X200 question

when I do a google search for the X200, it shows me some merchants carrying the model, but they all have Windows XP Pro loaded on them and cost $1200.

yet, when I customize it on the Lenovo website, the price is $1400 and they all come with Windows Vista. the price is a starting point so the more I load onto it, the higher the price gets.

so what's up with this? how do stores like J&R carry them for so much less and with a different OS and yet it's so expensive to get it direct from Lenovo?

 

Well the configure to order base price is much more. The ones you see at merchants are topseller models which are preconfigured and will sell in mass quantities. Figure out your needs and then figure out if you are happy with the setup from the topseller models or configure if you need to.

 

i really wanted to try out vista with it, but all the preconfigured models have WinXP Pro. ****...

 

You can get the 74542GU topseller model from thenerds.net for $1109.99 and 12.5% cashback from Microsoft by using their live cashback for a net price of around $980. At this price, you have plenty of leftover money to buy a Vista upgrade if you wish.

http://www.thenerds.net/LENOVO.X200_P8600_2X1GB_160_12W_BT_F_XPP.74542GU.html

edit: live cashback for thenerds.net has decreased to 5% and shipping has increased from $9 to $45. Not the deal it was a few days ago.

 

Heres one with Vista: http://www.macmall.com/macmall/shop...6GHz+Notebook-Notebook+Computers&dpno=7532288

I don't think its shipping yet though

 

hmmm slower processor though

i might just stick with WinXP Pro SP2.

argh! but i really wanted to try vista!!
what to do...

 

oh i have another question:

this one comes with a DVD drive built-in

http://www.jr.com/lenovo/pe/LEN_74542HU/

how? I thought no X200s come with DVD drives built in.

 

No there is no DVD drive that is just a mistake some eretailers are putting in the item description.

 

I also noticed all the models with this "DVD drive" costs around $1500. why?

 

to get the dvd drive you need the Ultrabase.. so that's probably why.

 

Yeah that annoyed me. A price premium for one with Vista and a slower cpu. I think I'll wait and see if anymore pop up.

 

Allow me to take the opportunity to clarify the x200 topseller.

The 74542hu quoted on jr.com does include the ultrabay, so you will get a DVD drive (albeit external). The 74542gu, which is about $1100-$1200 at most retailers, does not include the ultrabay. These models all come preloaded with XP Pro. HOWEVER, they also come with a 32-bit version of Vista Business on CD. Thus, you do get vista included, but you need an external DVD drive to load it onto all models (which means you need to buy one if you own the 74542gu version. I can also confirm that an install of 64-bit vista business installs just fine over the 32-bit vista business that came with the unit.

If anyone has any questions regarding getting the 64-bit drivers to work for the x200, let me know

 

thanks for the clarification.

unfortunately, I'm only interested in the 64-bit vista... things aren't working out here! I really thought that the ones with vista had the 64-bit version loaded onto them

ah well.

 

Is there any particular reason you want 64bit? Or that you worry about the slower CPU on various topsellers? What sort of use is the laptop for? 64bit is usually not too helpful unless you have specific programs you know that work and need to use (and NEED more than 3-3.5gigs of memory).

 

Can't you just borrow a retail version of Vista and install 64 bit? I thought you could do that, but I could be mistaken.

 

You're probably not going to find any of the x200 models with a 64-bit OS preloaded. It was a bit of a pain to have to install Vista 32-bit over XP and then 64-bit over 32-bit but, for the money I saved, it was well worth it in the end. I paid $1,132, no tax, free shipping, for the 74542GU model. I am very happy with it and it runs extremely fast (although I doubt that just because I have the faster processor it runs faster - I am sure having 2GB RAM helps).

You should not have a problem finding a 64-bit disk on the various filesharing sites. I am not condoning piracy, but I do believe that it is fair for you to download the 64-bit version of the OS if you can't get it anywhere else and you've already paid for the 32-bit version.

 

What size battery comes with this model?

Edit: Nevermind found that it was 6-cell from another website. However, now I am wondering if the disk drive is writeable.

 

None of the TopSeller models offer 9 cell battery though. I've been perfectly fine with an external DVD drive, so ultrabay is really a matter of personal preference.

 

No need for the disclaimer; you can order 64-bit media directly from microsoft for free (just pay shipping). Once you have vista, MS doesn't care if you install 32-bit or 64-bit. The key that comes with your pre-installed 32-bit version of Vista will also activate the same version of 64-bit Vista. I have read nothing that leads me to believe that this amounts to piracy in any way. The fact that a 32-bit key activates 64-bit windows is evidence that MS doesn't consider 32-bit and 64-bit licenses as two separate pieces of software.

 

It's too bad they are installing XP on them. In my opinion Vista SP1 is better than any XP. I hope the perception changes and manufacturers start dropping XP or just leave it as the secondary option.

The topsellers are pretty hard to understand. Alot of the resellers put the entire description in hard to understand abbreviations in the product name. I guess it takes too much time/effort/cost to post accurate specs on what they are selling. You need the tabook from Lenovo to figure out what you are getting.

 

Vista is fine if you have the resources, but when it DOES act up it is a pain. I have recently made the switch to Server 2008 on my workstation and use vista on my laptop. Vista really eats my memory and I disable a lot of services now. I might upgrade to 3gigs down the line if I use my laptop for more than simple word processing.

But I do agree that much of the hate Vista receives is either misplaced or simply the bandwagon of people who don't really have a reason not to like vista. Also having an SSD makes Vista fly (or at least not be a snail) .