From: Randal Whittle (rwhittle_at_usa.net)
Date: Wed Jun 03 1998 - 23:55:13 EDT
The TP 600 review continues as I get a bit more experience using it.
Without any further adieu:
ON A DIET
Well how do you like that...I thought it *seemed* lighter than did the
Versa 5080X and was surprised that it didn't seem all that much bigger than
the 560, when lo and behold--I find on IBM's web site that there is some
variation in the weights of various flavors of 600! My model, stripped to
its skivvies, is actually 4.91 Lbs., while the P-II 266 version is 4.99
Lbs. So in truth, it didn't just *seem* lighter...it actually *was*! The
NEC was at least 5 full pounds stripped, and maybe as much as 5.1. That
means this machine is 0.8 lbs. heavier than a 560--not bad. Surprisingly
good, actually. Maybe the 701'ers will actually forgive it for the
post-pregnancy weight--a bit extra on the hips, but not really fat either.
GOT JUICE?
Wow...56 Watts? I think the 560's is 40 Watts. It shows. The A/C
adapter is thicker. The old one was like a pack of cards. This one is
like a seriously stacked deck. ;-) I already put away my 560 stuff for a
rainy day, but as I recall, the voltage and amperage output is very similar
to what the 560's A/C put out.
Interesting to note that this one is grounded (you know, that 3-prong plug
you're always looking to find an adapter for). I wonder why now, when
simple polarization seemed to be good enough for previous models?
At any rate, it seems the electrical is beefier for this one than on the
560--still physically smaller than what was on my 750C though. And smaller
than the NEC's too.
TICKLIN' THE EBONIES II--KEYBOARD REVISITED
I covered this in the last one, but it was only after some minimal usage
on the 600.
I've changed my mind about it.
It's *better* than I initially suggested! I'm inclined now to say that
its keyboard is on-par with that fabulous 750 keyboard (or at least very
close). Its *really* GOOD. Strokes seem a bit longer than the 560,
feedback is springier without much if any mushiness. I am pleased--very
pleased.
...AND NOT A LEG TO STAND ON
But neither does it need one. Maybe its a personal preference issue, but
the idea of tilting keyboards or legs just never resonated with me. I've
used 'em both ways and notice no difference. So...no little fold-out legs
on the 600. Does it matter? I don't think so.
NOT A SPACE HEATER
I should note that now that I've had the chance to use it for a few
hours while seated on my couch and mostly have it right there in my lap,
I'm *very* surprised that the bottom is just fairly warm--but *not* "Hot".
My 750C always felt kinda hot, as did my 701 and to a lesser extent, my
560. Maybe its the fan they have to put in these things for the P-II's
(which, I should note, I cannot hear. Even when I put my ear down to the
vents I described, the only thing I hear sounds like the normal hum of a
spinning hard drive. It could be a fan, I suppose, but the salient point
here is that the fan is *not* noisy by a long shot.).
The case bottom is warm, but not hot.
I SEE THE LIGHT!
A nice feature that was missing from the 560 is the ability to see the
LED's that show charge and suspend status while the lid is closed. I have
a flaky electric socket that I use and there were a couple of times that I
had the 560 plugged in to charge for the night and when I went to use it
the next morning, it hadn't been charged. If I could have seen the LED's
conveniently, I likely would have caught it and wiggled the plug in the
socket as necessary. Both the 750 and the 701 allowed you to see the
status while closed, and I am pleased to see they've come back to that on
the 600. It was a minor item on the 560, but as we all know, the little
things matter. You can overlook some, but not too many of them.
Thankfully, the ThinkPads do a great job of covering most (almost all?) of
those little things.
SLOPPY FLOPPY
The 600, to keep things small, has one ultrabay that houses either a CD
drive (included in all but the least model) or a floppy. Alternately, you
can hook up the floppy externally using the included shell I described
earlier.
The problem? You've got to learn the rules--and its got a couple of
tricks to it that, IMO, could be improved on. Here's the deal:
Let's say you're zipping along...you have the CD drive installed in the
bay, but you need to make use of the floppy drive. Now, on my 560, it was
as simple as plugging the floppy in to the external port and you were in
business--recognized it on the fly without any reboot silliness. You'd
think this could do it too, right? Not quite...
Apparently the trick is that the Ultraslim bay, in order to be able to
warm swap (which means you have to suspend or hibernate, but you don't have
to reboot) between CD and Floppy in the bay, makes some tradeoffs in
assuming where the Floppy drive is expected to be. What that means is, if
you just booted normally with the CD in the bay, then you don't have the
convenience of merely attaching the floppy externally to use both--that is,
UNLESS the floppy was attached externally when you booted. I *think* under
that circumstance, you can detach and later re-attach the floppy and have
it work. You can, of course, suspend/hibernate, remove the CD and replace
it with the floppy in the bay. But that's a considerable annoyance
compared to simple attaching it on the fly.
Oddly enough, if you *start* with the floppy in the bay and then want to
have the CD in the bay with the floppy hooked up, you can hibernate (or
power off, but *not* suspend, at least it doesn't say you can in the book)
and pull out the floppy, insert the CD, and attach the floppy externally.
In all cases, hooking the floppy externally means you had to have booted
with the floppy either attached or in the bay, to begin with. That's a bit
annoying if you generally just run with the CD (as I suspect most would)
and want to hook on the floppy as needed, but the annoyance is minimal and
can be worked around. I presume the circumstances where you need both
floppy and CD are predictable enough that you can boot with that
configuration.
I still want a protective pouch to hold the CD when not inserted into the
bay (and oddly enough, the printing on the CD drive *does* recommend you do
just that, as if it was supposed to be included!). It turns out the shape
of the CD drive prevents it from fitting in the floppy's shell, so that's
not an option. Any suggestions would be nice. Right now I kinda wish I
had kept that little case from the NEC when I sold that off. ;-)
AT LONG LAST...
Well, I've come to the end again. This one just tied up the loose ends
>from the previous review. I still haven't tested battery life as I've been
tethered to A/C all day and haven't the inkling to test the battery at the
moment (what with all the software installs & configurations I have to do).
I haven't decided whether there will be a Part III to this review, but if
I feel it is warranted, I will indeed do so.
Meanwhile, I'll be signing off. Again, happy Thinkpadding!
-------
Randal J. Whittle whittle_at_usc.edu (213) 740-7775
Director, Electronic Commerce Program
Marshall School of Business, University of Southern California
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