IBM Thinkpad T23

WHAT'S HOT: Like its predecessor, the T22, the ThinkPad T23 offers a 14.1-inch screen with 1400 by 1050 resolution and weighs just 5.5 pounds (without the AC adapter)--a dynamite combination. When you swap out the internal DVD-ROM drive you get at this price for a hollow travel bezel ($20 extra from Compu-Lock), the T23 tips the scales at less than 5 pounds. The bay can hold any one of six other interchangeable devices, too, including a bundled floppy drive, an optional second battery, and an optional second hard drive.

T series laptops include all legacy connections and great built-in sound with handy volume controls--rare features in two-spindle notebooks. The 48GB hard drive is the biggest we've seen in a laptop. Equipped with Intel's speedy mobile 1.13-GHz/733-MHz Pentium III-M processor and 256MB of RAM, the T23 pulled down a PC WorldBench 4 score of 105, fairly speedy for a laptop with that chip and running Windows 2000.

WHAT'S NOT: At $3249, the T23 is expensive. Printed documentation consists of one slim troubleshooting manual, but you can peruse tons of additional documentation on the hard drive and CD-ROM. A parallel-port cable for attaching the floppy drive externally costs $49 more, and free technical support ends after three years.

WHAT ELSE: Identical in appearance to the last several generations of T series notebooks, the T23 boasts the same beveled black case, solidly constructed keyboard, comfortable mouse buttons, and fire-engine-red eraserhead that ThinkPad fans already recognize. An S-Video port lets you connect the notebook to a television set. IBM's ThinkLight, a small LED mounted on the screen frame, helps make the keyboard visible in dark rooms. The UltraPort, a modified USB connection located atop the screen under a small rubber plug, accepts any of four small, extra-cost devices sold by IBM: a basic digital camera, a Compact Flash card reader, an infrared port (each priced below $100), or a digital microphone ($199). IBM now provides two USB ports, in place of the previous model's one.

ThinkPad T laptops are no longer the lightest portables to carry a 14.1-inch screen. Several competing 5-pound Windows laptops, including those in the Acer TravelMate 600 series, now offer screens just as big; and Apple's 5.3-pound PowerBook G4 beats them all with a whopping 15.2-inch screen. Overall, however, the T23 offers a higher level of design sophistication and more small luxuries than the others.

UPSHOT: For businesses and well-heeled individuals who prefer the eraserhead pointing device and can afford a top-of-the-line lightweight laptop, the T23 is a best-of-breed winner.

SUMMARY

IBM ThinkPad T23 PC WorldBench 4 score of 105, 1.13-GHz/733-MHz Pentium III-M, 256MB of SDRAM, 512KB L2 cache, Windows 2000, 14.1-inch active-matrix screen, S3 SuperSavage/IXC SDR graphics with 16MB of SDRAM, 48GB hard drive, 8X DVD-ROM drive, built-in V.90 modem and network adapter, eraserhead pointing device, 6.5 pounds (including AC adapter and phone cord); Lotus SmartSuite Millennium Edition. Three-year parts and labor warranty, free unlimited toll-free 24-hour technical support (ends after three years; $35 per incident thereafter). $3249 888/746-7426 www.ibm.com/pc/us/thinkpad