Considering R51 - Doubts about display...

[jehrengart]

Been lurking here and at other boards for a while trying to get a handle on the R51, especially the display.

My wife and I are older so our eyes aren't the greatest. For example, my wife really likes the larger fonts. Upon looking at the various screens at electronic stores we see a lot of variation in brightness, clarity, glare, etc. We both agree that the "brite view" type screens are brighter and sharper but have tremendous glare potential. Unfortunatley, we can't see any of the IBM's to compare.

I've also not been impressed with general quality of any make we've looked at, hence we're thinking IBM based on what most forum members and reviews favor.

IBM's site is not clear to me whether or not the R51 series has this "flexview" screen or not. I'm thinking this may be dependent on resolution? Does it make that much difference (I realize it's subjective)?

Would appreciate any other thoughts, including quality issues with the R51. I read somewhere where the new keyboards may not be as good?
Really can't afford the T series unless the invoice is hidden forever from wife! I'm also going to ignore support issues due to the sale of IBM for the time being.

Should probably ad that this computer will be used in home/home office enviornment (including bright sunlit kitchen), with modest tasks including Word, Excel, e-mail, financial software and Internet (wireless DSL).

Thanks,

[Dancalio]

I just bought an R51 mostly on specs without considering the display. If I could do it all over again, I'd probably buy a different laptop since the screens on some others I've seen (e.g., all the Sony's at the mall) look much better.

Still, I'm very happy with this machine. I've been working on this monitor non-stop with Office applications for the last two days and I haven't had a headache yet. I plan on keeping it hooked up to my 19" crt most of the time anyway so the screen issue should not be too frustrating. You can see the specs in my signature and I got it all together for $1800. I'm not sure if you can find this deal in America as I bought mine in Bangkok.

I thought I would go blind with this thing but I made two helpful adjustments. One, I increased the "dpi" which makes everything larger. Working at the unadjusted 1024x768 resolution on this 15" lcd monitor just is a bad idea for me; I use that resolution on my 19" and that is plenty for me. Two, I adjusted the display using the package "adobe gamma" software so the colors are slightly better.

Still, the screen has almost no good viewing angle where all colors are properly displayed. Also, the screen is too dim and it seems like the max setting is about a medium setting on other laptop screens.

I plan on checking out other similar screens at the computer mall to see if this is normal with the R51 or if I just got a poor screen.

I'd recommend checking out the monitor yourself if possible before buying.

Another thing to consider with the R51 is that you only get 2 usb slots -- definitely too few. This requires either usb juggling or getting a hub.

I don't want to beat up on this notebook too much. As I mentioned, I really like it and am happy with it. It functions probably a bit better than the 2.8c pentium 4 desktop I replaced with it. And for the price it really stands out.

Good luck,
Daniel

[Guest]

Hi Daniel,

Thanks for that useful information. What you describe is what worries me. Not sure our eyes would do well with that. Did you see the flexview screen before you bought? Kind of a bummer not to have these available to view before purchase.

Thanks,
John in STL

[kristian]

I just got my T42p as a new work laptop. The one and only reason why I even dared to consider it was because of the Flexview screen, which I had heard wondrous praises of...

I first tried a laptop from another brand that shall go unnamed, but in short I got the headaches from looking at the washed-out, contrast-less screen.

But the T42p... After working with computers for so long I didn't think it possible for me to get this excited about a laptop...
It really is worth it, and if you have less-than-perfect vision already, I think there really is no alternative.

So - explain to your wife that your vision is worth more than a couple' bucks - and get a Flexview thinkpad with a clear conscience!
(And rumor has it that someone, somewhere, on this site has great deals on such machines... )

I'm not 100% positive, but I think unless the model ends with a "p", chances are that it is not a Flexview. AFAIK there is a R50p available with Flexview.

[JohnDrake]

Most people don't adjust the brightness of the display...when looking at it, make sure it is plugged into AC power. Brightness is adjusted up by pressing Fn+Home.

[jehrengart]

Thanks for your input, though I'm a little confused again. Hopefully someone can clarify.

If I got the R51 with the SXGA+ 15" screen would it be FlexView or is Flexview only available on T series?

Have been looking around locally unable to find something satisfying. Those "bright screens" with the glare factor are nice, however, the glare in our enviroment may be a factor and really don't need or want widescreen.

[betsywalter]

Price is a big consideration between the R series and the T series, but the far bigger consideration is the best IBM screen possible. Sooooo... Is the 15-inch Flexview screen on the r51 as good as the 15-inch Flexview screen on the T series? Are they, in fact, the same screen, attached to different model assemblies? I do hope you knowledgeable people out there have an answer for us

[Puppy]

Yes, there are R51 models with Flexview displays

[NathanA]

Is the 15-inch Flexview screen on the r51 as good as the 15-inch Flexview screen on the T series? Are they, in fact, the same screen, attached to different model assemblies?

Of all the OEMs that IBM buys screens from, only one, IDTech (which was in fact a joint effort by IBM and Chi Mei Optoelectronics), makes IPS ("FlexView") LCD screens. So, yes, if you are talking about the 1400x1050 resolution 15" FlexView screens, the exact same screen is used in the T42 and R51.

However, to my knowledge, there are no R51s that use the 1600x1200 15" FlexView (same physical size, more pixels). If you want one of those in an R-Series laptop, you have to buy an R50p.

-- Nathan

[jerryci]

I know that Puppy is right. There are Flexview screens available on the R51. I believe that the Flexview is generally about a $100 option. Nathan, while you're correct that the R50p offers the higher resolution with the ATI FireGL 128mb graphics adapter, John in St. Louis didn't ask for the higher resolution and, in fact, he doesn't need the FireGL for his applications and he and his wife might prefer it at a lower resolution to get the larger font size. Since the R50p sells for a good deal more than the R51, the R51 might make an excellent choice.

Jerry C.