Thinking about returning my T42 for a T43...

[Ninjak]

Hey everyone,

I'm the guy that asked about X40 vs T42 a few weeks ago. Anyway I bought the T42 and it's pretty nice. One thing is getting on my nerves though, and that's the 1024x768 resolution. I've used it for two days straight at work, and I'm always wishing I had more screen space in my code editor. I should have got the higher resolution screen so I'm thinking about returning the T42 and getting a T43 with the better screen. It's only been a week so I can return it without any charge I think. Just a few questions though:

1) For anyone who has a 14" screen + 1400x1050 resolution monitor, do you find that in high res things are "too small" or "just right"???

2) I know the T43 has worse battery life than the T42. How bad of a hit will I take moving from a 1.6GHz T42 to a 2.0 GHz T43?

3) Does the 1400x1050 screen consume more power than the 1024x768 screen? If so then what kind of battery life hit are we talking about??

Thanks for the help.

[Ninjak]

Ok heh I checked some old posts, I guess the T43 = laptop from h3ll so I'll probably stay away.

How about a T42 with 1400 x 1050 screen? I just priced one of those, not too much more than the one I have now. So now 2 questions left:

1) For anyone who has a 14" screen + 1400x1050 resolution monitor, do you find that in high res things are "too small" or "just right"???

2) Does the 1400x1050 screen consume more power than the 1024x768 screen? If so then what kind of battery life hit are we talking about??

Thanks a lot ppl, this forum rocks.

[Pren]

I have 14" 1400 X 1500 and while the text is a little small for my old eyes, a little playing with the settings and font sizes and I am pretty happy with it. Microsoft also has a little TT Font untility that makes the modified fonts somewhat sharper and easier to read. There is a link around here somewhere.

What I have found is that it is a very personal matter with regards to screen resolution. I would suggest you head to a Computer Store and view some laptops at different resolutions to get a feel for what is right for you .

Good Luck


Pren
_________________

[STS06]

I have a T42, 15" 1400x1050 resolution screen. Its quite nice actually. It was originally (guess in some ways still is) smaller text and etc. than I am used to but its great..easy to read (i have 20/20 vision) and quite a bit of space which I'm liking. In all, its a good investment. The T42 I have (2373N3U) is performing quite great right now. Personally, there wasn't enough reason to buy the T43 over the T42 which I see as a proven technology. I'm simply amazed with this comp...love it. Good luck!

[Wholesomer]

Ok heh I checked some old posts, I guess the T43 = laptop from h3ll so I'll probably stay away.

I don't really know how many T-43 series has been sold so far, but the complaint about them are just a handful. You can't even get one right a way, you have to wait for weeks or months because they are still in high demand. You can very much count how many people having the problems with them in this forum. AFAIK, people who are happy about them a less likely to post about it. People usually post whenever they have a problem. So judge for yourself and keep in mind that the majority of happy T-43 Users out there will out weight the negative you have read so far.

[Ninjak]

Ok heh I checked some old posts, I guess the T43 = laptop from h3ll so I'll probably stay away.

I don't really know how many T-43 series has been sold so far, but the complaint about them are just a handful. You can't even get one right a way, you have to wait for weeks or months because they are still in high demand. You can very much count how many people having the problems with them in this forum. AFAIK, people who are happy about them a less likely to post about it. People usually post whenever they have a problem. So judge for yourself and keep in mind that the majority of happy T-43 Users out there will out weight the negative you have read so far.

I hear what you're saying. But the T43 has worse battery life than the T42 right?? And 100% of users have that loud fan right??? Maybe I misread, please reply back. I can get a sweet deal on a T43 so that's what I'd prefer if there are really no issues.

[Wholesomer]

The T-43 series come with a new battery which has 10% more capacity to make up for the higher demand; therefore, it's a wash comparing them with the T-42's.

The fan noise? to each his own I guess. My fan noise is no differ than the fan noise on my friend's T42. Most of the problems you have read are about the fan noise, and you will probably notice by now that they came from a handful of Users. Mean while, the Majority of T-43 Users out there are happy with their TP's.

[Ninjak]

The T-43 series come with a new battery which has 10% more capacity to make up for the higher demand; therefore, it's a wash comparing them with the T-42's.

The fan noise? to each his own I guess. My fan noise is no differ than the fan noise on my friend's T42. Most of the problems you have read are about the fan noise, and you will probably notice by now that they came from a handful of Users. Mean while, the Majority of T-43 Users out there are happy with their TP's.

Ok thanks for the comments, I'll have to look at the T43 closer. There's a great deal for a 2GHz T43 on EPP.

[aamsel]

I agree.

Although my current choice would still be a T42, I have not found the fan noise to be excessive on the T43.

There will always be complaints and gripes about any product. You have to weigh the pros and cons and make the best decision you can with the information that is available to you.

Andrew
Austin, TX

The T-43 series come with a new battery which has 10% more capacity to make up for the higher demand; therefore, it's a wash comparing them with the T-42's.

The fan noise? to each his own I guess. My fan noise is no differ than the fan noise on my friend's T42. Most of the problems you have read are about the fan noise, and you will probably notice by now that they came from a handful of Users. Mean while, the Majority of T-43 Users out there are happy with their TP's.

[ddutta]

The fan noise also depends on the CPU load. Most of the time, your T42 CPU is probably runinng at 600Mhz! I have a T42 thats very quiet in Windows, but if I dont turn on the dynamic scaling in linux, the fan always makes an audible hum and blows warm air due to the 1600Mhz speed. My colleague at work bought a X32 and the fan seems to be on constantly.

My guess is that if you try to most laptops at their normal speeds, you will hear some fan noise especially with thin and light models. Of course if you take a huge dell, its a different issue: the huuuge body probably has several openings for air circulation.

Regarding your high res screen: I have had some similar doubts last month when I compared my XGA T42 with another SXGA models. The XGA seemed to have a better brightnessa nd the fonts seemed a little small. But the real estate is invaluable as it gives you an option to view more useless windows which dont need constant attention etc. I will probably go for a SXGA when I get another thinkpad (provided Lenovo doesnt sell Dell-ish models then!).

[aamsel]

Also, there are so many more pixels with the SXGA+ screen that the text looks so much better. Like it is smooth, instead of being made "out of dots" (which, of course, it is.) I am someone that has eyes better suited for the larger XGA fonts, but I make do with SXGA+ just because it looks so much better.

Andrew
Austin, TX

...Regarding your high res screen: I have had some similar doubts last month when I compared my XGA T42 with another SXGA models. The XGA seemed to have a better brightnessa nd the fonts seemed a little small. But the real estate is invaluable as it gives you an option to view more useless windows which dont need constant attention etc. I will probably go for a SXGA when I get another thinkpad (provided Lenovo doesnt sell Dell-ish models then!).

[syhead]

e-x-a-c-t-l-y

by the way: do you guys expect a big fall in LCD prices until december? I'm thinking about getting a 19 or 20" TFT LCD screen, but the high-res ones (1600x1200) are a little pricey right now...

Also, there are so many more pixels with the SXGA+ screen that the text looks so much better. Like it is smooth, instead of being made "out of dots" (which, of course, it is.) I am someone that has eyes better suited for the larger XGA fonts, but I make do with SXGA+ just because it looks so much better.

Andrew
Austin, TX

...Regarding your high res screen: I have had some similar doubts last month when I compared my XGA T42 with another SXGA models. The XGA seemed to have a better brightnessa nd the fonts seemed a little small. But the real estate is invaluable as it gives you an option to view more useless windows which dont need constant attention etc. I will probably go for a SXGA when I get another thinkpad (provided Lenovo doesnt sell Dell-ish models then!).

[Ninjak]

Thanks for the comments everyone, I've narrowed the choice down to two.

T43 with 1400x1050, x300 Radeon, 2GHz processor OR

T42 with 1400x1050, Radeon 7600, 1.7GHz processor

Price difference is about $300 more for the T43. But the T43 comes with 3 year warranty vs 1 for the T42 and a bigger hard disk.

Comments?? Can the Radeon 7600 handle the 1400x1050 screen okay?

[chipsicle]

I am in the same boat. I think i have finally made up my mind to get the t43. I think the better graphics, faster processor, and the additional warranty is worth the 300.00.

[pphilipko]

Thanks for the comments everyone, I've narrowed the choice down to two.

T43 with 1400x1050, x300 Radeon, 2GHz processor OR

T42 with 1400x1050, Radeon 7600, 1.7GHz processor

Price difference is about $300 more for the T43. But the T43 comes with 3 year warranty vs 1 for the T42 and a bigger hard disk.

Comments?? Can the Radeon 7600 handle the 1400x1050 screen okay?

I would get the T43. An I think you're mentioning the Radeon 7500. The X300 is far superior.
Also, a $300 price difference with an upgraded graphics processor, a .3 difference in processor speed, and the extra 2 years of warranty are WORTH it, in my opinion.

EDIT: Oops, sorry chipsicle.

[dvorak]

I think you meant 9600, I doubt they were offering one with 7500 to you, and AFAIK there are no R7500 with SXGA+ screens anyways, so it must be 9600.

The 9600 and X300 are more or less the same thing.

And an SXGA+ resolution with a 14.1" screen is definitely not too small, even with my awful -4 or worse eyes, I would even love if it would be UXGA :)

And regarding your dilemma, I'd take the T43, seems more bang for... dollar :)

[mysbca]

I think you meant 9600, I doubt they were offering one with 7500 to you, and AFAIK there are no R7500 with SXGA+ screens anyways, so it must be 9600.

Yes, there are SXGA+ with Radeon 7500, see 2373KFU, 2378R5U and 2379R5U.

Have you checked out one of the forum favorites, 2373M3U?
T42 - 1.8GHz, Radeon 9600, 14" SXGA+, 512MB RAM, 7200rpm 60GB HD, bluetooth, fingerprint reader, 3 year warranty. It recently had a $50 price drop.

[dvorak]

Well, there's not much difference in between a 1.8GHz T42 and 2.0GHz T43 in general (I mean performance wise), so it'll simply come down to money in the end.
T42's with a 3 year warranty (such as the M3U) should be rather cheap now.

Yes, there are SXGA+ with Radeon 7500, see 2373KFU, 2378R5U and 2379R5U.

Learning something every day, thanks :)

[ddutta]

The T42s are more expensive in general, Even the EPP prices are more than T43s with better specs.

[dokein]

The T42s are more expensive in general, Even the EPP prices are more than T43s with better specs.

Why is that?

[mysbca]

The T42s are more expensive in general, Even the EPP prices are more than T43s with better specs.

But less problems, , less fan noise and no 2010 error if you change to non-sanctioned harddrives.

Why is that?

I don't know, but I would guess volume and newer cheaper components. IBM doesn't seem to discount their older models that much, they just bring the newer models out at a lower price point.

[nrj45]

I have max 4h30 with my t43p.
1400x1050 is just fine on a 14''

[hoya]

I would go for the T43 2686M5U - it's one of the newer August T43's so it should be quieter (I certainly hope so considering I have one on order), and you get the 2.0 processor, fingerprint reader, DVD burner, etc.

I've also read some postings that more buyers are getting Hydis panels on the T43 14.1" SXGA+ models, which seems brighter and better overall.

as for 1400 x 1050 on a 14.1", it should be fine if you adjust the font sizes in windows. also, firefox does a nice job of scaling fonts (much better than IE), and you can use the Ctrl+ combination to increase the size of the fonts.

[STS06]

I say stick with a T42...get the newer models with a SXGA screen and you won't be dissapointed!

[ddutta]

If I order a CTO model 2687E9U (1.86) or 2687NEU, will they be quiet. I dont know when these were released.

[Ninjak]

How about 266876U??

ThinkPad T43 266876U
Customize
266876U $1,399.00 1 $1,399.00
Processor: Intel Pentium M Processor 760 (2GHz 2MB L2 Cache 533MHz FSB ) (Standard) 1
Operating system: Microsoft Windows XP Professional (Standard) 1
Display type: 14.1 inch SXGA+ (1400x1050) TFT Display (Standard) 1
Memory: ThinkPad 512MB PC2-4200 CL4 DDR2 SDRAM SODIMM (Standard) 1
Hard drive: 80GB 5400rpm EIDE ATA (Standard) 1
Optical device: ThinkPad 24X/24X/24X/8X Max CD-RW/DVD-ROM Combo V Ultrabay Slim Drive (Standard) 1
Integrated communication: Integrated Gigabit Ethernet and 56K V.92 designed modem (Standard) 1
Integrated WiFi wireless LAN: Bluetooth Wireless (Standard) 1
Battery: 6 Cell Lithium Ion Battery (Standard) 1



Is this one of the newer ones??

[STS06]

No to my knowledge the 266876U would be referred as an older model. The newer models are the ones released in August of this year.

[hoya]

2686M5U is one of the new August models and is reasonably priced at $1829 before any discounts (EPP price is around $1380)

check the TABOOK for some other new models:
http://www5.pc.ibm.com/us/me.nsf/Lenovo ... cntry=US-L

[bbkat]

2686M5U is one of the new August models and is reasonably priced at $1829 before any discounts (EPP price is around $1380)

Have you actually seen these on the EPP site or is that just an estimate? I've been watching for new models and haven't seen any yet.

[Ninjak]

2686M5U is one of the new August models and is reasonably priced at $1829 before any discounts (EPP price is around $1380)

Have you actually seen these on the EPP site or is that just an estimate? I've been watching for new models and haven't seen any yet.

Werd, I don't see that one on EPP. Is there a hidden link or something?