Considering an IBM

I'd like to get your opinion on the IBM machines. I know they tend to be pricey, but my dad owns a Pentium 3 700mhz IBM laptop with Windows 2000 n all (I dont know the exact specs personally). He's had the thing for at least 4 years, and the machine is in great condition, all that had to be replaced was the harddrive at one point. But the screen doesnt wobble at all, there are no cracks in it, and its very sturdy despite the traveling he does with it. Also not to mention I enjoy the standard black color it usually comes with, so if you use it alot, the paint on the palm areas you won't see wear off (if it does lol).

I've always dreamed of getting a good IBM, but the prices have always scared me but I know it probably is worth it. So I'd like to hear any reviews of your IBM machines if you may, and any suggestions for one who is hoping to purchase one within the year? I do have a list of the minimum requirements I'd like to get, perhaps you know of some notebooks that would have them:

Pentium M 715 1.5ghz
256MB DDR RAM
40 Gig harddrive
14 inch screen
Under 7 pounds, hopefully 6.5 or less.
ATI Radeon 7500 32MB Video card
DVD/CD-RW

And all this for at least around $1,500, would that be possible? Oh and about the video card. I want to keep decently up to date say if I buy it in another year from now, I've been hoping to get at least a 64 meg video card. But so far I couldn't find any IBMs with them. Is it possible to get an IBM with 64 megs of video ram? If not, then I don't think it will be too bad since I'm thinking of also getting a new desktop at one point too. Again I'm not into alot of gaming but I just want something I can decently some stuff on. Anyway thank you.

 

My opinion of IBM machines is simply they're the best. The ThinkPad brand is a good one and the reputation it has for being a solidly built and well performing machine is well earned.

For your needs I highly recommend checking out the IBM R51 series of laptops. Good performance and good price with a 14" screen:

http://www.notebookreview.com/search_results.aspx?productID=8033&productFamilyID=411&manufacturerID=9&productName=IBM+ThinkPad+R51%28IBM+Think+Express+Program%29

 

http://www.newegg.com/app/ViewProductDesc.asp?description=34-146-041&depa=3

I took a look at your recommendation and it's indeed a nice machine. Though I didn't really prefer the 20 gig harddrive it came with it and a few other accessories that I've been hoping for. The link I posted above however is something I'm looking at, I just gotta call up sometime and ask if the processor is a 715 or 750. Whatcha think? I think it's pretty sweet.

 

As far as I know, there isn't an Intel Pentium M 750...
there IS the 715, which is a 1.5 GHz chip, and there's the 755, that is the 2.0 GHz chip

ASUS M6800Ne, P-M 1.5 Dothan, 512MB Ram, ASUS Combo drive, Samsung Spinpoint M 40G HDD with 8M cache, Mobility Radeon 9700

 

My apologies, I got totally mixed up lol. It's the 705 I'm trying to stay away from, the 715 is the Dothan that I'd like to have if I get a PM 1.5ghz. Sorry about the mix up

 

Hi Striker,
I've owned 2 thinkpads and used dozens of others, the thinkpads are without a doubt the best made, best to use there is period. There are some IBMs that have a 64MB video, usually they are the higher resolution like 1400x1050 or larger. There are thinkpads to be had with your specs and in your price range. Go over to www.newegg.com and www.mwave.com and shop, they have reat prices. I do know that newegg has at least 6-7 thinkpads for $1500 and under.

Good luck
Jack

"They who would give up an essential liberty for temporary security, deserve neither liberty or security" (Ben Franklin)
http://pbase.com/joneill

 

I've always been a Mac guy, but the simple facts are that some apps I need are Windows only. VirtualPC has always been a steaming dung heap so the only other solution is to have a pc around just for those apps I can't get on the Mac. I've had Sonys, HPs, Winbooks, and ThinkPads, and I can honestly say IBM lappys are the class of the industry and worth every penny. Rugged, superbly made, and the best keyboard I've ever used (way better than the Apple PowerBooks, which I love dearly).

Yeah, they cost more than Asus, Dell, Compaq, et al, but they last seemingly forever as your dad will attest. And you can get a sweet used model at pretty nice savings if you don't need the cutting edge features. There's a guy over at selling a T23 for $615 shipped. Lots of other great deals around as well.
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I've always been a Mac guy, but the simple facts are that some apps I need are Windows only. VirtualPC has always been a steaming dung heap so the only other solution is to have a pc around just for those apps I can't get on the Mac. I've had Sonys, HPs, Winbooks, and ThinkPads, and I can honestly say IBM lappys are the class of the industry and worth every penny. Rugged, superbly made, and the best keyboard I've ever used (way better than the Apple PowerBooks, which I love dearly).

Yeah, they cost more than Asus, Dell, Compaq, et al, but they last seemingly forever as your dad will attest. And you can get a sweet used model at pretty nice savings if you don't need the cutting edge features. There's a guy over at Ars Technica selling a T23 for $615 shipped. Lots of other great deals around as well.

 

How would an IBM42 Thinkpad compare to an equivalent Compaq HP, or a Dell?

 

There is no comparison. I had a dell, wouldnt buy another after getting this thinkpad. Quality and service are the two issues here. Yes, you will pay more up front but you will forget about that later. Everytime I call Dell, I am on the phone a min of 40 min holding for someone to help me. Very frustrating.

 

Buy the Thinkpad! They are a very rugged and well designed machine. Epecially the T Series. None of the other manufacturers out there have the quality anymore as they are all running to hard to catch the more for less bandwagon. IBM has a very solid following in the professional world where people rely on the machines for more than just sitting on a desk and surfing the web. They can't afford to cut on quality and lose their customer base. The Toshiba M2 or M30 are the only other machines I have any real respect for.

I work as a laptop technician at an authorized ibm/toshiba/hp/compaq repair center and spend my days taking them apart after they fail. We see very few IBM's, probably less than 5% of what comes in.

 

Wow thanks for the feedback. I guess I'm definately getting an IBM.

 

I respectfully disagree about IBM Thinkpad T42 quality. I have received four Thinkpads T42 in a row so far and they were all defective, with different issues. The first came dead on arrival due to a non working fan. A service center was able to fix it but it had screen quality issues (a big shadow on the bottom right corner of the screen). Also, the battery would often not charge. The second one came with a big dust particle in the screen, which obviously could not be removed and a battery charging problem as well. The third one came with a blue stuck pixel, creaky touchpad buttons and a Chinese keyboard which flexed a lot. This latest one, the fourth one, came with two dead pixels (one right in the middle of the screen). You may argue that I have been extremely unlucky. Personally I do not believe in luck but in probabilities. What are the odds of getting four defective Thinkpads in a row? My conclusion is that IBM quality is not what it used to be...
Just my opinion.

Thank you.
Best regards,
Jordi

 

<blockquote id='quote'> quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>Originally posted by jordi32