Thinkpads Forum

Hi,

I'm looking to replace my 7-year-old ThinkPad T23, but I've been frustrated by the dominance of the widescreen laptops. I can't stand the wide screen. I rarely use my computer for movies (got a nice big plasma for that), and for software development I prefer the good old 4:3 ratio of a 1400x1050 (like my T23) or 1600x1200.

So I was smitten yesterday when I saw a colleague's T60 (15-inch, 1400x1050). Sure, it's 2 or 3 years old, but I'll take it over a widescreen any day. So I'm going to try to buy a T60 or T60p.

So a couple of questions:

Am I correct that the only way to get a 4:3 aspect ratio ThinkPad is to get a used one?

I think that the T60 is available in 14.1" @ 1400x1050 and 15" @ 1400x1050 and 1600x1200. I think the T60p is available in 14.1", 15", and 15.4", but I'm not sure of the resolutions for each size. Back in the day, I used to be able to download a huge PDF from IBM that had the detailed specs for every model number, but I can't find that on Lenovo's site. If someone could point me to that type of document, I could probably answer these T60 vs. T60p questions. Otherwise, I would like to find out the size and resolution possibilities for the T60 and T60p.

Thanks!

poochtp23 wrote:Am I correct that the only way to get a 4:3 aspect ratio ThinkPad is to get a used one?

Almost 100% true. Unless you are very lucky and manage to find some unused old stock of 14" 4:3 SXGA+ T61/T61p units. Very few of these were produced compared to the 14"/15.4" wide T61/p, and they were discontinued quite early into the cycle. But if you have a chance to find one new and unused (or at least open-box unused), it's with these. I don't believe there is any chance you find a new T60/p out there.

poochtp23 wrote:I think that the T60 is available in 14.1" @ 1400x1050 and 15" @ 1400x1050 and 1600x1200. I think the T60p is available in 14.1", 15", and 15.4", but I'm not sure of the resolutions for each size. Back in the day, I used to be able to download a huge PDF from IBM that had the detailed specs for every model number, but I can't find that on Lenovo's site. If someone could point me to that type of document, I could probably answer these T60 vs. T60p questions. Otherwise, I would like to find out the size and resolution possibilities for the T60 and T60p.

The document is the ltwbook.pdf. You can find it on http://www.lenovo.com/psref (look in "withdrawn products").

But to answer your question quickly.

T60 is available in 14.1" 1024x768, 14.1" 1400x1050, 15" 1024x768 and 15" 1400x1050. The 15.4" models are widescreen with 1280x800 or 1680x1050.

T60p is available in 14.1" 1400x1050, 15" 1400x1050 and 15" 1600x1200. The widescreen 15.4" models have 1680x1050 or 1920x1200.

Out of all these, the 15" T60/T60p models with 1400x1050 and 1600x1200 have particularly nice Flexview (IPS) screens with great colors, good contrast and wide viewing angles.

Yeah, pretty much no chance of getting a "new" T61p in 4x3 (they only came in 14.1" with the 4x3 screen with a max internal resolution of 1400x1050). Moreover, they didn't have the Flexview/IPS technology of the 15" 4x3 T60/p, which is what I think really draws you to this screen. The only way to get what you want is to keep checking on e-Bay, Craigslist and Thinkpads.com marketplace for a lightly used 15" T60/p.

Don't forget the R series, which were also 4:3 screens, but you can't get that new either. It's also very well built and you can probably get it cheaper than the T. If you're going to get a 15" you're probably better off with the T series as it has the better IPS screen.

Thanks everybody!

I haven't visiting these forums in years, and it's great to see that y'all are as nice and helpful as ever.

Yep, I'll be checking all the usual sources for a lightly-used 15" T60/p with the IPS screen.

Thanks again.

. . . Phil

I was in the same position as you and took a T60. The non-xga 15 inch models all have the nice flexview display. The 14 inch models differ in their display quality as far as I know. You are lucky as this is the time were the T 60 series prices go down below 500 $.