X200 Changes ?

Hello-
After much research and debate between various vendors, I've narrowed down a laptop purchase to the X200. Given that there are near term changes to the product anticipated, was wondering if there is any advice available from X200 users on how to proceed.
Given:
Need: Webcam capability
-easy portability
Concerns: Have heard various reports on the screen quality of display issue.

Is it reasonable to assume the possibility that the soon to be released next generation X200 products will have:
1. Webcam
2. Improved screen quality

Since the current pricing on the X200 is less than $1000 right now, it seems like a reasonable offer, but want to make sure that I don't take the plunge too early, given the proximity to the new product release.

Any thoughts?

Thanks.

Ben

 

Screen quality is debatable. I would say, don't worry about it, unless you are a professional photographer, in which case you should consider perhaps the W-series.

Of all the ThinkPads I have had (more than 15), I have been satisfied with the screen quality. Most of those who are complaining about the screen quality are mostly "nerds" who have way above average requirements. In some cases it is a bit like those who absolutely want the newest and fastest hardware eventhough the previous gen is still much faster than most people need or can feel the difference of.

Speaking specifically about the X200(s) I have had 6 of these myself (all with 1280x800 res) and all were more than fine in my opinion. Especially the screen brightness is a big improvement compared to my former X61 and current two X61s as well as that of my T43 (1400x1050).

If one wants super vibrant colors for i.e. movie watching, I would recommend getting a Sony laptop with a high res LED backlit glossy screen.

 

If you really want a quality screen you could always get the X200 and do the screen swap with the AFFS screens that are available on eBay - keeping in mind you'll be voiding any warranty.

I don't know that wanting a quality screen makes you nerdy, but the unfortunate reality is there's not many quality notebook screens right now. I had a 14" R60, which I liked a lot. While it was fine for Office and Internet, any time you watched a movie or viewed photos, the image quality wasn't really great. I also had difficulty viewing the top and bottom of the screen at the optimum angle.

 

Well if some manufacturers can make good screens everyone should be able to. The screen on the Samsung NC10 netbook (brightness, colours etc.) which costs 240 Euros is better than those on the X200 series which cost 1,200 Euros. But so it seems the screens Samsung makes for Lenovo are average at best. Go figure ! My T400 screen LED is nice but I would not say WOW either. I also do hope that the next X200 series has an up-dated screen. I would really like to have a look at the X100e screen and compare. In any case when I put my T61 next to my T400 then I definitely see an improved screen on the T400. But the colour depth looks better on the T61.

 

Samsung manufactures LCD themselves... also netbook usually use glossy LCD.... once you used the IPS LCD on the older thinkpads, everything else seems mediocre, obviously the OLED would change that...

 

Perfectionseeker-
It's funny that you should mention the Samsung NC10. I just ordered an X200 yesterday to replace my NC10!
The NC10 is a great netbook, but I just couldn't deal with the 1024x600 display any longer. Plus Firefox 3.5.7 runs too darn slow on it since upgrading to Win7.

 

What was wrong with the 1024x600 display on a 10" netbook? Others say the NC10 has one of the best screens on a netbook.

How do you see an "improved" screen? You even say that the colour depth looks better on the T61.
I have a T61p with the 1680x1050 Samsung screen. I have read the complaints concerning the "dim" screen but when I'm plugged in I usually turn it down 1 or 2 notches from max so for me it's not a problem for indoor use; even in the summer I use it outside in the shade.
I have a friend with a T400 led screen and it is much brighter but it's too bright for indoor use and he always cranks it way down to a more "comfortable for the eyes" level. So compared to me he has an advantage for outdoor use. However the color reproduction on my T61p is better than his LED.
The only complaint I have with mine is it's slightly grainy and it was too blue at factory settings. I improved it by lowering the blue gamma.
However overall, I'm very pleased.

 

roblen:
My issue with the NC10 screen isn't the quality of the display, but the lower resolution of 1024x600. I have found that some programs do not handle the res very well. They open up windows that are off screen (assuming the computer is running at a higher res).

 

Hey tjp888 please let me know how you go with an X200 as compared to the Samsung NC10. I may buy an X200 series myself or wait for the core duo version of the X100e. Roblen ... well yes colour seems deeper on the T61 but the T400 is brighter, the T61 is just too dim now ... but the little Samsung NC10 screen beats both of them ... go figure. Confusing ... the NC10 is fine but yes not enough power and not enough vertical lines. Anyone know how the resolution of 1024 x 600 on a 10.1 inch netbook would compare to 1280 x 800 resolution on a 12.1 inch screen. Tad worried the letters may be too small ...

 

perfectionseeker:
I have the X200 and the NC10 side by side. The screen on the X200 is perfectly fine. I have the brightness at around 80%. The color on the X200 is a bit off (on the cool side). But not by much. I also ran the built in screen calibrator in Windows 7. The screen is perfectly fine (at least by my standards). I'll calibrate the color later with my Huey Pro.

The performance is head and shoulders over the NC10 - but that's no surprise. I have the P8700 2.53GHz with 2GB RAM (the 3rd GB is on order) and a 5400rpm drive. So, not quite max'd out. It is so much more of a pleasure to use than the NC10. Firefox and Outlook 2007 pop right up.

 

tjp888 that is great to hear and thanks for that calibration tool mention, is that a free program? May use it on the colour of the T400 I have. I am looking at an X200 with the P8600 at 2.4Ghz and 3MB RAM and a 320GB 7200 rpm drive. How's video playback on the X200? Did you get the one with the 1280 x 800 CCFL or LED screen ? I am guessing the speaker is loud enough for Skype conversations? And did you get 6 cell battery ... what's the weight like ? Sorry for all the queries !

 

The calibration tool I mentioned (Huey Pro) is not free, I think it's a little under $100. It consists of a USB sensor that you put up against your screen while it flashes test patterns. It then creates a new Windows color profile (ICC) for the computer. I recommend it if you are going to do any photo editing.

Mine is with the 1280x800 LED screen. Using Media Player Classic I just played Blade Runner and Inglorious B*st*rds. Both were HD 720P .mkv files. They played fine while on AC. But I found that when on battery my power saving plan was causing it to stutter a bit. I'm sure I would just need to adjust it to use maximum CPU.
Sound was OK. Not good, just OK. Being a single speaker, I wasn't expecting anything much. I had the volume as maximum and it was loud enough. But if I was in a noisy room I would have had to switch over to headphones. In fact when at maximum and a particular loud section of the movie came up, I noticed the speaker buzzing a bit.