Contemplating an x6 series thinkpad, what to look for ?

[paul*robertson]

Hi,

I am thinking of getting an x6 series thinkpad for general use, nothing intensive. It will supplement my 600x and Samsung Vista laptops, but with increased portability. I like the size and projected battery life. What do i need to look out for when searching for a used model. Which 6 series to go for. Any must have features, or things to avoid. Any tips please or pointers in the right direction. Doing a search i've read something about ultrabright displays. Is this only on certain models.

thanks in advance
Paul.

[Atreides]

I've been looking for an x6 as well, finally decided on the x60s. (See my thread around here)

The UltraLight screen is nice, but from what I've seen it is very hard to find it (at least in the x60s). This may be because I am looking solely on ebay, but most models of the x60s came with the regular XGA screen.

[paul*robertson]

I've been looking for an x6 as well, finally decided on the x60s. (See my thread around here)

The UltraLight screen is nice, but from what I've seen it is very hard to find it (at least in the x60s). This may be because I am looking solely on ebay, but most models of the x60s came with the regular XGA screen.

Ultrabright, does that refer to the "glossy" screens you see on modern laptops.

A few more questions.

1. Do all x6 seires have the fingerprint reader
2. Do any have a dvd drive. How do you deal with that, external drive?

[ZaZ]

The ultralight is not a glossy screen. It's brighter than the regular screens. It's 180 nits while the standard screens are 150 nits.

Not all X60 have the fingerprint reader.

You can do an external or get the X6 ultrabase, which makes it less mobile. If you're looking to play movies if you've got a big enough drive you could rip them to the drive and play them that way.

[crazyfrog]

The ultralight is not a glossy screen. It's brighter than the regular screens. It's 180 nits while the standard screens are 150 nits.

Another merit of X60s/X61s' ultralight screen is that it is a little lighter in weight than regular screen. The difference in weight between an ultralight screen and a regular screen is noticeable.

[ajkula66]

Generally, X60 tends to run cooler and quieter than X61.

Models marked with "s" use low-voltage CPUs to maximize battery life. Some of them-far and few between-have the previously discussed "ultralight" LCDs.

Depending on your needs and budget, there's a lot to choose from, and options can be mind-blowing.

Personally, my pick would be X60/s, especially at today's low prices.

[paul*robertson]

What would you expect to pay for a good condition x60. Anything to look out for, cracked hinges etc.

Ebay (not always my favourite place to buy) they tend to be around the £300 mark. Some have warrenty, some not.

[crazyfrog]

What would you expect to pay for a good condition x60. Anything to look out for, cracked hinges etc.

Ebay (not always my favourite place to buy) they tend to be around the £300 mark. Some have warrenty, some not.

£200-£350 subject to specification (Processor/ram/hdd) and conditioins. X60 has no known potential issue, but you might pay attention to CPU fan and battery capacity. Well used / dust clogged fan can be a little noisy and inefficient to bring cpu temperature down. X6 is an ultra portable/travel laptop, so a good battery is crucial on road.

[ajkula66]

paul*robertson wrote:

What would you expect to pay for a good condition x60. Anything to look out for, cracked hinges etc.

Ebay (not always my favourite place to buy) they tend to be around the £300 mark. Some have warrenty, some not.

I'm not that familiar with prices in the UK, but since I've sold several ThinkPads in that area lately, and my machines usually do not come cheap, I'd assume substantially higher prices than around here. My uneducated guess would be that a $300 machine from here turns into 300 pound sterling machine where you are.

My suggestion would be to post a WTB ad in the forum's Marketplace. You will likely pay a few quid more than you would on eBay, but sheer peace of mind is worth it IMHO.

If I were buying a X6x outside of the forum, I'd look for the machine with warranty remaining, and assume the battery to be downright dead, bearing these calculations in mind. RAM and HDD can be cheaply upgraded, so they're really not an issue per se. Performance-excluding late X60 units with Core 2 Duo CPUs-should be quite uniform across the board for most daily "on the go" tasks. Unless you're intent on gaming (not a good idea with these), even the lower-end X60 units will feel quite comfortable and fast enough.

My $0.02 only...

[paul*robertson]

For the X60 completed listings on ebay come in around £200 ($330). For the x31 (my other option) they are around £100.
Decisions,decisions.

[crazyfrog]

For the X60 completed listings on ebay come in around £200 ($330). For the x31 (my other option) they are around £100.
Decisions,decisions.

Dual core X60 is definitely worth the additional £100. Go for an X60 if you don't want to look around very soon.

[paul*robertson]

Regarding mobile broadband. With the X6 series, do you still need to stick a dongle in the side, or do they have any features where it can be "built in".

[Atreides]

Some X60's came with a WWAN antennae build in. This should be easy to spot as it sticks about half a centimeter out of the top right of the screen bezel.

If that's not what you're looking for, then I'm afraid you'd have to get an external usb or pcmcia card.