D630 going back, T61p on its way

Took delivery of a Dell Latitude D630 last week. Unimpressed. Poor display -- very bright but colors are washed out. They replaced the display right away but it didn't help. Horrible problems with the Embassy fingerprint trust center software -- can't authenticate with a fingerprint when disconnected from the company domain, it crashes the machine and won't uninstall. Not liking the feel of the keyboard. Other minor complaints. But enough dissatisfaction that I'm sending it back.

So I saw a good deal on the Lenovo site and ordered a T61p with the following spec. It's plenty of machine and should keep me happy for a few years.

CTO THINKPAD T61 WIDESCREEN
INTEL CORE2DUO PROC.T9300
MS WIN VISTA BUSINESS
15.4 WUXGA TFT
NVID QUA FX570M-256MB OPGL
2GB PC2-5300 667MHZ 2DIMM
UN(TRCKP TOUCHPAD)FINGERRE
160GB HDD,7200RPM
INTEL TURBO MEMORY 1GB
DVD REC.8XMAXDUAL LAY UB-S
PC CARDSLOT EX CARDSLOT
INT.WIRE.WIFI/LINK4965AGN
INTEGR.BLUETOOTH PAN
6 CELL LI-ION BATTERY
LENOVO USB WEBCAM
MESSENGER BAG 15IN LAPTOPS BLACK/R ED
THINKPAD ADVANCED MINI-DOCK - PORT REPLICATOR

After a few years of high satisfaction with a T43, I should have stuck with what I knew. The 630 is an obvious attempt by Dell to compete against the T series ThinkPads but it doesn't cut it for me.

Have read lots of great info here on Quadro driver improvements, ThinkVantage cleaning, junkware removal, etc. and appreciate all the time folks here put into helping out the new owners.

 

Good for you, I have a D620 from office, and T61 for myself, the thinkpad is def a higher class laptop.

 

You made the right choice the The is so much better than the dell d630

 

I just recently played with a D620 and didn't like it that much either. I was surprised that the keyboard flexed a bit upon application of some pressure. I was pretty happy with the screen, but I think I will stay with Thinkpad.

 

I had a D620. I also sent it back due to the poor screen, but I thought it to be an otherwise well built laptop. Supposedly the screens on the D630s were fixed, but that's obviously not 100% true.

The screen lottery always gives me pause when I think about upgrading. While my R60's screen is a bit dim for my tastse, but it has minimal leakage and the PQ is fairly good given its matteness. You just never seem to know what you are going to get. The make or the model doesn't seem to matter.

 

I'm having trouble deciding between the t61 and d630. The main advantage I see in the t61 is the trackpoint is a lot better and it seems more durable. The disadvantages to me are the off-center screen, the headphone jack on the front, the 10% restocking fee, the relatively poor battery life, and the way the battery sticks out the back. Something about the off center screen and the battery annoys me, but I guess I could get used to it. It's tough for me to decide between the two though because the t61's trackpoint is so much better than the d630s.

 

Trust me, once you start using it, the off-centered screen is not noticeable at all. I didn't even notice it on mine until I read it here. Once you start looking into the screen it is not noticeable whatsoever.

 

My t61p doesn't have a headphone jack on the front. It's on the left side.

Even though I have a nice cell battery, I don't think the battery life is anything to write home about. The other thing about the 15.4 inch t61p, is that it's really heavy.

 

How heavy is the t61p? I was under the impression that it was around 6lbs with a 6cell and a little under 7lbs with a 9cell?

6lbs doesn't sound very heavy for a 15.4".

 

15.4" T61p headphone jack is on the left side, not the front.

Has anyone honestly used an "off center" screen and been frustrated to the point where he says: "I just can't take it anymore!"? I don't even notice the bezel while i'm using my laptop.

Seriously, an "off center" screen listed as a disadvantage must be from people who haven't used one of these laptops before.

 

I just ordered a T61 myself.

That said, we have a fleet of D630's that I look after at work, and I still think they truly are one of the best laptops out there. Decent keyboard, very solid case/chassis (magnesium alloy), a much better trackpoint/touchpad than previous Latitude D6xx/8xx units, and solid performance.

It was a hard choice between the D630 and the T61, but the D630 doesn't have Penryn processors as an option yet, I've heard legendary reports about the Thinkpad keyboard, and I was actually able to get the T61 at a better price; something I still think would have been unheard of a year or two ago. I always wanted a Thinkpad going back to the 380 and 755 series days; they were the Cadillacs of the notebook world; I hope they still are now.

 

Sorry, I should have specified that I was looking at the 14.1" T61. That's the one with the headphone jack on the front. As for the off center screen, maybe I just have OCD or something about that sort of thing. I'm sure I'd get used to it very quickly and not notice it, just like the battery sticking out the back. I'd still say its a disadvantage though just because if given the choice I don't think many people would request that their screen be put off center or for the battery to stick out. It's a tough choice though between the d630 and the T61. For me the main advantage of the T61 is the superior keyboard/trackpoint and sturdiness. The main advantage of the D630 is the battery life.

LoneWolf, were you comparing the T61 and d630 side-by-side? If you weren't, please do after your T61 arrives, and post how you think they compare. thanks!

 

I shall do so; I didn't have a T61 anywhere to compare prior to purchase, I'm afraid.

I think I'll see advantages and disadvantages to both systems. For example, I do like the D630's solution to the size of the 9-cell battery; it may stick out, but they designed it to act as a wrist-rest, which I found very creative. We're using them in a K-12 educational environment as mobile labs, thus the need for battery life is greater than my own. Just implemented them this school year, so I'll have a great chance to report on their longevity under the hands of multiple high school students.

I should note that I ordered the 15.4" T61. I liked the 14", but the 15.4" adds the media card reader while keeping the ExpressCard slot, and I was told the standard 6-cell battery stays flush with the unit (as opposed to the standard 4-cell on the 14.1" T61). It won't be an exact comparison, but I'm eager to see the differences myself.

 

I just ordered a 14.1" T61 myself. I was looking at the 14.1" T61p because of its better video card, but when I found out it's only available in a standard screen, I decided to go with the standard T61.

Anyone have any idea why Lenovo has opted not to offer a widescreen 14.1" T61p?

 

I'm also still going back and forth between d630 and t61 14.1".

My main concern about going with the t61 is lenovo's customer service. I've seen way too many complaints about their horrible service. I've never been a Dell customer so I don't know much about their customer service either.

I currently have an HP dv6113us. I used their online technical/customer service to try to get a new battery since my stock one failed. I was satisfied with their service even though I didn't get anything since my warranty was expired.

If I get a Thinkpad, I plan to use it for at least 2 years.

What are your experiences with the customer service of Dell and Lenovo?

 

You should also keep in mind that Dell's Business line of notebooks come with a standard 3 year warranty as opposed to ThinkPads 1 year. I also don't hear much complaints about Dell's business service department either.

If your main concern is warranty and service, IMO, the Dell wins. You really can't go wrong with either notebooks.

 

If the build/hardware quality is as good as most people say they are, I probably won't need to mess with customer service much. I had this consumer grade HP laptop for almost 1 and a half year and everything is running fine with exception of the battery failing. But that can be easily replaced w/out help from customer service.

I'm not planning to get a new laptop till the end of the year (oct-nov). Maybe lenovo's Customer Service will be improved.

 

Dell's business-level support is quite decent. I've had good luck with them. Pre-sales support is also fantastic --I've called before to request status on a system I'd ordered on behalf of someone else, and as a result, I'd get a call when it shipped, the day it was supposed to arrive, and then a followup call to make sure I was happy.

Dell Home support is a mixed bag. If you're a techie, it's not so bad; you'll likely be able to troubleshoot for yourself prior to the call, and that simplifies things for support. If you aren't, on the other hand, your first-tier support is from read-the-troubleshooting-steps-off-a-card flunkies; it will probably take you at least one tier up to find someone who is capable of original thought. Even so though, in my experience it outranks, say, HP's home-level support by a decent margin.

I can't tell you about Lenovo's support, I haven't had to deal with it yet.

 

For Lenovo/IBM CS, if all you need is a CRU (customer-replaceable unit), then I'd tell you that support is excellent. But that's because it's handled by IBM in Atlanta.

I have heard horror stories about Lenovo's CS in addition to Solectron, the company contracted to repair Thinkpads.

 

so replacements are good, repairs are bad for IBM/Lenovo.

I work part time for an IT company so I can troubleshoot computers before calling. If their hardware is good, I'll probably get a lenovo.

Thanks for the help