Introduction and advice on a new Thinkpad

[spitfire]

Hi everyone!

I'm new here, and I'm looking for some advice about getting a new Thinkpad. I've been lurking here for a few days, (in an effort to avoid sounding like a complete idiot) but I finally up and registered this morning because I have quite a few questions, and this seems to be the primary Thinkpad users' forum out there.

I'm going off to college in the fall, where I'll probably be majoring in engineering. I'm looking for a (relatively) lightweight laptop that will still be able to run some CAD programs. I know this is a rather ridiculous request, but from what I've been reading, it's not entirely unheard of. I love the look (and the quality) of Thinkpads- my mother's job gave her one to use at home (a T42) and I just loved it. So, I want my college laptop to be a Thinkpad.

My first question is, are there any T61 models with a graphics card equivalent to the ATI Firegl v5250 in the T60p? The closest thing I could find was the nVIDIA Quadro NVS 140M in the T61, but from what I've read, it's not really a 3D chip- nvidia's site describes it as a "professional 2D card" which I take to mean movies/photoshop, etc.

This leads to my next question- is there a big difference between the speeds of similarly configured T60p and T61 notebook? I know the T61 has the new Santa Rosa chipset, but that's about all I know. I also know that the T60p is going to be certified (ISV certified, I think) for engineering programs- any such certification for a T61?

I leave for school in the end of August- I've seen rumors of delays for laptops of over 5 weeks- what have all of your seen for delivery times? Also, should I take advantage of the father's day sale now, or will there be other sales as the summer goes on?

Oh, and can anyone with a T60/T61 speak to the difference between the various screen sizes, or possibly point me towards a site with a picture comparison?

I've saved up about 1800 to spend on this laptop, and I want it to last me for a long time. I also will dual-boot linux, (Ubuntu) but from what I've heard, Thinkpad generally play very nicely with linux. I've also mapped out a few different possible configurations, but I want to see what all of you think on all these questions before I submit one for comments.

Sorry for the monster first post. I really appreciate any help you all might be able to provide!

[Troels]

Hi and welcome!

The 140M is about equivalent to the FireGL V5200, actually very much alike. Of course the former is DX10 compliant, while the latter is DX9.0c. The V5250 will be a little faster, but you should not look at benchmarks elsewhere for V5200 and V5250 because they run underclocked in the T60(p)s.
That being said, they have double the amount of memory which i think is crucial for applications in SXGA+ and UXGA.
The 140M is just made for different markets than Geforce, but will be no less usable with games/CAD/graphics than a Geforce.

Santa Rosa vs. Core 2 Duo: My take - no difference really in real life usage, i'd also say that when you compare Santa Rosa vs. Core Duo.
The big step i feel was between Dothan Sonoma Pentium M and Core Duo.
But it depends on what you do and how time critical it is. I see it more as clever marketing.

Delivery times. Very short, but i bought a T60p from the Lenovo Outlet which means they are pretty much built already or have all parts in stock. Took a little week.
Do you have any specific T60p or T61 models in mind?

[spitfire]

Hrm. If that nvidia chip performs as well as the ati chip, then I may well be leaning towards the T61, mainly because I've had a better experience with nvidia in linux than I have with ati.

As for specific models, I was thinking something similar to this for the T60p:

ThinkPad T60 Series 8743CTO $1,809.00
Integrated WiFi wireless LAN: Integrated Wi-Fi Wireless a/b/g/n antenna
Processor: Intel® Core™ 2 Duo processor T7400 (2.16GHz, 4MB L2, 667MHz FSB)
Operating system: Genuine Windows XP Home Edition
Display type: 15.4 WSXGA+ TFT
System graphics: ATI Mobility Fire GL V5250 256MB
Total memory: 2 GB PC2-5300 DDR2 SDRAM 667MHz SODIMM Memory (2 DIMM)
Hard drive: 160GB Hard Disk Drive, 5400rpm
Optical device: DVD Recordable 8x Max Dual Layer, Ultrabay Slim
Ethernet: Integrated 1Gb Ethernet
Wireless cards: ThinkPad 11a/b/g/n Wireless LAN Mini-PCI Express Adapter
Battery: 9 cell Li-Ion Battery



As for the T61, I was thinking something like this:

ThinkPad T61 with nVIDIA Graphics 7662CTO $1,840.00
Processor: Intel® Core™ 2 Duo T7700 (2.4GHz 800MHz 4MBL2)
Operating System: Genuine Windows XP Professional
Operating System Language: Genuine Windows XP Professional
Display type: 14.1 WXGA+ TFT, w/o Camera
System graphics: nVIDIA Quadro NVS 140M
Total memory: 2 GB PC2-5300 DDR2 SDRAM 667MHz SODIMM Memory (2 DIMM)
Pointing device: UltraNav (TrackPoint and TouchPad)
Hard drive: 160GB Hard Disk Drive, 5400rpm
Optical device: DVD Recordable 8x Max Dual Layer, Ultrabay Slim
System expansion slots: PC Card Slot & Express Card Slot
Wireless card: ThinkPad 11a/b/g Wi-Fi wireless LAN Mini-PCIe US/EMEA/LA/ANZ
Battery: 7 cell Li-Ion Battery

The T61 seems to be a bit faster (faster FSB) but I've seen alot of people here that don't like it. What do you think?

[Troels]

I'd go for the T61 too.
Yeah, i've had my fair share of problems getting the T42 MR9600 to run under either Mandriva or Ubuntu... it wasn't just straight forward. I imagine i'll face very similar problems when i setup some kind of distro this summer on my t60p.

The T61 also uses DDR-667 as the T60, since DDR800 is extremely expensive and not widely available. So FSB is the same at stock, but the Santa Rosa supports the DDR800 standard.

Being a student myself i could imagine the LCD roll cage to come in handy if it's stuffed into a bag

[spitfire]

I've done some more research, and it seems that the Quadro NVS 140M won't be able to run CAD programs well at all- the Quadro FX series is the one optimized for 3d stuff, not the NVS. This makes me lean towards the T60p, but I still like the price point and features of the T61 over the T60.

I've also read about rumors of a T61p. Does anyone know anything concrete about this laptop- primarily, when it will be available in the US?

[GomJabbar]

Until Lenovo gets there order and shipping pipeline in order, I would seriously consider buying from one of the internet retailers. www.costcentral.com and www.euclidcomputers.com are two reputable retailers with a large selection to choose from. I bought a T42 from Cost Central 2-1/2 years ago (when they were the latest model).

[ducky2802]

I wouldnt shy away from the thinkpads you mentioned on account of CAD compatibility...most every new graphics card can easily run Solidworks, Autocad, etc. Ive tested an X24 running solidworks with an old ati radeon 8mb, and besides being too slow for comfort, the 200+ assemblies rendered as nice as a brand new dual core desktop with the latest GPU.

But if CAD is going to be your primary concern, then no need to skimp on the graphics either.

Overall, Id recommend a good priced computer, even a nice used one, unless you really want to spend the extra cash. By "extra", Im talking about anything over about $1000 or so. I went this route a while back, with a VAIO that ended up around $2000 and all the features I could need, but in the end, I found that having a couple T2x and X2x with less than half the features, quickly become my everyday computer.