Take a look at our
ThinkPads.com HOME PAGE
For those who might want to contribute to the blog, start here: Editors Alley Topic
Then contact Bill with a Private Message

Why do i want a 10 year old thinkpad ?

Older ThinkPads from the 300, 500, 600, 700 Series, iSeries, Transnote etc.
Post Reply
Message
Author
128MB
Posts: 35
Joined: Thu May 17, 2018 8:37 am
Location: Overpelt, Belgium

Why do i want a 10 year old thinkpad ?

#1 Post by 128MB » Thu May 17, 2018 8:55 am

Never looked at these thinkpads nor do i have a reason to own one of them because i already have a game pc, htpc, backup dual core and a hp probook for work, and still for the passed 3 weeks i look around all day for a cheap one for sale.

Its kind of driving me nuts, i fell in love with the look of these laptops and of course would want a 'frankenpad'.
So should i really ?

Same thing happened to me about 5 years ago when i wanted to collect vintage audio equipment, constantly on the look out for ads and now i have an entire 1976 AKAI setup in the living room and a 1979 Pioneer setup in the office.

Then short after i HAD to have a Commodore 64 "because i had one as a kid" and now i have an entire setup in the loft collecting dust.

What is this nostalgia bug that every now and then comes around the corner and bites me in the cheeks ?

RealBlackStuff
Admin Emeritus
Admin Emeritus
Posts: 23809
Joined: Mon Sep 18, 2006 5:17 am
Location: Loch Garman, Éire

Re: Why do i want a 10 year old thinkpad ?

#2 Post by RealBlackStuff » Thu May 17, 2018 10:08 am

Welcome to the Forum.

For your answer, read this: COLLECTING VINTAGE THINKPADS: HOBBY, MENTAL DISORDER OR BOTH?
Lovely day for a Guinness! (The Real Black Stuff)
Lenovo: X240, X250, T440p, T480, M900 Tiny.

PS: the old Boardroom website is still available on the Wayback Machine
.

rjp
Posts: 12
Joined: Mon Apr 25, 2016 5:48 pm
Location: Canyon Lake, Texas

Re: Why do i want a 10 year old thinkpad ?

#3 Post by rjp » Thu May 17, 2018 12:15 pm

I think the two significant reasons people like the old thinkpads are:

1. The screen aspect ratio allows more vertical space without scrolling
and
2. The old school keyboard is what many old school people are/were used to touch typing effectively on

Certainly, a 22" screen on any newer system resolves the first, especially if you have one that rotates to portrait mode. Or you use any Apple product which never totally embraced the widescreen movie format that plagues the smaller laptops. Same goes for item two if you have a nice mechanical keyboard for real document creation and processing.

Of course the frankenpads seem fast with their SSD drives but in reality they are just dual core processors that are the lowest processor that is capable of running Windows 7, the other piece of productivity software most power users need.

fultontech
Sophomore Member
Posts: 223
Joined: Fri Jan 02, 2015 10:38 am
Location: Henderson, NV USA
Contact:

Re: Why do i want a 10 year old thinkpad ?

#4 Post by fultontech » Thu May 17, 2018 12:24 pm

"Why do i want a 10 year old thinkpad ?"

You don't. You want a 25 year old ThinkPad!
IBM P75
IBM ThinkPad 700, 720C, 750Cs, 360C, 360P, 360CE, 360PE, 730TE, PC110, 365CSD, 365ED, 701Cs, 820, 600X, 770X, 240, T30
IBM RS/6000 43P 150
Lenovo ThinkPad X41T, X61T, X200T, X201T, X220T, X230T, X280
Lenovo ThinkCenter M92p Tiny, M900 Tiny

Cigarguy
ThinkPadder
ThinkPadder
Posts: 1756
Joined: Thu Aug 09, 2012 3:08 pm
Location: Calgary, Alberta, Canada

Re: Why do i want a 10 year old thinkpad ?

#5 Post by Cigarguy » Thu May 17, 2018 12:49 pm

A lot of it is being able to afford the toys that you can't afford earlier in life. Speaking of audio, I finally got NHT 1.3 speakers that I always wanted but couldn't afford during my high school/university years. Already got and moved on from the Porsche. Vintage women? Still can't afford them.

Thinkpad4by3
Senior ThinkPadder
Senior ThinkPadder
Posts: 2670
Joined: Sun Aug 09, 2015 9:25 am
Location: N. Bellmore, ny

Re: Why do i want a 10 year old thinkpad ?

#6 Post by Thinkpad4by3 » Thu May 17, 2018 5:31 pm

fultontech wrote:
Thu May 17, 2018 12:24 pm
"Why do i want a 10 year old thinkpad ?"

You don't. You want a 25 year old ThinkPad!
Quote of the week!

I agree fully FultonTech. If you are going to do programming, it better be in Borland Turbo c++ :D !
Thinkpad4by3's Law of the Universe.

The efficiency of two screens equally sized with equal numbers if pixels are equal. The time spent by a 4:3 user complaining about 16:9 is proportional to the inefficiency working with a 16:9 display, therefore the amount of useful work extracted is equal.

axur-delmeria
Senior ThinkPadder
Senior ThinkPadder
Posts: 3810
Joined: Mon May 28, 2012 5:49 am
Location: Metro Manila, Philippines

Re: Why do i want a 10 year old thinkpad ?

#7 Post by axur-delmeria » Fri May 18, 2018 12:41 am

128MB wrote:
Thu May 17, 2018 8:55 am
What is this nostalgia bug that every now and then comes around the corner and bites me in the cheeks ?
A yearning for things from a time when life was much simpler, maybe?

As much as I like Thinkpads, it's generally tempered by

1. practicality :thumbs-UP: it's the reason i let go of the 760XD -- it was getting too slow, no USB, damaged screen (still works though), and bad keyboard.

2. stinginess :lol: -- I got a 560E for free, but the screen was dead, it won't boot past the BIOS screen, and I don't think I can get it back to working order without spending a significant amount of money. So it's currently on my shelf, disassembled. :P
Planned Purchase: T480s i5-8350 FHD Touch
Impulse Buy: Thinkpad not named for safety reasons :lol:
RIP: X220 4291-C91 X61 7676-A24 760XD-U9E :cry:

shawross
Senior Member
Senior Member
Posts: 662
Joined: Mon Oct 28, 2013 5:48 am
Location: Perth Australia

Re: Why do i want a 10 year old thinkpad ?

#8 Post by shawross » Fri May 18, 2018 5:49 pm

An X61 would probably be great for what he is looking for. Retro with 4x3 screen and no nasty trackpad and with enough performance that it is usable today with your OS of choice.

Also can be found with the IBM logo on the palmrest and has a great keyboard.
Active --- Love the X series
X301 W 7/Mint | X201 540M L Mint | X220 2520 W7/Mint

Nostalgia
X61 T7500 / T41 T42 T43 / A31

Rogue daily driver - Samsung RV511 15.6 " Screen - W 7

128MB
Posts: 35
Joined: Thu May 17, 2018 8:37 am
Location: Overpelt, Belgium

Re: Why do i want a 10 year old thinkpad ?

#9 Post by 128MB » Sun May 20, 2018 4:52 am

Found an R60 with dock for sale for € 12 ...
tempted to drive and pick it up and slap my other free OCZ ssd in it. And the T7200 cpu can be found for pocket change.

Man, wish i had a thinkpad when i was in school, i did al my cad / solidworks with a celeron and 512 MB ram and integrated graphics.

kfzhu1229
Senior ThinkPadder
Senior ThinkPadder
Posts: 2484
Joined: Tue Sep 22, 2015 10:59 pm
Location: Toronto, Canada

Re: Why do i want a 10 year old thinkpad ?

#10 Post by kfzhu1229 » Mon May 21, 2018 7:30 pm

128MB wrote:
Sun May 20, 2018 4:52 am
Man, wish i had a thinkpad when i was in school, i did al my cad / solidworks with a celeron and 512 MB ram and integrated graphics.
My x86 device back then (2010s) was a Lenovo netbook with an Atom and 1GB RAM. Then later I got the ThinkPad T43 with PM 750, X300 and 1GB RAM, retired from dad.
It was a pleasant "upgrade", so let that sentence speak for itself about my horrible experience with that netbook.
(the only things that the netbook actually outperform a ThinkPad A30p were DX9 capability and smaller form factor - the Atom processor is slower than a PIII-M 1.2Ghz, LCD was only 1024x600, and the hard drive is terribly slow that it takes 3 minutes to start Windows XP out of the box brand new)
Dell Lat CP MMX-233 64mb 40gb W2k
600 PII-266 416mb 40gb WXP
T23 PIII 1.13ghz 1gb W7
Precision M4300 X9000 8gb 160gb WUXGA Ultrasharp fp W10
T530i 15.6" i7 16gb fp W10
UXGA:
A30p PIII 1.2 1gb W7 (IDTech)
T43p 2.26 2gb fp W10 (Sharp)
Lat C840 P4-2.5 2gb 60gb W7 (Ultrasharp)

128MB
Posts: 35
Joined: Thu May 17, 2018 8:37 am
Location: Overpelt, Belgium

Re: Why do i want a 10 year old thinkpad ?

#11 Post by 128MB » Wed May 23, 2018 3:44 am

T60 in europe are at least €50 and without battery/hdd or anything, and widescreen. imma keep looking, the guy from the €12 R60 does not reply back.
Also found a 14" 4:3 T60 for €65 but sold by some old lady so she doesnt know anything about it ...

128MB
Posts: 35
Joined: Thu May 17, 2018 8:37 am
Location: Overpelt, Belgium

Re: Why do i want a 10 year old thinkpad ?

#12 Post by 128MB » Sun May 27, 2018 6:03 am

Just ordered a 14" T60p, T7200 cpu and 128GB sandisk ssd.

Really hope it lives up to my expectations as a fun sidekick :)

fourthree
Freshman Member
Posts: 98
Joined: Fri Dec 16, 2016 8:15 pm
Location: Bat Yam, Israel

Re: Why do i want a 10 year old thinkpad ?

#13 Post by fourthree » Sun May 27, 2018 11:50 am

It is likely that you do not. However I don't think it can be said in good faith that older thinkpads are worthles -- I personally use an X61s which is more than sufficient. But usually my recommendation would be a *20 series, or a *50 series.
kfzhu1229 wrote:
Mon May 21, 2018 7:30 pm
128MB wrote:
Sun May 20, 2018 4:52 am
Man, wish i had a thinkpad when i was in school, i did al my cad / solidworks with a celeron and 512 MB ram and integrated graphics.
My x86 device back then (2010s) was a Lenovo netbook with an Atom and 1GB RAM. Then later I got the ThinkPad T43 with PM 750, X300 and 1GB RAM, retired from dad.
It was a pleasant "upgrade", so let that sentence speak for itself about my horrible experience with that netbook.
(the only things that the netbook actually outperform a ThinkPad A30p were DX9 capability and smaller form factor - the Atom processor is slower than a PIII-M 1.2Ghz, LCD was only 1024x600, and the hard drive is terribly slow that it takes 3 minutes to start Windows XP out of the box brand new)
While staying on topic, as far as netbooks go, I've still haven't seen one prettier than the classic 240. Here are some good comparisons to late 4:3 thinkpads.

Too bad the hardware is quite old. It's a pretty thinkpad but I do hate having machines that are not in use.
Dorkstation: T601f
Ultraportable: X61s

kfzhu1229
Senior ThinkPadder
Senior ThinkPadder
Posts: 2484
Joined: Tue Sep 22, 2015 10:59 pm
Location: Toronto, Canada

Re: Why do i want a 10 year old thinkpad ?

#14 Post by kfzhu1229 » Sun May 27, 2018 5:16 pm

fourthree wrote:
Sun May 27, 2018 11:50 am
While staying on topic, as far as netbooks go, I've still haven't seen one prettier than the classic 240. Here are some good comparisons to late 4:3 thinkpads.
I did have the regular TP240. Somebody threw in a 512mb stick of PC133 RAM and sure enough it was having all kinds of bsod when I first got it. Turned out the 512mb stick was actually also dead so I replaced it with a factory max of 128mb stick.
I like how it is small and portable (and I also tried using it in school 2 years ago), but the screen is only SVGA (XGA only if you have the best 240Z) and the mono speaker on the palmrest doesn't sound better than modern cheap netbook speakers.
Also, I'd like a laptop with an optical drive (all of my current laptops and desktops have one), so it was sent to some senior as a computer learning starter pack.
Dell Lat CP MMX-233 64mb 40gb W2k
600 PII-266 416mb 40gb WXP
T23 PIII 1.13ghz 1gb W7
Precision M4300 X9000 8gb 160gb WUXGA Ultrasharp fp W10
T530i 15.6" i7 16gb fp W10
UXGA:
A30p PIII 1.2 1gb W7 (IDTech)
T43p 2.26 2gb fp W10 (Sharp)
Lat C840 P4-2.5 2gb 60gb W7 (Ultrasharp)

fourthree
Freshman Member
Posts: 98
Joined: Fri Dec 16, 2016 8:15 pm
Location: Bat Yam, Israel

Re: Why do i want a 10 year old thinkpad ?

#15 Post by fourthree » Mon May 28, 2018 2:21 am

kfzhu1229 wrote:
Sun May 27, 2018 5:16 pm
I did have the regular TP240. Somebody threw in a 512mb stick of PC133 RAM and sure enough it was having all kinds of bsod when I first got it. Turned out the 512mb stick was actually also dead so I replaced it with a factory max of 128mb stick
That's quite a bit of RAM for an old machine. 8GB still feels excessive for my X61s!
I like how it is small and portable (and I also tried using it in school 2 years ago), but the screen is only SVGA (XGA only if you have the best 240Z) and the mono speaker on the palmrest doesn't sound better than modern cheap netbook speakers.
Using it for school? You'd probably really like an SSD and a wifi card there.. I was thinking of getting one myself for that exact purpose, but I'm holding it off for now -- I wonder if 240Z XGA will fit in regular 240.

As far as resolution goes, I'd be happy if you could stick a 16:10 panel there, only because it looks like it has the room.
Also, I'd like a laptop with an optical drive (all of my current laptops and desktops have one), so it was sent to some senior as a computer learning starter pack.
Why? I'm thinking it's better to backup all your discs on your HDD and have them always available as an iso, but do tell if there's something I'm missing. Always happy to learn!
Dorkstation: T601f
Ultraportable: X61s

kfzhu1229
Senior ThinkPadder
Senior ThinkPadder
Posts: 2484
Joined: Tue Sep 22, 2015 10:59 pm
Location: Toronto, Canada

Re: Why do i want a 10 year old thinkpad ?

#16 Post by kfzhu1229 » Mon May 28, 2018 11:04 pm

fourthree wrote:
Mon May 28, 2018 2:21 am
Using it for school? You'd probably really like an SSD and a wifi card there.. I was thinking of getting one myself for that exact purpose, but I'm holding it off for now -- I wonder if 240Z XGA will fit in regular 240.

As far as resolution goes, I'd be happy if you could stick a 16:10 panel there, only because it looks like it has the room.
1. I was using it just for purely a Word machine and it was certainly the lightest laptop I had at the time (All my other laptops are of T series or 600 series)
2. As for the XGA display, ThinkPad 240Z is so rare that you couldn't find its HMM here, neither can you find any information on Thinkwiki.
http://www-01.ibm.com/common/ssi/ShowDo ... _locale=en
This website is in Japanese. While I am Chinese, not Japanese, I can tell you that:
1. it comes with either a Celeron (R) 500Mhz ULV or PIII 600Mhz ULV (soldered onboard as far as I remember).
2. It comes with SVGA (71J/72J models) or XGA display (81J/82J models) (Both with 16.77M colours, VGA port max output SXGA @ 16-bit colour)
3. It comes with either 64MB RAM or 128MB RAM soldered on-board, with an official maximum of 192MB or 256MB, but I think you can get away with a maximum of 288MB or 384MB RAM with a 256MB stick of PC100 SDRAM.
The XGA and SVGA panels seem to be the same size, but just finding the XGA cable alone is an impossible task, not to mention there are two types of displays for this computer (Typa A or B, both are TFT).
Dell Lat CP MMX-233 64mb 40gb W2k
600 PII-266 416mb 40gb WXP
T23 PIII 1.13ghz 1gb W7
Precision M4300 X9000 8gb 160gb WUXGA Ultrasharp fp W10
T530i 15.6" i7 16gb fp W10
UXGA:
A30p PIII 1.2 1gb W7 (IDTech)
T43p 2.26 2gb fp W10 (Sharp)
Lat C840 P4-2.5 2gb 60gb W7 (Ultrasharp)

128MB
Posts: 35
Joined: Thu May 17, 2018 8:37 am
Location: Overpelt, Belgium

Re: Why do i want a 10 year old thinkpad ?

#17 Post by 128MB » Sat Jun 02, 2018 6:58 am

My 14" T60P has arrived !

Already done today:
-Replace T2700 with T7200 CPU
-Replace HDD with Kingston 120GB SSD
-Replace CMOS battery
-First cleaning of the device, old sticker goo on the bottom and general dust-off and brushing of the keyboard
-Install genuine Win7 Pro 64 Bit
-Found most of the drivers but bluetooth and ir is not being found.

To do:
-Fully update Windows and look for further drivers (several GB to download)
-Replace fan because its rattly and idles at 70 celcius ! (already ordered) :(
-Full clean and polish of the lid.
-Find new battery, this one only lasts 1 hour :(

First impressions for my first thinkpad:

I like the shape and feel, the high resolution screen is amazing for me.
Its HEAVY ! Not used to this concrete slab on my lap :D
Its pretty snappy for browsing in chrome.

kfzhu1229
Senior ThinkPadder
Senior ThinkPadder
Posts: 2484
Joined: Tue Sep 22, 2015 10:59 pm
Location: Toronto, Canada

Re: Why do i want a 10 year old thinkpad ?

#18 Post by kfzhu1229 » Sat Jun 02, 2018 8:14 pm

128MB wrote:
Sat Jun 02, 2018 6:58 am
Its HEAVY ! Not used to this concrete slab on my lap :D
I have the 15" T43p and I don't call that heavy. You will see that no laptops at that time period that performs like your laptop and thinner and as rigid at the same time.
Dell Lat CP MMX-233 64mb 40gb W2k
600 PII-266 416mb 40gb WXP
T23 PIII 1.13ghz 1gb W7
Precision M4300 X9000 8gb 160gb WUXGA Ultrasharp fp W10
T530i 15.6" i7 16gb fp W10
UXGA:
A30p PIII 1.2 1gb W7 (IDTech)
T43p 2.26 2gb fp W10 (Sharp)
Lat C840 P4-2.5 2gb 60gb W7 (Ultrasharp)

shawross
Senior Member
Senior Member
Posts: 662
Joined: Mon Oct 28, 2013 5:48 am
Location: Perth Australia

Re: Why do i want a 10 year old thinkpad ?

#19 Post by shawross » Sat Jun 02, 2018 10:48 pm

"HEAVY" for a laptop on your lap is all relative. Once you have used something relatively light a T60 could feel heavy.
Active --- Love the X series
X301 W 7/Mint | X201 540M L Mint | X220 2520 W7/Mint

Nostalgia
X61 T7500 / T41 T42 T43 / A31

Rogue daily driver - Samsung RV511 15.6 " Screen - W 7

128MB
Posts: 35
Joined: Thu May 17, 2018 8:37 am
Location: Overpelt, Belgium

Re: Why do i want a 10 year old thinkpad ?

#20 Post by 128MB » Sun Jun 03, 2018 12:12 am

shawross wrote:
Sat Jun 02, 2018 10:48 pm
"HEAVY" for a laptop on your lap is all relative. Once you have used something relatively light a T60 could feel heavy.
Its my first laptop i've had since 2007, that was a piece of plastic junk with a tiny battery, this feels much more hefty in a good way :)
Disassembly was a joy, bit fiddly around the corners but it turned out perfect.

I just tried a wet polish with a magic eraser, looks good for first try.
https://i.imgur.com/kdHJO0p.jpg

shawross
Senior Member
Senior Member
Posts: 662
Joined: Mon Oct 28, 2013 5:48 am
Location: Perth Australia

Re: Why do i want a 10 year old thinkpad ?

#21 Post by shawross » Sun Jun 03, 2018 5:25 am

Nice!

I have seen many T6X and T4X machines that have basically only sat on desks and these normally scrub up well.

Newer more mobile hardware that are thinner and lighter tend to get more cosmetic damage especially if they have been hauled around in shoulder bags.
Active --- Love the X series
X301 W 7/Mint | X201 540M L Mint | X220 2520 W7/Mint

Nostalgia
X61 T7500 / T41 T42 T43 / A31

Rogue daily driver - Samsung RV511 15.6 " Screen - W 7

dr_st
Admin
Admin
Posts: 9692
Joined: Sat Oct 29, 2005 6:20 am
Location: Israel

Re: Why do i want a 10 year old thinkpad ?

#22 Post by dr_st » Sun Jun 03, 2018 6:46 am

128MB wrote:
Sat Jun 02, 2018 6:58 am
My 14" T60P has arrived !
Congrats!
128MB wrote:
Sat Jun 02, 2018 6:58 am
-Replace fan because its rattly and idles at 70 celcius ! (already ordered) :(
I guess you already ordered, so it matters little, but I recently followed the msb0b T60 fan repair guide after the fan became rattly. I never felt comfortable lubricating fans before, and I do have a spare heatsink/fan assembly, but I figured out - what do I have to lose? To replace the heatsink I already have to partially disassemble the system and remove the old one; at that point separating the fan from it and lubricating is not a big deal. Indeed, it worked great - the rattling is completely gone. As to the high temperature, it is frequently caused by the thermal paste not making proper contact, rather than by the fan.
128MB wrote:
Sat Jun 02, 2018 6:58 am
-Full clean and polish of the lid.
Yeah, those rubbery coatings have a tendency to be really ugly and sticky when they disintegrate with age. Both my T60s suffer from the same problem. :(
Thinkpad 25 (20K7), T490 (20N3), Yoga 14 (20FY), T430s (IPS FHD + Classic Keyboard), X220 4291-4BG
X61 7673-V2V, T60 2007-QPG, T42 2373-F7G, X32 (IPS Screen), A31p w/ Ultrabay Numpad

RealBlackStuff
Admin Emeritus
Admin Emeritus
Posts: 23809
Joined: Mon Sep 18, 2006 5:17 am
Location: Loch Garman, Éire

Re: Why do i want a 10 year old thinkpad ?

#23 Post by RealBlackStuff » Sun Jun 03, 2018 7:22 am

I've done a few T23 lids, my guess is it might also work on a T60.
See https://forum.thinkpads.com/viewtopic.php?t=121754

dr_st
Admin
Admin
Posts: 9692
Joined: Sat Oct 29, 2005 6:20 am
Location: Israel

Re: Why do i want a 10 year old thinkpad ?

#24 Post by dr_st » Sun Jun 03, 2018 8:54 am

RealBlackStuff wrote:
Sun Jun 03, 2018 7:22 am
I've done a few T23 lids, my guess is it might also work on a T60.
See https://forum.thinkpads.com/viewtopic.php?t=121754
Yep, I remember that thread of yours; the lids looked much better afterwards. How do they hold up?

The interesting thing about the T60 is that 14.1" and 15" units have different materials in the lid. 14.1" is magnesium composite, 15" is CFRP. This means that after stripping the rubberized paint, the lids might look different. According to the guy who stripped the X41 tablet lid down to the metal, there is a hard plastic coating under the rubberized paint, so maybe it will not be so different?

I think someone also posted a method here to restore the rubberized coating as opposed to just stripping it.
Thinkpad 25 (20K7), T490 (20N3), Yoga 14 (20FY), T430s (IPS FHD + Classic Keyboard), X220 4291-4BG
X61 7673-V2V, T60 2007-QPG, T42 2373-F7G, X32 (IPS Screen), A31p w/ Ultrabay Numpad

128MB
Posts: 35
Joined: Thu May 17, 2018 8:37 am
Location: Overpelt, Belgium

Re: Why do i want a 10 year old thinkpad ?

#25 Post by 128MB » Sun Jun 03, 2018 10:35 am

I have seen some guys using plasti dip on the lids

And the fan was cheap so i decided to replace it.
Its nearly dead from 2 days usage at load.

Post Reply
  • Similar Topics
    Replies
    Views
    Last post

Return to “ThinkPad Legacy Hardware”

Who is online

Users browsing this forum: No registered users and 51 guests