Lenovo ThinkPad T43

Lenovo ThinkPad T43 Review

Overview

Notice: Since this review was started, Lenovo officially acquired IBM's PC Division which includes the Thinkpad line. All Thinkpads will retain their badging for the immediate future and since the current Thinkpad models are all IBM designed, we will refer to them as "IBM" Thinkpads. Please understand that these items are now Lenovo products. For more information on the IBM/Lenovo transaction, go here.

Whenever someone mentions IBM, the main things that come to mind are innovation, quality, and support. Not only has IBM been an industry leader in computer technology since..well, the invention of the wheel, but Thinkpads have a legend of being some of the best build laptops available. Today we are taking a look at the new Thinkpad T43. As some of you probably know, the T-Series has always been IBM's flagship model; offering the most powerful, portable, and innovative features. There are also the more value-oriented R-series, ultra-portable X-series, and DTR G-series.

The entire T4x series have used Intel's Pentium M processor, which has been the only sensible choice for a mobile workstation with power and portability. The latest iteration of the T-series brings the updated Sonoma platform to IBM's product lineup. There are two screen size options for the T43, 14.1' and 15' models. Most Thinkpad users will tell you that the 14' T-series have always been the most portable versions, with a size that balances well for comfortable, full-time usage and true portability. Our test model is a 14.1' T43, with a very nice looking SXGA+ panel. The T43 measures 12.2' x 10 ' x 1.0'-1.2' and weighs a mere 5.5lbs with the 9-cell battery.

You can see the specs of our T43 on the next page, but the T43's in general offer clock speeds from 1.6 - 2.13GHz, 533MHz DDR2 RAM, a plethora of wireless card options, and three different video cards. There are enough options to satisfy anyone's needs, from the basic web surfer to a 3D CAD designer. IBM also has the support to back up their product with optional on-site service, accidental damage coverage, and a laptop theft recovery program (through a third-party company). T43's are available at a starting price of $1239 on IBM's website (1.6GHz, 30GB 4200RPM, 256MB RAM, Intel wifi, 1 year warranty). While this means most people can own a T43 if they want, those who want the upgraded options will spend a good deal more.
The build quality is top-notch and performance is lightning fast, all while remaining extremely portable. While the pricetag is a little high at $2208 with three years of onsite service, the T43 remains a no brainer for people who demand the best out of their machines.

Design

Portability
With a weight starting at 4.5lbs, the 14' T43 is one of the most portable notebooks that doesn't delve into the 'ultraportable' category. With a large enough design to be useable as a main machine and still portable enough to take everywhere, the 14' T43 should fit the bill for just about any user. The included 9-cell battery does protrude out the back by 1.25", but actually allows for a little more solid grip of the machine. Compared to other portable 14' machines like the HP dv1000 or Dell 600m series, it feels quite a bit lighter. The weight balance is exceptional; when you pick up the T43 by one corner, it doesn't feel like you are straining to balance the machine while holding it. It is as if you were just picking up a spiral notebook to tote around.

Case and Design
A lot of newer machines from the likes of HP or Asus have a stylish new design, transreflective screen, and pretty lights all over the place. As in the past, IBM has gone with the minimalist design on the T43. They have stuck with the same matte black shell, matte black interior, and informative, yet standard green LEDs. There is a simple IBM logo on the outside, on the palm rest, and the respective ATI/Intel logo's.

However do not let the basic styling fool you. In order to earn such a distinguished reputation for reliability and ruggedness, a magnesium composite outer casing with titanium & carbon fiber reinforced plastic on the bottom is used. This gives the machine an incredibly solid feel to it. There is very little case flexing when you handle the machine and it feels like you could take it just about anywhere. In fact, a Thinkpad is one of the few notebooks that I would be comfortable with just shoving in a backpack and hauling around. For the average user, this of course means you have a sturdy and reliable machine. It will take the daily effects of wear and tear better than most machines.

IBM designed the Thinkpad line like this to help lower the Total Cost of Ownership for businesses. If you buy a few hundred or even a few thousand laptops for your business, you want a machine that will have less downtime and require fewer repairs. The amount of support you have to put into a machine greatly contributes to the Total Cost of Ownership and that is the void Thinkpad line is designed to fill.

The T43 has two very sturdy hinges holding the LCD to the base. The hinges themselves are metal and ensure that the display will not be loose even after years of use. Certain laptops with cheaper hinges are prone to loose play or even cracking over time.
IBM implements a simple latch design on the T43, using two latches and a single slide release on the right of the lid.

For convenience there is a set of LED's directly below display. From left to right are the WiFi indicator, Num Lock, Caps Lock, HDD, Power, Battery, and Sleep LEDs. All of these light up green during normal usage. The battery indicator glows orange when the battery is low and it blinks when recharging. The Sleep LED of course only lights up when the machine is in Standby mode. For those who have a Bluetooth equipped Thinkpad, there will be a Bluetooth indicator to the left of the Num Lock. On the outside of the case you will find the same battery indicator and Sleep LEDs.

IBM is pretty sparse with their hot keys, compared to the plethora that today's multimedia notebooks possess. From left to right there is the Access IBM button, Volume Down & Up, and Volume Mute. These are obviously basic, but are sufficient for most users. The Access IBM button serves two purposes. When you first boot the machine up, you have the option to press the Access IBM button in order to access the BIOS and System Recovery software. In Windows, Access IBM brings up a general help application. From here you can view different topics or search for help. The volume keys also activate an onscreen display, showing the volume level. One minor nitpick is that when you press Mute, you cannot press it again to un-mute. You have to hit the volume up or down keys to restore audio.

What Thinkpads lack in hot keys they make up for with function keys. F4 and F12 put the notebook into Standby and Hibernate, respectively. F3 turns off the LCD, which is a unique feature not found in many notebooks. F7 opens the Presentation Director, which offers a plethora of options to connect the T43 to any external display. F5 controls the wireless radios and even wireless profiles. We will go into more detail about the Presentation Director and wifi controls in our Features section.

Last but not least, the Home & End keys controls screen brightness while PgUp turns on the ThinkLight. The ThinkLight is IBM's name for an LED that shines over the keyboard to provide additional lighting. While it works quite well in situations with almost no light, it does almost nothing in other settings. If there's even a bit of ambient light and you just want to be able to see the keys better, the ThinkLight doesn't work that well. Regardless, it is a useful feature that is again very unique.

Design Continued

Keyboard
A lot of people hold IBM laptop keyboards as the pinnacle of typing comfort, and for good reason: the tactile feedback is nothing short of perfect. As mentioned in our First Impressions, the keyboard on our T43 is the 'Thai' version and has an impeccably quiet response. It has a completely normal alphanumeric key layout, with all of the Page Up/Down, Home/End, and Insert/Delete keys in their proper places. There are only two complaints with the T43's keyboard layout, the first being the placement of the Function key. It is on the outside of the Control key, whereas most laptops incorporate it in between Control and Alt. This is a minor adjustment on the user's part, but an adjustment nonetheless.

The other complaint is the lack of a Windows Start key. IBM elected not to include the Start key for ergonomic reasons, but it is definitely missed. Luckily IBM included a Keyboard Customizer Utility which allows the user to assign certain keys to function as the Start key. We will go more into detail on IBM's utilities in the Features section.

Touchpad/UltraNav
IBM is one of the few computer manufacturers that includes a 'pointing stick' combined with a touchpad. For those who haven't used this combination, it is not an option to under-estimate. The ability to mouse around the screen, click, and scroll without removing your hands from the keyboard is invaluable. As you can see below, there is a red pointing stick in the middle of the keyboard, both mouse buttons, and a blue middle button that is set to scroll by default. You can reprogram the middle button for scrolling or screen zooming.

For those who prefer the touchpad, the T43 has an excellent one. The responsiveness and texture is ideal, with a plethora of customizable options. The software allows you to set scrolling zones, tapping, tap zones, virtual scrolling, and many other options.

The mouse-click buttons have an almost perfect feel to them, with a soft inaudible response. They have a deep travel length, almost sinking into the laptop itself. Most notebook mouse buttons are shallow and click loudly during use, the T43's are the exact opposite. Once again, IBM hit the nail on the head.

Connectivity Options
Keeping with the Thinkpad's no-nonsense design, there are only the necessary connectivity options. At the top of our list of connectivity complaints is the lack of Firewire and the minimum availability of USB ports. Ports on the backside of the machine have been kept to a minimum, which helps prevent blindly trying to plug something in and then having to turn the machine upside down to find the plug.

On the left side you will find a Kensington security lock, the two USB ports stacked vertically, S-Video output, 56K & Ethernet jacks, headphone, microphone, fan exhaust, and PC Card/Express Card slot.

Overall this is a pretty decent layout. The microphone/headphone jacks are easy to access, as are the communication jacks. The fan exhaust is placed on the side, which helps reduce heat build up if the bottom of the laptop isn't ventilated well. Kudos to IBM for thinking to include both a PC Card and Express Card slot. You can use either card, but not both, in the slot. This is the ideal configuration since not many devices are in the Express Card format yet and obviously most current devices are of the PC Card format. When peripherals are introduced that need the high bandwidth of the Express Card format, the T43 will be ready to support them.

The biggest complaints are the USB ports and lack of Firewire. Two USB 2.0 ports are technically all that is necessary to survive on the road, which is why docking stations and USB hubs were invented, but one or two extra ports couldn't have hurt. The fact that they're stacked on top of each other doesn't help either, as connectors with larger plastic housing may interfere with each other. While Firewire isn't a necessity by any means, it is useful in many instances. It is interesting that the new R52 'economy' Thinkpad has a 4-pin Firewire port and the T43 does not.

On the right side there is simply the optical drive in its modular bay and the 15-pin VGA output connector. The push of a small spring loaded latch releases a tab that allows you to pull out the current device (optical drive, hard drive, or battery) and replace it with another one.

Our model came loaded with a DVD Rewriteable drive and it was very easy to swap with the UltraBay Slim Battery. On a minor note, you do have to use the 'Safely Remove Hardware' utility in the system tray to make the optical drive, hard drive, or battery available for safe removal.

As previously mentioned, the rear of the notebook is sparse. You will only find the battery, legacy parallel printer port, and power connector.

The front of the notebook doesn't have any ports, but does house the IR window and speakers. It is interesting to note that the speakers are actually angled downward, leaving us to believe that IBM intended for the speakers to actually reflect off of the surface the notebook is laying on.

Heat and Noise
As most of you can probably imagine, the larger a computer case the better it is able to cool. This is due not only to using larger/more fans in a larger chassis, but also due to the fact that the larger a casing is the more it acts like a heatsink; as long as the cooling system is well designed. IBM's cooling system is well engineered, without a doubt. They utilize a heat pipe transferring heat from the GPU and CPU, with a fan to exhaust the heat from the heatpipe. It is an efficient and quiet solution that has served well for the T4x series.

That said, the T43 has some cooling issues. Our particular model runs relatively hot for a Pentium M notebook. The previous generation T42's generally run about 40 degrees C during idle/normal usage (i.e. CPU clocked down to 600MHz for most usage). Our T43 test model generally see's around 45, sometimes approaching 50 degrees C during idle/normal usage (i.e. CPU clocked down to 800MHz for most usage). The fan runs noticeably more than the T42's and other 400MHz FSB Dothan notebooks. I am fairly certain this is either an issue specific to our model or the T43 series in general, but it isn't a common issue with Sonoma-based notebooks. The Thinkpad R52 in our labs runs cool and quiet around 40 degrees C, as have most of the Sonoma notebooks here. While this may not seem like a big issue to some, it is an evident flaw in either our model or the line in general. Other T43 users have reported increased fan usage & noise as well.

The larger 15' chassis may alleviate some of the heat dissipation problem, but we cannot say that for certain. In regards to a buying decision, if you are looking for a high quality portable powerhouse, don't let this issue dissuade you from buying a T43; but do keep it in mind when comparing models.

Upgrading and Expansion
The expansion options on the T43 are about as comprehensive as most. On the underside of the notebook you will find the cover for the single memory module, the other one is underneath the keyboard. Our system came preloaded with 1x512MB PC2-4200 DDR2, leaving one expansion slot open. Keep in mind that if you want to have your memory in dual channel mode for increased performance, you generally need to use the same make & model of memory module and you always have to keep it the same capacity. Hard drive upgrades are a snap, you need only remove one screw and pop out the adapter bay that holds the hard drive. It easily slides out of the chassis with no difficulty.

There is a mini-PCI slot should you ever want to change wireless cards. A feature that is unique to business line machines is the modular bay, as most consumer model laptops do not have swappable optical drives. In the case of the Thinkpad line, you have a number of options with the UltraBay. In addition to an optical drive, you can purchase a hard drive caddy to mount a second drive or the UltraBay Slim Battery. The Slim Battery adds 25WHr of battery capacity and also allows you to switch main batteries without powering down. Unfortunately this versatility comes at a price, $119 USD at the time of writing.

Features

Processor/Chipset/RAM
The T43 uses Intel's latest Pentium M platform, codenamed Sonoma. As most of you know, this update to the popular technology brings a faster front side bus, PCI Express, High Definition Audio, Serial ATA, DDR2 RAM, and more. Our model came loaded with the Pentium M 750, running at 1.86GHz with 2MB L2 Cache on a 533MHz FSB. The Intel 915PM chipset is used, providing discrete PCI Express graphics in the form of the ATI MOBILITY RADEON X300. The higher bus speeds help improve performance as does the faster RAM running synchronous with the FSB. DDR2 is also Dual Channel capable, meaning that using two identical memory modules effectively doubles your memory bandwidth. In real world testing, dual channel capability tends to only give 5-10% performance improvements. While DDR2 is also clocked higher than DDR 333, it has higher latencies which reduce the positive effect of the higher speed. Latency refers to the amount of time it takes for data to enter and leave the memory, thus higher latency produces less performance. Regardless, the Sonoma platform's new features are a big step in the right direction. The new feature sets added to the Centrino platform make mobile systems capable of doing everything a desktop can, with battery life to spare.

The only downside to the Sonoma platform is the higher power consumption. The processor itself consumes more power, as a result of the higher bus speed. The 533MHz FSB Dothan processors have a thermal design power (TDP) of 27W, compared to 21W of the 400MHz FSB chips. Due to the higher bus speed, the new Pentium M chips 'idle' at a lowest clock speed of 800MHz, up from 600MHz of the previous generation. The chip is powerful enough that one could run it locked at 800MHz to maximize battery life and still enjoy speedy performance. The 7200RPM hard drive in our model helps increase general performance as well, so to help maximize battery life locking the CPU speed at its minimum clock is probably a good idea on this machine

GPU
The 915PM chipset requires the manufacturer to use discrete PCI Express graphics instead of the integrated Intel GMA 900 package. PCI Express graphics cards required more power than their AGP-based counterparts, potentially affecting battery life. The 64MB ATI MOBILITY RADEON X300 is included in our T43, with the GMA 900 and 128MB ATI MOBILITY FIREGL V3200 as other graphics options. The X300 is the PCI-E replacement for the MOBILITY RADEON 9200 & 9600 GPU's, offering performance roughly equivalent to that of the 9600. The new GPU inherits the architecture of the MOBILITY RADEON 9600, but includes a number of enhancements such as new power-saving (POWERPLAY 5.0) and image quality (LCD-EE) technology. POWERPLAY 5.0 monitors system activity and dynamically adjusts clock and voltage based on system usage. The LCD-EE technology compensates LCD response time and allows better image scaling. Key features include DirectX 9 hardware acceleration support, 4 rendering pipelines, 2 vertex pipelines, and 64MB of dedicated video DDR RAM. The core clock is rated as 300MHz while the memory runs at 230MHz, or 460MHz effective. Clock speeds do differ between notebook manufacturers, as does 3D performance due to different drivers.

To take the T43's gaming capabilities out for a test drive, I loaded up the industry standard Half Life 2 and Doom 3. HL2 was rendered smoothly at 1024x768 with the game recommended settings, but gameplay itself was fairly choppy. The lack of VRAM and system RAM are a direct cause of that, as many news games perform better with 128MB of VRAM and 1GB of system RAM. Lowering the resolution to 800x600 helped reduce the texture offloading to the point where it was playable. The fast hard drive helped reduce load times compared to most other notebooks. Doom 3 has a little more flexibility in regards to gaming performance, thanks to the different 'quality' modes which directly translate to how much video RAM is necessary. Using the lowest 'quality' setting at 800x600 produces a reasonably playable game that still looks good. At 640x480 with all of the eye candy options turned on (except AA of course), it is plenty fast and surprisingly visually pleasing.

Display
Perhaps the most surprising feature of this machine is the 14.1' SXGA+ LCD. Having used a 15' SXGA+ on my personal T42, I was very pleased with the smaller screen on the T43. A physically smaller screen with the same resolution gives everything a smaller feel to it, which I personally like. To make text more readable, IBM has set the font size to a pleasant level that I doubt any user will want to change. Viewing angles are more than satisfactory, but far from perfect. The 14.1' LCD exhibits no color inversing like HP screens are prone to, but it does wash out at a relatively wide angle from viewing dead on. IBM's 15' SXGA+ and UXGA screens are a special type of screen called 'Flexview,' which is not available in 14' models. Flexview screens offer higher brightness, truer colors, and an almost perfect viewing angle, at the cost of a higher response time and higher power consumption. Those who want a truer, higher quality image without any issue of viewing angles should opt for a 15' T43; just stay away from the XGA screens as those are non-Flexview also.

The brightness on the 14.1' LCD is top-notch, on par with or above the best matte screens out there. In fact, in direct comparison with my T42's 15' SXGA+ Flexview screen, the T43's 14.1' SXGA+ is comparably bright and is actually MORE viewable in sunny conditions. Using the T43 outside is easily done with the brightness maxed out. Another display option that can help viewability is to disable a power saving feature for the LCD. IBM really goes all out for features and customizability of their notebooks, so far as two having two different LCD brightness levels. Under the 'Thinkpad Configuration' utility, you can adjust the display's brightness when running on batteries from ' Normal' to 'High.' This makes a noticeable difference in brightness, allowing the screen to be readable even outside on a sunny day. A 'ghosting' or 'blurring' effect when gaming or scrolling rapidly is not readily noticeable. It had been rumored that IBM was going to switch to brighter, higher quality 14' screens and it certainly seems as though they did.

Sound
Unfortunately sound is a Thinkpad's weak point. Obviously none of IBM's machines are designed for multimedia, but the speakers are less than exciting. They do get sufficiently loud and don't distort easily, but lack any amount of mid or low range quality. There is no bass to speak of, leaving a lot of room for improvement in the sound category. The speakers are located on the bottom of the front edge of the notebook, which puts them out of direct earshot. Instead it looks like the speakers rely on the sound echoing from the surface that the laptop is setting on, which results in a less than satisfactory audio experience.

Wi-Fi
IBM included their a/b/g mini-PCI wireless card in our test model. There is also the option of the Intel 2200BG or 2915ABG cards in T43 models. In all of the T-series models IBM utilizes their 'Ultraconnect antenna,' a wireless antenna built into the LCD display for optimal signal reception. As discussed earlier, there is no direct Wi-Fi button to enable or disable the wireless card. Instead the function key combo of Fn+F5 brings up a very unique wireless options menu.

A small menu will pop up in the center of the screen, with two tabs and a plethora of options. The default menu tab lists your 'Location Profiles,' which are setup in IBM's Access Connection software; we will cover that shortly. You can select a default location profile, click 'Find a Wireless Network,' or explore more settings.

Under the second tab, Wireless Radio, you are given the option to turn any of the applicable wireless radios on or off. In our case, the only wireless radio present is the IBM 11a/b/g II mini-PCI wireless card. If our laptop were equipped with Bluetooth, that radio would be listed as well.

Now we've come to a nifty little application, the Access Connections utility. This program replaces Windows' wireless networking configuration, and does a great job at it. While the Microsoft 'Wireless Zero Config' does a more than satisfactory job at managing wireless connections and configuration, Access Connections goes above and beyond the call of duty. The first and most noticeable feature is the ability to setup different profiles. Under a profile, you can specify a name, whether to use the wired or wireless adapter, which wireless SSID to connect to (or to choose the best signal available), and many more options. You can even set file sharing preferences, Internet Explorer start page, and a default printer! For those who use a number of different networks throughout the day, Access Connections is like the Swiss Army knife for the mobile user.

Once you have your profiles and everything else setup, all it takes is a click of the Access Connections icon to bring up a list of your profiles. Select a profile to connect to and WHAM - you're connected.

In regards to the wireless card, performance was above average. It was able to detect a number of weak signals at a local university, and connect to most of them. Throughput was always excellent in full-signal situations, and adequate even with low-signal connections. This card is also capable of connection to 802.11a networks, which worked flawlessly and provided good throughput at the short ranges that 802.11a is designed to operate. The IBM a/b/g II mini-PCI card looks to consume more power than the options from Intel, but offers better performance overall.

Features Continued

Optical Drive
Our T43 test model came with a Matshita DVD-RAM optical drive, capable of writing any disc you throw at it except Dual Layer DVD's. This of course includes both DVD formats, CD-R's, and even the obscure DVD-RAM. Unfortunately write speeds on this model are not up to snuff with competing recordable drives, due to the meager 2.4x DVD+R and 2x DVD-R write speeds. Many notebook drives today have a 4x or 8x DVD+R write speed, making the T43's optical drive look like a Yugo. IBM's software does include different "performance" settings for the drive, so you can adjust the read speeds to make the drive entirely silent or perform at its best. I was never disappointed with the drive, until I wanted to burn some DVD's.
It does appear as though forthcoming T43 models will ship with a 4x DVD Rewriteable drive, or at least that is how it is listed on the website.

The supported read and write capabilities are as follows:

• Read: 24X CD-ROM/CD-R, 12X CD-RW, 8X DVD-ROM, 6X DVD-ROM Dual Layer, 4X DVD-R/RW, 2X DVD-RAM, 4X DVD+R/RW
  
• Write: 16X CD-R, 8X CD-RW, 2X DVD-R/RW, 2X DVD-RAM, 2.4X DVD+R/RW

Hard Drive
IBM offers several hard drive options for the T43 lineup: a 40GB 5400RPM, 60GB 7200RPM, and 80GB 5400RPM. Our test model came with the Hitachi Travelstar 7K60. The 60GB 7200RPM drive was very peppy, making this powerful machine feel more and more like a desktop. Hibernation was among the fastest I've seen on a laptop, and general Windows performance was excellent. If you want to see real world numbers on the differences in drive performance, check out our RPM Guide.
It should be noted that with Thinkpads you don't actually get the full formatted capacity of the drive out of the box, due to the pre-OS support partition. The support partition uses about 500MB of data that is not available on the main 'C' partition. It is possible for users to remove this partition and merge it with the main one, but is not recommended. Users can also of course burn copies of the recovery discs. This is a great application, which provides a number of unique tools to the user without having to boot into Windows. We will go more into detail about this later in the Features section.

Battery
Our T43 comes with the 9-cell 7,200 mAH, which has a working capacity of about 77Whr. The 9-cell should be adequate for most users, delivering around 5 hours of usage under most conditions. In our Performance section, the T43 scored 5 hours 26 minutes on Business Winstone Batterymark. The added weight of the 9-cell battery isn't a problem, but is noticeable compared to the 6-cell.

IBM also offers two other battery options for customers. The base option is the 6-cell 4,600 mAH battery rated at 52 Whr. This battery will deliver around 3 hours of casual usage and unfortunately would be hard pressed to play an entire DVD movie (assuming average movie length of 2 hours).

The last and most expensive battery option is the UltraBay Slim Battery. This battery fits in the modular bay where your optical drive normally resides. There's a small latch on the side that will release a small pull tab for you to remove the existing device. The UltraBay battery is only 2-cells and offers an additional 24 Whr. This is a meager amount of battery capacity for the $119 price tag, but is extremely useful to those who need it. Besides the extended life, the UltraBay battery also allows the user to switch main batteries without powering the machine down. However that aspect is a bit of a moot point if you plan on using the UltraBay battery consistently with the main battery, as the system always draws from the UltraBay battery first. It drains relatively quickly and thus wouldn't afford much of an opportunity to change the main battery unless you just kept the UltraBay in reserve just for battery swaps. Perhaps IBM can make this a selectable option in the future, as users will certainly use these batteries in different settings. See our Performance section for complete battery rundown times.

Few manufacturers include custom software for managing power settings, instead leaving users with the limited controls in Windows. Even those who do provide such software don't provide as much control as IBM offers.

As you can gather from the pictures, there are a large number of customizable options available. You can control CPU speed, hard drive timeout, display brightness, and the other usual options. What really stands out is that you can lower display brightness and refresh rate when idle, as well as control fan performance! The Global Power Settings replicate the same options in Windows power control.

Once you have selected a profile of your liking or created one of your own, just click the battery level indicator on the Start bar once and a menu will pop up listing the possible options. Select a profile and all of your settings are applied instantly. I haven't seen another manufacturer with such a practical utility.

AC Adapter
The included AC adapter measures 4.5 ' long x 1.9 ' wide x 1 ' thick, which is on the small side for AC adapters. The computer-side cable is 6 feet long and the wall-side cable is 4 feet long. These cables could be a little longer for additional flexibility, there were a number of times during my use of the notebook that I wish I had a slightly longer power cord. On the upside IBM did include a Velcro strap to wrap up the cables, which is more than most manufacturers provide. Lastly, the wall power connector is a two-prong plug. Sometimes certain buildings don't offer as many three-prong power plugs, thus giving you added flexibility on the go.

Fingerprint Scanner
Being a business level model, the Thinkpad T-series has always led the industry in client security. The entire T4x line incorporates a hardware based security system, which when enabled prevents hard drive data from being accessed anywhere but this specific machine. Previously, user defined passwords protected this system, but of course a string of characters is always vulnerable. The next logical step in this system is the use of biometrics.

Biometrics refers to the use of some characteristic of a person's body as a form of authentication. The most popular use is of course a person's fingerprint. IBM has implemented a 'slide sensor' type fingerprint scanner, as opposed to the traditional 'contact sensors' where you press your finger down for the sensor to take an impression. IBM's slide sensor is much smaller, takes a larger 'image' of the fingerprint, and does not have any residual prints left behind on it.

From IBM's white paper on the fingerprint scanner, capacitive sensing is used to construct a template of the fingerprint based on variations in the electrical properties of the living layer of the skin. This is the same type of sensing technology used in the touchpad on most laptops. Capacitive sensing boasts the added security that during authentication a live finger must be used, no fakes or severed limbs will do. So for the ultra-paranoid of you out there, don't worry about your data being compromised with this fingerprint scanner.

The setup process is simple and painless, just swipe your finger when it tells you!

It even tells you if you are too far to the right or left. It takes a couple tries to get used to the scanner, but once you do it's a walk in the park. When everything is setup, you will notice a new icon on the Windows login screen instructing you to swipe your finger. You can also configure the IBM software to maintain "passports" to websites that require user name/password logins, allowing you to use your fingerprint for any number of protected resources.

Features Continued

Active Protection System
IBM's Active Protection System was an industry first, until Apple recently came out with something similar, and provides unparalleled protection for the user's hard drive. It works with a combination of hardware and software technology. From IBM's white paper:

The hardware component is a motion detector, or accelerometer, embedded in the motherboard which continually senses system orientation and movement. The software component receives and interprets signals from the accelerometer, differentiates between potentially harmful movements and repetitive motion, and signals the hard drive to stop when a potentially damaging event is predicted. The software component also includes a system tray icon and properties window.

There is no user configuration required right off the bat, and most people won't want to configure it anyway. The default settings work well, accurately predicting sudden movements and drops. It also detects repetitive motions that aren't damaging like when riding in a car or train. I can say from personal experience that this system works like a charm. My T42 has the same system and after a three foot drop onto hard tile, it's still chugging along. What is even better is that you can turn your Thinkpad upside down with the APS window open, watching the accelerometer detect the motion and surprisingly accurately display it in the window.

Keyboard Customizer

This is a small application that really adds flexibility for mobile users. The first and most obvious use is to map a key for the missing Start menu key; I find that Right-Alt works well. You can also map the missing 'Context Menu' key, optical drive eject, and volume control. External keyboard hotkeys, function key sensitivity, and special character hotkeys can also be specified with this utility. The Keyboard Customizer is one of those fine finishing details that really help a design shine.

Presentation Director
For those who connect to projectors or external displays frequently, the Presentation Director will become your best friend.

It lets you setup different connection profile for your various uses, even a profile for connecting to a docking station. You can launch the application through Windows as usual, or use Fn+F7 to bring up the Presentation Director On Screen Display (OSD).

The OSD doesn't offer as many options, but is an easy shortcut for choosing your different profiles.

Software Installer
When a manufacturer updates the drivers or software, a lot of the time users don't even know! Since IBM has a LOT of utilities built into the Thinkpad line, they recently upgraded their Software Installer program to automatically find and download the latest updates. Previously you had to look on their website for updates, download them, and use Software Installer to properly update your system. Now all you need is an internet connection and a few minutes to update everything. It can't get any easier than that!

Thinkpad Configuration
This little applet encompasses just about every aspect of the Thinkpad possible. Just select one of the buttons surrounding the picture and get instant access to all options and information for that specific aspect. The top row of buttons also includes display switching options, power schemes, and shortcuts to other IBM applications. This utility is very useful, great for the power users out there who want complete control of their computer.

Setup Method

The Thinkpad T43 was set to run at full performance by setting the power scheme set to 'Home/Office Desk' with the AC plugged in, meaning that the CPU will not underclock while running the tests. For the battery performance test, the power scheme was set to 'Portable/Laptop'. This activates SpeedStep technology, which lowers CPU speed when not needed, thus increasing battery life. Screen brightness and audio were both set to 50% and Wi-Fi was turned on. Each test was repeated 3 times to ensure accuracy. Before each test was run, the laptop was rebooted and its hard drive defragmented.

Business Winstone 2004 runs business related applications through a series of scripted activities and uses the time a PC takes to complete those activities to produce its performance scores. Each application runs 5 tests through a series of demos and activities. Business applications include:

• Microsoft Access 2002
• Microsoft Excel 2002
• Microsoft Frontpage 2002
• Microsoft Outlook 2002
• Microsoft PowerPoint 2002
• Microsoft Project 2002
• Microsoft Word 2002
• Norton AntiVirus Professional Edition 2003
• Winzip 8.1

Multimedia Content Creation Winstone 2004 is a single large test that runs multimedia applications through a series of scripted activities and returns a single score. Applications include:

• Adobe Photoshop 7.0.1
• Adobe Premiere 6.50
• Macromedia Director MX 9.0
• Macromedia Dreamweaver MX 6.1
• Microsoft Windows Media Encoder 9 Version 9.00.00.2980
• NewTek's LightWave 3D 7.5b
• Steinberg WaveLab 4.0f

Business Winstone 2004 Batterymark measures a laptop computer's battery life by simulating real-world usage. The program measures the time it takes to drain the battery by running applications such as Microsoft Office XP, Norton AntiVirus, and WinZip through a series of scripted activities to drain the battery in a realistic way.

3DMark 2001 SE PRO build 3.3.0 measures graphics performance by benchmarking the CPU, memory, and graphics through a series of 21 tests, including simulated games, theoretical tests, DX8 feature tests, and image quality tests. Resolution was set to 1024x768 with all default settings.

3DMark 2003 build 3.6.0 measures DX9 performance through a series of 3D game based sound, graphics, and CPU tests. Resolution was set to 1024x768 with all default settings.

PCMark 2004 build 1.3.0 uses real life application tests to generate a combined score by running specific tasks like application loading, game tests, 3D rendering, multimedia encoding, and more. Resolution was set to 1024x768 with all default settings.

Doom 3 (Version 1.1) using the built-in time-demo, initiated with the console command 'timedemo demo1 precache'.

Test1:

• 800x600 resolution
• Quality Setting: Medium
• 0xAA
• VSynch Disabled
• High quality special effects enabled
• Shadows enabled
• Specular enabled
• Bump Maps enabled

Test2:

• 1024x768 resolution
• Quality Settings: High
• 4xAA
• VSynch Disabled
• High quality special effects enabled
• Shadows enabled
• Specular enabled
• Bump Maps enabled

Half Life 2 (Source Engine 7) timedemos Coast 05 and Canals 08 from Anandtech.com with the following tests and graphic settings:

Test1:

• 1024x768 resolution
• Medium model detail
• Medium texture detail
• Blob shadows
• Simple Reflection water detail
• Low shadow detail
• 0xAA
• Trilinear filtering
• Low shader detail
• V Sync disabled

Test2:

• 1024x768 resolution
• Highest model detail
• Highest texture detail
• Reflect All water detail
• High shadow detail
• 4xAA
• Anisotropic 8X
• High shader detail
• V Sync disabled

Configurations

System	IBM Thinkpad T43	Acer TravelMate 8103	Asus V6V
OS	Windows XP Pro w/SP2	Windows XP Pro w/SP2	Windows XP Pro w/SP2
CPU	Pentium M 750 1.86 GHz	Pentium M 750 1.86 GHz	Pentium M 750 1.86 GHz
Bus	533 MHz	533 MHz	533 MHz
RAM	512MB DDR2 533 CL=4 Single Channel	512MB DDR2 533 CL=4 Single Channel	512MB DDR2 400 CL=3 Dual Channel
Hard Drive	Hitachi 60GB 8MB Buffer 7200RPM	Seagate 100GB 8MB Buffer 5400RPM	Hitachi 60GB 8MB Buffer 5400RPM
Video	ATI RADEON X300 64MB DDR	ATI RADEON X700 128MB DDR	ATI RADEON X600 64MB DDR
Battery	Several	4,800 mAh	4,800 mAh

Performance

General Usage (Business Winstone 2004)

Multimedia Content Creation (Business Winstone 2004)

PCMark04
Performance is pretty much as one would guess in PCMark. The CPU scores are almost identical, as are the Memory scores. The Acer 8103 leads the pack in graphics performance, with the T43 trailing in last. Lastly, the Hitachi 7200RPM helps restore the T43's dignity with a nice jump in performance over the other notebooks.

Here are the associated scores:

System	T43	8103	V6V
CPU	3556	3577	3587
Memory	3132	3186	3157
Graphics	1311	3282	2162
HDD	3412	3163	2868

And the PCMark04 Overall Score:

Performance

General Usage (Business Winstone 2004)

Multimedia Content Creation (Business Winstone 2004)

PCMark04
Performance is pretty much as one would guess in PCMark. The CPU scores are almost identical, as are the Memory scores. The Acer 8103 leads the pack in graphics performance, with the T43 trailing in last. Lastly, the Hitachi 7200RPM helps restore the T43's dignity with a nice jump in performance over the other notebooks.

Here are the associated scores:

System	T43	8103	V6V
CPU	3556	3577	3587
Memory	3132	3186	3157
Graphics	1311	3282	2162
HDD	3412	3163	2868

And the PCMark04 Overall Score:

Performance Continued

Unfortunately the MOBILITY RADEON X300 shows its weaknesses in the 3DMark applications. Those looking to game on this machine will need to stick to low resolutions and older games for satisfactory performance.

3DMark 2001 SE

3DMark 2003

3DMark 05

Gaming Performance

Doom 3

Half Life 2
The Thinkpad T43 scored the following frames per second:

Level	Coast 05	Canals 08
Test 1 - AA/AF OFF	63.60 fps	41.25 fps
Test 2 - 4X/8X	29.56 fps	16.05 fps

Now the comparison with AA/AF OFF:

...and with AA/AF ON:

Battery Performance

The T43 offers a number of battery options, all with respectable performance. For those who want to make the notebook as light as possible, the 6-cell will work decently for infrequent usage throughout the day. Power users should go with the 9-cell and weigh the usefulness of the Ultrabay Slim Battery.

Conclusion

Pros:

• Portable form factor
• Rugged case & design
• Innovative hardware/software features
• Best of the best keyboard
• UltraNav and touchpad pointing options
• Latest technology: ExpressCard, Dual-Channel DDR2
• Fast Hard Drive
• Battery options
• Modular drive bay

Cons:

• Heat/fan issues
• Could have a wider viewing angle
• Lack of Start key
• Poor speakers
• Semi-Pricey
• Slow DVDRW

Recommendation
The Thinkpad T-series tradition is continued with the T43. The latest iteration brings Intels Sonomas platform, higher battery capacities (to go with the higher power consumption), and the same unrivaled quality and features. It is lacking in multimedia features like gaming and speaker quality, but that isnt a flaw in the design. Thinkpads are designed for business use, and any gaming or audio performance you get out of the system is really just a bonus. The portability of the 14 model is excellent, especially with the SXGA+ screen to provide plenty of desktop real estate. The features built into the Thinkpad line are truly unique and give the T43 an edge over its competitors. Lastly, the jokingly easy restore system, which takes about 5 minutes for a full system restore, and plethora of unique utilities make the T43 a notebook with more features than a Lexus, Mercedes, and BMW combined.

There are few other manufacturers that offer the quality and features of a Thinkpad, which is why the T43 commands a bit of a price premium over other competing models. Even IBMs support is top-notch, with local call centers (meaning based in the US for US customers) and fast, quality service. The basic Depot Service warranty gets you pre-paid shipping, fast shipping (overnight or 2-day), and the repair center does everything possible ship your notebook out the same day they receive it; there is also on-site service available. If youre the type of person who wants the best of the best, the T-series is the way to go. For those who want some more multimedia bells & whistles, as well as a better value or widescreen option, you would do best to look elsewhere.

Business users really can't go wrong with the T43. Performance is top-notch, build quality is unrivaled, and support is unbeatable. A comparably equipped Dell Latitude D610 is several hundred dollars cheaper, but our past experience with Dell products leads us to recommend the T43 for those who can afford it. The D610's are not bad machines by any means, but Thinkpad quality is a beast not to be reckoned with.

The number of unique features and superb build quality really illustrate the value of the T43 to users who appreciate or need the exceptional design of the T-series. Accordingly, we have given the IBM Thinkpad T43 our "Recommended" award. If IBM expands the multimedia features, 3D performance at a sub-workstation level, and provides a more competitive price, the T43 could easily push into our "Highly Recommended" or "Editor's Choice" categories.

Availability/Warranty
The IBM Thinkpad T43 series is available now in just about any configuration, with both 14 and 15 screens. Our particular configuration runs $2208 on IBMs website with 3 years of on-site support. Longer warranties, depot service, accidental damage coverage, and theft protection services are also available.