will be on the market by then.

Bill

 

Interesting.. I hope they bring the same improvements to the X210! Except it would suck if they replaced the 12.1" 16:10 screen with an 11.6"" 16:9!

 

768 vertical pixels on the 15.4" would be painful resolution for me . I hope they keep the 16:10 option; if not atleast offer the 1920x1080 on the 15 inch models :cry: .

 

...So much for my synopsis. I didn't realize the T400s was that different. I guess I'll just have to wait a see like everyone else

 

No way Lenovo will ONLY have 769 vertical pixel with no better option. That isnt good enough for enterprise usage. If they do it, one could just as easily get an Acer or Asus and save money.

 

i'm gonna kill myself if they only have 1366×768 resolution on the T410

 

Just a wee bit drastic, don't you think?

Bill

 

I hope to God this news is a fake...

 

Question is if they have a choice, Thinkpad is a niche/small market, and if Samsung/LG etc. have gone to produce 16:9, we will most probably get 16:9 (or old panels?).

 

Hopefully when OLED screens become mainstream, 16:10 might make a comeback. I think the issue with LCDs now is that when they're cutting glass, it saves them cost to cut them all in 16:9, instead of cutting them in different ratios.

But OLED screens don't use glass... so maybe it won't be as big of a deal and we could see a comeback of vertical real-estate

I do prefer 16:10 over 4:3 though.. especially for laptops. It helps put a full-sized keyboard while keeping the laptop in a compact package. Works really well for the X200 in my opinion.. I think it's a much better product than the older X61

 

i like this design, like all Thinkpads product revamp, every change is evolutionary and not revolutionary. I don't think OLED is going to go mainstream within the next 2 to 3 years, due to the product cost issue.

 

What makes you think the same economics that drove the current loss of vertical space wont apply to OLED's? Glass or no glass - manufacturers can still cut costs by reducing pixels for the same diagonal dimension.

Ofcourse OLED's won't have the "HDTV" marketing noose round its neck and be forced to conform to the 16:9 p standards; however I dont see that lasting beyond a few years when most TV's start going OLED!! Then we will be again forced into another NBR death march to protest!

 

This has to be fake. They're claiming the "starting" CPU will be a desktop quadcore!!

 

I hate how places like best buy are pushing ideas like watch in 1080p on your laptop with the new screens as if it wasn't possible before. No matter what we say the masses are still out there buying up the new screen ratio thinking its superior due to being fed bad information. I guess Im glad I got a t400 if it is true.

 

not every piece of information these people feed you are accurate, so you don't need to believe everything they say. But regardless, we know that the future thinkpads will be using the 16:9 format.

 

I'd like to see a rather powerful gpu in there, just like they did with the T61p before.

An Nvidia GT240M/260M or an ATI HD4570/4650 would be most appreciated in a serious thinkpad style

 

The ATI HD 4570 is a 64-bit GPU and not any better than the current HD 3650. There is zero chance of having a GTS 260M in it. We'll probably see the HD 4650/70 as the best GPU in the T400/500, as it is the successor to the current GPU.

 

True, I hope to see GT240 or GTS250 as they keep a 23-28 watt TDP (according to notebookcheck), which is about the same as the radeon 3650.

Hopefully Lenovo consider ATi's 5000 series, as they might have some goodies in there.

 

Highly doubt they're go up to GTS 250M since Lenovo doesn't really refer to TDP but rather mainstream performance (kinda stupid with 128-bit GDDR5 now). Also, ATI 5 series won't be in it since it won't be released in time (why do you think Lenovo still uses ATI 3 series as of today).

 

What the hell you talking about? They will be using MOBILE processors..

 

You think???? Try reading the OP before you decide to flame me. Otherwise, please explain where I can find a mobile processor that fulfills the description of a "Quad Core i5-750 2667 MHz." I would get one today!