Thinkpads Forum

Is this a good deal:

http://cgi.ebay.ca/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vie ... 0132760610

Feedback for the seller seems stellar.

(There are 4 other units available from this seller under separate listings.)

Belated moderator edit: Shortened URL to prevent scrolling

I personally don't think it's a bad deal-if all of them look as nice as the one in the picture. The fact it is SXGA+ definitely helps the value, although shipping is a bit on the high side. Better deals can be found if you keep shopping, but if you need one now I think you could do worse than this.

I have been looking for SXGA+ T4*'s as well in the last few days, and this is one of the better deals.

OK, thanks guys. I just bought one Hopefully Canadian customs won't hold it up too long.

Hey, Robert, I just looked at the photos more closely. Based on the spacing of the icons, the unit shown in these photos has XGA resolution, not SXGA+. While the photos may not be showing the actual item, or the display may have been set at a non-native resolution, you may still want to ask the seller to confirm that it really is 1400x1050 before they ship it. It would cost you so much money and effort to ship it back if the unit turns out to have an XGA display.

It might be set to larger fonts and DPI. Or as you said not an actual photo.

What's the model # ? (7 alphanumeric number on bottom of machine). Ask and then search it on lenovo.com to find the specs for yourself. Ebay listings for notebooks often have major errors. I'm not saying they're crooks, they just don't know much as they just buy & sell.

robert alcantara wrote:Hopefully Canadian customs won't hold it up too long.

Good luck with that... you factored in about another $100 or so, right?

SkiBunny wrote:

robert alcantara wrote:Hopefully Canadian customs won't hold it up too long.

Good luck with that... you factored in about another $100 or so, right?

Whats the extra 100 for ??

wearetheborg wrote:

SkiBunny wrote: Good luck with that... you factored in about another $100 or so, right?

Whats the extra 100 for ??

Anything shipped into canada over $20 is subject to provincial tax, GST tax, customs fee, and duty (no duty if it was manufactured in the U.S. or Mexico). The exemption is $60 if it's a gift.

Likewise, anything over $200 shipped into the US is subject to tax and duty (unless it was made in Canada, Mexico or soon South Korea)

The price of Hyundai and Kia cars should drop significantly when the Korean Free Trade takes affect. So should all those Samsung and LG products, etc. Perhaps the era of the sub-$1000 60-inch HDTV is near! Also ViewSat and SonicView... free-to-air TV will become even more free, LOL.

It's not being shipped via UPS so I won't be totally raped.

Via USPS, I figure:

$5.00 customs fee (standard)
$67.90 (6% GST and 8% PST on $485 CAD), no tax on shipping

$72.90 CAD extra

still makes a great deal

and I'm hoping that Customs let's it through, but above is the worst case scenario.

Yep UPS is bad.

If it says "Assembled (or made) in Mexico" like some of the early T40's were, you're done. Otherwise... there's duty added.
At least for new things, I dont know whether there is duty on used items?

But ... they can and do "assess" the value themselves (based on gawd-knows what). If customs somehow decides it's worth $2000, then the tax is assessed accordingly, notwithstanding the accompanying receipt or declaration.
That happened to me once so I never did it again, although I dont think that happens a lot, so best of luck!

I bought a GPS from the US before, and Customs over-assessed its value to charge me more tax. I paid it to get the item, but there is a form I filled out to request a partial refund. I provided my invoice which showed the actual value versus their assessed value, and eventually got my partial refund.

It looks like all of these have been sold!

The T41 I bought is from this exact guy! Except I got it at the US eBay.

He ships fast, and the T41s are definitely in "like new" condition. All I had to do was take off a barcode sticker on the lid and it's flawless.

However, the battery isn't warranted and in my case it does not last long enough.

He has 200 or so of these models, so I'm sure you can request he put more on ebay.ca

I received my unit about a week ago. It is a good one functionally, BUT:

- 1 or more adjacent stuck green pixels in bottom centre

- multiple marks on screen (keyboard marks/scratches?)

- significant 1" x .3" mark in top centre

I checked feedback of others who got the other units, and all of them had flawless ones! Leave it to me, the only bidder from Canada, to get a unit with issues!

I sent it back and the seller will try to repair or replace the unit for me.

In the meantime, I got a brand new Acer (!) 3050, upgraded to 1 GB. It's a decent machine, with a gorgeous WXGA glossy wide screen, good keyboard, and better battery life than the used T40 one (with 50% capacity).

Of course, I immediately nuked Windows Vista Home, and installed XP SP2.

Downsides: not as small as the T41, not as durable, not as many accessories/mods available, lower resolution (1280 x 800), no built-in blue-tooth (solved with a dongle)

Upsides: built-in DVD writer, can upgrade CPU to AMD Turion X2 TL-5x (saw a TL-50 for around $40 on e-bay + $14 shipping), light as T41, widescreen, high contrast

I have 14 days to play with it, and may keep it, in which case I would request refund from e-bay seller.

What would you do in my shoes?

Your also forgeting warranty on the acer.
If you are satisfied with it, keep it, and request a refund from the ebay seller.
It seems you really like the new screen

The T41 I got from the same guy had an apparent dead/stuck pixel in the same location, but it only appeared the first day. It has since then retreated.

Sorry to hear you didn't have good luck. Enjoy the Acer (and maybe a better condition T41!)