t400-Thinklight Issue

So I know people have been talking about this Thinklight issue, and I finally got my T400. So i turned it on to see what the deal was. Well, while I wouldn't go so far as to say that it is blinding, in normal conditions(screen is perpendcular to base of laptop etc), it is a slight annoyance, as when I shift my eyes toward the top of my LCd, i can see it, and when I look down it's still visible. In other words, it's like looking at a small, bright dot on the top border.

Now my parents have an older IBM thinkpad, and the thinklight definitely isn't this visible.

The good news, however, is that the screen, at 50% or so medium brightness, illuminates the keyboard by itself.

I'm going to try to add some more cover to it, but if anything, this should not be a serious issues to consider when buying this laptop.

 

I'm curious if there is some manufacturing variability because my Thinklight seems very well positioned and fails to be a distraction even without any ambient light. I have had difficulty with my Bluray drive related to WinDVD and AACS errors, perhaps that's my share of problems....

 

I also think the light angle can be improved. There should be no reason why the should see the actual LED light when I look at the screen, slightly annoying...

I always think the light is pretty much useless considering how bright the screen is, but today it was the first time that I found the light to be kind of a neat & useful feature when typing in the dark. So over all, no complains.