A31P :: 2654-Y13, IBM web specs conflicting!

[insanity]

Hello all,

I've been using Thinkpads for many years, and I'm looking at an eBay A31P, but the IBM site and the tech manual give conflicting sets of information. The model/type are "2654-Y13", which the seller claims is an A31P, but entering this on IBM's site reveals that this was apparently a custom-ordered A31 standard ("Based on 2654-CTO"), yet this machine appears to have the distinguishing svid-in and firewire (unable to determine presence of the ultraport or not). The UXGA screen matches the "P" variant, and is confirmed by the IBM site, but I'm also not sure if this thing has the FireGL 6800 chipset or the inferior 7500 32MB (The seller is also unsure). Also, the tech manual states that the "2654" variant of the A31P does not come with the 60GB drive, which this machine shipped with.

This is quite confusing. Does anyone have a similar machine, or know for certain whether this machine has the FireGL card or not? I really would like to grab this one, since the price is reasonable ($600) for the specs (1.8, 1gb, 60gb, Combo, UXGA). eBay link: Item 6872446681

Thanks for any replies. The auction expires in a couple of days. Sorry for the long post as well... :S

~Andrew

[BillMorrow]

if the display is a 15inch (which the pic seems to show) AND it is 1200x1600 then it is some sort of A31p..
but the model/type number is strange..
all USA thinkpads end with a U.. thus NNNN-AAU where N=numeric and A = alphanumeric..
the "U" indicates a USA model..
a "J" would indicate a japanese model..

have you tried to look it up on the ibm/lenovo web site...?

FWIW, there were a bunch of thinkpads with 1050x1400 - 15 inch displays that were on ebay for a while and all were called A31p's..

which they were not..

[daeojkim]

Hi insanity,

Welcome to the forum.

Just by looking at the photos that screen it definitely does not seem to be a UXGA resolution. The icon is too big and the task bar is too big for UXGA. Of unless the seller changed DPI settings to make icons look bigger, but I don't think he even knows how to do this since he can't even tell you which videocard it has.

Check this thread comparing 15" T42 and X40. Pay close attentin to the 7th picture.

http://forum.thinkpads.com/viewtopic.php?t=8288

Check out the 15" T42 (it is either UXGA or SXGA+) on this picture and look at the size of icons and taskbar.
Also look at the 7th picture where 15" T42 and X40 that are side by side. In X40 screen (XGA) and the relative size of icon and taskbar is in par with what is shown in seller's picture, which I would conclude that the seller's screen is XGA and not UXGA.

I would safely say that the computer you are referring to is XGA with 32MB 7500 card.

It seems like the seller just put the model number on the IBM website and copied the specification information. If the seller cannot tell you which videocard the computer has then I would avoid it.

[insanity]

Interesting angles, thanks for the information!

I've looked up the type/model HERE, and it looks like it shipped with the UXGA screen, which is odd. I agree with daeojkim, it's definitely not set to UXGA in the photos; it looks a lot like XGA. I'm also looking at the back of the machine though, and noticing that the s-video input port is present, which was only added to the "P" models (the A31 standard had a plastic cover over where the port should be). The right view also shows firewire, near the back, which reinforces the supposition that its a "P". Thus, by deduction, it should be a "P" model, and since A31Ps only shipped with UXGA, and since only the UXGA screens got the FireGL card, it must have the FireGL card (all this info is from the service manual and the detailed spec list HERE). There are a lot of generalizations made in the above logic, however, and the service manual disagrees in places (it states on page 46 that only the 2653s shipped with the 60GB drive, and that only the 2653s had UXGA).

To clarify this once and for all, I've mailed the seller and asked them to confirm that the photos are of the actual item, that the screen is UXGA, and I've asked them to msinfo32 the graphics adapter and let me know how much VRAM this thing has. That would give us enough information to tell definitively (32 vs 64MB).

Thanks for the help!

~Andrew

[daeojkim]

insanity,

Is there are specific reason that you are looking at this specific A31p? I searched A31p on ebay and there are plenty of other A31p's at comparable price.


I think this is a better deal. Factory sealed refurbshed with 3 year warranty at $650. It does not seem to have internal wireless but miniPCI cards are very cheap and easily upgradable.

http://cgi.ebay.com/IBM-THINKPAD-A31p-P ... dZViewItem

[insanity]

I'm mildly interested in this A31, since I wouldn't have to upgrade the memory right off the bat.

The underlying theory that I'm trying to prove or disprove with this one is whether the presence of firewire/s-video-in ports confirms with some certainty that the machine is a "P" variant, not just a custom-ordered standard version with a "P" motherboard and features disabled and a low-res screen or something. As a computer engineering student, I'm interested in the guts of these as well as the functionality, so I've been following auctions for quite a while.

~Andrew