X61 notebookreview+another review.

[Antioch]

Now for the update, after sitting on for a while with all wireless cards disabled, the right side is 96F, left side is 89F. Not a big number difference, but palm pressing against it you can really feel the difference, right side being much warmer.

Interesting. I would have thought that switching the wireless card (and WWAN) to off would have reduced the temperature significantly more than 1 degree. I have to conclude that the wireless cards are not the source of the heat (they obviously are very cool, ~1 degree).

Well, people say that numbers don't lie, and I'm not implying that you do either I'd just like to point out, again, that it seems strange to me that if both the WiFi and WWAN were turned off that the temperature would remain the same. If that were so then it would mean that neither the WiFi nor WWAN card is responsible for the heat, and that the machine is naturally hot. Personally I don't know if it is the cards or the machine - I hope it is the cards though.

Another thing to keep in mind is that the Turbo Memory card sits right next to the WWAN and WiFi cards, so I'm sure that is also a prime candidate for heat production.

I just want to get a silent (for all intents and purposes) X61s. If the palmrest gets warm when I have WiFi on, that's a small price for the silence I demand (and the T60's fail to deliver).

[GomJabbar]

I do not have an X60, X61, or X61s, but looking at the System Service Parts for those models indicates that the hard drive is on the right side under the right palm rest. If I had to guess, I would suspect the hard drive causing the heat issues more than the WiFi card. I have had a couple of T42's. The one I am using now has a 7200 rpm hard drive. The other ones had 5400 rpm hard drives. They all had the Intel 2200 BG wireless WiFi card. The T42 with the 7200 rpm drive is somewhat hotter than the others with the 5400 rpm drives on the right palm rest above the drive when the drive is being accessed quite a bit. If I am doing a virus scan or defrag, the right palm rest on the T42 gets somewhat warm. Other times I find it warm and I am not sure what caused all the hard drive access. However normally any increased temperature is slight. I expect these heat issues would be exacerbated with Vista.

[ryengineer]

Another thing to keep in mind is that the Turbo Memory card sits right next to the WWAN and WiFi cards, so I'm sure that is also a prime candidate for heat production.

Since you brought up this topic so let me input my thoughts too.

Last week, I got a chance to play around with X61 for a while. The notebook definitely stayed cool; unless WiFi was turned on. The HDD was a bit noisy as well but you won't notice anything if you're on a go in a place like an airport. I can definitely say the review put up by our fellow member on NBR is totally unbiased. I was checking the machine and remembering the things he quoted in his review.

[Antioch]

GomJabbar, the X61's don't have the HD beneath the palmrest like the Tseries does. Rather, the HDs are behind the right side of the keyboard. Immediately beneath the plamrest is the WiFi, WWAN, and Turbo Memory cards.

ryengineer, I'm glad to hear it was cool with the WiFi off because own6volvos said he measured the temperature with the WiFi on and off and said that the temperature barely changed. By the way, did you happen to pay attention to fan noise? Can you remember how silent (or not ) the fan is when the machine is idling? Also, were you on XP or Vista?

[ryengineer]

ryengineer, I'm glad to hear it was cool with the WiFi off because own6volvos said he measured the temperature with the WiFi on and off and said that the temperature barely changed. By the way, did you happen to pay attention to fan noise? Can you remember how silent (or not ) the fan is when the machine is idling? Also, were you on XP or Vista?

Fan spinned alot but was quiet, I could barely hear it. I had put a napkin beside the fan compartment and it was blowing nearly all the time. Please bear in mind it was a test machine and I did not tamper with any settings.

Heat is more noticeable concern with X61 especially when connected to WiFi. As far as own6volvos comments are concerned, all I can say is perhaps lenovo is getting these machines manufactured from different sources in Asia or it's just a matter of hit or miss.

The machine was running Windows Vista business edition.

[Antioch]

Well, I don't care so much that the fan is on - that's a good thing, it's moving air. What I do care about, however, is that the idle speed not be set too high. In the case of my T60, the BIOS set the idle speed to be irritatingly high - it sounded like I was playing a 3d intensive game when I was idling in Windows or even at the BIOS screen.

So, I'm glad to hear that the fan runs silently when idle (of course, when you start running games or intensive apps the fan will spin up - it's to be expected).

In regards to volvo's temp measurements, I never did get a response as to whether or not he turned the WWAN off as well - which is the only explanation I can think of.

You don't happen to have the test machine any more, do you?

[atlacatl]

I do not have an X60, X61, or X61s, but looking at the System Service Parts for those models indicates that the hard drive is on the right side under the right palm rest...

Hi GomJabbar. The X60s doe not have the hard drive underneath the right hand side of the palm rest. It is in fact underneath the keyboard: starts at the "Shift" key and ends at the "Back Space" key. I know this because I removed the drive once...

My model has a 5400 rpm drive, and I hardly hear it. Unless, it's the middle of the night and no one is around.

The heat comes from the Wi-Fi card, as EVERYONE points out. If I turn off the wireless card, the palm rest is just warm...Not hot, as when the Wi-Fi is on.

[ryengineer]

In regards to volvo's temp measurements, I never did get a response as to whether or not he turned the WWAN off as well - which is the only explanation I can think of.

You don't happen to have the test machine any more, do you?

I wish I could get the temperature readings for you but the machine is gone.

[Antioch]

I actually want to do a slightly different test. If you happen to know anyone with an X61/s and about 10 minutes, please let me know - everything you can do with software.

[proaudioguy]

My HD is really quiet. There is no guarantee you will get the same drive. Some might be louder than others. I have the 5400 80gb fujitsu, and also a 7200 80gb seagate.

The fan is slient. If the fan makes noise I'd say it's defective. The X61 may have a second fan that may or may not contribute noise. I have the X60 Tablet.

[qviri]

So, I'm glad to hear that the fan runs silently when idle

Standard precautions when it comes to computer noise:

Silence is absolute. It implies the absence of any sound, thus a laptop with moving parts cannot be silent. Also, something cannot be more silent than something else - it's either silent, or it's not.

What most people are looking for is "quieter than the background noise", or, in essence, "inaudible". The problem with assessing whether a notebook is suitably quiet by surveying an internet forum is that everyone's background noise is different. What passes for inaudible in even a medium-sized city would be audible in a rural area far from highways. (It may not be annoyingly loud, but it will be audible.) Because the ears adapt to the background noise, it's difficult to tell how loud a machine would be in a quiet environment. Then you have variances in people's hearing, in their ability to hear certain frequencies, and so forth...

[sugo]

Any forum member has a X61 to comment on the right palmrest's heat?

I am waiting for 16GB 2.5" SSD to drop in price. I love dead silent thinkpad

[gunston]

Unfortunately, it seems that the palmrest heat issue is not yet resolved. The machine looks awesome though, and I love that little antenna in the top - looks high-tech

i thought the 2nd additional FAN of X61/s would solve the right palm rest issue??

[gunston]

what about the issue of Tilted Space Bar for X60/s ?
did X61/s resolve this?

[proaudioguy]

So, I'm glad to hear that the fan runs silently when idle

Standard precautions when it comes to computer noise:

Silence is absolute. It implies the absence of any sound, thus a laptop with moving parts cannot be silent. Also, something cannot be more silent than something else - it's either silent, or it's not.

What most people are looking for is "quieter than the background noise", or, in essence, "inaudible". The problem with assessing whether a notebook is suitably quiet by surveying an internet forum is that everyone's background noise is different. What passes for inaudible in even a medium-sized city would be audible in a rural area far from highways. (It may not be annoyingly loud, but it will be audible.) Because the ears adapt to the background noise, it's difficult to tell how loud a machine would be in a quiet environment. Then you have variances in people's hearing, in their ability to hear certain frequencies, and so forth...

Well I meant it was silent to HUMANS. IE inaudible. I have to stick my head within 12 inches to hear it at all. I often lay on my back in bed with the laptop on my chest and I can't hear the fan. YMMV.
So yea, you're right it's all relative. It's NOT SILENT.

[proaudioguy]

Any forum member has a X61 to comment on the right palmrest's heat?

I am waiting for 16GB 2.5" SSD to drop in price. I love dead silent thinkpad

Well I don't care about the noise, but I'm wondering if the performance would substantially increase. I think even a hybrid would be a great idea. I also like the idea of no moving parts to damage.