T60 14.1" screen 1400x1050 vs 1024x768?

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xinhua · #1 Post by **xinhua** » Thu Jun 08, 2006 7:50 pm

I'm considering T60 14.1" 2623D4U. What I can't decide is whether to go for SXGA+ screen or the basic 1024x768?

Basic screen (1024x768):
+: easy on the eye ?
+: better battery life ?
+: less heat
-: scroll a lot

SXGA+ (1400x1050)
+: more screen real estate
+: better quality screen ?
-: shorter battery life
-: heavier ?

I'm having difficulty in finding a local store to see both of the screen types, so I'm relying on opinions from people in this forum. Please let me know your experience, especially on its impact on battery life. Is SXGA+ screen much nicer than the basic?

To share some of my experience: I have a T43p 15" at work. The screen is indeed awesome. But I wouldn't buy such one for carrying to coffee shops. It's a bit too heavy at 6.2lb. Therefore, for me, portability is important. So is the battery life.

viper11885 · #2 Post by **viper11885** » Thu Jun 08, 2006 10:12 pm

I have the XGA screen on my T60. Before, I had a Dell with the SXGA screen.

Overall, I prefer to have the SXGA screen primarly because there is more desktop space and better quality (in terms of colors, etc...). When working with many programs at any one time, it is so convenient to have that extra space to use.

The screen size is the same, only different resolutions. I am not sure about the battery life comparison. On my T60, I can get about 5 hours and 15 min on the lightest performance settings.

Army Chief · #3 Post by **Army Chief** » Fri Jun 09, 2006 12:26 am

I also much prefer the SXGA+ screen, regardless of whether we're talking about the 14.1" or 15" panel. Lower resolutions limit your options, and prove more difficult to work with when doing certain tasks where you need to be able to see more than one window at a time.

I've never been a fan of 1600 x 1200 on a notebook computer, but SXGA+ has always struck me as an ideal compromise, and I'm on my third ThinkPad with this screen configuration. I find it strange, however, that outside of IBM/Lenovo, you almost never see SXGA+ equipped notebooks on the market. To me, SXGA+ and the TrackPoint are among the ThinkPad's greatest strengths.

Chief

astro · #4 Post by **astro** » Fri Jun 09, 2006 1:07 am

Army Chief wrote:I find it strange, however, that outside of IBM/Lenovo, you almost never see SXGA+ equipped notebooks on the market. To me, SXGA+ and the TrackPoint are among the ThinkPad's greatest strengths.

Absolutely.
That's why I have a T60 instead of a MacBook.

christopher_wolf · #5 Post by **christopher_wolf** » Fri Jun 09, 2006 1:34 am

Army Chief wrote:I also much prefer the SXGA+ screen, regardless of whether we're talking about the 14.1" or 15" panel. Lower resolutions limit your options, and prove more difficult to work with when doing certain tasks where you need to be able to see more than one window at a time.

I've never been a fan of 1600 x 1200 on a notebook computer, but SXGA+ has always struck me as an ideal compromise, and I'm on my third ThinkPad with this screen configuration. I find it strange, however, that outside of IBM/Lenovo, you almost never see SXGA+ equipped notebooks on the market. To me, SXGA+ and the TrackPoint are among the ThinkPad's greatest strengths.

Chief

Yes, indeed; SXGA+ is a good balance of resolution within a given size and clarity.

Cassirer · #6 Post by **Cassirer** » Fri Jun 09, 2006 1:37 am

I mostly read and write on the T60 ... the SXGA+ (1400x1050) takes a few days to get accustomed to, but once you have it is nice ... I have turned the brightness down a bit finding it better for the eyes after a few hours ... don't notice much heat on the machine at all ... it runs the whole day and nothing really to talk about .... battery life ... well full out 3.5 hours is fine with a 6 cell ... get the 9 cell and you are well over 4 hours ... add an Advanced Ultrabay Battery and you have lots of time ...

have fun

squashball · #7 Post by **squashball** » Fri Jun 09, 2006 2:12 am

no doubt: SXGA+!

jagged · #8 Post by **jagged** » Fri Jun 09, 2006 7:02 am

My current T60 has XGA and my wife will be taking over soon. I don't really have any major problems with the screen although I wish I scrolled less a bit (especially horizontally on some websites).

I have a T60 with SXGA+ coming soon (2623D6U) and hopefully, it will be a better experience overall.

foodle · #9 Post by **foodle** » Fri Jun 09, 2006 10:14 am

I would go with the SXGA+. It's largely a personal decision, but for the way I like to work, XGA on a 14" screen is just too few pixels for the physical real estate that a 14" screen takes up. I've got a laptop (Toshiba M200) that uses a 12" SXGA+ screen and like that just fine.

SteveGT · #10 Post by **SteveGT** » Fri Jun 09, 2006 12:28 pm

I just received my T60 with XGA display two days ago, and am happy I went with it. I found I was always putzing with my T21, which had the higher rez display, but it has taken me no time whatever to get used to my new notebook.

As a software developer, my major concern was how I was going to deal with the loss in screen real estate. The fact of the matter is it's easy enough to switch active windows, and as a bonus I end up with less eyestrain. I do not miss the 376x282 difference in pixels so far.

My only gripe is the lcd could be a bit brighter, but it's better than the T21.

xinhua · #11 Post by **xinhua** » Sun Jun 11, 2006 5:43 pm

I've decided to go with SXGA+ configuration. Thanks to everyone for helping me make up my mind.

As an engineer, I tend to take a minimalism approach, i.e. adding only those features that I'll actually use. It looks that there are enough people who find 1400x1050 appealing, so I want to retain this flexibility. I'm also a bit adventurous, and love to try something new. I've never had a screen of this resolution, so it looks a good time to give it a try.

I also find the Trackpoint to be a gem of Thinkpad, so I think my taste is in line with a few folks in this forum. I'm putting in an online order right now. Given my past experience with Thinkpads, I think I'll be happy with it either way. Thanks for the help. Now, it's my turn to contribute to this community.

#12 Post by **archer6** » Sun Jun 11, 2006 8:49 pm

SteveGT wrote:I just received my T60 with XGA display two days ago, and am happy I went with it. I found I was always putzing with my T21, which had the higher rez display, but it has taken me no time whatever to get used to my new notebook.

I just noticed this is your first post, Welcome to the forum...

I'm happy to hear that you are enjoying your new ThinkPad. After many years with this brand, I too am a very happy user.

Regards,
Archer6

jagged · #13 Post by **jagged** » Wed Jun 14, 2006 2:42 am

I finally received my first SXGA+ Thinkpad (2623D6U) yesterday so now I have something for comparison.

I've had mostly XGA's (12-14") and a WXGA before. For this T60, I changed the font size to "large" (from the XP display options) and so far, I'm adjusting quite well. I think it will take a few more days before I get used to the new screen so I'm not very worried.

Actually, since I wasnt able to finish setting up my new computer, this morning, I felt that XGA text looked too big on my older T60.

But for the long run, I'm almost sure that I will like SXGA+ more because of the extra screen real estate far outweighs the initial disadvantages of small text size. 1280x768 would have been a good compromise but widescreen PC's (especially 15" models) looks a bit too bulky for me when carrying it around everyday.

I wonder how come SXGA+ seems unpopular in Asia though as only Asus offers SXGAs here (and thats on their 15" models only).

Btw, are there different keyboard suppliers for T60's? I notice that my older T60 (20074UH) seems to have a sturdier keyboard "feel" compared to the new one (2623D6U). Or maybe my mind is just playing tricks on me and I have to observe further hehehe

cubswin312 · #14 Post by **cubswin312** » Wed Jun 14, 2006 5:05 am

Again to reiterate the statements of others, choosing a screen resolution is definitely a personal preference, but the following is my opinion on the matter.

When I decided to purchase my T60, I also had to decide between getting a 1024x768 XGA display and getting a 1400x1050 SXGA display. In the end, I got the SXGA pretty much because the 2623-D7U was on sale for ~$400 off, and I will say that I definitely made the right choice. Comparing my SXGA display to my XGA display on my old R31, I find it amazing that I could ever get work done on the XGA display. The SXGA simply displays more content and lets you multi-task much better (therefore a nice complement to a Core Duo based system).

Two words of caution though in getting an SXGA system. 1) When you first use the system, you might think that a few things are out of proportion. For example, I had to change the font size from normal to large in order to get the size that I was used to from my XGA screen. 2) I personally wear glasses and am fine with the SXGA, but others with not-so-great eyesight might feel strained (I know people who say that 1024x768 is the highest resolution they feel comfortable with).

To those considering a new T60, I would definitely choose the 14" over the 15". After reading around the web, it seems to me that the 14" is a bit more sturdy than the 15", and I know that anything larger than a 14" is kinda hard to fit on an airline tray table (believe me, I know people with old 15.1" widescreen Titanium Powerbooks that have a tough time fitting their laptops into coach class).

#15 Post by **archer6** » Wed Jun 14, 2006 11:40 am

cubswin312 wrote:Again to reiterate the statements of others, choosing a screen resolution is definitely a personal preference,

I agree completely, it's a personal preference.

SteveGT wrote:I just received my T60 with XGA display two days ago, and am happy I went with it. I found I was always putzing with my T21, which had the higher rez display, but it has taken me no time whatever to get used to my new notebook.

Here is the key as SteveGT says "it has taken me no time to get used to my new notebook ". I believe that "having to adjust" to a display is a sign that it's not a natural fit. A perfect example is this one: I'm sitting here writing this in a little window looking at text that's about a 7 font size because I'm working on my T60 SXGA+. If I was doing this same task with an XGA display the text would be much larger and easier to read. Now multiply the number of times each day that I work in small windows like this and you can see that even with my 20/20 vision eye strain is bound to occur.

Does this mean that I do not like this 1400x1050 display, absolutely not! It has many features and benefits which is why I chose this configuration for my T60. When not on the web, it's really great for other work. Under that environment the extra scree real estate is priceless. Having the resources, I purhased the Z60m with WXGA to enjoy the larger fonts when working in these circumstances on the web. So what is my point here? If I were to be limited to just one laptop, the screen resolution issue would be a very difficult decision. Each has it's advantages and to a certain degree it's an apples vs. oranges type of thing. Especially since there is such a big difference between XGA, SXGA+ and UXGA.

So, in the final analysis, I enjoy the fact that we have this forum to share ideas, information and opinions. The various viewpoints and posts here are very beneficial to all of us.

Happy decision making...

SteveGT · #16 Post by **SteveGT** » Wed Jun 14, 2006 12:41 pm

archer6 wrote:So, in the final analysis, I enjoy the fact that we have this forum to share ideas, information and opinions. The various viewpoints and posts here are very beneficial to all of us.

That's why there's vanilla, chocolate and strawberry.

I was about to pull the trigger on the higher resolution display, but thanks to feedback I heard in this and other forums I found the balance that worked for me.

Funny that you mention the Z60m, as I'll have to agree WXGA display would have been a good compromise, but dang it the T series form factor has just the right feel to it for me.

stephan54 · #17 Post by **stephan54** » Wed Jun 14, 2006 3:09 pm

I bought a 14 and a 15 inch T60, both with SXGA+ (1400x1050),
coming from an Acer even the 14 inch one is a great improvement, but tbe 15 inch flexview is even better. Worth the extra 300 gramms. To be honest the 14 inch will be my son's university laptop, the 15 inch will stay at home except for the holidays.
Stephan

jagged · #18 Post by **jagged** » Wed Jun 14, 2006 11:11 pm

SteveGT wrote:
archer6 wrote:So, in the final analysis, I enjoy the fact that we have this forum to share ideas, information and opinions. The various viewpoints and posts here are very beneficial to all of us.
That's why there's vanilla, chocolate and strawberry.

I was about to pull the trigger on the higher resolution display, but thanks to feedback I heard in this and other forums I found the balance that worked for me.

Funny that you mention the Z60m, as I'll have to agree WXGA display would have been a good compromise, but dang it the T series form factor has just the right feel to it for me.

True true! Now having experiences with XGA, WXGA, and SXGA+, I would say that WXGA offers the best flexibility since text is not too big, not too small, plus you don't have to scroll sideways too much.

To bad Lenovo only offers the Z61t with Intel 950 video cuz I would have considered it

rvacha · #19 Post by **rvacha** » Thu Jun 15, 2006 6:43 am

Another opinion... I've been using notebooks since the mid-80s. All of the early ones were 1024x768, most of the recent ones were 1400x1050, and the one I use currently is a 1024x768 X41T (because there was no choice). 1024x768 is not very Windows friendly IMHO. Its hard to put windows side by side (or even overlapped) and a real pain to drag & drop, which I tend to have to do a lot. For me the extra desktop is more important than the added eye strain and I've seen virtually no difference in the battery run times between the two. Run time is more a function of the physical size of the LCD than it is the number of pixels since the size determines just how much light needs to be generated to illuminate the screen. Historically backlighting has accounted for 50% of a notebook's power consumption. I also use my notebooks differently in different situations. On the road I'm more concerned about run time, drag & drop, and processing documents and E-mails. In the office I do much more intensive engineering work where I need all the processor horsepower and display area I can get. So in the office I run and external 23" 1600x1200 LCD monitor. For me 1400x1050 in a 14.1" form factor on the road and an external large monitor in the office is the perfect combo. Even though I knew this, when I purchased my X41T my thought was the added benefits of a tablet would offset the limited desktop area. I was wrong. I've barely owned my tablet for 6 months and I cannot wait to get my T60

xinhua · #20 Post by **xinhua** » Sat Jun 17, 2006 1:51 am

cubswin312 wrote: To those considering a new T60, I would definitely choose the 14" over the 15". After reading around the web, it seems to me that the 14" is a bit more sturdy than the 15", and I know that anything larger than a 14" is kinda hard to fit on an airline tray table (believe me, I know people with old 15.1" widescreen Titanium Powerbooks that have a tough time fitting their laptops into coach class).

I'd like to echo this sentiment based on my personal experience. I have a 15" T43p with a 9-cell battery (which you'll need for the larger screen) from work. Unless you will only be moving the laptop from one desk to another once in a while, the 15" form factor is just too cumbersome for carrying around. My wrist hurts after holding it for a few minutes when I sit on a couch or in bed. I personally wouldn't choose a 15" model for my level of mobility needs. I find T42 6-cell model is the right weight for me. It looks that the T60 6-cell model is slightly heavier.

xinhua · #21 Post by **xinhua** » Sat Jun 17, 2006 2:12 am

rvacha wrote:For me the extra desktop is more important than the added eye strain and I've seen virtually no difference in the battery run times between the two. Run time is more a function of the physical size of the LCD than it is the number of pixels since the size determines just how much light needs to be generated to illuminate the screen. Historically backlighting has accounted for 50% of a notebook's power consumption.

I would be glad to hear that the higher resolution screen doesn't shorten battery life. Your assertion that the backlighting consumes most of the power sounds right to me too. However, the T60 tech spec seems to indicate that the 6-cell battery life is up to 6 hours for integrated graphics models (which I believe is what 1024x768 model uses) and 4.3 hours for discrete graphics models (which I assume is what 1400x1050 model uses). I'm quite surprised that the graphic cards make such a big difference.

On the other hand, I'd be happy if I can get about 3 hours battery life from a 6-cell for my usage (typically surfing over WiFi or editing documents). I'd be a bit annoyed if it goes down to less than 2 hours on a ful charge.

xinhua · #22 Post by **xinhua** » Mon Jan 08, 2007 6:25 pm

I went for the T60 with 14.1" (1400x1050) screen. I've owned it for about 6 months now, and I am very happy with the choice. The default font setting that comes with this laptop is not too small and easy on the eyes, so you shall keep it. Though I have a 15" screen with IPS at work, I don't seem to miss it at all.

Besides, I'm getting about 3 hours of use on a full charge. I'm typically using WiFi the whole time.

Happy New Year and happy thinkpading!

harout · #23 Post by **harout** » Mon Jan 08, 2007 7:40 pm

I personally bought my T60p for one purpose: schematic drafting. As such, I bought the UXGA display. I bought my machine to do work on, not watch DVDs, so wide screen is waaayyyy out of the question. I personally cannot stand wide screen, much less the glossy stuff. As I have said before in other places, I want to see my programs, not myself! I'll use a webcam, thank you!!

Since they don't sell those (UXGA) anymore, I had to ebay it. It's not quite as good a 2x QXGA desktop, but... what can you do!

I'm really enjoying it and if I ever feel like I'm straining my eyes, I turn on font AA (AKA "Truetype") and boost the font size to 140% in the control panel to yeild 134 ppi. Unless I calculate wrong, the screen is 133 ppi, so it works out quite well (one day I'll put a ruler next to the screen

). At that size, on this resolution, it is VERY readable. Then turn it back down to draft! I've always likes high-res displays, though. I just hope that Lenovo will have QXGA laptops in the years to come. Not some W[*]*GA display!

Some of you are reporting run times in the 3 hrs+ range?! I'm getting less than 2 on my 9-cell with the laptop in maximum-battery mode! Just wifi on browsing the web. No java apps or anything CPU intensive. The batter only had 20 charge cycles on it.

dickeywang · #24 Post by **dickeywang** » Tue Jan 09, 2007 1:14 am

Maybe a bit off topic, but my 200766U(14" SXGA+)'s 6-cell battery never lasts for more than 2.5 hours.

pianowizard · #25 Post by **pianowizard** » Tue Jan 09, 2007 4:50 am

rvacha wrote:Another opinion... I've been using notebooks since the mid-80s. All of the early ones were 1024x768

They were more likely 640x480. 1024x768 ones were not available until the mid 1990s.

Growly · #26 Post by **Growly** » Tue Jan 09, 2007 3:29 pm

I'm still kicking myself for missing out on the UXGA screens - but I will not buy second hand (again) and can say this thread has made me feel much better about buying a SXGA+ screen.

Thanks guys

girish_g_rao · #27 Post by **girish_g_rao** » Tue Jan 09, 2007 11:40 pm

I own a T60 with a XGA LCD 1024x768.
So far no issues, again as many have pointed out it is every individual's choice and I needed a Laptop for work purpose and I am pretty happy with this Screen

Offcourse it is not as glossy or as bright as other screens but it does it job

Cheers
Girish

rmendoza · #28 Post by **rmendoza** » Wed Jan 10, 2007 12:11 am

I had a Dell 600m with the exact same size screen as my T60. The Dell has the XGA screen, whereas the T60 has the sxga+. I must say that the first day or two it was odd, but I now prefer the higher resolution. My wife has the Dell now, and when I look at it I find it odd, and low on resolution of course

seeplus · #29 Post by **seeplus** » Wed Jan 10, 2007 3:23 am

I'm still kicking myself for missing out on the UXGA screens - but I will not buy second hand (again) and can say this thread has made me feel much better about buying a SXGA+ screen.

I felt the same way, but after using this 15" flexview sxga+ for a few weeks, I think it's the nicest laptop screen I've seen to date.

T60 14.1" screen 1400x1050 vs 1024x768?

T60 14.1" screen 1400x1050 vs 1024x768?

for what is worth

Thanks to all for sharing your experience

XGA vs SXGA and more...

On battery life

Just to close the loop

XGA screen

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