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T61p vs T500 Changes

T400/T410/T420 and T500/T510/T520 Series
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sdfox7
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T61p vs T500 Changes

#1 Post by sdfox7 » Tue Jan 22, 2019 9:30 pm

Hi everyone, I have the opportunity to pick up a local T500 tomorrow morning. I told the seller I would call him around 8am.

As I already own a T61p, I notice that the T500 seems physically similar. However, I also read on NotebookReview that the new keyboard in the T500 has a weaker backplate. The review for it was less than flattering (Lenovo T500 ThinkPad Review)

The T500 I am interested in has the following specs:

Intel Core Duo2 T9400 2.53GHz
4GB of RAM
Hard drive - 160GB
DVD R/W
Comes with power adapter ,
Battery does hold a charge for 10-15min

Is it worth buying since I already own the T61p, and is it worth the $50 the seller is asking?
ThinkPad 600E (Win98); T23 (WinNT 4.0); T41 (Win2000); T61p (WinXP)
My name is Stephen Fox. I am a '18 BBA and '20 MBA student at WCSU.
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TPFanatic
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Re: T61p vs T500 Changes

#2 Post by TPFanatic » Tue Jan 22, 2019 10:54 pm

Some T500 have the same keyboard as the T61p with the solid backplate. Others, indeed, have the new lightweight perforated version. Later models compensate for it with a modified support structure.

Aside from marginally faster CPU and RAM, and the fact that DDR3 is cheaper to max out at 8GB, T500 does also have an onboard Displayport. If you are happy with your T61p I doubt you will get much out of a T500, it is as you say a very similar laptop. Only if you want a second similar laptop, should you get it.

sdfox7
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Re: T61p vs T500 Changes

#3 Post by sdfox7 » Tue Jan 22, 2019 11:37 pm

TPFanatic wrote:
Tue Jan 22, 2019 10:54 pm
Some T500 have the same keyboard as the T61p with the solid backplate. Others, indeed, have the new lightweight perforated version. Later models compensate for it with a modified support structure.

Aside from marginally faster CPU and RAM, and the fact that DDR3 is cheaper to max out at 8GB, T500 does also have an onboard Displayport. If you are happy with your T61p I doubt you will get much out of a T500, it is as you say a very similar laptop. Only if you want a second similar laptop, should you get it.
Thank you for the feedback. I was kind of leaning against buying another laptop so close to my T61p which I am thrilled with. Even though I was aware that the CPU is slightly faster and DDR3 would be cheaper.
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Screamer
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Re: T61p vs T500 Changes

#4 Post by Screamer » Wed Jan 23, 2019 4:17 am

sdfox7 wrote:
Tue Jan 22, 2019 9:30 pm
Is it worth buying since I already own the T61p, and is it worth the $50 the seller is asking?
I don't think so, at least in my opinion.

Are you aware of the T500's USB ports' plastic tabs that may snap off at any given time? This was a rather well-known problem that occurred on the R400, R500, T400, T500 and the W500.

There is also this particular problem that affects the W500 and the T500's magnesium frame located inside the lid, which could (under normal conditions) form hair-line cracks to full blown fault-line cracks.

Other than that, you would be looking at a small increase in terms of memory bandwidth for the processor. I would not be so optimistic about that increase though, unless you are running applications that demand a lot of memory bandwidth.

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Re: T61p vs T500 Changes

#5 Post by wujstefan » Wed Jan 23, 2019 6:52 am

Not to mention T61p just sports a better WUXGA screen.
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sdfox7
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Re: T61p vs T500 Changes

#6 Post by sdfox7 » Wed Jan 23, 2019 4:24 pm

Thanks everyone. I think I was interested because I didn't realize at first that that T500 is actually just the 15" version of the T400.

Lenovo's numbering scheme to reflect the screen size is odd to say the least. The T5x is for the 15" while the T4x is for the 14". However, someone who doesn't know anything about computers might think that a "T500" is better than a "T480"! They're "only" 10 years apart! :lol:
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Re: T61p vs T500 Changes

#7 Post by dr_st » Thu Jan 24, 2019 3:45 am

Seems pretty standard numbering schemes to me. Almost every laptop manufacturer has something similar - the letters typically distinguish the series, then you have some digits specifying screen size, and some other digits specifying generations.

Certainly bound to cause less confusion than 14" and 15" systems under the same name (T4x/T6x) or multiple series with different numbers and the same generation hardware - T4x/R5x/X3x/X4x/Z6x.
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sdfox7
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Re: T61p vs T500 Changes

#8 Post by sdfox7 » Thu Jan 31, 2019 3:28 pm

It looks like I'll be adding a T500 to my collection after all. One became available locally, and it has the T9600 processor. The seller works for IBM and is only asking $40, needs OS installed. Original owner, at that price it seems like a bargain to me. I'm picking it up tomorrow at 11am.

"Lenovo ThinkPad T500. T9600 Core 2 Duo and 4GB DDR3 RAM. Includes HDD (wiped clean), no OS, AC Adapter, DVD Multi Recorder CD-RW, Lithium Ion Battery, Notebook Sleeve 15" Black/Red and ThinkPad Service and Troubleshooting Guide and Safety and Warranty Guide. Please review pictures as they are part of the description and show overall condition and features."

Seller sent me pictures, I've uploaded them here: http://sdfox7.com/ibm/t500/
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Re: T61p vs T500 Changes

#9 Post by Thinkpad4by3 » Thu Jan 31, 2019 6:06 pm

sdfox7 wrote:
Thu Jan 31, 2019 3:28 pm
It looks like I'll be adding a T500 to my collection after all. One became available locally, and it has the T9600 processor. The seller works for IBM and is only asking $40, needs OS installed. Original owner, at that price it seems like a bargain to me. I'm picking it up tomorrow at 11am.

"Lenovo ThinkPad T500. T9600 Core 2 Duo and 4GB DDR3 RAM. Includes HDD (wiped clean), no OS, AC Adapter, DVD Multi Recorder CD-RW, Lithium Ion Battery, Notebook Sleeve 15" Black/Red and ThinkPad Service and Troubleshooting Guide and Safety and Warranty Guide. Please review pictures as they are part of the description and show overall condition and features."

Seller sent me pictures, I've uploaded them here: http://sdfox7.com/ibm/t500/
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MikalE
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Re: T61p vs T500 Changes

#10 Post by MikalE » Thu Jan 31, 2019 8:34 pm

Looks very good. I'm typing this on my T9600 T500. Too bad about no FPR.

Mine has a 250 GB SSD and 8GB of RAM. Very nice machine. Yours sounds very nice too with that processor.
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sebileis
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Re: T61p vs T500 Changes

#11 Post by sebileis » Wed Mar 20, 2019 6:06 pm

MikalE wrote:
Thu Jan 31, 2019 8:34 pm
Looks very good. I'm typing this on my T9600 T500. Too bad about no FPR.

Mine has a 250 GB SSD and 8GB of RAM. Very nice machine. Yours sounds very nice too with that processor.
Thankfully you can easily buy a palmrest with the fingerprint reader and swap it out with the original with just 4 screws.
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