WTB: T410, T420, T430, X220, X230, or T60/T61 for mod

[articfox]

Hi. I am looking to buy a thinkpad. I have owned two machines in my life, a T42p and my current T60. I bought the T42p new in college and the T60 a few years back from a forum user. I am looking to upgrade to a faster machine with now. Would consider a T410, T420, T430, X220, X230, or similar. Important features for me are high-res screen, dedicated trackpoint buttons, decent processor/RAM for snappy performance, 14" screen, SSD would be nice but not necessary. My budget is $300.

Reply or PM if you have something that may work for me or if you just have any recommendations or thoughts. While I have a general knowledge of ThinkPad models that have come out since my first machine, I'll be the first to admit that I haven't kept up with their specs and that my knowledge of various hardware components and how they affect performance is superficial.

Located in RTP, NC area in case you are local.

Edit: after browsing, I'm also open the Frankenpad. The shell of my T60 is not in great condition, so in the case of doing the Franken mods, I'd still be interested in buying a T60

Thanks

[brchan]

You may want to change the title because T4x and T2x refer to T40/T41/T42/T43 and T20/T21/T22/T23 (early 2000s) models respectively.

[mr.motoring]

Keep in mind X220 and X230 have standard 12.5" low-res screens (1366x768) with no options for high-res upgrades, unless you really want to mod the machine.

I have an X220 with IPS LCD. If you're interested, shoot me a PM.

[brchan]

I would consider skipping the T410. The 's' models especially seem to suffer from cracking palmrests and faulty displays a lot more than the newer generations. Even more, T410 battery life is pretty poor and the units aren't that much faster than a high spec T400.

However, I will admit that the T410s is very aesthetically pleasing. Almost as good as the old T4* series. Clean lines, good proportions, without that super thick upper and lower bezel on 16:9 ratio models.

T420 would be my recommendation. You will also be able to mod it with a FHD IPS panel.

[plympton]

i'd recommend a t420s. While not the best design from a maintainence perspective, they are reasonably light, have a 1600x900 res screen that is tolerable, and there is an IPS mod out there that you could get for about $150 all-in which is well worth it. Good used ones for for about $200-300 depending on condition, specs.

X220 are good, too, but about the same bulk as th t420s with a low-res screen.

T420 don't have an IPS mod available (buggy, interference) while the t420s mod is reliable (though neither are available readily right now)

Here's an example:
http://www.ebay.com/ulk/itm/361428360111

-Dan

[brchan]

If you want a more portable system with decent resolution and don't need something blazing fast, an X201 will suit you well. Some are available with 1440x900 (but TN) screens. People have also reported that they are tougher (only non 's' versions!) than X220/X230 models.

[articfox]

Thanks for the replies. After further consideration, I'll rule out the X-series in favor of larger screens. Also, the T410 based on poor battery life and the other common issues sited by brchan. The T420 seems like an overall good choice but I am still interested in the Frankenpad mods. Any thoughts on this as an option? My gut tells me I should get a new T60 if I decide to go with the Frankenpad, because my current one has been through the wash (there are some cracks in the bevel around the screen and keyboard, however, it is working fine), so I would be looking at the cost of a T60 plus the kit for mod in this case.

[brchan]

For the Frankenpad, you will need:

- 4:3 T61 motherboard with FX570m that is 08/08 or newer. These are very difficult and expensive to find, but you could also use intel motherboards which are common and inexpensive.
- 4:3 15" T60 chassis. There is actually a specific magnesium frame FRU revision that helps prevents the common chassis crack at the vgaPort/leftHinge area, though I can't remember which one.
- UXGA or SXGA+ (preferrably the former) 15" IPS display. These can be expensive to find
- UXGA inverter
- T9300 processor

[articfox]

Thanks for the advice to those who chimed in. I picked up a T420 today from local seller.

Got it in great condition and am pleased except for that in my quick look over at the coffee shop before handing over the cash, I failed to realize it was actually the lower res screen (1766x768), even though the buyer had it listed and confirmed over e-mail it was the 1600x900. Until I got home with it and opened the a browser and it hit me like train--What a lousy screen! So now I'm either waiting for the kit to do the 1080p upgrade or going to replacing the current screen with a 1600x9000.

Edit: Selling my T60

[brchan]

If he listed the screen as being 1600x900, but it is 1366x768, then I would contact the seller again.

[rkawakami]

FWIW, use the "MTM" link at the top of each forum page to see what the main features are of most any recent Thinkpad (*30 models or earlier; 7-character model type).

[bit_twiddler]

You may have to change the LVDS cable to put in a 1600x900 screen.

[plympton]

I have a 1600x900 screen with cable from my t420s 1080p you can have cheap, PM me if interested. (T420s cable might not work now that I think about it.. Bummer)

[mr.motoring]

LCD cables do not have to be changed to upgrade screen panel to a higher resolution. I've installed 1080p panels in a T520 that came with a standard 1366x768 panel.

[articfox]

Thanks for the replies regarding the screen and rkawakami for the MTM link. I have read different things about the cables. All three of these sources mention changing the cable. I'm thinking I'll buy one just to make sure I have what I need when I get things taken apart.

Info/anecdotes on the screen upgrade to 1600x900 source:
https://www.reddit.com/r/thinkpad/comme ... esolution/
https://forums.lenovo.com/t5/ThinkPad-T ... 649/page/2
http://www.thinkwiki.org/wiki/T420_and_ ... en_Upgrade

[UMPC2024]

Ditto to brchan on the T410 comment. Own one myself and it's not particularly bad, just not as great as what a T420 is.
I got my T410 from bestbuy.com (in the United States), and they sell some older ThinkPads through refurbished sellers. It was pretty much pristine with no keyboard shine, no touchpad wear, and the rubber corners were intact, which may just be luck. Anyways, I figured out that it came from laptopexperience.com, which seems to have some T410 and T420 for decent prices (but the basic ground shipping takes forever and it's coming from Florida).
Good luck!

[crashnburn]

i'd recommend a t420s. While not the best design from a maintainence perspective, they are reasonably light, have a 1600x900 res screen that is tolerable, and there is an IPS mod out there that you could get for about $150 all-in which is well worth it. Good used ones for for about $200-300 depending on condition, specs.

X220 are good, too, but about the same bulk as th t420s with a low-res screen.

T420 don't have an IPS mod available (buggy, interference) while the t420s mod is reliable (though neither are available readily right now)

Here's an example:
http://www.ebay.com/ulk/itm/361428360111

-Dan

Are they that similar in size/ bulk? Is there a comparative pic I can look at? Did someone do / make that on forums?

[crashnburn]

Ditto to brchan on the T410 comment. Own one myself and it's not particularly bad, just not as great as what a T420 is.
I got my T410 from bestbuy.com (in the United States), and they sell some older ThinkPads through refurbished sellers. It was pretty much pristine with no keyboard shine, no touchpad wear, and the rubber corners were intact, which may just be luck. Anyways, I figured out that it came from laptopexperience.com, which seems to have some T410 and T420 for decent prices (but the basic ground shipping takes forever and it's coming from Florida).
Good luck!

Interesting company. They are selling Refurbs with new Win 7 COAs on machines that were not even Win 7 before.

[fatpolomanjr]

For the Frankenpad, you will need:

- 4:3 T61 motherboard with FX570m that is 08/08 or newer. These are very difficult and expensive to find, but you could also use intel motherboards which are common and inexpensive.
- 4:3 15" T60 chassis. There is actually a specific magnesium frame FRU revision that helps prevents the common chassis crack at the vgaPort/leftHinge area, though I can't remember which one.
- UXGA or SXGA+ (preferrably the former) 15" IPS display. These can be expensive to find
- UXGA inverter
- T9300 processor

There are also NOS NVIDIA motherboards you could get from TuuS on these forums. SXGA+ displays can still be found for a reasonable price; UXGA, whether LED or not, are ridiculously hard to source. The other thing you might have a hard time to find is a T60 chassis in good shape. I purchased 4 or 5 T60 laptops on eBay trying to get one without a crack in the magnesium frame, or keyboard bezel, or lid assembly. You name it. In the end I had enough parts to build three frankenpads, two of which I plan to eventually sell (the Intel frankenpad with SXGA+ and the nVidia one with UXGA LED but annoying dust inside the screen).

[brucehe]

Hello,

Here is my long story experience with a T400 with a good ending.

I purchased a T400 a few years ago for my daughter. It had a high res 1440X900 LED backlit screen. I wanted the LED backlit screen for longevity. They are sort of hard to find especially if you are buying one over Ebay but I found a good buyer who gave me the serial number so I could check screen type. This unit had hybrid graphics i.e. discrete and integral graphics. In a year or so the the unit display would go black and not reboot. I was able to use the Lenovo power down sequence including removing the BIOS backup battery to get the unit running again. After quite a bit of troubleshooting and input on the Forum I came to the conclusion the discrete GPU was dead. You can read this post for more info. http://forum.thinkpads.com/viewtopic.ph ... 00#p769378 Anyway I considered replacing the T400 with a T410 or T420 but decided to get it running as a solid machine because it was in good shape and had a very nice display.

I was able to find a new replacement board on Ebay for $20. (NEW 63Y1181 IBM Lenovo ThinkPad T400 Laptop Motherboard Item Id: 131611206725). Decided to not risk the discrete graphics issue again and purchased one with Intel graphics only. My daughter was using this primarily for Quickbooks so the discrete graphics were not really needed.

I installed the board, put in two 4GB RAM sticks for 8GB total and a 256GB Crucial SSD. It ran great. She has been using it for her farm business for 6 months and it is working well, hopefully for several years.

Hope this info helped a bit.

Bruce