Bought T400, seems okay?

Got a T400 off ebay for about $575. Has warranty until 2012, roughly when I finish Uni. Does this seem a good deal?

There were more expensive ones with T9400 and T9800, didn't really seem much point in those, since they are 35W @ full load, drain battery faster. GMA4500 ought to handle most stuff okay, not really a gaming person myself; beside 3470 isn't that much a stepup, but I heard about the driver complications.

Edit, could GMA 4500 handle CS 1.6? thats the only game I play.

 

No way, you got one too? the_laptop_guys right? If so I got one too!

 

Yep, seems we bought from the same guy.

Four system listed yesterday, its all gone today.Sometimes there are offers, which are simply too good to refuse. The seller has solid feedback, so I hope the laptop will be awesome.

 

Yeah, what a small world...

He does seem to have good feedback... plus he sold quite a few Thinkpads in the past so I'm pretty confident. The three-year warranty and WXGA+ screen are what got me. They were all sold out yesterday but I think we'd be seeing more from him/her in the future.

Who knows, maybe the seller is an NBR member too!

 

You guys got pretty good deals on those and yes, the X4500 should be able to handle CS 1.6 just fine.

 

Oh and... assuming those laptops were made for the U.S. market (I certainly hope so), have you looked into getting the European type of adapter for your power supply?

 

I have the power brick from a few old T4xs, I think that isn't a problem. Even if it doesn't work, I still think the battery would last long enough - until the replacement charger arrives.

I might be upgrading the RAM when I get it, maybe SSDs later on. Have you any plans on upgrades, Eagle?

 

I just bought a 320 GB 7200 RPM drive from zipzoomfly a week ago (totally intended for my Dell at the time of purchase) and will probably be putting that one in the T400. I'll also be upgrading to 4 GB when there are deals from Newegg or similar. I hope the 2 GB is a single DIMM but I'm not holding my breath.

EDIT: I'll be getting it on Monday and I'll post back to let you know if we spent the money well!

 

Just one thing - Did we buy normal screen, or is it LED backlit screen?

I don't suppose normal screen would drastically cut the battery?

 

It says CCFL so we got the regular screen, which is fine enough with me. The LED screen is tremendously hard to come by and would have cost more.

 

Agreed.

Either way it's great package, at irresistible price; and frankly I'm happy as long as it's matte. My M1730's glossy screen nearly drove me to mad, because of the reflection, and the fact it was very difficult to clean - not going anywhere near those glossy stuff again.

 

May I ask why you got the T400 when you got something as great as the M1730? I'm guessing for the small size?

 

Going to uni, not lugging around a 8kg backpack...

also it was rapidly lossing value.

 

Fair enough, and if we take care of them they should last us quite a few years. I'm coming along perfectly fine on my three-year old E1705 and if it weren't for its huge size and weight I wouldn't have bought a new laptop.

Regarding depreciation: that's the thing, I learned it's not a good idea for me to get the latest and greatest fully maxed out. My E1705 was worth $2000 and now it's probably worth only $400. Same thing with the T400: instead of buying it for $1500 I might as well ditch some of the features I'll never use and get it for as cheap as I can.

 

I think you got an amazing deal. Nice long warranty too! Good find.

 

Hopefully will receive it by the end of the week.

Are there anything that I should know, about the system? any tip would be welcomed.

 

I am getting it on Tuesday (UPS updated their ETA out of nowhere ), but I AM getting the R61 tomorrow.

 

Eh... lucky guy . One thinkpad not enough for you?

 

Well... I bought the R61 first... a couple days later I saw the T400 and it was too good to pass. I am probably going to return the R61 or sell it here.

 

I see. What spec does the R61 have, if you don't mind me asking?

 

Nope, don't mind at all:

T8300 2.4 GHz
2 GB DR2-667
80 GB 5400 RPM HDD
NVIDIA Quadro NVS 140M 128 MB
14.1 WXGA+
6 Cell Battery
Extra: Dual Layer 8x DVD±RW DVD Burner

You interested?

 

T4x power supply will not work on a T61 or T400. They changed between the T43 and T60 models. T60 and up will work, but not older...

 

Err.... not really needing another laptop, thanks though. Pretty nice spec you've got there.

I see. The switch from single to dual core must have increased the power requirement. Luckly I've also got a few mains converter plug around.


Can anyone give me an idea, how much bloat software are suppose to ship with T400?

 

Pics as promised:

 

@ Iron_Eagle: How's the keyboard on your unit? I've been reading a lot (perhaps too much) on this keyboard flex issue. I played with some of the SL500s at my university's bookstore and of the 3 units there 2 had a fair amount of flex, but only with quite a bit of force.

 

The T400 looks ok i suppose but i've read up that the plastics are quite thin and cheap, they've lightened it but at a cost of quality, i'm going for a T61p, well, looking for one. I used a T21 up until a few months ago, never anything major wrong with it, it was jumped on a few times by a guy but it still works to this day except for the LCD, i think it may just need a new inverter, but that's an easy fix.

 

Okay, I've used mine for a little bit now and I can tell you that there is far less bloatware installed on this machine than there was on my Dell back in the day. It's mostly ThinkVantage software and some security subscription software. I haven't yet done a reformat because I am waiting for my 320 GB, but I would say it actually runs a little bit more sluggishly than my Dell at times (no worries, most of time it still flies through tasks with the P8400 ), because right now I have like... 93 process running! My Dell, on the other hand, is very optimized and I would argue that it runs better than some of the laptops with today's technologies at everyday tasks like browsing and word processing. I installed a temp control software and saw that my CPU and HDD temps were all pretty low, usually in the mid to low 40s.

Okay, I must say I'm not one of those hardcore users, maybe because my fingers only touch the keys very lightly - that's just how I type to achieve a higher speed. I guess if one were to pound on the individual keys the old fashioned way, with one finger, you could say there is some depression or "flex" - I tried that since I heard about this whole "keyboard flex" issue. I'd say if it's important to you then try it out at a store before you buy, but I am pretty happy with my keyboard, particularly the fact that the the keystrokes are soft and quiet. Keep in mind that the SL series are supposed to have far inferior build qualities than than the T series, or at least that's what I heard.

 

Wow, that looks brand new - congrats on the machine.

Mine is still in NY, waiting for international dispatch.

 

Oh yeah, the Lenovo letters on the top cover still have the protective cover on them! Makes me wonder whether it was used at all!

So your delivery date is still set on the 17th?

 

My has 'guaranteed Delivery Date of August 17, 2009', though that's probably optimistic, cos it's already 12th - and item is still in NY. I have no idea whether 17th is the date I will get it, or just time taken to reach UK custom, even local carrier. That said assuming the carriers are off on Sunday, and 17th is next monday then the earliest time would be 15th, this Saturday. Really getting a bit impatient now.

Deciding whether to get a 80GB X25m atm, not sure if I would due to extortionate UK price.

 

I wouldn't base your conclusions/comparisons on a Thinkpad keyboard from the SL series. Just my opinion, but they are the cheapest made Thinkpad's (and some don't even consider them true Thinkpads since they lack a lot of the brands identity).

 

All they had on display were the SL series, apparently their order of T400's has not come in yet. Even with the SL series, the amount of flex is only present if you type with iron fingers. I didn't really feel any ill-effects from the keyboard during normal typing. So I guess that's good.

 

I'd wait a few days or weeks, if I were you. Intel has currently introduced a newer generation of the drive (based on 34nm NAND flash memory), which will cost much less. The newer drives start to appear in online shops (for instance in Germany X25-M 160 GB Gen2 comes for 390 EUR, which is almost half the price of what the old X25-M used to cost). I guess the prices in UK will be comparable. As a side note, be aware that the older version of the drive does not and will NOT support TRIM command, which is supposed to enhance write performance in future SSD-aware operating systems (Windows 7).

 

I've seen quite a few first gen X25-m going for about £160 delivered through ebay international, but not managed to find a single second gen drive. Strange.

Before going forward buying one, could anyone confirm that T400 indeed supports SATA II 3.0 GB/s transfer speed?

And since intel's spec suggests 250/70 for read and write respectively, what kind of speed would be realistic in T400? I would have the 2.26 Ghz cpu, dunno whether that bottlenecks the speed.

 

I think that's pretty likely. Once it passes customs it should only take a day or two to get to the UK by plane. From then on it's all up to your customs.

Additionally, I called Lenovo warranty services yesterday. Apparently we got 3 year on site, which is even better than depot - what I thought we had.

My 320 GB arrives today... but man the price of DDR3 is high!

 

That's awesome, I heard depot warranty takes about 3 weeks, onsite is so much better. I do hope the on-site-warranty applies also in UK.

Seems there are quite a few cases of coincidences we run into... What's next? If I see a guy sitting with a T400, in the garden using my wifi...

 

I just wonder if the lenovo warranty is transferable or not without some kind proof of original purchase?

Sean

 

I think it is transferable, your warranty will go with the computer, and not the person.

The warranty information is linked with serial number of the Thinkpad.

 

You know it!

Yeah I'm pretty sure the warranty follows the machine, plus when I called they verified this. However, they did mention that if the warranty is specifically for the U.S. it may not be applicable in other countries.

 

Yes, the warranty belongs to the system, not the owner.

 

Yes, the T400 does indeed support SATA II 3.0GB/s. All current Thinkpads do, only the 61-series was bottlenecked.

Your CPU will not "bottleneck" your SSD, it's not like the relationship between the CPU and GPU in gaming.

 

Finally got it, it seems like a new laptop. Got some initial impression:

Just done cleaning the bloat ware, I thought Eagle was kidding about 88 threads at start-up, but apparently not. There were so many start up items; I literally felt the need to wash my hands after the tweaking finished. Though, unlike most of HP, or Dell laptops, the software it shipped with was mostly functional, and rather useful. I did quickly uninstall Norton – I didn’t need it to lag the machine down.
On the exterior, T400 sports a quiet, but business laptop look – the build quality is generally very solid, well designed. Though like many before me, I felt the palm rest could be studier, and made by something better than plastic. The lid is a different matter though, noticeably higher quality. Once the lid close, there is a gap – it doesn’t close fully; it’s not problem as such, just the locking isn’t intricately in place. The battery wobble has improved compare to my old T43p, but still exists. Those problems are ones I’d easily overlook, based on the overall quality.
I went through a full charge in about 3:15 mins, with high brightness and surfing wifi on. The CCFL screen is probably sucking more power than LED backlit ones, but so far I'm happy with it. Screen has decent brightness, there is a little uneven backlighting on the left hand side - colours are cold, and a touch dull, shall recalibrate it later. I feel it could have used a slightly bigger screen, but it matters not, the screen resolution is more than sufficient for me; viewing angle doesn’t really concern me on any screen, but it’s worth mentioning the 1440x900 screen excels here all but for vertical downwards.
Comparing to T41 and T43p that I once had, T400's US keypad is a slight let down. A bit soft, gives the feeling of sponge - the travel is better than some mainstream laptop I played with, however the lack the distinct definition - when a key is pressed is rather alarming; even though the other keypads had shorter travel, they still given comfortable feedback. On the plus side, now being much quieter to type on than older TP model. Its keypad layout has certainly been much revised since the T4x days, wifi and sound volume buttons are very useful features.
Trackpad isn’t really smooth as I’m used to, but like the keypad, it’s one of those things that takes time to get used it. Nor is the Thinklight as bright as I had hoped – then again, as long as it doesn’t blind my eyes–it’s good enough for me.
Speakers give slght flacks any sort of noticeable bass response – highs are clear, but occasionally cracks at high volume, while the meds are slightly recessed – overpowered by highs, but nevertheless acceptable. I’ll be using 2.1 speakers/headphones mainly, so this is not a deal breaker.
I'm installing service pack now; overall the feeling of the system is sufficiently snappy, only once the system fully boats up, that is. HDD spins at 5400 rpm does slow the boot down a bit. The WEI is 5.2, 5.9, 4.1, 3.8, 5.3 respectively – a WEI of 3.8 is probably due to GMA 4500’s performance level.

 

Bought two from that guy too. Received it recently. The machines I got have 0 battery cycle on them.

 

What? then best to contact him.

 

Sorry, I meant the machines were very new. The batteries have never got their first charge at all.

 

Got rid of the laptop yesterday.

Its an okay laptop, just not one as I'd liked. Performance wise, once I tweaked the system to minimum, there was nothing to criticise, just that it wasn't fast neither.

Compare the form factor to a good old 4:3 T4x, its more like a 15 inch laptop - they probably even could have fitted a 15 inch screen. Speaking of which, the screen was barely bright enough in my office, had to stick my head closer to see - panel was washed out, get setting sorted in settings.

The US keypad is plain awkard to use, I was just not prepared to open the system, replace the keypad and get rid of the flex. The palmrest sounded and felt too plastic when tabbed.

Think I'll get a Macbook pro 13 next, cos a high nit T400 will be just to expensive.