Which laptop should I keep? T42 vs T60?

[fefrie]

T42

1.7mhz cpu 2gb ram and I beleive the standard 32 or 64mb gram. Not 100% sure. With the SXGA screen.

t60

1.8mhz cpu 1gb ram and just the Intel graphics but with just an XGA screen, with a really worn out keyboard...

CPU is a bit of a wash. the 2gb ram is larger, but slightly slower speed.

The t42 has some ati graphics.

Mostly just for word processing, so the sxga would be more appreciated,...

I guess I'll lean towards the t42....

[dr_st]

T60 is the more powerful by far, unless the CPU is a Core Solo. A Core Duo / Core 2 Duo - equipped T60 is still useful for most tasks in today's world, a T42 is getting very long in the tooth.

However, your particular configuration of a T60 seems to be quite low-end.

For word processing, the T42 will be fine and the screen is nicer.

Neither is really a "keeper", but given the choice and the situation, I agree with your assessment to go for the T42.

[ajkula66]

Why not sell both and get something slightly more recent/powerful...

[DRobinson]

The ram in that T42 is probably worth more than you can get for the whole machine. Those older DDR333 1GB sticks are pretty valuable.

The only reason I would shy away from the T42 is the potential BGA issues. It sounds like a good machine otherwise. The T60 does not sound that good. They can be very good machines, but xga is just, mehhh.

Looking at your sig line, I may have opted for the T23 =) That appears to have been a very nice machine.

[ajkula66]

The ram in that T42 is probably worth more than you can get for the whole machine. Those older DDR333 1GB sticks are pretty valuable.

The entire laptop, if properly advertised, could sell decently as well...

The only reason I would shy away from the T42 is the potential BGA issues. It sounds like a good machine otherwise.

Add the rarity/price of the PATA drives in the mix...

The T60 does not sound that good. They can be very good machines, but xga is just, mehhh.

Indeed. OP should be able to get $100 or thereabouts for it in the working condition nevertheless...

Looking at your sig line, I may have opted for the T23 =) That appears to have been a very nice machine.

The last T23 I've ever owned was a near mint 9LU...bought it from RealBlackStuff and got to meet him in person for the first time...years ago...

Back on the topic...I'd get rid of both T42 and T60, buy a 14" SXGA+ T61 with Intel graphics and call it a day...

[fefrie]

They're both work computers, and one had to go, so I wanted to keep the best one there.

My two home computers are t60's, one with sxga and a ssd.

The intel 330 ssd is just meh. The load up times are nice, but since I was already running a ram drive, web surfing really isn't much faster.

I'd love to upgrade to a 14" t61 with reliable graphics, but there hasn't been that much locally.

The work t60 that I'm considering getting rid of has a worn out space bar, so that's the biggest niggler, so it really has to go!

I really did love the t23 for it's non touchpad, but since then I do like the touchpad strictly as a scroll bar.

The t23 is pretty unusable these days. Glad I got rid of it!

[RealBlackStuff]

If your T42 and T60 have the same screen size, why not swap the LCDs and pick up a decent T60 keyboard?
In a 14.1" T60 you can use the same LCD cable/inverter for XGA and SXGA+.
In a 15" T60 you can use the same LCD cable but need a different inverter.

[fefrie]

I already have Ultimate Laptops. The wonky keyboard and the 1GB of ram have got to go so it's the t60 that gets sold...

[fefrie]

Well I managed to fix the spacebar on the t60 so now it works fairly perfectly.

It's an early spec t60 and I'm thinking that I should keep the t60.

It has middling integrated GPU, but the most either laptops would be doing would be watching youtube. It has lesser ram (1gb), but it has a SATA drive.

For a snappy experience, a faster SATA/1gb is better than a PATA/2GB.

PATA runs at a ATA66 and sata runs at ATA100 right?

[TRS-80]

I have an R51 (very similar to T42), PATA, I just looked it up the other day and I think it was ATA100. So the t60 should definitely be faster than that. You can look under the hard drive info (in device manager, under the IDE channel, click on advanced settings) it will tell you the DMA mode, which you can cross reference to the speed.

[Medessec]

That is quite a hard decision... geez, an ATI-equipped T42, or an Intel-only T60? That's like choosing between a mediocre dish with some good sauce, and a good dish that's been left plain. It's all down to what you feel like you need right now... if you do a bit more video-rigorous tasking that might need a dedicated GPU, such as YouTubing and light gaming, you may want to stick with the T42.

If you need something that loads up Windows quicker, will be easier on your wallet in terms of storage(far cheaper $ per GB), and is just plain newer and more high-tech with two cores, more efficiency, and 64-bit support... the T60 is probably the best choice. The Intel 950 is a fantastic integrated GPU, as right now, all Windows 7 video features run very cleanly on it and most web tasks also trundle along quite well.


I would personally go with the T60. Remember that later down the road-you can always swap an ATI board into it, or sell it/trade it on this forum for a better laptop.

[fefrie]

I just fired up the t60 again and looked at the screen.

Just. can't. do. xga.

So i'll let it go.