comparison of 15" & 14"

Message

gg3761 · #1 Post by **gg3761** » Wed Jul 07, 2004 1:11 am

Well i've got a 2379DXU & a 2378FVU in front of me as i write this. First the screens: The 2379 with 15" Flexview simply rocks. Bright, sharp, great contrast, great off axis but a little shadow on the right side, no bad pixels. The 14" only looks good straight on. Washes out from almost any angle. No bad pixels. As far as the form factor the nod goes to 14". Love the weight & size. That extra inch & pound on the 15" makes a noticable difference. Keyboard on the 15" is far better. It has a better "snap" to the keys. A solid feel, no flex. The 14" has a bad feel, a cheaper feel. The down arrow key is awefull. Lots of flex there & a weird sound.
I remembered a post about the different makes of keyboards. So i took the keyboards out. The better one from the 15" is made in Taiwan, the 14" from China. The 15" has less holes in the backplate, the 14" has many more & seems to be thinner in construction. As far as the HD goes the 72k in the 2379 is faster but you can feel a slight vibration in the palm rests. The 54k in the 2378 in still pretty fast a no vibration. The last thing is the cool little keyboard light. On the 15" the light is perfect but on the 14" it shines in your eyes. It is more recessed up into the bezzel on the 15". Oh one other little thing. You can lift the screen on the 15" without the base rising up. On the 14" the base wants to lift.
So my perfect T42 would be the 2379DXU with a 14" Flexview.Until that day comes I've desided to keep the 15" & send the 14" back to Big Blue.
I hope this helps you guys that are on the fence

edelrc · #2 Post by **edelrc** » Wed Jul 07, 2004 1:34 am

It certainly does. Thanks!
Most points here had already been exposed before, however your post has the advantage of you to be able to compare them both, front to front. Your post reinforces what I had already in mind after much reading... Get the 15" unless the laptop goes with you almost daily under your arm or planes.[/u]

Hangfire · #3 Post by **Hangfire** » Wed Jul 07, 2004 1:35 am

Thanks for the candid review, I'm doing the same thing, sending back a 14 for a 15 just to make it easier to read. Plus I've been working with a 15" screen for a few years and have grown accustom to the size. I think the added weight and size is worth the extra real estate.

#4 Post by **aamsel** » Wed Jul 07, 2004 1:49 am

Could you talk a little more about the shadow on the right side of the screen on the 15" T42 ???
How noticeable is this, and do you know what it is caused by???

Thanks,

Andrew
Austin, TX

gg3761 · #5 Post by **gg3761** » Wed Jul 07, 2004 2:02 am

Here's the link to a description of the screen issue.
http://forum.thinkpads.com/viewtopic.php?t=1327
It's not a big deal. I'm just very pickey.

Hangfire · #6 Post by **Hangfire** » Wed Jul 07, 2004 2:19 am

I think we are all very picky, that's why we are buying ThinkPads!

WilsonF · #7 Post by **WilsonF** » Wed Jul 07, 2004 6:03 am

I have noticed that when I turn the screen brightness way down for super power saving, the text and images on the flexview are much easier to see than on 14" screens. This, for me, is the biggest difference to the business user/road warrior.

The other thing is that when aboard a plane, passengers in the same row across the aisle can read my work if they have really good vision -- it's no longer just the person in the seat next to me.

However, that's only true in first class as you can't open this monster in coach if there's a passenger in the seat ahead who might want to recline.

HKILP7M8 · #8 Post by **HKILP7M8** » Wed Jul 07, 2004 8:28 am

I have the 2373CYU, I love my machine, I've been carrying it around just about all the time. The form factor takes just a bit of getting used to, but I think I'm just about used to it. Like the the other person said, the keypad is great, the screen is great. I too am getting a bit of a shadow on the lower right hand side, I'll probably call IBM and see what they tell me about this. Other than the slight shadow everything else is perfect. I would never go back to the 14' form factor.

edelrc · #9 Post by **edelrc** » Wed Jul 07, 2004 9:26 am

Please, please... gg3761 could you do a fast comparison for me?
Can you notice a sound difference among both laptops? Does any of them sound stronger???

gg3761 · #10 Post by **gg3761** » Wed Jul 07, 2004 10:08 am

I will try the sound for you tonite.

Leon · #11 Post by **Leon** » Wed Jul 07, 2004 10:10 am

thanks,,,many of us are interested,....

edelrc · #12 Post by **edelrc** » Wed Jul 07, 2004 10:11 am

Thanks so much...
For me this is a key issue and this is the only item that has never been reviewed before.

I can't wait...

gg3761 · #13 Post by **gg3761** » Wed Jul 07, 2004 10:59 pm

Well just compared the sound of the 2 T42's. If you like a tinny sound & a thin bottom end you'll like the 2379DXU 15" Flexview. If you like the sound a little softer on the top end and a slightly fuller bottom you'll like the 14". I was surprised. I thought the larger chassis would provide for a fuller sound. I sell hi-fi & theater equipment for a living so i know a little about this stuff. I also know everybody likes something different so it's hard for me to judge. I think for myself i like the 14" sound. Though some may say it is a little muffled in the midrange. But i can't stand a tinny, thin top end and that is what the 15" has. I used Media player 9 on both with no EQ playing a CD.

P.S. Sorry for the sexual references:)

(not really)

edelrc · #14 Post by **edelrc** » Wed Jul 07, 2004 11:30 pm

Thanks sooo much. Wow, i was expecting an x sounded a little better than z or so...
Instead we get a pobably the most exahustive review on a thinkpad sound system!!!

For sure, this info has added highly valuable info for me to make my mind now. Thank you again.

Guest · #15 Post by **Guest** » Wed Jul 07, 2004 11:57 pm

gg3761 wrote:Well i've got a 2379DXU & a 2378FVU in front of me as i write this. First the screens: The 2379 with 15" Flexview simply rocks. Bright, sharp, great contrast, great off axis but a little shadow on the right side, no bad pixels. The 14" only looks good straight on. Washes out from almost any angle. No bad pixels. As far as the form factor the nod goes to 14". Love the weight & size. That extra inch & pound on the 15" makes a noticable difference. Keyboard on the 15" is far better. It has a better "snap" to the keys. A solid feel, no flex. The 14" has a bad feel, a cheaper feel. The down arrow key is awefull. Lots of flex there & a weird sound.
I remembered a post about the different makes of keyboards. So i took the keyboards out. The better one from the 15" is made in Taiwan, the 14" from China. The 15" has less holes in the backplate, the 14" has many more & seems to be thinner in construction. As far as the HD goes the 72k in the 2379 is faster but you can feel a slight vibration in the palm rests. The 54k in the 2378 in still pretty fast a no vibration. The last thing is the cool little keyboard light. On the 15" the light is perfect but on the 14" it shines in your eyes. It is more recessed up into the bezzel on the 15". Oh one other little thing. You can lift the screen on the 15" without the base rising up. On the 14" the base wants to lift.
So my perfect T42 would be the 2379DXU with a 14" Flexview.Until that day comes I've desided to keep the 15" & send the 14" back to Big Blue.
I hope this helps you guys that are on the fence

I know it can't be that bad but you just called an IBM keyboard bad and chaper. I know it is still better than others but is the difference that serious between the 15. I am just making sure I thought they were the best keyboards in the world

gg3761 · #16 Post by **gg3761** » Thu Jul 08, 2004 12:25 am

Very different keyboards. The 14" seems alot like my daughters Dell. If i hadn't had the 15" keyboard i would of thought the 14" was a nice one. Also that flex problem on the lower right side is not there on the 15". The sound of the keys are almost silent on the 15". More of a plastic sound on the 14".

Hangfire · #17 Post by **Hangfire** » Thu Jul 08, 2004 7:41 am

Really looking forward to my 15" JXU... in 3 weeks.

#18 Post by **K. Eng** » Thu Jul 08, 2004 8:42 am

What model Dell? I had a D600 and my current T40, and the D600's keyboard was vastly inferior to that of the T40. The flex problem on the 14" T40 was easily fixed with a bit of foam - my keyboard feels perfect right now. The D600, on the other hand, was a total loss. The keys simply had little feedback and didn't depress very far. I had to return that machine.

That being said, I'm impressed by the general out-of-the-box perfection of the 15" T42 keyboards. I'd go for a 15" T42 if I was buying a machine now.

gg3761 wrote:Very different keyboards. The 14" seems alot like my daughters Dell. If i hadn't had the 15" keyboard i would of thought the 14" was a nice one. Also that flex problem on the lower right side is not there on the 15". The sound of the keys are almost silent on the 15". More of a plastic sound on the 14".

ian · #19 Post by **ian** » Thu Jul 08, 2004 8:47 am

I have a 15" CWU - and I'll admit to being a little aprehensive when I read about the mysterious 'flexing' on the T series keyboards in general. However I have to say this thing is rock solid. It's not the original, as I ordered an azerty version to correspond better with my needs here in France, but it's flat and solid and doesn't flex at all. In addition, although nothing at all to do with the keyboard, I've no dark stripes down each side of my screen either. I can make each side 'look' slightly darker by moving my viewing position slightly left or right, but that's about it - oh, yes, and you'll be glad to know there are no dead pixies...

gg3761 · #20 Post by **gg3761** » Thu Jul 08, 2004 10:31 am

The model of the Dell is the 5150.

Daniel · #21 Post by **Daniel** » Thu Jul 08, 2004 11:17 am

It depends on your luck. I was lucky and received the Thailand keyboard with the matte bezel with my 14" Thinkpad.

comparison of 15" & 14"

comparison of 15" & 14"

Flexview vs 14"--readability at low brightness

Re: comparison of 15" & 14"

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