From what I gather it might be the best way for me going forward to have a new PC. I see them as low as $150 on amazon that come with windows so I'd have to nuke the SSD and install something like Mint on it instead.
Maybe we can get a fundraiser going for me so I can finally get a new laptop and put this 12 year old piece of junk to bed.
you can get replacement parts for relatively cheap. that's honestly the main hardware advantage they have. post-lenovo the build quality is just okay,
eBay thinkpads have been my last few laptops, ranging from t430 to t480. Depending on your use case you can pretty easily get one running for under $100.
I bought a refurbished T480 for $200 back in March and installed Debian on it.
As a work laptop I use to console into servers, a second screen I watch youtube videos on, and something I take with me when I travel, it exceeds all of my basic computing requirements and I'd say it's definitely worth the money.
However it hasn't been a completely smooth experience. My Trackpoint has never worked, the trackpad sometimes doesn't wake up when I open the lid, and the laptop sometimes hangs and can only be saved by a hard reboot. Considering the performance I get 99% of the time I'm using it, it's a totally acceptable level of jank for the price point.
Extremely cheap for performance and build quality via ex corporate market. Strong linux support and l largely unchanged form factor means parts are also cheap and widely available. Even stuff like trackpad assemblies can often be swapped between styles.
Performance is adequate for normal enthusiast computing. Excessive for common videos + internet but cheap enough to justify.
They're good /shrug but they're just a thing. Do what makes you makes you happy, you don't have to impress anyone it's just a grid of lights that make you sad in a distracting way.
Replaced my stolen from work failing Razer with a T14s gen2 AMD two months ago and it's been great so far. I haven't tried gaming on it yet since I mainly use this for homework and hobby coding but for $300 it's decently powerful and the battery lasts me 2-3 days with light use.
Got really lucky to find a model with the 5850U for the same price as the weaker model because the seller locked themselves out of bitlocker or something.
Unfortunately some of the newer models don't have easily upgradable ram so if that's something you need definitely look into it before buying.
I have a t480 with the added battery and the thunderbolt dock for my desk and it’s great. Whatever you put on it these were the last computers built like this and it shows.
Older models are sturdy (IBM ones are very robust but are also too old), probably better with replacement parts availability.
Two-battery models, like X230-X270 models (and others) can have a lot of battery power put into them. Mine has 72Wh external + 24Wh internal, and I can hotswap the external one, so if I want to I can buy a second 72Wh battery to style on everyone else.
Generally good Linux support, but do look specifically how well whatever you are buying is supported.
edit: the models I mentioned don't seem to have magnesium alloy chassis, so while they might look like a close range weapon, you probably shouldn't use them that way.
I did this and I love it, I went with the tried and true t480 plus mint and it was super easy to setup and it’s decently quick and very nice to use.
The T480 holds a meme status kinda like the *20 series mostly because it has 2 ram slots. The successor the T490 and even newer machines can typically be found for less money because of said memeage.
I’m seeing a refurbished one on amazon for 190-230 and i think i paid about 230 a year back. I’m sure if you shop around you could definitely do 175
They're cheap(edit: and available second hand), they're well made, they work good, they got that keyboard nipple mouse.
keyboard nipple mouse.
I've never used one before and had no clue that's what it was for. I have a kb+mouse rn I use on this laptop.
Allows you to use mouse input without moving your hands away from the keyboard. It's great for when you need to do small mouse movements in between typing like clicking on cells in a spreadsheet or clicking reply on comments.
You press it with a little bit of force (just to have the finger not slip away) and then move in some direction, the cursor will follow. Usability ranges from "fun gimmick" to "I have heavy gloves, the nipple is my only mouse input"
cheap
Not in my country! Only the E-series which people say are lower quality could be considered "cheap" if you buy it new.
Second hand however...
T series start at about $1000 USD, and tank rapidly in price after about a year old.
I got a T14 gen 2 AMD right before gen 3 came out for $300 brand new.
