Thinkpads Forum

Hi all, I was recommended by someone over at another forum to come here because I want to buy a 3-4 yr old laptop with the best display. So have I come to the right place?

I don't mind doing a screen swap, so what's the advantage of BOE-Hydis (13N7196) over LG-Philips (13N7078)? Is the BOE hard to find now?

Hydis came as 1600x1200 as opposed to LG's 1400x1050, so if you're OK with the higher resolution, former is the way to go.

There's a seller (also a forum member) from Taiwan offering NOS Hydis panels on eBay...

But the key thing is, what are you going to use the machine for? What OS, additional software, applications...

Do let us know...

I got that display info from this source: http://www.thinkwiki.org/wiki/TFT_display
Looks like Hydis had two different resolutions, but it could be not what the reality had been.

As far as the usage goes, I will install Ubuntu and run Win 7 (32 bit) virtualization. Mainly web browsing and Office Applications in my office, occasionally watching some HD videos on youtube. Is it possible to update the BIOS from ubuntu? And will I run into driver issues in Ubuntu? I don't know if I should do a dual boot or not.

You can update the BIOS from a bootable CD, which is OS independent and the recommended way to do it. Linux will run quite well on a three to four year old Thinkpad.

My experience is that Linux generally doesn't play well with older ATi GPUs, as seen on T4x/R5x and T6x/R6x/Z6x generation. Apart from that you'll be fine.

Yes, there was a Hydis SXGA+ LCD offered on some 15" T60/p units, but I have yet to see one, and I've seen quite a few of these babies...the panel in question is very rare, to say the least...

Given your requirements which are quite modest, any T60/p with an IPS/AFFS screen will do. If you're low on funds, you could likely get away with a higher-end T42/p or T43/p as well.