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IBM Thinkpad Advice Required?

T

The Linuxator

Banned
OK there are two Thinkpads I need to choose from and I have a about 2 days to make a choice : I am leaving on a buissnes trip very soon and it's very important that I have my choice made

1- Thinkpad T30 : refurbished like new 679.99 + 49.99 2yr complete waranty(optional)

Specifications:
* Display: 14.1-in. XGA TFT LCD
* 400MHZ front side bus.
* Processor: 1.6GHz Pentium 4-M /512kb L2 cache
* System memory: 256MB
* Hard drive: 20GB --------> I already have my own harddrive to put instead of that
* Optical drive: DVD-ROM
* Network: 10/100
* Modem: 56K
* Operating system: Windows XP Pro
* Radeon 7500 Mobility 16 MB graphics Memory
*

2- IBM R50e : Brand New From IBM : $599 with 1 yr IBM waranty
System specifications:
* 400 MHZ front side bus.
Intel® Celeron® M Processor 360 (1.40GHz) / 1 MB L2 cache
Microsoft® Windows® XP Home Edition6
11a/b/g Wireless LAN Mini-PCI Adapter II14
14.1" XGA TFT display (1024x768)
Intel Extreme Graphics 2
777 MB DDR SDRAM
40GB4 Hard Drive
CD-ROM
Integrated Ethernet and modem
ThinkPad® Hard Disk Drive Shock Absorber - Like a bumper on your hard drive!
Full size keyboard22
ThinkLight? keyboard light
1-year limited warranty8




 
I'd go for the T30, personally. I've got a T41, and love the thinness. That should be nicer for a trip.
It's got a better CPU and warranty (I would opt for that), too.
 
Originally posted by: Busithoth
I'd go for the T30, personally. I've got a T41, and love the thinness. That should be nicer for a trip.
It's got a better CPU and warranty (I would opt for that), too.
Click to expand...

T30 is a big fatty cuz it used the P4M, i had a T20 and have used a T30 and a T43 at work. T30 is the biggest of them all

I'd also venture to say the celeron pentium M derivitive is better than the P4M
 
Yeah, the T30 also runs hot and has horrible battery life.

<-- Disgruntled T30 owner, used to have a T20 that was much cooler. 🙁
 
really? in that case the R50 sounds like a nicer deal, what with the integrated wireless, more memory and being brand new.
 
My coworker has a T30 with a 1.8GHz P4-M. He jokes that in the time it takes to start WinXP, start Lotus Notes, check email and then shutdown, his battery is already down to 70%.

Definitely go with the R50.
 
Guys I was thinking about the difference betwee the 1.6ghz 512kb-cache P4-M in the T30 and the 1.4 ghz 1 MB cahce , celeron-M in the R50e, is that the only difference between them since they both run a 400 MHZ FSB . or are there other any other internal differences.

and if those above are the only differences wouldn't that extra 512kb cache make up for the speed difference
 
Originally posted by: The Linuxator
Guys I was thinking about the difference betwee the 1.6ghz 512kb-cache P4-M in the T30 and the 1.4 ghz 1 MB cahce , celeron-M in the R50e, is that the only difference between them since they both run a 400 MHZ FSB . or are there other any other internal differences.

and if those above are the only differences wouldn't that extra 512kb cache make up for the speed difference
Click to expand...

celeron M is the Pentium M (centrino if u get the wifi card package) with some differences, it doesn't have all the power saving features. Should easily outperform the old P4-M
 
Originally posted by: RichieZ
Originally posted by: The Linuxator
Guys I was thinking about the difference betwee the 1.6ghz 512kb-cache P4-M in the T30 and the 1.4 ghz 1 MB cahce , celeron-M in the R50e, is that the only difference between them since they both run a 400 MHZ FSB . or are there other any other internal differences.

and if those above are the only differences wouldn't that extra 512kb cache make up for the speed difference
Click to expand...

celeron M is the Pentium M (centrino if u get the wifi card package) with some differences, it doesn't have all the power saving features. Should easily outperform the old P4-M
Click to expand...


thats what I had in mind it's good you confirmed it.:thumbsup:
 
Let me first confirm that the T30 is not the route you want to go; R50e > T30 for portable usage (and even performance I'd bet).

The Celeron M is basically a crippled Pentium M: less cache, no power saving features (like Speedstep), and some performance features disabled. That said its a good chip for the money.

I haven't used an R50e, but I just finished a review on the R52 (latest iteration) and overall I was pleased. The R-series is thicker and heavier than most 14"/15" notebooks, but they are sturdier than most thanks to the thick ABS plastic used. You get IBM features & innovation for a good price; can't complain about that! The R50e sale they're running is a great deal, I say jump on it.

But I highly suggest going with the $849 R50e. You bump up to a Pentium M 1.6 (which will run cooler & give you ~3 hours batt life on the 6-cell) and CD-RW/DVD-ROM (which is inherently useful). You could probably upgrade the $599 R50e to a Pentium M, but by the time you spend money on the chip you're already at the cost of the P-M R50e. Just do it 😉
 
To be honest I am very tempted about considering the $ 849 R50e ,but still very confused between both
I just have a feeling that If I don't opt for the $ 599 R50e I will be wasting a rare chance to get a thinkpad for a dirtcheap price.sigh.... it's so confusing, but at the same time well worth the cash for the $ 849 one .
 
What I find interesting is that on the http://www.thinkpad.com, they say "Wireless models starting at $849" when the $599 model has the IBM a/b/g II mini-PCI WiFi card listed on it 😕

Regardless, let me spell out the benefits of going to the $849 R50 so you can make a better informed choice:

*CD-RW/DVD-ROM: I don't know about eBay, but buying your own replacement optical drive to upgrade the CD-ROM in the $599 model is usually quite expensive; in the range of $100+

*Pentium M 725 (1.6GHz, 400MHz FSB, 2MB L2 Cache): the benefits are obvious here; higher performance, less heat production, less power consumption. You can probably upgrade the $599 model to a Pentium M, but by the time you buy the chip you're probably over the $849 price. Celeron M's do not underclock, only giving you about 1.5-2 hours of battery life on that 6-cell.

Disadvantage: 15" screen; I think this is a disadvantage because you are going to a larger screen on an already low resolution; you lose more desktop real estate and everything looks "bigger" (i.e. less DPI); it also increases the size & weight of the laptop. If portability is a primary use of this machine it almost might be worth it to get the 14" model and upgrade the parts at your leisure. However 400MHz FSB Pentium M's are discontinued, so you'll have to pay a higher premium for a 533MHz FSB model when you will only use it @ 400MHz.
 
DUDE I am tired of being confused , so I went in and had a serious conversation with myself as follows

below :

Me : Hey self why are you such a pussy?

Self : WTF are you talking about, I am no pussy !!!

Me : Then prove it, and bust that Debit Card out yes the debit card , I don't want those credit card guys

harrasing me for a year.

So as you can see above I said FCK IT. I got my balls together and went for that $ 849 R50e + Basic 1 yr

warranty + 2 yr Theft/Loss retrival garuantee program : $ 930 cash + ( $ 62 Tax 🙁 ). If IBM quality isn't

worth $ 930 cash then I don't know what is?

THE END

More to come once it ships in, I will update the thread and bump it to let you guys know how sweet this R50e is really ?
 
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