Thinking about a IBM Thinkpad (likely not new): What to get/avoid?

[dante]

Any Thinkpad afficianados here?  I'm interested in buying one but not sure what to buy/avoid.

I'm particularly interested in any stand out models.  Because I want one with a high quality scissor switch keyboard I'll probably be going back in time.  Ideally at a minimum I'd like something with 512mb, but would also be open to 4gb maxxed out XP model.  The problem I'm facing is I don't know what the 'golden' age is for such things.  The most important things are reliability and models known to have strong scissor switches.

[davkol]

Don't get one with a non-Intel GPU.

[dante]

Judging from several critieria it would appear to be the winner?

Feb 2005 T43, upgradable to 2gb, Intel GMA 900, up to 80gb HD.

Does that seem like the "best"?

[davkol]

Those were great at the time (and even few years later). Check if USB ports are OK.

Another thing to consider is either an X series tablet, or a 15" T series thinkpad with hi-res medical display (e.g. T60 w/ 2048×1536).

[snoopy]

I would avoid T4x. They have a high failure rate. Try to get a X6x or T6x

[The_Beast]

I have the T61 (I think) which I love. It's build solid, the keyboard is decent and it has a metal top which I really like.

[thp777]

I used to have a T61p with the 15.4 inch 1920 x1200 screen. with the quadro 570m. I loved it so much. Built like a tank. Only reason I sold it was to pay for move cross country.

[sth]

hey Dante, if you're into a smaller form factor, i have a thinkpad X61s (core 2 duo low voltage) that i need to get rid of. works perfectly, has 2 batteries and the dock and two sweet stickers (HACK THE PLANET icon and Debian swirl ). i can run memtest and stuff on it and let you know. PM me if you are interested

[Leslieann]

The 4 series had fan issues and backlight problems, otherwise, great laptops.

X6 and T6 series is good, make sure it has widescreen, a C2d and upgrade it to at least 2 gigs of ram. The only ones you really want are the T or X series and the netbooks. Pretty much everything else is junk.

If you do have backlight issues on them, you may be temped to replace the cathode itself ($3). Do yourself a favor and DON'T! Save yourself a headache and heart attack and just buy a screen ($90). Seriously, it's not worth it.

[dante]

After spending 48 hours living on some thinkpad forums sifting through specs and posts, I'm going to search for a 2011 W520.

a) good reviews
b) has enough horsies to tackle starcraft
c) last model year to receive the legendary thinkpad scissor switches

Most likely will go with:

Intel Dual Core i7-2620M (2.70GHz, 4MB L3, 1333MHz FSB, 35W) ~ Most games don't take advantage of more than this plus only 35w to keep it cool
NVIDIA Quadro 1000M with 2GB DDR3  45w
15.6" TFT display with 1920x1080 (FHD) resolution with LED backlight
8GB DIMMS PC3-10600
320 or 500GB 7200rpm 2.5" SATA HDD

Of course finding this exact configuration on a 3 year old model is going to be a PITA.

[kishy]

As an owner of a W520, I will caution you that very many W520s had issues. Reading the Lenovo forums will reveal this.

My config is i7 2760QM, 8GB 1333, m4 64GB mSATA SSD + 500GB 7200RPM Hitachi + DVD, 2000M with Optimus enabled.

I bought my machine in 2012. I had the system board replaced in the first month or two due to mysterious latency issues that did not appear driver related (and which proved not to be when the new board was installed). I had the LCD and inverter replaced a few months later for intermittent non-functionality of the screen (booting up without turning the LCD on, and being unable to trigger it on again through any means except power cycle). I think the second issue is making a comeback now too.

They're great machines but do NOT buy one without a warranty.

[dante]

waaaaa! my whole weekend all for naught

[tipo33]

I own several.  My favourite is my T60.  It has a 4:3 aspect UXGA IPS display and a great keyboard.  It is easy to work on, and if you need speed you can swap in a T61 motherboard.  My T41 gives me nothing but issues.  I have had great experiences with the X series.

[Leslieann]

As an owner of a W520, I will caution you that very many W520s had issues. Reading the Lenovo forums will reveal this.

Lenovo's first act as owner of Thinkpads was to cheapen them.
They are getting better again, but  there were a few that many feel are trash.

Lenovo's reliability ratings were down with HP and Dell for a while.

[Burz]

c) last model year to receive the legendary thinkpad scissor switches

No. They are still the same scissor switch.

What has changed is A) the keycaps are lower profile, but still sculpted, and B) layout of keys like pgup, home (screen left/right are gone).

The last T4xx series with a really nice screen was the T410. After that, it seems the whole industry converted to 16:9 and also relegated 14" displays to cheaply produced models (doesn't matter which brand). So 13" and 15" are where its at for great display quality (and you can still find 16:10 on some 13" laptops).

I have a T430s and really like it overall. After that first run, they did work the bugs out (unlike with the T410s and T420s which never overcame certain flaws).

If you choose a T520 over a T530, that will mean a substantial hit to battery life (Sandy bridge vs. Ivy bridge chips).

[Ninjerk]

Judging from several critieria it would appear to be the winner?

Feb 2005 T43, upgradable to 2gb, Intel GMA 900, up to 80gb HD.

Does that seem like the "best"?

T43s are probably cheap as dirt by now, but pick up a newer one. I left IBM a few years ago, and took ten T43 laptops with me. Only 1 is usable now.

The problems with the old T40 series laptops is that they ran hot and either eventually burned out the GPU or CPU. I've been able to spare the life of this last one by running a program on it called "Notebook Hardware Control" made buy a guy named Manfred Jader, but that means running the system at lower temps and I've reduced the CPU clock by half.

Fine for a laptop I use for browsing and minimal work. Not good if you're looking to be playing games or doing anything that needs more power.

One of the T43s I had I did run a game called "Guildwars" on and it did run great for about a year, before suddenly crashing and dying one day.

[dndlmx]

I use an X40, the last "true" IBM X Series.

If you want actual responsiveness from these things, Linux is almost mandatory.