T43p The good, the bad and the ugly

[rocketman]

About a month ago I received my 14” T43p, it was one of the first to be shipped. Unfortunately it arrived with some glue like substance on several areas of the display so it had to be returned. When I called IBM (this was before the Lenovo switchover) to arrange for a replacement I was told it would take 3 weeks and I was also told to keep the unit until the replacement arrived. This gave me some time to get a handle on the T43p and to compare it to my 15” T42 (model 2379R9U).
First the form factor, to my surprise I really prefer the 14” form factor to the 15”. The 14” T42/43 truly hits the sweet spot between portability, size and weight. While I was using the T43p I never missed the extra display real estate of the T42 but there were times when using the T42 that I did miss the size and feeling of the 14” T43p. As for the quality of the display other than for the blobs of glue I was quite pleased with the 14” display, if it was not quite as bright and sharp as the 15” Flexview (both displays are SXGA+) it was just fine and I never missed the Flexview display when I was using the T43p.
I found the keyboard on the T43p superior to the 15” T42, it is much quieter and has better tactile feel. Now I know that my T42 has the Chinese keyboard and the T43p has the Thai keyboard so that might be the difference. As far as performance is concerned I never taxed the T43p so I can’t really give great perspective on the difference between the two, the T42 has the 1.8Ghz Dothan Processor and the T43p the 2.13Ghz Sonoma processor and both have 1gb of ram. Both also have the 9-cell battery so battery life is exemplary.
Up to now you’re probably thinking I prefer the T43p to the T42. That would be the case if it was not for the incessant fan noise and the noise from the 60gb 7200rpm hard drive, but it’s really the fan noise of the T43p that is it’s achilles heal. While on AC power the fan is on continuously and loud and sometimes sounds like it’s about to take off. It’s not as bad when running on battery power but the fan still comes on quite often. The beautiful part about the T42 is that it’s so quiet, even when the fan does come on there is a soft whoosh and then silence, the fan is practically imperceptible. The strange thing is that even though both the T42 and the T43p have the 60gb 7200rpm hard drive where the drive in the T42 is practically silent even when reading data the drive in the T43p makes quite a racket and I’m always aware of it. I wonder if the drive in the 15” T42 is more insulated due to the bigger case.
So in the end if I had my choice I would rather get a T42p but there are no 14” T42p’s available only the 15” T42p is still available. At least to me the fan noise of the T43p is bothersome but its other attributes are great. I’ve read reviews of other laptops using the 2.13Ghz Sonoma processor and some are said to be quiet, I wish that were the case with the T43p.

[Highline]

Glue on the display?

How the heck could that happen???!?!!!

[mlykke]

Im happy to see that your experience with the machines are the same as mine after testing them for several days.
As i also said in my other thread - The T43P is a GREAT machine if the fan where like on the T42P. Thats why my choice has been the T42P - But i dont understand why you think the 14" version is not available. Thats not true, i just bought one a few days ago. If it's because you cant find it on their webpage try calling them - There is ALOT of stuff not on the webpage at the moment but they still have it.

[danny_isr]

Consider buying the type of T43 I purchased (see signature). There's not much fan noise, and the 5400 RPM hard drive is silent. I didn't get the 7200 RPM hard drive so I can't comment on how the drives compare as far as noise.

The regular T43 has similar performance to the T43p, but generates less fan noise and costs less.

[emorphien]

think about t43 - maybe like mine 2ghz.
less fan noise , i dont hear the HD but i got the 5400 so i cannot comment on the 7200.
but you get good(similiar) performacne , cheaper , less fan noise.

in english?

[danny_isr]

think about t43 - maybe like mine 2ghz.
less fan noise , i dont hear the HD but i got the 5400 so i cannot comment on the 7200.
but you get good(similiar) performacne , cheaper , less fan noise.

in english?

???

[K. Eng]

Well, I was able to understand your post, but your grammar was abominable.

???

Brief translation:

Consider buying the type of T43 I purchased (see signature). There's not much fan noise, and the 5400 RPM hard drive is silent. I didn't get the 7200 RPM hard drive so I can't comment on how the drives compare as far as noise.

The regular T43 has similar performance to the T43p, but generates less fan noise and costs less.

[danny_isr]

Well, I was able to understand your post, but your grammar was abominable.

???

Brief translation:

Consider buying the type of T43 I purchased (see signature). There's not much fan noise, and the 5400 RPM hard drive is silent. I didn't get the 7200 RPM hard drive so I can't comment on how the drives compare as far as noise.

The regular T43 has similar performance to the T43p, but generates less fan noise and costs less.

hehe sorry about that , i just wrote few points . not full sentences
i guess i'm spending too much time here ....

i copied your translation , i hope i'm not violating copy rights here

[craigg]

I have the T43 and have used both the the 5400rpm and 7200rpm drive with no discernable difference in noise levels. As for the noise level of the fan, I have to say it is very quiet and barely audible in an ultra quiet environment. I am not sure if the comments I am reading are just nit picking or that some users have truly bad fans but as I sit here and type I notice that with my central air conditioning running that I can't even hear the laptop fan unless I put my ear up to the keyboard.

[K. Eng]

They are your ideas so you can use it as much as you want!

i copied your translation , i hope i'm not violating copy rights here

[danny_isr]

I have the T43 and have used both the the 5400rpm and 7200rpm drive with no discernable difference in noise levels. As for the noise level of the fan, I have to say it is very quiet and barely audible in an ultra quiet environment. I am not sure if the comments I am reading are just nit picking or that some users have truly bad fans but as I sit here and type I notice that with my central air conditioning running that I can't even hear the laptop fan unless I put my ear up to the keyboard.

and still people buying T42 because of the "noise issue" .
it's so easy to create such a rumor and it's so difficult to fix this.

[CoolDragon]

If the only bad thing about T43p to T42p is the fan noise, I think it is fine. Just a BIOS upgrade should fix that.

With regard to fan noise, T42x has this issue for a long time, just search the forum.

[rocketman]

Im happy to see that your experience with the machines are the same as mine after testing them for several days.
As i also said in my other thread - The T43P is a GREAT machine if the fan where like on the T42P. Thats why my choice has been the T42P - But i dont understand why you think the 14" version is not available. Thats not true, i just bought one a few days ago. If it's because you cant find it on their webpage try calling them - There is ALOT of stuff not on the webpage at the moment but they still have it.

Yes you're right, I called IBM today and got a quote for the T42p model 2373P1U. The last time I called about the T42p which was just before the T43 was released I was told the 14" T42p was discontinued. The strange thing is this T42p is priced higher than the top of the line 14" T43p 2668G2U by $100. Go figure..

[mlykke]

I dont think we are ment to understand IBM's prices. Where i bought my machine the T43P was the most expensive one by far, but some other places they are priced exactly the same.