UXGA vs. SXGA flexviews

[tdphatak]

I was wondering if someone could comment on the difference between the IDTech 15" UXGA flexview screen available on the T60p at Macmall/onsale vs. the ?LG 15" SXGA flexview. Of course the UXGA is more res, but is one screen better than the other in any other respect? Would you recommend getting the UXGA with FireGL or the SXGA with X1400 (and 4 MB L2 cache). I have a new T61 WSXGA+ and the screen is decent. I actually compared it to a UXGA 15" yesterday (new laptop my friend bought from onsale) and I could not see an overwhelming difference, but maybe I'm not sensitive enough. If someone thinks there is a big difference please comment. Also, any advice/thoughts would be appreciated, particularly in deciding between buying the UXGA/FireGL combo or the SXGA/x1400/4mbL2 (on Lenovo site).
Thanks a lot!
-A newbie

[NaT]

You're right. I didn't see any significant difference between 15" SXGA+ vs. UXGA. But pricewise, I think, FireGL+UXGA (usually with sub-p class) is much more expensive than the SXGA/X1400 (non-sub-p class), and IMO, the former once doesn't not worth it.

[NathanA]

You probably have already answered your own question; if you have already seen IPS (FlexView) and TN panels side-by-side and couldn't see the difference, then it's probably not a big enough deal for you to worry about. If you like the WSXGA+ screen as well as the widescreen form factor, and are generally happy with the laptop as a whole, why go through the hassle of a return and a subsequent new purchase?

The big deal about the FlexView is its accuracy in color reproduction, as well as its wide viewing angles. If you want to see what you may (or may not!) be missing on your WSXGA+, take your laptop over to your friend's place again, set it next to his FlexView, and put a color-rich photograph (the same one) on both screens. Compare them both to the same photo on a decent CRT (Trinitrons of recent vintage, perhaps, if you have one around), and see which screen is more "faithful" to the original photograph. Then take both screens, and tilt them forward and back to see what the big deal is on the viewing angles of the FlexView.

Speaking of the Lenovo site, you mention a configuration with SXGA+ FlexView and Core 2 Duo, but paired with the X1400. Can you no longer get a T60p from Lenovo direct with SXGA+ FlexView, Core 2 Duo, and the FireGL V5250? Or did they stop selling that configuration now, too?

Oh, and speaking of your friend who bought from OnSale, would he happen to be a member of this forum?

-- Nathan

[NathanA]

But pricewise, I think, FireGL+UXGA (usually with sub-p class) is much more expensive than the SXGA/X1400 (non-sub-p class), and IMO, the former once doesn't not worth it.

This vastly depends on what features and upgrades you want. I just configured a non-p class T60 with SXGA+ FlexView and X1400 on the Lenovo site with options similar to what I got on my T60p with UXGA FlexView (2.0GHz, XP Pro, 1GB RAM, 100GB 7200RPM HDD, Fingerprint, DVD-RW+ DL, Intel Wireless, 9cell batt), and the total (with the MasterCard discount!) came to $1,699.55 before tax+ship. And that's with just the 1-year warranty on it, too!

Like I've said previously, if you can manage to stomach a mail-in rebate (yeah, I know...yuck), you can get a p-class T60 w/ 3-year and UXGA for $1,669 right now: thread linky.

Just for fun, I configured a T60p Widescreen on Lenovo.com, and with the same features and warranty (plus a beefier V5250 video subsystem), it came out cheaper than the non-p T60 w/ SXGA+ FlexView ($1,579.85). That's messed up. Oh, and it looks like they DID remove the T60p SXGA+ FlexView option from their site, too. That's even more messed up.

-- Nathan