U300s or U400

Hi everybody!
I have been contemplating for months now getting a U300s oder possibly a U400 as my next laptop. One thing that's really important for me is the touchpad. I know it is pretty good on the U300s out of the box whereas with the U400 you may need to do some driver updates. But....., do these driver updates improve the usability and bring the touchpad performance really on the level of the U300s? Also important is of course the display: I've read so often that it is fairly dim with low contrast as well whereas on the U400 it seems to be brighter and of actually very good quality. What do the owners say, is it sufficiently bright also for using in a light environment (not necessarily outside)?

Thanks for qualified answers! Regards!

 

With all of the Ultrabooks hitting the market between next week and October, I wouldn't buy either right now.

 

i think there will other Lenovo ultrabook coming out, so as Thors said (he is the divine one), wait and see. Keep your option open and also you may likely see a price drop for the U300s and U400.

 

True, we're definitely about to see next generation Lenovo laptops and Ultrabooks now that Ivy Bridge is released. If you're willing to wait until October or November, the Lenovo Yoga looks awesome!

I have a U300s (6 months old) and am Very happy. The touchpad did need updated drivers, but that was very easy. It's now smooth and a pleasure to use.

The thinness weight and overall look of the U300s is unmatched... an amazing machine, if 13.3" is big enough and you're willing to pay more (U400 is cheaper).

As for the screen, I'm very happy with the quality and brightness. I don't use it outside, but I use it at work, in conference rooms, offices, and I've never had any trouble viewing. I have the orange i7, and it is truly awesome!

Good luck, and let us know what you decide!

 

I'll add... Lenovo just released spec and price info for generation 2:

Lenovo’s Upcoming U310 and U410 Ultrabooks — Specs, Prices, and Photos « Ultrabook News and the Ultrabook Database

 

Thanks guys!

Dan, those followers seem to be rather like the U300. I wonder if it was a strategic decision to cancel the U300 at the end of last year to promote the marketing of the U300s first. Then half a year later releasing sort of more budget versions of the U300s for people who wouldn't consider the premium-priced U300s. I guess the U300s will still remain the flagship for Lenovo in terms of ultrabooks at least as long as the Yoga isn't out.

I don't know - I just love the design of the U300s, it's such a must-have! And it has basically everything I really need. Will probably go for it!

 

The U310 and U410 will be different from the U300s.

The later models are meant for lower pricing echelons and so they come with smaller or no SSD storage and materials that are less "luxurious" including a glass/plastic trackpad and generally more-plasticky frames.

They are Lenovo's attempt to appeal to the $400-800 market segment.

If you want to get the U300s, I can hardly blame you. It's a nice machine.

The decisions right now are (1) buy for the U300s now at $1000-1500, (2) wait to buy the U300s when its hypothetical successor comes out which will hopefully mean it gets discounted, (3) wait to buy the U300s' hypothetical successor which will likely have an Ivy Bridge CPU and a moderate or larger SSD which will make it a better version of the U300s, or (4) settle for the U310 or U410 knowing that neither are the U300s' successor but instead are a lower-budge versions of the U300s.

 

You guys are right... Not sure what I was thinking when I posted that about the 310 and 410 thicker models.

Any progress on your decision? It sure sounds like you can't go wrong with the U300s, unless you don't mind waiting for the Yoga. Keep us posted!

 

Will go for the U300s and order the next couple days. Damn, I need this beast!!! At least the prices dropped a little bit meanwhile...

 

You certainly can wait for the new models to come out though it appears that both the U310 and U410 will stay with Sandy Bridge CPU rather than Ivy Bridge but feature possibly better nVidia GPU or look for a bargain on the current models. I just ordered a basic U400 with an i3 CPU, 4 GB of ram, 500 GB HDD, BT and AMD HD6470M all for $499 (+tax) with free shipping brand new from Lenovo direct(there was a ~$300 coupon I found online). I have a OCZ Vertex 3 240 GB SSD with Fedora 17 on it and an additional 4 GB of RAM to install when it arrives and I will have a really nice little lappy for very little scratch...

 

Hi Guys, finally got it today! First impression: Just fantastic! I have the grey i7/256 GB version. Still getting used to this little thing but I like the feel of it. Coming from a Thinkpad T42 so I am used to good keyboards. Will possibly post a review sometime in a few weeks.
Another question: I'm not yet familiar with Windows 7. Do you guys think that Microsoft Security Essentials as Antivirus and the Windows firewall are enough as to safety?

 

Awesome, glad yours finally arrived! You'll love it for sure. Microsoft Security Essentials and the Windows Firewall are certainly enough protection. MSE rates higher than most paid anti-virus software, is lower on resources and never requires user intervention, so you should be set.

I'm curious which touchpad you have... Cypress or Synaptics. If you have the Cypress, there's a lot you can do with it. User imessage100 discovered that Dell has more up to date Cypress drivers that work WAY Better, and therourke has created a .reg file that adds further tweaking and settings to adjust to give you the perfect touchpad experience.

 

Thanks for the info, I have the Synaptics. One of the first things I checked. The fan is running constantly and not as quiet as I had expected. It's still far from loud. No problem for me at the moment, but if Lenovo resolved this issue sometime maybe with a bios update I would certainly appreciate it. Or is there any possibility to adjust the settings somewhere, so that the fan only runs when needed?
Dan, you have yours for about six months - does the exterior get scratches overtime from normal usage? Do you have to pay extra attention to avoid this? I heard that this happens to the MBA. I love the smooth surface. I will certainly buy a sleeve for sure.

 

Strange about the fan, that's not something I've ever noticed. Are you still using the Lenovo Energy Management software? Which power profile do you use? I switch back and forth between balanced and high, but do not typically notice the fan.

So, I have the orange one (since December) and I have no scratches at all. I do have a few dings on the edges though. I keep it in a neoprene sleeve most of the time though.

Here's a pic... notice the dings on the edges where you can see the silver through the orange.


Edit: OMG sorry for the huge pic... I thought it would put a thumbnail and link to the original image here: http://i50.tinypic.com/2h2eadd.jpg

 

The Energy Star profile was preset - no change of the fan noise when I changed the profile. But you really need to be in a quiet environment to hear it. Some people complained about it, others say it's barely audible. I guess it is very subjective and who knows - maybe the fans are not single sourced either like the touchpads and are of slightly different quality/design.
I like your orange one too. Btw, can you recommend a good usb/lan adapter? I know Lenovo offers a usb hub with lan but I am not sure how bulky/heavy it is.

 

The USB 3.0 port doesn't work for some reason. I have tried with several devices such as sticks, external hd's. I have also tried deactivating the option "allow the computer to switch off this device to save energy" on the generic usb hubs and usb root hubs like someone had posted in the owner's thread. Now I have no idea. In the device mgr it shows an exclamation mark at the Renesas USB 3.0 controller and the error message "Not enough ressources for this device (code 12)". I am pretty sure this is software related problem since the exclamation mark did not show up there at first. Any idea?

 

I actually bought the Lenovo USB hub/Ethernet combo (they were on sale for $11 a while back). I love it! It is a little bulky though. I looked a few others up on Amazon, but don't have any direct experience.