Thinkpads Forum

This is my first post. I have read everything on T61s and am still fairly confused as to what would be best for me.

Here's my situation: I need a new laptop for work. I am a standard business user, very heavy Office (especially PowerPoint and Outlook) and Internet usage, some Acrobat usage and the occasionaly movie on a trip. I do LOTS of traveling, including international. I don't use the laptop for any games. I don't like having a separate monitor in the office, so the laptop on a docking station will be how i will use it in the office.

My priorities are in this order: best performance (for my needs as described above), weight, battery power and then price. In fact, price is not an issue so let's ignore that as a criteria. I understand that various options have tradeoffs in terms of performance, weight and battery life and am trying to decide what's best for me.

here are some specific questions:

1. Screen size: I think 14.1 WS is my best option to keep the weight down? But is that size enough for it to be my primary screen in the office? I currently have a 15.4 WS laptop (Dell Latitude D800) and like its screen. does a larger screen use more power?

2. GPU: should I go with the integrated graphics or the dedicated 128MB card or wait for the 256MB card? I have read on these forums that people can;t wait for the T61 to come out with the 256MB card. But do i really need it to do what i described above? How much am i sacrificing in terms of weight, if any, and power consumption? Is there a negative to having too much GPU horsepower if i don;t use/need it?

3. Processor: based on what i have read, i will definitely get at least the T7300 to get the 4MBL2. but since price is not a factor, should i go with the T7500? Is there a sacrifice in terms of power usage or weight?

4. OS: My company has no particular policy on what OS to use. Should i go with Vista Business or XP? I currently have XP on the Dell. Does Vista use more battery power? If Vista should i get the 64-bit version (btw, why isn't that a choice on the T61 anymore?).

5. Display type: This one is really confusing. I currently have 1280 x 800 and am happy with it. I don;t want the screen icons and text to be too small and have read that using non-native resolution is not good. So should i get the WXGA or the WXGA+? Is there a difference in terms of power or performance or weight?

6. Camera: Should i get the camera, i don;t see any scenario where i would need one though, but price is not a factor so should i just get it? is there a difference in power, performance or weight?

7. Memory: again, price is not an issue so is bigger always better? Should i get the 4GB or 3GB or 2GB? Is there a difference in power usage or weight depending on the choice?

8. Fingerprint reader: this seems like a good option, but is there a difference in performance, power or weight?

9. Hard drive: here i think my best choice is the 100GB, 7200rpm. correct?

10. Intel Turbo Memory or WWAN: This is a tough choice. I mainly use my Cingular Treo for emails usless i am in the office or at home or at a hotel, i.e. places with internet access. so i don;t think i'll get the WWAN service activated but i am not so sure. Is the Turbo memory worth it to give up the possibility of having a WWAN subscription (i hate the big cards they sell now). Does the Turbo memory use too much power or add to weight?

11. Optical Drive: here i think my best choice is the DVD recordable. I am assuming that any choice uses same amount of power and has same weight, is that correct?

12. Expansion slots: no idea what i should get. I am thinking about buying an Infiniti G35 that has some kind of card reader. can;t figure out if that's a Express, Media or Smart card?
I assume that no difference in performance, weight or power consumption?

13. Wireless cards: I use wireless access a lot when i travel so want the most sensitive card. what are the differences in terms of performance, weight and power consumption?

14. Integrated Bluetooth: this one seems like a no-brainer to get, assuming no differenc ein performance, weight or power consumption?

15. Battery: this is another tough one as it directly impacts two of my primary criteria, weight and power. I'd like to be able to get the 4-cell battery which is light and sits flush with the laptop. maybe i can travel with a bay battery to extend the power but then i have to travel around with the optical drive? How much weight and size do the 6-cell and 7-cell add?

16. Docking station: should i get the advanced dock? can it have an independent hard drive that i can use to backup my laptop hard-drive before every trip? that will be very nice! what's an ultrabay storage device which is listed an an option?

17. Combo adaptor: i'd use this on planes and hotels. does this only come as a 90W or also as a 65W version? I have read that the integrated graphics come with a 65W power adaptor which is lighter but not sure about the combo adaptor.

I know this is a lot to digest but as you can guess, i can;t decide on my own and need expert help. Once again, the order of my priorities is best performance (for my needs), weight and power consumption. Price is not an issue.

Thanks much.

Iceman

Welcome to the forum!

iceman2007 wrote:1. Screen size: I think 14.1 WS is my best option to keep the weight down? But is that size enough for it to be my primary screen in the office? I currently have a 15.4 WS laptop (Dell Latitude D800) and like its screen. does a larger screen use more power?

Yes, in terms of both weight and power consumption, 14.1" WS is much better than 15.4" WS. Whether a screen size is enough doesn't depend on physical dimensions per se, but instead on the number of pixels, i.e. real estate. So, your Dell has 1280x800? A 14.1" WS with 1280x800 would give you the exact same real estate.

iceman2007 wrote:4. OS: My company has no particular policy on what OS to use. Should i go with Vista Business or XP? I currently have XP on the Dell. Does Vista use more battery power?

Vista uses more battery power, and is slower than XP in many situations -- someone was just complaining about that in another thread. Because you're most concerned about performance, you should get XP.

iceman2007 wrote:5. Display type: This one is really confusing. I currently have 1280 x 800 and am happy with it. I don;t want the screen icons and text to be too small and have read that using non-native resolution is not good. So should i get the WXGA or the WXGA+? Is there a difference in terms of power or performance or weight?

I am crazy about resolution so I would get the WXGA+ (in fact, even that would be too low for me), but it's true that things will look quite small. And higher-res screens do tend to be slightly heavier and consume more power.

iceman2007 wrote:7. Memory: again, price is not an issue so is bigger always better? Should i get the 4GB or 3GB or 2GB? Is there a difference in power usage or weight depending on the choice?

Regardless of the capacity, each notebook memory module weighs approximately 0.015 lbs. Neglible difference in power usage between the sizes you're considering. So, the more memory the better. Most people want to save money and get as little memory as possible from lenovo.com, and then get much cheaper (but still good) modules from Newegg.com. But since money isn't a concern for you, you should just go ahead get 3GB (for XP) or 4GB (for Vista) when you order this Thinkpad.

iceman2007 wrote:9. Hard drive: here i think my best choice is the 100GB, 7200rpm. correct?

To maximize performance, yes.

2.
Depends on your need, I would personally recommend a dedicated card, but if you really need battery time go with the integrated.

4.
I've been using vista on my t60 since January, and I have had no problem with the time it gets from the battery, it's very close, if not the same as in xp.

7.
I would say that 2GB(2x1GB) is a sweet spot at the moment in my opinion, I don't know if the T61 support more than 3GB, but if it does youl need a 64-bit version of windows to utilise the extra memory.

8.
I find it very convenient to use the fingerprint reader to log on with, fast and esay(unless you have very dry fingers).

14.
Geet it you can always turn it off when you don't use it.

iceman2007 wrote: 1. Screen size: I think 14.1 WS is my best option to keep the weight down? But is that size enough for it to be my primary screen in the office? I currently have a 15.4 WS laptop (Dell Latitude D800) and like its screen. does a larger screen use more power?

My laptop, which I've been using for just under two years, is a 15.4" WSXGA+ (1680x1050), so I'm more than used to the 15.4" WS edition. However, as I type this on my mother's laptop (home for the summer), the 14.1" WXGA+ (1400x900) is not at all difficult to get used to. In fact, I'd say I would really have a hard time picking one or the other, although I went with the 14.1" on my future T61 for the decreased weight.

2. GPU: should I go with the integrated graphics or the dedicated 128MB card or wait for the 256MB card? I have read on these forums that people can;t wait for the T61 to come out with the 256MB card. But do i really need it to do what i described above? How much am i sacrificing in terms of weight, if any, and power consumption? Is there a negative to having too much GPU horsepower if i don;t use/need it?

Since you've already stated you don't plan on gaming, go with integrated. Graphics are not really an issue for what you want to do with it, and the increased battery life AND decreased temperature you'll get with the integrated solution are definitely the best tradeoff. Go with integrated.

3. Processor: based on what i have read, i will definitely get at least the T7300 to get the 4MBL2. but since price is not a factor, should i go with the T7500? Is there a sacrifice in terms of power usage or weight?

Depends how much of an issue price is. With the original P-M (single core), going from one to the next level was not very justifiable. If you have the money though, I'd recommend the 2.2ghz, since it seems to be the best price-to-speed ratio. Going for the 2.4ghz model is a huge jump in price. As far as power usage, the faster the processor, the more power it will consume per-say; like somebody mentioned above, however, because it is faster, it will finish tasks faster, which means it will consume less power at once.

4. OS: My company has no particular policy on what OS to use. Should i go with Vista Business or XP? I currently have XP on the Dell. Does Vista use more battery power? If Vista should i get the 64-bit version (btw, why isn't that a choice on the T61 anymore?).

I'm going to go with what is solely my OPINION here. Having used Vista Ultimate on my own laptop, as well as Vista Business on a friend's T60p, I can honestly say that I prefer Windows XP. Its my firm belief that XP has reached the point where it is at its most stable, has drivers for anything and everything, and is generally faster than Vista. However, since I have the OEM XP CD that came with my current laptop, I decided to just go with Business on MY T61; afterall, if I'm unhappy, I can just overwrite the installation with my XP CD, then restore Vista if I decide its worthy.

As far as the 64-bit problems... I would say yes, but I can't vouch for the performance benefits or tradeoffs.

5. Display type: This one is really confusing. I currently have 1280 x 800 and am happy with it. I don;t want the screen icons and text to be too small and have read that using non-native resolution is not good. So should i get the WXGA or the WXGA+? Is there a difference in terms of power or performance or weight?

Again, just to mirror what someone mentioned above, higher resolution = more pixels = more power. It sounds like you need to try out a laptop with WXGA, and another wiht WXGA+, and decide which one you like most. Also remember that you can decrease the resolution if you decide its too small.

6. Camera: Should i get the camera, i don;t see any scenario where i would need one though, but price is not a factor so should i just get it? is there a difference in power, performance or weight?

As a largely academic user, I would say no, but in the office, it sounds like video is the new voice. Personally, I think its just part of Lenovo's attempt to make the laptop more mainstream, but look at it this way... getting a USB/Firewire webcam isn't too expensive.

7. Memory: again, price is not an issue so is bigger always better? Should i get the 4GB or 3GB or 2GB? Is there a difference in power usage or weight depending on the choice?

My sweet spot has always been 2GB, but that's just a preference. More RAM means more memory to power, but if you notice a difference in battery life, I'd be surprised.

10. Intel Turbo Memory or WWAN: This is a tough choice. I mainly use my Cingular Treo for emails usless i am in the office or at home or at a hotel, i.e. places with internet access. so i don;t think i'll get the WWAN service activated but i am not so sure. Is the Turbo memory worth it to give up the possibility of having a WWAN subscription (i hate the big cards they sell now). Does the Turbo memory use too much power or add to weight?

I have heard nothing but bad things about the Turbo Memory, from it either making no impact on speed, or from it actually SLOWING things down. I would look up some performance benchmarks to decide for yourself.

16. Docking station: should i get the advanced dock? can it have an independent hard drive that i can use to backup my laptop hard-drive before every trip? that will be very nice! what's an ultrabay storage device which is listed an an option?

Kind of avoiding the quest here, but if you want extra storage, why not go for an external hard drive? The Advanced Dock is not exactly cheap, and unless you know you're going to be using it (you only mentioned another hard drive), it might be more beneficial to pick up an external enclosure. They're fairly cheap nowadays--certainly cheaper than going for the full dock.

I hope this helps!

any other comments/opinions? should i post more specific questions?

I haven't heard anything bad about Turbo Memory. I don't see how it could possibly slow things down. And even if so, surely the drivers need a little time to mature. It'll be interesting to see how Linux uses this technology.

In order to get the turbo memory option, one has to give up the WWAN slot. I have a question about the WWAN slot. Can it be used to run gsm sim cards or is it a totally different spec?

17. Combo Adaptor.

I got this for my T60, and I REALLY like it. Its about 20% bigger than the regular adaptor, but it comes with a built in DC charger port to hook up to airplanes/cars. Charging times are the same as the regular 90W adaptor, havent really had to charge up the laptop in the car though.

I only have a few gripes with it. 1) For the $100 or so, I would hope lenovo could include a NICE and durable travel case...the one it comes with is pretty cheap. In fact, I get better cases with those toothbrush kits the airlines give. 2) Again, because this is a travel adaptor, I would hope that the cord length for the "outlet to charger" would be longer than the standard 3' one...for those instances where plugs are not readily located all over the hotel rooms. But, $5 on ebay, and you can get a 6' cord which helps make this adaptor an indespensible tool on trips!