/tpg/ - ThinkPad General

Previous thread:IRC: #/tpg/ on irc.rizon.net

Other business laptops are also welcome in /tpg/ (e.g. Dell Latitude/Precision, HP EliteBook/ZBook).
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If you're looking for purchase advice, READ THE BUYERS GUIDE FIRST. Then post, stating budget and requirements (e.g. size and performance).
Don't buy anything OTHER THAN T, X AND W/P SERIES if you want the Real ThinkPad Experience™

Recommended models:
T420 - 14", normal size
X220 - 12.5", ultraportable
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Why ThinkPad? (also applies to other business laptops)
>Used machines are plentiful and cheap.
>Excellent keyboards - tactile feel and quiet.
>Great durability: chassis uses a 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, upgrade and maintain thanks to readily available service manuals for every model. Spare parts are easy and cheap to obtain.
>The best trackpoint (that red thing in the middle of the keyboard). Great for those who type a lot or hate swiping their fingers all over a touchpad.
>Excellent GNU/Linux & *BSD support.
----
Used ThinkPad buyers guide:
ktgee.net/tpg

xsauc buyers guide:
dankpads.com

EPP discount for new ThinkPads (USA & Canada only, usually 15%+ off):
pastebin.com/ULHCY5ch

Helpful links and resources (Wiki, lookup tools and wallpapers):
pastebin.com/DYjEnVq1

Other urls found in this thread:

youtube.com/watch?v=y259IN-Grds
ebay.com/itm/Lenovo-Thinkpad-X201T-X201-tablet-Intel-i7-2-13-GHz-4GB-RAM-128GB-SSD-WIN7-COA-/222202847359?hash=item33bc52607f:g:1OcAAOSwRoxXmsMY
support.lenovo.com/us/en/products/Laptops-and-netbooks/ThinkPad-T-Series-laptops/ThinkPad-T420i/4178/C9U
insanelymac.com/forum/topic/285678-lenovo-thinkpad-t420-with-uefi-only/page-25#entry1952283
thelinuxrain.com/articles/got-tearing-with-proprietary-nvidia-try-this
ebay.co.uk/itm/282155775353
forum.thinkpads.com/
ebay.com/itm/Lenovo-Thinkpad-X201-Intel-Core-i7-2-00GHz-8GB-100-Bios-Locked-Win-10-Pro-CC2420-/381794402649?hash=item58e4b84159:g:urYAAOSwPCVX7uCq
twitter.com/AnonBabble

morning lads.

what are you posting on (add MTM or Service Tag for funs)?
any upgrades/mods?
any downfalls to your machine from use?

>T430s 2356-??? -_-
>LCD mod w/ E7440 AUO panel
>battery degraded 60%, 2 hour battery life. My always on USB port doesn't like mouses, tinny speakers under linux.

>battery degraded 60%
60% remaining, or 40% remaining?

Noob question: if I'm going to buy a new thinkpad(not used), should I just go with the latest one(x260/t460)? Which is the best thinkpad I can buy right now?

>any downfalls to your machine from use?

Maybe you mean "downsides"? As in disadvantages or cons, as opposed to a collapse or undoing, which is what "downfall" means. Bad cellphone reception is a downside to living in remote areas, not a downfall. Cheating was the downfall of the marriage.

If the t430 dont have the nvidia GPU how will the DP work? On my t420 it wont work without the NVIDIA GPU, anyone?

I'm currently looking for a ThinkPad to replace my Fujitsu S710.

I was thinking about getting a T430, since it's not as expensive as a T440 and only slightly slower as far as I could tell.

Are there specific things I should look out for/be aware of in general and in terms of running Linux?

And how is the "feel" compared to a T530?

>T420
>Quad Core CPU, 3 drives and eGPU.
>The lid gets dirty/scratched so easily it triggers my autism
Gonna mod a DIY cpu cooler in the near future with some additional copper and a passive heatsink since i have plenty of space down there without the dGPU.

Dunno if it'll help temps but it's going to be fun trying.

anyone?

T420 4178-AFU with model 4337 dock
250 GiB 850 EVO MSATA, 1TiB HGST HDD
I want more monitors, so I'm going to get a thinkstation soon

Is an x225 worth it for $168? it has an Intel i5 2520M(2.50GHz), 8 GB ram, and a 300 GB SSD.

Looking forward to getting my first thinkpad, I'm lost though. Thanks for these informative threads

bumpbump

Is the difference in performance between an i5-3320 and an i5-3210 significant?

>w530
>it has quadcore i7 3840qm and gayvidia k2000m
>its BIOS locked

What's the best external graphics card for the buck that goes well with the ThinkPad?

I just got a second hand x230 from a store that sells used business laptops and it's in great shape, but what I noticed immediately is that while the idle temp stays around 43-48C it's completely quiet, as in I don't even think the fan is on, but as soon as the temp goes past 50 the fan gets kinda noisy, it's still completely tolerable in terms of general use and the temps seem to be holding below 75 really well even while trying out some games.

What I'm concerned about though is that reading about this model, many people claim that the fan is barely audible even under heavy load and that's definitely not the case here, it's very audible even while browsing folders.

youtube.com/watch?v=y259IN-Grds this is pretty much exactly what I'm hearing, of course it's not perfect because there's no frame of reference.

Are the tablet versions of the X-series worth it? Thinking of buying an X230t w/ 4GB ram, 500 GB HDD, and an i5-3320M for ~200$.

gtx 950/960 or wait for the 1050/1060

I've found x220t in almost mint condition except it's missing small pads on the screen so it has nasty smears on the screen

Is it possible to fix those or I should skip?

Thanks for the info. How does one connect it to a T420?

I had a shitty experience with hybrid/tablet PCs. I would advise buying a cheap Android Lenovo minitablet and a ThinkPad/IdeaPad.

You'll need an ExpressCard - PCIe slot adapter like the EXP GDC, and an ATX desktop power supply for the adapter and the card.

>tfw ebay vendor and UPS are both incompetent shits full of incompetence so incompetent that your thinkpad is already six days late

Jesus fucking christ how bad at their job can they be, it should've been here last wednesday, now it'll be here tomorrow if everything goes smooth with leaving the money for the delivery guy. Fuck this shit, I just want my fucking thinkpad.

Classic Thinpad when? I'm refraining from upgrading from my T410 until then.

What kind of battery should I get for my thinkpad t420? The one that came with is in poor condition and only lasts about an hour before needing to be charged again.

Can anyone offer any insight?

What QC proc did you go for? $?
What are your temps?
Considering the same for my T420

Pulled the trigger on this last Friday, was it a good decision.

Plan to install Xubuntu on it for school and dev work.

Should arrive this week.

Paid around $230 CAD, thatès about $175 USD

I feel like you overpaid

Thats a decent price. i paid that much for one with an i7, 1600x900 screen and more RAM though.

Got this one too. But isn't the graphics card shitty? It has an integrated Intel GPU.

It has very good specs for the buck for everything except the GPU, and I plan on to use a very powerful external GPU.

>x201 i5
-----
Are there any modern/cool uses for the rj11 jack?
I don't think DSL is much of a thing anymore

I'll ask again, how can I increase the clitmouse sensitivity in W7?

can my chinkpad handle 1080p just fine? Or should I be concerned/worried? I want movies to download/torrent and watch and enjoy like any other normiefag and such

Duh.
Why wouldn't it be able to?

i7 2720qm
$20 used but this was deal i found
~45c idle, ~91c on stress test with 8 threads

I posted some screenshots about the temps a while ago, they're probably still in the archive.

Is it worth it? Only if you need that horsepower and/or you find a good deal imo.

10bit weeb animations run well on mine

An i5 2520m with the hd3000 iGPU can run 10bit cartoons just fine, i don't see why yours wouldn't.

You know what wise guy? It doesn't hurt to ensure just in case because I don't know everything off the bat so best idea is to at least ensure by asking

cool

t420 too? does it look like my chinkpad can handle 10bit just fine too? want to download 10bit The Simpsons for some classics

Yes, 2620m

I have a T520 with an i5 2520m with an upgraded FHD panel, absolutely no problems in any regard. The hd 3000 can handle up to 2500x1600 I think.

No problems with animeme either.

What kind of battery should I get for my t420?

Someone please explain me why are the xx30 series going for LESS money than the xx20 series on Ebay?

Is it the memes overflowing?

How cheap? You can fix pads or replace the display easily enough, but total cost is what matters.

Anker batteries work well for me.

$320

I'm not super fond of the idea of replacing the screen right away because it'll probably cost me around $100 extra

Yanec

bump

Can't you just connect it directly with an HDMI cable instead of using an Express-PCI interface?
Pic related to see what slots it has.

???

You use Express-PCI instead of the PCI express connection at the bottom where it says gigabyte. Stuff on the backplate is just video output.

wut
It works like this:

T420 via ExpressCard cable -> Adapter with desktop GPU plugged in -> GPU connected to Display via HDMI/DP/whatever

And the power supply to power up the adapter and the card.

I'll prob spend 90% of my time in terminal, and I have a desktop for vidya, so I didn't need a dedicated GPU

Many thanks old chap!

Why there are so many cool thinkpads? I don't know which one I want to get.
I have a t450s for work and the size is perfect, so I can consider a t420s/t430s, but those don't have an IPS display (outside of an expansive chinese mod).
The x220 is cool, and the x230 is too (I can always transplant the keyboard if I want to), and have an IPS display.
There are also the x201/x201s if I want to grow a full beard and go with libreboot.

Why it's so hard to choose how to spend my money?

hi guys,
should I fall for E5570 meme ?
it's 1300 euro with i5 6440hq, FHD, 8gb and 500gb hdd

What does /tpg/ use for external monitors? Looking at Korean monitors, and they have dual-link DVI, which the X220 doesn't support even with dock. Dual-DVI to displayport look somewhat sketchy, and brand name ones are expensive.

which thinkpad models have the best battery life?

Old Dell 16:10 monitors like the E228WFP. Cheap and easy to find replacements/more to have a matching set.

Should I trust these random Trackpoint cap sellers on ebay that sell like 20 for £3?

Any experiences?

Would it be a safer bet to buy from Lenovo (6 for £15)?

I'm not picky since there are many options for external monitors. I get 1080p IPS with at least HDMI and thin bezels.

So guys
I bought a t420 i5 8GB SSD128GB and now I face a little problem.

Ofc I know that you shouldn't use a laptop for gaming but I want to be able to play atleast diablo3,grim dawn, dota etc.

Also I dont wanna miss my t420 any sec anymore. There are just too many pros.

So I ask you guys, any idea how I could combine those 2 things?

I went full retard and used a 27" iMac in Target Display Mode for a while with my docked X220. Audio over DisplayPort worked great.

eGPU setup senpai

Docking Station not mandatory but having one helps to avoid plugging all the peripherals each time.

So I decided to get a Gainward GeForce GTX 1060 Phoenix 6GB to replace my 560ti.I have an ASUS P8P67 Rev 3.0 motherboard and a 700W PSU.

Now my question is: Will it work or do I have to pay attention to anything else ? I am a noob when it comes to assembling components.

Can I make the batterylife last way longer if I just have a terminal laptop?

got a pic of the setup senpai

Not 'way longer', but yes, desktop environment takes some CPU (= battery power).
Biggest battery-eater(s) will still be the display and network.

What bag do you use to carry your x series ThinkPad?
I'm starting university soon and I'm considering two backpacks:
>The North Face Borealis
>Jansport Right Pack

This nigga won the fucking fleabay lottery
Round of applause!


Anyways, man, just fucking be grateful you got a refund and put that money to good use upgrading your hardware

Not really. It's just a docked t420 with a monitor and the eGPU setup covered behind the monitor, nothing interesting.

how compact is it.

x200t is objectively the best thinkpad.
>all the great features of a thinkpad
>glorious wacom pen functionality
>less than £100

I really like The North Face Access Pack, but I've got a hookup there that got me it marginally cheaper. It's a really nice backpack, though.

13cm x 20cm the adapter and also the ATX power supply.

Shoved up everything in a 20cm x 25cm small metalic DIY "case" that looks like shit

Probably.

Even though I own a W520, I would prefer to have an xx30 series over an xx20, because the new keyboard feels just as good as the old one to me and I don't really bemoan the lost keys since I never really use them.

Fuck the xx40 series though, that trackpoint is inexcusable. And frankly the loss of the volume keys, locking lid and status LEDs cause bigger issues than a few keys (although I would miss the backwards/forwards keys).

Used x220 is usually 200€ in germany, so when i got offered an x230 for 220€ i took it.
Is the x220 keyboard that much better?

Short answer: no.
Long answer: the new keyboard feels better but has worse layout.

yeah i don't like the layout but the feel is awelome for a notebook.
Good thing is: The HD 4000 runs Overwatch

>X220
>16GM RAM, IPS panel, SSD and HDD
>Only about 3 hours battery life on the 4 cell under Linux, screen bezels are fuckhuge, I wish the resolution was also higher.

You may need a replacement fan.

t420 4178c9u
serial pb - w6949
need some way to get bluetooth running for win10 on this bitch

tried the 1-2 drivers from lenovo's page and one from a third party driver site.... bluetooth toggle button is still greyed out under settings so I can't turn that bitch on yet still....

any ideas, lads?

I don't want to boot into a live session distro just for bluetooth.... and lenovo's phone support was dog shit...

A T420 or W520 may hold you over for a time.

Depends on where you are. and what you do. Hell, I still use dial up sometimes.

That's a hundred higher than common Ebay prices for units without screen problems.

Nice example:
ebay.com/itm/Lenovo-Thinkpad-X201T-X201-tablet-Intel-i7-2-13-GHz-4GB-RAM-128GB-SSD-WIN7-COA-/222202847359?hash=item33bc52607f:g:1OcAAOSwRoxXmsMY

With screen damage IDGAF how "clean" the rest of it is. Needs a display and that logically means the whole lid so it needs an organ donor. I enjoy building wrecks but not at that price or anything close to it.

Anyone?

I use a toolbag that has a laptop pouch, as I carry my tools and laptop everywhere.

This, and docks are dirt cheap. Docks are a huge Pad asset.

Can the NVS 5400M run Overwatch?

hoping someone will be able lend me a helping hand here...

also interested in this

I need help,too, senpais

I recently bought a T430, It's a great laptop all around so far, But my right arrow key has completely fallen off. After a bit of detective work, I discovered a plastic bit on the key was broken.

Where can I get a replacement cheap?

Hey guys I just bought this for 200 bucks.

Why this nigger is asking me this?

He wants to BLACK you.

Yeah I guess I'm gonna skip this one
It's not from ebay, it's some dude re-selling a refurb, so I could check it in person
I'm a bit scared to buy off ebay because I don't know how to make sure that I won't recieve something like that, also GSP shipping is like $50 already here

Or maybe I should give up on tablet versions and get X220/X230 instead

I was just wondering if there was a neat hack/use for this port or if it is just completely useless for me

Tell him "absolutely not, this is PayPal protections at work, asking me to release funds makes me think that you are trying to scam me, and this conversation will be reported to PayPal"

What do you guys think about the Thinkpad 13?

I accidentally double middle click all the time in Firefox and it makes me go back. pls help pls no bully

i am also curious

never mind, actually figured out and resolved this on my own... whelp...

Oddly enough uninstalling everything bluetooth related and deleting the only one trace of whatever bluetooth it was magically got my bluetooth going after wiping those. Funny how strangely some things just magically work like that

Underpowered with the same screen and a worse keyboard as a cheaper t420

did see if it is disabled through bios?

Is there a discord to meme on

feel like hackintoshing my chinkpad just for fun
any guides for my t420i? ;_;

support.lenovo.com/us/en/products/Laptops-and-netbooks/ThinkPad-T-Series-laptops/ThinkPad-T420i/4178/C9U

go to about:config in the address bar
search for middlemouse.contentLoadURL and set it to false

Its a better screen than the t420. dunno about the keyboard tho

getting my oem T420 battery from newegg tommorow gents

i got some for ebay for $3 including shipping, no tracking. seller was mdthk

There was an user, many threads ago that wanted me to tell him if I got any sudden CPU drops while playing games on my W520?

I don't, but I've only tried with DotA 2.

>there will be another thinkpad market flood soon

Who's /ready/ here?

wait what

What models? I don't care for anything post *30, and that's only with the hopes of a functioning keyboard swap.

Probably the Carbon and x230

Have you made a hackintosh *anything* before?

Post powertops

why? is there some offlease cycle? pls explain

nope but I found a forum guide for t420, though, not sure what steps and procedures to follow for my t420i, though

>solarized
More like powerbottom

the insanelymac one? it apparently works on the t420s too

T420i is just a low-spec T420, everything should be the same.

Well apparently your T420i has a i7 2640M, which is what 2011 MBPs had, so thats good. This guide is probably ok for you. insanelymac.com/forum/topic/285678-lenovo-thinkpad-t420-with-uefi-only/page-25#entry1952283

Mind you, "hackbooks" are fuckshit harder to make than desktop hackintoshes, so you might want to try making a desktop first?

Pic related: HP Elitebook 2570p i just did

>make bootable usb with pirated russian OSX virtual machine
>edit its EFI partition with supplied kexts
>install OSX
>edit its EFI partition
>install kexts with supplied script
>>>hard

If I were to get an old t420 used, how easy would it be for a noob to go about upgrading it? i figure I could get a broken one and swap in parts and save money that way. I'm up to the work but I don't know how difficult it is. Installing RAM, new keyboards, screen, etc.

I've built a PC and fixed my old fucking xbox 360, and that's it as far as tech experience.

please supply a picture of your hackintosh :)

...

...

Will I be able to run latest/newest osx/macos or are those just too demanding for my specs? specifically latest/newest macos

dude above you, it works nice.

sick. Screenshot, please? how long did it take to it up and get going for that hackintosh?

Go to control panel, hardware, mouse etc.
(You) should have just googled it.

Guy with the HP from above.

Was getting the WiFi to work easy for you? That was my hardest part.

About an hour. For some reason its finicky and wouldn't let me have both ram sticks in. Probably because they arent matching. But besides that i didnt have any issues.

I used an ipod touch with PDANet for wifi. To get internal wifi to work i would have to flash the whitelist removal BIOS and buy a new card because intel wifi doesnt work with OSX at all.

Yeah the whitelist was a huge problem for me. I even have a wireless card from an iMac i could've used. Luckily I found a card that was whitelisted and worked with macos.

Finally got one of these beauties on the way

Are the old IBM T40s worth selling on eBay?

>I've built a PC and fixed my old fucking xbox 360
Then you're overqualified.

One of the features of these laptops is that they're serviceable as fuck and you also have a hardware maintenance manual with detailed instructions to replace every single part.

>Installing RAM or msata ssd
one screw
>new keyboards
one screw
>screen
zero screws at all to take out the bezel, four screws to change the screen

Got a t450 for 350€. It has an i5 5300 2,3ghz, 8gb (16now) ram and a 500gb Samsung Evo 850.
I'll get a FHD IPS screen because the regular panel looks like shit. Any other worth upgrade? Also, is the bios blocked? I want to install something on it.

I got 2 t60s for free. I'll probably use one as a diagnosing machine when I fuck up my main rig dicking around with software. Other one. Iunno

Hi. Sorry everybody for the tech support question, but I recently acquired a HP 8510w laptop from the bin at the front of my mum's house and fell in love with it. It seems to have a few problems though. It had a failed back light which I managed to get around by installing another panel from a junky dead laptop around the house. The other problem is a weird one. It can recognise but not charge any battery at all. The laptop also powers on for about 5 seconds, turns off then boots itself when the Ac adapter is plugged in. After this, it runs fine, besides not charging any battery (ive tried two with the same problem). I noticed that the Ac adapter cable affixed to the adapter is a bit wonky at the adapter end. I don't have any other adapters to test it with and don't really want to drop money on it if it won't help, so I just want to ask, how likely is it that a new ac adapter would fix this? Anybody else run into a similar problem? Danke Cred Forums

That's a pretty good price. I paid 500 euros for t450s with almost identical specs. But it came with fullHD panel.

I think that same here. I have a 2005 or so HP laptop that was from my dad, but he installed eMule and fucked it up with porn and viruses. I didn't try to fix it in years, but I remember that it has a fucked up screen and it only worked with the plug, and rebooted itself or shuts down after a few minutes.

I was looking at the specs of the t450s but the only difference was the finger sensor and the optional touchscreen. Is there any other difference?

My x200 had been running very well for the past few years but lately, I've been wanting to give it a few upgrades aside from the go to suggestions. I've been thinking about installing an x201 i5-560M system board to replace the original Core 2 Duo P8600. It'll be quite a decent improvement for sure but, I'm wondering, is there perhaps a better option out there, equally compatible?

I don't think so. t450s is tiny bit smaller but not by much. Full HD panel is nice. I think t450 maxes out at 900p.

why does no one talk about the x1 carbon? is it bad?

Hello all, few questions.

I bought Dell E6430 with Intel Core i5-3210M 2,50 GHz, 128Gb ssd for 240 eur. How did I go?

What are first mods to do? Upgrade to i7 or HD+ screen? Can I still update win 7 key to 10?

How it stands by t430?

I have a W520 and I get screen tearing. I noticed it's when I was using the Nvidia proprietary drivers ,and when I switched to the open source drivers and rebooted, it stopped the banding, but it uses the integrated graphics instead. Is there aa way to stop the banding while still using the dedicaated graphics? It's an Nvidia Quatro 2000M btw

What is the top config for the x220? I got one with the top i7, a regular ssd and I will give it 16gb ram and msata ssd. Is there anything else that can be upgraded?

Panel/battery? Maybe if you want another keyboard...

battery
slice battery
ips screen
dock
egpu
stickers

I've read that I can't add an eGPU to a t450 because the only way to would be using the mSata port, so I'd have it open all the time or whatever and it is kinda glitchy and may not work.

this helped me back when I used to use Nvidia graphics on my W520
thelinuxrain.com/articles/got-tearing-with-proprietary-nvidia-try-this

Is RX 460 from Sapphire (2gb) is good for egpu for t420?- i5 2520m, 4gb Ram (should I upgrade to 8gb?). Can I use internal laptop monitor? I want to play games like gta V but also some from this year.

What Cred Forums thinks about 9470m? I want something lightweight for my university
Main competitor is XPS L322x but 9470m has a cheaper battery replacement

or maybe t420s?

I also feel like you overpaid a bit, but not by a ton so as long as you're happy it's fine.

How much should someone be buying a t420 for in the current year?

in good shape, under 200, 150 ideally

Yeah why not.

I think you need nvidia gpu to use the internal display with egpu though.

I use a semi cheap copy of a US assault pack half the time and the other half I use a canvas bag, both work without issue

This.
Jesus thats great.
Is there anything specific I should pay attention too?

I already have a Dockinstation, so I guess that goes for me.

Would you reccomand to get a DIY box or should I buy one?

Am I limited to a special range of Graphiccards or can just get anyone I want to use to.

a few information about my beloved child:
i5 2540
8GB RAM
Intel(R) HD Grapics 3000
SSD128GB
HDD 500GB

Anything else you need to know?

>Is there anything specific I should pay attention too?
ExpressCard bottleneck compared to a native PCIe slot. It's only noticeable in benchmarks and some special games though.
>Would you reccomand to get a DIY box or should I buy one?
It's not a requirement. The PCIe/ExpressCard adapter with the ATX power supply leaves plenty of cables around so i just shoved everything in a case to keep it clean.
>Am I limited to a special range of Graphiccards or can just get anyone I want to use to.
You can use anything as long as your ATX power supply can power it. Keep in mind the CPU and ExpressCard bottleneck though, no point in using a very high end card.
>Anything else you need to know?
Dunno, you plug your card on the adapter, the adapter to your thinkpad via the expresscard slot and a monitor to the card, then the power connectors from the power supply to the adapter and the card.

I'm using the EXP GDC adapter, take care when plugging the cables on it, you can fry the the thing by plugging in the wrong cable.

Would there be anything wrong with getting an engineering sample i7 for a t420? ebay.co.uk/itm/282155775353

Probably but i would do it anyway only because of the "muh special snowflake ES CPU" status.

Im considering getting an x201 to save the cost because C2D will be fine for the next 4 years for office and shitposting purposes.

However Im not too sure

If what you say is true, and I dont know how you know this, itd be better to wait for the x230 to end its cycle so the x220 can be even cheaper.


Also, should I wait for black friday? Is there a noticeable difference in savings for thinkpads? I mean they are considerably cheap already + they are private sellers.


Just to recap.

Do I wait for the x220 to go down in cost? Or buy the x201 now?

I plan on using it for the next 4 years.

Thanks

A small USB Bluetooth dongle isn't an elegant solution but would do the job. They barely protrude from the notebook.

I don't think much of tablets because I prefer superior ergos of keyboard. Have x200t with 4gb/SSD but never use the tablet function.

A Pad with a dock makes a nice combo. If you need a desktop, why even bother with a desktop replacement notebook when you can have totally superior peripherals with a dock? Docks are dirt cheap because most people lack dock-fu.

Get the most performance you can afford and if it comes with a spinner drive, plan on replacing that. I still get good use out of old C2D machines with SSDs and when I eventually upgrade the SSD takes a minute to remove.

x201 with an SSD should do well enough. You cannot upgrade CPUs on those system boards so get the fastest you can.

BIOS locked i7 notebooks are around 100 shipped on Ebay, and you don't need to unlock the BIOS to install an OS. There are a bunch of them on Ebay today, some with 8GB RAM and SSDs. Dat's cheap.

Is there a sure way to tell if my ThinkPad x220 screen is ips (other than opening it up)?

Start Diagnostics, check screen model

Im the slightly above avg joe when it comes to computers, atleast for hardware.

Can you explain why a bios locked pc wouldnt idk, have a supervisor password that makes it difficult for me to actually use the laptop itself.

Im going to google it too, but can you give me the layman answer?

Ill definately look into that now, I am saving for a car and I dont need the laptop just yet, just to make sure when I need it, Ill get that stuff on good terms.

Is there an alternative for linux to the thinkpad battery manager on windows? I like the settings and the ability to prolong your battery lifespan by not charging up to 100%, but I dont know if its available on linux as well

tlp

Ordered a X220. Thinking of installing linux, what distros should I look at?

Arch

What should I get?
A thinkpad T430 or an HP 8740p?

The thinkpads usually run for more money on auction sites. Are their quality much different?

There are a variety of passwords and you really need to get the non-layman answer for each model, but you can and should confirm with the seller WHICH password is locked.

Your serious obstacle to be avoided is a Power On Password. If you can power on and boot to hdd, you can use the machine. Hard Disk and Supervisor passwords are different. If ONLY the Supervisor password is set i.e. the machine boots to an installed disk with or without OS, then all that means is you can't change BIOS settings.

BTW the best deal for you may or may not be a Pad since they tend to be overpriced for what they are. Look into business class Dells and HPs but check the model number by Googling and searching real notebook forums to ensure it's a good one and is fully Linux compatible.

There are ways to remove passwords but not really worth it for low dollar machines IMO unless you already have the equipment and enjoy it.

Example:
If I have a pad whose Supervisor password is locked I can remove the hard disk and use another machine to install an OS. I like Linux (don't care which distro, after a while it's just Linux) but Windows 7 is fairly tolerant of swaps. Linux is easy and you can swap drives without effort.

Sometimes the F12 option will let you change boot order.

ASK sellers very specific questions. Many may not know much about what they are selling.

forum.thinkpads.com/ is THE info source. Remember to post details.

This example is not prevented from booting and you can view but not change BIOS settings. See BIOS screen in the pic. Ya can't get there if Power On password is set:

ebay.com/itm/Lenovo-Thinkpad-X201-Intel-Core-i7-2-00GHz-8GB-100-Bios-Locked-Win-10-Pro-CC2420-/381794402649?hash=item58e4b84159:g:urYAAOSwPCVX7uCq

If saving for car I'd be hunting PCs for barter or free instead of paying. I've gotten lots of gear over the years. I take broken shit too to build a hardware, RAM and screw stash.

>mfw P50 arrived today

Typing on the keyboard is much better than other chiclet-style keyboards, but having to hold the function key for the actual function keys (e.g. Fn+F5 instead of just F5) is kind of annoying. They need to go back to the 7-row keyboard.

Anyone have any input?

Isn't anyone able to compare the two?

i7s run hotter but if you need battery life the i5 is a better choice. If you don't already have an SSD install one or do it when you swap system boards. Old spinner drives suck horribly. I would install one before replacing system board if money is tight and you have to choose.

Any specific commands you tried? It doesn't seem to be working for me.