X200s and X61s comparison

Hey guys,

I've had the privilege of using both of these amazing little laptops for about a week now so I will try to do a small comparison for you guys between the two. The specs on my X200s are in my signature. My X61s has a 1.6 GHz L7500 C2D, 4GB DDR2-667, 160GB 5400RPM HD, and 4965AG Wireless.

Most people here probably know of the obvious difference between the two so I'll focus on the subtle.

Build Quality: Both of these models have different strengths and weaknesses. The lid on the X200s appears to be sturdier and gives less flex when I push down on both lids with equal force. The material on both feel very similar - both have a very nice brushed feeling. As for the chassis, both of the palm rests feel equally sturdy but I the look and feel of palmrests on the X61s give it a heightened sense sturdiness and does not show sweat or marks of extensive usage as much as for the X200s.

Weight: Even though the X200s has a larger footprint, it feels lighter than the X61s. Without the battery, the X200s feels a computer chassis with hollow insides. I'm not sure if it's a placebo effect, but I can feel the slight heaviness of the X61s in my bag compared to my X200s.

Keyboard: The X200s keyboard feels a lot mushier compared to the X61s. It is also noticeable quieter but does not provide the satisfying "clicky" sound that I get from the X61s keyboard. On the X61s, I cannot generate any keyboard flex for the life of me and it's as sturdy as can be. There is a slight bit of keyboard flex on the X200s. It's very apparent around the apostrophe key and some regions on the left side but doesn't bug me too much. When using the X200s, I do miss the hardiness of the X61s keyboard, though.

Heat: The X200s is a cooler machine and that's basically all that needs to be said. It's difficult to notice much semblance of heat at all on the X200s but that's not to say the X61s is a much hotter machine. The only thing that annoys me is that the right palmrest does get a bit hot or uncomfortably warm when using the unit for a prolonged period of time. Others may disagree because we all have different level we can tolerate.

Screen: This is really a no brainer for many people. The X200s is much brighter than the X61s but that's not to say the X61s is dim at all. When I got my X61s I was concerned with brightness levels but it's definitely bright enough under any conditions. The resolution on the X200s is definitely higher but it's almost too high for a screen that small. I don't wear glasses or contacts but I get tempted to adjust the text size in my browser window on the X200s. This obviously isn't an issue with the X61s because of the minimal XGA resolution. Depending on the task, the resolution could be limiting but I don't find it much of a problem in normal usage. I have no problems going back and forth between the X61s and X200s and getting acclimated to the resolutions and brightness of each screen. Again, this is a very subjective category...many may disagree with me.

That's about it for now. I would put in a word about performance but it's not exactly going to be fair since my X200s is currently running on 1GB of RAM (before the upgrade). Also, it's obvious that the X200s has far superior battery life, which I won't even get into. To sum it up, there are obvious advantages and disadvantages between the two computers. They're both amazing computers (a step up from my Macbook) but to find out which one is right for you, I highly recommend you try to get your hands on them in person to test them out for yourselves. At this point, I really can't decide which one I like more. I prefer the keyboard and palm rests of the X61s but the X200s is lighter and the screen resolution offers much more real estate and has better battery life.

Feel free to ask me any questions or if you'd like any other comparisons between the two. There's more for me to talk about but I'd rather hear questions and comments than have myself ramble on.

 

Thank you so much for the comparison –what a nice surprise this tuesday morning.
I have a couple of questions, as I have a x200s being sent to me (alas with a 9-cell as standard so the weight reduction is less than I would have liked it to be from the get-go).
Anyway, you write this (among other great stuff):

Now, what do you mean by "a lot mushier"? I mean, I'm typing this on an MBP, and it really doesn't flex (there are other problems with it, though), so now you have me worried.
Any chance you can check, if you know how (I don't), what keyboard there is on the X200s? At first it won't help much, but when I finally receive the ordered one, I will be able to check and compare. That would be great.

What constitutes a "satisfying click"? I kind of think I know what it constitutes (gut feeling, if you will), but are you saying that the X200s is "unsatisfactory"(spl?)? Ha ha, maybe I'm just reading way too much into this as I wait for mine, all giddy and a bit nervous.

Oh, I do have some other random questions – about the X200s, and not so much in comparison to the X61s:
I notice your X200s has the 5300 WiFi. My ordered one has the "4500MHD" (so they write). Do you know the difference? I'm sorry, I'm a Mac user and this is utterly foreign land to me.

How good is the reception (acknowledging this has more to do with the antennas and casing than the card itself) on the 200s? I figure they all must have better reception than this thing I'm typing on.

Oh, and finally: What OS's are you running on either? My order has Vista Business (it was either that or non-downgraded XP I could choose from), so I wonder what you have, how it's working out for you, and what you use your computers for (in order for me to try to compare our needs).

Thanks again

 

Keyboard feel also depends on what brand keyboard. My NMB keyboard on my x200 could be called mushy in comparison to a clicky chicony. Just depends what sort of thinkpad keyboard you like, they are all nice though (NMB, Chicony, ALPS).

 

If I were you I wouldn't worry about the keyboard on your X200s at all. I know how the keyboard on the MBP feels (I assume you're referring to pre-unibody) and it feels sort of similar to that but I don't have them side-by-side to compare. The X200s is by no means a bad keyboard at all. When I say the X61s has a satisfying click, I mean it makes a very tactile typing feeling that is represented by a clicking sound. I don't mean to bash the X200s keyboard but the X61s feels a bit more "satisfying" to an extent.

Also, I'm not really a Thinkpad keyboard expert so I'm going off purely from my own experience. I have no clue what kind of keyboard on my X200s so you might end up with a different one.

Also, when you mention 4500MHD, you're referring to the integrated graphics. The X200s comes equipped with either Thinkpad a/b/g, 5100, 5300, and 5350 Wifi (if I'm not mistaken). I haven't used the Wifi on the X200s very extensively and I don't have a draft-N router to test it on either. Speeds and range are comparable to my X61s's 4965AG wireless card when I'm right by my router but I would need to bring them both farther with an N-router to test the improvements of range and speed on the 5300 card.

Either way you look at it, the X200s is a very solid machine and should definitely please you. I was impressed by it the moment I took it out of the box. Overall, the initial "wow" factor for the X200s has been greater than for the X61s when I started using both and has possibly been the most impressive laptop I've used yet.

 

Okay, looks like I will have to wait and simply test how I like the specific keyboard on my new lappy. I sure hope it's not too noisy. Cliclik-cliclik-cliclik-cliclik-cliclik-clicketyclick-cliclik-cliclik-clickety-cliclik-cliclik-cliclik constantly will soon wear me and my surroundings out.

 

Yes, it's a very subjective comparison. For you, the X61s keyboard might be too clickety-clicky for your tastes but I happen to love that tactile response. The X200s is definitely a quieter keyboard.

Also, I'm using Windows 7 x64 Build 7057 on both machines. They came with Vista Home Basic and 1GB of RAM. I already upgrade the X61s to 4GB and I clean installed Windows 7 on both systems. They're both working extremely well with very few compatibility issues. All my my native apps work great but there are a few issues with some Thinkvantage software (access connections does not work) and maybe some other things.

 

I am indeed referring to the pre-unibody!

Oh, like that. I kind of think I know what you mean. Thank you.

Yeah, I will wait and then see how I like it. When it arrives I will be pumping out threads as if I was spamming. As it is, I have so many questions with regards to the installation and even the os itself, I guess this is one of these things were I will just have to wait and see.

Haha, yes, as you can tell I'm quite new to PCs – all the PCs I have worked on so far has been set up and purchased by someone else. Either mates or work. I guess that was quite telling on my part. I think mine says it's a/g/n (I assume, though, it will also do "b", even though it's not stated).

Nah, it was just a general question as the reception. If it's as good as the X61s which I have heard reasonably good things about in this regard, I know I will be happy with the reception.

Oh, man! I'm usually not a sucker for gadgets, as I only buy "tools" and think of "stuff" as tools. But this time is a bit different. It has taken me over a year to migrate workflows, get to know first Soundbooth, then Audition whenever I had the chance and spend just as long figuring out how I would go about my work and the switch itself without loosing (productivity) too much. I am so looking forward to receive this thing and having it set up for my needs and preferences. Sheesh I'm an idjit

 

Windows 7? I so want to try that out, but I'm too afraid I will run into problems with regards to audio and firewire adaptors/audio interfaces. I think I will have to wait a bit to "fiddle" with a beta-OS (if something goes wrong I wouldn't know what caused it).

Yes. I think I will wait a bit. Btw, I just discovered (as in after I posed the question to you) that Adobe Audition have problems in Windows Vista/7 64bit whereas it works fine in the 32bit version. So much for my plan to upgrade to 4GB. Apparently it has something to do with "DEP" (lol, I have no clue what that is) shutting it down before it even gets going (and apparently, that is the fault of Adobe, not MS).

I think I will give the Vista Business install a try, and if it doesn't tie well enough into Dalet I might try to downgrade to XP. I wish this switch only gave me a single choice, a single version to get to know. It's so overwhelming ...
On the other hand, if I only had one choice, it wouldn't be better than Apple, now, would it?

 

Thank you for the very nice comparison

 

I would wait until Windows 7 is stable before I allow it to run in my PC, it's still under development and I've read about people using it only to later have problems with it, lose reports etc.

 

Yup, I will wait.
I'm a switcher, so it will take me a while to get to know about it all. I know my audio apps, word and excel when I get the computer. That will be enough for a while. I just hope there aren't too many incompatibilities I have to figure (I doubt there are) besides how to do a proper clean install. Perhaps I should wait with the clean install as well, come to think of it.

 

Thank you for the very detailed comparisons!

As long as it's not actually hollow!

When you open your X200s, could you take a look at the label, to see the part number and see if you can find out whether it's NMB/Chicony/alps? At lenovo site there are part numbers but no info about the makers.

Have you used it continuously for several hours? If so I would like to know if it caused your eyes' discomfort or headaches like other people said.

Also how much does the 9 cell battery protrude?

Thanks again! Hope you enjoy both for more days

 

well i've had the x200s for a bit and for me, the resolution isn't a huge problem. the only time when i need to increase the size of the text is when some websites have small font but normally i don't see a problem with the resolution. but hey i'm near sited.

 

The difference in feel is almost certainly due to a different keyboard manufacturer.

Your x200s likely has an NMB keyboard (preferred by many due to its quiet nature), while your x61s (and my x200T) has a Chicony keyboard (preferred by some due to the reassuring click and tactile response). Both of these (as well as ALPS) are fine keyboards, it is simply a matter of subtle preferences.

It is possible to swap the keyboard out for a different one. If after a few weeks time, you still prefer the feel of the x61s keyboard, I would suggest you order a Chicony replacement for the x200s as this will offer a very similar level of feedback and noise.

Overall, a very nice and helpful comparison.

 

Thanks for the feedback, everyone.

Jonlumpkin, that's really good advice...I may consider it. How much do chicony X200s keyboards go for and how difficult is it to swap into the computer?