new R52, can't wait to know more.

[ndoggfromhell]

Going to puruse the Lenovo site tonight, but wanted to ask some basic questions here on the forum.

I got the laptop for $100.00 from a computer store that didn't have time to mess with it and it's problems. 1st, it wouldn't show anything on the display cause they had it set in bios to external pci and vga (not internal and Thinkpad LCD) Fixed that, and it's working great now. Other problem is that the left click button on the trackpoint has to be pressed hard. is this a normal issue?

That leads me to my next question, what other problems are typical for this model? I have a 770z and a 600 (both heavily modified), but i doubt i'm going to do anything to modify this one.

Also, since it was without a HD or a caddy, whats the best place to get one and a cover for that port?

Thanks for your time.

[Harryc]

I think EBay holds the answer to both your questions. Look for an R52 keyboard and hard drive caddy with a cover. We're not talking about alot of money here and two very easy to install items.

[mgo]

Going to puruse the Lenovo site tonight, but wanted to ask some basic questions here on the forum.

I got the laptop for $100.00 from a computer store that didn't have time to mess with it and it's problems. 1st, it wouldn't show anything on the display cause they had it set in bios to external pci and vga (not internal and Thinkpad LCD) Fixed that, and it's working great now. Other problem is that the left click button on the trackpoint has to be pressed hard. is this a normal issue?

That leads me to my next question, what other problems are typical for this model? I have a 770z and a 600 (both heavily modified), but i doubt i'm going to do anything to modify this one.

Also, since it was without a HD or a caddy, whats the best place to get one and a cover for that port?

Thanks for your time.

The R52 is a good solid and capable machine. Worthwhile to drop in 2 gig of RAM and a faster hard drive. My R52 is solid and reliable and will even run Vista well if it's set up in "Classic" mode. Plenty of driver support on the Lenovo site, too, for both XP and Vista. That includes all the hotkey features, etc.

There's a sponsor here that would likely have the caddy for the drive. Maybe even a Ultra Bay adapter. (The slim model also works in it, there's just a 1mm or so gap)

If you do it very carefully, the drive will slip into the machine without the caddy, but make sure you don't bend any of the pins when doing it that way. Set the machine on the side, and drop it in straight. The caddy is of course the very best way to ensure proper insertion into the slot.

[BeeJayEmm]

One other thing: the R52 has the SATA-to-PATA bridge, so you must choose your hard drive carefully or you will get the 2010 error on boot. Of course, you can continue to boot as others here have done without ill effect. You can find more info in this thread (it's about T43 ThinkPads, which also have this "feature"). You can also use the Search function above for more threads on this topic. As my Sig attests, I have a bit of a thing for R52s. Best of luck on your nice rescue!

Brian

[ndoggfromhell]

Yeah, i noticed that error, tried to set it up to ignore and it still comes up at boot. Don't really care much cause i just tossed a 5 gig in the machine to test it. I posted an add in the marketplace to get an HD that won't give me the error. I already ordered memory for it. 2 gigs will help out a lot.

[ndoggfromhell]

Ok, moving my 7200 40gig from my 770 (i don't use it much anymore) and replaced it with just an 8 gig one. I'm sure it will still throw the error, but it's not a big deal. Ordered 2 gigs of RAM from Dell (they were the cheapest and they usually use a good brand) I got a tray and cover from eBay and hopefully it will be the right one. I also locally found a new touchpad and keyboard for $35.00 Thanks to everyone offering advice.

I thought about maxing this computer out, but the investment is almost never recovered. I've got a lot more invested in my 600 than any buyer would give me for it. I would like to upgrade the graphics though. ... we'll see