Buying a T42 -- what to look for?

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micah · #1 Post by **micah** » Sat May 06, 2006 8:33 pm

I've finally settled on getting a T42, but I need some advice about what to look for and was hoping some of you Thinkpadheads can give me some pointers.

Warranty:
I'm shopping on craigslist and ebay, trying to not get scammed. I'm asking anyone who has a possible candidate for the specific model number and serial number so that I can look up the specs and warranty information. Are warranty's trasnferable? Do I need to make sure to get specific paperwork to transfer it to my name?

Video:
I've seen people talking about the SXGA+ 15" screen, should I try and find one of these (or does it matter that much?), the 9600 video card sounds standard, but should I be looking out for something better? I know that I want to confirm that the display is good, with no dead pixels.

Memory:
I dont mind getting something with only 512megabytes if I know what an upgrade will cost, if I decide to do it. If a machine has 1gig, how much more is that worth than one with only 512megs?

Anything else I should be looking out for, or should be avoiding?

Thanks for everyone's help, this place is great!

boon · #2 Post by **boon** » Sat May 06, 2006 9:08 pm

video:
-15" and sxga is good because gives you flex view( more contrast and
angle view) pretty much best screen you can get.
-ati 9600 is very good, im assuming its 64 mb....firegl is the best video card in T series but really costly...worst one is the ati 7500 only 32mb

memory: memory isnt too costly..if buy them online can get a decent price like 512mb 2700 for around 50$ and 1gb for 100$

the flexview and the video card is most important to me...

micah · #3 Post by **micah** » Sat May 06, 2006 10:20 pm

boon wrote:video:
-15" and sxga is good because gives you flex view( more contrast and angle view) pretty much best screen you can get.

How does the UXGA(1600x1200) compare, is it better than sxga (and does it have the flexview?)

Bgradid · #4 Post by **Bgradid** » Sun May 07, 2006 4:41 am

the only thing i'd be worried about with a flexview is the motion blur problems i've heard about.

the motion blur on my 14" sxga+ t42p is bad enough

boon · #5 Post by **boon** » Sun May 07, 2006 11:24 am

yes the UXGA have flexview...

also has to be 15" for the thinkpad to support flexview

if youre not entirely sure still you can ask the seller to give you the model number

example model that support flexview
http://www5.pc.ibm.com/us/products.nsf/ ... p/_2687d4u

iit is the model 2687 d4u

Esben · #6 Post by **Esben** » Sun May 07, 2006 3:44 pm

14.1" model is smaller. I would recommend that over a larger 15" model.

micah · #7 Post by **micah** » Sun May 07, 2006 5:38 pm

If I get a machine that has a 32MB ATI Radeon 7500, what does it take to upgrade that to a ATI Mobility FIREGL T2?

brentpresley · #8 Post by **brentpresley** » Sun May 07, 2006 5:47 pm

micah wrote:If I get a machine that has a 32MB ATI Radeon 7500, what does it take to upgrade that to a ATI Mobility FIREGL T2?

The video is not upgradeable on ANY T4x series. They are all soldered to the board.

#9 Post by **GomJabbar** » Sun May 07, 2006 6:18 pm

micah wrote:If I get a machine that has a 32MB ATI Radeon 7500, what does it take to upgrade that to a ATI Mobility FIREGL T2?

A different T42 system board, as brentpresley alluded to.

#10 Post by **JaneL** » Sun May 07, 2006 6:44 pm

micah wrote:Warranty:
I'm shopping on craigslist and ebay, trying to not get scammed. I'm asking anyone who has a possible candidate for the specific model number and serial number so that I can look up the specs and warranty information. Are warranty's trasnferable? Do I need to make sure to get specific paperwork to transfer it to my name?

The warranty, if it's still inforce, belongs to the machine. You don't need to do anything.

pianowizard · #11 Post by **pianowizard** » Mon May 08, 2006 1:00 am

micah wrote:I've seen people talking about the SXGA+ 15" screen, should I try and find one of these (or does it matter that much?)

Definitely avoid the XGA display. If the screen is 14.1" or even 15", you really deserve to see more than 1024x768, which is more suitable for 10.4" or 12.1" screens.

Buying a T42 -- what to look for?

Buying a T42 -- what to look for?

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