Real thread edition

Previous thread: >>105887360

Don't buy anything OTHER THAN IBM/Lenovo ThinkPad T, X, and W/P Series (especially X230, T440p and T480, those are the best pads for bucks) if you want the Real Business Experience™
>Other business laptops are welcome in /tpg/ (Dell Latitude/Precision, HP EliteBook/ZBook)

Why ThinkPad?
>Used machines are plentiful and cheap
>Excellent keyboards, tactile feel and quiet
>Great durability: magnesium roll cage for structural integrity, with high quality plastic body panels
>Utilitarian design: e.g. indicator LEDs, 7 row keyboard layout on older models
>Docking stations that easily turns your laptop into a desktop
>Easy to repair (most models), upgrade & maintain thanks to readily available service manuals for every model, spare parts easy & cheap to obtain
>Excellent Linux & *BSD support
>Trackpoint (why the fuck wasn't this in the general before? that's the only reason to get a thinkpad in 2025 honestly)

ThinkWiki - General info about ThinkPads/specs
https://www.thinkwiki.org/wiki/ThinkWiki

Model generations:
>Classic IBM: T40, T41, T42
>IBM/Lenovo Transition: T43, T60, T61 (T42 - T43: significant difference in specs)
>"Classic" Lenovo: T400, T410, T420 (T61 - T400: 4:3 to 16:10)
>Transition to old modern: T430, T440, T450 (T420 - T430: membrane to chiclet)
>Old modern: T460, T470, T480 (T450 - T460: significantly less thick)
>New modern: T490, T14g1, T14g2 (T480 - T490: design change)
>New new modern: T14g3, T14g4, ... (T14g2 - T14g3: second design change)

BIOS replacement:
https://coreboot.org/downloads.html
https://libreboot.org/docs/install/
https://canoeboot.org/docs/install/

Additional resources:
https://dankpads.com/tpg/
https://biosimage.booru.org
https://1vyra.in

Patches:
https://github.com/digmorepaka/thinkpad-firmware-patches
https://github.com/hamishcoleman/thinkpad-ec

Chat:
##ibmthinkpad on libera
#/tpg/ on rizon

Also by posting in this thread you denounce anime

First for Framework laptops.

>>105974289
>no trackpoint
pass

thinkbump

>>105974289
>Indian ceo

>>105974325
I ended up getting a T25 keyboard and it sucked ass.

>>105974392
Could be counterfeit, where you got it from?

>>105974394
Japan.
It sucks because the key travel feels short.

>>105974420
ya that's just new thinkpad keyboards in general

>>105974289
> Costlier than stinkpads and/or consoomer ewaste products
>shit screens
Kek

poorfag here about to order an x270 that will see use for the upcoming 3 years at least during which i will program in vim, write latex documents, take notes and spend many hours on youtube almost exclusively while on the go. do you think i should consider other machines or do i send it?

>>105974493
>> Costlier than stinkpads and/or consoomer ewaste products
>>shit screens
Lenovo is charging $2K for 45% NTSC screens that aren't even 3:2.

>>105974634
>45% NTSC
>400 nits
where do they pull this shit from?

>>105974634
>T14s
>45% NTSC is the highest LCD option you can buy

>>105974582
It's nice if it has i5 or i7 and FHD IPS screen. i3 of that gen is too gimped to load YT smoothly these days.

>>105974135

>>105975284
yours did not include the previous thread text so I remade and fixed the thread

t14 gen 1/2 thinkpads are only marginally more expensive than t480s on ebay. is there really any reason besides price to go for the latter? is it just a meme?

>>105975587
For T480 non-s, battery life, though T14 gen 2 AMD comes close to T480 with the second-highest (72 Wh) option. For T480s, premium build quality including a case that can be opened without prying.

Rough runtimes that you can expect:
>T480: 3/6/9/12h depending on configuration
>T480s: 7.5h
>T14G1i: 7h
>T14G1a: 4.5h
>T14G2i: 6.5h
>T14G2a: 8h

If my requirements are, in order of priority:
>Build quality - can't be planned obsolescence plastic toy that doesn't survive 10 lid closes or 1 dusting)
>Gayming - ofc I don't expect to play newest sovlless AAA on highest preset, just want to play PoE/PoE2, Witcher, Paradox games etc. and whatever slop friends might want to play on at least low quality graphics
>Linux compatibility - I don't need shutdown problems caused by a GPU or esoteric wireless chips that drop wireless connection every minute on Linux

What would be a good pick? In Europe and don't need $2000 laptops obv

bump

>>105974493
Framework and Thinkpad actually get their screens from the same factories.
The latest P14s G5 Intel variant has a much nicer 14.5" screen though.

page 10

>>105974273 (OP)
>especially X230, T440p and T480, those are the best pads for bucks

>>105978841
they are cheap, easy to work on, and have lots of parts available

What's the best 12” Thinkpad?
I have a X230 but the screen shat the bed, I'd rather get a new one than replace the screen, as I already did twice over the years.

>>105981705
The X280 was the last one. The X390 was only a tiny bit bigger than it, and the X13 Gen 4 has around the same area. Bezels got smaller and I assume that Lenovo/Dell/HP didn't want to make companies angry by releasing smaller 12" laptops with poor cooling, so they moved everyone up a screen size

>>105975330
>yours
that anon wasn't me
I just made one because there wasn't any /tpg/, posted once and then left /g/ cause I don't browse this site 24/7

>>105983243
>What's the best 12” Thinkpad?
X230, lol
If you're fine with modern one, I shill you X13 gen 2 AMD which has pretty reasonable price
if you're looking for T480 ultrabook counterpart I'd say get a Latitude 5300/5310 with actual dual channel sodimm slots. forget X280/x390
If there's any cheap offer around, try X270

>>105974634
Why get a brand new stinkpad, though? Framework is charging me $800 for a DIY model Framework 12 without.ssd and ram. I could buy a sub 300 yoga with that one and if it breaks, get another one.

>>105983472
>I could buy a sub 300 yoga with that one and if it breaks, get another one.
I got a $400 E14 with Ryzen 6850U refresh and it runs like shit and battery life is terrible, I don't know why.
I feel like Lenovo purposefully sabotage their poorfag lines.

poorfags should just fuck off and die
they killed the thinkpad fun by buying cheap pos laptops and using them as their daily drivers, see t480

poorGODS should just stay here and live
they make the thinkpad fun by buying cheap state of the art laptops and using them as their daily drivers, see t480

>>105974273 (OP)
do lenovo do something like OP's picrel still?

Which Thinkpad would be best for any type of gaming and video editing. Modern titles or old classics, I want something on the go

i heard something about thunderbolt firmware on the t480s causing issues is there anything i would need to know beforehand when purchasing a used one?

>>105984424
For that problem, I just went with the A485 unless you absolutely need it for whatever you're desire is.

>>105974582
No, that'll be fine for that use case for 3+ years no problem. Don't skimp on the IPS screen at least, and Send it. You're not talking a lot of performance difference between the X270 and X260 so if you find one for a good deal, don't pass it up.

>>105983996
Nope, all yogas now. Did the later twisty convertibles have stronger hinges? My old X201T felt like it would break any minute only a few months in.

>>105984424
Boot it with the original charger connected. If it complains about the wattage don't buy. Otherwise install the fixed firmware (version >=20) as soon as you can.

>>105984355
t420 with eGPU

>>105985609
t430 is better

>>105985631
51nb x330 is betterer

Can I get a t480 with a modern gpu?

>>105985645
>no ultrabay
wrong

>>105983472
Let's see
>Framework 12
>i5-1334U, two generations behind
>pretty much an i5-1235U, three generations old
>slower than the i5-1135G7 that's four generations old in programs that use 4 cores but aren't parallel enough to use 12 threads
>50% NTSC/66% sRGB display
Even that looks like shit, lol

>>105984355
Any 15-17 inch workstation with a dGPU.
Otherwise the newest AMD T/P14.

>>105986314
>amd
amdont

>>105986330
why

T490 the best for me.

>>105986394
He's a battery shill and Intel is ~15% better in this respect. That and the fact Tel Aviv REALLY needs that direct pipeline of your data.

>>105974273 (OP)
I remember paying less than $100 for this laptop. I wish I had kept it.

>>105974273 (OP)
Is there any modern successor for the T480? I'd ideally like to drive a 2k monitor with videos running up to 4k 60hz
>Bigger screen 15~
>Display port 1.4
>Higher quality screen, speakers, trackpad
>Good battery life
>Bonus points if headphone jack, ram, ssd are replaceable

So is the X1 carbon line still considered shit? I have an opportunity to get relatively well priced 10gen (i7,32GB, base 1080p panel) one.

>>105989886
P14s gen 5 Intel without GPU is basically this but the keyboard isn't replaceable

>>105990010
Just get it anon. Its good if price is good.

>>105990251
Ouch, forgot to include that in my non negos. My keeb in the T480 broke, don't want to have lug an external keeb if mine breaks eventually

anybody sitting on a list of thinkpads that works with the linux pstate driver?

>>105991470
* AMD pstate driver i should say

What's the best thinkpad I can get for $200-$300?

I just want the best. Need laptop for school, programming, and maybe light game dev in Game Maker.

>>105992660
t14 G1 or G2

was buying a refurbished T490s for $140 retarded? My first ThinkPad, 16gb ram, i7 cpu. I bought it knowing the ram is soldered

>>105993330
If you buy it because you simply need a cheap computer. There's nothing wrong with that.

>>105992929
What do you guys think of this one? Decent deal?

>>105993575
fuck, left my first name in there. please don't dox me mr hacker 4chan

>>105993330

there must be somekind of software trickery or faith involved if you recieve 1/10th

>>105993575
>>105993586
how's it going benjamin. also eyeing the t14 g2 with ryzen could use some wisdom over here anybody use this machine /g/?

>>105993575
I assume you bought it because it's out of stock now.
The only issue I could think off is the screen. 45% NTSC ips looks really dull but I can't tell if it uses that because the picture with the model number looks very blurry.

>>105993575
A little overpriced, Benny.

Is there a way to make the docking process using the Ultra docking station (pic rel) any less janky?
So far it seems to be
>Place laptop in generally correct position
>Wiggle and slide it around until it feels like the little clip things are in the pockets on the bottom
>Start pushing on the connector slider while gently pushing and wiggling the laptop until the connector slides into place.
>Lock it in with the key
I can get it docked, but it's a pain, and it scratches the bottom of the laptop.

>>105994475
Fuck, pic didn't upload.

>>105994475
It's a lottery. My T480s clicks in right away and the slider doesn't need any wiggling while with my T14 G1 it was as janky as you say. Gets faster with practice.

>>105993575
Is it being refub not an issue at all with thinkpads? They're just that good that in any single lifetime they won't get worn down too much?

>>105996116
In a proper refurb they check the laptop and replace anything that's too fucked. But when you buy from someone who's selling tens or hundreds of refurbished laptops on the same listing instead of a listing for a specific used laptop, if you're looking for something that the seller doesn't specify like >>105993894 with the better screen, it doesn't matter if there's a picture of a serial number and it points to a laptop with the better screen, they can send you any laptop with a "14 inch 1080p non-touch display".

Lol

>>105997911
>7 row keyboard
>trackpoint
yep, that's a thinkpad

>>105998348
This is unironically true

>>105997911
I mean he literally has a point....

>>105990438
It's basically that or buying a T/P14 gen 2~ for 2\3rds the price

And the significantly nicer display does make it seem like the best option.

Bros my T420 is too slow for the modern web...

>>106000285
By the modern web do you mean tiktok?

>>106000766
I mean anything that isn't a japanese website from the 90s/2000s at this point.

>>106000285
on my t60 i use linux and firefox with the ublock origin addon. it helps a lot.

>>105983524
E series is not real thinkpad

>>105974273 (OP)
posting from my t60
this may be the last time using though lads... i think the heatpipe rusted out and all the coolant evaporated

>>106000918
NoScript will do a lot for you too. And H264ify for jewtube.

>>106001161
F T60. He will be missed not forgotten.

>>106001301
yes noscript is also good. no idea what h264ify is or what it does.

>>106001161
i cannot post from my t60. firefox crashes when i click reply. no idea why. i remember when 4chan worked with text mode browsers. such a cancerous world we are in now.

>>106001071
what do you mean by that, bad build quality?

>>106001804
Forces YouTube to use H264 video stream instead of VP9 or H265, which many more modern processors cannot decode at a hardware level natively - which means it's software decoding and sends your CPU and fan to the moon.

>>106002428
cheaper plastics that aren't as durable and don't feel as nice, which lends itself to cracking, broken hinges, they don't survive drops as readily, poorer visual quality screens, cheaper keyboard manufacturers, cheaper fans, skimping on copper for robust cooling solutions.

The last few on that list aren't always true as sometimes they share a parts bin with other models.

>>105985645
where 2 cop

>>106000285
Quad core CPU is the barely minimum for web browsing hence the T480 shilling, buddy.

>>106003028
you can upgrade a x230 and t430(s) to a quadcore cpu

>>106003045
>tfw I only have a x200 AND x220
AAA

>>105974273 (OP)
I miss this form factor. Anything like that since the X230?

>>106002546
oh nice. thanks for the tip. definitely going to get that shit.

>>106003045
Yeah if you're handy with a BGA reflow machine or are cool with paying three times the value of the laptop for a chink board for the very best quad core technology 2013 had to offer.

>>106001071
What's your fucking point? You said you could buy a $300 Yoga which isn't a ThinkPad either dipshit.

>>105974273 (OP)
The thinkpad is errect trying to mate with the thinkpad clit.

>>106003028
>Quad core CPU is the barely minimum for web browsing
bullshit, my x260 runs librewolf and chromium just fine

where can I get individual replacement keys? I'd like to replace my Windows key with a Super key. erase all vestige of M*crosoft from my machine

love the mini DP port, I wish they keep it over this flimsy thunderbolt bullshit. god, imagine the small and sturdy mini DP that support 1.4

might grab a X1C6 with the glossy 2k panel anybody with experience with this machine? thinking glossy might be a mistake

>>106004456
Best you're probably going to get is a sticker. It seems very unlikely you will find a key. Thinkpad keyboards may look the same across generations but they are most definitely not. Not only slight variances in size and shape but the scissor switch clip points underneath. I think they may even vary from manufacturer to manufacturer within the same FRU#.

>>105987798
>That and the fact Tel Aviv REALLY needs that direct pipeline of your data.
I'd call you a schizo a year ago but then the pager attacks happened and revealed just what levels of trojan horse style of deception Mossad is willing to stoop to in the fight against their enemies

>>105985763
ultrabay is nice if you swap it for SSD but really it's not a necessity, the lack of one on the x230 isn't an issue, and in these modded 51nb version it's really not a valid criticism whatsoever as this laptop mogs

>>106004706
damn. not even a waterslider or whatever it is they use to print the pictograph at the factory?

>>105993330
update. just came in yesterday and I'm happy with it. not refurbished whatsoever, but screen, battery, backlight, trackpad, etc are all good. same specs as advertised. some scratches on the case and some spat stains on the keyboard from the previous techjeet owner but nothing serious. feels good
>>105993362
:)

>>105998534
>>105997911

>>105974634
nobody is paying those prices.
t14 gen5 is 2k € in my cunt.

i got it for 700$ NEW AND SEALED WITH WARRANTY on local ebay-like site.

no point buying from retail stores. find some smuggler that rips off amazon vans or something. i cant explain why these prices are this low

>>106002891
you have to go to that place which shall not be named and buy one off of someone, a marketplace of sorts, namely dicksword and rebbit, cause i don't think the main guy makes them anymore. you could alternatively make one yourself.
https://www.xyte.ch/

>>106006448
>nobody is paying those prices
Basically ThinkPads aren't worth much.

>>106006448
unscurpulous resellers may be selling something from a batch that had defects, would explain the price
warranty of a single year isn't worth much

page 10

I remember they making new laptops with newer nvidia GPUs but same old design, did they stopped doing that?

>>106006448
>2k €
they have always been comically overpriced hence why you should either wait for huge sales for 40% off or the /tpg/ tried and true method of buying 3+ years old laptop right after the companies dump them due to expired warranty

best convertible for $200?

>>106008804
X1YG5 or X13YG1, maybe a G2 if you can stretch your budget a little and/or find a deal.

Some opinion on the wannaba macbook aka stinkpad z16? They are quite cheap now.

aluminum or magnesium?

>>106000830
>>106000285
bullshit, i got a t400 and librewolf is running just fine. although it obviously gets lagged in sites with heavy javascript, but i don't browse those a lot. also, i'm using debian with dwm, so that may be a reason -- with a de it may be worse.

>>105974273 (OP)
Got a T470 for 94€ with charger and 256/16 config, i5-7200u, 1080p IPS. It's not the fastest CPU, but it's enough for me in a laptop. Is this a good price? I bought a 4400mAh battery for 23.50€, and internal one costs around the same, but I chose this one for now since it's bigger. How long do these really last on a single charge? Also it has Thunderbolt 3 so I guess I can charge it with a more beefy USB charger or a power bank? Also it has a sim card slot, but no modem. I've already got my sights on an LTE modem, that's only 10€, but I need to doublecheck the whitelist.

>>105974273 (OP)
Got a used t14 gen 3 ryzen 7 for ~450 dollars which is a crazy steal here in europe. My trusty x230 still works decently well, but for a recent project I want avx2 and a handful of cores.

>>106014652
Where?

>>106014652
T14 Gen 3 Ryzen is better than even the later gen T14 because AMD fumbles the battery usage on the newer Ryzen CPU.
You're quite lucky.

>>106012245
>How long do these really last on a single charge?
5-6 hours roughly if you have just that battery
>Also it has Thunderbolt 3 so I guess I can charge it with a more beefy USB charger or a power bank?
Yes if the owner installed the update that prevented the port from killing itself

I've done research for a thinkpad that'll hopefully see me through college and the two I've narrowed down on are t480(s) model and x1 carbon 6th gen; long shot but anybody here that's owned both that can offer some wisdom in choosing? cheers

>>106016615
never mind. no ethernet port on the X1 has made the decision for me

>>106016615
>>106016896
T480 and T480s don't have much in common either (other than both filling a "last one before..." niche). T480 is thick next to current laptops and already has some of the flimsiness that later T models are known for, but it's more modular and battery life is godly with the right batteries. T480s is about as thin as current ones and solidly built. I'd get the T480s unless you need >40 GB RAM, >6 TB storage or >7 hours battery.

I’m looking for something to run Debian for learning purposes, first time venturing into laptops like this. I can’t be bothered to dual boot on my desktop it’s too cumbersome.

Anyways I see deals on T14 gen 1 with i7 for like $300, is this advisable?

>>106016943
i have no inclinations towards the non s model; 16GBs of RAM will do me well. Battery life is of course a priority.. up to a point. Do you reckon the t480s'll do 7 hours under light load given a new battery and linux?

>>106017019
Maybe if it's a 6 core (I'd still try to get the price down a little), otherwise you can get a T480(s)/T490 with the same performance for much less

>>106017093
It lasts about 7-8h for me when casually browsing with ads blocked or playing 1080p hardware decoded video in mpv

>>106006008
That's a very big background

>>105974289
used rugged laptops alot of them are modular

the next cheap thinkpad

>>106015024
Cool, thanks for informing me! >>106014796
Local marketplace ad, sorry :^)

>>106016194
Which update? The bios is in 2017 version.

>>106017410
https://pcsupport.lenovo.com/us/en/products/laptops-and-netbooks/thinkpad-t-series-laptops/thinkpad-t470/solutions/ht508988

>t. W530
can i program that ThinkVantage button? will the Winblows kb manager work?

>>106018382
You can make it run a program with registry entries like this but with Ex_17 as the key name.
https://github.com/rh45-one/ThinkPad-Hotkey-Fix/blob/main/hotkeys-fix/tp-hotkeys-fix.reg

>>106020035
cool. thanks

>X1 carbon G10 listing i was eyeing was removed
>2 units were unsold
>was just about to buy one

so close /tpg/bros, is there a point to keep the hopium up?

Because at this rate of bargain hunting i might as well just get a T14 Gen 5 and be done with it