Used IBM Thinkpad x40 vs Netbook

[holmesjr]

I really don't want to spend more the $400 max. Would it be a better idea to buy a refubished Thinkpad x40 off ebay or buy a Netbook. All I really need it for is internet, movies, music, and working in excel.

Any input is appreciated!

 

[mpilchfamily]

Have you gotten any hands on experience with a netbook yet? In my opinion the question of Netbook vs. Laptop comes down to comfert. Some NEtbooks are pretty small and may not be very comfertable for long term use.

 

[Dunbar]

Ya, you need to use a netbook for a few hours to see if it's for you. I played with my dad's Aspire One and I did not like it. Too small to be useful for couch surfing, the keyboard and trackpad are just too hard to use. The HP Mini has a the best keyboard I've seen on a netbook. I've decided on a 12" ultraportable or the 11.1" Sony T series. I don't want to buy used if I don't have to. I'm confident some nice deals will pop up after the holidays.

 

[holmesjr]

The only time I have used a Netbook is walking through best buy. It did seem very awkward, but thought it might get better after use. I do use excel a lot for work and heard that Netbooks can be kind of cumbersome with their resolution. I will probably stop by Best Buy or Fry's and test them out. I really don't want anything larger then 12' or maybe even 13". Are there any other cheap alternatives? I don't mind buying refurbished. Are there any websites that have a good reputation selling refurbished laptops?

 

[Dunbar]

I think playing with one in a store isn't going to be enough, see if you can borrow a netbook from a friend or family. The only alternative is the Dell Mini 12 but you need to "force load" Windows XP on it to get it to run decent. That's my fallback option, wait until they release a 2GB RAM version or offer XP. In the mean time I'm keeping an eye out on fatwallet and craigslist for deals. I missed out last Saturday on a Thinkpad X61s (12" ultraportable) brand new for $550 fatwallet special (if I only lived on the east coast...)

I already have a T61 from work so I don't want anything over 12" or 3lbs.

 

[aceO07]

The only weakness of the x40 is the DDR ram and it's very limited 1.8" 4200rpm drive. The ram is old and expensive to upgrade if it's not maxed out already. The 1.8" drive only has option of 60GB max, if you can find it used on ebay (or somewhere).

 

[996GT2]

Originally posted by: aceO07
The only weakness of the x40 is the DDR ram and it's very limited 1.8" 4200rpm drive. The ram is old and expensive to upgrade if it's not maxed out already. The 1.8" drive only has option of 60GB max, if you can find it used on ebay (or somewhere).

DDR RAM isn't that expensive these days...and for XP, 1 gig is enough for everyday usage.

As for the hard drive, keep in mind that a lot of netbooks come with 4-16 gigs of flash memory. Yes, some do have 80 or 120GB hard drives, but for a highly portable computer hard drive size is not a huge concern. 60GB is more than enough for an XP installation with lots of software and a decent music collection. I'm using Vista and only 40GB of my HDD is taken up by the OS and programs...and I have MS office, Adobe CS3, counter-strike, TF2, etc etc installed

 

[cparker]

If you get a netbook you can upgrade ram to 2 gigs for around 20 bucks shipped (transcend 2 gig ddr2 sodimm). If you want to see what they are like you can see videos of people using netbooks. The latest I saw was a recent customer review at amazon.com of the samsung nc10. It was 9 minutes long and was pretty informative and gave a good view of how small it was compared to a normal sized laptop sitting next to it.

We decided to get one (the nc10, it's on it's way right now) because it's light and can last over 7 hours or so on one battery charge. Basically, it's for travel and for emergencies in case our dsl goes down and we need web access -- just walk over to Starbucks across the street where they now give free 2 hours of access if you have one of their pre paid cards and use it once a month (don't have to buy anything, just put in a few bucks also counts). We also have a thinkpad (t30) but it's heavy and it's had problems. Just wanted something new and guaranteed. The power of the Atom powered netbooks seems fine for what we do (email, surf, office stuff, some photoshop using older photoshop 7). From the videos and from comments/reviews I've read, they are adequately powered for these kinds of things. Only problem is some models have smaller keyboards, and of course the screen size. But then you have the lighter weight and the very nice "bang for the buck". The nc10 has a keyboard 95 percent of normal size (the keys, at least) but costs a bit more than others (around 480 bucks). The lenovo has a decent keyboard too, I've read and you can get one for 350 but battery is weaker -- 2.5 hours or so.

Another factor is that we have several fast pcs running all the time with nice lcd 19" monitors, so we don't need a laptop for a main computer. If we did, a netbook would probably be way too small with 10.2" screen.

And if you want to install Vista on a netbooks... well see this thread:

http://forums.anandtech.com/me...=2256827&enterthread=y

But the thought of an under 3 pound netbook that lasts over 7 hours on one battery charge to carry around the city, when needed for under 500 bucks, well it's very tempting. We'll see how it works out in the next few weeks.

 

[Emulex]

3lb is heavy. my x301 weighs that much fully loaded. my ancient z505 sony is a bit lighter

what takes up all the weight? the battery?

 

[Dunbar]

Originally posted by: Emulex
3lb is heavy. my x301 weighs that much fully loaded. my ancient z505 sony is a bit lighter

what takes up all the weight? the battery?

Some of these netbooks push 3lbs (2.7 - 2.8lbs.) and I wouldn't call them heavy. I consider my 5.2lb. T61 heavy.

 

[Rottie]

Yesterday me and my friend went to local computer show and we have seen plenty of used IBM Thinkpads for less than 400 or so maybe you can check newspaper for local computer show it usually shows every month.

 

[aceO07]

Originally posted by: 996GT2

Originally posted by: aceO07
The only weakness of the x40 is the DDR ram and it's very limited 1.8" 4200rpm drive. The ram is old and expensive to upgrade if it's not maxed out already. The 1.8" drive only has option of 60GB max, if you can find it used on ebay (or somewhere).

DDR RAM isn't that expensive these days...and for XP, 1 gig is enough for everyday usage.

As for the hard drive, keep in mind that a lot of netbooks come with 4-16 gigs of flash memory. Yes, some do have 80 or 120GB hard drives, but for a highly portable computer hard drive size is not a huge concern. 60GB is more than enough for an XP installation with lots of software and a decent music collection. I'm using Vista and only 40GB of my HDD is taken up by the OS and programs...and I have MS office, Adobe CS3, counter-strike, TF2, etc etc installed

When I bought 1gb DDR, it cost $50. $15 after $35 rebate. It seemed rare to find it that cheap. At least this was true a few months ago when I last checked. Not expensive, but not as cheap as DDR2.

Also the 4200rpm drive isn't that speedy.

Don't get me wrong, I love the x40/x41, but I'm just pointing out some things in case they mattered to the OP.