T61 vs. Compal IFL-90 vs. Asus G1s(or A8Js)

I am having a difficult time deciding between these laptops.

I really like the size/sturdiness of the Lenovo. It seems pratically indestructable, yet powerful and with the current discount very affordable. But I plan on doing at least a moderate ammount of gaming and the business class card seems like maybe it is not what I want (I plan on doing some Photoshop work as well as running programs like Finale 2006 [music notation software] and games like WoW and some newer ones perhaps)

the IFL-90 there have been a lot of debates about whether or not the GPU is going to end up being the GS or the GT, also it is bigger, lacks the safety features, has a bigger battery (the con of this being that it sticks out behind)

The ASUS' are similar to the compal in difference to the Lenovo the big difference here being smaller batteries (less life) better look, and more expensive.

So I am having a hard time making some critical decisions...

1. Is the business class GPU powerful enough to handle the gaming I want to do?
2. Are the Compal/ASUS' sturdy enough to warant not going for the indestructable ThinkPad
3. Is the size difference between a 15" and a 14" laptop that big of a deal (i.e. is a 15" too big for someone who wants portability)
4. If the IFL-90 has a GS instead of a GT card will it be worth going for it over other new laptops?

There was a time when I was 100% sure I wanted a T61, then I was 100% I wanted an IFL-90, now I'm completely unsure about which of 3 or 4 laptops is best for me.

I could also use some hard proof as to the viability of the T61's GPU compared to the "commercial class" GPU's.

I really appreciate the help, this has been a really difficult decission for me as I am painfully indecisive.

Thanks!!

 

I think the IFL90 offers the best blend of quality, looks and gaming power.

 

I appreciate the feedback but I need some "why"'s to help base my decision on. Thank you

 

The GPU is a matter of what you need. Even if the GPU is the GS in the IFL90 it'll outperform what you can get from Lenovo in a T61 today. If all you're going to run is business applications and surf the web, you'll do fine with integrated graphics and better battery life.

You're comparing machines for different purposes when you look at the T61 and the G1S. The G1S is clearly pointed for gamers, but it'll run business applications fine. The reverse isn't necessarily true - the T61 won't perform as well on games as the G1S. Some say the G1S is't professional enough for the board room. I've not seen on ine person so its hard to say but from the pictures I'd take it to my board meetings.

The IFL90 is more like the G1S in performance, but looks closer to the T61. The IFL90 doesn't have the roll cage, but it does come standard with a 3 year warranty from the 2 main dealers that currently are taking orders for it. They both have trubo memory can be configured very similarily except for the GPU. The extended batteries stick out on both of these models. Compals seem to be well built, durable machines but you can wait a coupled of weeks to get reviews of the IFL90s to make sure.

I think it comes down to how much performance do you want? I personally chose the IFL90 over the T61.

 

That's a good point, the order of features and importance to me looks something like this...

1. Battery Life (This is a mobile station for me... thus longer life away from the wall is essential)
2. Price vs. Power ratio
3. Overall Performance (not specific to gaming or business aps)
4. Durability/Longevity (I want it to last and function properly for a long time)
5. Graphics Power (It's on the list but pretty low, I want to be able to game when I can, but generally I don't have a lot of time to put towards it)
6. Appearance, I guess I really don't care, this is more about size/weight than actual appearance but you can't argue with a sharper look.

When I compare the notebooks I guess I just get caught up on the ThinkPad's durability, the Compal's Power vs. price, and the ASUS, I'm not sure why I would buy that over the Compal but for some reason I keep coming back to it.

Thanks again

 

The Asus certainly has the cool factor. It was on my list too. for your list I'd rate the winners to be:

1. Compal almost 4 hours on the 9 cell. I'm not sure how the T61 15.4 will run with a 9 cell though.
2. Compal
3. Compal
4. Lenovo if you look at durablity, Compal with standard warranty
5. Compal
6. Matter of taste.

 

Good point, I guess the only real downside of the Compal against the others is size and weight.

 

As others have mentioned, the Compal is a good balance between the two...you're sacrificing many of more subtle business-oriented features of the Thinkpad (weight, size, durability, etc.) for some performance gains.

If you're willing to wait a bit and possibly put down a little more $, the Asus V1 refresh will have those same gains without sacrificing a lot of those business features. Picture all the specs of the G1S or the Compal, inside a business chassis. It still won't be a Thinkpad, but it'll be a lot closer.

 

I vote for the T61 because it is the most durable of the three.

 

I'm going through the same debate for my next laptop purchase. I removed the G1S from the running just becasue I don't like the resolution (too small). So that leaves the Thinkpad and the IFL-90. I believe, that if the IFL-90 was already in stock and shipping, that a lot of people would be buying it, assuming that the reviews are up to par. The Thinkpad is a great machine with a lot of perks; but I know that if I had just spent $1700 on something had poor performance on a modern game, that I would be more disappointed at my purchase than not. But, like you, I don't seem to have a lot of time for games anymore.

 

The upcoming HP Compaq 8510p is another option, very close to the ThinkPad but will offer more gaming power...

 

The Dell Latitude D630 is just as good as the Compaq 8510p. Sorry Dreamer, you opened that door.

EDIT: Do you like my signature?

 

What video card does you beloved Dell have?

Now, I'm wondering...what's wrong with you?

 

It will have the NVIDIA NVS Quadro 135M. It is kind of disappointing, but it is not that much worse than the T61

 

Besides that it's a low end card... but you haven't a clue what I'm talking about...anyway.

 

The T61 only has a NVIDIA Quadro 140M,....Oh yeah, I forgot. The 15.4" will have the NVIDIA Quadro 570M. .

 

Am I the only one who thinks the Compal looks extremely ugly? Not only ugly but it looks very cheap. It may be well built, I don't know. Normally I don't care too much about looks, but using that thing in public would be like driving around my 1985 Toyota Corolla which is missing most of its paint. In other words I wouldn't.

The ASUS G1S is nice if you can look past the high price and gaudy looks. If they took away those ugly side lights and plastic knob I'd consider buying it.

The T61 is not stylish but its elegant because it's functional. Sometimes less is more. It doesn't have the ugly plastic border and bezel of many ASUS machines nor the ugly design of the compal.

It really depends on what you want to do. I wouldn't look exclusively at price/performance ratio. I did this, but then I realized that I don't game nearly enough to make it worth it. Even though I got a good deal, I could have spent 500 less and been happy. The only department most laptops will differ in is the GPU. Determine how much you need to game and pick based on that.

There is only one benchmark I know of on the NVS 140m and it shows that it's basically identical to the 8400M GT. Some people will have you believe there is a huge difference between a Quadro and a Geforce and that's simply not true. They have their differences but picking say a FX 570M over an 8600M will not affect you much in gaming.

 

Well if we're talking about "will", then the T61p will have the FX 570M, which is expected to be much better than the NVS 140m, and consequently much better than the NVS 130M of the Dell

But we're also talking about 15.4" models here so...I'm not sure where the Latitude 630 fits in.

The HD 2600 that the 8510p might or might not come with probably still won't be as good as the 8600M GT that may or may not be on the Compal IFL90--if we're assuming that the HD 2600 XT will be on par with the 8600M GT and the 2600 with the 8600M GS, which may or may not be true.

 

Did I suggest the T61... I don't think... so I don't care what video card it has.

Looking forward for your next nonsence post.

 

BTW if you don't care too much about portability and want good gaming performance at an excellent price look at the ASUS C90S and C90P. You can configure a C90S that will beat any laptop on the market for under 1700 assuming you put in your own ram and HDD.

 

I corrected myself. I always forget the T61 comes in both a 14.1" and 15.4" model.

EDIT:

I suggest the T61P. It will have a good video card and all other good properties of Thinkpad laptops.

EDIT EDIT:

Than again I also recommend HP laptops.

 

It doesn't but Homer_J..whatever is obsessed with this notebook, he some fetish for magnesuim... lol

Btw, when is the new V1 supposed to come and with what video card? Any official info?

 

I have a one track mind.

I think the T61P and HP/Compaq 8150p will be more durable than the ASUS V1.

 

And why so... wait... because somewhere in the middle of nowhere there is a review which says that... right?

 

Yep, the ASUS V1Jp review says the V1JP has major lid flaws. It flexes and produces ripples. One second as I locate the review.

EDIT:
http://www.notebookreview.com/default.asp?newsID=3412&review=Asus+V1JP
"Firstly, the lid exhibits a considerable amount of flex, I personally am disappointed. Even though the lid is made from magnesium alloy, the lid flexes, and then shows ripples in the screen. I do feel a bit weary of the lid not being able to protect the screen at its highest potential.
Secondly, the hinges seem to exhibit some flexing but no creaking sound or anything, I do feel comfortable with the hinges, but I would have liked to have the same hinge design of the ASUS W3 series.
Thirdly, the wrist pads exhibits very little flex when excessive force is being applied. The feel of the wrist pads are nice, not a plastic feel, but a high quality feel to it."
Lastly, the overall quality, and feel of using the laptop is high, but the lid is a drawback in my opinion. I appreciate the fact that ASUS created a well designed laptop with great materials like magnesium alloy and carbon fiber but it could maybe have been thicker.

 

Erm, wasn't the magnesium alloy your favorite material...

And even if we take this review scientific (which I would not do), we can assume this will be fixed on the new model, can't we?

 

I only like aluminum magnesium alloy cases if they are built properly. this one has serious flaws. I am not sure how scientific the test was, but it is good enough for me. It was written by MysticGolem who is a high level member here. ASUS might fix this flaw in the newer models, if someone is interested, I recommend he or she keep his or her eyes open for it.

 

Alright, we are a bit off-toping here but why do you like them? Basically more expensive notebooks such as: Asus V/W series, Sony (only pemuim models)...ThinkPads are made from carbon fiber... that's for a reason. (your friend Google will tell you wtf is CFRP in case you don't know)...

Not sure what that means but... if his unit had some flaws does that mean that all of them have the same problems? This part doesn't seem scientific..

 

I also like carbon fiber cases if they are well built. I never said I did not like them.

True.

 

The T60 and T61 have carbon fiber cases?

 

guys, please, give the man his thread back!

Mostly because I too am having a similarly tough time between the t61(p) and the IFL-90. yeah, I already ordered a T61, but still...

 

I agree with you ehiunno but really I think it's been decided, the Compal IFL-90 though bigger, less attractive, and less safety features is just a better choice. I mean much more power for less money, unless you plan on dropping your computer or bringing it and showing it off like a pure-bred pooch at lan parties, I'd say the Compal wins this debate... though obviously the final say on this will come in a few weeks when people start getting the first set and writing up reviews.

 

i've owned my fair share of laptops, and i've decided that having a laptop that's trying to do 2 different things usually makes it bad at both

it ends up not being that portable/light, have bad battery life, and it's not anywhere near as good as a decent desktop at games

instead, i've decided to get a T61, and a desktop
that way, i can get a cheaper T61.
a desktop can be built for $600 these days, and the 8800's are actually quite affordable

 

I recently went thru the same debate and fell on the side of the t61. I don't really have time to game often and when I do I play bf2 and I imagine the 140m will handle it at playable res. I like asus but do not want the "gamer" look with that dumb eye(g1) by the trackpad. I just sold my macbook pro that was a nightmare. Can't wait to get my laptop as I am having to use my wife's t43.

 

Yes, both of them.

 

Wow I'm surprised how many people are voting for the T61, not because it's not a great machine, but I got the feeling from the community here that better graphics was king, yet to see 75% of the votes going to the T61 and MUCH less going to the 2 graphics powerhouses is interesting.

 

Well..
1. You're in the IBM/Lenovo forums

2. It's more likely people who read these forums, if not directly interested in Thinkpads, are looking for a laptop for business use, where a consumer GPU is less important.

3. "Powerhouses" are relative. The IFL90 isn't even out yet, so no one has any means of comparison other than guesses. The G1S is just barely out, but it's aimed at a completely different market than the T61. They're all based off the 8600M anyway.

 

You know what, count this an instance of "foot in mouth" I go here through my subscriptions list... so even though I initiated this thread, I totally forgot I was in the Lenovo/IBM Thread, rather than Compal or "What Notebook should I Buy". My apologies. Good point about the IFL-90 too, hopefully we will get some solid physical information on these machines soon (everyone including me is getting impatient for "mid-june" hehe)

 

I was under the impression that the card in the T61 (140M) was based on the 8600M, only optimized differently. I read somewhere that the optimization results in only a few % lower performance, maybe a few FPS lower in the real world.

 

No, the NVS 140M is based off the 8400M, not the 8600M.

 

Mirroring this poll in the other brand-specific subforums would've been the first thing I'd have done, going by your original post. It's never too late.

That said, I could never own this:



Looks aren't as important as what's under the cover (how many times have I heard that?), but I just couldn't layout cash for that. The ASUS may be gaudy, but IMO it beats the Compal in the "able to show it off at the coffeeshop" field. Of course, the ThinkPad is the winner of the three in that category.

For this, and my wandering eye in general, I shall not vote. I'm too biased.

 

Well, to be fair, the IFL90 does look much better than the HEL80 It's all one color at least.

 

Yeah I dunno, I wish I could say appearance doesn't matter to me... but it does, though I can say that power is more important than appearance so I'll be ok with a compal I think knowing that I got much more power for less money, because in the end, if the performance blows the others out of the water then the appearance will be forgiven I think

 

Who at Compal thought that a black case with ugly silver outline, many identical looking buttons with a bronze bezel was a good idea? They should be fired.

 

If we are gonna bash Compals here, another thing that I don't like about their notebooks is that they use consumer level keyboards with "nice" flex on them...

 

Hrm, well for the T60, the lid was Mg right? For the T61, isn't the lid plastic with a magnesium roll cage inside it?

 

Erm, is the lid part of the case....? because he was asking about the case right?

And you didn't answer my question: "when is the new V1 supposed to come and with what video card? Any official info?"

 

No clue, he probably was and I missed it. Sorry.

I really wish I knew when the V1 refresh will come out. It's not on any official Asus roadmap.

There's this one review on cnet asia and cnet uk that was out around May 9 about the V1J refresh that states it uses the 8600M GT. Unfortunately, the date and the numerous questionable "facts" they state in the review lead one to doubt if any of the information is reliable - pretty much like most CNET reviews apparently.
http://reviews.cnet.co.uk/laptops/0,39030093,49290208,00.htm

 

I hate to say this gentlemen, but the MacBook Pro refresh throws quite a monkey wrench into the works, it has Santa Rosa 2.2Ghz CPU AND a 256mb nVidia 8600m GT!! It's disadvantage in this race, besides being a Mac has been reduced to only the price. I think I may have to consider it again.

 

Alright, let's just do a straight side-by-side comparison. All systems will be maxed as much as possible just cuz I like looking at maxxed specs and drooling over the large numbers that don't really mean anything.

Feature	Lenovo Thinkpad T61p	Compal IFL90	Asus G1S	Macbook Pro
Processor	Intel C2D T7700 2.4GHz 800MHz 4MB L2	Intel C2D T7700 2.4GHz 800MHz 4MB L2	Intel C2D T7700 2.4GHz 800MHz 4MB L2	Intel C2D 2.4GHz 800MHz 4MB L2
Memory	4GB DDR2 So-DIMM PC2-5300 667MHz	4GB DDR2 So-DIMM PC2-5300 667MHz	4GB DDR2 So-DIMM PC2-5300 667MHz	4GB DDR2 So-DIMM PC2-5300 667MHz
Screen	15.4 WUXGA matte	15.4 WSXGA+ glossy	15.4 WSXGA glossy	15.4 WXGA+ either, LED
Graphics	Quadro FX 570M w/ 256MB	GeForce 8600M GT w/ 512MB DDR2	Geforce 8600M GT w/ 256MB GDDR3, Turbocache 256MB	GeForce 8600M GT w/ 256MB GDDR3
Robsons	Yes	Yes	No	No
HDD	160GB 7200RPM	160GB 7200RPM	160GB 7200RPM	160GB 7200RPM
Cards	PC Card, 54mm/Media/Smartcard Possible	54mm Expresscard	54mm Expresscard, 4-in-1 Media	34mm Expresscard
Video	VGA only	VGA only	HDMI	DVI
eSATA	No	No	Yes	No
USB/Firewire	3? USB, 1 4-pin Firewire 400	2 500mA USB, 2 1A USB, 1 4-pin Firewire 400	4 USB, 1 4-pin Firewire 400	2 USB, 1 6-pin Firewire 400, 1 9-pin Firewire 800
Weight w/ battery + optical	I don't know	6.95 lb	6.84 lb	5.40 lb
Battery Life	9-cell ?min	9-cell ?min	8-cell ?min	???
Thickness	1.13	1.50	1.50	1.00
Security Features	Too many to list	Fingerprint reader	None	Uhm...MagSafe Power Cord...melts in your hand, not in your mouth?
Camera	1.3	2.0	1.3	0.3
Durability	Very	Decent	Decent	Decent
Style	Elegant	The guy was drunk when he designed this	Flashy but cool	Beautiful
Price w/ everything possible excluding extra warranties, OS upgrades, or software	1 year std, $119 for 3-year	3-year from retailer	2-year AsusNA or from retailer	1 yr std, $350 for 3yr
Price w/ everything possible excluding extra warranties, OS upgrades, or software	Unknown	1963.28 at powernotebooks, but no OS	2605.21 at xoticpc	3399.00 + cost of extra OS if necessary