IBM ThinkPad R40 (2003) - Retro Review!

IBM ThinkPad R40 (2003) - Retro Review!

This is my first notebook review, inspired by this thread
and by incredible durability and resilience of one very specific IBM notebook.


The system was purchased in summer 2003 to serve as a business, study and (of course) gaming rig.
System specs:

CPU: Intel Pentium M 1.5GHz

GPU: ATI Mobility Radeon 7500 with 32MB

Screen: 15.0" TFT display with 1024x768 resolution

RAM: 256MB (upgraded to 1GB) PC2100

HDD: 40GB

Optical Drive: CD-RW/DVD-ROM Combo drive

LAN: Intel Fast Ethernet (10/100)

Wireless: Intel PRO/Wireless LAN 2100 3B Mini PCI Adapter

OS: WinXP Home. (Currently: Ubuntu 9.10)

Was purchased for 2000USD in Israel.
At that time I had about 5 years of experience in IT support and had seen quite a lot of systems to understand - ThinkPads were the best.
There was simply no competition in both quality and performance.


Build Quality and Design:

Given the time (almost 8 full years) and the stress the system had to withstand, it's just unbelievably incredible
that not only did it survive but also it survived unscarred!
Not a single hardware failure in all these years. Now to understand the level of stress I put it through:
I was a very addicted gamer (was? ) and played all the major titles of that time (Baldurs Gate, NeverWinter Nights, Americas Army and many more).
When I wasn't gaming, the laptop would stay on shuffle and play music through the nights (I have a bad habit of sleeping with music ON ) and constantly downloading and uploading stuff. The system could stay ON for months in hot and humid weather (In Israel it can often hit above +40C and stay above 30C for weeks and even months).
The notebook did fall a few times but luckily never on it's edges so the critical amount of physical damage was never reached (partially due to the thick plastic case protecting the system from my clumsiness).
But of course, the system doesn't look brand new anymore.
There's a noticeable keyboard flex, but typing is still pleasant and all keys are 100% responsive.
The palm rest plastic is giving in with a creaking sound. The display hinges are still on and managing the lid very well, though the later wobbles a little when in a train or bus. The notebook is quite heavy for the 15" category - 3KG.






Screen:

The brightness is severely reduced, but I still can work on the machine even under direct sunlight due to the anti glare type of the screen.
Viewing angles suffered a lot as well and using the notebook's display as a home cinema is nearly impossible.
Furthermore, the protective coating of the screen lost half of its transparency due to my fault (the liquid solution used for cleaning the surface best not to be mentioned here )



Speakers:

Lost their crispy sound long ago and the sound vibrating can only be avoided at a reduced volume. Moreover, the sound card itself seems to be failing slowly and both the speakers and the headphones' sound is full of noise and is very quiet.


Processor, Performance and Benchmarks:

The Processor's code name is Banias (Intel Pentium M 1.5GHz) but despite its age and outdated architecture can still give the Atom's run for their money.
- According to notebookcheck cpu benchmarks

SuperPi 1M (the lower score - the better):

i7 920XM: 13s

Banias PM: 62s

AMD L310: 79s

Atom 330: 98s

Since my current OS is Ubuntu Linux (Karmic Koala)
I couldn't run the standard benchmarking software.

GLXGears (a tiny program to test the combined CPU and GPU performance) was used to check the current system performance.
as seen from the image, the notebook scored slightly above 3k points.
For comparison, my AW M17X (Intel i5-520M + ATI Mobility Radeon 4870X2) scored 60k in the same test.
However the system has sufficient resources to run the Compiz Desktop Effects (equivalent to but more advanced than W7 Aero engine) without any noticeable stutter.
Unfortunately, web-browsing is the weakest side of the system as any flash-loaded web-site will stress both the CPU and GPU to their limits, resulting in mild freezes and stuttering.


Heat and Noise:

The system underwent an extensive maintenance a few days ago, all internal components got cleaned from dust, the CPU thermal compound was replaced with the AS-5 paste.
As a result temperatures never rose above 60C for the CPU and 50C for the GPU (HDD 40C MAX) throughout the testing. The system still has some huge reserves as the TJMax for the CPU is 100C.
The fan, on the other hand is very loud and when at load can be quite disturbing.
At extreme system stress the bottom of the notebook can become very hot but never leaves the bearable 50C. So the notebook can still be used on the lap and on the go.


Battery:

Surprisingly, the battery is still capable of providing a decent 2 hours and 30 minutes of surfing time, making it about a half of what it was capable 8 years ago.


Connectivity Devices:

The system has 2 USB 2.0 ports, Infrared port, modem and Ethernet (10/100) and a PCMCIA slot (currently occupied with an Ethernet card (the built-in port was damaged by misuse).
The wireless card still works perfectly and is my main connectivity device both at home and work.
In addition, the CD-RW-DVD-R-Combo drive is in very good working condition as well!


Operating System:

As was mentioned above, the current operating system is the latest version of Ubuntu Linux (9.10).



Conclusion:

There will be no regular pros and cons, since this is a retro review and the system is not for sale (the model R40 is discontinued)
A few things to mention at the end:
This notebook is still on-duty 40-50 hour per week on average. It's used both at work and home for advanced programming projects involving cross-platform operations.
Remarkably, all hardware components are still the same, nothing was replaced or changed from the day of the purchase. Even the battery and the screen are still in working condition.
If this review can be of any indication, IBM indeed manged to give birth to a very powerful line - ThinkPads, that until today stays on the edge of technology - performance and durability, workmanship and design.

Thank You

 

Reserved for more pics!
1

2

Running Compiz Fusion

Screen comparison to the M17X RGB LED - both at max brightness!

Ubuntu Karmic

 

Very nice, didn't think you were going to write it up!

Despite all the criticism, I think Lenovo's done a marvelous job of preserving and improving the Thinkpad, while keeping with the times by lowering costs. That R40 has some seriously solid internal metal bracing though.

 

Thank You!
Yes, I agree.
Can't wait till my W510 arrives!

 

this is very retro in computer years...... But your R40 is in pretty good condition despite its age.

 

Wow, the R40 steel hinges are that thin? and with Thinkpad like hinge strength?

 

Lol, I know, they used some black sorcery to support the lid.

 

The x3x, T30 all share the same design... they were still stronger than what their competitors could offer.

 

Wow, that was a great retro review !
Nice to see older Thinkpads still getting used everyday !

 

Nice review.

The Pentium M 1.5ghz is a great processor. I have 2 Dell D505's in my house with the same processor and they're still churning away.

 

Thanks for the feedback , guys!

 

Man, look at how tall that LCD is! LOL

 

Good old times, hehe.

 

nice review. props for using ubuntu on a thinkpad. jaunty user myself.
do you mind me asking why you are getting a w510 and a m17x, work/play perhaps?

 

Had an M17X-R1 for 7 months, got it replaced with an R2 version (i7s and RGB LED screen as 2 main reasons ). Unfortunately, the glare type screen makes the beast too bad an option when using it at work. Applying matte films and filters didn't provide best results, so I have to switch to a different system for work with a nice anti-glare screen and enough horse power to run most of the games at medium +.

 

Bump!
Still struggling here with inserting images as images and not as links or thumbnails.
Can someone help the noob, please?

 

A little update:

Today I installed the latest version of Ubuntu Linux (10.04 Lucid Lynx) and, wow - the system boots in 15 seconds from the BIOS post screen to the desktop!
I was so amazed by the fact how nicely did this little dinosaur ran the latest OS, that decided to give it a little reward - upgrades!
Ordered a new HDD (160GB), 2GB of DDR 2700 (that will run as 2100) memory and a bunch of trackpoint red caps!
I will also do another round of maintenance, this time to determine all possible upgrades and fixes that could be done to improve the system's condition.

Suggestions are welcome!
Here you can see the detailed info of the system and its components.

Stay tuned!

 

Congrats—I was about to comment on your whopping 256MB of RAM…

The machine that I use for my firewall has more…

OpenBSD 4.7-current (GENERIC) #34: Wed Jun 23 22:16:39 MDT 2010
[email protected]:/usr/src/sys/arch/i386/compile/GENERIC
cpu0: Intel Pentium III ("GenuineIntel" 686-class) 664 MHz
cpu0: FPU,V86,DE,PSE,TSC,MSR,PAE,MCE,CX8,SEP,MTRR,PGE,MCA,CMOV,PSE36,MMX,FXSR,SSE
real mem = 334458880 (318MB)
avail mem = 314679296 (300MB)

 

Actually, it has 2x256MB currently, but it's barely enough even for Linux.
I'm also thinking of upgrading the processor to 1.6ghz (it has a Pentium M (Banias) 1.5ghz). The manuals say that the max supported is 1.6 but I wonder if it will also accept 1.7 or even 1.8ghz??

If you guys know of similar and successful upgrades - please, do provide the details.

 

Pretty good review!

This just gave me ideas to do something similar for my T21... since I'm using it for a short while until my other systems get back from warranty repair.

I've never used the R40, but I've had several T4x systems in the past. Great systems, and a friend of mine still has one I sold him, but when using the series the GPU issues seemed to follow me like a lost puppy.

Edit: I think the best bang for the buck CPU you can get is the 1.8GhZ Dothan CPU... I think it's a 400MhZ FSB variant you're looking for, but I'm not 100% sure. The Dothan has increased L2 cache over the Banias, and should give you a little better speed increase.

 

Hmmm, but would Dothan work in R40? According to the manuals only Banias was supported up to 1.6 (1.7?).
I might give it a try anyway, since those CPU's don't cost much.

 

I remember the Dothan working in the T41 board I had just fine. I can't 100% confirm for the R40 but it definitely is worth the shot. This thread should have some useful info for you, and seems to confirm that a Dothan will work in a T40:

forum.thinkpads.com • View topic - T40 CPU Upgrade question

Also, another useful upgrade would be to get the 'long fan' for your model. IIRC, it includes a cooling plate for the GPU and should help your overall temps.

 

Thanks for the link!
I did some research and it looks like the best CPU supported by the BIOS is Banias 1.7ghz. Dothans, while physically fit the socket are not recognized by BIOS.
I might try to hack the BIOS later on to add the device ID for the Dothan's. It would be a significant boost from 1.5ghz (1mb L2 cache) to 2.1ghz (2mb cache).
Also where did you see that "long fan" ? I'm extremely interested to give it a try.

+1 rep for the help!

 

Hmm... I did a search as far as the fan for you, and I might have my facts wrong... the R40 motherboard and fan may be physically different than one from a T40. I may have been thinking the R40 was nearly identical to the T40-series as far as internal components went(when in fact the R50 shares that distinction). I'm sorry for any confusion this may have caused. :/

 

I had a project R40 that I fixed up and had to sell... reluctantly! The R40 I had had an Pentium 4 so it ran just a tad bit warm at times. I had received the R40 with a gorgeous nice and bright screen! I even installed Windows 7 7100RC on this machine and it worked fine albeit no aero. I even ran it on 768mb of RAM and it worked fine for my purposes.

I miss that machine! I may take up another project sometimes soon!

 

I have a question for you guys:

Does anyone have experience in editing BIOS?
I'm looking for a way to add a device ID or remove a blacklisting for Pentium M (Dothan) 2.1ghz CPU. I know that it's the most powerful processor of all that fit the 479 socket (FSB 400), but it wasn't officially supported by IBM at that time, due to marketing.
So, I'm looking for tools to edit the BIOS and maybe improve the system's performance by 40% by replacing the CPU.
Thank You

 

ask middleton the person whom added the support for ctrl-fn switch. He is really good at BIOS editing.

 

I asked him and he agreed to help but I had to put it aside for a while, been very busy lately

On another note, I'm quite confident in the cooling potential of the old beast. After repasting the CPU my load temps dropped to 60C max in Prime95. It can definitely keep Dothan's cool.

The HDD and RAM on the other hand always run very hot and I'm thinking about doing some modifications there. If anyone has an idea on the subject, please let me know.

 

Cool review man. It's interesting seeing some of the stuff still in use out there. I am running a T60 as my main notebook now with an Intel SSD. My X40 comes in handy for traveling, beats a netbook any day.

Those old Thinkpads were built like tanks. I like that, reminds me of the older stuff from the 60s/70s.

 

Thank you!

Update!:

I added a small second fan (powered by one of the USB ports), directing air to the HDD, the hottest part of the system at this point (pics will follow) and got the following results:

IDLE Temps (room temp 85F ):

CPU: 42C (before: 46C with Tuniq TX4 paste)
MINIPCI: 45C (before: 49C)
HDD: 48C (before: 56C! )

The HDD is still running very hot, probably because of the 2X1GB GSkill RAM, directly under it. Need more suggestions on further reducing the HDD temps.

 

Like a retro Rolls-Royce, premium!

 

2003 is 8 years ago?

 

Yup, 8 years and still zero hardware failures!

 

Update:

Decided to remove one of the memory sticks in hopes to lower the HDD temps. I even removed the RAM cover and added a couple of heatsinks to the HDD itself (had to break one side of the internal plastic cage). The best I can get is a 48C @ 28C room temp. It's already bearable but could be better.
*sigh* guess, I have to stop at this point...

 

Update:

Never thought this would work but installed Windows 7 Enterprise on this beast and I simply can't believe how smooth it's running!
Had to tweak the ATI 7500 drivers but after installing the DNA drivers everything including 3D and OpenGL is working!

 

whoa R40 with windows 7, what is this DNA drivers you are talking about?

 

DNA-Drivers did some modifications/custom support for older cards in the past. Not sure if they still exist but their work is still appreciated

 

lol nice, guess Windows 7 does run on anything.

 

Hehe, do not underestimate the Dothan's @1.5GHz the processor is more powerful than Atom's. The system boots in 30 sec after all the updates, drivers and software installed. MS Office 2010 starts in 3-5 sec.
I'll most likely grab a 2.1GHz P M 765 of eBay and a PATA > SSD kit to see how far can this thing be pushed.

 

Been doing some battery tests in Windows 7:

2.5 hrs - aggressive browsing at max brightness

4 hrs 15 min - reduced brightness and MS Office

8 yr old battery, never been replaced. This is insane!

 

Lucky one!

 

Bumping up from the dust! The system is still going strong, approaching the astonishing mark of 9 years of uninterrupted operation!

I'm finally ready to try the crazy mod - putting a Dothan 765 (2.1GHz) in it. It will require a BIOS modification as well the cooling upgrade. Will be posting results here, stay tuned...

 

Ah good old R Series, shows quality and durability doesn't have to come with a huge price tag compared to the T Series sibling. Glad to see yours still rocking on!

 

the battery was still working when you did the review, so do you know how many cycles it has/had and who's the manufacturer?

 

The battery is still working and according to various hardware monitoring apps the current wear level is 35-40% (35000mWh out of 57k). How do I check the cycle count?


Edit: Manufactured for IBM
Armonk, New York, USA
Made in Taiwan

Edit2: HWinfo32 Reports Panasonic as the battery manufacturer. Weird.

 

Panasonic does make some batteries for IBM and they tend to hold out a lot better than the Sanyo's. I had a Sanyo died on me prematurely for my 2007 T61, considering yours is still going strong is testament to the durability Panasonic batteries have.

 

Just tried installing XP version of the power management utility - didn't work. Installing a newer (win7) version of the software also didn't work as it is designed for newer models. Looks like there's no way I can check the battery cycle count, unless I switch to XP.

 

I just want to say from a happy Thinkpad owner (I have: Z61p, X60s, G40) that this topic is BRILLIANT! I look forward to your mighty Thinkpad R40 Exocet Edition soon!