Help Me....URGENT

[Bloodstein]

Hi guyz,

I've got a dilemma. After months of searching....I have found my laptop of choice - IBM T40 (feel free to reconfirm my choice ). However, choosing a T40 seems to be a prob for me. The T40P is totally outta the qs...way too expensive for my budget. 1.30GHz is also kidda out. I'm looking at the 1.5GHz range. In particular, models:

237375M
237372M

The only diff between them is that 72M has the Intel Wireless Card. 75M has the Cisco 802.11b card. Also the battery life (according to the IBM specs) seem to post the 75M as having 4.5 hours compared to 5 hours with 72M. Now, which one do i go with? They're both the same price.

Also, do advice me on second battery. Does the standard 6-cell do the job or would it be wise to buy another 9-cell. Based on ur experiences, what would be the average battery life that I can expect?

I'm a lil' scared of taking the dive now. My situation is such that I won't be able to return the laptop if i dun like it. If you guyz could post ur experiences with the T40 screen resolution, that would help as well. Are there any quirks that i can expect with these particular models? Could owners of these particular models pls post their experiences.

Thanks a lot guyz.

 

[Bloodstein]

Also...is there a difference between the range n signal quality that differs between Intel n Cisco wireless?

Also, when configuring a T40, i'm a bit confused with selecting the wireless thing. Eg.

For the 72M, it says:
Fax/modem - 56K V.92 designed modem
Fax / modem speed - 56Kbps data/14.4Kbps fax KBps
Communications features - Infrared port
Infrared port - Yes
Infra-red port speed - 4Mbps
Network card - Integrated Intel PRO/1000 Gigabit Ethernet
Network interface - Ethernet, 802.11b Wi-Fi wireless
Network speed - 10Mbps, 100Mbps, 1000Mbps
Network features - RJ-45 connector
Wireless type[?] - LAN
Wireless standard - Intel PRO/Wireless Network Connection 802.11b
Wireless speed - 11Mbps

However, when configuring, it asks for a 'Wireless Connectivity', which has the following options:
Cisco Aironet Wireless 802.11b Mini PCI adapter
IBM 11a/b/g Wireless CardBus Adapter
IBM 802.11a Wireless LAN CardBus Adapter
IBM High Rate Wireless LAN PC Card 128
Intel PRO/Wireless 2100 3B Mini PCI adapter

Isn't this PCI card already inbuilt...or do i have to select one?

 

[azazello]

You might want to reconsider the difference between P-M 1.3 and 1.5 - it is only 15%. That money may be better spent buying extra RAM (but not from IBM, buy on the common market). Personally, I spent it on a model with a bigger display and a Radeon M9 (at the expense of a smaller hard drive, too - but I can upgrade that, not the display/GPU). The battery life should also be nearly identical when using these cards - the batteries are exactly the same. When using wi-fi, you'll get 3 hours or less with a standard battery, though. The 4.5 hour figure is for when you turn wifi off and dim the display way down.

Batteries are a bit overpriced (as all IBM peripherals are). Make your own judgment. If you have no access to AC power for 3 hours at a time or more and need to work intensively in that time, then yeah, get yourself another battery.

I am more or less convinced that Cisco and Intel wi-fi are identical in performance. They are both 802.11b only, which is the only AP type you will have available most of the time anyway.

 

[azazello]

So your verdict is, these models are identical and it doesn't matter which one you choose.

When it says "wireless upgradable", it means you have to select and pay for a miniPCI card when customizing. If it says that wireless is built in, it may still let you customize the card. You can upgrade the card in the future, too.

Important: pre-built T40 models cost WAY less than if you build them yourself - 10 to 25% less. It is much cheaper to buy a pre-built model and then buy some extra components than it is to customize it via IBM's web shop - at least if you know how to use a precision phillips screwdriver.

As for your fear that you won't like it, I find it pretty hard to dislike the T40 unless you're very much into ultraportables. It is simply a wonderful machine, and very well upgradable for years to come, especially if you go with a higher-resolution display/better video card (and turn up the DPI in the OS to compensate). Case in point: I have just bought a Bluetooth/modem daughter card ($80) to replace an internal (not pcmcia) modem card in my T40, and a second HDD adapter ($30) for the bay. Now I have BT connectivity that is normally only available with the T40p, and can use as many laptop hard drives at once as I want by swapping them. Before that, I bought a memory upgrade and a wifi card from IBM and installed them. There are also two PCMCIA slots for whatever ports you need, like a universal flash card adapter or firewire. And, of course, the whole thing looks way less flashy and more thoughtfully designed, and is tougher, than any other brand. (Except for the LED indicators and the shiny bar with the Access IBM button, which should not have been, but I'm rambling...)

 

[Bloodstein]

I'm actually looking at a 1.5GHz, not 1.3 . Here are the links to the two models:
237372M
237375M

I actually live in NZ, dunno if the model nos are the same with US. I can't actually get one with better graphics card/resoulition here. The only one with better graphics/resolution is the T40P. That's like NZ$1500 more which is too much for me. I'm gonna call IBM and see what they have.

If there's absolutely no difference between the Cisco and Intel Wireless, then I'd prolly go with the Intel (gets me a Centrino ). The fact that using Wifi cuts the battery life from 5 hrs to 3 is actually news to me. However, I think 3 is somewhat ok. Based on the reply, I'm actually gonna go with the 237372M. I'm gonna go with the base configuration. Can you guys check and tell me if everything looks good....if i missed anything?, does it include a wireless miniPCI card?, etc.

I like the idea of adding more RAM later. I checked the prices and, you're right, it is more expensive. I wouldda gone for 512 blindly.

If it says that wireless is built in, it may still let you customize the card.

What do you mean customise the card?

 

[azazello]

Yeah, what I'm saying is the price difference between the 1.5ghz and 1.3ghz processors may not justify the performance difference.

There are models with 1.3 and 1.5ghz and a higher resolution display (and an M9/32M instead of FireGL/64M in the T40p). Call IBM and ask them, they should be able to pull them up for you.

Well, yeah, wifi (and even BT) are pretty power-hungry. I think they comprise over 20% of the power consumed.

By "customize the card" I mean you can choose which card you want in the customization drop-down box, or call IBM and ask them to ship a specific miniPCI card with it.

 

[Steve Guilliot]

Az,
You are thinking of the 58U. Hi res display, R9000 32MB, 1.3GHz PM, low price. Best bang for the buck IMHO.

 

[Bloodstein]

Jus called IBM. They dun have any other T40 models apart from the ones on the website

 

[azazello]

Steve -
Yeah, that's what I have. Pretty happy with it, can you tell?