Lenovo ThinkPad T400s pros:
+ Solid design
+ Fast solid state drive
+ Excellent keyboard
+ Very light and thin
+ Outstanding performance

Lenovo ThinkPad T400s cons:
- Poor viewing angles
- Below average graphocs performance
- Unusual memory card reader

Design:

Lenovo ThinkPad T400s measures 13.27 x 9.49 x 0.83″ and weighs 3lbs 14.3oz. Some elements of the laptop’s design resemble the usual Lenovo laptop, yet such features as carbon-glas fiber lid and slim lines suggest that the laptop is state-of-the-art. The Lenovo ThinkPad T400s make an impression of an extremely solid and durable laptop despite is inconspicuous look perhaps because of its magnesium alloy keyboard bezel, or the metal hinges.
The Lenovo ThinkPad T400s has all the ports necessary for business use and a few more. For example, it has VGA and DisplayPort for video, two USB ports, one eSATA/USB port, Ethernet and a combined audio-out/microphone port. As an option you might also add a 5-in-1 memory card reader.
The full size keyboard is very comfortable and almost identical with any other Lenovo laptop keyboard, but this time the delete and escape buttons are a bit larger than in other computers which makes writing even faster and more error-free.
The trackpoint is very accurate, but if you dislike using it you can make use of the wide and textured touchpad. Following Apple’s MacBook Pro the Lenovo laptop supports multitouch gestures.

Performance:

The 14.1-inch laptop displays 1440 x 900 image which is just perfect for such a screen. The displayed image is bright, vivid and sharp as long as you look straight at it. The viewing angles in the Lenovo ThinkPad T400s slightly disappoint. When displaying fast motion, for example when watching a film, some pixelation may be visible, but for business use the Lenovo ThinkPad T400s should be just fine.
The Lenovo ThinkPad T400s comes with an integrated fingerprint reader so you can bypass the Windows login screen and/or protect your data more safely. The fingerprint reader works very well so you will not have to try several times to perform the desired action.
The Lenovo ThinkPad T400s comes with a built-in 2 megapixel webcam above its display so it is much better than on the Samsung N120 and Toshiba mini NB205. The image recorder with the camera is sharp and clear, just as you might expect.
What’s important is that the Lenovo ThinkPad T400s does not overheat even after prolonged use and when you do a lot of intensive work.

When it comes to its processing power the Lenovo ThinkPad T400s with its 2.53 GHz processor, Solid State Drive and 2 GB of RAM is a lot faster than an average lightweight laptop. The PCMark Vantage test score of almost 6000 should tell you all you need. However, the Lenovo ThinkPad T400s scores poorly in graphics tests with results below the category average. So the Lenovo laptop is clearly business oriented and not aimed at movie watchers and players.

Selected Lenovo ThinkPad T400s features and specifications:

• Processors Options – Intel® Core™2 Duo SP9400 (2.4GHz, 6MB Cache, 25 watt) or  Intel® Core™2 Duo SP9600 (2.53GHz, 6MB Cache, 25 watt)

• Operating Systems choices – XP Professional 32 downgrade – Windows Vista® Home Basic – Windows Vista® Home Premium – Windows Vista® Business – Windows Vista® Business 64

• Chipset/CPU – Intel® 4500MHD/Core™2, SV Small FF, 25W

• Displays – 14.1″ wide LED WXGA+ (1440×900) Graphics – Integrated Intel® GMA 4500 MHD

• Memory – 1GB/2GB/4GB DDR3 1067 MHz Hard Drives from 80GB SSD to 120GB SSD with 250GB SSD available at a later stage – 120GB to 250 GB 5400rpm SATA

• Supported WLAN Cards Intel® Wireless WiFi Link 5300 (3×3) – Intel® Wireless WiFi Link 5100 (1×2) – • Intel® WiMax WiFi Link 5150 (1×2) –  Realtek Wireless B, G, N Card

• Integrated Communications – WWAN, WiMAX, WLAN Bluetooth®, UWB Constant Connect Support – 34mm card (US and Canada Only) – Constant Secure Support (US and Canada Only)

• Ports and Slots – 1 Standard USB 2.0, 1 Powered USB 2.0, 1 USB/eSATA –  VGA, DisplayPort, Mic/Headphone, RJ45 –  Optional 34mm Express Card or 5-in-1 Multimedia Card Reader – Combo Microphone in /Audio out

• Additional Features – Integrated 2MP Camera –  Multi-Touch TouchPad Optical Drive options –  DVD ROM –  CD-RW/DVD Combo drive – DVD recordable multiburner or Blu-ray™ DVD

• Security – Integrated Fingerprint Reader with LED ‘Smart Indicators’ –  Trusted Platform Module –  ConstantSecure (WWAN models)

• Battery – 6 cell Li Ion Prismatic Battery for up to up to 5.5 hrs or 3 cell Ultra Bay battery: up to 8.5 hrs with 6 cell battery

Other recently reviewed laptops:

Toshiba mini NB205, Samsung N120, MacBook Pro

Samsung N120 pros:
+ Very good resolution and overall screen quality
+ Excellent battery life
+ Comfortable and responsive, full size keyboard
+ Windows XP

Samsung N120 cons:
- Smallish touchpad
- Poor viewing angles
- no optical drive

Design:

Samsung N120 measures 10.7 x 7.4 x 1.2 inches and weighs 2.8 pounds. The netbook is available in black or white and its body resembles some older Samsung netbooks. However, in order to accommodate a larger keyboard it is a bit larger than its predecessors. As the netbook is still very small and comfortable to hold and carry around I don’t think it is a big issue. This also affected the bezel around the screen which now accommodates speakers making the sound quality commendable.
The Samsung N120 features the standard set of ports sufficient for the normal, day to day work. And so it has to USB ports and an Ethernet port on the left, whereas the right side features the VGA-out, Kensington lock, audio in/out, and a third USB port. You can also find the 3-in-1 memory card reader hidden under the front lip.
Samsung claims that the N120’s keyboard is full size, yet it is not quite so. All the key are slightly smaller than on a standard, full size keyboards, but you can hardly notice it and for suet it does not have a negative impact on writing. All the keys in the Samsung N120 are well placed and provide nice feedback. The trackpad is a bit smallish, but very responsive and pleasant to use also its buttons are responsive and behave as expected.
The Samsung netbook’s 10.1-inch screen works in 1024 x 600 resolution and shows bright colors. However, the viewing angles are quite poor not only horizontally, but also vertically. The Samsung N120 also comes with a built-in 1.3 megapixel webcam which works pretty well.

Performance:

Samsung N120 features 1.6-GHz Intel processor which achieved a good result in PCMark05 test (1,515) so the overall performance is commendable. The Samsung netbook features the Intel 945GSE graphics chip which also does its job quite well and although you will most probably not be able to play the latest 3D games you can seamlessly watch a 720P HD video. Samsung N120 has a 160 GB working at 5,400 rpm so you can’t expect it will save and open files as fast as the latest MacBook Pro, but it will should be okay for browsing the net and for basic work with multimedia.
The wireless performance of Samsung N120 is in line with the netbook average, yet its battery life test performance might be surprising. The Samsung N120 has strong enough battery to allow you to browse the Internet wirelessly of up to 7 hours.

Conclusion:

All in all the Samsung N120 is a very powerful netbook for a reasonable price (about $420) which will not disappoint. With its very good battery it is prefect for long travels and as it can run HD movies effortlessly it is also very good for fun.

Selected Samsung N120 features and specifications:

• CPU

1.6-GHz Intel Atom N270

• RAM Included

1GB

• RAM Upgradable

2GB

• Hard Drive Size

160GB

• Hard Drive Speed

5,400rpm

• Hard Drive Type

SATA Hard Drive

• Display Size

10.1

• Native Resolution

1024×600

• Graphics Card

Intel 945GSE

• Video Memory

128MB

• Wi-Fi

802.11b/g

• Bluetooth

Bluetooth 2.0 EDR
Mobile Broadband

• Operating System

MS Windows XP (SP3)

• Ports (excluding USB)

Ethernet; Headphone; Kensington Lock; Microphone; VGA

• USB Ports

3

• Card Slots / Readers

3-1 card reader

• Warranty/Support

One-year standard parts and labor/24/7 toll-free phone

Other recently reviewed laptops:

SONY VAIO VGN-SZ71XN, MacBook Pro