Thinkpads Forum

I have a Buddy who will be starting a business with his Dad. They will be needing a trust worthy laptop to mount in their trucks.

I told him from what I have been seeing on the forums is that the T6x series has always had many praises. So I am asking if that is what they should be looking for or something else? T4x-T6x-etc...

Budget would be between $300-500 a piece.

TIA for any input...

For in-vehicle use I would stay away from the T4x and R5x machines. The vibrations and temperature fluctuation in that environment won't do their GPUs any good.

Depending on the specs they need you might be able to pick up two T6x/R6x machines for less than $500. The R6x and T6x are quite similar with the R6x being cheaper.

What about these? They are new and half price...

http://outlet.lenovo.com/laptops/thinkpad/2842f7u.html

I have a T60P for sale,

T2500(2GHz),
1GB RAM,
320GB 7200rpm HD,
15in 1400x1050 LCD,
128MB ATI Radeon X1400,
CDRW/DVDRW,
Intel 802.11abg wireless,
Bluetooth/Modem,
1Gb Ethernet,
UltraNav,
Secure chip,
Fingerprint reader,
non OEM 9c battery,
WinXP Pro COA

Hard drive is new, and the screen has a bit of backlight bleed and blemishes. Otherwise it is a older machine so it looks used, but it works really well. Shoot me a PM if you are interested.

MrPeter1985 wrote:What about these? They are new and half price...

http://outlet.lenovo.com/laptops/thinkpad/2842f7u.html

I don't know much about the more recent vintage machines since my ownership level currently ends at the T60. Perhaps someone else with more experience will comment. It might be helpful if you tell us what programs these machines will be running.

For in-vehicle use, forget ThinkPads and get a ToughBook...

My $0.02 only...

1) Avoid the SL series. They're basically just re-styled IdeaPads.

2) Avoid the T6x series with NVIDIA GPUs like the plague, as these *will* fail. (No, I don't mean maybe -- these were from a faulty generation of chips, and the failure rate is spectacularly high.)

3) The T4x series are also prone to GPU failures, albeit of a different sort.

If you decide to go the ThinkPad route, I'd get either a T6x with an integrated GPU or T400/T500-series machine (if you think the lid roll-cage is a useful feature). Either way, I'd *strongly* recommend that you replace the drive with an SSD, as the shocks and vibrations of vehicular use will almost certainly pose a serious challenge for a conventional hard drive.

Actually, I think I'd like to amend that last bit. Consider an SSD to be mandatory.

Look up experiences of people building "carputers." Almost inevitably, those who try using platter-based hard drives in rigidly-mounted computers have them fail within a few weeks of installation. Their advice will probably be useful to you.

I have a T43 w integrated video, so it is not prone to GPU failure. Also, it is still under warranty. These are very sturdy machines.

http://forum.thinkpads.com/viewtopic.php?f=11&t=88699
Mike

ajkula66 wrote:For in-vehicle use, forget ThinkPads and get a ToughBook...

Another vote for ToughBooks. Make sure you get the "fully-rugged" varieties, not the "semi-rugged" or "business-rugged". Thinkpads are equivalent to the business-rugged ToughBooks, which aren't tough enough for your application.

I'm afraid I don't really get why ToughBooks are "necessary" in this case. If the laptops are just going to be mounted in a vehicle (and not taken onto construction sites/harsh environments/etc.) then I think a fully-ruggedized notebook is overkill. You don't need temperature resistance, drop resistance, dust resistance, waterproofing, etc. All you really need is resistance to shock and vibration, and an SSD will give you that.

Perhaps I'm missing something though...

ThinkRob wrote:

I'm afraid I don't really get why ToughBooks are "necessary" in this case. If the laptops are just going to be mounted in a vehicle (and not taken onto construction sites/harsh environments/etc.) then I think a fully-ruggedized notebook is overkill. You don't need temperature resistance, drop resistance, dust resistance, waterproofing, etc. All you really need is resistance to shock and vibration, and an SSD will give you that.

Perhaps I'm missing something though...

You're not missing much...apart from the fact that certain ToughBooks were actually designed for in-vehicle use...NYPD was a huge customer of IBM back in the days, not any more...the same goes for Con Ed, Verizon...and trust you me, these TougBooks that one gets to see in cops' Crown Vics do not have SSDs...although one would imagine they would, given the price tag...

ajkula66 wrote: You're not missing much...apart from the fact that certain ToughBooks were actually designed for in-vehicle use...NYPD was a huge customer of IBM back in the days, not any more...the same goes for Con Ed, Verizon...and trust you me, these TougBooks that one gets to see in cops' Crown Vics do not have SSDs...although one would imagine they would, given the price tag...

Oh, if you're going to go with a mechanical drive, I'd absolutely agree that the only option is a ToughBook. Panasonic has got a great history of being able to throw enough armor and padding around a spinning platter to make it survive some *serious* abuse. I'm just not sure that it's the most cost-effective option if you don't need the rest of the features.

You can get a great-condition T60 with a Core 2 Duo for $300, and a good SSD for about $100. A comparable ToughBook would almost certainly cost you more, and if you don't need its other durability features (cool though they are ), then I don't think it's a better purchase.

If you DO decide to go the Thinkpad way, I have some very nice, sturdy R52 machines with integrated Intel graphics, so no worries about loose GPU there.
See this: http://theboardroom.info/stock.htm
If you are interested and maybe also need accessories, PM me.

ThinkRob wrote:1) Avoid the SL series. They're basically just re-styled IdeaPads.

As well as Edge and X100.