lenovopad T60p broke

[EverythingIBM]

Yeah! My lenovo thinkpad T60p broke yesterday. I was reading some PDFs, scrolling through, when all of the sudden the screen flickered, turned black, and the processor just cut itself off.

Whenever I turn it on now, it gets power and all that, but just sits there, doesn't load anything off the hard drive, or even go into the BIOS. Just sits there dead doing nothing. Heh, everything CONTRARY to what a "processor" constitutes.

My best guess is either some capacitor or something broke inside it from heat, or the processor itself. Probably will have to replace the system board with such greivous response from the laptop. But the fact that it died DURING use is just angering. The last computer I had that behaved like this was my custom built one which broke while moving to a new house & not turned on (the PSU would inject it with power, but it wouldn't do anything).

It was fairly hot when I was using it (not full CPU), but still, the heat it had shouldn't have done anything to it. SHOULDN'T isn't WOULDN'T however.

So I guess lenovo thinkpads DO break after four years (conveniently when the warranty expires). Pieces of rubbish. Lenovo is now on my blacklist. They try tricking you by sticking on an IBM logo... HA!

Laptops... such stupid tempermental things. I can't wait to get back home to my good faithful 2005 intellistation.

[Manyak]

My T410 stopped charging the secondary battery so I sent it in for service (under warranty). But they lost it. As in, they can't find it to ship it back to me.

So they're replacing it for me, and upgrading the HDD to 7200rpm and throwing in a WWAN card for free

[EverythingIBM]

My T410 stopped charging the secondary battery so I sent it in for service (under warranty). But they lost it. As in, they can't find it to ship it back to me.

So they're replacing it for me, and upgrading the HDD to 7200rpm and throwing in a WWAN card for free

Wow they're pretty sloppy.

I have 5 files I want to get off the hard drive (music stuff if one really must know), I'd only send it in if I erased the HDD. Don't want them stealing all of my intellectual property.

But yeah, lenovo sucks. They milked off IBM's name, dropped the quality, and have sloppy support (even if it can be good now and then; there shouldn't be a need for [major] support if the products are high quality). I REALLY hope they go bankrupt now. Lenovo, just another stupid chinese company. The communist China government owns part of it I should add (they love capitalism more than the capitalists).
Communists are idiots. Am I the only one who is seeing a premonition of a bad picture when the Chinese buy up all of the American businesses, keep building their military (hundreds of submarines produced each day), lend out money to the States, etc?

[sethstorm]

Yeah! My lenovo thinkpad T60p broke yesterday. I was reading some PDFs, scrolling through, when all of the sudden the screen flickered, turned black, and the processor just cut itself off.

Whenever I turn it on now, it gets power and all that, but just sits there, doesn't load anything off the hard drive, or even go into the BIOS. Just sits there dead doing nothing. Heh, everything CONTRARY to what a "processor" constitutes.

My best guess is either some capacitor or something broke inside it from heat, or the processor itself. Probably will have to replace the system board with such greivous response from the laptop. But the fact that it died DURING use is just angering. The last computer I had that behaved like this was my custom built one which broke while moving to a new house & not turned on (the PSU would inject it with power, but it wouldn't do anything).

It was fairly hot when I was using it (not full CPU), but still, the heat it had shouldn't have done anything to it. SHOULDN'T isn't WOULDN'T however.

So I guess lenovo thinkpads DO break after four years (conveniently when the warranty expires). Pieces of rubbish. Lenovo is now on my blacklist. They try tricking you by sticking on an IBM logo... HA!

Laptops... such stupid tempermental things. I can't wait to get back home to my good faithful 2005 intellistation.

You don't get a Fan Failure messag on POST, even if external?

Sounds like some sort of heat related/fan failure.  It's also why I tread VERY carefully with my "Hillenbrand" 4:3 T60p.  Even thought it may be able to go above 80C on GPU doesnt mean I let it do so too often.

[ch_123]

Does the laptop have a SATA drive? It would be simple to remove it and hook it up to your PC.

[microsoft windows]

It could also be that your graphics controller failed. I'd look up your model Thinkpad (T60P) for problems. Computers don't tend to just die if nothing's wrong.

Maybe you could replace it with an IBM thinkpad like a T40 or something.

[mcdonc]

The fans and motherboards on the older T-series laptops apparently have a relatively short life:  my 6-year-old IBM T41p's fan died, I replaced that, then the motherboard died (and I didn't bother to replace that).  Many other folks on the internet had the same complaints in matching the same chronology for that model.

[microsoft windows]

It's probably just the fans, or something on the motherboard that controlls the fan speed. If the fans don't go fast enough, the motherboard can be damaged.

It could also be dust too. A guy I know at work melted a pen on his desk from a laptop with its heat sinks full of dust.

[ch_123]

Does the laptop have a SATA drive? It would be simple to remove it and hook it up to your PC.

Just to elaborate on this further. If it did have an IDE laptop drive, you can get an adapter for one relatively cheaply. Given how relatively new the T60 series is, it should have a SATA drive. SATA laptop drives use the same interface as SATA desktop drives.

[EverythingIBM]

You don't get a Fan Failure messag on POST, even if external?

Sounds like some sort of heat related/fan failure.  It's also why I tread VERY carefully with my "Hillenbrand" 4:3 T60p.  Even thought it may be able to go above 80C on GPU doesnt mean I let it do so too often.

Sadly I don't get anything.

Does the laptop have a SATA drive? It would be simple to remove it and hook it up to your PC.

Yep it's SATA. A fairly decent 7200 RPM too. Platters start spinning on powerup, but nothing is read.

The fans and motherboards on the older T-series laptops apparently have a relatively short life:  my 6-year-old IBM T41p's fan died, I replaced that, then the motherboard died (and I didn't bother to replace that).  Many other folks on the internet had the same complaints in matching the same chronology for that model.

In all honesty I thought it had nothing to do with the fan -- when I turn it on, the fan doesn't seem to be turning on anymore!
That's interesting!

So, I think we're on to something now, I bet you it is a heat related issue of sorts now that's come through -- I posted a thread last time about the heat being rather high with speedfan (now yes, not always accurate results, but it still can be used for diagnostics). And since the weather there was fairly hot, the heat probably just fried the stupid thing.

But that's surprising to me as it wasn't BURNING, it has been a lot more hot on other occassions (in which it would just freeze up), and my friend's acer laptop had the unfortunate experience of being obscured by his couch accidently as he fell asleep -- Awaking to an insanely hot laptop that almost burned him.

[EverythingIBM]

Just to elaborate on this further. If it did have an IDE laptop drive, you can get an adapter for one relatively cheaply. Given how relatively new the T60 series is, it should have a SATA drive. SATA laptop drives use the same interface as SATA desktop drives.

Alright, I'll pop it out and take out the files I need later.

Now, should I try to fix it with a new mobo, CPU, fan and better thermal paste -- or should I just sell it for parts/repair?

If I sell it, I'd want $300 or $200: which you could probably only get if it were working. The LCD has no dead pixels. The keyboard is fairly shiny as I typed the heck out on it. The T60 series seems to have the best keyboard; even better than the T61 or T42 (which I tried both).

[ch_123]

When you power on the system, is the screen blank, or does it hang at the BIOS screen?

[EverythingIBM]

When you power on the system, is the screen blank, or does it hang at the BIOS screen?

Pure black! Doesn't load anything.

It still can detect the power cord, and manipulate the indicator lights (all of them briefly turn on when I boot the computer -- but that's probably handled by a basic chip), but when it is SUPPOSED to be loading the BIOS, it doesn't. Just sits there.

I've had some sticky problems with my computers before: but when you can't get into the BIOS, you're screwed basically.

[keyboardlover]

Pure black! Doesn't load anything.

It still can detect the power cord, and manipulate the indicator lights (all of them briefly turn on when I boot the computer -- but that's probably handled by a basic chip), but when it is SUPPOSED to be loading the BIOS, it doesn't. Just sits there.

I've had some sticky problems with my computers before: but when you can't get into the BIOS, you're screwed basically.

This happened to me before. Does your T60 have an nvidia GPU? There is a known issue with the nvidia GPU on T60s and they will repair it even out of warranty (there is a lawsuit going on atm). I had them repair mine out of warranty. Let me know and I can provide more info.

[EverythingIBM]

This happened to me before. Does your T60 have an nvidia GPU? There is a known issue with the nvidia GPU on T60s and they will repair it even out of warranty (there is a lawsuit going on atm). I had them repair mine out of warranty. Let me know and I can provide more info.

No it's ATI.

[Pylon]

T60s are all ATI.

[keyboardlover]

T60s are all ATI.

My bad...I thought they were essentially the same as the T61. I guess that's the difference. Could still be the GPU but I'm not sure. In any case sounds like the mobo needs to be replaced.

[EverythingIBM]

T60s are all ATI.

Yep, I believe so.

The T61s had NVIDIA as an option if I'm not mistaken.

And it costs around $200 on ebay for a decent 256MB Fire GL mobo for T60:
http://cgi.ebay.ca/Motherboard-IBM-Lenovo-ThinkPad-T60-T60p-44C3716-FireGL-/360286933096?cmd=ViewItem&pt=Motherboards&hash=item53e2c65068

If I don't have to buy a new motherboard, I'd rather not. Replacing the CPU would be a heck of a lot easier.

[EverythingIBM]

At that kind of cost it's probably better to just keep your eyes open for a complete working computer (alternatively, watch for parts units with damaged screens but with working motherboards).

No kidding, $200 is ridiculous. If it was $50, well, okay fine. But I don't think I want to waste money on laptop woes at the moment; was just wondering if it would be possible to fix it by any other means. I have my eye on other things (such as music CDs and gaming rig stuff).

It seems like the LCDs are the most sought-after things on thinkpads. My battery is still good too, can run about 4 hours still (lost about 20% of its charge).

Whatever. I'm very disappointed in thinkpads, that's all I have to say. Four years (even for a laptop in the 2006/2007 era) is a very short life span. Pathetic. I don't think I'll bother myself with them anymore. I should just get the files off the HDD, wipe it, and sell it for parts, rather than try to revive this piece of doo-doo.
It runs hot, the LCD is flimsy (not to mention loose hinges), it freezes, the speakers are under the wrist pad... that about sums up the T series in general.

[keyboardlover]

No kidding, $200 is ridiculous. If it was $50, well, okay fine. But I don't think I want to waste money on laptop woes at the moment; was just wondering if it would be possible to fix it by any other means. I have my eye on other things (such as music CDs and gaming rig stuff).

It seems like the LCDs are the most sought-after things on thinkpads. My battery is still good too, can run about 4 hours still (lost about 20% of its charge).

Whatever. I'm very disappointed in thinkpads, that's all I have to say. Four years (even for a laptop in the 2006/2007 era) is a very short life span. Pathetic. I don't think I'll bother myself with them anymore. I should just get the files off the HDD, wipe it, and sell it for parts, rather than try to revive this piece of doo-doo.
It runs hot, the LCD is flimsy (not to mention loose hinges), it freezes, the speakers are under the wrist pad... that about sums up the T series in general.

It's worth at least Googling around to see if others have had the same issue with your model. I was in the same place with mine until I found a thread in the Thinkpad forums regarding a bunch of people who had the same issue as me. It's Lenovo's fault, so they should fix it (for free).

[ch_123]

The speakers on the T61 are on either side of the keyboard. They're pretty dire though, but then again, so are most laptop speakers.

Freezing? Sounds like whatever hardware issue it was was going on for some time.

The Lenovo Thinkpads definitely don't feel as solid as the IBM made ones, but they're still better than just about any other laptop on the market.

[In Stereo!]

At that kind of cost it's probably better to just keep your eyes open for a complete working computer (alternatively, watch for parts units with damaged screens but with working motherboards).

If he has a Flexview display, which are still considered one of the best laptop displays ever made, it is definitly worth the 200USD IMO.

[EverythingIBM]

If he has a Flexview display, which are still considered one of the best laptop displays ever made, it is definitly worth the 200USD IMO.

I'm not sure, I think it's just a standard 1400x1050 LCD (certainly I never found it to be spectacular), you can see here on lenovo's product page:
http://www-307.ibm.com/pc/support/site.wss/product.do?subcategoryind=0&familyind=293924&brandind=10&doccategoryind=0&modelind=294864&doctypeind=3&validate=true&partnumberind=0&sitestyle=lenovo&template=%2Fproductpage%2Flandingpages%2FproductPageLandingPage.vm&operatingsystemind=49979&machineind=293928
(it's upgraded to 2GB of RAM).

Edit: I should add, I wasn't paying attention to the LCD when I bought it (because I don't care), I just asked the rep. who sold me my intellistation for a thinkpad that said "IBM", he said the T60 series were one of the last to have it. So I bought a T60p since it was cheap.

It's worth at least Googling around to see if others have had the same issue with your model. I was in the same place with mine until I found a thread in the Thinkpad forums regarding a bunch of people who had the same issue as me. It's Lenovo's fault, so they should fix it (for free).

Maybe I might give my woes to the thinkpad forum. But I think it's just dead due to poor engineering.

[In Stereo!]

You can check by looking at the screen from the sides. If there is no change in color, you got yourself an IPS Flexview display, otherwise, not. They have a problem with fading backlight, though.

[EverythingIBM]

You can check by looking at the screen from the sides. If there is no change in color, you got yourself an IPS Flexview display, otherwise, not. They have a problem with fading backlight, though.

If I recall, there isn't a major colour change, it just gets extremely dark when you look from it side to side. But I can't do any tests cause... heh, the thinkpad won't display anything

My L190 LCD doesn't change colour when you look at it from the side (unlike most which turn an ugly yellow) -- and it manages to stay bright as well. It's just top-to-bottom that's the problem.

[instantkamera]

If I recall, there isn't a major colour change, it just gets extremely dark when you look from it side to side. But I can't do any tests cause... heh, the thinkpad won't display anything

My L190 LCD doesn't change colour when you look at it from the side (unlike most which turn an ugly yellow) -- and it manages to stay bright as well. It's just top-to-bottom that's the problem.

not an IPS panel then, by the sounds.

[chongyixiong]

Not a Flexview..
methinks they only  came  in either  15" 1600x1200 or 1400x1050 variants

[EverythingIBM]

Not a Flexview..
methinks they only  came  in either  15" 1600x1200 or 1400x1050 variants

No I don't believe it is. Just a piece of cheap lenovo trash.

I never seen a 15" fullscreen T60 before.