Previous thread: (Cross-thread) → ---- 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 P, T, X, and W SERIES if you want the Real Business Experience™
Recommended IBM models: X60, X61, T60, T61, 860, Transnote, PC110
Recommended old models: X200, W500
Recommended modern models: X220 - 12", 768x1366, cheap and light T420 - normal size, 14", 900x1600 T520 - 15", 1080p, Quadcore-CPUs W520 - desktop replacement, 15", USB 3.0
Last good models: X230 - 12", USB 3.0, IPS option avaiable, classic keyboard installable T440p - 14", last ThinkPad to have replacable CPUs, 1080p IPS displays avaiable ---- Why ThinkPad? >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
Asking again: Do you install Libreboot before or after installing your OS? The instructions for flashing include using "flashrom -p internal -V" to find out the flash chip size, which implies that GNU/Linux is already installed (or being run as a live image?).
Landon Bennett
x200 p8600 and a 256gb ssd sandisk
100 euros
now time to order wificards and libreboot it
screen is very dim is there a thing I can do about this
DDR3 or DDR4? The latter is being used in phones, which fucked up pricing.
Michael White
By the way, there's a BIOS option in Startup to turn off the "interrupt normal startup" option. It'll still let you do it, it just won't display it.
Not sure how to get rid of the black bar at the bottom that flashes up though.
Andrew Rogers
DDR3. Maybe it was always this expensive, but I don't remember spending that much when I bought 8GB for my T410 two years ago.
Charles Wood
No idea why that's spiking.
Brandon Bell
This one.
David Hill
>not adding the dell laptops to the OP
Connor King
Live image.
Jayden Diaz
Giving this a shot too.
Nathan Kelly
Just got an X61T. How do I get screen rotation working on Linux? The rotate button on the screen works, but the pen doesn't update accordingly so my input is all inverted when the screen is flipped.
Parker Thomas
Woo.
Cameron Powell
Doesn't really matter, as long as you have a GRUB config in your boot partition it'll boot.
Dominic Allen
Looking for suggestions for a every day use Thinkpad. Am looking to use it as a launch pad for Linux learning and general web surfing as well as study for work (videos). Not going to really use it for much else aside from a portable laptop. Would like a 14 inch screen. Cost isn't a factor, but would prefer something cheap. Any suggestions?
Austin Hill
Anyone know how to get rid of some of these bootloaders? I cleared the EFI already and reimaged my hd a couple of times, but these never leave.
Grayson Watson
Got my t400 in the mail. Need a hard drive and charger and I'm set. Does Linux have drivers for the phone modem? Probably going to install Windows 7 at first because it has a key taped on the bottom and I want to see how all the ThinkPad features work.
Aiden Foster
T440p chiclet keyboard here.
>tfw the weeb keyboard fucked up my wpm to ~60 or so avg because of the tiny spacebar
Ryder Flores
Japs don't like spaces, it's the reason they're so crowded and started WW2.
Leo Parker
The E6440 is actually rubber dome, but it feels really good to type on. It's very soft unlike scissor/chiclet keys. I hope to get 110 once I get used to it more.
Dylan White
wait this works on a Tx30 without flashing the bios?
Luis Morales
no u flash it, but an application automatically detects if there is a change to the bios file b4 doing it.
Levi Wood
>no u flash it, but an application automatically detects if there is a change to the bios file b4 doing it.
What?
Does this require a hardware flash, or is it through a program?
Benjamin Howard
I'm a sinner that enjoys typing on the chiclet keyboard over the t420 classic keyboard however the layout of the classic keyboard is miles better, this one sucks dick and doesn't even have media controls.
lel
Brody Reed
This is a really specific question but I come to you at my darkest hour.
Does anyone know where I can find an EDID dump for a ThinkPad T450s 1080p screen? I'm specifically looking for dumps from either Lenovo FRU 00HT622 or 04X5916
I have the panel but the idiots who sent it to me flashed the EDID to come generic LG panel, meaning that the Lenovo blacklist doesn't allow me to adjust the screen brightness, and it's on 100% all the time.
I know how to flash it but I need the original Lenovo EDID.
Mason Torres
Through a program... All through a program u can install from the official thinkpad site. Comes with instructions on how to make custom bios imgs as well.
Nolan Lopez
Anyone here with enough free time willing to test if this bios logo works?
I'm on battery so the thing doesn't allow me to flash the bios without the AC adapter plugged in.
Angel Turner
>Does Linux have drivers for the phone modem? Do you mean tethering? Because any android phone can give you that and Linux autodetects it.
Evan Nelson
No I mean dial up modem. I don't want to lose that feature.
Ryder Adams
what is the optimal T430 and x230 cpu?
Joseph Clark
>T430 whatever ivy bridge you want, upgradeable cpu
>x230 whatever you get, soldered cpu
Brody Morgan
Yes, it has all the drivers.
Jaxson Allen
im assuming don't go for T430s then? also if i get a 3320M can i upgrade to a 3520M?
Charles Cooper
T430s (as in slim, s-versions) have a soldered cpu as well.
>also if i get a 3320M can i upgrade to a 3520M? If it's the normal T430, yeah. I don't see the point in going from a dual core i5 to a dual core i7 (which is pretty much just a slightly higher clocked i5), either go quad core i7 or stay with the dual core i5.
No point sticking to a dual core if you do upgrade.
Henry Scott
That comes out really well user, nice.
Brayden Jenkins
thanks for the info, im assuming T430 can only go so high without heating issues.
Connor Mitchell
Don't get an extreme edition, but a 3610 should work fine. Turn turbo off/throttle it a tiny bit if it doesn't.
Christian Lewis
It'll do alright with a 45W TDP processor, same as the T420. Not splendid but just "alright", you can also get one of those 35W TDP quad cores (same TDP as the dual cores) or throttle the TDP a bit.
It'll crash your thinkpad with no survivors if you use 55W TDP XM processors though.
Dominic Cruz
Are two universes colliding?
Gabriel Moore
awesome thanks for the info, now i don't have to spend as many shekels.
XM is a big cpu
should I get a T530 to be safe? I don't care for weight as my old laptop is heavy as fuck.
Jordan Taylor
My t420 is coming in the mail Friday!
Wyatt Carter
If you can find one for a similar price, yeah. Don't know where you are but they tend to be more expensive because there's less ex-enterprise ones floating around.
William Bennett
Sure if you don't mind the size, you also get a FHD screen option with the T5xx and W5xx
Matthew Myers
FHD sounds nice, I'll look around and see if i can find one for a good price, thanks for the help!
Kayden Howard
Ayy nice, thanks user.
Finally did something right in my life, mom would be proud.
Christopher Cooper
120 GB mSATA arrives tomorrow to make company for stock 320 GB HDD
Best configs for Linux+Windows? Windows and Linux on mSATA and HDD for shared storage? Windows on mSATA, Linux and shared storage on HDD?
I'm in 1st year in college and I need a laptop and its kind of hard to find second hand think pads in ireland, most of the t520s ive found only have 900p screen there's some t420s for 200 euro is that good? Should I bother looking for higher price 600+ models off Amazon etc. That aren't think pads?
Christopher Parker
>tfw no T430/440 with a US layout nearby
Eli Lee
Linux is good on HDD, it's still much faster than Windows. I'd go with 64 GB (for nice number, depends on how bloated your Linux will get when you use it) for Linux partition on HDD, everything else for data such as animu, and mSATA for Windows.
Grayson Stewart
What layouts are by you user?
Matthew Turner
Got a X220 recently and I'm loving it so far. The only complaint is the fan revs up on the most basic of tasks. Is this a common problem, anyway I can improve temperature hardware and software wise?
Xavier Morgan
proll ansi
Hunter Bennett
where are you from?
if you're near i'll give you a 440p ANSI US keyboard for free, hate that layout
Angel Cooper
No problem. I've added it to my album, but I still need to figure out a good place to host it. Trying to setup a booru now, never used it before.
Anthony Kelly
>Windows and Linux on mSATA and HDD for shared storage? I'd go with this one, make the pagefile small, disable hibernation and Windows will use way less space.
Jaxson Gray
Dumb simple question, would this card work in an X220? I do have the BIOS unlocked.
What's the best ram for the t430? Also will flashing the keyboard patch unlock the ram multiplier lock?
Connor Ortiz
Do they make the brick shithouse ones with good specs now?
Thomas Clark
x220 here, can i install the whitelist bios and have a custom bios image?
Hunter Scott
Add this.
Nolan Hall
yes
dumb frogposter
Gavin Taylor
How do i do this? Have attempted to google solutions and shit but can't find a method
Mason Gray
Done. Anything I have to do to make uploads/tagging public?
Levi Price
read the bios_logo.txt in the bios folder
dumb frogposter
>make uploads/tagging public? isn't this going to fuck up everything with "le ebin trols xd"?
Parker Rodriguez
Rephrasing - a way to do it pending approval? If not I'll just try and stay on top of it myself but at the very least having public uploads would help a shit ton when it comes to collecting these.
Levi Clark
How would one do this :o
Hudson Stewart
Install BIOS Update Utility for your specific thinkpad, read "bios_logo.txt" in that folder for specific instructions.
General rule of thumb - 640x480, 30kb max.
Aaron Russell
Hi /tpg/, I'm the user who ordered a W520 and I wanted to know how many 2.5" laptop data drives it can fit, its bretty thick so I thought I'd be able to fit two, and I wanted to ask about how easy it is to replace the palmrest and if its worth it to replace, thanks.
Charles Scott
check'd satan
>how many 2.5" laptop data drives it can fit 3, two 2.5" + an msata ssd drive.
>how easy it is to replace the palmrest google "w520 hmm" for the hardware maintenance manual
>if its worth it to replace not really, unless you have the version without the fingerprint scanner and you'd like to have one but seems like you already got the one with the fingerprint scanner
I'll probably regret this, but can someone try and get this into the next OP?
Aiden Rodriguez
Mine did this on Win7 and Win10,
On my Arch install it's quiet as. It'll spin up if I'm streaming something, or browsing very heavy web apps or using an IDE.
I've since removed those Windows versions and replaced it with Win10 LTSB - It's a version of Win10 with a gimped botnet and no forced updates. No faggy metro apps in it either. Doesn't even have their new browser. It runs very smoothly now. No fan raging on idle. About as quiet as Arch now although it's still more resource intensive.
Hunter Wood
>replaced it with Win10 LTSB I wanted to do this but i can't make the modded T440p work on W10 so no trackpoint buttons.
Aiden Thomas
What do you mean? I'm planning to buy one of those. Fuck lol. I can't see what the issue would be.
Jonathan Gonzalez
I assume he's replaced the original trackpad with the one from the XX50 series.
Aaron Nguyen
Aye. That'll be a given when I buy it. Wouldn't look twice otherwise. I'll be interested to hear more on this. it'll be disappointing but not a deal breaker, Win10 is my secondary OS anyway. Games and some proprietary shite as and when.
Adam Jenkins
I am in the market for a new laptop. I understand this thread is obviously biased towards Thinkpads but any brand would work for me.
I need a laptop that can do some heavy computational lifting before I send the working scripts over to our workstations.
Currently looking at the new T or P series. I have no need for a dedicated GPU but high resolution/15" screen would be nice.
As for budget $2,000 is my max.
Lastly, is it smart to just buy the base model then upgrade with aftermarket SSD, more RAM, etc?
Oliver Murphy
>tfw have a t440p but like the trackpad >tfw tried a t450 for a while but can't get used to the trackpad
Am I broken?
Christopher Rogers
The touchpad mod needs specific drivers that only work on Linux, 7 and 8.1, not 10 and w10's windows update autoinstalls the original clickpad driver.
Levi Price
I had the same problem as you with T440s/T450s.
This is going to sound like absolute sacrilege but I took a T440s touchpad and swapped it into a T450s. There's a bit of driver fudgery involved but it worked in the end.
Caleb Adams
Have you ever acclimatised to the trackpoint? I can't go back man. I had an interview the other week and they gave me a laptop to solve a coding problem on and I kept trying to finger the G&H keys ffs. Felt unnatural to use the trackpad. It was an ok trackpad too.
You can exclude those driver updates by adding exclusions with some powershell commands. It used to try to update my trackpoint drivers to the currentyear drivers. I hated it because even at full sensitivity I feel like I'm gonna develop finger arthritis I have to shove it that hard. The Win7 drivers are fine though so I keep them and make sure it doesn't touch them
Adrian Wood
Anyone?
Noah Moore
This is my first ThinkPad, I've used a 2010 MacBook Pro for the last seven years. Never touched anything with a trackpoint, can't seem to get the hang of it. Any driver/calibration advice?
Oliver Wilson
Maybe this is the wrong thread but hey.
7820HQ vs 7700HQ for data analysis. Just looking on UserBenchmark the 7820HQ barely seems faster and doesn't seem to be worth the extra 200$ in a Thinkpad.
Can someone tell me if/why I'm wrong?
Christopher Taylor
Ah fair enough. Having using friends Mac's before that the touchpad always felt godly as far as they go. Had a very nice texture and resistance on the finger.
As for the config. Best bet is going for those legacy drivers like I said. I think it's 2015 Win7 off the top of my head. There you should set it to be quite sensitive. Leave the windows sensitivity setting in the middle, but ramp it up in the lenovo driver tab. It'll feel a bit jerky at first but it gets really exhausting frankly when it's hard to push.
In general though, windows is never perfect.
On linux though, it took a bit of fucking about but I got something that feels right on the sweet spot for me. The response is also a lot more linear.
You can modify it by changing the value in the fules in pic related. Those are the settings I have them at.
Adrian Miller
Oh also the type of mouse clit helps
>soft rim masterrace
Lincoln Edwards
I guess I'll buy a couple different ones off ebay and give them a shot. Thanks for the help user.
