Overall, a great mobile system
Written: Jun 14 '03 (Updated Dec 11 '03)
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Pros: Lightweight, sturdy, great keyboard, excellent wireless
Cons: Can be extremely expensive, LCD viewing angle not great
The Bottom Line: This notebook is sturdy, lightweight, and relatively fast.
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| KarsinTheHutt's Full Review: Lenovo ThinkPad T40 2373 (237319U) PC Notebook |
System Specifications: ThinkPad T40 (2373-12U, similar to 19U but without wireless card).
1.30 GHz Pentium-M (400 MHz FSB, 1MB L2 Cache)
855PM Chipset
512 MB PC2100 DDR-SDRAM (base 256 MB, added 256 MB)
30 GB 4200RPM HDD
CD-RW/DVD Combo Drive 16/8/24 (CD-RW speeds)
Track Stick, Track Pad
14.1” XGA (1024 by 768 resolution) LCD
Built in wireless antennae, wireless ready (Added IBM 802.11a/b/g internal miniPCI card)
Ports: Parallel port, 2 USB2.0 ports, TV-out, LAN, modem, headphone jack, microphone jack, 2 PC Card slots, and analog monitor out.
General Construction (4.5/5): The T40 is easily one of the sturdiest laptops I have ever seen. Like the T23 and T30, both the base and the LCD assembly feel solid. The LCD assembly is a composite of magnesium alloy and plastic, and the base appears to be made of the same plastic/titanium composite as the T23 and T30 (An IBM representative confirmed that the T40’s base uses titanium reinforced plastic). Thick metal hinges connect the LCD assembly to the base. I am confident that the case will be able to protect the internal components well. As far as I can tell, there are only two areas of the case that might have problems: the edge of the left palm rest and the plastic above the optical bay area. Both areas have some flexing and creaking when I press down on them. However, this does not appear to be a serious issue, as I generally do not handle the notebook from those areas.
The DVD/CD-RW combo drive tray closes solidly and with a satisfying click. Removing the drive is quite easy. A plastic slider allows a pull-tab to pop out, and the drive can be removed by pulling this tab. At 9.5mm high, this removable drive is one of the smallest I have ever seen. A hexagonal screw hole in the bottom of the T40 and an included hexagonal screw allows a user to lock the optical bay into place.
The footprint of the T40 is slightly greater than that of the T23 by about 6 mm (or 0.25 inches) in both length and width. Overall, this machine has better construction than the comparable Dell Latitude D600, but it’s a close contest.
Input Devices (4.5/5): People who already own T40s have commented that the T40 has the best keyboard since the old 600 series. The keyboard is indeed almost perfect. The keys have better travel and feedback than the T23, and 90% of the keyboard does not flex at all during typing. There is some flex on the right hand side of the keyboard in the area from the arrow keys to the backspace key. It is not nearly as annoying as the flex in the Dell Latitude D600, but sufficient to warrant a half point penalty.
IBM did a superb job with the Track Stick/ Track Pad combination. The new track stick has three different caps: a concave cap, the classic cap, and a flat cap (default). The new flat cap has a soft, rubbery feel, but retains the precision of the old classic cap. After a few weeks use however, the flat cap did not feel so great. The textured bumps wore away and the cap itself became mushy rather than firm. I replaced the cap with the more durable classic “eraser head” cap. The track stick buttons have good response, and the scroll button makes the use of arrow keys almost unnecessary. I find that I rarely if ever use the Track Pad. Overall, the T40 holds a good advantage over the Dell Latitude D600 in input devices.
Output Devices (4/5): My T40 came equipped with a 1024x768, 14.1” LCD display. The LCD has excellent sharpness, brightness, and contrast when viewed head on, but image quality rapidly suffers at horizontal angles greater than 30 degrees and vertical angles greater than 15 degrees. This struck me as mildly annoying. The LCD in my T40 also has a stuck red-pixel in the lower left quadrant. It tends to disappear on light backgrounds like white, presumably because the red pixel must be on along with the blue and green pixels. Nevertheless, I was annoyed that IBM quality control allowed this to slip by. The IBM website states that a panel cannot be considered defective unless it has 8 dead or stuck pixels. The Dell’s XGA screen struck me as better quality than the IBM’s XGA screen due to better viewing angle.
The T40 has several LEDs on the lower portion of the LCD assembly. These indicate: Sleep, battery, HDD activity, power, caps lock, num lock, and wireless.
UPDATE: Wireless! I ordered an IBM 802.11a/b/g miniPCI wireless card, and received it 9 weeks after ordering (the card is extremely popular). It installs in an internal miniPCI slot that can be easily accessed by removing the keyboard and palmrest - I had some trouble initially with the drivers, but after installing the drivers through the IBM ThinkPad Software Installer (part of the included Access IBM software suite) it works perfectly. I have not gotten around to testing the 802.11g capabilities, but I can say that the 802.11b works wonderfully with the various insecure networks I have been able to detect in my apartment building (no, I do not steal people's internet service :) I have my own DSL connection).
Originally: I did not order my T40 with a wireless card, as IBM only offers slower 802.11b and faster 802.11a/b combo cards instead of cards based on the 802.11g standard. I will purchase an 802.11g card when they become cheaper. Wireless cards plug into a mini-PCI slot underneath the Track Pad, and there are antennae leads that plug into the card (the antennae are located in the LCD housing).
Noise, Heat, Other Problems (mostly fixed as of 11/2003)
UPDATE: I received a third AC Adapter - (FRU #08K209). This adapter is perfect. It doesn't make any of the noises that the 08K205 made, and it doesn't have the annoying high pitch whine that my revision F FRU 02K??? made.
Original problem: I encountered some noise issues with my T40: power system, hard disk, and motherboard. My T40 made strange buzzing sounds when plugged into AC. After some experimentation, I determined that the AC adapter (FRU 08K205) was the culprit. Using a compatible IBM AC adapter (FRU 02K???) that shipped with the T23, I was able to eliminate the noise from the T40. However, the new AC adapter makes a buzzing noise when it is plugged into the wall socket but not powering the T40. This is similar to problems I had with the AC adapters in the Dell Latitude D600 series notebooks. The T40 also makes a small amount of noise when it is in standby mode and disconnected from AC power. The noise again appears to originate from an area near where the AC adapter plugs into the T40 unit.
UPDATE: I have isolated the source of this mysterious noise to the USB Root Controler. Disabling power management on the USB Root Controler in the Windows XP hardware manager causes the noise to go away.
Original Problem: I was unable to isolate the final source of noise in my T40. My best description for this noise is a “chirping” sound, similar to what a bird might make. I attempted to isolate the source by removing the keyboard and palm rests on my T40. The noise appears to emanate from a region under the left part of the keyboard. IBM technicians who examined my ThinkPad claimed ignorance as to the nature of this noise.
A last source of slight noise is the 4200RPM hard disk. A hard disk does make noise as a result of the spinning of its platters, but these are usually very consistent sounds. The disk in my T40 however, tends to make varying buzzing noises and occasionally a small electronic beep. After some research, I have attributed this problem to the power saving features of the hard disk – I encountered similar issues with the 5400RPM Hitachi TravelStar GNX40 series (used in the Dell Latitude D series and other notebooks)
Heat does not seem to be a problem at all. The system fan runs fairly constantly, but it only pushes out warm air during periods of intense CPU usage (like running 3Dmark 2001SE). The only part of the system that gets warm is the right palm rest (the HDD is located underneath), and only after sustained use.
The only design problem I can note at this time is the 6-cell Lithium Ion battery. This battery plugs into the back of the T40, but it does not seem to fit snuggly into the socket. I can jiggle the battery up and down with very little effort. Although this does not cause the unit to loose power it is nonetheless somewhat disconcerting. One can fix this problem by finding a thin strip of packing foam, a bit less thick than a penny, and taping this foam to the top of the battery. This eliminated battery jiggle completely.
System Performance, Stability
I encountered intermittent sluggishness in Microsoft Word 2000 (SP3) as I typed this review. However, I discovered that the sluggishness of the system has nothing to do with the T40 and everything to do with Windows XP Patch bug detailed in MS Bulletin 819634. This bug causes system slowdowns when used in conjunction with a real time antivirus scanning program. Disabling real time scanning fixes the problem, but leaves the system more open to downloaded viruses. Again, this is a Microsoft problem, not an IBM problem. (FIXED with latest Microsoft patches)
With the Norton Virus scanner disabled, the T40 provides more than adequate performance for the average user. I ran several tests: Prime95, PiFast, 3Dmark 2001SE, and LAME MP3 encoding.
Prime95 is a program that stresses CPU and memory systems. People often use it to test the stability of a machine. I ran Prime95 on my T40 for over 25 hours without a problem. The test halted because I stopped the program, not because of any errors.
PiFast tests floating-point math operations by calculating Pi to one million places. This program completed on my T40 in just under 93 seconds. This is comparable to a 2.4 GHz Pentium 4 (533 Bus) and the Athlon 2400+.
3Dmark 2001SE tests the 3D graphics capabilities of a computer. My system attained a score of 4100, respectable despite the obsolescence of its Radeon 7500 GPU. The program ran at 1024x768x32, with no anti-aliasing. In comparison, my P3-750 machine with a Radeon DDR video card achieved a score of 2700.
I decided to encode a 4-minute CD track into a 192 kbps/44 KHz MP3 using the LAME codec. The T40 was able to complete this task in just over 31 seconds, while my P3-750 machine took 76 seconds.
Other Comments
The T40 is a great combination of small size and functionality. It retains a 14.1” screen and optical bay, yet weighs about 10% less than competing D600 notebooks from Dell. Battery life is also impressive at 5 hours (screen at half brightness, WiFi disabled). With WiFi enabled, I would expect about 3.5 hours of use.
Conclusion
Overall, the ThinkPad T40 has managed to impress me much more than the Latitude D600. It might cost more and not have as much computing firepower for the money, but I think the IBM’s build quality gives it a significant edge over the Dell. The IBM has a solid feel and a no-nonsense design – things that almost every computer user can appreciate.
Summary of issues with my T40 (Mostly Fixed):
AC Adapter – makes high-pitched whine when plugged into wall socket, but not powering the T40. (FIXED with FRU 08K209)
Noise – Two unresolved sources of electrical noise from HDD and Motherboard (FIXED by disabling USB Root controler power management).
Increased noise when the unit runs off battery power (FIXED by disabling USB Root controler power management).
LCD – 1 stuck red pixel (not fixable, sample defect).
Recommended:
Yes
Amount Paid (US$): 1745
Operating System: Windows
Processor: Other
Processor speed: over 1000
Screen Size: 14 inches
RAM: More than 256
Internal Storage: CD-RW and DVD
Hard Drive (GB): 21-30
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Epinions.com ID:
KarsinTheHutt
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Member: Karsin Eng
Location: United States of America
Reviews written: 83
Trusted by: 19 members
About Me:
I am a part time computer hobbyist and moderator at forum.thinkpads.com
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