Thinkpads Forum

Just got my T61P today and have som first impressons I would like to share.

First of all, its incredibly sturdy, but the plastic shell is actually somewhat of a disapointment. The fitting is not as good as I would have hoped, there are blastic against plastic clicking sound when I lay my hand on the left side of the palm rest.

The 1920x1200 display is great, not as bright as the MBP:s but I like it anyway. The resolution maks everything very small, a lot more so then I would have anticipated. Not a problem for me, quite the opposite actually, I get more space for my stuff and can zoom if I want to watch from a distance.

Got the NMB keyboard, at least if the thread about T60 keyboards is still valid for T61P. Sounds a bit more then I would have expected and the Smaller keys, F1, Esc and those only work If I hit them in the middle. Thats the technical aspects off it. From a typing perspective it works great, the feel is wonderful. It will take me some time getting used to it, but I like it already more then I like the MBP keyboard.

I thought I would be botherd by the off center display but I really have not notied it that much. I know the display is moved a bit to the right and you can easily see it if you look, but when I work, write or watch movies I dont really notice it.

Have not tried anything demanding with the graphics yet but, looking at the Vista performance index, it seems like it can handle more then I need. Will try some games tomorrow.

The wireless reception is the best I have ever seen, far better then the MacBook Pro which in it self is quite capable in that area.

The only big disapointment is Vista. Coming from OS X I cant belive this is what Microsoft tries to compete with. Annoying confirmation dialogs for everything. Creating a new folder in "Program Files" and naming it to what I want takes four separate confirmation dialogs. Not to mention that every singe application looks out of place. None I use has the Vista look and not even these things is the worst thing, the singe worst thing it the the mess they have made in the system. Nothing is intuitive. I could pick up OS X and change all the settings in it that I wanted coming from XP. Coming from both XP and OS X I had a hard time to figure out where to activate ClearType and find the status and setting for the wired network. Disaster!

Other problems is that Vista already has crashed (froze) twice while I tried getting it to sleep and once while messing with the mouse-settings.

Enough with the Vista hatred. I like the computer, its not perfect but I wouldn't excpect it to be. I like most things about it. If they just would have spent some more money on the fitting of the case, it would have been near perfect. If they had Included a real Vista DVD then it would have been even better. I don't get the idea to deliver a computer entirely without CD:s or DVD:s. I want to be able to make a clean installation and get rid of all the bloat they include.

Almost forgot to mention one other great thing about it. It keeps cool. I can actually use it on my lap without getting burns like I did with the MBP.

How are you finding the contrast ratio of the screen ?
Are the blacks true blacks ?
Light leakage ?
Does the lid flex if you pressure on it ?

lundh wrote:The 1920x1200 display is great, not as bright as the MBP:s but I like it anyway. The resolution maks everything very small, a lot more so then I would have anticipated. Not a problem for me, quite the opposite actually, I get more space for my stuff and can zoom if I want to watch from a distance.

how is the color quality/accuracy on the T61p in comparison to the MBP?   which MBP panel do you have?

The wireless reception is the best I have ever seen, far better then the MacBook Pro which in it self is quite capable in that area.

which wireless card do you have?

lundh wrote:Annoying confirmation dialogs for everything. Creating a new folder in "Program Files" and naming it to what I want takes four separate confirmation dialogs.

Disable User Account Control.

how is the battery life???

Sorry to hear you've a creaking left wrist rest, mine is rock solid.

Vista can be quite a shock to the system the first hour or two after you've started using it, this link has some handy tips which might make your life a lot easier.
http://www.avforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=473286

Personally I much prefer vista over xp now, the first few weeks are a learning curve though.

wearetheborg wrote:How are you finding the contrast ratio of the screen ?
Are the blacks true blacks ?
Light leakage ?
Does the lid flex if you pressure on it ?

I'm not the best judge on the colors. I have no previous experience in that area, but I would say that black really is black but the white is without calibration sligtly red and yellow tinded. The lower right corner is noticably darker in an area about 5mm big beginning at the edge.

The lid does not flex at all but the plastic frame around the display has once again not a very good fit. If I just touch it lightly on the right side It makes a popping sound and move slightly out of position.

erik wrote:how is the color quality/accuracy on the T61p in comparison to the MBP?   which MBP panel do you have?

I would say that the colors are noticably better on the MBP 17" I had most recently. I have not tried to calibrate this display yet so I cant say for sure what the final verdict will be.

erik wrote:which wireless card do you have?

I got the Intel 4965AGN

ryoli999 wrote:how is the battery life???

Have not tried that yet but the battery meter says 2 hours left with 88% left of the batterys charge. (I have the standard 6 cell battery.)

GarryF wrote:Sorry to hear you've a creaking left wrist rest, mine is rock solid.

Sounds like they have som quality control to do then. The computers seems incredibly well built underneath so I find it strange that they should miss a simple thing like this. (But I have to say, I prefer it this way to MBP's questionable quality of the parts that really matter.)

GarryF wrote:Vista can be quite a shock to the system the first hour or two after you've started using it, this link has some handy tips which might make your life a lot easier.
http://www.avforums.com/forums/showthread.php?t=473286

Personally I much prefer vista over xp now, the first few weeks are a learning curve though.

Can't say that I like XP either, as I said I'm coming from OS X whis is in an entirely other leauge. Anyway, thanks fot the link, will chenck it out but I dont think I will like vista any more though. Guess time will tell. My plan is to install FreeBSD as soon as evertyhing works there and then only use windows for windows only programs.

My idea of a good OS does not include a steep learning curve, not when we are talking about an Operating system for home users or for desktop use.

MINE HAS BEEN [censored] DELAYED FOR A MONTH. I CAN'T BELIEVE I WAITED THREE WEEKS FOR THIS [censored].

Pocket Aces wrote:MINE HAS BEEN [censored] DELAYED FOR A MONTH. I CAN'T BELIEVE I WAITED THREE WEEKS FOR THIS [censored].

Well, while you're waiting, use some of that time to read the Rules paying particular attention to the part about foul language.

An update on battery life:
I get just under 2 hours on battery (1 h 56 min) with lots of wireless usage, video and music. Screen at full brightness and "Energy Star" power scheme.

Can't you install OSX on a thinkpad?

I agree with kelchm - you should disable User Account Control, just for your own sanity.

Press the Start Button->Control Panel->User Accounts. Then click on "Turn User Account Control on or off." Reboot.

You'll be warned about it for a day or so, then the warning will go away.

Kel Ghu wrote:Can't you install OSX on a thinkpad?

no

Kel Ghu wrote:Can't you install OSX on a thinkpad?

The T61P is linux certified, so install that instead

How can the screen be calibrated ?

I will try Linux but I have understood that people still have issues with some components, even in major distributions like Ubuntu. I don't think OS X would work well on this computer and even if it did, it would not be very legal.

have Vista Ultimate 64bit shipping to me as we speak. The store had wrongly specified the T61P with it, so they ordered me a license and corrected their web site.

Anyone know of any issues with running a 64bit Vista on a T61(P)? Thinking about dual booting Linux and Vista, as there are some Windows only programs and games that I need.