Thinkpads Forum

Brand new here because I just got my hands on an X60t. Any idea how fast of a processor these machines can realistically handle or that the bios will allow? This one is the 1.6 Ghz Core Duo variety. The chipset should support a Core 2 Duo I think. I've done some research and it seems that I should be able to go to a core 2 duo T5600 1.83 Ghz without introducing much more heat into the system and not greatly reducing the battery life. I will be using it for CPU intensive audio work but at that time it will most likely have A/C power for those applications. I figure I can ramp down the CPU for normal travel/battery use if I get a more energy intensive CPU. I have looked to see if the faster core duos i.e. T3400 and T3600 would work without overheating the system but haven't found any info on that. Fast Core 2 Duos would be even better. Maybe a 2.0 Ghz Core 2. Anybody have any good answers or insight? most of these processors can be found on ebay for under $10 so I suppose I could just try them all but if something is known not to work I'd sure appreciate any input from users on this forum.

Thanks,
Rich

You should know the X60t CPUs are soldered to the board. You'll need to swap the board to upgrade the CPU, unless you want to do the solder work yourself. The fastest CPU you could do is the L7700, which I think is from a X61t, but should fit a X60t, though I have no firsthand knowledge.

Wow... well that solves that question. Can you put x61t Mobos into the x60 chassis?

Honestly, I can't tell you cause I don't know. I think I saw somewhere the X60 boards can go into the X61, but not the other way around and the tablets may be different too. Perhaps someone smarter than I can post. From a cost and aggravation standpoint you might be better off selling your X60t and getting a X61t if you want the better processing performance or the extra memory the X61t allows. Even if the swap works, the cost of the board is likely more than the difference you'll pay to sell your X60t and get a X61t. Good Luck.

The biggest reasons to switch from X60t to X61t are the 3GB RAM limitation and the 64-bit processor capability. Those aside, the two are not very different, and a given Core processor isn't really much less capable than its clock-speed equivalent Core 2. On top of that, the Intel X3100 graphics chipset in the X61t is pretty weak - might even be a downgrade from the GMA950 - and the '61 tends to run hotter.

The upshot? Unless you're looking for 64-bit capability, I'd stick with the X60t guts.

X61T board will fit X60T body without big problems... even X61/X61s will, but it won't work with tablet screen offcourse.

j-dawg wrote:On top of that, the Intel X3100 graphics chipset in the X61t is pretty weak - might even be a downgrade from the GMA950

While the rest is pretty accurate, this I cannot agree with. The X3100 is noticeably stronger than the GMA950.

If you want to upgrade your machine, get an SSD for it. That will be a difference you can notice!

dr_st wrote:While the rest is pretty accurate, this I cannot agree with. The X3100 is noticeably stronger than the GMA950.

I stand corrected. All I remember is being [censored] disappointed with the X3100 - I assumed the GMA950 couldn't be any worse...

I had experience with replacing x60t motherboard with x61t. It fits almost perfect despite two connectors (speaker and pen detect switch as far as remember) are somehow different, one has different direction and other required to use a knife to make it fit. Nothing serious, a couple of minutes work.
I did this mod mostly to get second mPCI slot, I bought the board rather cheap on ebay.
I can say that there is no serious performance difference with x60t and x61t is much hotter and louder without additional tweaking.