Getting a T500

Hey, I config a T500 to this spec


Intel Core 2 Duo Processor P8400 (2.26GHz 1066MHz 3MBL2) 25W1
Genuine Windows Vista Home Basic12
15.4 WXGA TFT, w/ LED Backlight
ATI Mobility Radeon 3650 with 256MB
1 GB PC3-8500 DDR3 SDRAM 1067MHz SODIMM Memory (1 DIMM)8
UltraNav (TrackPoint and TouchPad)
160 GB Hard Disk Drive, 5400rpm4
CD-RW/DVD-ROM Combo 24X/24X/24X/8X Max, Ultrabay Slim (Serial ATA)5
No Bluetooth
ThinkPad 11b/g Wireless LAN Mini PCI Express Adapter III10
Integrated Mobile Broadband upgradable65
9 cell Li-Ion Battery60
2081: 1 Year Depot Warranty - TopSeller7


825 before tax.

How does it look? Dont think the 2.24 and 2.40 will make too much of a difference, and I figure I wont be burning any DVD soon. I am going toupgrade the ram later, and the HD is fine for me since I have an external.

Is there anything I should reconsider?

 

looks fine to me, there are a few things that MIGHT be worth noting:
hard drives speed is affected by how full they are. but not as much as 5400 vs 7200 unless they are really full.
you probably already know but dvd burners are usefull for man than burning movies. games, oss etc are on dvds nowadays if you need to burn anything like that.
dont think about upgrading the processor later as if its as easy as upgrading the ram. its much more of a hassle and not very cost effective.
in my opinion, that is everything you could possibly forgotten. well, not really, but its not THAT big of a deal. the t500 is great, congrats on your decision.

 

The burner is nice for backups and making the recovery discs, but an external works too. I'd get the P8400. A 7200RPM does offer a bit more peppy performance, but you're probably better off buying it after.

 

Out of curiosity, why?

 

Sorry, but I want to buy a t500 too, and does it come with an option for a glossy screen?

 

There is no option for a glossy screen with the T500.

I don't know the cost of upgrading the CPU from a P8400 to a P8600, but you could probably buy an additional 2GB of RAM from Newegg for the same amount of money. For general use, more RAM, especially going from 1GB to 3GB, will prove to be more beneficial than going from 2.26GHz to 2.4GHz. Adding more RAM is also physically easier than upgrading the CPU.

 

I think the only ones that come with glossy are the R series.

 

No, the R-series also has matte screens. Only the semi-Thinkpad SL series comes with glossy screens, along with the IdeaPad line.

 

Ordering in a few minutes. Everything looks good?

 

A few things to consider:
A DVD burner would be very useful for burning your recovery disks, among other things. It's not very expensive, and can be useful in the future.
The Intel WiFi cards are more power-efficient than the Thinkpad b/g cards, so you'll get better battery life with them. Users have also reported better signal strength with the Intel cards, although I do not have any solid data to back up this claim. My Intel WiFi 5300 works great though.
Seeing as you will add more RAM, and that the HD is easy to replace, everything else looks good.

 

I thought about the DVD burner, and frankly, I have a DVD burner in my desktop that I hardly use to burn DVD. Seeing how the DVD burner is 70 dollar, I dont think it is worth it. b/g is fine i think since n isnt as mainstream as b/g. However, I heard some issue with the intel card, and that the default card is good enough.

 

N is definitely becoming more mainstream daily. I'd go with the 5100. I have a 5350 that I got because I needed the Wimax, but otherwise I'd have gotten a 5100 for sure.

What did you hear about the card? I haven't read anything bad about these cards as of yet. You're right though, the default card will still get the job done fine.

 

i remember reading somewhere that the intel card had bad reception or something, but doesnt matter now, since if i do need N in the future, i can always swap the wireless card i think. I just ordered it and yeah, it is gonna take a while to ship>_>

Now, what acessories should i get?xD

 

The 5350 for me has been nothing short of excellent signal almost anywhere I go. I used to get 90% on a neighbor's wifi while my roommate sitting right next to me used to only get 'one bar' on his black mac book, and even that would drop to zero every other minute. In my apartment, through about 3 solid concrete walls, I still get 99% in G mode. The WIMAX also comes in really strong.

You're right though, swapping it later won't be a problem at all.

I hate the wait time on the shipping :-/ Make sure your address is verified and all that, otherwise it could cause delays.

Accessory wise-- go with a backpack if you do a lot of traveling. The side carry bags are the biggest pain in my *** in an airport.

Also worth getting is a USB hub and maybe an SD card. Some might suggest a USB mouse, though with tracknipple, you really don't need it unless you want to game.