/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", lightweight
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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.
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Used ThinkPad Buyers Guide:
ktgee.net/tpg

New guides by xsauc:
dankpads.com

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

ThinkWiki - Info on ThinkPads and running GNU/Linux on them:
thinkwiki.org/wiki/ThinkWiki

ThinkPad service guides w/ tutorial videos:
lenovoservicetraining.com/

ThinkPad wallpaper collection:
imgur.com/a/NlepZ

Other urls found in this thread:

sandipchitale.blogspot.com.au/2014/04/windows-81-thin-vertical-taskbar.html[/spoiler]
www57.zippyshare.com/v/7J2YS35e/file.html
support.lenovo.com/us/en?linkTrack=hp_c3:r1_Search Product_Machine Search
tp.krelay.de/index.php,
twitter.com/SFWRedditVideos

>9 cell for my X220 just shipped
>will be here in 3 weeks
maximum hype already

I want to make music with AVlinux and a Thinkpad. Recs?

A T420 with even the base 2520m will rip through any music app you're gonna throw at it.

Yay thx!

>04:36:07
Is the base thingy a CPU?

I bought a t420 recently, running genuine windows 7 but there is no recovery partition. Is that bad? What would I actually have needed it for?

If I'm buying new, are Thinkpads still the best option?

user who had an issue with the vert taskbar thickness on win 10 a while ago, found a fix with a program called 7+ Taskbar tweeker and this blog post [spoiler]sandipchitale.blogspot.com.au/2014/04/windows-81-thin-vertical-taskbar.html[/spoiler]

It makes it much nicer to use low res displays like you get on the x220 or the x230 i have. More vertical space to work with and not wasting horizontal space to a taskbar that is to wide. I could have the taskbar auto hide like i used to on OSX but i never liked doing that.

x260 and t460p will bully pretty much any other laptop in terms of battery life. They are not bad options but they are quite expensive new.

Is the T460 or T460s any decent?

they are all decent, t460s apparent has a shorter key throw than the other 2, if i was buying a thinkpad brand new though I would look into the t460p as it comes with a full power mobile chip rather than the piss weak ULV cpus that the T460 and T460s use. Also you should be able to get dedicated gpus in them if you care about that.

Sounds pretty damn awesome, actually. The only thing that is turning me off is the fact that I can get a 1TB nvme with an X1 Carbon and not on the T460p. Also, while I'm not a "muh thin" freak, I'm worried that a T460p will be a tad too thick for my tastes since I'll have it in a carrying case and walking around for hours with it at a time. Any way you could address these concerns for me?

Well I carry an older T420 daily and the T460p is 5mm thinner and a full 0.9lbs lighter.

I don't think you'll have much problems.


Also, buying them with a larger SSD preinstalled is usually just a waste of money, you can probably buy a 1TB SSD for less and install it yourself.

While I've built a bunch of towers, I've never messed with the guts of a laptop. Hopefully I'll be able to work my clumsy hands around it well enough. Thanks for your help.

So my T420 came in and the 9-cell it has only lasts about an hour before dying. Should I bother replacing it? I also noticed when I have the battery plugged in Speccy reads my CPU temp as 60-75c as well as the mainboard temp. But if I remove the battery the CPU temp goes down to ~40-45c.

I assume the battery has a temp sensor and that is what it was reporting while it was plugged in.

How does t410 compare to t420. Obviously the cpu is over a dozen percent faster, but beside that? Is t420 worth 50 bucks extra?

The integrated graphics in the base T420 is better than the dedicated GPU in the T410. So if you're doing anything with HD video playback or light gaming or whatever, you'll want the T420.

well i didn't get scammed and it's in great condition. installing debian now, feeling super pleased. thanks for making me see the light /tpg/.

my nigga. T420 with Debian Sid is truly the best

>have Arch installed on x220 for a few months
>finally decide to do a pacman -Syu because it's been too long
>reboot and wifi support is now noexistant.. WTF?

I was really starting to think the "pacman breaks shit" meme was just a meme until now, never had a problem with multiple machines running Arch for about a year. Now it screws up wifi on a thinkpad of all things?

hello g

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

I've found a Latitude E5450 (i5 5300U, 8GB RAM, 128GB SSD, 14" IPS @1366x768, accidental damage till 6/18) for 400 euros.

Should I go for it? Everything seems perfect for the price, but this 1366x768 holds me back... What should i do guys??

Why am I only getting 6hours out of my 9cell x200s?

These guys are getting 12, sometimes 15 hours worth of battery life.

I've been running Arch for a few months on an X220 as well. Nothing's broke, but I update daily.

>7 days since paying
>still not shipped despite "2 day handling time and next day shipping"
>seller won't respond to my messages
>has sold about 5 chinkpads in the past month with positive feedback
>ebay won't let me start a dispute yet

what do? Hold on for a while in case their dog's died and they're too distraught to send a quick reply or politely ask them to hurry things along again with a veiled threat of a dispute?

>use rolling release OS
>never update
literally why? It's all your fault.
If that's your style, switch your OS for something with longer update cycles, like Ubuntu.

Do old ThickBads like before T420 reads sdxc cards that are 128gb and above?

what are you doing on it, it could also be that your 9 cell is on the way out.

see if there is an alternate screen available otherwise i would probably pass on something at that size with 1366x768.

Hm, thanks. Though I would imagine t410 would be enough for HD vids and I didn't expect any gaming performance anyway.

shitposting, listening to music or watching videos

have linux on it. Is 6hours normal for ebay 9cells?

My T420 can't do youtube 720p 60 or 1080p 60, so I wouldnt count on the T410 doing too much.

if its a chink 9 cell then i would say yes. People getting good times are probably on legit 9 cells. See if your eligible for the free battery if you still have or old one and maybe that will get better life.

alrighty, thanks

>tfw I found a way to use the ThinkVantage button in Windows10

pls share, i have been trying to get the on one my x230 to work since i got it.

Enjoy.
www57.zippyshare.com/v/7J2YS35e/file.html

>winshit lusers have to download random dubious files to remap keyboard keys

I made that binary you cunt ;_;

As I was saying...

That only makes it worse.

It just creates a small service that binds whatever the fuck you want to the key you ungrateful fucks ;_;

AKA what Lenovo had in their drivers before stopping the support for it.

>100% guaranteed less botnet

I'm sure the Windows users are grateful. I however am laughing.

It's literally one command in Linux. For any key or combination.
Sad that you have to do this. I feel sorry for Windows users.

>www57.zippyshare.com/v/7J2YS35e/file.html
into the folder of useful stuff it goes, thankyou

I know, I dual boot Xubuntu and Windows, and the ThinkVantage button is useful. Lenovo were cunts for removing the feature and making people seek alternatives.

This is much better than hacking the registry (which worked under win7 but doesn't work with win10 anymore, as the thinkvantage button entry is completely gone).

My desktop 965BE can't do youtube 1080/60. Which is ridiculous, because it did 4k easily till they did something with their service.

My desktop is a 5820k so I have no issues, there.

Hopefully youtube can improve performance on lower end systems

I use mine to launch terminals. I've got a buddy who set his to update his system.

getting my recall battery for my x220 its a 6 cell what can i expect in terms of battery life

5-6 hours of light use.

Not that user, but I get that kind of life with the 4 cell on Linux.

I hear 9 cell gives about 9-10 hours, so I gave a rough estimate of 6 cell. Dunno how it is in real life, though.

It's worth noting that my 4 cell is brand fucking new, as well.

And my 6 cell is dead and barely does 3 hours. Can't wait for my new 9 cell.

I recently replaced my failing 6 cell. It's refreshing to be able to untether from the wall. Hope your battery is in good shape user.

My 9 cell on my x230 is at 85% capacity and does 9h with light use like browsing the web or listening to music.

4h with heavy use like playing a game or using heavy CAD software (rendering included).

>save up to buy new computer after 8 year old desktop bricks
>been running potato-compatible distros on it for the last 2 years
>family pleads with me to get a macbook air because "I'm a masters student" and "its what dedicated students need"
>spend 350$ on refurbished t420 (in canadian cuckbucks, approx 270$ american)
>spend 100$ upgrading specs
>install debian without a single fucking issue (is this even possible???)
>I now have 750$ to spare
THANK YOU BASED THINKPAD

>9-cell battery
>lasts 1 hour and 10 minutes of light use

d-d-do I need a new one?

y-yeah..

The 2520m is a sandy bridge i5

Does it exist a smaller charger for thinkpad, like pic related?

I got a new macbook retina, but my hands have started hurting because the keyboard is kinda weird, so i figured i should go back to my X61, but i would love to have a smaller charger desu

60w travel charger is as small as they get. Personally, I carry around the 90W because I'm not a pansy.

Does the phone charger with a plug adapter really charge the macbook?

yes, it's pretty innovative

Had this issue before. Turns out the seller didn't update with tracking info. Wait it out and open a case. If you're impatient and have money to spend start looking for alternatives in case this guy flakes.

>macbook
It's closer to an iPad with a keyboard than to a laptop, so yes.

Is there a way to tell, short of description or asking the seller, what resolution a T420 comes with?

Model number, take it and search lenovo's support website.
support.lenovo.com/us/en?linkTrack=hp_c3:r1_Search Product_Machine Search

Im a CE student and I really need a laptop for programming and small engineering simulations.

Are thinkpads still worth buying or will you spend a fortune adding a ssd, 8gb ram and non shitty battery?

Another problem is that i cant decide between the x220 and t420, i want something light weight with good battery life and my current laptop is 13" but 15" seems too big and 12" too small

>want a convertable laptop because I heavily enjoy drawing whilist and I spend 5 days out of 7 away from my computer
>oh man the x220T/x230T seems grea-
>screensize is meh (could be fixed by mod), sensors are 100% ass at the edges and nobody decided to make a ghetto calibration fix where you get 30 touch points near the edges of the screen
>to double up on that there's nearly no good sales on ebay (missed out on one of the best because import fees would've been 40% of the price)
>toshiba tablet laptops flat out don't exist anywhere for some reason
So far my only options are to either wait with a thumb up my ass or buy one of these shitty overheating tablet laptops.

Where did the market for this kind of shit go?

>a single goddamn inch difference is "too small"

The X220 is 12.5" and the T420 is 14"... It will take you 10 min to get over the difference from 13" whatever you choose.

>Are thinkpads still worth buying or will you spend a fortune adding a ssd, 8gb ram and non shitty battery?
Of course you will have to spend extra if it's not already included and you really want it.

x60t and swap the 1400x1050 display in.

go for the x60, it's still 12", but it has a better screen ratio so it feels like 15"

and get a desktop for your simulations, just ssh into it. running serious simulations on a laptop is retarded anyway because of the amount of heat and noise it will generate

Just gives me drivers. I think the screen is either 1366 x 760 or 1600 x 900. Obviously I would want the latter since I have feeble eyes.

I wish, the GPU and CPU of the x60T are a no no for my line of work and also I dabble in a few shitty MMOs from time to time.

Has anyone done any research into the whole idea of switching out a pressure screen behind the x230T's screen with a different one?

Do NOT install this creates mustard gas...

>using a 10 year old 32 bit laptop with shit battery life

kys

I took apart my x60 once. I was never able to get the cable management back to normal.

>he fell for the 64bit meme
3gb of ram is enough for everybody. also, my x60 running GNU/Linux and openbox is faster than your 64bit windows

Doesnt help when they list the incorrect model. Listing said 1600x900, model said 1600x900, unit received was 1366x768, baka. Knocked $60 off for that. Also was supposed to come with 8GB of RAM but came with 4GB instead, knocked another $40 off.

Total paid around $120 including shipping and fees.

Just replaced the 4GB it came with with 2x8GB DDR3, was an easy upgrade.

t420 shipping hasn't updated since yesterday at 7am

I want an update mannn

Why do thinkpads have so bad screen resolution? I was looking at a x230 with IPS display and it's resolution was fucking 1366x768. Is that resolution good enough with ips?

Because that's apparent what most people wanted. I find it tolerable so long as it's IPS.

Wont your eyes go bad while coding at that resolution?

You get used to it. Shit, we all used 640x480 and 800x600 for years, remember?

Computer Science freshman here. Will it be useful if I buy one of these? or I should stick with the good ol' laps?

Actually that's higher ppi than 24" 1080p

Nothing helps when they lie to you on what they're selling.
Complain about it, PayPal will side with you and you could get most of your money back if not a full refund.

The tabs at the top of the website change what aspect of the model you're viewing.

How are you enjoying your day user?

Go away, windowsfag.

and here i was thinking i could get away with it

I'll have a better day when I see you wiping your keyboard clean of that dust

>Things that never happened

>T420 can't do youtube 720p 60
I find this hard to believe, since 720p @ 60 fps is effectively the same as 1080p @ 30 fps.

and what does the MTM say?
(tp.krelay.de/index.php, paste the machine type and click Search)

are you on 3G?