Z61t buying concerns...

I really want to buy a Z61t notebook, but I have some concerns and questions before I take the big plunge.

My prospective configuration: What do you think about it?
Intel Core Duo - 2GHz
1GB RAM
DVD MultiBurner (dual layer)
100GB HDD - 5400rpm
Intel GMA 950

My Questions:
1) Does the Z61t have a PC Express card AND a PCMCIA Card. The Tech specs on Lenovo.com say it only has a PCMCIA slot.
2) Does the screen have Flexview and how does the screen compare to othe notebook screens?
3) Is WXGA (1280x768) a good resolution for a 14.1" widescreen? I'm worried anything bigger would be hard to read.
3) Lenovo.com says that it does not have blutooth, but when I go to lenovo.com for other countries, it says the Z61t has bluetooth included. If not in the US, can I buy a Z61t from lets say, the Hong Kong website and have them ship it to me in the US (or will the keyboard be all screwed up)? Is there another way of getting bluetooth?
4) I am not a big gamer (the occasional Solitaire or Snood, none of that Halo stuff), but I am movie lover and I will be editing videos using Adobe Premiere. Is the Intel GMA 950 a good enough graphics card (I have no other option, but this card? Will upgrading my RAM to 2GB help the graphics? Is there a way to upgrade the integrated graphics card...perhaps a PCMCIA card?
5) Will the Intel GMA 950 be sufficient for Aero when Vista comes out?
6) Does the 7-cell battery stick out of the notebook, and if it does, how inconvenient is it?
7) Is it possible to get a battery that will slip into the Ultrabay?
8) Does the system come with a Webcam and microphone on the screen (I don't really care, just curious)?
9) I want to hook up speakers to the system, but using the front side jack seems inconvenient. Are there USB wireless speakers, or bluetooth speakers?
10) I also would like to buy a TV Tuner and I know that there are ones that are USB and PCMCIA slot ready. Any recommended brands or products for this? Which one is faster?
11) Does upgrading the Hard Drive to 7200 rpm make sense? It is not that much more money, but will it make a considerable difference in performance and what about noise and heat?
12) Have I asked too many questions?

I really appreciate all of the help.
--Thanks, Henry

 

Partial answer"

1) No express card
2) No flexview... i think the quality is better than the T-series xga screen, but i would like someone else to comment
3) Actually it's 1280x800, and the text size is the same as 1024x768 on the X60... not too small to read, except you may bend over for some small text, but this screen makes text definitely bigger than SXGA on 15"
3) Bluetooth depends on the model - look in the tabook for your specific model to see (dont depend on lenovo sales sites, they make mistakes!) Bluetooth can be added later to a model w/o it, either by a USB or internal adapter... however, you wont have the Bluetooth LCD unless the model shipped with bluetooth.
4) Upgrading RAM wwont help the graphics, but it means the graphics will not be as much as a drag on the system. However, there is a point of no gain, and certainly by 2-gig you have reached/passed the point where more RAM helps any.
5) I dunno, but i see lots of GMA900 GMA950 laptops that have "vista ready" stickers on them.
6) Yes the 7 cell sticks out the back by 1-2 cms. Some ppl say it helps give a grip. It adds half a pound.
7) Absolutely.
8) Depends on model - look in tabook again
11) Yes the 7200 rpm drive will make a big difference when you boot or start your apps or search database etc. The faster drive and more memory are, IMHO, even more important than upgrading the CPU. I would prefer a fast drive and lotsa ram on a z60t over a slow drive and less RAM on a core duo Z61t. Heat wont be an issue because these are well designed, but if you find the drive noisy there are thinkpad settings you can change. Definitely get the 7200 since it costs you only a little more, they used to cost lot more.

 

My unreliable memory thinks the minimum requirement is 64mb (and the GMA satisfies this in the form of shared memory) and Directx9 for Aero Glass

Anyone else comment better?

 

The docking station is another option if you want to hook up some speakers. I put Vista on my V3000. It ran fine on the GMA 950, but Areo was not an option.

 

Let's not guess....let's see the real thing:

Test System Configuration:

Lenovo Z61t (Type 9442-7UH)

- T2500 - 2.00 GHz
- 512MB DDR2 533 MHz
- 1440x900 TFT
- Intel Calistoga 945GM Express Chipset GPU w/128MB
- PCMCIA slot
- Hitachi Travelstar 7K100 100GB 7200 RPM UDMA5 (ATA100)
- Broadcom Gigabit Ethernet
- 9-cell battery

Feels like a brick...6lb'er... The rest, you can see for yourselves...

(CPU-Z)


(DVDInfo)




(Front)


(Left)


(Right)


(Back) - Left side of the 9-cell battery is the S-Video output, hidden


(Click to enlarge)

 

Those pics are pretty sweet. What does that windows sticker say next to the keyboard? Vista compatible? My z61t only says designed for Windows XP...I feel ripped now. So are you gonna install Vista on that thing or what?

 

The sticker shows "Designed for Windows-XP. Windows Vista Capable".

I don't think you need to worry too much about the Vista hype - all recent notebooks can run Vista. The real question is really "How well?"

It's really no big deal that if you cannot use Aero Glass - it's just fancy graphics. My Intel 915GM GPU runs Vista just fine eventhough it cannot run Aero Glass.

 

The "vista compatible" stickers seemed to coincide with the release of core duo.
Perhaps a conspiracy to try selling more product.