The ThinkPad T400 unit we tested scored a 92 on our WorldBench 6 test suite, slightly outperforming the among top-of-the-line . Applications load swiftly on the 7200-rpm, 160GB hard drive, which uses an Intel Core 2 Duo 2.53GHz T9400 processor with 2GB of RAM and a 256MB ATI Radeon Mobility HD 3400 GPU. Regarding the GPU, however, it's best to keep your graphics expectations low: In our tests, game graphics fell flat, as indicated by the T400's frame rate of 16 frames per second on Enemy Territory: Quake Wars run at 1024 by 768 resolution. But that result isn't a huge shock; this notebook is strictly business.
Armed with a resolution of 1440 by 900 pixels, the 14.1-inch screen provides adequate real estate for multitasking. The LED-backlight display is easy on the eyes under standard fluorescent lighting; and if you crank the brightness up, visibility is adequate in sunlight, in a pinch. The nine-cell battery protrudes uncomfortably from the rear of the case, but after you enjoy 8 hours of battery life on a single charge, you'll be inclined to forgive it.
The keyboard is typical Lenovo fare--excellent for hammering out lengthy prose, with ample room between the quiet keys. There are some notable shortcut keys, too. A magnifier mapped to the space bar lets you toggle the resolution to make small text readable; and a ThinkLight shortcut fires up an LED light on the top edge of the display's frame to help you spot keys in low-light conditions. The standard ThinkPad pointer nub is present, too, and the laptop's touchpad (for people who don't like the nub) rests right below it. Having both options is nice, but the dual sets of pointer-buttons can result in accidental button presses, if you're not familiar with the layout.
The T400 provides few extras (for instance, the only productivity software you get is a 60-day trial for Microsoft Office), but all of the essentials are in place, including a Webcam, a DVD/CD burner, VGA-out, and an Express Card slot. You'll also find the standard 802.11 Wireless LAN, and Bluetooth connectivity options. And the model we tested packed two much-anticipated new security features (), along with an optional fingerprint reader, for an extra digit of protection. The machine's three USB slots--two on the left, and one on the right--are perpendicular to the case, allowing USB cables and peripherals to park alongside one another with relative ease. A four-pin FireWire port resides on the front of the chassis, along with the microphone and headphone jacks. You'll likely want to keep a pair of headphones handy: The speakers are loud enough, but sound quality is middling.
The ThinkVantage application suite offers access to many useful resources at the touch of a button. Common tasks such as setting up wireless connections and managing power consumption settings are readily available, and power users will appreciate being able to back up data or configure security settings on the fly. The ThinkVantage suite largely serves as a front-end for faculties that Windows handles natively, but it does a lot to improve overall user efficiency.