A Thinkpad for my dad

[K. Len]

So I want to give my dad a Thinkpad for replace his old Pentium 4 Desktop and Atom Netbook, first I was thinking about fixing my T61 14.1w, but then I was thinking, does it worth? I meant, it needs a new display, screen bezel, palmrest, battery and another stuff, and is not like it was the best Thinkpad of all time, My second option was a Death mobo T400 with a 1440x900 display, I found a R400 mobo for cheap, and the battery is ok (And sell the T61 in parts), and finally, my third option was a 14.1 4:3 T60, this might be the cheapest option, and it only need a new Battery and RAM. Witch one would be the best? He's a Doctor, reads and writes a lot of stuff almost everyday, and also do some random stuff like Facebook and Youtube.

[brchan]

A T60 should suit his needs just fine. Really any mid-spec T60 can handle word, web browsing, email, and youtube quite well. T6* keyboards are excellent, so typing on it for long hours is no problem.

I would go for the T60 since its also the least expensive now.

[micrex22]

Just a quick note about the T60, if it's a lower-end one with a 1024x768 display, you may want to reconsider as that's a pretty small resolution (even 1440x900 is a bit better).

[MisterB]

I would go for the T60. I've sold three SXGA+ 14" T60s to people in their 60s. I've gotten feedback from two and they were very happy with them. I set them up with large font sizes which was much appreciated.

[jdk]

R61e is underrated, and can be had for very cheap, even compared to the T61. I just opened one up for repair that I sold many years ago to a retiree for only $75; it is very easy to work on (the issues with this laptop revolve around the user chain smoking around the machine, so the fan has stopped working and the inside is coated with ash and tar which is another discussion entirely). You might be able to find a WUXGA resolution screen for it. It can take up to a T7500 Core2 Duo, which I am upgrading as a courtesy, since it is only $5 on eBay, and I'm naturally curious to see how well it works. Throw in an SSD and you will be able to get your dad a well-oiled machine for less than $150. For this customer in particular, I'm expecting at least 5 more years of usable life out of it, which is honestly longer than I estimate the user will live.

[ZaZ]

R61e is underrated, and can be had for very cheap, even compared to the T61.

True, but it's heavy and unlikely to replace an Atom netbook.

You might help your cause if you said what you're looking to spend. I would think the X220 would be a good replacement for the Atom and you can hook up a screen to make it a desktop.

[K. Len]

You might help your cause if you said what you're looking to spend. I would think the X220 would be a good replacement for the Atom and you can hook up a screen to make it a desktop.

Not that much, I still have my T62p (T500 mobo frankenpad) project, and a VW Bug 91 restoration too, so... I'm likely to get a work when I go back to Mexico

[K. Len]

What about a X61? It would cost me almost the same (with the docking station and a decent battery) as a T60

[FryPpy]

What about a X61? It would cost me almost the same (with the docking station and a decent battery) as a T60

X61 is a good UltraPortable Thinkpad. With NV CPU (T7xxx, T8xxx, T9300) it can outperform P4 desktop.
My theory is: most second hand X60, X61 was cheap and more powerfull (durable, better keyboard, even better screen sometimes) then Atom netbooks when there was netbook era.
It is good netbook replacement and with dock and external monitor and keyboard it can be daily driver.

If you think about daily work with ThinkPad LCD (not with external monitor) - go and search IPS T60 with C2D. It is better for eyes that can be found.