Is the T420s the 14" to get if buying in the next week?

In search of a new 14" laptop. Is the T420s the best available at the moment.

Battery life is not ultra important. Option of battery in media bay is good, as it extra HD in media bay. Don't want something that gets too hot and generally the T420s is looking like it fits most of my requirements.

I was previously looking at the T420 - but was put off by the lack of USB3.

If you were buying a 14" today would the T420s be the way to go? Otherwise I'm considering the dell e6420 or hp 8460p.

Anyone regretting their T420s purchase? Thanks

 

With the T420s you pay extra cost for less weight. Also, the cooling system is less generous than on other, thicker, 14" machines.

I wanted something lighter than the standard 14" machines and the T420s was the best I could find in that respect. So I've no regrets although there are aspects which I don't like (only one USB port on the side, no backlit keyboard). I find the UltraBay battery option very convenient (the older bay batteries work fine and are less expensive).

John

 

Am I right in thinking that the T420s is more or less the same size/weight as the 420?

The weight itself isn't too important to me. I figure that most 14" machines are comfortable enough to use on a lap. I don't particularly want to pay for a lighter machine but... If the machine with performance/build quality also happens to be lighter and carry a bit of a premium because of that then I'd likely still buy it - depending on the premium of course!

In terms of noise, in your opinion how do you think it rates compared with the other 14" machines I listed? I read a review of the 420s that said while the fan came on quite frequently it wasn't too noisy. Would you agree with that assessment?

I'm concerned with noise for two reasons - I will use the laptop in bed sometimes when my partner is sleeping and she gets annoyed when I use her dell e6400 because of the loud and seemingly almost always on fan. Secondly, I will use the laptop to make notes in half a dozen or so lectures/meetings - so I don't want to be an annoyance. I assume like my old T61p there is the possibility of software control of the fan? That might be suitable in emergencies, but not for daily use.

John, if you didn't want a lighter than normal 14" machine - what would you buy? And if it would still be the T420s what would be your second choice?

Thanks a lot!

 

TPFanControl still works on the newer machines.

You may want to avoid the discrete graphics card if you don't need it.

 

Read the Lenovo tabook.pdf .

T420: 6-cell: from 4.79 lb (2.17kg) (probably without optical drive)
T420s 6-cell: starting at 3.68 lb (1.67kg) (that's definitely without the optical drive - it's about 1.8kg with optical drive). ie there's 1.1lb / 0.5kg difference in the weight.

The fan noise is only noticeable when at top speed (ie full CPU load). However, I use TPFanControl to turn off the fan at 55C - otherwise it keeps running unless the ambient temperature is very low.

I'm surprised that your Dell E6400 is noisy. They did a lot a BIOS tweaks in order to improve the fan operation. Perhaps that E6400 never got updated.

I've still got my previous notebook (Dell E6410) and I like everything about it except the weight (which is about the same as the T420) and the hardware being of the previous generation. However, another 14" notebook which has caught my attention is the
The 14" Samsung Series 7 Chronos but it is currently hard to find. If the size and weight of a 14" machine are not concerns then I would be looking for a Dell Outlet E6420.

John

 

Thanks for your replies!

I do the occasional spot of work in Adobe CS5 and I think I'm correct in thinking that the discrete graphics in the T420s would help with that. Photoshop/Premiere/After Effects. I'm not doing it day-in-day-out but I think it is probably worth the extra.

Re e6400 bios - ah, she must have never updated it. It is quite noticable 90% of the time - only under the lightest load in cold conditions is it silent or near silent.

I will look more closely at the e6420. I'm presuming that the t420s build quality is a fair bit better than it (and certainly is more pleasing to the eye imo) - but if the fan/cooling is good then it is a definite option.

I also looked at the Series 7 Chronos - but was put off a bit by the number of problems people are having in the Samsung forum here. It is a great looking and apparently well spec'd out machine mind!

Anyone have a view on the T420s vs the HP 8460p (other than the size). A review I read mentioned the HP had the nicer build quality but have not seen much direct comparison.

 

I need to find one of the older bay batteries as I just scored a sweet 3 week old T420s with i7, 128gb SSD, NV4200, and extended 3 year onsite warranty off ebay for just over $1k
Does anyone have any of the older product codes?

To the OP You can run an mSATA SSD (in the WWAN slot) and also another SSD or HDD in the primary 2.5" slot (only 7mm height).
Then you can also have a 3rd drive in the optical bay or run the battery. 3 x SSD's in raid?

If you want to run an external GPU then you want something with an express card slot

Check through nando4's list of notebooks for weight and dimensions:
http://forum.notebookreview.com/7585042-post4052.html

14" Lenovo T420s 4.03lbs (1.83kgs). 1.05" thick. NVS4200M/900P option. mSATA
14" Lenovo T420 4.84lbs (2.20kgs). 1.20" thick. NVS4200M/900P option. mSATA
14" HP 8460P 4.95lbs (2.25kgs). 1.25" thick. HD6470M/900P option. No switchable gfx!
14" Toshiba R840 4.20lbs (1.91kgs). 1.00" thick. HD6450M/900P opt. HD6450M opt is not switchable gfx.SATA-II capped.
14" Samsung 7 4.30lbs (1.95kgs). 0.90" thick. HD6490M. 900P. No expresscard slot
14" Dell E6420 5.10lbs (2.32kgs). 1.28" thick. NVS4200M/900P option. Quad-core option.

 

My previous generation bay battery is the 43R8891.

John

 

Note that there is a small difference in capacity between the ultrabay II and ultrabay III batteries, 31.32 wH for the III and 28.?? or 29.?? for the II. Barely noticeable, but just pointing it out.

 

As someone who bought a machine that is smaller/lighter in an absolute sense, it is worthwhile to consider how much that really means to you. If I was to do it over again, I would march immediately toward the T420.

 

What's your reasoning for that? Besides the price point difference.

 

I concede that the feature difference between the T420 and T420s is largely the same, but I'm not sure that ditching 1.1lbs and 4mm thickness is worth the extra few hundred dollars. You're still carrying 77% of the weight and almost all of the size of the cheaper T420.

And in my case, saving that ~1.3lbs and a few millimeters in each direction was not worth the compromise in performance and upgradability (higher-res screen, full-height 9.5mm drives, full-power CPUs, etc.). Lesson learned.

 

in that ^ case I would just go with the cheaper T420

 

Assume you have both machines to evaluate and use for three months. Which one gets the lion share of the use? Why?

The $500 difference in price is a little less than 50 cents per day over 3 years.

So take the price out of the picture and you are left with the ports, weight, and size.

 

I've thought about this some more over the holiday break - fluctuating upwards to 15" models and downwards to 13" models and now I think back to 14".

In terms of the T420 vs T420s distinction, I'm leaning towards the T420. The lack of USB3 on the t420 is a big drawback; and the slight weight/size is a lesser one for me personally. It's really the heat/cooling advantage that swings it for the T420 - having a quieter and cooler machine just about out-weighs the usb3/size/weight advantages that the t420 has.

I've been leaning further towards the dell e6420 - the backlit keyboard is quite an attraction. My girlfriend has an e6400 and I quite like the machine in general and the keyboard is great when working in a bedroom/dark lounge.

I'm concious that both the e6420 and the t420 have both been around for a while. Just stuck with the age old question of buying now vs waitng for something new. Do I "need" the machine now? A bit... "need" is a strong word, but it would be nice to be back on a machine of my own.

I wonder if announcements will be made at CES in a week or so?

 

T420s' fan issues are a non issue with some basic Tpfancontrol tweaks so it really comes down between E6420 and T420s for you. I would recommend the T420s because the 1.5lb saving makes it worth it.

 

I wouldn't get excited about USB 3.0 until the next generation of notebooks when it should be integrated into the Intel chipset and, I hope, supported by the BIOS. I would have been happier if my T420s had eSATA not USB 3.0.

Note that while the E6410 is alsmost identical to the E6400, the 16:9 form factor resulted in the E6420 being bigger and heavier than its predecessors. However, if you can find a suitable E6420 in Dell Outlet then value-for-money might outweigh the other drawbacks.

John