Newbie seeks advice re buying T42 or ???

[Lotek]

Hi -
I have been "lurking" on the forum for quite awhile and am very close to buying a T42. My use is SOHO (mainly Office & Quicken); weight isn't an issue and I don't need cutting edge technology, but I do want 15" Flexview. I have no interest in gaming, downloading music, and the like, but do spend some time editing photos. I want a laptop that is very reliable and doesn't need a lot of tweaking - as my user ID implies, I am pretty much technologically challenged. I am leaning toward a T42 primarily because of the issues discussed here re fans/heat with the T43s (no way could I do the work-around that was developed here!).

I have narrowed my T42 search to either a 2373-N3U or a 2379-R9U, and am wondering if some of the wise sages on the forum would offer their pros & cons for each of these models. Also, if a T42 would be like buying a Hummer when an Expedition would meet the reqts just as well but at a lower cost, recommendations for a "better fit" Thinkpad are welcome. There's a cost differential between the above T42s of about $180, which may be due to the 2379 having a 9 cell battery. Other than that, they appear to be alike from what I can see on the tabook. Am I missing something when comparing the two? If there's no substantive difference, is one stronger/better built/more reliable than the other?

Another question: What is the general consensus of forum members as to whether the quality of U.S. Tech Supp & Cust Service has changed in any way since Lenovo took over the TP line? Is it still Best In Show?

Thanks in advance for any help given. It will be greatly appreciated!

Lotek (as in "Low tech mind in a high tech world")

[christopher_wolf]

Hello there,

Well, the bulid quality is the same for both. All the T4X Series use the same Chassis from the T40 on up; thus you get a good deal of flexibility and common parts that can be swapped around. So those two T42s are the same when it comes to high quality. I am not seeing much of a difference between anything on those two models except for the 9-Cell Battery. Which I find is a must-have if you are going mobile anywhere; it is always nice to have the extra battery when you need it and can't find a wall outlet. Also, you might want to think about taking IBM/Lenovo up on a free 512MB stick offer and bumping the memory up to 1GB. That will make a big difference, especially if you leave you Thinkpad on alot and edit media files suc as Photos.


As to the issue of whether or not this is overkill? *shurgs* I would get it; but you could also spend some time looking at getting a T41 or T40 or T42 on eBay which would cost much less; I was just looking at a thread a little while ago where someone purchased an *impressive* T40 for $650

http://forum.thinkpads.com/viewtopic.php?t=17993

That is a very good deal on a T40; it all depends on what you want to do with it in the long run. The main outlook for most laptops is about 2 years; it is higher for Thinkpads, perhaps five years or more. So upgradability is important. You have a range of choices there ranging from the T23 to all the R Series to, obviously, all the T Series Thinkpads.

The customer support for IBM in the US is simply excellent; I can find nothing bad to say about them at all. A tiny issue might be the shipping time if you order it directly from IBM/Lenovo, but that is variable and chances are you will receive it very promptly.

Cheers