Lenovo ThinkPad T400 First Look

Is that the same thing as EXPR.CARDSLOTXN4-1M.CARDR.?

 

Good job with the First Looks.

For the full review, mind describing the wireless chipset in more detail (Intel 5100? 5300?) along with signal strength measurements?

 

Why you would want to use readyboost I have no idea... (didnt help on my desktop or my T60).

If you want a card reader, just get a PC-Card SD-Reader and stick it in the stock. End result is the same as the model we are reviewing, but if you dont want to use it you can always remove it.

 

I've had success with it on my desktop and a bit on my older m6805. Thought it couldn't hurt (though it does spin the disk more when you boot up).

 

I would appreciate it if you could make a few comments on the integrated camera, perhaps it's specs and performance in applications like MSN Messenger and Skype. Thanks.

Also the Intel graphics are already supported under Linux, perhaps not as a switchable duo with the HD 3470 though. Great to hear that you can do a little light gaming.

 

Thank you, Kevin. This is most appreciated. We have all been starved for real, user-based information over the last couple of weeks.

 

Thanks for the 1st look. For the final review if possible and not too much to ask, pics of the LED screen side by side with another TP screen would be nice.

 

Yes and some beer would be appreciated.

 

That cheap plastic blank is only present if you get the SD-Card reader option on the T400.[/QUOTE]

Is the SD-card reader option the same as the 4-1 Media Card reader?

 

Would the HD4500 integrated graphics card be enough to run autocad and related softwares from autodesk?

Will there be a Linux version coming out like T61? When estimate? I would like to pay less and get more through the linux option.

 

For the T500 review, a good idea would be to put it together with the T400 so we can see the difference in screen brightness.

 

If the integrated webcam is anything like my T61 (and I'm pretty sure it is), it'll be of average quality. It's good in environments with sufficient lighting but if there's not enough, the webcam does poorly. And without color adjustments, the webcam picture has either a green or yellow tint. Without broadcasting, a slight but noticeable lag is there as opposed to real-time speed. The webcam is really light-focused. What I mean by this is it'll focus on the area of the picture that has the most light. For example, if an un-shaded window is behind you, the webcam will dim you out.

Hope that helps.

 

It should be quieter than T61, since slowest fan level is now around 1800 rpm instead of 2800 rpm.

 

price just dropped

 

Yeah I know they are the same but i would have liked to see them changed to the kind the X300 and X200 have. I agree with you on the off-center screen but just thought I would mention it anyway

 

wonder when the LED for the t500 will be available

 

Thank-you that's very helpful. It doesn't sound like the webcam's particularly great but it would be useful for me to have it built in regardless. Hopeully it'll be upgraded in this model. Do you happen to know if there's Linux support for the webcam chipset they use?

 

Thank you Kevin

Couple questions regarding the screen:
1) The X300 LED is 300 nits (I think), is the T400 LED the same or brighter?
2) Also, you metnion the horiz angles were pretty good. I found them disapointing on the X300... is the T400 better? How do you compare it to flexview?

Looking forward to the full review!
Thank you

 

Price did dropped like keltix have said, looking at the US site 3:23am PST, I hope this is not a typo... The E6400 has cheaper price with included a 3 year warranty....

 

I guess this is a YMMV type thing since it's not what I'm seeing. Perhaps we're looking at different configurations. Dell is bad for cheap basic config and the $$$ skyrocketing by the time you customize to a decent spec. Not the Lenovo is that much better, but running the same config I see a notable price increase for the Dell.

 

Wow, you guys weren't kidding about the price drop. On CPP you can get one of these nicely equipped with the LED screen + camera, 6 cell battery, 5300 wireless, and 2 GB of RAM for less than $1,000.

 

T400 LED screen is supposed to be 250 nits according to the tabook.

 

Thanks for the comprehensive review Kevin. I'm developing a UEFI hypervisor (in fact I gave a presentation on this at Black Hat in Las Vegas last week). I've been looking for a laptop that supports both UEFI and VT-x. Can you confirm for me that the T400 BIOS supports both UEFI and VT-x? Thanks!

 

Thanks for the hands-on. I hope the full review show up on the net in no time as well.

 

Unfortunately, I don't know. All I know about the camera is that the driver provider is Sonix.

 

The price has dropped so much.....now I can get the same specification for 300$ less from 14 days ago even though i got more discount 14days ago.

 

Hey Kevin,

In the upcoming review, could you go more into depth on fan noise? Lenovo made somewhat of a big deal about this being their quietest notebook ever, however you said it was on par with your T60. My issue is, the fan noise on my T60 drives me nuts. It's almost always on, and in my opinion, not particularly quiet. So, giving it a little more thought, is it any better than the T60, or just the same. (FYI I have a T60 widescreen 15" w/ discrete graphics.)

Fortunately, in reading the posts, I've learned of tpfancontrol. Breathing easier already. My laptop is obviously warmer now, but I'll take it!

 

Kevin, thanks for the review.

Does it have the middle connector in the Ultrabay used for the serial / parallel adapter?



(Pic taken from my blog.)

 

On the Lenovo website it says that the graphics card in the t400 is a ATI Mobility Radeon 3640 with 256mb. How does that compare with the one reviewed, Radeon 3470?

Ahh nevermind, that is a typo on Lenovo.com's side.

 

If anyone can install any Linux OS in this laptop and able to run everything as it should, please let me know.

I read the T500 review, about the keyboard, how bad new keyboard compare to previous keyboard?

In the Lenovo website the laptop only can be customize to 3Gb RAM, is that the max?

Thanks, im waiting for the full review

 

Choose a 64-bit OS version to add more than 3GB RAM.

 

Can we get some pcmark06 and 3dmark06 scores? I am really curious about what kind of scores the t400 can rack in.

 

So i'm looking to upgrade my old IBM T40 and there are two main things i absolutely luuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuuv about this laptop even to this day:

1) I never really ever hear the fan, freakn' fantastic
2) Keyboard always feels solid

Is the T400 a worthy upgrade over my T40 NOT INCLUDING THE HARDWARE changes

thank you

 

Our T400 configuration got 6589 in PCMark05 and 2575 in 3DMark06. PCMark Vantage was 4374.

 

thanks, kevin, then what is the GPU in T400? 3640 or 3470?
It seems that the GPU is 3470, but I can not imagine that 3470 has so good performance

Besides, the T400 spes says:

Why both are WXGA+, but the LED has 1680x1050 resolution?

 

Thanks for that info! Much apprediated.

What resolution did you run the 3dmark06 in? I think that info is quite important since you cant compare the results otherwise.

 

Wait, wait. On this first-look, the graphics are..: ATI Mobility Radeon 3470 w/ 256MB (hybrid switching)

But, when I click on the lenovo site to customize, it gives me this: ATI Mobility Radeon 3640 with 256MB

Which one has the typo?

EDIT: Nevermind, read it on some other thread, its lenovo's typo. ****, I wanted the 36xx vid card on a T400.

 

1280x800 for resolution

 

Because Lenovo is bad for typographical errors.

The LED is WXGA+, 1440x900. The 1680x1050 is clearly a typo; when you calculate the 129dpi it works out to ~15.4" on the diagonal - that's not going to fit in a 14.1 laptop (and still function... )

 

I am about to replace my current notebook computer, a 6-1/2 year old Toshiba Portege 4010. Because of all the great information in this thread and the T500 thread, I have narrowed my selection down to two Lenovo models, the T400 and T500. I'm leaning toward the T400 with the P9500 processor, but I have several questions. I've listed them with the most important ones first.

* BATTERY AND BATTERY LIFE:
o What is the weight of the T400 with a 320 GB
hard disk and a 9 cell battery?
o Ditto for T500.
o What is the weight of the T400 with a 320 GB
hard disk, a 9 cell battery and a Bay battery?
Ditto for 6 cell? Ditto for T500.
o How much battery life can I expect for each
configuration?
o What are the mAh ratings of the 6 cell, 9 cell, and
bay batteries?
o Is the bay battery the Lithium Polymer battery at
$159 in the accessories list?
* MEMORY:
o Can 4 GB of memory be used with one of the 32
bit Vista operating systems?
o I see only one 64 bit Vista option on the Lenovo
customize list, the Vista Business 64. Does Lenovo
offer other Vista 64 bit systems?
o The spec sheet says these computers can take up
to 8 GB memory but that option doesn't exist in
the customize list. Is it available?
* PROCESSOR:
o I see that the customize option for the T400
added the P9500 processor today. Does that
produce significantly extended battery life vs. the
T9400 processor? Is the option for a P9500
processor also available for the T500?
* DISPLAY:
o The spec sheet says that LED backlighting is
available for the T500 but I can't find it in the
customize list. Is it available now? If not, will it
be available soon?
* OPTICAL DEVICE:
o Does the CD-RW/DVD Rom Combo Drive write to
DVDs or is it read-only for DVDs?
o Is the DVD dual layer Recordable Drive a Combo
drive? Does it read/write to both CDs and DVDs
(both single and dual layer)?
o Will either drive read/write to a CD+RW and/or
DVD+RW?
o Does either drive have Lightscribe label writing
capability? If not is there an option for that?
* POWER CORD / ACCESSORIES:
o How does the AC/DC adapter differ from the
standard adapter? If I get the AC/DC, does it
replace the standard, or supplement it?
o What is the Dual Charging Cable? How does it
differ from the cables that come with the AC/DC
adapter?

I apologize to the list if these questions are off-topic, or if they already have been answered (I may have missed a previous answer). I haven't been in the market for a new computer for several years, and the current set of options is fairly new to me.

 

Hi

I'm in Iran And My English Language are not Good! But I Learn it! Someone Tell Me About the Type and Model The Laptop In The First Page of This Topic! I Can't See The Model Of This Laptop! Because They Are Said Just Thinkpad T400! T400 Has i think 100 Model! and In Iran We Have Thinkpad T400 W8J or W8G by in sort 1.700$ - 1.630$. it's very Expensive about another Country. and they don't have Wireless and Webcam! (Absolutly in iran)! So Tell Me About the Model and Type And Webcam and Wireless! and i have a question about the noise of Fan! i want a Quiet Laptop Becaouse i Can't Tolerance of High db! Please tell Me about the One Laptop With a Quiet Nosi of Fan!

Thank You
Regards
Vahid Aghakhani