T420(s) IPS 1600x900, willing to pay extra?

In short, X220 IPS screen (or any other IPS screen) is highly rated, T420(s) screen on the other hand.. not so much

Personally, I would be willing to order a T420(s) and pay an extra $ 200 for a IPS 1600x900 screen.

Does any one know what the price difference (wholesale) is between an 'ordinary' screen and a IPS screen at the same resolution?

(I'm not planning on buying a bunch of IPS panels, just curious why a company like Lenovo decides not to implement them or offer them as an option)

 

The 9.7" IPS panel on the ipad2 costs apple $127 a piece so $200 sounds about right for a 14.1", maybe a little more.

 

It should be a lot more expensive, since it almost double in size in area. Also you have to take into consideration that making larger screen could result in lower yield for the panel maker. I think the wholesale cost should be 250-300. Also by adding more configuration it actually add other indirect cost, such as storage and other overhead cost.

 

It depends. RGB LED upgrades for Dell/Alienware systems are about $150-$200 (I paid $200 for upgrading a 17" screen) I believe. I'd take that any time, even on a 14" system. I heard the B+RG LED screen they offer on XPS 15 (no idea what's the difference between that one and mine) is really great too.

 

I don't believe any manufacturer makes an IPS panel with the requisite dimensions and resolution.

 

^^ that's true and this would require a special arrangement between Lenovo and screen manufacturers. I'm surprised we have the IPS option in X-series.

 

The price of LCD depends on how many you order and whether the existing process can handle it.

If iPad LCD costs 127 USD, then the cost of production must be pretty high, since iPad would usually order 100,000 units or more per batch, i don't think laptop manufacturer can match that.

 

Let not forget that Apple have contract with the company for production before they even begin.

 

and that alienware starts with a quite high price tag, so the cost is already there.

Aside that I dont think there would be much demand. Those are enterprise class machine, they are built to do office tasks on the go, they arent even supposed to look good (not that I dislike the design of the thinkpads, but they wont win any design award with their ergonomics or clean lines...).

Now the problem is that since the probable buyers are going to be companies that would buy probably in batches of less than 500 units, and they are not going to cto their machines and just buy one of the pre built models so that they can get higher discounts, the price of the ips panel even if implemented is going to be quite high, making it an even harder choice.

Moreover the price of the cto and pre built models is based on how many parts that you can and want to buy, this choice is based on cost and on market research, the more restricted the niche, the higher the price. Thus you can lead the choices of the buyers by the price of each upgrade, and even store CTO models with quite a precision, its just depends on how much mathematics their new products manager and his/hers team understand.

Sincerely with the choice of the poor NVS4200, which is basically a gt520m there is a clear mark where this is product is designed to sell, and where the w series come into place.

 

I have to disagree with you on this option, Lenovo had win design award in the pass and let's not forget that 701 was on display on Museum of Modern Art in New York.

Design Matters Lenovo Wins Good Design Awards

 

Alienware (M17x) starts around $1.5k (and thats before any discounts). It's hardly "high" for the hardware you're getting. It's pretty much inline with say Asus G73 - and the difference between them is night and day. But even they (Alienware) seem to be moving away from RGB LED panels - since your typical computer noob will only care about higher resolution, 3D options higher Hz or something equally irrelevant for the display quality. Dell XPS 15 with B+RG LED can be had for $950. Too bad the series belongs to the category I like to call 'consumer junk'.

But I agree on the demand part. Their problem is probably advertisement. Apple would have no problem (and has no problem) finding and getting people to buy their stuff with IPS panels because it looks pretty - even when the device it's on has no particular purpose (iPad). Who cares when you can brainwash people with commercials into thinking they need it. I wish we could do the same for good quality displays.

 

I hope Lenovo will make IPS screens available for the W series (W520 and the future W7xx). I also hope HP will make the Dreamcolor screen available for their smaller sized Elitebooks including 8460W and 2560P.

 

oh god, I see some bauhaus people revolving in their graves.

For me its more of an icon, than a great design, both are intertwined but they have different values

I disagree regarding apple, the idea is to create a high end consumer product that can be used for professional work, lenovo is the other way around, specially in the thinkpad line.

Their idea is never to expand as to become mainstrean, if they do this they are going to dirt their own brand, dilute its value.

they have established an iconic image, with promises of:

ease of use
just work
its clean its pretty
I can cause envy
I can by the ownership of the product ascend to higher social circle or expand it
I can be productive on the go, with the amazing battery life

their products are not tools, they are testaments of what you are, as all products are, but in here the focus is heavier.

I imagine their line, specially mbp 15, 17 and mba as values that we add to a small business professional, a professional that is mobile and needs to sell itself all the she/he can, and this is one way to do it, off course of several.

The imagery is potent, but its not that of the marketing hype, but of the consumer desire to obtain the product, this was done as a brilliant move by one of the most **** people in business, Steve jobs.

I dont know, since where I live people can buy 2 equally configured mbp in the US with the price that we pay for 1 here, the icon is much heavier, the desire and the brand value is higher (btw the ipad basic model costs 3x of the price in the US)

But Im going into OT territory with this apple discussion, sorry for that.

 

I gotta agree with this. The customers who scream for cheaper laptops, screens usually take the first hit.

On our iPad sales sheet it even lists IPS screen as a feature but i guarantee 99.9% of people buying it has no idea what it means.

Usually with panel upgrades you get higher contrast ratio and nits, almost always a panel upgrade is worth it.

 

HP charges over $500 for it's IPS panel on their 15 and 17" models. I don't believe there are any IPS panels for 14" screens from manufacturers, but in general Lenovo has commented that they generally do not make enough money to warrant IPS panel implementation (from their blog). You have to remember, the people here are a very small subset of the population that they serve.

Rumor has it the 2560 will have an IPS panel but no 14" panel exists AFAIK. Also, the W7xx series has been discontinued and the W520 has no plans for any better panel. I hope for things to change but it's a losing battle...

 

I want it.

 

Maybe they probe the market and their supply chains in order to introduce IPSs in other ThinkPad series...?

Apple has its "Retina" franchise.
Hello, Lenovo, noblesse oblige! (H. de Balzac)

 

@Mr MM

I see your point. In the US (at least in the two places in NY state where I lived) literally everyone owns Mac - just because it's Mac. When the new Apple product gets announced -everyone- will try to buy it. IPS will obviously not be advertised as an 'IPS' - it will be called a "gorgeous screen" and you will "just look how sleek it is".

That's what I meant when I said advertising - Jobs will convince any idiot to buy IPS screen because he will make it look so good. Or so the general consensus seems to be. While Lenovo, being focused on the business market first - will probably have much more difficulties. There is a section of people doing photography work that will go for Thinkpads, but is it enough to have Lenovo come out profitable if they introduce a high-end screen?

@sgogeta4,

When you custom-build custom laptops on HP webpage they add ridiculous charges from anything that you want to customize. At least last few times I looked, any of their upgrades was priced 2x more than the same as Dell, which is probably 4x more than what its actually worth.

 

agreed on both accounts, sorry if i misunderstood. Have you tried to cto a hp enterprise class notebook? damn those things are expensive

 

Yep I did! 8540p or whatever it is called (their best 17" laptop) is originally $2k-$2.5k or so, but after you upgrade everything "needed" (lol) to get to the Dreamcolor panel the price skyrockets to $3.5k.

 

its actually cheap, I tried the 8460p (which is not even in the same class as the w series and the starting price jumped from the mere 900 (pre built) to 2,5k, and with the added processor options that I needed, well I figured that it was not worth it

 

IF there was an IPS upgrade option, yes I would buy the Thinkpad T420s, otherwise my Dell Latitude is solid and always reliable .

 

Which 14" Dell has IPS at 1600x900?

 

No, I won't pay any extra, unless the cost is minimal. My T420's TN panel is a bit grainy, but I will not shell out an additional $200 for an IPS panel. Not worth the cost.

 

I would be happy to pay the premium for a better screen, it's probably be a worthwhile investment considering the amount of graphic design works I do with my T420.

 

In a heartbeat... I'd pay a premium for IPS and higher resolution... Wouldn't hesitate!