Lenovo ThinkPad T60 Review

The Lenovo ThinkPad T60 series is the first ThinkPad to be released with the new Intel Core Duo processor. The ThinkPad T-series can be thought of as the flagship of the ThinkPad brand, it’s squarely targeted towards business users and professionals. Durability, security, usability and performance are all important characteristics of the ThinkPad T-series. The T60 carries on these traditions with a jump in performance from the most recent T43 and some changes to configuration options available and the port and keyboard layout.Lenovo ThinkPad T60 (view larger image)

An important thing to note regarding the ThinkPad T60 is the fact it comes in two flavors: a 14″ screen variety and 15″ screen variety. The 14″ type offers lighter weight and longer battery life
at the expense of a smaller screen. The 15″ type T60 offers higher end performance configurations and also the option of a FlexView screen, but at the cost of a higher weight and less power life per battery cell. Under review here is a high end configuration of the T60 15″ variety. Following are the specs

Specs of the ThinkPad T60 Being Reviewed:

* Model #: 2623-D3U
* Processor: Intel T2500 2.0GHz Core Duo
* Motherboard Chipset: Intel Calistoga i945GM/PM
* Hard Drive: 100GB 5400RPM SATA (Hitachi Travelstar HTS541010G9SA00)
* Memory/RAM: 1GB (1,024MB) (configurable up to 4GB)
* Screen: 15.0″ 1400 x 1050 SXGA+ (LG Philips LP150E05 – A2)
* Graphics: ATI X1400 128MB
* Optical Drive: Multi-Burner DVD recordable
* Battery: 9-cell (extended life, protrudes from back of notebook)
* Wireless: Intel PRO/Wireless 3945ABG (802.11 a/b/g), Bluetooth 2.0, InfraRed
* User Input: Touchpad, Pointing Stick, UltraNav buttons, Fingerpring Scanner
* Warranty: 3-years parts and labor, 1-year battery
* Dimensions:
14.1″ screen config: 12.2″ x 10.0″ x 1.0-1.2″ (width x depth x thickness)
15″ screen config: 13″ x 10.6″ x 1.2-1.4″ (width x depth x thickness)
* Weight: 6.4lbs (14″ T60 is about 5.2 lbs with a 6-cell battery and optical drive)
* Ports:
o 3 USB 2.0 ports
o dock/port replicator
o Display-out
o AC adapter port
o RJ-11 (Modem)
o RJ-45 (Ethernet LAN)
o Audio line out for headphone/speakers
o Microphone
* Slots:
o 1 Type II PC card slot
o 1 ExpressCard 54 slot
* Buttons:
o Power on/off
o Volume up/down/mute (3 buttons)
o Wireless on/off
o ThinkVantage shortcut button (shortcut to system support, security and diagnostics suite)
o Battery lock and release
* Price: $2,799 (as of 2/13/2006 at Lenovo.com)

Design and Build

The Lenovo ThinkPad T60 is a premium product with a durable build. For somebody that travels a lot or relies on their notebook to earn a livelihood, the difference between a sub $1,000 starter notebook and a premium workhorse is obvious. The ThinkPad T60 stands out with its durability via choice of components, very sturdy case material and a strong protective chassis. You pay a lot more for these features of a T60, but if you’re on the road, away from support, and miss a time sensitive opportunity because of hardware problems — you might just wish you had spent extra dollars for a better built notebook such as the T60.

So how does the T60 excel build-wise? Basically the same as its predecessor T-series notebooks did. The T60 body is a rugged plastic that does not flex. The magnesium reinforced lid won’t flex and provides amazing protection for the screen. The keyboard does not flex — at all. The thick metal hinges that attach the screen are very rigid and ensure the screen does not wobble. The keyboard is spill proof and has two drain holes to make sure if you do happen to spill your morning Starbucks coffee, the liquid is carried away from sensitive components and out through the bottom of the notebook. The hard drive is shock mounted and the entire chassis is a newly designed magnesium “roll cage” (it offers 30% more protection that past T-series chassis), and even if your T60 is dropped and broken the Active Protection System (APS) will stop hard drive activity to prevent data loss. The double screen latch system locks securely to make sure the screen stays down when being carried around. In other words, there’s no shortcuts being used in build quality from past ThinkPad notebooks since the Lenovo takeover of IBM — only enhancements.

Aesthetically the ThinkPad T60 remains pretty much the same as past ThinkPad T series notebooks, meaning from a few feet away you’d be hard pushed to tell the difference between a T40, T41, T42, T43 or T60 (assuming they’re all the same 14″ size — the 15″ size was not introduced until the T42 came about). But with the T60 there are definitely some changes in overall layout and aesthetic looks.

The first change you’ll notice between the T60 and former T-series notebooks is the UltraNav buttons have changed along with the hardware buttons at the top (power, volume, ThinkVantage). Gone are the familiar red stripes on the mouse buttons and blue stripe on the scroll bar button. The mouse buttons are also squared off now and significantly smaller. See pictures below for a comparison of the T60 to the T43 UltraNav layout:

Personally, I really liked the coloring on the mouse buttons. I’m a fan of using suttle color to make things stand out as being an important function (and mouse buttons are an important function). The coloring was also unique and something different, I’d prefer if Lenovo leave the obsessively clean looks to Sony and Apple. Besides, the ThinkPad is sometimes called too boring in its all black look, and tearing away what color there is makes it look more boring and, might I say — generic. The button size change was made consciously by Lenovo to improve usability, argument being larger buttons are easier to bump accidentally. I’d say the new buttons are probably as usable as past ones — or you at least get used to them quickly if you’ve used a ThinkPad in the past, but still, I preferred the larger size.

Also changed is the button look at the top of the keyboard, the Function keys (F1 – F12) used to be grey in color, but with the T60 they become all black. Again, I miss the extra color seperation and distinct look. Also, the once black volume and power buttons are now silver and do not reside in a dimpled depression as they did previously. The “Access IBM” button has become the “ThinkVantage” button and jumps to the right of the volume keys. In use these plastic constructed buttons feel fine, but just looking at them would cause suspicion of cheapness and you’d half expect them to be wobbly (they’re not).

For the full review please visit: www.notebookreview.com