T42p - 14" SXGA+ vs 15" UXGA

Hey everyone,
About 6 months ago, my T42p 2373-GVU died (a sad sad sad day) and i've determined that I cannot use any other notebook besides an IBM/Lenovo. However I can't afford there price point at the moment, and was looking for a nice replacement around $650 CDN. Unfortunately this leaves me down to the T42/43/p and T60 range.

What matters most for me is Battery Life and Screen Real-estate, and size and performance is more of a second thing to me. From eBay, it appears that all T60's in this range offer the (what i believe pathetic) XGA resolution, which I cannot make due with, Ive come across the same version (almost ) of my old laptop, but noticed that the 15" with the 1600x1200 resolutions are about the same price.

I was wondering what difference would i see jumping from 1400x1050 on 14" to 1600x1200 on a 15" in terms of its usage, is it really noticeable? also, is there a compromise in the battery life significantly (>= 1 hour less). And lastly, the 14" had the keyboard right from side to side of the chassis, but by pictures i see that the 15" has got some plastic around, is the 15" significantly larger and heavier? or is it really just a small jump up? What should I do guys?

Thanks everyone!

 

The pixels per inch is 125 for 14" SXGA+ and 133 for 15" UXGA. The UXGA will be a bit smaller. The bigger the screen, the worse the battery life and the GPU on a P model will be a bigger drain too, but the UXGA screen is vastly superior to the 14" screen PQ wise. If you can find a T43 or T60, they're probably a better option. The T43 is probably more in-line with your budget. The T42s have the GPU flex issue and you never know what you're going to get. It's for the most part is a non-issue on the T43, though the Sonoma Pentium M runs a bit hotter, which can lead to more fan noise.

You might want to look at an R60 too. They're likewise very well built and you'll get better performance on a R60 as opposed to a T43. They share many of the same parts with the T60. They just lack the mag-alloy lid of the T60 and a bit thicker and heavier, though this means they run a bit cooler and quieter. My own 14" R60 has been an excellent notebook. It's on ebay right now. I'll let you guess which one.

 

French Keyboard i'm guessing? (based on location)

I'm not to sure im sold on the R-series, my friend said they were just to bulky to be an IBM, also with the T42 vs T43, i heard that the battery life was significantly lowered due to DDR2 and the Sonoma P-M without that significant increase in the performances, ill do some more research, it might just be worth it to bit the bullet and go for a T60, despite its costs.

 

Nope, genuine USA keyboard. My own R60 has been an excellent notebook. It's slightly heavier and thicker than the T60, but will offer better value because you can get it for less. The battery life may be a bit lower on the T43, but it doesn't have the GPU flex issue, which can be a major headache.