As a long term lenovo/ibm x series owner.

Buy the x201 instead of the x220. It's built like an brick poo hut compared to the x220 and later which are much more flimsy.

I still have my x200s and an x230. The x200s still comes out on the road with me and it totally indestructable.

this is what i wanted to hear... i am deciding between them to potentially replace my x61, which i'm typing this on and is my day-to-day machine... its more than that its my North, my South, my East and West, My working week and my Sunday rest... and, i'm proud to say, my lover. But the screen is mince if i'm honest and i probably need to get off a 4:3 and get 16:9 like the normal people

I think Lenovo and Dell ex-corporate hardware (and to a lesser extent HP Elitebooks and Probooks) offer excellent value in the used market. Some people will turn their noses up when 'they can get a new machine for £200' but they don't get the value and build quality that went into these older machines that can easily last 10 years plus - how many people have seen cheap glitzy consumer laptops with cracks forming around the hinges on the lid after a year or two? And then the Lenovos with their massive stainless steel hinges that barely loosen after 5 years, I know what I'd rather have.

To anyone sitting on the fence - for £99 you can't really go wrong, and as others have said, the SSD is the single most important upgrade to making it 'feel fast', £25 for 120GB is decent.

I wasn't trying to offend you - but at the end of the day, the batteries don't last forever even on Macs that are meant to be perfect (ok, I'm being facetious) and 'machines crashing' is almost definitely software or something mechanical like thermal throttling due to dust build-up. Computers are so reliable these days it's very rare to have total fatal failure.

Maybe I'm biased, but I like seeing these deals, when you consider the incredible value you get on a used computer that would've cost nearly £1,000 4-5 years ago, this is the kind of thing you can toss in a rucksack or leave in the boot of your cars and not think too hard about - the cases are robust and the hardware just is better built than the cheap consumer stuff you see today and I reckon other than new processor extensions, etc. these first-gen i5s are faster than current Atoms.

I ordered one of these and just been updating it. However it is constantly shutting down and is extremely hot to touch near the power supply. I guess it will be going back.

Yeah, my experience is that generally the ex-business ultraportables are in excellent condition. I think those that get the bigger ThinkPads tend to use them as a primary computer, but an ultraportable is generally for those who don't want the weight (and therefore can't justify the weight; probably not mission critical).

I've bought maybe three X200 (two girlfriends -- at different times -- and myself), one X60, two X61s, and my current X230. I also frequent eBay for ThinkPads and my experience is that you're 100% right.

There's every chance that an ex corporate machine doesn't get moved much. I've maybe taken my HP640 to three or four meetings, and taken it home a similar number of times - the rest of the time it just lives on a docking station. Hence the keyboard/trackpad also remain unused.

My 5th gen arrived too today, packaged well and immaculate too. Says they are an official Microsoft distributor on the receipt too. Next cheapest i could find online was £70 more refurb. Or £140 more new lol.

As you can see above, I bought the Dell E5430 from the same seller. It's classed as grade B but I promise you this thing is as pristine as you can get! I could be picky and say I can see where the company asset sticker used to be but that's it, it really does like it's unused!

I've only run a quick test but it boots fast, runs up a few apps, Chrome, etc in a split second and teask manager is reporting the processor is not even running at full speed.

This may only be a single sample but I can't fault the seller here, as others on here have - next day delivery and a top quality, well built, decent spec laptop with SSD and running Win10 (license sticker underneath too!). All for £135! It makes a mockery of some of the new laptop deals you see on here.

ThinkPads - built to last!

The irony (and conspiracy) with all this stuff is they make it so good that it lasts ages and people don't want to upgrade! It's a bit like the claims that electric car research was halted by the oil cartels and companies like GM. I'm typing this now on a Dell XPS 15 (the one with the BR+GLED display and JBL soundsystem, 1st gen i5) and at work I use a Dell E6420 XFR (2nd gen i5) as well as an array of cheap but potent ex-lease Dell Latitudes and Lenovo ThinkPads running 1st, 2nd or 3rd gen Core i3/5/7. I can literally boot any machine, sync it with Dropbox and be ready-to-go and work. Computers are more efficient now but there has been little performance progress since Sandy Bridge and many of us here would admit Core 2 Duo or even Pentium M machines are still perfectly well-suited for many tasks, is it any wonder the new computer market is slowing when we can pick-up these little gems of used machines for peanuts?

Thanks

I've got a REALLY ancient T23 1ghz pentium M machine here running XP that I leave running 24/7 as a mail server. Bulletproof.

Battery's shagged though :laughing:

I wasn't trying to offend you - but at the end of the day, the batteries don't last forever even on Macs that are meant to be perfect (ok, I'm being facetious) and 'machines crashing' is almost definitely software or something mechanical like thermal throttling due to dust build-up. Computers are so reliable these days it's very rare to have total fatal failure.

Maybe I'm biased, but I like seeing these deals, when you consider the incredible value you get on a used computer that would've cost nearly £1,000 4-5 years ago, this is the kind of thing you can toss in a rucksack or leave in the boot of your cars and not think too hard about - the cases are robust and the hardware just is better built than the cheap consumer stuff you see today and I reckon other than new processor extensions, etc. these first-gen i5s are faster than current Atoms.

The laptop that the deal relates to. We've gone through about 4 broken ones in the space of 8 months, only an office of 10.

They've been treated fine, although can't comment on previous owners of course. Pretty sure my boss has got them from this exact place for a cheap start up.

So presumably you sent it back for refund or replacement as covered by their 12 month warranty?

I really wouldn't recommend that ebay seller if you want a laptop that's in a half decent state... I bought an old Samsung series 9 from them for a little over £200, it seemed fine at first but I soon realised the CPU was throttling extremely hard so the performance was terrible, and after a few months it stopped working completely...

Any opinions on the X230 or X240? I've seen the X240 in the flesh and like the size and build quality. I really love the keyboards on these, currently using a T410 but starting to feel old now. I bought the T410 from this seller and they were excellent. I upgraded the RAM on my current one to 8gb and it appears to be the same compatible module as the X230/240 so can just move that across. Also have an SSD installed on the T410 so am hoping that will be the same fitting etc so can wipe it then install that too.

I think the Dell E6230 is a better buy at this price due to the newer Ivy Bridge i5 cpu which runs cooler - the laptop fan only spins up when busy so is pretty quiet.

http://www.hotukdeals.com/deals/powerful-windows-7-dell-latitude-e6230-cheap-laptop-fast-core-i5-hdmi-1-year-warranty-2478731

Grab an 120gb ssd off ebay and put the HDD that comes with this in the optical drive bay with a £5 caddy. You can just pop it in and out when you need to use an optical drive. Its what i did, i think ive used my optical drive once in 5 years lol

Gigabit network port, 4 cores hyperthreaded, expandable to 8GB ram. This is just begging to have Freenas installed and be your best network storage buddy. Plop 2 usb disks on there, raid, whatever. Usb 2 might restrict speed a bit.

Use 'what'? Bit vague - 'they constantly crash'? If you're using X201s at work then they must be old devices and no surprise the battery is dead now - they don't last forever. And let's face it, if you're not the actual owner I bet they've not been looked after or maintained as well as if they're your own computer.

Voting hot. Not because i'd want one but to counter out any cold votes by the **** that think everybody needs high end laptops. Hell I use a C2D T7500 based machine as my main laptop with no problems (I also own an i7 laptop). It is what it is, a low end DTR. Consider it like that and its fine.

I understand the desire for a long lasting laptop when bought new. Buying one new I'd like to get maybe 4 years out of a laptop not including any upgrades. However when buying a laptop of this age I'm not sure I would want to get years of use out of something as low spec.

Not a great deal for a laptop of this age...

We use these at my work, we've gone through tonnes of them, they constantly crash and in the end die sooner or later.

they have to be permanently plugged into the mains too.

ffs this is an awful deal. 1st gen i5 takes a load of heat and graphics are awful. E6220s and X220s go for this price.

ofc ssd is better
ssd loads laptops in 4 seconds
but dont get this awful laptop

What a terrible deal
these laptops are ancient

I think I'm gonna try it. I have an atom based machine at the moment and have been looking for something with a little more oomph.

But someone posted the Dell Latitude for only £5 more (I want Win 7, 4GB, 120GB SSD). Which is better?

Yes, they just unclip and you can get replacements from the usual places (ebay, Amazon etc). Or, as rhig said above, you may be lucky and it's a free replacement from Lenovo - worth a check :smile:

Can you replace the batteries on these?

Ordered, don't think you can beat this for £100 if you want something that will last, especially if you prefer a matt case/ screen and a more normal keyboard layout.

It may be worth checking if the battery has been recalled by Lenovo, apparently they offer a free replacement even after the warranty has expired without the need to send off the old one.
https://support.lenovo.com/gb/en/documents/hf004122

Voted Cold! Bought 3 devices from them and only one came in the condition it was described. Yes they accept quick returns but ends up being a complete waste of time.

You find the T500 flimsy?? It's built like a rock, same as the rest. The only flimsy part is near where the hinge joins the magnesium rollcage on one side, but it would require some very particular fall or impact to do any damage.

As I said in my post, they are good enough for general use, but it was still worth me saying they are first generation i5's - no need to be so antagonistic in your reply.

Actually, with my config of 120GB SSD and WIn 10 installed the difference between the 2 is only £5 so a real no brainer. Bigger screen and newer processor was the clincher and it's going to be a couch surf machine so no issues with the extra weight. Thanks for spotting this one.

Clincher?
Don't you mean breaker
Guarantee of a MINIMUM of one hour
I bought one and the battery lasts 4 hours.

I bet you prefer ugly birds too.

dell 6320 is my baby....super fast and solid with back lit keyboard

I think Lenovo and Dell ex-corporate hardware (and to a lesser extent HP Elitebooks and Probooks) offer excellent value in the used market. Some people will turn their noses up when 'they can get a new machine for £200' but they don't get the value and build quality that went into these older machines that can easily last 10 years plus - how many people have seen cheap glitzy consumer laptops with cracks forming around the hinges on the lid after a year or two? And then the Lenovos with their massive stainless steel hinges that barely loosen after 5 years, I know what I'd rather have.

To anyone sitting on the fence - for £99 you can't really go wrong, and as others have said, the SSD is the single most important upgrade to making it 'feel fast', £25 for 120GB is decent.

X220 owner here. I've been through a range of IBM/Lenovos, the flimsiest being the T61 and T400/500. The X220 isn't flimsy at all. Its also got a decent keyboard unlike the modern chiclet style. I have it upgraded with an IPS panel, 8gb ram and SSD. Paired with the sandybridge cpu, it flies through tasks. Not to mention the onboard HD 3000 graphics

I've owned the x201 since launch and it still runs smooth, had to replace the battery twice, also had it quad booting Ubuntu, win xp, win 7 and OSX but stripped it down to to os's for music production and Serato dj, basically it is a solid machine for productivity yes it's old but boy is the build quality excellent and I like that the screen can be laid flat to allow for a birds eye view when working on projects from above oh and with a 9 cell battery it is possible to get 7 to 8 hours battery life with a few tweaks so all good.

The x201 with any one of the i3/i5/i7 cpu (all dual core, 4 threads anyway) is not slow, they are faster than many consumer grade >£200+ laptops/tablets with low powered atom/celeron cpus (yes they do have better updated GPUs though).

My decade old X61 with the Core2Duo 2.0GHz T7300 can keep up with most of these cheaply assembled netbooks normally sold for £100-£150, built like a TANK.

The issue with the newer models are they use lower clocked, low power Haswell/Skylake chips (1.8GHz or lower) to improve running times, thinner/cheaper cooling solution needed > thinner laptop.
They are not much of an upgrade performance wise, the older models are all clocked between 2.0GHz - 3GHz.

If you really do find these slow (no software/hardware issues), then these measly 2 core, 4 thread laptops really isn't for you, you need a laptop with a true quad core chip normally found on 15-17" models. :laughing:

its worth noting that the average consumer couldn't really give a rats behind.

As long as it loads the interwebs and does word they'll be fine, and lets face it, that's all this is likely to be used for.

I have an i3 laptop and it runs perfectly fine, does everything I want it to, this whole talk of next generation processors are wasted breath on what is essentially a budget and throwaway laptop.

I have had one of these for a while, bought it to replace another "spare" laptop that I gave to my parents - I shoved 8 gig of RAM and an SSD in it that I had spare and it's impressively quick for its age. A few weeks back I actually took it away to do some work on because the wife nicked my XPS13 and did quite a lot of Visual Studio work on it (on a largeish solution resharper installed etc) - it never missed a beat and never felt slow. It does get a lot warmer than more modern laptops though.

With the default RAM and the rust disk then it felt a bit antiquated, but if you have some spare hand me downs kicking around for it then it's definitely a usable machine (excluding games) - the keyboard is brilliant too.

Will these run CS GO , Rocket League and the Sims 4?

I've had to use these at work for the past two years, until very recently. For the price it's a good deal, but they are very slow, frustrating machines to work with.

You'll need to get used to the 'not responding' message.

really ugly looking laptop, surely better to just look around ebay for used one thats a few years older not 5, voting cold to make the heat more realistic, def not worth over 500 heat

July 29th (unless they extend the date at the last minute).

Keep in mind this i5 is only first gen and very ancient has comparable performance to i3

That's the theory, but I have a Startech active DP-HDMI converter and it doesn't give a stable usable HDMI output. The converter itself works fine on another system though, so it's not that. Maybe my X201 or ultradock is faulty, but I am cautious about recommending the setup to others.

Another perk of the sandy bridge, they got a lot cooler and the battery life improved - even more so on the ivy bridge!

Can't believe the Core series has been around five years, although then again my main machines are a 2011 MBA with an i5 and a PC with a Phenom II X6 so I'm a bit behind the times!

Presumably one of these would provide a lot more grunt than one of the compute sticks? Looking for something to run Kodi and support streaming TV from Windows Media Centre - the Fire Stick can't handle 50hz so need something that can.

What about downgrade, is it possible to run away from crappy windows 10 for free?
I know there are millions super easy ways to rewrite it yourself any win you like for free, but i am talking about legal way.

no, it's the normal price

Spend £20 extra and get this fom same place
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/371548142477?_trksid=p2055119.m1438.l2649&var=640570703724&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT

Almost twice the grunt. 3rd gen. Damn good price, adding this seller to my favs list. and just ordered a 5th gen for £229! bargains

what? a fake chinese bomb you mean?

or a used one?

an new, original battery is mor e like £50

The issue is that the X series has got progressively cheaper and less well built over the years. My old X41 is still the finest laptop I've ever owned.

There is more to a laptop that spec.

Hmm yes ...Lost me at Flashing Middleton.......Got worried there for a moment......:wink:

Still more grunt than the new crappy AMD a4 last week and £40 cheaper.

Amazing laptop. I have one sitting sitting on a shelf waiting for a spare LCD screen which is around £50 on ebay. So tempting an LCD for £50 or whole laptop for £99. Hmm.

I have one of these with an SSD and everything runs smoothly on Windows 8 (haven't updated to Windows 10 yet). I don't play any games, though, and I think this would not be good for gaming.

If you are looking for a robust laptop for your everyday tasks, I'd recommend this. And the keyboard is great too.

Oh my goodness this is hot hot hot!!

A good alternative for the same price (similar spec) http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Windows-7-Professional-DELL-E4310-Laptop-Fast-i5-2-4Ghz-M520-Wifi-Warranty-/351581479714?hash=item51dbe3a322:g:-owAAOSwcdBWSwqA#viTabs_0

Got one of these for a similar price 6 months ago. Battery lasts about 1h20m. Thing is SOLIDLY build and satisfying to use. Ran into a problem of thermal shutdowns after about 1 month of use. It ran HOT at the best of times, the processor has a high cooling requirement and chucks out a lot of heat. A bit of an annoyance tbh. But new thermal paste and completely resolved all issues. Using mine as a VAG-COM diagnostic tool for cars, where it's robustness shines.

SERIOUS is 50%+. It's not. It's 20-30% faster. I only replaced my first generation i5 6 months ago with the latest and greatest, and even that was only about 80% faster.

+1 for a thinkpad, +1 for an i5, but I do reckon a sliiightly newer X220 is a better bet. Still up there on the indestructibility scale but a good wedge faster (the 1st - 2nd gen i5 was the biggest leap) and with improved graphics. Have been offers with SSD fitted for ~ £165 a few times.

I think you would need the matching docking station or "Ultrabase" which has a DisplayPort connection - which can then output to HDMI with the relevant cable.

They cost about £15 on eBay.

Great price but I purchased a Dell laptop from them a while ago which was Grade 2 and turned up absolutely battered. It also had a hardware problem so I had to send it back. Luckily for me they sent me a replacement Grade 1 laptop which has a tiny scratch on the lid, other than that it is perfect.

Any HDMI port available?

agree x201 is classic, but bit outdated. should be x220 or newer for me. voted hot though

good find op, heat added

You really need to get out a bit more!!

I just set up an X61 for my girlfriend. T7100 is a bit of a drag, but if you flash Middleton's BIOS, you can enable dual-IDA with ThrottleStop (the 'turbo boost' feature) which gives a constant 2GHz (normal clocks, 1.8GHz). I bought a 60GB Hectron SSD on Amazon, and even with only 2GB RAM it's pretty damn snappy.

That being said, the X230 I use for portability is basically the same as the X61 in terms of build quality. It's about the same as the X200 as well.

X230s aren't that expensive, but the 3rd gen i5's are ridiculously good compared to first, and C2Ds. The HD4000 actually allows a fairly decent gameplay experience. Even runs Overwatch on low, low settings -- but it's playable at 30+ fps! My X230 was second hand, and it still gets over 4 hours runtime.

Anyway, long story short; since I have a T500, X230 and a main desktop, I would probably buy one of the X201's just for fun. Other than that, I'd avoid them -- they are rather mediocre for a primary laptop.

It's about 25% difference, so, yes, they can be compared. No need to overstate the case :smiley:

Got an x220 couple of years back from here

Battery is not the best, put a ssd in it has been solid

Gets a little warm but I can't be bothered opening it to clean fan/check thermal paste

Its my lazy rig for on the couch

x220.mcdonnelltech.com/resources

not sure why everyone is ragging on the battery, 12 quid for a 6 cell, 22 for a 9-cell off ebay

That's not reassuringly long. My school laptop managed that a couple of years ago, and I now have to hibernate it whenever changing rooms - zero battery life since September.

Lol of it really means that much to you at least replace it with something that has a decent resolution

This is not a good deal. Price, specs look good at first but once you do a little research its a waste of a hundred pounds. A guarantee of a one hour battery is the clincher.

I have no idea what windows runs like on it as i don't use it, but as i said, my x61 is still my main machine, ddr2 so i can't upgrade the ram beyond the 3 i have in it without spending a fortune, so i can't imagine that the 201 would leave me wanting. I guess i must be 'seriously retarded'. Do you ever say these things out loud and realise what an absolute weapon it makes you sound?

This will spend the rest of its life plugged in tho so it's not going to get dropped

i do not have x200s but the specs on it are just Ancient.. Maybe only good for browsing internet that's all..
but I have x230 and I'm not sure about what kind of quality issues are you talking about..I'm a surveyor and mine has fallen down/used in rain/ banged around and it has 0! problems, and I bought it refurbed 2years ago for £200 , the keyboard is one of the best I have ever used.

You must seriously be retarded to buy the x201s if you want to use it for anything more than browsing internet...the later models Still have excellent build quality. I have had older thinkpads than the x201 however and I don't really see any difference in their durability..
So Please Get real...No1 seriously needs that old Hoopty

As a long term lenovo/ibm x series owner.

Buy the x201 instead of the x220. It's built like an brick poo hut compared to the x220 and later which are much more flimsy.

I still have my x200s and an x230. The x200s still comes out on the road with me and it totally indestructable.

6 years old.. Are you kidding? Why would anyone pay more than 50 quid for this?

Worth saying these are first generation i5's. Not saying that they're not good enough for general use, just there was a bit of a step-up in the second generation.

Yeah I believe £100-£120 what they go for in ebay is almost the same.

some recent ended:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Lenovo-Thinkpad-X220-Laptop-Intel-i5-4GB-RAM-320GB-HDD-Charger-/182196913992?hash=item2a6bc84748:g:EyoAAOSwkl5XfORe

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Cheap-Laptop-Lenovo-Thinkpad-X220-12-5-i5-2520M-2-5GHz-4GB-320GB-Webcam-/331903447734?hash=item4d46fcb2b6%3Ag%3AftkAAOSwc1FXY6ko&nma=true&si=QSq1WEntY1iAuB%252B0GyLTqBul3IE%253D&orig_cvip=true&rt=nc&_trksid=p2047675.l2557

got one of these with the + upgrades 8gb from this seller last year. had a problem with wifi, had it picked up and a new one sent out within the week!! perfect.. it's obviously not a gaming machine but seriously, never had a problem with it, yes the battery life isn't great but can pick one up for around £60.. I've always loved these solid machines. and they are solid. photography post processing, music production anything, it purrs! never regretted it and 100% recommend these sellers too. HEAT.

​Untill 29th :wink:

Seems to be a shade below the going rate on ebay, though I am not sure of the appeal of a six year old laptop and battery. The 1st gen i5 is fine but the primitive Intel HD graphics of the 1st gen models are a bit limiting, these days, though fine for office duties and I love old Lenovo Thinkpad style keyboards.

If you would prefer a second gen i5 (I would), £20 more for a Dell E6220: http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/231656823283

Cold. for almost the same you can get an used x220

Literally just one hour lol these have probably been on all day everyday for the last 5-6years

Seems to be the going rate for this laptop haven't voted

Not bad then. Is the battery likely to be six years old though? Wonder how much hammer these have had. Can't really complain for the money though...

Is Windows 10 still a free upgrade from 7?

120gb SSD fitted for £25 but you could fit your own for slightly cheaper. Bargain if you can't.