Need some help deciding...

[johnlusf]

Hey everyone.

I have been lurking in this forum for so long and finally am about to order me a thinkpad I have heard so much about. I have a couple of questions I hope can help me make the best decision on which model to get.
I've basically narrowed my choices down to two and will definitely opt for the T43.
The first model is a T43 2687D7U 1.86ghz/14.1/40g 5400/512ram w/o a fingerprint reader.
The second model is a T43 2686E7U 1.86ghz/14.1/60g 7200/512ram w/ a fingerprint reader.

The first model is about $140 cheaper. Which one is the best deal for my money?
The fingerprint reader might be useless (any opinions on this?) but I think it is a pretty nifty thing to have just cause it's an IBM.
Regarding the HD, what kind of 7200 RPM 60 gig hd comes pre-installed on TPs when you order them? I've heard about the E7K60 v 7K60 debate... which one does IBM use? How much cache does it have on the drive? Would it be better to just forget about the fingerprint reader, get the 5400 40g, save the $140 and get a Hitachi 7K60 HD upgrade later?

Thanks so much for all the info guys! Learn more here than I do in school.

[kaplanfx]

IBM uses the Hitachi 7K60.

-kaplanfx

P.S. I have both the fingerprint reader and the 7000 drive in my TP and I love em. Unless money is really tight I say go for the model with more features.

[th1nkpad]

Unless money is really tight I say go for the model with more features.

I second this!

If you plan on using your TP for a couple of years get a TP with wireless/bluetooth and FP reader, again this totally depends on your budget!!

[johnlusf]

Thanks to both of you for your comments!

The TP I have in mind doesn't have bluetooth altho I have read on this thread that swapping the CDC and the clearplate to certain models will make it bluetooth enabled.

As for the fingerprint reader - how useful have you found it to be? Is it just more of a novelty item?

8MB Cache on the 7K60 HD?

Thanks.

[gevaudan]

I have the 7200 rpm hard drive and fingerprint reader and believe me, it makes a huge difference coming from an old inspiron 4000 with a 5400 hard drive. If I was to do it all over again, I would pay $140 just for the 7200 rpm - period. I load a lot of memory intensive programs such as JBuilder, Photoshop, and various Macromedia Programs as well as run local development servers and the IBM still starts IE or Firefox in less than a second. Very impressive coming from the Dell.

The fingerprint reader is nice because if anyone ever steals your laptop, your files are completely protected, that is if you install a hard drive password and logon password. Yes, it's a novelty, but if you happen to have your laptop provided by Corporate America than I would think it nice that you can hardware+software encrypt any passwords that you enter on your system; this including your passwords for online banksites, etc.

[mdntridr]

WRT the fingerprint reader, I have found it to be more than a novelty. I use it and it is way easier than the old typing login procedure. IMO the ctrl-alt-del login procedure was always a drag because I'm constantly in a rush and mistyping my complicated password. Not any more!

--Greg--