finally buing first thinkpad (last questions)

After years of searching the right notebook (thank you for your helpful posts) I find X-series the best for my needs (priority: battery life, dimension, durability). Although I used refurbished T40 half year, this will be the first new thinkpad, so I have great expectation. Under the circumstances I am forced to buy it this weekend. If the price means nothing, I would buy X200T (rather than X201T because of higher power consumption), but reality is inexorable, so I will have to stay with non-tablet X201 version. I wouldn't be able to find better price than 1099-1184$ without tax on lenovo web site with 15% USPTHINKSALE coupon.

Configuration:
Intel Core i3-370M or i5-520M Processor
Windows 7 Professional 64
12.1" WXGA LED Panel, 3x3 UltraConnect II antenna; Wireless Broadband Upgradeable
ntel HD Graphics
2 GB PC3-8500 DDR3 SDRAM 1067MHz SODIMM Memory (1 DIMM) (4GB module upgrade)
TrackPoint
160 GB Hard Disk Drive, 5400rpm (SSD upgrade)
ThinkPad X200 Series 9 cell Li-Ion Battery
Bluetooth w/ antenna
Intel Centrino Ultimate-N 6300 (3x3 AGN) or Advanced-N + WiMAX 6250
Integrated Mobile Broadband - Upgradable
3249: 1 Year Depot Warranty - TopSeller
41C9170 3Yr Basic Warranty Extension

So the questions are:
Do you think that the price is worth the configuration or should I look somewhere else?
Which cpu and wifi would you prefer?
How many % is tax to Colorado?
Do you think it is possible to find X200T for about 1200$?

Thank you.

 

Your configuration is good, but I'd upgrade to onsite warranty instead of depot.

Processor really depends on what you're doing. The i3 is great for plenty of things; if you want to do video encoding from time-to-time, the i5 is a better bet.

I think WiMAX isn't a great way to spend your money unless you've got a specific need. Stick with the 6300.

Finally, last I new, sales tax was pretty wonky in Colorado --isn't it determined by county, or something like that? Been a long time since I've been there, but it was odd enough for me to recall it being odd.

 

Check the outlet:

Lenovo Outlet - X Series Tablet - ThinkPad laptops - Laptops & netbooks - Discounted Laptops, Cheap Laptops, Refurbished Laptops, Discounted Desktops, Cheap Desktops, Refurbished Desktops

drake

 

Would you prefer 2Yr Onsite Warranty Next Business Day (139) or 3Yr Basic Warranty Extension (119)

I can't thing of anything cpu-intensive application. Maybe - from time to time - I will edit photographs (perhaps in Photoshop, if there will be affordable license for non-comercial use or something like that)

I am going to study in a city where they start off with wimax, but I can't find the charges, so I guess in case of non-existing free hotspost, I will not use it.

 

Thanks, but because of my budget I am afraid of refurbished X200T and also the ntb should be delivered by the end of month.

 

if you are opting for the i3 CPU, then i would rather get the X200 variant.

 

I'd choose two years of onsite over three years of basic.

Several reasons --first (although I haven't had to use it so I can't back this up), Lenovo has a better reputation for its onsite service as opposed to Solectron, who has handled most (if not all) of their depot service. Also, you get to see your laptop worked on and verify your issue is resolved.

Secondly, if your needs are mission-critical, depot service will leave you without your laptop for a week for sure, perhaps two (including shipping, diagnosis, etc.) You don't have that problem with onsite service, and you don't have to worry about an accident like someone wiping the data from your hard drive.

After two years, depreciation on a laptop is such that IMO, it probably isn't worth having a third year of warranty anyway.

 

Why? Better battery life? Is there X200/s stocked somewhere?

Thank you, I have not heard about Solectron yet, to be specific I have not found any representation in our country although this model has got IWS.

 

the i3 CPU is not much more powerful than the P series CPU in the X200.

 

My bad, by the way --I made the (foolish) assumption that you were in the States; Lenovo's contractor for depot support within the US (possibly within North America) is Solectron.

Even outside of the States (or North America), you get better peace of mind if service is on-site; it's relatively easy to figure out whether you're dealing with a competent tech or not. With depot service, you have little control over whom you're dealing with.

 

Melbourne's Bytecraft is not very good. I sent in a X200 for repair, and it came back with lots of scratches.

 

I have searched prices of all preconfigured notebooks X201 and it seems to me, that there is barely no price difference between them comparing to the mentioned configuration ($1099). The situation differs with X201i 3249-MDU. But it comes with 6 cell battery and Intel 1000 instead of 6300. So do you think it is worth the money to buy 3249-MDU ($835.66) + 9 cell battery ($151.62) + warranty extension (which is the right price for 2Yr Onsite at the bottom of this page: costcentral.com/proddetail/Lenovo_ThinkPad_X201i_3249/3249MDU/11172806) and then sell the 6-cell battery?

PS sorry for the format of url, with html tag 404 error appears.

 

Would you take into a consideration Laptop Authority - Lenovo Thinkpad X200 Tablet (7453EDU) Notebook Core 2 Duo SL9400 1.86 GHz 12.1" Screen 1280x800 160 GB HDD 2048 MB RAM optional 802.11a/b/g/n wireless, 10/100/1000 Ethernet, Bluetooth, 56K modem

 

Where are you at in Colorado? Here in the Springs sales tax is 7.4%, but part of that is sales tax added on by the city and isn't going to be true state-wide. However, I believe sales tax doesn't apply for online purchases since you're not purchasing the notebook from a retailer here.

I also think looking elsewhere online(The for sale forums here, the thinkpads.com Marketplace forums, eBay, Craigslist) will net you extremely good deals. I picked up the T400 in my sig from Ebay for a good price at the time($600 in Feb.) and my X200 was a Craigslist deal for $100 and a desktop I wasn't using... well worth the drive to Denver.

Also.. where around here has WiMAX?

 

Sorry for mystification about WiMAX. Although I will buy notebook from Boulder (better said it will be delivered there), I study in Pardubice (Czech Republic), which is the town with WiMAX I spoke about.

 

Aaaah. Gotcha. In that case I'm pretty sure you don't pay any sort of sales tax as long as you don't purchase your notebook from a retailer that is in the same state it's being sent to. We don't have VAT or anything like that here, either... so I wouldn't worry about anything except customs duties when you have it sent to the Czech Republic.

 

Do you think the power of mentioned tablet (SL9400 1.86, Intel X4500MHD) is enough for next 4 years or would you prefer X201 with i3/i5?

 

Again, it depends on what you're going to do, or if your needs are going to change.

The 9400 is a very usable CPU. For what I do on a notebook, it would be fine for probably the next two years, and it has hardware virtualization (I run a virtual machine or two on occasion).

There's no way to guarantee a killer app won't be out in 3-4 years that might be better served by a Core i3/i5 processor. If you want this to be a purchase that lasts you for 4 years, the faster processors may be a better choice.

For what it's worth, I'm running with a P8600 processor. Any speed issues I can think of are hard-drive related, which is why I just ordered a new Scorpio Black drive to replace my current Scorpio Blue.

 

Thank you all. I have just purchased X201i for 1107$ without tax.

Processor: Intel Core i3-370M Processor (2.40GHz, 3MB L3, 1066MHz FSB) 1
Operating system: Genuine Windows 7 Professional 64 1
Operating system language: Genuine Windows 7 Professional 64 US English 1
Display type: 12.1" WXGA LED Panel, 3x3 UltraConnect II antenna; Wireless Broadband Upgradeable 1
Total memory8: 2 GB PC3-8500 DDR3 SDRAM 1067MHz SODIMM Memory (1 DIMM) 1
Keyboard: Keyboard US English 1
Pointing Device: TrackPoint 1
Hard Drive: 160 GB Hard Disk Drive, 5400rpm 1
System expansion slots: 5-1 Media Card Reader and Modem 1
Battery: ThinkPad X200 Series 9 cell Li-Ion Battery 1
Power cord: Country Pack North America with Line cord & 65W AC adapter 1
Bluetooth: Bluetooth w/ antenna 1
Integrated WiFi wireless LAN adapters: Intel Centrino Ultimate-N 6300 (3x3 AGN) 1
Integrated mobile broadband: Integrated Mobile Broadband - Upgradable 1
Language Pack: Win7 Language Pack US English 1
Accessories and options:
2Yr Onsite Warranty Next Business Day