Thinkpads Forum

I'm considering the purchase of a new TP and am currently looking at the W500 and T500, but cannot see a lot of difference between these two TP's when pricing the T500 with a 15" screen. I have priced them both with the same processor, same memory, same HD, nearly the same display, etc., etc., and they come out within $150 of each other.

The only major differences I can find are the graphics card - an ATI V5700/512mb in the W500, and an ATI 3650/256mb in the T500; and the WUXGA screen on the W500 vs an WSXGA screen on the T500

Am I missing anything here? Are these two units as close in performance, etc., as they are in price? Or are the V5700 graphics card and WUXGA screen on the W500 enough reason to opt for the W500

The difference in video is negligible unless you're doing 3d-heavy work (CAD) or are considering gaming on the system. Then you'd want the extra video memory provided by the W500.

The screen resolution is personal preference. I like eye-bleeding resolution and higher DPI screens, so I went with a W500 with the WUXGA screen. To me, WSXGA+ (1680x1050) is a bit too "big" for a 15.4" widescreen notebook. I'd rather have the higher resolution so I can cram more junk on the screen at once.

ZPrime wrote: The screen resolution is personal preference. I like eye-bleeding resolution and higher DPI screens, so I went with a W500 with the WUXGA screen. To me, WSXGA+ (1680x1050) is a bit too "big" for a 15.4" widescreen notebook. I'd rather have the higher resolution so I can cram more junk on the screen at once.

ZPrime:
How is the visibility of your wuxga screen in daylight, especially in
shade if you have used your machine outside?
Thanks.

Using the W500 UXGA in the car with light shining on it, I've found it better than my A31p with an IPS screen, and a T40p as well. You can crank up the brightness fairly well with the UXGA screen.