T61. 15.4" or the 14.1"? I'm torn... (Large PIC)

[SkiBunny]

yes, the t4x has an offset, as does the t6x. it's where the wifi antenna is, although it's far more pronounced in the t61 than any previous model.

My T60 and X60 and my T43 and T41 all look to have the same-sized border to the left and right of the LCD.

But my X60 has that mobile antenna tacked onto the right side, looks silly but you get used to it. And I'd rather have the small mobile antenna than that massive border on the left & top of the T61. It looks as thick & bad as my thinkpads from the early 1990's

[SkiBunny]

I understand the increased width, but how on earth is a widescreen version deeper than the 4:3 model? I would have expected a depth under 10 inches for that one, but it actually got bigger in every dimension.

Perhaps it's an extra big frame to fit the integrated webcam on the widescreen. The tallscreen (4:3) doesn't have provision for a webcam.

It looks like the first release of the T61 tried to become more like the consumer models from Dell or HP. What's next... glossy?

[dsfinley]

tomh009 and SkiBunny:

I understand the increased width, but how on earth is a widescreen version deeper than the 4:3 model? I would have expected a depth under 10 inches for that one, but it actually got bigger in every dimension.

If you look in the tabook, the 4-cell T61 14.1W is listed as 13.2" x 9.3" x 1.09-­1.26, which presumably represents the actual depth of the chassis. Note that I gave the dimensions for the 6-cell version - the 4-cell battery life seemed way too short to bother including that version - and the extra 0.9" is the battery projection.

The post had already seemed a bit long, so I left out the line about the 14.1W design not being able to shrink the bits inside the chassis commensurate with the screen height, so that the 6-cell battery wasn't able to actually, you know, fit inside....

Thanks for the weight update, SkiBunny. Getting accurate weights for ThinkPads of the various configurations out of the Lenovo/IBM is a real chore, with their utterly vague "starting from"s and "up to"s. If somebody could pull together the true weights of the different versions, that would be a great service!

What's the definition of "travel weight" as given by Lenovo? Going back to the links, I now see that, for the 15.4W they gave a weight of 2.5 kg and a travel weight of 2.58 kg, or 5.5 and 5.7 lb. What's the difference?

[tomh009]

Thanks for the clarification, David, that makes more sense now.

Travel weight would be with the "travel bezel" (instead of a drive) installed in the Ultrabay, as I recall.

[pianowizard]

If somebody could pull together the true weights of the different versions, that would be a great service!

This thread has some T60 weight measurements made by me and other forum members.

I now see that, for the 15.4W they gave a weight of 2.5 kg and a travel weight of 2.58 kg, or 5.5 and 5.7 lb. What's the difference?

Hmm, because the difference between 2.5 kg and 2.58 kg is so small (0.176 lb), I don't think they correspond to the weight with and without the optical drive.

[CRSO]

Ben away for afew days... WOW, what a response! Thanks!

ds, this one really hit the nail. I am mostly dealing with left and right cutoff and not too concerned with height. I am constantly working with photos and timelines with flash and sony acid so if the width is the same, i'll go with a 14"1ws to obtain a smaller laptop. Battery life isn't too much of a concern for me as I am always plugged in and don't mind it so much.

Can I use my T43 mini-dock and ultra bay with the T61ws? I also have an extra brick.

I doubt it...

I've looked at screen size issues, too. Here are the options:

Code: Select all

Diag  Wpix Hpix   Width   Height  PPI     ratio  area    rows   cols  Resol
15.40 1680 1050   13.06    8.16  128.65   1.600  106.6   44.9   24.3  WSXGA+
14.10 1440  900   11.96    7.47  120.43   1.600   89.4   39.8   22.1   WXGA+
14.10 1400 1050   11.28    8.46  124.11   1.333   95.4   47.1   20.8   SXGA+

Only the high-res versions are included in the listing. Width and height are in inches. Area is total screen area in square inches. PPI is pixels per inch. "rows" and "columns" are a what-if for spreadsheet cells of uniform physical size (inches, not pixels).

Taking the information on the 14.1 standard screen version (14.1N) and the 15.4W from the European website,
http://www5.pc.ibm.com/europe/products. ... enDocument
http://www5.pc.ibm.com/europe/products. ... enDocument
the overall dimensions are:

14.1N 12.30 x 10.04 x 1.09 5.1 lb (with 6-cell battery)
14.1W 13.2 x 10.2 x 1.09-­1.26" 5.3 lb (with 6-cell)
15.4W 14.07 x 10.04 x 1.17 5.5 lb (6-cell)

Interestingly, the depths are all the same, because the 6 or 7-cell battery extends beyond the rear of the 14.1W case.

Each step, 14.1N --> 14.1W --> 15.4W gains just under an inch in width for the case.

For someone who doesn't need the real estate provided by the 15.4W (nor is hankering for the forthcoming WUXGA (1920x1200) version), and wants a more compact laptop to carry around, the smallest package, for the 14.1" standard screen, actually has 7% more usable screen area and 13% more pixels than the 14.1W version, and could be a good way to go if there isn't some overriding need for the wider aspect ratio.

P.S. I've omitted the forthcoming R60 15" 4:3 because its proposed max resolution is only SXGA+ - seems like a "why bother" if there is a 14.1" SXGA+ option, and UXGA (1600X1200) is not available.

P.P.S. CRSO - your 15" SXGA+ screen is 108 sq. in., very nearly the same as the 15.4W. However, for photos, the total square inches does not matter as much as the physical width of the screen, assuming you have sufficient resolution, and you view the photo in a full-width window. Your current 15" 4:3 screen is 12" wide. Compare that with the widths of the other options. The 14.1W is nearly exactly the same width as your current screen, and your photos would be exactly the same size on both in a full-screen-width window.

[asiafish]

I have no clue being the logic of disturbing the 14" SXGA+ T series ... it was the most desirable thinkpad.

I agree!!!

[gator]

Can I use my T43 mini-dock and ultra bay with the T61ws? I also have an extra brick.
I doubt it...

Nopes, T4x accesories are not compatible with the T6x. You need to get the advanced mini dock or the full advanced dock.

[rbi]

So is it all right for me to ask if there is anyone who can share some pix for comparison of 14.1 and 15.1 widescreen T61 as I am considering how much difference there can be? Thanks a lot in advance.

[ibm meister]

Have a 15.4 T in the office and it's dark on the right side... especially when you move around... I do not like that. Considering a 14.1 T61. How is the screen WSXGA+ ? Is it shadowey moving around like the 15.4 . Usually the smaller screen helps.

Hav a T60 2623-D6U w/ 2G/120 5400 Hitachi/14.1 LG SXGA+ with a great running Vista Enterprise upgrade and Office 2007. I always get tantalized by the latest, now it's the 14.1.

What to do, what to do... I can get a screamer on EPP for under $1200!