My new T60p in two words: huge disappointment

[aarong]

As my .sig notes, I ordered and recieved my 2623-DDU promptly (word out to all the brothers and sisters who had to wait 2+ weeks for theirs ) and was extrememly elated to have a powerful, high-end notebook of legendary build quality. Unfortunately, I beleive I may have gotten a bad apple, but I'm not entirely sure.

Below is a list of annoyances that I personally feel should not be anywhere near a $2700 notebook; infact, at $2700, I got a steal and cannot reorder (the base price is now $2750, plus tax...ouch). I come from the land of PowerBooks and cheap Dells, so perhaps what I feel are extreme annoyances and disappointments are simply unfounded. If so, please don't hesitate to let me know.

1) My 15" XUGA screen has an inordinate amount of stuck pixels. I found one green pixel while watching a DVD, changed the background to black, and found clusters of others. I agree I simply got a bad TFT and will exercise my warranty rights (I counted 17 stuck pixels, and I would sincerely hope IBM/Lenovo agrees) but it is disappointing nonetheless.

2) My 9 cell battery jiggles. As far as I can tell this doesn't really affect day to day operation in anyway, but it jiggles and I don't see a reason for it to jiggle. Anything that wiggles and jiggles gives me the sense of cheapness - is it even supposed to jiggle?

3) The right side of my LCD housing leaks an extreme amount of backlight, whereas the left side leaks nearly none

4) The hinge does not close evenly. Should one close the case from the right side, the left does not click into place without a little push to help it along.

5) I can't get a simple Windows XP OEM CD. While I appreciate the mountains of free software, and the hidden partition to reimage incase of disaster; it would go a long way to not only include the recovery media with my purchase, but also offer a simple, straightforward Windows XP OEM CD. My T60p takes longer to boot up than my extremely crappy Dell Inspiron, or my 1st gen TiBook; and the 1GB of memory is immediately occupied. Not cool.


Well, I guess my T60p is reading this, as it's now beeping for no apparent reason and wants to reboot for automatic windows updates. I will give Lenovo a call tomorrow and hopefully get the RMA process going. If I exercise the warranty option and Lenovo doesn't agree with my stuck pixel count, my only option is to return it (should I make it in time) and then I'm back at square one. I'm not paying full price and taking a chance again - I like the deal I got and expect the quality ThinkPads are known for.

Le sigh.

[gunston]

well said

[arthurcorell]

I ordered my T60 2623 DDU. Same Model !

I read a lot of posts here. It sounds like the 15" LCD with FlexView is very good but it's easy get bad pixel or stuck pixel.

after I read this post, i'm going to call IBM/LENOVO tomorrow to change my order to 2623-D7U. Since they will not submit my order until 5/31.

Did anyone know if I can change the 512MB to 1GB( which on the 1st slot)?
Because I'm going to order an extra gb memory.

[viper11885]

4) The hinge does not close evenly. Should one close the case from the right side, the left does not click into place without a little push to help it along.

I have this one my T60 as well.

Not really a big deal. Just close lid from near the center and both hinges will grab on.

[aarong]

4) The hinge does not close evenly. Should one close the case from the right side, the left does not click into place without a little push to help it along.

I have this one my T60 as well.

Not really a big deal. Just close lid from near the center and both hinges will grab on.

yeah, that's the absolute LEAST annoyance I have with it. I *want* to like this notebook - I really do. Does your 9-cell have any play, or is it completely rigid once it is locked in place?

[tfflivemb2]

I don't know what to tell you about the battery issue, but by sending it in for replacement of the LCD, should be covered based on the number of dead/stuck pixels, it should hopefully take care of the bleeding light issue (ie. different LCD). Furthermore, by going through the process of replacing the LCD, it might cause them to realign or fix the hinge issue at the same time, by virtue of replacing the LCD. Though, it wouldn't hurt to be noted during the call to IBM.

[aarong]

I don't know what to tell you about the battery issue, but by sending it in for replacement of the LCD, should be covered based on the number of dead/stuck pixels, it should hopefully take care of the bleeding light issue (ie. different LCD). Furthermore, by going through the process of replacing the LCD, it might cause them to realign or fix the hinge issue at the same time, by virtue of replacing the LCD. Though, it wouldn't hurt to be noted during the call to IBM.

on the phone with Atlanta now; they seem understanding and responsive. I want to be reasonably sure Lenovo will see things my way as stuck/dead pixels is a very subjective issue.

[gunston]

hopefully, Lenovo will fix or even replace it with a new one.
Not tarnish the legendary of IBM.

[aarong]

The rep couldn't find out for me how, exactly, they test and verify stuck pixels; but the issue was moot since the backlight flooding issue is cause enough for a screen replacement. He also confirmed there should be no play with the battery, though I am less hopeful they will fix that since, as far as I can tell, that would require a whole new case/notebook housing.

I've got a case open and they're sending me a box and shipping label to ship it back to them. Service time should be five business days. We'll see...

[christopher_wolf]

The rep couldn't find out for me how, exactly, they test and verify stuck pixels; but the issue was moot since the backlight flooding issue is cause enough for a screen replacement. He also confirmed there should be no play with the battery, though I am less hopeful they will fix that since, as far as I can tell, that would require a whole new case/notebook housing.

I've got a case open and they're sending me a box and shipping label to ship it back to them. Service time should be five business days. We'll see...

The wiggly jiggly battery is simply a matter of who makes it as I have seen such on T4X Series Thinkpads; Sanyo jiggles, the Sony (or maybe it was Panasonic) made ones don't. The only thing it has to do with is the little "hook" on the battery having a certian amount of curvature to it; more so, the angle as it isn't actually a crescent hook but a three-sided right angle hook. I suspect this goes for the T60 batteries as well from what I have seen.

Good luck and hope you get a new T60p.

[aarong]

The wiggly jiggly battery is simply a matter of who makes it as I have seen such on T4X Series Thinkpads; Sanyo jiggles, the Sony (or maybe it was Panasonic) made ones don't. The only thing it has to do with is the little "hook" on the battery having a certian amount of curvature to it; more so, the angle as it isn't actually a crescent hook but a three-sided right angle hook. I suspect this goes for the T60 batteries as well from what I have seen.

Good luck and hope you get a new T60p.

You must be on to something, because *gasp* I have a Sanyo battery Now I'm wondering if I should call back tomorrow and ask them to specifically note I *do not* want a Sanyo battery and to replace it with a Panasonic/Sony/whathaveyou.

I wonder if the service guys note the issue and make sure the replacement part doesn't exhibit the same issue - meaning when they replace my LCD that the replacement is free of all backlight leaking (OK, well not all, but the majority of it. Hell, the Inspiron 5150 I'm typing this on barely has any) and stuck/dead pixels. Oh how glorious it would be to get one completely free of stuck pixels and no backlight leakage...

[Greg Gebhardt]

The rep couldn't find out for me how, exactly, they test and verify stuck pixels; but the issue was moot since the backlight flooding issue is cause enough for a screen replacement. He also confirmed there should be no play with the battery, though I am less hopeful they will fix that since, as far as I can tell, that would require a whole new case/notebook housing.

I've got a case open and they're sending me a box and shipping label to ship it back to them. Service time should be five business days. We'll see...

The wiggly jiggly battery is simply a matter of who makes it as I have seen such on T4X Series Thinkpads; Sanyo jiggles, the Sony (or maybe it was Panasonic) made ones don't. The only thing it has to do with is the little "hook" on the battery having a certian amount of curvature to it; more so, the angle as it isn't actually a crescent hook but a three-sided right angle hook. I suspect this goes for the T60 batteries as well from what I have seen.

Good luck and hope you get a new T60p.

Sorry Christropher but your comments do not hold truth. I have had both brands of batteries on both my T43p and now T60p and all have wiggled. It has taken 3 strips of black electrical tape to fix each. While it does not bother me as much as others. The maker of the battery does not make a difference.

[ZL]

My new T60p 2623ddu arrived ups today and with out question this machine is amazing. I am sorry to hear about your loose battey and screen problems. I returned a Z60m back in Dec. which had also suffered from a battery jiggle. My DDU has no jiggle with either the 9 cell or 6 cell. Also, the screen is unbelieveable in terms of depth, view and color. It is the best screen I have ever seen on any laptop and leaps ahead of my wife's xmas present a white FJ Sony with xbright. I do have the Chinoy keypad and have no complaints. I hope everyone took advantage of the DDU sale back on the 15th. I could not be happier with my T60p except the long wait from order date of 4/14/06.

[christopher_wolf]

The wiggly jiggly battery is simply a matter of who makes it as I have seen such on T4X Series Thinkpads; Sanyo jiggles, the Sony (or maybe it was Panasonic) made ones don't. The only thing it has to do with is the little "hook" on the battery having a certian amount of curvature to it; more so, the angle as it isn't actually a crescent hook but a three-sided right angle hook. I suspect this goes for the T60 batteries as well from what I have seen.

Good luck and hope you get a new T60p.

Sorry Christropher but your comments do not hold truth. I have had both brands of batteries on both my T43p and now T60p and all have wiggled. It has taken 3 strips of black electrical tape to fix each. While it does not bother me as much as others. The maker of the battery does not make a difference.

Really? Because I have had both the Sanyo and another 9-cell in my T43. One shook a tad, the other didn't budge at all. No modification with black electrical tape either...I only know it wasn't a Sanyo and it was most likely a Sony.

There are also several posts here if you search around a bit that talk about this.

[cjsimokat]

I have both a Sanyo and a Sony. The Sanyo is loose and wiggles, but the Sony is kind'a tough to get in, it doesn't wiggle at all. I had a panasonic on my old 40p that felt just right. The panasonic wasn't too hard to insert, and didn't wiggle.