Should I buy a R42 or an R51

Message

tectron · #1 Post by **tectron** » Sat Sep 06, 2008 12:04 am

I'm looking to buy my mother a used laptop and have narrowed the choices down to a T42 $439.00 (14 inch 1.7ghz 512meg 60 Gig) or an R52 $449 (15 inch 2.1ghz 512meg 80 Gig). I am new to Think Pads and am not quite sure which are the best ones or the ones to stay away from.
I like the R52 due to its heavier weight and specs but the price leads me to believe its less desirable than the T42. I basically want something that is robust/reliable that is least likely to have problems.

(I am her sole tech support guy

)

#2 Post by **Harryc** » Sat Sep 06, 2008 4:58 am

What is the screen resolution on the R52? Or if you don't know that, what is the machine type/model # from the bottom of the machine?

goofyGAguy · #3 Post by **goofyGAguy** » Sat Sep 06, 2008 10:57 am

Those prices seem a bit on the high side.

tectron · #4 Post by **tectron** » Sat Sep 06, 2008 12:48 pm

The resolution on the R52 is 1024x768. Here is the link:

http://www.usanotebook.com/1479-ITPR52_ ... ad_R52.php

T42:

http://www.usanotebook.com/1563-ITPT42_ ... ad_t42.php

The main reason I'm considering these is the 6 month warranty. Is there a better online place to purchase used Think Pads online? I'm always willing to find the best deal.

Thanks

#5 Post by **Harryc** » Sat Sep 06, 2008 1:00 pm

I'm sellng a T43 in the Marketplace forum with 7 months of IBM warranty. It's a much better deal than either of the machines/prices you mentioned. PM me if you are interested.

seaweedsl · #6 Post by **seaweedsl** » Sat Sep 06, 2008 5:16 pm

I have serveral comments for you:

1)Price: The R series are often cheaper than the T series because they are a bit thicker. The T series is the premium thin version and at a certain point, thinner costs more. The R series uses the same motherboards and is basically (excepting graphics in certain cases) as good inside for comparable models.

2) Quality: The R52 came out a little later than the T42 and is more similar in advantages and issues to the T43.
The T42 is a bit older. Quality is the same, performance may be a bit better with the R52

Your mother will probably never know the difference unless you go to upgrade the hard drive. The R52 or T43 are pickier about which hard drives, than the R51 or T40,41,42.

I understand that the R52 or T43 is least likely of all it's siblings to have motherboard problems. R50, R51 and the T42 are next most reliable

Although many people never have any problem, the T40 or T41 are considered most susceptible to this known issue, and I personally don't recommend or buy them.

3) Seller: I'd investigate USA notebooks before buying from them. Check their reputation. Having a nice website does not mean they are particularly trustworthy or any less risk than ebay, which is definitely cheaper. I do buy on Ebay, but buying on Marketplace here has been a very good experience for me and you will usually find a better condition machine and get more personal attention from sellers here like Harryc, Ajkula66, BobA and many others. These guys care about the stuff they sell and are not just pumping product through. There are sometimes better deals than Ebay but you always get solid value for the price here and I think it's the lowest risk way to buy used.

4) LCD. If your mom is not carrying it around much, then she will probably like the 15" better. There are different resolutions availible, and you may want to look at XGA or SXGA+ and possibly UXGA screens to see which she would prefer. XGA is cheaper and most common, though.

5) Alternatives. For an all around good machine for incredible value, the R51 is worth considering. A 15" R51 will go for around $300 on Ebay nowdays. There are about 40 R51s for sale at any given time. Competition is good!

Not recommending sellers or even Ebay, but look at these to get an idea of price and realize that you are buying the same off-lease machines from USA notebooks.

15" R51: http://tinyurl.com/664g4q

15: R51 that a friend is bidding on:
http://tinyurl.com/5tksjp

15" R51 with SXGA+ screen: http://tinyurl.com/6zljak

here's a 14": http://tinyurl.com/6fqkl6

If you do choose to buy on ebay, you can always post a link here before bidding and see if anybody sees a shortcoming...

tectron · #7 Post by **tectron** » Sat Sep 06, 2008 6:00 pm

Awesome! Thanks so much for all of the suggestions, I have a better grasp of what is what now. I think I may go the ebay route. I found this R52

http://cgi.ebay.com/IBM-LENOVO-THINKPAD ... otohosting

Does this seem like a reasonable price? 435 shipped and has 2 gigs of ram. and warranty till 7-09

Thanks

seaweedsl · #8 Post by **seaweedsl** » Sat Sep 06, 2008 7:21 pm

tectron wrote:Awesome! Thanks so much for all of the suggestions, I have a better grasp of what is what now. I think I may go the ebay route. I found this R52

http://cgi.ebay.com/IBM-LENOVO-THINKPAD ... otohosting

Does this seem like a reasonable price? 435 shipped and has 2 gigs of ram. and warranty till 7-09

Thanks

It's not a 15", but the price is fair, I'd say, considering it's the newer, faster R52, Fingerprint, 2GB RAM, and a year of warranty !

XP install with recovery partition and good battery wraps it up. It's easily $100 better than your average R51-2.

Can't go wrong unless the seller misrepresents. Seller does look good, bit light on the feedback but the signs are right.

In all, this is a good choice for your mom if she doesn't have a lot of data and doesn't need the bigger screen.

Cheers,
Steve

tectron · #9 Post by **tectron** » Sat Sep 06, 2008 11:11 pm

I bought it

I'll know in a week or so how good of a deal it is

seaweedsl · #10 Post by **seaweedsl** » Sun Sep 07, 2008 5:52 pm

Good for you. You are much better off with an IBM warranty than a USA notebooks one.

And I think you got more for your money. The 2 GB ram is nice. This machine should perform very well for as long as XP is acceptable as an OS.

Be sure to make a set of recovery disks when you get it. Can do it on serveral CDs, but it's best to connect to a DVD burner and burn a DVD

I think there is a one time opportuinity to do this from the IBM recovery software, so don't wait too long, and do verify that it's done right.

Search the forums for advice on making recovery disks.

In addition, I would also ghost or image the drive onto a spare drive of some kind as extra protection. That way, if her windows gets messed, you've got system restore, then the hidden partition. If the drive goes out, you've got the recovery disks, or the hard drive.

Steve

tectron · #11 Post by **tectron** » Thu Sep 11, 2008 9:32 pm

Thanks for all of your advice.

Fed Ex brought it today and it was just as described, almost looks new.

I think I want to get my own think pad now. Its the most solid feeling laptop I have used.

seaweedsl · #12 Post by **seaweedsl** » Thu Sep 11, 2008 11:52 pm

tectron wrote:Thanks for all of your advice.

Fed Ex brought it today and it was just as described, almost looks new. I think I want to get my own think pad now. Its the most solid feeling laptop I have used.

Fantastic.

If you get one, maybe a T43/T43p for you. The thin/performace version of the R52. Top of the line and it's series. Not perfect (heat/fan issues?) but improved motherboard durability. Best of all, the p series has one of the best screens in laptops- still to this day.

Since the T43/43p and the R52 correspond, you'd have many swappable parts for easier maintenance.

Steve

#13 Post by **underclocker** » Sat Sep 13, 2008 7:43 am

Just a note, T60's have started to sell in the $400 range on eBay. I picked one up in mint condition (14" LCD, Intel GPU) with 2 years warranty remaining for under $400.

Prices for many ThinkPads overlap, T42/T43/R52/Z60m/Z60t/Z61m/Z61t/T60/R60 - there are a lot of great choices in the $400 range...if you're patient.

Should I buy a R42 or an R51

Should I buy a R42 or an R51

Who is online