Thinkpads Forum

Is the T500 a reliable TP? Any GPU (i.e., Intel vs. ATI) or other hardware "points of failure" that I should be aware of? I typically purchase 10+ laptops of the same type for my business/extended family - maintaining these TPs (i.e., reliability) is my overriding concern. TIA. Regards.

We have 3 switchable graphic models with 1680x1050 screens in my small business. Zero problems and they have been reliable performers. They are not small or light, but one of the best ThinkPads I have used to date.

There are only (3) main complaints I have seen about T500's over the last year/s or so. First is the original keyboards flexed quite a bit. I believe that was fixed on later models. Early on, some folks replaced the T500 keyboards with T60 keyboards, and Lenovo did that for a bit as well. The second complaint is CPU noise that seems to effect only 'some' units. The 3rd complaint I see is creaks/noises in plastics, like the palm rest. I owned one, and the only advice I would offer is to get the WSXGA+ or WUXGA LCD. The lower resolution units are not as nice.

I used a T500 for nearly a year as my primary work machine and absolutely loved it. As Harryc pointed out, there are a few nitpicks, but most of them are easily solved.

The CPU whine is relatively minor (you wouldn't hear it in a busy office), and is less likely to bother you the older you are (as it's fairly high frequency.)

The keyboard is easily fixed -- if you even have one of the affected models to begin with, which you might not -- by replacing it with a T60/T61/R60/R61/Z60/Z61 keyboard.

The palmrest creaking is again fairly minor and not guaranteed to occur, but easy to fix if it does. I took a piece of paper, tore off and folded portions of it, and used them to shim the creaky bit of the plamrest. Low tech and not strictly necessary, but it was enough to put my overly-picky mind at ease.

I'd also second the WSXGA+ recommendation. The WSXGA+ screen looks a bit nicer than the WUXGA one (IIRC it has considerably better contrast), so if you don't need the extra pixels I'd go with that.

Really the T500 is a great notebook, and I'd actually go as far as to say that it's one of the better T-series that I've used. The thing was a tank. My only real problem was the weight and general lack of portability -- but if that's not an issue for you, I'd go for it.

I think the T500 was one of the best TPs built in the 15"+ screen format. It was the first 15" T series with a camera option and even the high end 2.8GHz C2D cpus run fairly cool and quiet. I've owned five T500s and all were solid without odd noises.

You can upgrade even the WXGA models straight to WUXGA by only swapping the panel. As noted above, the highest quality LCDs were probably the WSXGA+, but the T500 will take any Lenovo 15.4" LCD, so if you come across a nice Z61p WUXGA LCD, it will work.

They seem to be solid and reliable.

Thanks everyone for the information, tips and recommendations.

i ve used a few Tx00s with switch gpus and T9xxx cpus - indeed there were minor issues with creaking sounds and flexes...
However the cpu overheating was a real issue: the cpu would go to 95 celcius and shut off.
dust or paste were to blame and i d suggest always running TPF control in windows and sensors in linux.

weight i would not consider an issue - a 15 inch mac is heavier and much more expensive

Mine's been a great system in the eight months I've used it. The 1680x1050 display has been the sweet spot for me and I like the expandability(Ultrabay, PC-Card as well as ExpressCard, and integrated memory card reader). Compared to my X200 it is a bit bulky to cart around but it's not really a dealbreaker. Performance is decent and having the switchable GPU has been a real plus whenever I've wanted to game. It's not a dedicated gaming rig but it has enough punch to run most newer titles out there. The integrated DisplayPort makes it fairly easy to connect to a wide variety of displays(I also use it to connect to my HDTV) and it's been overall a great system.

The durability is pretty good, too. I had a major drop happen(nearly 8 feet ) when I was at work... it was on a high shelf above a desk and it smacked into the desk on the way to the floor. The T500 had minor screen damage(a few dead pixels in one area) and a broken latch. I eventually had to replace the display but the machine itself worked perfectly and is still working well to this day(I'm typing this post on it, in fact).

The only real problems that i encountered with T500 are:

1. USB ports breaking off, which occurred in several early build T500, later one were okay.

2. Switchable graphics's ATI GPU have a higher frequency of failure with a crack in the solder connection, which maybe fixed by a reflow or applying physical pressure on the ATI GPU.

I have sold my switchable graphics model T500 and got a late build integrated model T500 instead to avoid these problems.

Hi does anyone know the standard rpms on T500 cpu fan?