/tpg/ - ThinkPad General

Previous thread: If you're looking for purchase advice, state your budget and requirements (e.g. size and performance).
Don't buy anything OTHER THAN IBM/Lenovo ThinkPad T, X, and W/P Series if you want the Real Business Experience™

>Other business laptops are welcome in /tpg/ (Dell Latitude/Precision, HP EliteBook/ZBook).

Libreboot-compatible models:
>T60, X60; X200, T400/500; W500.
Modern models:
>X220/X230 - 12", 768p, cheap and light
>T420/T430 - 14", 900p, widely available, socketed CPU, both Coreboot-compatible (Ivy Bridge CPU support on T420); Old keyboard swap on *30 series
>T520/530; W520/530 - 15", 1080p, DTR, 32GB RAM on quadcore models, USB 3.0
>T440p/540p; W540/1 - Last Thinkpads with socketed processors, easily replaceable trackpad (W541 doesn't need trackpad replacement)
>P-Series - 15'' + 17'', 4K display, up to 64GB of RAM, Xeon CPU option. Expensive.

Why ThinkPad?
>Used machines are plentiful and cheap
>Excellent keyboards - tactile feel and quiet
>Great durability: magnesium rollcage for structural integrity, with high quality plastic body panels
>Utilitarian design: e.g. indicator LEDs, 7 row keyboard layout on older models
>Docking stations that easily turns your laptop into a desktop
>Easy to repair (most models), upgrade & maintain thanks to readily available service manuals for every model, spare parts easy & cheap to obtain
>The best TrackPoint, great for those who type a lot or hate swiping their fingers all over a touchpad
>Excellent GNU/Linux & *BSD support

>Hardware Maintenance Manuals (HMM's) and Windows drivers for legacy devices:
download.lenovo.com/eol
>Used laptop guides by xsauc:
dankpads.com
>ThinkWiki - Info on ThinkPads & running GNU/Linux on them:
thinkwiki.org/wiki/ThinkWiki
>ThinkPad service guides w/ tutorial videos:
lenovoservicetraining.com/ (currently not working, possibly indefinitely)
>BIOS logo booru:
biosimage.booru.org/

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Other urls found in this thread:

gumtree.com/p/laptops/top-spec-8gb-ram-240gb-ssd-i5-4th-gen-lenovo-thinkpad-x240-windows-laptop/1295550961
twitter.com/AnonBabble

first for thinkcat

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>tfw you will never have a thinkpad that is new

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Get a refurbished chinkpad, closest ul get

should I install gentoo on my T60?
It will be my first time installing gentoo and my first thinkpad as well
got a T60 and X220 for like $160 everything

Intel or ATI graphics?

trannyboot the t60 if you can

Whats the best battery life one can get out of a x201s?

Anyone here?

Probably 8 hours with a 9 cell.

intel

Libreboot and Trisquel.

Watching anime in bed currently till i pass out

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What anime on what thinkpad?
>you better be watching k-on on a x220t

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What font does HyperTerminal use? It's so comfy.

Didn't see one of those "workstation" threads we've had in the past, so what's the "thinkpad of workstations"?

IOW the best bang for the buck for used workstation computers on ebay or the like. Optiplex? HP zXXX?

Also would it be dumb of me to buy a 1U server? For example 2x6-core 3.33Ghz Xeons (Westmere? I think?) with 32Gb RAM? Primarily be doing simulations and other programming shit. Hell, maybe make my own shittier version of Jow Forums and do some actual serving lol. Or run IPFS or Freenet or something off of it. I dunno.

>what's the "thinkpad of workstations"?
p series

Okay what's the "thinkpad of actual desktop workstations without built in monitors specifically not laptops"?

t420

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thinkcentre??

i dont know. optiplexes are a step down from hp Zx iirc

me too

Yamada-kun to 7-nin no Majo
w520

Considering buying a modded x230 with classic keyboard and with a 13.3 1920X1080 IPS screen.

Would I be able to swap the classic keybaord that ships as english layout to a classic nordic keyboard with having to remod everything?

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I dont see why not

Hvem selger den? er det kineseren?

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Yep

meanto say without having to remod everything***

Is the X201t still good for light use (word processing, light programming, and media consumption)?

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I still use my x201 on a regular basis with few hiccups, with only 4gb of ram. But consider the weight increase with the touch model, I found my x201 much better to use, compared to my x220t.

did you mail him? what was his price?

529$ a x230 I7-3520M with 12.5 2K 2560X1440 SHARP IPS screen (Shipping to EU (50$) and 8% paypal fee) included.

I realize that it is stupid to go for the 2K screen due to battery drainage and 1080p is more than enough.

I assume the price for the FHD screen is the same, maybe a bit lower if we're lucky.

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Makes sense, ive seen the price without shipping, go for it and let us know how it pans out, apparently the guy's the real deal

>2k screen
As you said, it's not the best idea if you need long battery life. If you're just gonna use it at home then go for it. I'm currently on a x260 with a 1080p screen and I'm actually considering a lower spec version of the x280 when I have to upgrade next month just because I need those 10 hours+ of battery life on a regular basis.

yeah it's still usable

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t430 w/arch 3rd gen graphics deal and i5 ~3.3 ghz. 16 gb of ram. when i startx it is very slow. I figured some driver was important so i installed xorg-drivers. now kernel modules are fucked and the x server won't start.

am i alone in these problems? is there a good fix?

install gentoo :^)

Which is the best budget Thinkpad with a good cpu for ligth gaming? sorry for the bad english.

>tfw you will never stress about buying a laptop at retail price to get work done

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x201(t), best 200 series thinkpad?
>price not inflated by muh freedom cargo culters that are probably too dumb to flash libreboot properly (x200)
>price not inflated by an army of reddit & Jow Forums shitheads recommending it in every "what's a good cheap laptop" thread (x220, x230)
>still fast enough for general use
>touchpad-free option
>find an x201s for /tpg/ cred and accompanying power, adoration, women

Which is the best budget Thinkpad with a good gpu for ligth/medium gaming? sorry for the bad english.

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>work
I get mine from work. For free and with the option to keep it for a nominal amount after 2 years.

The chinks have modded the old x200 with a brand new screen and motherboard containing

>8'th gen CPU's,
>Intel 620 GPU
>2 DDR4 ram slots (up to 32GB)
>1920x1200 12.1" IPS display
>3 storage options--1x M.2 NVMe, 1x mSATA, 1x 2.5" SATA.
>3x USB-A (2x 3.0 and 1x 2.0)
>ethernet
>no docking port option***

The downside is the price though: 980USD for the I5-8250U model then add:

>+200$ for the I7 -8550U model
>+170$ for 16 GB DDR4 ram (double this if you want 32)

Another downside is that you need to find the bios updates through ubscure chinese forums (bios update can only be done through windows) along with having to get all the drivers to play together and changing power usage manually to get better battery times.

Honastly it sounds cool but I feel the x230 with classic keyboard and FHD ips screen is the safest choice.

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well 'very slow' is an understatement. It seems I can see the rendering happen live. the screen tearing was something i could watch happen.

thinking about it. Will it actually just werk?

w530

What OS should I install on my x220? gonna be using it for school



Model paint & a steady, practiced hand.
But it's probably still gonna look shite.


openSUSE Tumbleweed

3K screen + 100 Wh battery can last 2-3 days of light use.
The screen arrived before the battery, can't comment on how long the 1080p TN screen would have gone with this battery.

Bought a E580 and did a fresh install of Linux Mint. Everything runs fine except it feels like my screen has a refresh rate of 30hz. Can't find any info about the refresh rate of this model. But I suspect it's an issue with Linux os? Any anons can help?

You can't really compare your screen to the 2K mod of the x230 though

From what I've read the x230 2K screen eats up power like a monster

man I wish BBSes weren't dead

RIP the good ol days

Ok, wasn't aware of that. Thought it was an IPS/TN thing.

Depending on what you mean by "budget", try:
>W510
>Sx40

My uncle has an IBM (pretty sure it's from the 90's/early 00's). Gotta check what model to be sure, but I was wondering if it would be worth trying to refurbish it. Don't mind doing a bit of work, but is it a worthy task? Or am I better of just buying some cheap normie shit to suit my needs?

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is there anyway to get the dolby drivers working in linux with the x230? In windows with the driver the speakers are far louder where is in linux without this driver they sound like dogshit

You definitely won't be able to use it for your needs. But that doesn't mean it's not worthwhile refurbishing.

>tfw bought t480s for half the price when its basically new and unused

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>get accepted for an accounting internship
>"user, you have to bring your own laptop next week"
>mfw

I'm gonna start on Monday and my x220 is covered with cumstains. I'm gonna DBAN this little nigger and shower it with isoprophyl

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Is it ok to clean it with alcohol or will it fuck up the plastic?

What's the catch? Or are you just larping?

IS THE X60/X61 THE ONLY SQUARE LAPTOP LEFT IN EXISTENCE
FUCKS SAKE

Well there's X40/X41 too

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Hello friends.

I am just searching for a libreboot compatible machine & in looking at the ones listed here + on their website, i narrowed my search down to the T500?

Any qualms with this? Anybody have one or something?

Those goddamn asymmetrical bezels. If that doesn't bother you, then it's fine as far as I know, I don't own one because I can't handle the bezels.

Story is that the guy bought it in germany using some student discount and didnt like it so he sold it here cheaper, unaware that t480s with gpu is not even sold here, he underpriced it significally.
As for catches, didnt notice any with laptop itself, there was no invoice so maybe he stole it idk, lenovo honours warranty based on serial number itself so i shouldnt have any issues.

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Doing the same, can really recommend it.
Replaced screen for a 1920*1200 screen with LED lighting for outdoor use,

Replaced CPU with the quadcore QX9300
Bought the sinfully expensive ultrabay battery.

I'm set for life m8, can srsly recommend.

It does, but I don't know any realistic alternatives :)
This was an incredible relief to hear. Anything you would change if you could? If I may ask, what are you using it for?

Thank you both for the responses, I really appreciate it. Love you lots

I have problem with the sound on my T420, when I ever I shake it a little it stop playing any sounds, I opened up but didn't help at all, I think it's the sound chip or loose wire.
Any way I thought getting a DAC should help overcoming this issue, right?
Is it better to get PCI DAC, or get USB DAC?
Any cheap one would do?

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What's the WiFi range of most thinkpads?
Specifically the xx20 series.

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Probably this question was made a milion times, but i recently buy an x220t. What's the best distro that works well with the touchscreen?

Something with GNOME or KDE.

I get predicted 6 hours with a new battery on Kubuntu (while on wifi and nearly max brightness which I find the comfiest). I didn't really tweak anything for better battery life though.

>I have a t60 15" with a t61 mobo and CPU with a 1600x1200 flexview display I'd be willing to sell (it's also been modded with an led backlight) 8gb of ddr2 ram and SSD.
I suppose you wouldn't sell it cheap when it's modded? I have X201s that just werks and it would feel like a waste if I spent too much even though these mods sound great. I also hope to find one locally so I wouldn't have to pay 50$ for shipping.

Hiya, do I need to patch the bios of a x230 to use a 9cell battery from ebay?

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Not sure if I should be posting this here, but I'm looking to buy a laptop in the $1200 ballpark for gaming, BIM, and CAD software, so it should be pretty powerful around the board. What would Jow Forums recommend?

I wouldn't. There's no need to stress the CPU with compiling all of your software, and it may take a while to do it.

Any P-series workstation on ebay that fits your budget - they're all good.

What brand is that?

I've just received 4 WUXGA FHD IPS screens for T440p and compatible models.
Excellent, except that whilst unpacking them I found they sent me glossy ones. The clause "we may send you compatible ones" may save seller's ass and it turns out that glossy have a higher market value than matte. But, well, they ain't matte.
What do? Would you use/buy a T440p with glossy FHD IPS?

Yup, why not. Half of monitor panels are glossy, I don't have an issue with that.

Good taste in pens user.

Anyone?

Anyone got any experience with x380 yoga?

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I've got a silly question.
I've got pic related to get comfy while using my T420, the issue is when I type there's this small rocking motion and the trouble of getting in and out while moving the laptop while it's running.
Is this safe for the internals of the T420? mainly the HDD?

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>Replaced CPU with the quadcore QX9300
Noice. Did the CPU require additional steps? Like modifying the motherboard or something

Hot Topic: What is objectively the best ThinkPad?
What is objectively the best toughbook?

Looking at getting to the ThinkPad meme, but I don't know where to start. Ebay auctions seem like such a pain.

What is a good prices range for the t420, the x220 and the x230?

Does this look like a good deal?

gumtree.com/p/laptops/top-spec-8gb-ram-240gb-ssd-i5-4th-gen-lenovo-thinkpad-x240-windows-laptop/1295550961

I'm a mac toddler sysadmin. Macbook pro broke yesterday and I want something solid to put Debian stable on.

You mean ssd

No,I mean HDD, I haven't put a SSD

I've contacted the reseller, since I'm a good customer of him he's going to change the glossy screen with matte ones for free (in the original order I did expressly request "matte")
It's nice that some people out there seem to like glossy, but these T440p will get a new backlit keyboard, a new trackpad, 2x8 GB DDR3L-1866, a Samsung EV0 860 and a secondary M.2 512GB SSD – people going for these don't want glossy usually

High price for a x240, no matter the (used) SSD. If you want a fast replacement, you may need to pay a high price. If you can wait, you can find at half that price (if not 1/3, if you manage to put in an SSD yourself and if you are ok with a different keyboard layout)

Where do you live?

So I bought a T40 yesterday for a relatively cheap price (considering where I live). Anyone had the experience of putting a PATA SSD on those? How much did it actually impact speed?

Great, thanks for the tip. I'll try and get the price down below £240. I'm tight for time and massively fucked without a laptop, so can't really wait.

Is there anything to watch out for when looking at it?

I have a x240
do you guys think it's a good idea to remove the internal battery as it may damage the laptop at some point if it expands?

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Any thoughts about the t580?

The BIOS should be unlocked and Computrace should be not activated. All the USB ports must work. A live USB may assist in further diagnosing but it all boils down to how much of an iToddler you are. Check if the monitor is IPS or not, 1366x768 is a pain already.Check if a smart card reader is present. Check for crack at the edges and for loose hinges.

get a mac.

Just bought a supposedly genuine 29++ 6 cell for my X220, getting about 4-5 hours general use on it, or 2-3 hours hard use. Does this sound about right? All reports are saying that it's got about 97% capacity.

X220 here. I get full signal on 2.4GHz about 50 meters from my router through two walls, half signal on 5GHz. Hope that helps.

That seems legit

pretty sure it'd perform worse.
I think you might need the battery even if you're using a 135w adapter.

Thanks user

T400 or T60?
it's gonna be used as a small server and to watch stuff.

I'm inclined towards the T60 for IPS but what about video playback?