Bought used Thinkpad T61 and need advice about wxga+ screens

[Totoro-kun]

Hello,
I am new in this wonderful forum, and I am sorry if this thread seems like yet another wxga to wxga+ upgrade thread. I have been searching this forum for weeks, but I was unable to find the information I am seeking, so I have decided to kill two rabbits with one stone. As this is an opportunity for me to say hi to the community and possibly clarify few things about 14.1" WXGA+ screens available for my Thinkpad.

The story is that I was lucky enough to get a nice deal on used, but in fairly good condition Lenovo Thinkpad T61 Type: 7659-12G. It's a model with Intel graphics and a decent Core 2 Duo cpu, it runs very cool and quiet. I am using it for almost a month now and so far I very much love the machine. Had Dell latitude D620 which was also quite solid laptop, but I think this Thinkpad is far more superior in terms of usability, keyboard comfort and overall feel of the computer. So I intend to keep this T61 for as long as it will serve me, there for I am considering a screen upgrade.

The current screen is one of these WXGA panels:
185nit, AUO 42T0339 R N
185nit, CMO 42T0492 R N
185nit, LG-Display 42T0341 R N
185nit, LG-Display 42T0425 R N
185nit, Samsung 13N7102 R N
185nit, Samsung 42T0410 R N
185nit, Samsung 42T0581 R N

I do not yet know which one is it precisely, but its quite good. It's not too bright, no grain effects, colors looks nice to me too, but on Latitude I used to have WXGA+ screen which had more vertical pixels and now I feel discomfort due to more scrolling and overall less space on desktop.
I have found out that it is not necessary to change the LCD cable, as it is the same in both WXGA and WXGA+ models. But I would like to ask for some input regarding quality of genuine WXGA+ screens which are:

220nit, LG-Display 42T0406 R N
200nit LG-Display 42T0427 R N
200nit LG-Display 42T0579 R N
200nit, CMO 42T0453 R N
200nit, Samsung 13N7108 R N
200nit, Samsung 42T0412 R N
200nit, Samsung 42T0583 R N

While searching the internet I have found a lot of flames about LG versus Samsung and one forum thread about user experience with upgrade to 220nit LG display and it was rather like bad review. Perhaps anyone knows the difference between the three Samsungs mentioned above? Or maybe there is known desirable screens or screens I should pay attention to avoid?

Also I have found out, that Samsung 42T0412 is actually LTN141WD-L05 screen which I could get brand new and fairly cheap (old customer discount) in a local computer components store. But it would come without any FRU's or anything related with Lenovo, so is there a chance this screen would still work?

P.S.
I am planning to do this upgrade myself, as I have the necessary skills in taking apart and assembling back laptop computers, plus i know a friend who would buy my old screen from me if upgrade would be a success. So in terms of money, this should be fairly cheap upgrade, just need the target

Many thanks,
Egidijus

[Totoro-kun]

Good day,
Today I took apart my T61 lid. And found out, that my current screen actually is:

Samsung LTN141W1-L05
P/N: 42T0443
FRU: 42T0410
And it's made in Korea (maybe that is why it's quite good?)

I really liked this screen for nice looking colors, but i am no expert in this area. Colors just look nice to me. Plus there is no light bleeding or dead pixels, white/dark spots and so far that I can tell - no grain effect aether. So i think i could recommend this type of screen for people wanting decent 14.1" WXGA panel.

Now the fun part! Today at work, I have found a HP NC6400 laptop which has 14,1" WXGA+ screen which physically fits to the T61 lid. This screen is slightly broken in one side, but there are a lot of still working space left, so good for testing purposes. I have connected this screen to my T61 cables and turned on my Thinkpad. And it actually works! It does not have any Lenovo FRU's. So Does this mean I can use just any LCD screen as long as it is 14.1" Wide panel?

The HP screen model is: B141PW01 not sure what the maker is, but it's definitely not Samsung and not LG aether. The quality seems little bit worse than my original panel, but it is slightly broken, so it's not right for me to judge. However I feel a little bit confident about buying Samsung LTN141WD-L05 screen from my local store. Will see how that turns out.

P.S.
If you have any comments on this, please do not hesitate.

Best regards,
Egidijus

[Harryc]

I think the LTN141WD-L05 will work because it is the same LCD as used in a T61, but you may have to program the EDID. Here is a thread that discusses the correct EDID for that LCD in a T61. We also have a thread here with some EDIDs....don't know if that one is included or not.
http://forums.entechtaiwan.com/index.php?topic=6213.0
http://forum.thinkpads.com/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=82149

[Totoro-kun]

Thank you for useful information about EDID's I have asked about this in my local computer components store and they ensured me that they can flash EDID for me if this will be needed. So I feel pretty much safe now.

However I have decided to wait a little bit before making order and use a day or two to dig around some more. Today i have searched for technical information about my current screen, my first candidate for upgrade: LTN141WD-L05 and decided to look up some more info about 220nit LG display too. So this is what I have found:

My current display: LTN141W1-L05
Contrast: 500:1
Latency: 25ms
Brightness: 185nit (according to the Lenovo Support) and 200nit (according Think Wiki.
On the Internet I managed to find a datasheet for LTN141W1-L04 panel, which should be the same panel but different revision.

Candidate #1 for upgrade: LTN141WD-L05
Contrast: 500:1
Latency: 25ms
Brightness: 200nit
Viewing angle: 20/45/45/45
To my surprise, I have found some specifications in the official samsung site I have also saved the information as PDF and hosted it Here. What I have noticed is that all these three Samsung panels (LTN141W1-L04, LTN141W1-L05 and LTN141WD-L05) share very similar characteristics. W1-L04 revision has slightly worse viewing angles and contrast (?) than WD-L05 so I assume W1-L05 should be the same as WD-L05 except that WD0L05 is higher resolution panel. There for I think I should be happy with LTN141WD-L05 as I do like how W1-L05 looks. Do you think this logic is correct?

I have also looked at 220nit LG panel:
FRU: 42T0406
Found out that model is: LP141WP1-TLB8 (or TLB7 not 100% sure, as there are some misleading information. But it should be TLB8)
However I have found a datasheet for LP141WP1-TLB8 and it states:
Contrast: 400:1
Latency: 16ms
Brightness: 220nit
Viewing angle: 20/40/45/45
So it seems LG should be little bit brighter, little bit faster. However with slightly worse viewing angles and contrast.

I feel Samsung WD-L05 screen should be better for me than LG, because I find 200nit sufficient (I mostly work inside, very rarely outside). And I think I would appreciate better contrast more that better brightness, plus I like current screen and it should be very similar to wxga+ version. These conclusions are based purely on numbers and imagination though. Anyway, if nothing else pops up, I am going to order LTN141WD-L05 screen tomorrow and I'll post the results once it arrives to me.

Best regards,
Egidijus

[Totoro-kun]

Hello,
The screen has arrived yesterday
It is used Samsung panel:
LTN141WD-L05
FRU 42T0412
P/N 42T0456

And it's in a very good condition, no scratches, no dead pixels or pressure marks. All in all it looks just like new. Video quality is also as I predicted very similar to my old screen: LTN141W1-L05. And as it is a genuine screen, it worked right away, without needing to replace any cables, or inverters or flash anything.

So I am a one very happy thinkpadder now