Should I buy another T43?

[Cowbrow]

Hi everyone this is my first post, so hello to everyone

Until yesterday I had a T43 that i used everyday for facebook, youtube and general internet tasks. Unfortuantly my son dropped it down the stairs and even though it looks ok it won't turn on.

My questions is should I buy another T43? I loved it and my wife has a new sony and I just don't get on with it the same as my trusted T43

I've been looking on ebay and google and i've found a few options around £150

£159.00 - http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/IBM-T43-Thinkpad- ... 588d09465c

£149.99 - http://www.happylaptops.co.uk/15-ibm-th ... aptop.html

Both seem to offer 3 months warranty and are from what I can see the same spec. Just unsure if I should bite the bullet and upgrade or stick with what I know and love..

Thanks in advance guys

Neil

[Neil]

Hi Neil, welcome to the forum!

I can't really answer your question, that's something you will have to figure out for yourself, but the prices in your links seem rather high to me for a basic T43. I would have to be looking at a 15" Flexview T43p before I would consider paying that much!

If I have any advice it would be to upgrade to at least a T60 so you can have the Core2Duo CPU, ability to add a little more RAM if needed and native SATA hard drives. If you carefully shop around you should be able to find a nice T60 for even less than the T43's you are looking at, IMHO. Of course, I don't have any idea how the prices are across the pond, I'm basing that on what I've seen (and paid) lately here in the states.

[rumbero]

My questions is should I buy another T43? I loved it and my wife has a new sony and I just don't get on with it the same as my trusted T43

Hi Cowbrow, welcome on board!

Nowadays, i really wouldn't want to bother anymore with a slightly outdated T43, unless being a collector (which i am not). Unless you are a die hard Thinkpad aficinado, the T43 can be considered obsolete by today's standards.

If you are looking for reliability and the standard Thinkpad feel you got used to with the T43, i'd rather suggest to aquire a decent T60. They are a big improvement over one of the most annoying weaknesses of the T43, successfully eliminating the danger of flexing by the introduction of a roll cage. Furthermore, it supports and uses standard SATA hard disks out of the box, effectively enabling the use of almost any aftermarket SATA hard disk with decent storage volumes.

[Cowbrow]

Thanks for the quick replies guys! I did think it was a little old to replace like for like but overall it's been a bloody good laptop!

I'll look at the T60s in the morning when i'm more awake

Neil

[ZaZ]

I think there's a couple T60s for sale in our marketplace forum. I'd agree the T60 is a better machine than the T43 in most regards.

[mbarker]

I think there's a couple T60s for sale in our marketplace forum. I'd agree the T60 is a better machine than the T43 in most regards.

Yup, agreed. I recently picked up a 14" T60 on the marketplace for around $200. The display on it is perhaps less than perfect, but it is SXGA+ and otherwise a nice little TP. Similar machines on eBay for under $200......14" T60p for not much more. Not sure what the market is like in the UK, but if you can find one at the right price it is definitely a significant upgrade from T4x.....

[Cowbrow]

I've had a quick look into the T60s and they do seem a lot better than the T43s. Only downside is in the UK they are more like $300 than $200.

One thing I wanted to ask is 2Gb of RAM enough or should I go for 4Gb?

Thanks for all the help

Neil

[Neil]

One thing I wanted to ask is 2Gb of RAM enough or should I go for 4Gb?

Enough for what?

[Cowbrow]

Good point, Just general internet use, emails, photos. Nothing RAM or CPU intensive.

Probably stick with XP for now and upgrade to 7 when I have some free time (doing the house up ATM)

[KRAZY KEV]

http://www.grabalaptop.com/

[KRAZY KEV]

FIRST THING I MUST POINT OUT TO YOU IS THAT THE T43 ONLY SUPPORTS 2GB RAM AND NOT 4GB AS STATED ON ONE OF THE SITES. THE T43 ALSO HAS GIGABIT NIC AND A 64MB VIDEO CHIP

Hi everyone this is my first post, so hello to everyone

Until yesterday I had a T43 that i used everyday for facebook, youtube and general internet tasks. Unfortuantly my son dropped it down the stairs and even though it looks ok it won't turn on.

My questions is should I buy another T43? I loved it and my wife has a new sony and I just don't get on with it the same as my trusted T43

I've been looking on ebay and google and i've found a few options around £150

£159.00 - http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/IBM-T43-Thinkpad- ... 588d09465c

£149.99 - http://www.happylaptops.co.uk/15-ibm-th ... aptop.html

Both seem to offer 3 months warranty and are from what I can see the same spec. Just unsure if I should bite the bullet and upgrade or stick with what I know and love..

Thanks in advance guys

Neil

[Cowbrow]

Thanks for the reply Kev but i'm not really interested in a T43 anymore.

Just waiting on an answer about my RAM question

[Neil]

2GB is plenty for XP and the kind of usage your talking about. More than enough IMHO, I run my everyday computer on 1.25GB, and performance is just fine, others would probably tell you otherwise. And, as was mentioned, 2GB is max for the T43, and while 4GB could be installed in a T60, only about 3GB would be usable because of the chip set limitation.

[Cowbrow]

2GB is plenty for XP and the kind of usage your talking about. More than enough IMHO, I run my everyday computer on 1.25GB, and performance is just fine, others would probably tell you otherwise. And, as was mentioned, 2GB is max for the T43, and while 4GB could be installed in a T60, only about 3GB would be usable because of the chip set limitation.

Cheers for the reply Neil, I thought 2Gb would be enough. I think the 3Gb limit is because of using 32bit software and not the chipset but I might be wrong

[Cowbrow]

I've found a few i'm interested in

This one on ebay - http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll? ... 0731564408

Has 3gb of ram and a larger hard drive than most but a shorter warranty than the one from happy laptops

And this one - http://www.happylaptops.co.uk/refurbish ... b-ram.html

I like having 6 months warranty and the hard drive is more than enough for me. I think i'm going to order this and then I can sell my broken T43 on ebay.

Neil

[Neil]

Looks like a nice choice. Just a shame the price you are having to pay, though. There is certainly value in getting a warranty, but...I usually don't. I guess it's because I would just do my own repairs, if needed. Anyway, those T60 with Intel graphics seem to be solid performers and quite durable. Cool running as well! Keep us posted!

[Cowbrow]

Looks like a nice choice. Just a shame the price you are having to pay, though. There is certainly value in getting a warranty, but...I usually don't. I guess it's because I would just do my own repairs, if needed. Anyway, those T60 with Intel graphics seem to be solid performers and quite durable. Cool running as well! Keep us posted!

One of the downsides of living in the UK, everything is more expensive than the US.

I'm going to order the one from happy laptops, I'll give them a call in the morning and see what they have to say about delivery and on so.. I'll keep you posted on it arriving, the condition and my thoughts.

Thanks for all your help

Neil

[mbarker]

I'm going to order the one from happy laptops, I'll give them a call in the morning and see what they have to say about delivery and on so.. I'll keep you posted on it arriving, the condition and my thoughts.

Thanks for all your help

Neil

Keep in mind that its display is only 1024x768. Perhaps this is what your T43 had and you are ok with that- if so, then fine. However, be aware that the T60 is available in different configurations with much higher resolutions.

Also, on the memory question- my T60 only has 1.5GB of ram. It seems perfectly fine for general use, running Windows 7.

[Cowbrow]

I'm more than happy with the lower resolution screen. My eyes aren't what they used to be so a low resolution screen suits me.

I called happy laptops this morning and spoke to someone who answered all my questions regarding warranty, condition and the battery life.

I placed the order over the phone and it should be with me tomorrow. I'm all excited now

[KRAZY KEV]

win 7 should be fine if you fit 2gb of ram. i run the w7 compatability test on my t43 and what problems were shown were nothing of importance. dont forget you will need the 32bit version. to get maximum performance turn off the aero desktop and all the other crap like the themes

Good point, Just general internet use, emails, photos. Nothing RAM or CPU intensive.

Probably stick with XP for now and upgrade to 7 when I have some free time (doing the house up ATM)

[KRAZY KEV]

it is not so much the chipset that limits the amount of ram but the version of windows you are using. if you are using a 32bit operating system such as xp, vista or 7 even though you can fit 4gb windows will only see 3gb of it. to see the full 4gb you will need a 64 bit operating system. the exception to the rule is certain 32bit server operating systems such as 2003 server enterprise edition

2GB is plenty for XP and the kind of usage your talking about. More than enough IMHO, I run my everyday computer on 1.25GB, and performance is just fine, others would probably tell you otherwise. And, as was mentioned, 2GB is max for the T43, and while 4GB could be installed in a T60, only about 3GB would be usable because of the chip set limitation.

[lukee]

it is not so much the chipset that limits the amount of ram but the version of windows you are using. if you are using a 32bit operating system such as xp, vista or 7 even though you can fit 4gb windows will only see 3gb of it. to see the full 4gb you will need a 64 bit operating system. the exception to the rule is certain 32bit server operating systems such as 2003 server enterprise edition

Hi Kev, Neil is right. In case of T60 it is really chipset limitation, not of OS. If you have T60 with 64bit Core2Duo CPU, loaded with 4 GB of RAM and with an 64bit OS, you will only see 3GB of RAM in the system.

[Cowbrow]

My T60 arrived as promised, very happy with it.

I'll take some pics and do a mini review this weekend.

Thanks for the advice again guys

[Temetka]

Just to clarify:

Yes it is the chipset is ultimately responsible for the amount of RAM a system can address.

The chipset in combination with a 64-bit CPU does not necessarily mean that a system can address above 4GB of RAM even if a 64-Bit OS has been loaded on a system.

Period.

[Cowbrow]

I'm stuggling to find the time to do the mini review I promised but i'm using my T60 to write this post and it's excellent. Battery is lasting around 2.5 - 3 hours as well I was promised an hour but nearly 3 is amazing. Very happy