new TP R61 - another one bites the dust!

[charlienyc]

5 years of my ol' trusty A31, and i'm ready for something new. something with USB 2, Bluetooth, webcam, widescreen, SATA drive, DVD burner, more than 1GB max RAM and a bunch of other things that i've been missing.

here's the new digs:

• 8932CTO ThinkPad R61
  
  Intel® Core™ 2 Duo processor T8100 (2.1GHz 800MHz 3MBL2)
  *Genuine Windows Vista Home Premium
  15.4" WSXGA+,Camera,BT
  Intel GMA X3100, GM965, 1394, S-Video, PC Card/Smart Card
  *1 GB PC2-5300 DDR2 SDRAM 667MHz SODIMM Memory (1 DIMM)
  UltraNav (TrackPoint and TouchPad)
  160 GB Hard Disk Drive, 5400rpm
  DVD Recordable 8x Max Ultrabay Enhanced
  Intel Wireless WiFi Link 4965AGN (supporting Centrino Pro)
  Integrated Bluetooth PAN
  9 cell Li-Ion Battery
  8932: 1Year Express Warranty
  1 Year On Site Upgrade with 1 Year ThinkPad Protection

*i plan on immediately replacing/upgrading the RAM with 2 sticks of Crucial 1GB. then after creating restore discs, i'll "downgrade" the OS to something i know and trust, ie. Win XP Pro. any ideas where to get a new license for cheap?

as far as other decisions, i went with the 15.4" WSXGA+ 'cause i want/need the screen real-estate. also i can't imagine going from a 15" to a 14" (even widescreen).

i wouldn't have bothered with the upgraded wireless, but N is starting to show up everywhere now.

last thing: is the upgrade/protection warranty really worth $100? i went for it after seeing so many people selling decked-out MacBook Pro machines online with broken displays. i don't want to be that guy!

now the waiting game starts. "estimated ship [date]: 4/4/2008"

[sjthinkpader]

Great for you and enjoy the new puter...

5 years of my ol' trusty A31, and i'm ready for something new. something with USB 2, Bluetooth, webcam, widescreen, SATA drive, DVD burner, more than 1GB max RAM and a bunch of other things that i've been missing.
...

My A31 (2652-D5U) at home has UXGA fitted, 4 port USB2.0 PCMCIA card, BT CDC, 11n miniPCI with the 3rd antenna, a 7200 drive and 1.5GB RAM. A bit ghetto but it works.

I would go for the 3 year warranty.

[charlienyc]

thanks! i can't wait.

yeah i've gotten to the point now where i have to connect 2 pcmcia I/O cards just to do music editing. they're both double-height (beats me what type that is - just know i can't use both at the same ports) so i have to have my machine docked. this immediately makes the system much less portable.

then when i go to render or mix down the project in non-realtime, it takes forever and my cpu temp shoots up to 80 F (it usually sits somewhere around 60). i can't even entertain the thoughts of running plug-ins, yet i need them for my work. i can work around a lot of things, putting band aids here and there, but i'm not about to update my processor. same goes for the RAM. 1GB is just barely enough for what i ask of my machine.

there are so many little things this purchase is going to help with, and a few big ones. goodbye P4!

so have i talked you into upgrading yet

[sjthinkpader]

...
so have i talked you into upgrading yet

Sound like some pretty serious computing.

Yes, it is tempting but I am using a T60 for work. The one in college get the best machine and I doubt he needs it for homework.

[boatdoc]

Had my R61 for about a month now. Fit and finnish was flawless.

Runninning Vista B. was just not for me so I upgraded to XP. The only problem I had was the wireless was weak. After many try's with Vista tweek's I gave up and loaded XP from the Lenovo disk's and she is VERY fast and stable. Wireless is very strong.

Your going to like your new toy!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[charlienyc]

can't wait - thanks for the renewed enthusiasm

[charlienyc]

estimated ship date moved back 4 days

[sjthinkpader]

I ordered a few T61s on Monday and got them on Thursday. Shipped from Hong Kong airport Tuesday. Probably build by Foxconn in Shenzhen.

[charlienyc]

i hadn't checked the estimated ship date since monday, but it was just... SHIPPED! this is good, very good. think i'll have it by the weekend?

[charlienyc]

for anyone who is going to purchase a new machine, read over the posts in the Windows OS forum. i mistakenly thought it would be cheap & easy to get a licensed version of XP on my machine after ordering it with Vista Home Premium. had i a) elected for XP for another $22 or b) elected Vista Business for a little more $ or Ultimate for a lot more $, i'd have XP downgrade rights.

now? now i'm stuck trying to find an inexpensive XP Pro install disc & legal key. the R61? it's great, but it's sitting unused, running pretty slowly w/ 1GB of RAM & Vista. my A31 w/ XP runs faster and it's got the same amount of RAM