T43p UXGA conclusions and questions

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dukajoe · #1 Post by **dukajoe** » Fri Apr 01, 2005 3:50 am

I am in the market for a new laptop, and I have tentatively decided on a T43p. Looking at some student discounted models, they are actually quite cheap it seems. My main concern has been the UXGA 1600 x 1200 resolution on the models I have looked at, but based on the posts here, I have come to some conclusions of my own:

First of all, the maximum I am used to viewing is a 1024 x 768, so a 1600 x 1200 LCD should be a huge step.

I tend to agree with the people who take the position that higher resolution is always better than lower resolution, by sheer principal. The increased resolution would increase readabiliy intrinsically.

I have experimented around with things such as clear type and mozilla, and although I haven’t gotten to use it on the UXGA, I can see how it could be beneficial.

Moreover, it seems very counter intuitive that at laptop purchase now should be based on problems with bad technology in the present. “Wait a second, my ultra high resolution display is awesome, it’s windows that really sucks!” In fact, it seems that one of longhorn’s main goals is to be with the times graphically. Looking at that mac os briefly, it seems to be more graphically friendly (perhaps I don’t know what I’m talking about). So, ultimately I think it would be good to accept the inevitable that the laptop’s display problem will probably be fixed before the 4 or so term of its longevity.

It also seems from the posts that if I do decide to go back to 1074 or 800 resolution, this would look better on the 1600 than on the 1400. Particularly with a 1600 to 1280 resolution transition—it’s a much cleaner downsizing coefficient than starting from the 1400.

Some people also complain about fonts, pictures, whatnot looking pixilated on the higher resolution because it is being expanded past its intended resolution for the interest of size, such as pictures, icons, fonts ect. (excluding things that are anti-aliased, addressing pixilation complaints), but heed this example:

I have a HD plasma TV and the resolution is quite high. When watching Non-HD television on it (without being stretched to widescreen), it looks really bad, as apposed to HD which looks incredible. So, after watching the pixels and blemishes on the large screen, I ran to another TV, which was an old 20 something inch Sony to watch TV, and I thought it looked better. However, I ran back to compare, and I changed my mind. You might think a higher resolution is worse, but in my case, I could just see all of the imperfectness and poor quality of the source, whereas the low amount of pixels masks the effect on the smaller, older display. Standing a further distance from the plasma had the same effect as watching the smaller TV. The display is not bad, the image is bad. Psychologically, this really made everything seem a lot better, and made me look forward to watching HD or DVDs on the plasma, no matter which TV I was watching.

With this in mind, I think that the large resolution would not be that bad, even if there were some small setbacks with certain resolutions ect. I would be seriously outweighed by the fact that it is a super sharp display. Also, even though I’m going to grad school and the time for bongs and video games is quickly coming to an end, I simply can’t justify spending 2000-3000 for a computer without being able to play games (emphasizing the v3200). I know many of you will tout the x300 numbers ect, but seriously. And yes, I do want a ThinkPad.

So please, confirm, criticize, and try to prove me wrong! (or right)

trikster2 · #2 Post by **trikster2** » Fri Apr 01, 2005 4:23 am

" by sheer principal. The increased resolution would increase readabiliy intrinsically. "\\

I don't agree with this.

Typing this on a 1900x1200 screen 15.4" wide screen (not a thinkpad of course!)

Higher res is not always better. I'm always messing with font size/dpi what not trying to get decent size text. Unfortunately many web pages are still designed for 800x600 and font scaling is not handled well. Yes high res is nice, but it can be a pain in the but. Sometimes I wish I just had a 1280x800 screen.

"a computer without being able to play games (emphasizing the v3200)."

Wow. That blows my mind. You want to play games so you plan on buying CAD graphics?

v3200 is based on the X600 (think last year's mobility 9700). No one has posted gaming benchmarks yet but X300/X600 benchmark comparisons show their is not a huge improvement (900 vs 1250 3DMark05). Plus as the v3200 is optimized for cad there is the chance it will be even slower in games than the stock X600.

If you are going to spend 3 grand on a laptop and you want to game with it there are a lot better options out there. Look at anything X700 based or above or anything with a Nvidia 6600 or above. Now that sonoma/alvisio have been out for a few months there are more notebooks with fast graphics out than you can shake a stick at. Unless you hang out in thinkpad land....

kanate · #3 Post by **kanate** » Fri Apr 01, 2005 4:31 am

I'd recommend to get the highest resolutions that you can afford.

If font size is too small, there're so many ways you can work around it. For example, get this software (LiquidView)
http://personalcomputing.portrait.com/u ... rview.html

I've heard that in new Windows (longhorn), there'll be much better font/image size control, which you can make it to look like any resolutions you want. V3200 in T43P should be able to use all the features in this new version of Windows and also play games because it's actually an x600.

kanate · #4 Post by **kanate** » Fri Apr 01, 2005 4:42 am

If you're going to pay $3000 for a notebook and main purpose is to play game. Make sure you take a look at Dell Precision M70 (Some reviews say it's better than their XPS gaming notebook) Dell sometime has 25%-35% off coupon for their Precision line also.

craigg · #5 Post by **craigg** » Fri Apr 01, 2005 8:08 am

I have a 15.4" WUXGA on another notebook and while it is good in some situations, in others the font is just too small. As mentioned earlier, many websites don't display well at that resolution and after reading for a long time my eyes do get tired. I have another notebook that has only WXGA 1280x800 I believe and that doesn't offer enough real estate for my taste. I find I am always scrolling. For me the SXGA+ is pretty close to being perfect. With cleartype enabled it is easy to read the text.

As far as gaming, if you are a hard core gamer then the Thinkpad won't be the choice for you. The down side to most of those gaming laptops is that they are big, heavy, and they don't run long on battery power. The Thinkpad T43 is a business computer that is light in weight and very compact. In my opinion it is one of the best built all purpose computers. The only down side is it doesn't come cheap

Kenn · #6 Post by **Kenn** » Fri Apr 01, 2005 12:00 pm

Most people I know use windows full-screen and alt-tab exclusively to switch through programs. While this is fast and efficient, it's not the best way to 1) switch between 5+ programs or 2) work with simultaneous documents and data sets.

The more important point in terms of resolution is - unless you are programming or video/image editing, the increased resolution doesn't help much if you're a "maximizer." I see a lot of people at school with MS word maximized and a single 100% document centered in the screen, with as much unused "gray space" everywhere, or a full-screen web browser with less than half the screen used by static-width sites.

For many people used to working like this, high-resolution isn't nearly as big of a benefit (and can be a detriment), as opposed to those who work spatially in windowed mode, and lately I've been backpedalling a bit in recommending higher resolutions for average users because of this. I guess it's just a lesson in being aware of how you use the computer.

Moving from 10x7 to 16x12 is a big move (for the T43 in price, weight, size, battery life). Make sure you'll get the benefit of it before making such a decision (and be sure to visit your local CompUSA to compare resolutions and screen sizes on sample machines).

dukajoe · #7 Post by **dukajoe** » Fri Apr 01, 2005 12:48 pm

Well, I dont really want to use it for gaming, I guess I didnt make that clear. I want the thinkpad because it is thin, light, and durable, and its something that I can take to and from class, and it will have a good battery life. Of course I would get like a XPS2 for gaming, but I dont necessarily want to play doom 4 or whatever, but maybe some new warcraft when it comes out, nothing to fancy. I see my self gaming maybe 1 hour a week, or 0 hours a week when the ps3 comes out. I think that the v3200 is a marginally a better choice than x300. If you look at some numbers, the Firegl 128 is pretty good for games, assuming you're using the right drivers ect, so I think with the propper adjustment, the v3200 can be to. I guess the main purpose of thi spost is not that I want to have a gaming notebook, but that im not totattly sure about the UXGA display for general use.

Kenn · #8 Post by **Kenn** » Fri Apr 01, 2005 1:16 pm

Regarding my post above,

My three major questions that can help determine whether UXGA is right for you:

1. What applications will take up 70-90% of your time?

2. Do you usually work full-screen or windowed?

3. How often will you be on battery power, and for how long per session?

trikster2 · #9 Post by **trikster2** » Sat Apr 02, 2005 1:40 am

kanate wrote:I'd recommend to get the highest resolutions that you can afford.

If font size is too small, there're so many ways you can work around it. For example, get this software (LiquidView)
http://personalcomputing.portrait.com/u ... rview.html

I've heard that in new Windows (longhorn), there'll be much better font/image size control, which you can make it to look like any resolutions you want. V3200 in T43P should be able to use all the features in this new version of Windows and also play games because it's actually an x600.

Hey Kanate, do you actually use liquid view? I have not seen it in action but if it does what you claim that would be sweet. I browse mostly in firefox. Does Liquid View make Firefox picture perfect for web browsing without having to hit CTRL+ and CTRL- to resize the text all the time?

Interesting that you mention the M70. Just ordered one of those but still may cancel and get the thinkpad T43p. Main deciding factor is cost and that in games, the 6800 based 1400 Quadro (2300 to 3000 in 3DMARK05) will probably blow the X600 based V3200 out of the water (X600 is getting 1200ish in 3Dmark05). Twice the perforance for 1/2 the price and a company that is not turning Red in a couple of months? I can handle a couple pounds extra weight for that type of bang for the buck.

kanate · #10 Post by **kanate** » Sat Apr 02, 2005 2:06 am

I've not tried the LiquidView yet but 've heard lots of good things about it. You can download trial version and try to see if it fits your need.

If you want to get Dell M70, make sure to look around on Deal sites. Sometime, you can get 25% - 35% off coupon code.

T43p UXGA conclusions and questions

T43p UXGA conclusions and questions

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