ThinkPad E535 just died

[BlueEdge]

My 2-year-old E535 just quit...again. It had the motherboard replaced under warranty because on bootup all it would do would show "Windows is searching for files...". Now it's doing the exact same thing. My questions:

1) Would it make any sense at all to have it repaired now that it's out of warranty? Or is that a stupid question?

2) Is it possible to recover what's on the hard drive by removing the drive from the machine and putting it in an external USB enclosure, which could then be plugged into my Dell desktop. (The E535 has Win 7, whereas the Dell still has XP).

3) If I just replace the Edge 535 -- which I understand was basically a dolled-up IdeaPad -- which ThinkPad series would be better built? The T or W, or have ThinkPads in general gone downhill?

Thanks in advance.

[MikalE]

I wouldn't buy anything newer than a T520/W520 just because of the keyboard.

Most T's of that era came with an i3 or i5 processor, but some like mine came with an i7. Most W's of that era came with an i5 or i7 processor. You can use up to 16 GB of memory in a W and only 8 in a T. There are other differences too, but If you are looking for something new, all this probably means nothing.

There are some really nice T&W machines out there on e-Bay if you shop carefully and ask questions. They are pennies on the dollar too. Many are corporate lease turn-in's, and many look like they stayed in their computer bags for the most part.

[Saucey]

It might just need a motherboard, there might be some that are sub $100.

I'd say get a bootable CD/USB of Linux + an external hard drive/USB flash to see if you can copy your files before reusing the hard drive.
I use Parted Magic to test the HDD but if it says failed, it's pretty hard to rescue.

T420/430 would be the equivalent I would think. I would think a W520 would be nice if you render video or would feel like having some light gaming.

[Puppy]

Try to press power button for 30 seconds, remove battery or other removable components (RAM, HDD etc).