IBM Flexview vs Sony X-Black

Message

Ken · #1 Post by **Ken** » Fri May 28, 2004 1:58 pm

I'm looking to get a ThinkPad with a FlexView screen but I've never seen one in real life. I've seen various Sony X-Black screens, all of which look really vibrant and bright.

Does anyone know how the FlexView squares up against the X-Black? Comparisons?

Thanks,

K

cynic · #2 Post by **cynic** » Fri May 28, 2004 3:09 pm

X-Black/X-Brite is IPS technology (just like FlexView) I've seen X-Black on a Sony TR3 and it's pretty comparable to FlexView (I think FlexView is a bit better still in brightness and colour; but that may be due to the difference in screen-sizes compared)

Ken · #3 Post by **Ken** » Fri May 28, 2004 4:05 pm

Thanks - i'm now pretty certain what i'm after now

dclee012 · #4 Post by **dclee012** » Fri May 28, 2004 11:00 pm

you can also see your reflection on sony's xbrite. it's kind of annoying.

Ken · #5 Post by **Ken** » Sat May 29, 2004 4:51 am

dclee012 wrote:you can also see your reflection on sony's xbrite. it's kind of annoying.

I take it this isn't true of the Flexview?

cynic · #6 Post by **cynic** » Sat May 29, 2004 4:59 am

The FlexViews have kind of an anti-glare surface.

(IBM does think of most things... just like they changed the glossy surface of the area above the keyboard (where the Access IBM, Volume Keys, and Power button are located) after they realized it created a glare from the ThinkLight) Leave it to Japanese ergonomics...

dclee012 · #7 Post by **dclee012** » Sat May 29, 2004 9:34 am

some people get excited about the xbrite.. b/c it looks so seemingly crisp w/ that glass over the screen, kind of like a plasma screen. go to a local computer store to check it out.

personally, i dont care for it. it's gimmicky.. kind of like hockey puck mice and pastel color computers...

hausman · #8 Post by **hausman** » Sat May 29, 2004 10:09 am

cynic wrote:Leave it to Japanese ergonomics...

And SONY's ergonomics are...?

durjaya · #9 Post by **durjaya** » Sat May 29, 2004 10:24 pm

Yeah - the Sony screens have a 'glossy' finish which is just stunning when coupled with the high contrast Xbrite technology.

I owned a TR2 for a while (neat - but was quickly and happily replaced by a 12" PowerBook) - I never noticed the reflection problem on it all that much at all.

cynic · #10 Post by **cynic** » Sun May 30, 2004 12:21 am

hausman wrote:
cynic wrote:Leave it to Japanese ergonomics...
And SONY's ergonomics are...?

Ahh.. but IBM has whole divisions just devoted to ergonomics. Just look at Eliot Noyes and the Selectric typewriters and how that was brought to the thinkpad keyboards. Look at the scrollpoint which was a replacement for what everyone else was doing at the time (trackballs) and the study of how much productivity is gained by not moving your hands off of the home row.

Sony seems to be more about style over function sometimes (eg, the V505 having recessed USB ports which make some USB devices impossible to plugin or the X505 having the keyboard right at the front laptop edge... it would have been smarter to move the keyboard back and put the small form factor motherboard and hard drive in the front section to act as a palm rest)

Anyway, today, Sony's major design center happens to be in Southern California. Yamamoto is still the ThinkPad headquarters for IBM.

#11 Post by **aamsel** » Sun May 30, 2004 12:24 am

I really DON'T like the SONY XBrite because of the glare. I also don't like the Fujitsu screens (whatever they are called) with the similar "sheet of plastic" or "glassy" coating on them. I have only seen them at Best Buy, FRY's etc. where the lighting was bright, but I am quite sure that the glare would drive me nuts.
Can anyone truly reassure me that the Flexview is not like this at all, and that if I am in a room lit by fluorescents that I will not see that kind of glare?? Also, if I am sitting at one of the SONY's or Fujitsu's I can see myself in the screen, is the Flexview not like this?? Please tell me, I don't want to use a notebook screen for shaving, just computing!!
Thanks,
Andrew
Austin, TX

dclee012 · #12 Post by **dclee012** » Sun May 30, 2004 12:34 am

relax. there is no glare. get a thinkpad. the best thing you''ll ever do.

cynic · #13 Post by **cynic** » Sun May 30, 2004 12:58 am

aamsel wrote:I really DON'T like the SONY XBrite because of the glare. I also don't like the Fujitsu screens (whatever they are called) with the similar "sheet of plastic" or "glassy" coating on them. I have only seen them at Best Buy, FRY's etc. where the lighting was bright, but I am quite sure that the glare would drive me nuts.
Can anyone truly reassure me that the Flexview is not like this at all, and that if I am in a room lit by fluorescents that I will not see that kind of glare?? Also, if I am sitting at one of the SONY's or Fujitsu's I can see myself in the screen, is the Flexview not like this?? Please tell me, I don't want to use a notebook screen for shaving, just computing!!
Thanks,
Andrew
Austin, TX

Bill took a pic of his A31p sitting next to I believe a T or R series. The A31p has a FlexView screen... note the lack of glare at all. It's on his main page somewhere. Don't worry, there's no glare on the IBM FlexViews.

tyipengr · #14 Post by **tyipengr** » Sun May 30, 2004 2:34 am

Heh. If you want a truly honest answer to this question about the X-Brite vs Flexview don't ask here. Go ask at a non-partisan site.

I've has the same questions about the X-Brite and the glossy finish. In person it honestly looks good, much better than plain ol' anti-glare LCDs, but the glossy finish seems tinted which means it is going to look real dark outdoors.

cynic · #15 Post by **cynic** » Sun May 30, 2004 3:46 am

no such thing as a "non-partisan" site

#16 Post by **aamsel** » Sun May 30, 2004 11:36 am

I just wanted the opinions of people who have seen both (the SONY XBrite and the IBM Flexview) who would give me a fair comparison.
In addition to SONY and Fujitsu (which I consider truly WAY TOO reflective), I know that HP now offers a screen on the 17" zd7000 which is also too reflective. I didn't want to have to order a Thinkpad and send it back, and I have no way to see one before I order one, so that is why I am asking.
Andrew
Austin, TX

cynic · #17 Post by **cynic** » Sun May 30, 2004 12:36 pm

I don't think anyone needs to apologize for asking this question. I remember when I bought my recent thinkpad, I pretty much bought it on blind-faith in IBM becase (A)it's near impossible to find a local thinkpad dealer who keeps stock and even if they do, it's rarely high-end models and they don't keep display models and (B)I was ordering a new model that wasn't even scheduled to ship for over a month to anyone.

I'd prefer if anyone would have been able to answer my questions then.. luckily today there are plenty of T4x series owners.

I, also, just checked Bill's site and it seems he's taken down the picture of the A31p with FlexView. If he'd put it back up, you could see what it looks like (well, as much as you'd expect to see from a picture on the web-- but luckily it's not a touched-up photo) Bill?

What Sony and Fujitsu (and HP with the new 17") do is put a high-gloss screen layer to give it that "glass" impression. That has nothing to do with IPS technology.. it's just a shiny surface. The surface of an IBM FlexView is the exact same as any other of their LCD screens (so you can look at any T or even older models like a 600X, the screen surfaces are the same) In fact, there's a bonded anti-glare coating on the LCDs from IBM. On some older thinkpads that have been through some serious abuse, you can see near the edges, where it might have been chipped off, the screen looks a lot brighter. That's the only time you can tell there's actually a surface coating.

dperron · #18 Post by **dperron** » Sun May 30, 2004 2:54 pm

I've never seen any of those X-Brite screens... But all i can say is that the Flexview on my A31p is ultra-anti-glare.

xtypestereotype · #19 Post by **xtypestereotype** » Tue Jun 01, 2004 12:03 pm

cynic wrote:
hausman wrote:And SONY's ergonomics are...?
Ahh.. but IBM has whole divisions just devoted to ergonomics. Just look at Eliot Noyes and the Selectric typewriters and how that was brought to the thinkpad keyboards. Look at the scrollpoint which was a replacement for what everyone else was doing at the time (trackballs) and the study of how much productivity is gained by not moving your hands off of the home row.

Sony seems to be more about style over function sometimes (eg, the V505 having recessed USB ports which make some USB devices impossible to plugin or the X505 having the keyboard right at the front laptop edge... it would have been smarter to move the keyboard back and put the small form factor motherboard and hard drive in the front section to act as a palm rest)

Anyway, today, Sony's major design center happens to be in Southern California. Yamamoto is still the ThinkPad headquarters for IBM.

Yeah I've seen that X505 and I noticed the issue with keyboard
I couldnt believe myself actually as I thought it was almost unusable...
Sony is my favourite brand for most electronics but when it comes to laptop they've got it all wrong... Maybe a bit like Apple?

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