T41p or T43p?

[ashat]

I am considering to buy my third Thinkpad..

I already own a R40 and a T41p.
I like very much the T41p (2374-GGG) that I bought used about 5 months ago, it is very silent, cool, fast. And I got the Recovery cd-set from Lenovo for it. (Always really hard to know about the conditions of the original partitions from an unexperienced seller..)

Now I have to decide between another T41p (very same model 2374GGG) or a T43p 2669-CTO, which, according to the seller, cames with a DVD-RW, a faster wifi card, a smaller battery (not exceeding the case, 6 cell I guess), same video resolution SXGA+, (256mb vs 128mb video memory - is that possible?) same hdd capacity, than the T41p for about 70 Euros more.

I know about the GPU issue that may arise on the T41p.
But I really don't like noisy and hot laptops and fan always on.

Should I go for the T41p without esitation?
The idea is to use it as a backup/emergency pc and give the R40 to my parents.

Annalisa

[Beaver]

As I really want to have some good GPU in the Thinkpad I would take T43p with ATI card as it's more powerful. So my advise is to try the T43p live with the seller to check if the noise/heat level is too much or not

[sjthinkpader]

I have the T42p/PM745/FireGL T2 and T43p/PM750/V3200 with 15 inch UXGA. Both are very nice. The T43p is running Windows7b at the moment. The T42p is my daily driver and has an Atheros AR5007 11n miniPCI card.

[underclocker]

The T43p's are really fast, much faster than T41p's, but they absolutely roar! And once that fan starts, it generally doesn't stop until you shut down the machine.

And, if you ever thought the T41p's bottom (near the video chip) got warm, wait until you feel the burn from a T43p.

[killer]

My wife's T43p is a really great piece of kit, and doesn't overheat. I prefer my 15" screen but then I wear glasses to read and I find a 14.1" screen just a bit too small for my liking.
I hope this helps.

[sjthinkpader]

The T43p's are really fast, much faster than T41p's, but they absolutely roar! And once that fan starts, it generally doesn't stop until you shut down the machine.

And, if you ever thought the T41p's bottom (near the video chip) got warm, wait until you feel the burn from a T43p.

My T43p can work at less than 50 deg C most of the time while browsing the web. Key is to set the CPU power settings to Adaptive instead of Performance.

[ashat]

uhm..

actually hot and noise of fan really annoy me..
and maybe I don't need a lot of power.
anyway I am confused

What about taking into consideration the fact that having 2 exactly equal models of T41p could make sense in a long term perspective?

Annalisa

[dr_st]

In the long term perspective, owning a T41p makes no sense. To me these are just machines waiting to die from the GPU detachment issue.

A T43p is less likely to die from it. Even less likely - a 15" T43 or one of the later 15" T42.

T43's can be made pretty quiet with the fan control. Especially the 15" models. Come to think about, the 15" models on the T42/T43 have quite a few advantages over their 14" siblings: less hot, less noisy, less likely to die from GPU for whatever reason (probably better ventilation), thicker LCD lid, IPS screens. But of course, 14" is the standard for portability, so the 15" models were never as popular.

[ashat]

In the long term perspective, owning a T41p makes no sense. To me these are just machines waiting to die from the GPU detachment issue.

A T43p is less likely to die from it. Even less likely - a 15" T43 or one of the later 15" T42.

Is the GPU problem also affecting the T43s family? Or just restricted to some specific GPU?
I thought it was restricted to T40-T42.

This means one should go for T6X to be completely sure to avoid the GPU problem?

A.

[Beaver]

T60 is ultimate solution as it's provided with much better technology than T4x. I would like to own one, but my budget won't allow me

[underclocker]

My T43p can work at less than 50 deg C most of the time while browsing the web. Key is to set the CPU power settings to Adaptive instead of Performance.

Indeed, this is true, but 1) 50 degrees will have that fan kicking unless you're using fan control and 2) you don't need a T43p for browsing the web! (And, if you are using fan control, your leg will be burning from the uncooled CPU and GPU.)

You can browse the web all day and night on a T40/T41/T42 and the temp will stay under 40 degrees with the fan off. For complete silence, just add an inexpensive SSD (Transcend 32GB for < $100) and all you'll hear is your own typing!

T43p's are incredible machines, a lot of performance was crammed into the original T4x chassis, but they are hot and loud.

Is the GPU problem also affecting the T43s family? Or just restricted to some specific GPU? I thought it was restricted to T40-T42.

All T4x and R5x machines (among others) with ATI GPU's are subject to the problem.

[sjthinkpader]

...
Indeed, this is true, but 1) 50 degrees will have that fan kicking unless you're using fan control and 2) you don't need a T43p for browsing the web! (And, if you are using fan control, your leg will be burning from the uncooled CPU and GPU.)...

You are right. But I just love that UXGA LCD.

You can browse the web all day and night on a T40/T41/T42 and the temp will stay under 40 degrees with the fan off. For complete silence, just add an inexpensive SSD (Transcend 32GB for < $100) and all you'll hear is your own typing!..

I have one, but it is in a X30. It is my imdb machine while watching TV.

[underclocker]

You are right. But I just love that UXGA LCD.

That is funny. I have a friend that has two 2.26GHz 14" T43p's. I've heard him scream "My legs are on fire!" many times while using either of those T43p's, but he just loves those machines.

[ashat]

You can browse the web all day and night on a T40/T41/T42 and the temp will stay under 40 degrees with the fan off. For complete silence, just add an inexpensive SSD (Transcend 32GB for < $100) and all you'll hear is your own typing!

That's what I like of the T41p: the silence
The price of this one is 200 Euros (about 250$) with the docking station.
I seriuosly thinking to add this twin to my old one

A.