Questions about a used X22 I am looking at

[atx-88]

A friend of a friend is selling a X22 with docking station for a $100.
The only problem is that it has a dead screen that need to be replaced. It is in good shape overall supposedly.

Even though I have an X21 in excellent shape, I am attracted by the X22 because it has internal wifi and greater Ram capacity. My X21 uses a wifi card and only has a 368 MB limit. Is it worth it to get the X22 and then replace the screen or am I better off with my X21 and upgrading the 256 Ram to 368 in terms of bang for the buck? Does the X22 have anything else over the X21 that could make it worthwhile for the upgrade or are they too similar to make much of a difference?

[rkawakami]

An X21 has a memory limit of 384MB. That's assuming you have 128MB mounted on the motherboard, plus a 256MB PC100 module in the single SODIMM slot. If your X21 only has 64MB on board, then the max is 320MB. An X22 maxes out at 640MB (128MB on board and 512MB module) but requires PC133 memory. In terms of "bang for the buck", since 256MB PC100 low density memory goes for almost the same amount of money as 512MB PC133, you'd be better off with the X22. This is quoting typical eBay prices for such modules; YMMV depending on how lucky and patient you are at bidding.

If the X22 system you are being offered requires a completely new panel, as opposed to an inverter or cable, then that will probably run almost the same as your friend of a friend's offer for the system/dock. The "dead screen" could also be a result of a motherboard defect. It's hard to say exactly what the issue is without more information (is there a ghost image on the screen, does it work with an external monitor, was the backlight reddish before it stopped working, etc.).

As far as what the differences are between the X21 and X22, I'd say that these would be the major points:

- 133Mhz front side bus for the X22; 100Mhz for the X21
- ATI Radeon M6 in the X22; Mobilty M in the X21
- maximum memory limits as stated above
- maximum CPU speed 800Mhz for X22; 700 for X21

They are physically similar enough that you can use the same peripherals (media slice or dock, batteries, etc.) so whatever you already have for your X21, you should be able to use with the X22 (most likely, memory excepted).

[atx-88]

Hi Ray,

Thanks for the kind reply and information.

Apparently, the X22 can work with a monitor connected. The screen had lines across the screen but went completey dead after the owner took it to a repairman to have diagnosed.

The whole shot would be about $200 and a bit for the unit with a new screen as you mentioned. Is it worth it? I guess the main attraction to me is the internal wifi. I am tired of the card sticking out of the side of my X21. I am also hoping that the battery consumption would be better with the internal wifi card instead of the PC card. My X21 has a 700MHZ P3 with 256 MB Ram.

[spasticteapot]

Hi Ray,

Thanks for the kind reply and information.

Apparently, the X22 can work with a monitor connected. The screen had lines across the screen but went completey dead after the owner took it to a repairman to have diagnosed.

The whole shot would be about $200 and a bit for the unit with a new screen as you mentioned. Is it worth it? I guess the main attraction to me is the internal wifi. I am tired of the card sticking out of the side of my X21. I am also hoping that the battery consumption would be better with the internal wifi card instead of the PC card. My X21 has a 700MHZ P3 with 256 MB Ram.

For $250-$300, you can get a used X40 on eBay. Go for one with one of the ULV processors (1ghz or 1.2ghz). Chinese remanufactured batteries are REALLY cheap (starting at $25), and battery life is 3+ hours with everything set to "miser mode".

I liked mine so much I'm repairing it, and selling off my X61.

[atx-88]

I have never seen a X40 for $250 on eBay. They go for $500 average from what I can see.[/list]

[rkawakami]

And as a point of reference, I recently got this:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vi ... 0165330701 (IBM THINKPAD X22 PIII M800MHZ,512MB RAM,WIFI AS-IS)

An X22 wireless system (2662-9EU), with full memory but no disk drive and a one-hour battery. All for $130 shipped. It was listed as only 512MB of memory but that's impossible to get when there's already 128MB on board so I figured the seller just looked at what was installed in the bottom SODIMM slot. It seems to be working fine and is destined to be my younger daughter's upgrade from her 600X.

I was not able to find any X40 system that wasn't a parts/repair/as-is (i.e. broken)/distressed unit on eBay that sold in the last 30 days for less than than about $330. Typical prices are in the $400-$450 range. These prices include shipping as in most cases people are not going to be able to find something that they can locally pick up.

[underclocker]

I've owned all the X2x's for long periods of time.

The X22 and X23 are the best one of the series. They are noticeably faster than the X20 or X21 because they had the best Pentium III CPU's - the Pentium IIIm with 512MB cache (versus 256MB cache), plus they do have the faster 133MHz bus.

The X22 ran cool. The X23's and X24's were also fast, but ran much hotter. The X24 got a little too hot, in my opinion. The speed increase, to me, wasn't obvious.

As you noted, the internal wifi model is worth a lot. It wasn't common. It can also be upgraded to a Broadcom G card without any hack required (PM me if you'd like one).

I used an X22 with WinXP and 384MB RAM as my travel machine for 5 years - no issues at all. I upgraded the drive from a 20GB to an 80GB with an 8MB cache -> quiet, cool, fast, quick hibernate; recommended.

I'd definitly take it for $100 and wait unitl a decent LCD assembly came up on eBay. For about $200 total, it's worth it.

Regarding X40's, I have two now. I love them. They are faster than the X2x's and run very cool and long, plus they are 3/4 lb. lighter. However, it's hard to find a decent one in the low 3's, let alone below $300.

[ajkula66]

IMHO, definitely NOT worth the money or effort.

I've sold a basic but complete and working X31 for $180, because of bad backlight a couple of months ago. So, anyone with $280 gets a working X31 from that transaction. I'm sure that most of us will agree that X22 and X31 are worlds apart, and $80 difference is way to small to cover that route.

Not to mention that I haven't had a single inquiry at $150 for a working, non-wireless X22. My mistake for even considering that I could get that much, or anywhere close to it.

Your money, your call. My suggestion: don't do it.

Good luck.

[spasticteapot]

Hmm...

The X21 seems to be severely limited by RAM. Low RAM = much HDD swappage = poor battery life.

How about this one?
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vi ... 0179555741

The HDD caddy should be cheap enough,.

Moderator edit: Shortened URL to prevent horizontal scrolling

[ajkula66]

The auction that spasticteapot has pointed to is quite confusing...because it's really not clear whether the hard drive is included, and, if not, these 1.8" drives tend to be pricey...

[underclocker]

The ad says that that X40 does not have the drive. The bidding is already over $200, no battery is shown in picture (but stated as there in auction, no AC adapter, HDD cover is in picture (but not explicitly stated as present in ad), I'd skip this one.

I do agree with George, that for a little extra, you could wind up with a better machine - of course, this is always true! Where do you stop?

I still think that for $100, I'd take it, assuming it is in good shape and does come with the dock. For all you know, an LCD assembly will come along for $50 to $75. There is a premium for internal wireless on X2x's.

Let us know what happens. Good luck.

[spasticteapot]

The auction that spasticteapot has pointed to is quite confusing...because it's really not clear whether the hard drive is included, and, if not, these 1.8" drives tend to be pricey...

I was thinking that a pair of 4GB CF cards ($25 ea. on eBay) plus an Addonics flash adapter would work well.

[atx-88]

Thanks to everyone for their advice and opinions!

Well, I went ahead and got the X22 for which I paid a total of $80 (sometimes it makes a difference if you ask for "the best price" even when the price is already cheap).

The unit was in pretty nice condition except for the non-functioning screen and the back plastic cover of the LCD which had that typical ratty look after 6 years of wear and tear (hang on to find out how I fixed this problem). The unit came with a 800mhz P3-M, 256MB RAM and a X2 media slice with a floppy and CD-Rom & AC adaptor. I would have paid up to $50 for another AC adaptor and a media slice for my X21 so I regard the X22 as a bonus for an extra $30! The keyboard and palm rest were in excellent condition and very clean overall. The original 20Gb Travelstar hard disk still has the original hidden recovery partition with Win 2000 and runs quiet unlike the original 20Gb HD from my X21 which sounded like a jet waiting to take off. The battery has 125 cycles and looks to have around 2/3rds capacity still remaining.

From the initial info, I thought the LCD was completely non-functioning as in pitch black dead but it actually lit up when the unit powered on even though there was no image at all. It is normal to have a LCD with backlight working but with a non-functioning screen? I've had screens with the exact opposite problem and I believe it is common knowledge that backlights burn out well before LCDs do. The on-board brightness control works and I can adjust the output of the backlight. If anyone knows where I can find a new or used X22 LCD in excellent condition for a reasonable price, please let me know!

As I mentioned, the back cover for the LCD was in typical ratty condition after 5 years of normal use - enough that I paused for a second to consider whether to go ahead with the purchase as it looked bad enough that I would not want to take it on a business trip. It had the typical damage, scratches, dirt and stains found in the rubberized soft touch cases that IBM used for the X-series as well as the 600 series and everything in between and beyond. As you know, wiping with a cloth and water does nothing to this type of damage and build-up.

I happen to play and collect electric guitars and keep a few bottles of plastic polish (made by Novus) to buff out worn guitar finishes so I thought I would give it a try on the X22. After some experimentation, I was able to refresh the cover to a unbelievable condition that looked nearly new. Even the sparkly "sand paper" texture was recovered to a uniform sheen. I was more than pleasantly surprised as I was prepare to fail at the restoration and had even started looking for a used LCD cover on eBay before I started with the polish.

Anyways, the two step process involves using Novus #3 Heavy Scratch remover and Novus #2 Fine Scratch remover. I initially used the #2 only and the results were fine but the spottiness and stains remained (but at least a 50% improvement) so I went to the heavy duty #3 which can easily dull a shiny plastic finish with a few rubs. After buffing a few minutes with the #3, I went back to using the #2 for fine polishing. After washing off the dried residue of the polish with tap water and wiping off, I set the unit aside to dry. The results were, as I mentioned, quite amazing. In fact, it looks better than my X21 which was lightly used and what I thought was a great example of a well preserved X-series unit

A few notes of caution, I think it is quite easy to polish TOO much of the rubberized covering off the plastic if you are not cautious so if you will want to take it easy and slow at first and concentrate on wide, even motions while buffing to avoid "burn" marks. Also, any scratches or gashes that were down to the bare plastic at the beginning will still remain. Hope this helps!