[sf-lug] seeking laptop recommendations to upgrade from thinkpad t61p

[Michael Shiloh]

Hi Alex,

Thanks for your recommendation. Since starting this discussion, I've 
decided to add the requirement that it have a nice big screen. Currently 
I'm fixated on a T530 with a 15.6" screen and high  (1920 x 1080) 
resolution. Unfortunately for me, but perhaps fortunately for my wallet, 
it has been discontinued by Lenovo and is not yet showing up on the 
Lenovo refurbished site so I am waiting.

It's not cheap but I decided that it is a worthy successor to my T61P.

Meanwhile for my T61P I plan to upgrade the CPU and get a Solid State Disk.

I'll explain the CPU upgrade in a different thread so as not to hijack 
my own thread

Michael

On 06/07/2014 09:05 AM, Alex Kleider wrote:
> I've been very happy with the x301 ThinkPad which I see is available for well under 500.  In anticipation of a breakdown, I bought a back up about a year ago to have on hand just incase but it continues to sit unused.
>
>
> a_kleider at yahoo.com
>
>
> On Thursday, May 22, 2014 2:12 PM, Michael Shiloh <michaelshiloh1010 at gmail.com> wrote:
>
>
>
> I love my trusty Thinkpad T61p, but it's getting quite old. Time to
> upgrade, but to what?
>
> I've owned many Thinkpads and loved them all. What are the Lenovo steps
> up from the T series?
>
> Or is it time to try something non-Lenovo?
>
> I strongly support what ZA Reason is doing, and would be inclined to go
> with them if one of their selections fits my needs. I know at least one
> of you uses a ZA Reason laptop and would love to hear your experience.
>
> Considerations:
>
> - What's a reasonable amount to spend? I expect to pay more than $1000
> but need to keep it below $2000.
> - Some SSD for speed. Could be all SSD, or some SSD and some spinning disk.
> - I carry my laptop everywhere, so weight is a concern.
> - I use the laptop constantly, so a really good screen is important.
> - Nice keyboard. I'm spoiled by Thinkpads.
> - I love the Thinkpad joystick thingy between the GHBN buttons. I don't
> think I could get used to a trackpad. I've tried often and I hate them.
> - I travel quite often and long battery life is somewhat important,
> although on the one hand in-seat power is becoming more common and on
> the other hand some time away from the computer is a good thing too.
> - I speak publicly very often so flawless external monitor hookup is
> critical
> - I don't do many CPU intensive things. Mostly lots of web pages (I
> typically have 30 open tabs) and Thunderbird. Lots of Arduino compiles
> but that's pretty fast anyway. I mostly used git, Inkscape, OpenSCAD,
> Fritzing, vi, etc. I suspect lots of RAM and the SSD is more important
> that CPU speed, but I could be wrong.
> - Style is not terribly important to me (thank goodness)
> - Obviously something that works well with Linux (standard Ubuntu)
> without having to jump through too many hoops is important
>
> Thoughts? Suggestions for and against? General discussion?
>
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