X201i vs X200

Im debating between these two laptops. They are roughly the same price ($850). The X201i I'm looking at is the same configuration you see everywhere:

http://www.jr.com/lenovo/pe/LEN_3249J2U/

The X200 would be coming off ebay (from a good seller):

With the X200 I'd be getting 9 cell (I'm assuming the 6 cell is on the X201i since it says up to 6.7 hours of runtime). I would be gaining 1 gb of ram. There are X200 configurations that include 4gb of ram but they come with Win XP, I want 7.

So, I'm just asking, what would you do? Just looking for opinions. I understand the Core i3 should perform about the same as the P8600? At least they're close enough to be a wash. The 9 cell battery is what's really drawing me to the X200. But I like the idea of the X201i being newer. Is the core i3 that much more efficient to negate the differences in the battery life of the two machines.

It would also help if I knew how many dimms the 2gb in the X201i machine was as well.

 

My guess would be the X201i has one memory stick since it's pretty much the base these days, but it's still a guess. You got a link for the eBay auction? The Lenovo Outlet might be another option. I think you're right in that the performance difference difference will be negligible. I will probably boil down to whether you want the extra battery life the X200 offers. I get about seven hours on mine with the screen on half doing normal stuff, but my I swapped my LCD with the AFFS, which are a little more power hungry. You may do better on the standard LCD.

 

The ebay auctions I just type in x200, then select computers, then select new in box. There are a few

 

http://cgi.ebay.com/NEW-Lenovo-Thin...tops_Nov05&hash=item439d4cb249#ht_2791wt_1165

There is one auction

 

I've owned an x200 since launch, and still love it.
Just so you know, the 9cell battery sticks out. If you're like me a prefer that your battery is flush with the laptop, go for the 6cell. Avoid 4cell (I don't know if that's even an option anymore)

I don't know about the real world performance gains with the i3. But I will tell you this, for most office work - browsing, ms office, citrix etc.. the P8600 runs like a champ. Plus it's 25W vs the i3 which is 35W, which probably means that your x201 will draw more power. Experts, please correct me if I'm wrong.

 

I believe the i3 draws more power, but it includes the GPU. It's probably same diff.

If cost is your goal, I think you can do better in the Outlet, but outlet machines can't have their warranty upgraded, which is something to keep in mind if you think you might. I'd ask the ebay seller if the X200 is refurbed.

 

More importantly, ask if the machine (new or refurbished) came from the outlet. As per Lenovo Outlet policy, warranty for all outlet machines are voided on resale.

(Though I imagine there might be exceptions if the outlet machine was purchased from the outlet through an outlet reseller account.)

 

Please also keep in mind that the x200 is most likely to have ccfl screen, while the x201 have led.

 

The i3's TDP is 35W but it's included the northbridge, which TDP is 12W on the older platform.

 

The listings say Brand New, Depot 1 year warranty.

Some of the listings list the LED screens, some don't (but that can mean it is either, I'll check that for sure, thanks for bringing it to my attention)

 

What I was trying to say is that brand new machines from Lenovo Outlet have 1-year non-transferable depot warranty to the original purchaser only.

 

It is also not upgradable either.

 

Hmm, maybe I'll just go for a 201i then, and upgrade battery later, if need be.