Which? Thinkpad X200, X61 or T400?

I'm stuck, i've seen loads of other threads about the X200 vs. T400, but feel like i'm no wiser as to my situation. The key issues for me are these:

-I'll be using Linux pretty much exclusively, Kubuntu at the moment.

-I want this laptop to last a long time,so durability is very important (hence thinkpad) and i think soon it will serve as a replacement for my desktop, with an external screen, keyboard etc. So docked at home.

-But i'll also be carrying it with me all the time when i'm out, going between university and work. Netbook has been great for this and this is the main reason i'm not going for the T400, I'm like something smaller.

-Mainly for browsing, word processing/LaTeX, some graphics editing, perhaps some basic sound recording.

I have been using an acer aspire one for the last year, and its great for most things, but i'm not looking forward to writing up long reports on it. But i'm just not sure about screen size. I saw a HP pavilion dv2 today, which is the first machine i've been able to see close up with a 12" screen, how would that compare to the X200, would the resolution be the same? Would i be better off with a T400? Bearing in mind that if i'm using it at home i will use an external monitor.
But also recently a X61 has come up for sale on Gumtree for £450 (T1700, 3GB DDR2 RAM, 160Gb 7200rpm HD, including Ultrabase), is the X61 a good purchase at the price? I've been so tempted by the x200 for so long I don't know if this is a good deal. the extra width of the X200 keyboard is a plus, but is there a real difference in the resolution between the x61 and x200.

Also if i were to go for a new Thinkpad, when are coupons and discounts likely to appear for the UK store? Where is a good place to keep an eye out for the UK deals?

So, X200, X61 or T400? Thanks for your replys, I've learned a lot from all the treads i've read on this forum already!

 

If you carry it a lot and don't use the optical drive, then I would highly recommend the X200. I've seen it with the P8800 processor, which should provide more than enough power for tasks as demanding as running MATLAB. In addition, the battery life is great, so there is really no reason to choose it over the T400 if mobility is a concern.

 

The x200 has more pixel width and a higher density, but vertical resolution is very close.

The main concern with the x61 would be heat. The T7100 is a 35w TDP processor and throws out a lot of heat. This combined with the general tendency of the x61 to be on the hot side is not ideal. Conversely, the x200 runs VERY cool at all times.

Linux support is pretty solid on most ThinkPads. I've used Ubuntu 9.10 on my x200 Tablet and pretty much everything (including the digitizer pen) works out of the box. I would assume support is much the same for the x61.

In the US £450 ($720) for a used x61 would be a little high, but I'm not sure about the UK (ThinkPads tend to be a bit exorbitant across the pond). How much would an x200 run you?

 

A new X200 would be around about £1000, a hundred or so either way depending on the specs and buying from lenovo or ordering through a local shop. So the X61 is significantly cheaper, but i've been in touch with the seller, and seems a bit dodgy. Have asked her for the serial number etc so i can check the warranty, but i am not entirely sure about it.

Could there be any updates to the X200 this year, when is a good time to buy? (I suppose when are vouchers likeley to appear as well?)

Thanks!

 

There likely will be an updated x200 this year, but nothing is expected from CES (probably nothing till Q2). There are coupons and vouchers for the x200 available quite frequently in the US. But things tend to be quite different across the pond.

 

I agree with Jon and will add that even the X61s L7500 with only 17W TDP still runs fairly hot due to the general cramped thermal design of the X6X series. It means that the palmrest gets warm to a degree where some people find it uncomfortable and the laptop will act as a lap heater. It is not unbearable, but much inferior to the X200 which runs spectacularly cool.

I very much like the X61 form factor and it has served me very well as my work laptop for quite a few years, but due to it running on the hot side, I would not recommend this over the X200.

The X200 has a bigger footprint, but it is better built, is slightly lighter, has higher res, runs very cool and quietly and comes with newer hardware. Last but not least battery life is great and better than the X61.

The X200 is a clear winner and is well worth the extra money. In fact I find the X200 to be the best business ultraportable on the market right now.

 

amazing how there are so many people with multiple thinkpads on this forum ! I also really like the X61 form factor but yes slightly too hot ... I have no clue about the X200 as it seems that some of the screens were plagues by less than normal video playback quality. That is the main reason I did not buy it. I would suggest depending on where you live that you see one in a shop and play around with it ...

 

How would you rate the P8800 compared with the 2.2GHz T7500? Im waiting for them to release the x210 but if the processor/mobo bus speed isnt significantly increased i'll get a P8800 (which will be much cheaper with the newer models released )

My uses will be for computer programming mainly

 

I have had 6 different X200/X200s (5 sold off) and I have had no issues with screen/video playback quality. Perhaps some people are comparing to glossy LED Backlit screens from i.e. Sony which for vivid colors are very nice. But again, do remember that the X200 is a business ultraportable.

 

There's no x210 this january??? I thought that leaked roadmap showed there is.

I've got an x61 and wanted to increased performance without sacrificing portability.

 

Im soooo willing to buy X200/s/t later this year when the price matches my possibilities, BUT what keeps me off is lack of touchpad :/
Ive been thinking about T400 which is slightly cheaper and more powerful, yet bigger, so id suggest you to decide whether you need something to take with you everywhere you go or just something bit bigger but with more power and with dvd drive and touchpad and not as portable as x200.
Might be quite useless post, but im into investigation as well, tho i have lots of time ahead till summer . Not looking at older TP series due to older, hotter cpu's and ddr2 ram+lower battery life. Not sure how much DDR3 1067 is better over DDR2 800 tho.
So if you can wait and have the money - wait for updates and see whether new x-series will be worth it or not.

 

Is there any disadvantage to buying the thinkpad off a dealer on ebay rather than through lenovo.

Specifically looking at this auction NR3FFUK-ThinkPad-X200

Which is a good £400 or so cheaper than buying from Lenovo (except the HD is a 5400rpm rather than 7200)

How much would a faster HD to install myself normally cost? Either 7200rpm or a ssd? (don't need much more than 160 gig)

 

Assuming the seller is legit and the config meets your needs (check the tabook), there is no real disadvantage. Also, try and get the machine type & serial number from the seller prior to bidding. Use the parts lookup and warranty lookup to verify the seller's claims.

In the US you can get a 160GB 7200rpm HDD for <$80. A decent SSD will start at $200 (for 64-80GB) and move up quickly if you want more space. Prices may be substantially higher in the UK due to VAT, duties, export restrictions, etc.

 

Got a reply from the seller, giving the serial number etc. The machine has a three year warranty, and the parts are as described in the listing.

They say "We manage a Demo facility for Lenovo so these products come directly from the manufacturer and are used by Coporate Clients and the like for (on average) 3 Evaluations of 2 Weeks each."

Anything to know about buying ex-demo machines? I'm about to ask them about their returns policy, but if theres no warnings associated with ex demo then i may just go ahead and purchase now!

 

Well, ordered the X200 off from that ebay listing this morning, got it for £749 in the end.
These specs: P8700, 2GB RAM, 160GB 5400rpm HD.

Vista business installed, so looking forward to getting it this week, and getting a nice Kubuntu install set up the way I like it. Also getting some more RAM ordered up for the first upgrade.

Thanks a lot for you help!

 

That's a nice configuration. You won't be disappointed!

 

Make sure you make your recovery DVDs before wiping it. If you ever decide to sell your x200 it will have more value with Windows.

 

Not sure if this is obvious or covered elsewhere, but the x200 is due to arrive tomorrow, can i use multiple cd's to make the recovery media, or does it have to be dvd with external dvdr?

Have external cd-r and cd's would need to buy dvd's and dvd-r drive. Though i will do it, should i worry about this too much if i'll get a copy of Win7 to dual-boot with anyway?

 

You can use CD-R's although it will obviously require more (7-12 vs. 1-2).

The main issue is possibly reverting to factory in the future. It's worth the small number of CD-R/DVD-R required to make the recovery disks if you ever need them.

 

An external DVD-RW is useful so I would grab one anyways and go that route.

 

Jababa..thanks for the info on the video playback. Ideally I would own a T400 and an X200, just keeping my eyes open for a deal. Not sure about the X200s because the slower CPU, would get the X200 with 2.53 Ghz, 3 GB RAM and a 320GB (7200) if I can find one I can afford. I have discussed this a while ago with JonLumpkin ... he thought that the European X200s which has the same screen as the USA X200 cannot be that much lighter than the X200.

 

While I love my t400, if give the choice again I would go x200s over it for more mobility and how it would fit my current situation better now.

 

well I am still between the X200 and the X200s but I am thinking the X200 would run a fair bit faster ... tossing it up with the extra weight, 6 cell option. But I better decide soon enough. I think the X200 as it comes with a 1280 x 800 LED screen ...

 

Using the new x200 now! Is really good, feel i got an excellent deal from the ebay auction, considering the retail cost over here of this spec of machine. Its just like new, i haven't been able to detect any wear on it, anything broken, really pristine. Had a good chance to inspect it at work, though lots of folk in disturbing me and taking me away from the laptop making me do my job!
Taken to the trackpoint really easily, much better than other's i've used, loving the keyboard. More than happy with the screen, the laptop in general "feels" a lot bigger than i thought it would, but that's probably just my perception coming from using a netbook for the last year.
Theres maybe some kind of driver issue with the wireless under Vista, works intermittently. Running Kubuntu off a USB stick just now (works out of box, easily, just need to following some instructions to get the middle scroll button working etc.) though i'm itching to get it installed and the laptop set up the way i want it, but i'm holding fire on that till i can get the recovery media made.
Only decision now is 32 or 64 bit linux in case i upgrade the RAM soon?