T43 vs T43p - a few questions

[Martin_172]

Hi guys, been using a T43 for a few months and love it, recently saw a nicely priced T43p on ebay so upgraded to that however ive got a few questions.

The T43 has the smaller (14" i beleive?) screen with a resolution of 1400x1050, im not sure if its an IPS or how to tell however its much better than the 1024x768 pannel on my T40, really bright and crisp!, the T43p wit the larger 15" 1600x1200 screen which i beleive should definately be an IPS is pretty dull and not as nice to look at as my T43's - is this normal or has this possibly been replaced with a non IPS screen if one is available in this size?

secondly, the T43 is running a Pentium M 770 2.13GHz where the T43p is running a Pentium M 760 2.0GHz yet the T43 scores higher in the windows 7 index for CPU ( 3.8 for the 43p and 3.3 for the t43) both are running 2gb of dual channel memory, windows 7 ultimate, fresh installs with the same programs/processes running - any ideas? is there a hardware difference to the chipset or something?

as i said both are running 2GB dual channel ram and when it comes to memory benchmark, this time the T43 is scoring 5.5 where the T43p is only scoring 4.4

looking for some feedback or ideas from some of you experianced guys on these issues, im not sure how acurate the windows score benchmark is as ive been out the loop for a few years on benchmarking etc.

and just for anyone interested heres the results for both machines since they are running pretty similar
T43 (Dothan P-M 770, 2GB dual channel ram, mobility radeon X300, Samsung HM160HC hard drive)
Processor - 3.3
Memory (RAM) - 5.5
Graphics - 2.0
Gaming Graphics - 3.4
Hard Drive - 5.4

T43P (Dothan 760, 2GB dual channel ram, Fire GL V3200, 80GB Hitachi 7200RPM)
Processor - 3.8
Memory (RAM) - 4.4
Graphics - 3.9
Gaming Graphics - 3.7
hard drive - 4.3

[ZaZ]

Only 15" SXGA+ and UXGA LCDs are FlexView screens. The T43 uses CFFL tubes to light the screen. They can dim over time, though it is not a certainty. Your T43p is now seven years old and has dimmed. That be my guess as to why it looks dull.

Unless your T43p feels like it's underperforming, I would ignore your WEI score. It doesn't really tell you much.

[Martin_172]

ahh i see, is there anything i can do to restore this brightness other than replace the actual screen?

T43p feels quicker, which is what i felt was strange given that its a slightly weaker spec, and both are running a fresh install with all drivers etc.

[ajkula66]

You could try to replace the backlight (CCFL) but that type of operation is best left to the professionals. The chances of ruining the LCD in the process are pretty significant.

The reason your T43p feels sluggish when compared to the T43 is its aging hard drive, at least in my opinion.

And I agree with ZaZ...WEI doesn't really say much about the machine's real strengths or weaknesses...

[Martin_172]

its actually the T43p that feels quicker than the T43, ive just swapped the hard drives over and the T43p with the samsung is now running perfectly! but still the slower CPU on the T43p is benchmarking higher than the faster T43 yet the memory is benchmarking .9 quicker on the T43. i understand that the WEI doesnt give a proper indication of the performance but i thought it would be a good comparison considering most of the conditions are the same.

is there any places that sell brand new or refurbished high quality screens recomended on here?

[RealBlackStuff]

If your 1600x1200 screen is made by IDTech, it's relatively easy to replace the CCFL yourself.
I have written up the how-to here: http://forum.thinkpads.com/viewtopic.php?f=31&t=88991

[Martin_172]

thanks buddy ill pop it out and find out at the weekend!

[ajkula66]

You don't even have to pop it out.

99.99% screens on 15" T43p units were ID Tech.

0.01% or less were Hydis, which I've only seen on late, U.S. built machines.