Thinkpads Forum

Looking to buy a cheap, fast(ish) Thinkpad off Ebay....will fit it with at least 4GB of RAM maybe 8? and a SSD....so which is the slimmest lightest thinkpad to go for?...

Thanks for any advise!

Welcome to the forum.
Before you start scouting eBay, I recommend that you check our Marketforum first.
At least people here know WHAT they are selling and can answer most, if not all your questions.
On eBay it's usually potluck or less...

As it happens, I have one of the lightest machines for sale here: http://forum.thinkpads.com/viewtopic.php?f=11&t=120384
An X200s can take up to 8GB RAM and can use standard 2.5" HD/SSD.
I also have several other models (such as X301, T420, W510 etc.) depending on your requirements.
PM me if interested.

You will need to consider whether you want a 12/13.3/14 inch screen and what resolution you require. This will probably be more important than CPU or Ram or even thin-ness.

As "RBS" says it is wiser to buy from a forum member.

Goodluck

The X301 would be the lightest with the brightest screen (300 nits), but it isn't very fast. The processor is about just slightly faster than a T2500. Standard web browsing and native 1080p video should be fine, thanks to its GMA4500MHD. You can also get 8gb ram and these units usually come with OK 1.8" SSD drives, which you can easily swap out for an msata SSD with 1.8" adapter. Screen is considered pretty sharp, but ugly, though not as bad as the one in the X300. Build quality and speakers are possibly the best on this model compared to any other Lenovo built machine.

X201s or X201 would still be a solid performer today because of the i5 cpus. X201/X200 (and 's' models IIRC) models can come with a 1440x900 display, though 1280x800 is more common. Solid build and only slightly thicker. This would be my choice if I had to daily it.

Thanks for the advice guys, sorry should have added that I am in the UK so have to buy locally...

Between the X200/X220/X230 is any one model superior to the other?

I thought my friend had one ages back that was very slim, it had no optical bay, nor even an option for one...was that a model X or something else?

On the older X series, you can get a nifty ultrabase that includes an ultrabay.
X200s/X201s are available with a 1440x900 screen (don't know if non-s ever came with them)
and max out at 8GB ram. X220/X230 didn't come with a hi-res display, but
take up to 16GB ram.

Also, the non 's' X201/X200 models are more durable and has slightly better build quality than X220/X230 machines (google X220/X230 lid seperation issue). However, the X220/X230 are available with IPS (albeit 1366x768) screens. X230 has the 6 row chiclet style keyboard that many find to be worse than the classic ones. Lastly, it seems that X220/X230 models are very water resistent.

One more thing: the X200s/X201s with the high res screen did not come
with a webcam. The ones with non-high res offered an integrated webcam
as an option. I guess that there was just more room in the non-high res lid.

The X220 (and probably X230) can also be fitted with an msata drive,
which is handy if you want to have a spinning hard drive in there as
well as an SSD. If you just want an SSD it probably doesn't make much
difference. But, if you're a super power user, with the ultrabase the
X200/X201/X200s/X201s can take 2 drives; the X220/X230 3 drives (including msata.)

brchan wrote:Screen is considered pretty sharp, but ugly, though not as bad as the one in the X300.

The X300 and X301 have the same screen.

600X wrote:The X300 and X301 have the same screen.

People who have had both, seem to say that the X301 screen is not as bad as the X300's:

http://forum.thinkpads.com/viewtopic.php?t=74966

http://forum.thinkpads.com/viewtopic.php?t=68830

That's nice and all, but the LTD133EQ1B was a custom order by lenovo and built by Toshiba. It is a unique panel and used in both the X300 and X301. The fact some might look different from others is nothing new. Every display is unique, and even identical models will never look alike.

Sure, the same panel may vary slightly from one another, but people who have had both the X300 and X301 say there are significant differences between the two, even though they share the same FRU. The PSREF sheet describes the X300 and X301 displays as having 300 nits with 250:1 CR. Reviews of actual X300 models have it around 240 nits and 130:1 CR, quite short of the advertised ratings. This and others' experiences leads me to believe that Toshiba probably improved their QC on later batches to have them closer to the spec sheet.

Anyway, neither are good displays.

tiggercoco wrote:Looking to buy a cheap, fast(ish) Thinkpad off Ebay....will fit it with at least 4GB of RAM maybe 8? and a SSD....so which is the slimmest lightest thinkpad to go for?...

Thanks for any advise!

I'm typing on an x61s which weighs 1000 grams without battery and is as thick as my thumb.

It cost:
+ 44 euro for the machine,
+ 24 euro for the 64gb ssd,
+ 34 euro for led+inverter (display modification > 140 nits to 350 nits)
+ 5 euro for extra ram (4gb total)

I could have gone cheaper without sacrificing performance, as follows:
+ 44 euro for the machine,
+ 10 euro for the 16gb ssd,

If you want the most performance for your money you need to use efficient software (including the OS).

'Fast' can mean a lot of things in computing. Could you describe what about the machine should be fast? On the x61s I can type 80 words per minuet, is that the fast you want? One could watch youtube videos at double speed, is that fast? The machine can download and install the Libre office suite (Libreoffice Calc and Libreoffice Writer) in about a minuet - that fast. My x61s boots in 20 seconds (from power off to browser open) - that fast? Takes 2 seconds to open a spreadsheet. 6 seconds to shutdown.

I use a ThinkPad X230 that has an 11 inch LED screen, 16 GB of memory, 500 GB 7200-rpm hard drive, Windows 10 Pro 64-bit, 4 hour or more battery life, weighs just under 3 pounds, and runs any 3 of the following at once: Always Windows 10, Windows 7, Vista Business, XP Pro, Windows 2000, Windows NT 4, Windows 98 and Windows 95. So I can manage just about any issue that comes my way.

brchan wrote:Sure, the same panel may vary slightly from one another, but people who have had both the X300 and X301 say there are significant differences between the two, even though they share the same FRU. The PSREF sheet describes the X300 and X301 displays as having 300 nits with 250:1 CR. Reviews of actual X300 models have it around 240 nits and 130:1 CR, quite short of the advertised ratings. This and others' experiences leads me to believe that Toshiba probably improved their QC on later batches to have them closer to the spec sheet.

Anyway, neither are good displays.

I have had 3 different X301's so far, and they all had a maximum brightness of about 230 nits and a contrast of about 100:1. When it comes to the X300 and X301, I know my stuff. They both have identical displays. The variance between each of these Toshiba Displays is greater than on other displays I have encountered so far. It is easy to mistake them for different displays. My guess is that these frameless and ultrathin displays were not easy to produce back then, hence the high price (despite being a crappy TN) and the great variance across identical panels. But that's just a guess.

I'm sure Toshiba was able to improve the variance, making displays more equal, but it would never alter anything that a calibration wouldn't iron out anyway.

What I wanted to make clear is that the X300 and X301 have identical displays, and while it is possible that you may get a more refined display in the X301 (which I still doubt and can't be proven), you are not getting a better display.