how much is W701ds worth these days?

This laptop are as rare as Tasmanian tiger here in Australia, I don't know what is a reasonable market value for one of these.

If one is maintained in good condition, how much are they worth?

 

No clue on the Australian market value, but you should be able to snatch one in the U.S. for under $1500.

They are not common here either, or anyplace else for that fact.

Happy hunting.

 

The general rule I use is subtract 40% of the value for each technological generation. There are 4 technological generations between the W701ds and the Haswell Thinkpads that will be released in a month or two.
So, if you paid $2000 for the system originally,
after one tech generation (year), it would be worth $1200 (2000*0.6)
after two generations, it would be worth $720 (1200*0.6)
after three generations (right now), it would be worth $432 (720 *0.6)
and after four generations (once Haswell-based Thinkpads are released), it would be worth $259.60 (432*0.6).

If you start with the original price you paid for the system and follow that metric, you should arrive at a fairly accurate present-day market value for the system. Since it's a rare machine in good condition, you may be able to get more for it. However, it will only be worth more to a specific subgroup of people who really want the dual screen.

edit: Of course, if you are looking to buy one, then you determine how much it's worth to purchase.

 

Let's not forget two things here:

a) The original MSRP for W701DS was close to $7K.

b) It is *by far* the rarest Lenovo ThinkPad ever produced, with the total sales figure worldwide in the five-digit range.

Given the uniqueness of the design involved, there are really no "contenders" - never were any to begin with in my opinion - but the possibly-closest-comparison in market value would be a top-end HP 8740W, and these routinely sell for around $1500 when in excellent condition...

 

do W701DS main screen come only in 1920 x 1200 (WUXGA)?

Because I know the W701 comes in WUXGA or WXGA+

 

My understanding - which may be incorrect - is that WUXGA was the only option for main panel on the ds models.

 

The unicorn of Thinkpads. I've always wanted one, but it's far too old now. For $500, I'd take it. $1500? Not a chance.

 

I got one, and it has 32 gigs RAM on it. Today i upgraded to 2 x 256 gigs SSD, because my old Seagate platter hdd in RAID 0 decided to die yesterday. When i got it about 1.5 years ago, i paid about 1100 dollars, it was ex-Lenovo demo model. It is still a very powerful ThinkPad even to today.

 

Compared to what? Today's desktop replacement or todays ultrabooks?

 

compared to my W530 with quad core i7-3740qm.

 

Just googled the W701ds....

Wish they would still make those, as gimmicky as they look, they truly seem like THE perfect mobile graphic design station.

 

W70* series was a fabulously brave design - and while not without its quirks/shortcomings - one of Lenovo's finest moments in my book.

Now that I'm pretty much out of the ThinkPad game altogether, it might be just the right time to get one...

 

are the W70*DS the only two laptops in the world with dual screens?

Would that make them instant collector's item which will go up in value instead of down?

 

value wont increase.

current value would be between $800-$1500.

 

Where would you be able to get a W701ds in reasonable condition at such prices?

 

I'd buy 3-4 pieces at $800 right here right now.

Not going to happen though. Most folks who own them

a) Paid a hellishly pretty penny for these back in the days and/or

b) Still use and enjoy them

If I were actively looking for one, I'd lock $1500 until further notice to be on the realistic side of the fence, and wait...wait...wait...

 

Exactly my point, not sure where anyone would get the idea that one of these beasts could be obtained for such low prices.

 

somehow I find it hard to be believe that their performance would still hold up to today's W series.

That's like saying intel and nvidia has not improved in 4 years, according to Moore's law, W540 should be 4 times as powerful that of W700

 

The W530 CPU performance on a synthetic benchmark is about twice as powerful as the W701ds CPU that i got. But for what i need the W701ds is enough, also i have W510, W520, 3 x W530 too, so i can pick and choose what i want to use.

 

No, there is also the gScreen Spacebook and I think one more. But it's definitely a small niche.

 

Upgrade the W701DS CPU to Quadcore? Only 75$ and free shipping....

Intel Core 2 Quad Mobile 2GHz Q9000 6M Laptop CPU Processor Slgej Socket P | eBay

 

Wrong CPU for the W701/DS since they shipped with Clarksfield Quad Core CPUs.

That CPU would work in W700/DS and was one of the factory options.

 

my W701ds uses the i7-920xm quad core CPU. I think it is the most powerful that Lenovo had on it. I am happy with my W701ds for what it does.

 

Sorry, my bad

940XM is the best CPU, but i'm pushing it

 

i7-940xm maybe the best version, but i am not sure how many ThinkPad W701 or ds version was shipped with them.

Also i was lucky to even get the W701ds for that price, and it was really a dream came true for me to get this halo machine. But one thing, the Seagate hdd that came on the laptop was slow and prone to failure. Also RAID 0 mode is highly volatile combination with the Seagate hdd that was shipped with the W701/ds machine.

 

I'm looking to buy a W701ds. If someone has one they want to sell, please let me know.

Background:

I bought a W700ds, all the options, and never used it. These days, WUXGA 17" is impossible to find. I need a stop gap between now and 4K notebooks, so I'm looking at the W700ds. However, I need at least 16GBs, so now I'm desperately looking for a W701ds.

I picked up a W701 (not ds), hoping that I can plop the W700ds screen on top of the W701 bottom, but after reading the service manual, they are different...

Question: I see that there are many logic board part numbers for the W701/ds variant. It seems they are ds and non-ds specific. Would I be able to, should I find a W701ds screen, install it over a W701 (non-ds) bottom half? I presume not?

Thanks for any info...

 

Your presumption is a correct one.

Happy unicorn-hunting.

 

Yes, it is an unicorn indeed...

Question: If I find a unit with, say, 820QM and FX2800, can I easily upgrade to 840QM and FX3800 by swapping parts? Also, if the unit is equipped without digitizer, does the motherboard still have the connector? That is, if I simply install the digitizer cover from the W700, will it work?

I'm not giving up!!

 

I don't know about the digitizer, but the CPU can be freely upgraded. For the GPU, you explicitely need a Lenovo model: Riding the Flow: Is Thinkpad W701 MXM? Kind of. Upgradeable? Nope

Also, you cant plop in a ds display on a non-ds machine, as it lacks the second LCD connector on the board

 

Thanks... It seems like, at least for the W700/701 line, they are designed/built to *not* be up-gradable, with the motherboard created to be sub-model specific. The changes between W700 and 701 also make many parts interchangeability impossible. While I understand some of the needed changes, others makes it frustrating for those who tinker... It would have been so nice if I could have simply put a W700ds top onto a W701 bottom...

I'm also trying to keep alive an HP 8740w. From what I can tell, there are essentially two motherboards--one for quad core and one for dual core. The components are more universal and therefore the parts list is simpler than the W-line.

I know I'm preaching to the chior. I'm just ranting...

It's too bad--the W70x series was an epic setup.

Edit:

Here is an interesting thread:

http://forum.thinkpads.com/viewtopic.php?f=48&t=104148

 

reviving old threads are awesome. i can't believe i will need hex stud screw driver to fully disassemble this thing, now I can't strip it or upgrade mobo let alone finding the PLL. sucks

 

Does the W7XX have an achilles' heel in its design? I hate to pay over $1k for one and end up with a brick since they are all out of warranty.

 

There were some reports of failed GPUs, but these are swappable which is a rarity when it comes to ThinkPads.

Well, buying such a prestigious item - pretty much an Aston Martin of the laptop world - is never entirely risk-free...

 

currently have one with 940xm and 3800m, 940xm is definitely better than 920xm, 2 more multipliers and still a bit lower temp. i guess at this point no way to find out PLL of w701 or 701ds. im also looking for a motherboard that supports intel turbo memory, cant find one..

 

That is because they don't exist. Turbo memory was no longer supported on first generation Core i platforms.

 

yea just checked the PDF last night, all the turbo memory card seems to start with number 4, part number starts with 4 with w700ds instead. now im too scared to even try soldering mini pcie socket onto those port and try use it as additional pcie slots.. lol