New Owner of a T42p- What should I expect?

[graya25]

Hello everyone,
I ordered a T42p on Thursday for a great deal ($400). These are the specifications I know of right now:

IBM T42P laptop Pentium M 2.10 GHZ processor.

80 GB HD

2 GB of Ram

Internal Wireless

DVD\CD-RW Drive

9 Cell System Battery

Windows XP Professional

All Windows updates

Blue Tooth

AC adaper included

I assume that since this is a T42p, it also includes the ATi FireGL T2 card w/ 128MB VRAM, which seemed to be the standard card for T41p and T42p. I just have a few questions about it's possible performance:

Will it run Vista well (glass, aero)? Which version will work best?

Will it be able to play Youtube or any other flash video well, without freezing while playing them (like this horrible Inspiron 1150 does)?

Compared to a T43 or an early T60, how would this machine stack up?

Thanks.

[ajkula66]

Well, if we knew the 7-character model number (237?-???) we would be more likely to be able to properly evaluate the machine, but here are the basics:

When introduced T42p was the highest-end IBM ThinkPad model. Performance is still considered to be quite a serious one. Your 2.1 CPU was the fastest one available, but be forewarned that it might get quite hot.

I wasn't pleased with Vista on T42p, but many people are. The only way you'll know is to test it out yourself.

Like most of the T4x series, these machines are prone to the infamous GPU failure that has been well documented on this forum. Never carry your machine with one hand and lid open, and extend the warranty if that option is still available.

T43 is noisier, but faster than T42/p and also loaded with some other issues (2010 error etc.), a lot has been written on this forum regarding this comparison, you may want to use the "search" function to find out more. T60 is a better built machine than any T4x, but a lot uglier IMHO.

Hope this helps. Enjoy your new ThinkPad.

[RobbieThe1st]

Personally, I wouldn't upgrade to Vista, even if it worked decently - You would be experiencing a definite reduction in effective speed when compared to windows XP(Heck, if you don't mind the old theme, 2000 is even better speed wise).

Flash video wise, I have a T40, which is older and slower, and it has no trouble running Youtube flash video. I have had no trouble running 3d stuff constantly, and it will run Simcity 4 perfectly well with decent settings(gets a bit laggy on high settings however).

I have been using my laptop recently at school, and have had no real issues, aside from a few problems with the 'IBM access connections' software - It won't really connect to wireless with it on. If I turn it off, or have windows take over and connect, it works fine.

Other than that, no real issues. I used it for *everything* for over two years, and it performed admirably.

Hope that helps!


-RobbieThe1st

[underclocker]

New Owner of a T42p- What should I expect?

Expect respect!

Welcome to the forum. You nabbed a top of the line T42p, which many consider a fine achievement by IBM/Lenovo.

It'll perform quite well. Vista would be quite snappy. Enjoy it.

[graya25]

Thanks everyone! This deal seems to be getting even better. I messaged the seller today, and he stated that this T42p also comes with a fingerprint reader and a DVD-RW drive. He did not know the model number however. That means I've narrowed down the model number to either:

2373-Q1U
2373-Q4U

Both are pretty much the same machine except one was released in Oct. 2004 with the Thinkpad wireless 11a/b/g II. The other was released in Jan. 2005 with an Intel 11a/b/g wireless card.

I also know that it has a 15" screen, meaning it has a Flexview!

This thing is LOADED! I still can't believe I got away with paying only $400 for this incredible deal. Granted a T60 would have been nice (I needed at least $650 for a T60, I'm not in the position to be splurging that much), but a base T43 goes for more than I got this T42p for. It shipped out today, I'll let you know how it is later.

I am basing my information about the model code off of an official Lenovo document I found in an earlier thread on the T4x series.

[Johan]

For your information, if you see the thread T4X specs you will there find links to specifications on the different e.g. T42p's introduced on the US marked; see the ltwbook (officially entitled: "Personal Systems Reference, Lenovo ThinkPad Notebooks, 2005 to present - withdrawn (March 2008 - Version 337)"). There you will see (on p. 64) that your coming T42p could also be a 2373-Q2U (later fitted with a DVD-RW). There are other derivates, such as 2373-C96, which has been offered for quite a while from IBM Used Laptops, Refurbished Notebooks Certified by IBM.

Sure sounds like a bargin you have found, provided of course that your new T42p is in OK shape. I suggest you test your new ThinkPad thoroughly when it arrives. Also, check its warranty status on the IBM Warranty Lookup page - if you are lucky, it may have a bit remaining, which can be extened for two years for around $150.

Welcome to a newborn T42p-fellow!!

Johan