A20m upgrading, is it worth it?

[icefire]

I just recieved a free old A20m, it needs a new OS, a bigger hard drive, and more memory.Also has no wireless card. Is it worth it to do all this to it, or should I just spring for a better/newer laptop? It will be used mostly for web surfing, but also to transfer music files, and maybe some home recording of music if it could be made to do it...

[hausman]

IMO it's not worth it unless you can find upgrade parts at really good prices. If you're lucky you may be able to find them used on places like eBay or Craigslist. In particular the type of memory modules this system uses, SDRAM, is now very expensive. And even if you do upgrade to maximum RAM you'll find that this generation of systems can't run WinXP and modern applications like web browsers at reasonable speeds. If you're OK with say, Win98 or Win2k, then maybe.

[icefire]

Thanks, with that answer, I'm leaning towards NOT trying to upgrade it. It was running on Win 2000, I wanted to upgrade it to XP, but if if can't do that, it's a deal killer right there. I did see cheap parts on http://www.tigerdirect.com, but I think I'll just pass on it...

[spuddog]

I disagree, I had an A20m and it was a nice machine. I upgrade everything and had less than $150.00 in it. The real benefit was that I learned how to upgrade a laptop.

Scott

[Robbyrobot]

And even if you do upgrade to maximum RAM you'll find that this generation of systems can't run WinXP and modern applications like web browsers at reasonable speeds.

You know, you don't really need 4 GB of RAM to run WinXP and a browser, even if some now think this is the absolute minimum. The A2x series takes max. 512 MB RAM - the only real limitation of the series - but this is perfectly adequate for XP and "normal" usage ("modern" games, i.e. full-blown video and stereo sound excluded). As for the WLAN, use a PCMCIA card. No problem, unless you worry about things like security in a WLAN as I do. In that case, use a cable.

[hausman]

Let me clarify. My point is that it's not worthwhile to upgrade an A2x generation ThinkPad unless you can get the necessary parts cheap. Unfortunately some parts, especially SDRAM aren't generally cheap. The same applies to WinXP if you buy an upgrade at retail. If you can find inexpensive used parts and/or view this as an educational experience then go ahead.

I have an A21p with 512MB and WinXP Pro. It runs quite slow even when just browsing using Firefox (and even Google Chrome.) I've also tried Ubuntu. Even that runs too slow to use as a primary PC. Admittedly my experience is subjective, but I wanted to share it before the OP spent a lot of money on upgrades only to discover the limitations of a sub-GHz CPU and 512MB RAM running modern software.

Also consider alternatives. You can buy a new netbook or a newer, used notebook for the about the same as the likely cost of upgrading an A2x generation notebook, especially since the OP "needs a new OS, a bigger hard drive, and more memory [plus a] wireless card."

[sjthinkpader]

I wouldn't run XP on a A2x either. Win2K is just much more compact in every respect. Even .NET Framework will run on SP4.

But, A3x and R5x are cheap enough today and they are much more modern.

[virge]

I just finished upgrading an A22p. If you already have an OS, its not really expensive at all. Getting two modules of 256MB, low density PC100 memory is probably the biggest expense. Look to spend between $30-$50 on that unless you spot a good deal on Ebay. I got mine for about $12 a piece. Mine is a 1Ghz model, so its probably a little faster than your A20m. I currently run a slimmed down version of XP on a 20GB 5400RPM ($25) drive-- its adequate, but definitely slower than my X30 (1.12Ghz, 1GB PC133 memory). For work related things (web browser and office programs) its perfectly adequate, and the UXGA LCD provides a ton more desktop area than XGA. Its slow on flash video and other CPU or GPU intensive tasks. I've set it up for use as a desktop replacement for use at a satellite office. With a USB 2.0 card ($10) (so I can sync files on a flash drive) and PCMCIA wireless ($15), it's everything I need. It would probably be faster with Win2k, but I don't have much experience with that OS. For an A22p for personal use, its worth it. If I were selling it, then it wouldn't be. Just my $0.02.

[ajkula66]

One thing to remember is that A20 was the bottom of the A2x series while A22p was its pinnacle...A20m has either 4 or 8MB VRAM which is not enough for anything apart from web browsing and office work in W2K nowadays...also, CPU maxes out at 750Mhz, which feels a lot slower than 1Ghz used in top-of-the-line versions of A22m and A22p, the latter having 16MB VRAM...

Having said that, A20m with a 700/750Mhz CPU, 512MB RAM and a decent 5400rpm HDD will be sufficient as a backup machine if one can stick to W2K or a lighter old Linux such as PCL OS in its 2006 form...

That was my first ThinkPad and I'm getting sentimental here...