Lenovo T400 vs. Vaio Z

Here's a link to the "what laptop i should buy" post:

http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=313939

So, this laptop is going to be doing triple purpose:

1) Personal computer
2) Business laptop for some consulting work; i am a financial analyst by profession.
3) I am also going to be using it to hook up to a camcorder and use it as my webcam to broadcast something over the net to another user which might end up being done over broadband

With that taken into account, both the T400 and the Vaio Z both fit my needs perfectly however they have their +/-'s. The T400 has switchable graphics, a trackpoint (love them i'm an old thinkpad user), phenomenal battery life, and built in WWAN. The Z has switchable graphics, much lighter and more portable, built in Sprint WWAN, and HDMI out.

Ideally the Vaio would be more suited to my #3 requirement above due to the portability and weight however the T400 would be better suited to #1 and #2 because of the screen size.

So i'm trying to figure out if the premium of the Z over the T400 is worth the cash for the portability and weight.

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Just an FYI, i have already purchased a Sony SR for my girlfriend and really like it but it doesn't have switchable graphics or a matte screen.

Help?

Thanks

 

I would be more inclined towards the T400 based on your #3 point because Thinkpads honestly just feel more solid to me, and if I were carrying a laptop around outside where I might have to be a bit rough with it, I would go with a Thinkpad rather than a Vaio. Not to put down the Z - it should be more durable than the SR that I have, which is pretty solid - but I think the T400 is a better candidate for a solid build just from having handled both Sony's and Thinkpads.

Screen-wise, I'm not sure. Maybe you can ask some Z users to photograph their Z's screen in the sunlight/outside. I know Z has a glossy screen, but apparently has some sort of anti-glare "matte" -ish coating so that it does better than other glossy screens outside.

 

Sounds to me, your #1 &2 are your most use. Therefore, i would suggest to go with T400. With a ecoupon or some CPP, you can spend less.
Thinkpad are very quiet, i don't know about Sony SR though, but during a meeting, you don't want the it to make annoying sound.
And trust me, T400 is also very portable, i never had any problems with it... I m a college student.

 

Comes down to how much $$ you are willing to spend. Functionality only, you can get it on T400 for $1k cheaper (as for broadband, just get a card from your favorite provider).

I have the Z570, and I bought it for the "cool", ultralight, and battery life factors, and the screen just turned out to be really nice and bright.

However, you seem to be focused mostly on the "functionality" aspect of the laptop, so I say go with T400 and save yourself the dough.

 

thanks for the opinions. The only thing holding me back is the weight. I wish that lenovo would make a 13.3" model that was a powerhouse like the Vaio SR is. I just have this funny feeling that the lower weight of the Z ill want if i go t400. Lugging around a 5lb notebook isnt exactly my idea of portable. Ugh, decisions decisions.

 

TrackPoint and ThinkLight FTW!

(That said, I've got a Vaio Z myself...)

 

If portability is a concern go with the Z.

A 2,3kg laptop is a lot of weight to carry around every day. I have a Macbook here 2kg and it's heavy compared to the Z. The weight of the Macbook vs. Z makes me reconsider keeping it.

 

So i was finally able to go take a look at a T400 (god bless Microcenter) and thank god i did because it is just not what i need at all. Too big, bulky and heavy for my portability needs.

I ended up buying a preconfigured Z (but am returning it because i didn't notice the preconfigured model didn't have WWAN) and from the two nights i have used it it is exactly what i need. Blazingly fast, super light, and the screen is simply A-M-A-Z-I-N-G! The HD video quality of that screen is pretty **** close to my blu-ray equipped panasonic plasma and even streaming just NORMAL video on hulu looks better on the Z than on my plasma.

Also the 13.1" 16:9 screen is easier to work with than i thought it would be. I did some measuring and height wise, it's the same height as a normal 12.1" widescreen with 16:10 ratio except the Z is a 1" wider. Another interesting thing that i noticed is that the Z almost has an optical illusion because the screen seems so short but part of that is because the screen STARTS so much closer to the base of the laptop than other laptops. For instance on most laptops you have roughly 1-2" from base of laptop/bezel to the bottom of the screen whereas with the Z it is more like 0.5".

The best thing about it is that i purchased this with Sony Financial Services (GE Money) and i am financing no interest/no payments for 24 months. I will end up depreciating the entire of the value of the thing for my business by the time i have to pay for it. Can't beat that!

Once i get my CTO with the WWAN option i'll do a better review, but for me Sony Z FTW!

 

wow, congrats on purchase, you made a good choice! nothing against the t400....

which Z did you specifically get?

couple things i'd recommend...

get a screen protector of some sort to put between the screen and keyboard when closed. i've read that people have been noticing some smudging or even wear-and-tear due to screen hitting keyboard. personally, i've been using a radtech microfiber thingy, and it's worked well, but i've seen people using all kinds of things.

cycle your battery properly as soon as you start using it! the sr and z battery problems have been well documented on this board, so might as well take as many preventative measures as possible!

 

I first purchased the 590EBB pre config but it doesn't have a WWAN card which i do want. So i'm returning it and am going to get a CTO as the other preconfig with the WWAN card is more than what i need and thus wasted money.

With the battery issue, i already know about that. I recently bought an SR for my g/f. For now, all i do is tell her to take the battery out if she isn't going to use it for quite a while. This breaks the open circuit and will keep the battery juiced.

Thanks for the idea on the screen protector.