The Thinkpad laptop was essentially a group effort by all of the Japanese electronics industry to create an American business laptop that was reliable, robust, and able to withstand the rigors of mobile computing. It wasn't by any means, the best or fastest hardware, but they were built to last and work. I feel Lenovo was passed that torch and has done quite well in keeping the Thinkpad line alive well after IBM got out of the personal computer market.
A major benefit to using a business class machine is the Thinkpad is well-supported with drivers and replacement hardware. They are also quite easy to work with, not requiring removal of over-sized toy-like and bulky chassis like a Dell and not requiring an Nth level of redundant dis-assembly to service like Sony or HP. They are quite easy to work on and typically require minimal maintenance.
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| IBM Thinkpad 600x |
IBM Thinkpad 600X
I was first introduced to the Thinkpad line in 2000 while working at the Odessa American. One of the reporters had a 600X with a Pentium 3 450MHz processor and a 20GB hard drive. I remember this because, at the time, the specs matched that of my dad's Gateway and slightly higher than my own Gateway.
My co-worker often bragged of playing Rogue Spear on the machine, which I had also played very nearly every night. I was impressed by the amount of power and the fact he'd spent close to 2 grand for it. Still, I would have loved such a high-priced toy. Before this, my only experience with an IBM machine was a very quirky ThinkCenter at McDonald's which seemed to crash simply by looking at it.
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| IBM Thinkpad 380 Series |
IBM Thinkpad 380
In 2007, I was given an IBM THinkpad 380 Series by my boss at Discover-net. The machine sported a Pentium II 300MHz processor and 196MB of RAM (2x 128MB of RAM) and a 10GB hard drive. At first she wanted me to fix it up for her son to use, but after getting several viruses, she gave up on it.
Her only stipulation on it was if I sold it, she be reimbursed for the two sticks of RAM she had bought. $50. Easily enough, I reformatted the hard drive, stuck Windows 2000 Pro on it, and used it for a makeshift Unreal Tournament server. Eventually, I decided to sell it and was able to split the $100 with my boss.
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| IBM Thinkpad T20 |
IBM Thinkpad T20
Shortly before my gave me the 380, I'd purchased a T60 from eBay to use as my secondary machine at work. I used it mostly for working in Putty for SSH sessions. The machine sported a Pentium III 650MHz processor, 512MB of RAM and a 20GB hard drive and was running Windows 98 Second Edition.
The machine has a SiS 8MB graphics card, but was easily able to run games like Unreal Tournament, Return to Castle Wolfenstein, and Soldier of Fortune. Through stroke of luck, I was given a 40GB hard drive by a client when they upgraded their laptop to a more spacious 120GB drive.
Running Windows 2000, I was fortunate to resell the computer for $150, the same amount I had purchased it for. I only sold the machine in 2008 because my Supervisor had given me an HP Compaq Evo N600 in exchange for refurbishing several additional machines he'd brought for projects and to sell.
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| IBM Thinkpad A20 |
IBM Thinkpad A20 repairs
Around this time, my boss's daughter brought her Thinkpad A20 into the office for repairs. She'd damaged the PCMCIA modem and had wanted me to remove the damaged card and find a replacement for her. Fortunately for her, I went one better and simply replaced the integrated hardware modem the system had internally.
The 20, 30, and 40 Series all were equipped with the needed ports for modem and ethernet, they simply had to have the correct daughter card installed to add the functionality. She was back up and running within a week. Again, the vast amount of replacement parts made repairs very simple.
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| IBM Thinkpad T40 |
IBM Thinkpad T40
This is where I ran into one of my first duds in the Thinkpad lines. As nice as the Evo N600 was, they were not Thinkpad class and I decided to replace it with similar hardware. After searching eBay, I found an excellent seller in Colorado who was selling T40s for $150 shipped and promptly placed my order.
When I received it, the machine was running Windows 98 and I promptly upgraded to Windows 2000. Unfortunately, I'd noticed the sound driver had not been loaded during the previous install and made a note to grab the correct Windows 2000 drivers. After completing the installation of network drivers, the sound still was not working.
After a few days of trying to detect hardware, I noticed the modem was also not functioning. After checking with Thinkforums, i found it to be a common issue with the T40. Luckily, the seller graciously accepted a return, even offering to compensate me for the additional RAM I'd purchased.
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| IBM Thinkpad T41 |
IBM Thinkpad T41
After running into my first eBay dud, I'd decided to play it safe and order a refurbished T41 from Tiger Direct. I paid an extra $50 for peace of mind and got the original IBM OS Install CDs with it. The computer was in stellar condition and served me well for the next two years.
Pentium 4M - 1.6GHz, 2 Gigs of RAM, and a 60GB Hard drive. The graphics were an ATI Radeon 9700 with 32 MB of RAM - I might add, a slight boost over the Evo N600's P3 1.3GHz, more RAM, but the same graphics card.
In December 2009, I picked up an HP Mini, which replaced my Thinkpad in the hardware department and brought me to the Windows 7 OS. Having a newer system with better hardware, I decided to loan out the Thinkpad to my sister, who had been struggling with a slightly older Dell laptop. From there, my story jumps forward a few years.
also see blog post phasing-out-older-machines July 2013
Changes to the Thinkpad line
During the mid-2000s, IBM shifted production of the Thinkpad line to computer company, Lenovo. I believe this included Series 40 and on.
In 2005, Lenovo purchased the IBM personal computer business and the ThinkPad brand along with it. Speaking of the purchase of IBM's personal computer division, Liu Chuanzhi said, "We benefited in three ways from the IBM acquisition. We got the ThinkPad brand, IBM's more advanced PC manufacturing technology and the company's international resources, such as its global sales channels and operation teams. These three elements have shored up our sales revenue in the past several years." ~ "Acquisition by Lenovo," ThinkPad Wikipedia Article
Many of the people I knew on the Thinkpad Enthusiasts' sites were worried quality would take a dive when Lenovo acquired the Thinkpad line. There have been issues with batteries, but that was not necessarily a Lenovo issue, but rather, a battery issue that affected many other computer manufacturers. I confess, I haven't noticed significant changes in quality, but rather, more diversity in the product lineups.
Lenovo Thinkpad Tablets
In February on 2013, I was discussing tablets with a fellow airsofter on Airsoft Ohio chat. His school had issued Lenovo Thinkpad x230 Tablets to students. He'd mentioned it's sluggish performance and the monetary details of his responsibility towards the school-issued equipment.
My solution to his problem was adding RAM to the system and getting around the draconian school OS installations by removing the harddrive, installing his own, and installing his OS of choice. This would allow him to use the machine as he wished on his time, but return the school drive for use when needed for various school-related functions. Oh, and I also found a very inexpensive source for Lenovo Stylus to save him $50, should he lose it, with an additional scheme to sell them to his fellow students at a tidy profit. :D
My research into the tablet led me to the realization that its compact size and better processing power made it an ideal replacement for the netbooks I'd had. Preferring a smaller machine due to having to carry my computer to work on foot and because I had limited space at my new apartment, I began to scour eBay for an affordable netbook replacement.
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| Lenovo Thinkpad X61 Tablet |
Lenovo Thinkpad X61 Tablet
In early March (2013), I ordered my first X61 Tablet from eBay. It was in poor shape, but otherwise was operational. The system sported a 12" multitouch display, 150GB hard drive, Ram expandable to 8GB, and the much-coveted 1.8GHz Core 2 Duo processor.
The X61 Tablet is an expanded version of the compact X61 Series notebook. It's a smaller-sized machine that lacks integrated optical drive to save on power and space requirements. The idea behind it being you have the power of a full-sized notbook in a very compact form factor.
Indeed, the X61 Tablet was preceded by the X40/41 tablet which was powered by Penitum 4-M archecture and sported similar 1.5 GHz - 1.8 GHz processors. The X60/61 Tablets were offered in Core 2 Duo 1.6 and 1.8 GHz versions, the 1.8GHz being somewhat more difficult to find. I lucked out and got one ont he first try!
I soon began to pick up replacement parts and components to fully restore the X61 to full functionality when I came across a second 1.6 GHz Tablet for $80. YOINK!!! I simply had to replace the missing hard drive and find an AC adapter - problem was solved, problem would stay solved.
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| Lenovo Thinkpad T61 |
Lenovo Thinkpad T61
As I had mentioned in an earlier blog post, my experiences with the T61 Series had been a few years earlier while working for a client. I had performed an OS downgrade and was very pleased with the newest Lenovo offering. I made a mental note to look back at the machine a few years later when I'd begun looking for a new laptop.
As much as I enjoy my X61 tablets and my current work computer, a Dell Inspiron E1505, I want something with better processing options, better RAM upgrades, and better screen resolution. I also wanted to continue to be able to have a reliable system with access to spare and replacement parts.
Realistically, my T61 can be upgraded to a 2.5Ghz Core 2 Duo, 8 GB of RAM, and has excellent high resolution at 1440 x 900. And at around $180 for a used machine, I'm staying within a very low budget and still coming out ahead.
Gaming vs. Work
To those who do follow my blog, I do enjoy playing a few old favorites - Unreal Tournament, Battlefield 2, etc. But I do, very much, work from my machines. I watch movies, I write boring blog posts, and troll Airsoft Ohio Chat. At the end of the day, I want a machine I can trust to do my job and help in winding down when I get home.
I don't need a dedicated gaming machine that requires constant tweaking and special cooling considerations. I just need something that works and that will let me do my work.
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