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Date:	Mon, 11 Nov 2002 23:19:56 PST7
From:	Steve Carter <scarter@vcnet.com >
Reply-To:	scoug-help@scoug.com
To:	scoug-help@scoug.com
Subject:	SCOUG-Help: Re: IBM Thinkpad model 600

Content Type: text/plain

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Jordan:

My 600E is my first foray into laptops. It's a 366MHz, PII.
I stumbled into it on the IBM refurbished web site last Christmas.
Being a newcomer to laptops, I felt more comfortable buying an
IBM refurb than used.

I bought on price and some features. Since then, I've joined the
Thinkpad mailing list and members there report that the 600 series
had the best keyboards and are, in many respects superior (or at
least equal) to more modern and expensive TPs.

Laptops become obsolete so fast and are not much upgrade-able.
The screen is large enough and adequate (13", 1024x768) although
not the rival of newer machines (14". 1400x1050).

Accessories for the 600 series are now cheap on the surplus
market (eBay, etc) and batteries are readily available,
I've since bought a DVD drive, ZIP drive, network card, docking
station, spare battery, 12V airline/car power supply, spare AC supply,
all mostly on eBay and inexpensively (all things are relative).

Several different accessory bays, with similar sounding names,
were used by IBM and one must be careful to insure the particular
accessory will fit your machine. I cloned the original 6GB HD onto
a 20GB HD and added RAM to ~350MB (max is 544MB, despite IBM's statement
to the contrary). The original 6GB HD is a backup on the shelf.

OS/2 is well supported on this generation of laptops. Probably
current machines as well, but I haven't been paying attention.

The 600X has faster processors, better video but some peculiarities
in what accessories/adapters fit and what doesn't. The plain (earlier)
600 (no E) has slower processors, and less competent video. No software
DVD, for example. Minimum speed for software DVD is around 366-400MHz.

If you look around, you might find a 400MHz 600E with DVD and a 12GB HD.
That would make an acceptable machine, seems to me. Since that was the
end of the line for the 600E model, it would be reasonably new too.
If the BIOS is new enough, you can add 256MB SODIMMS (PC100, not 133)
and reduce the need for a swap file, increasing speed and prolonging
battery life by net needing to access the HD so often. BIOS is flash-able.

The earlier 2X DVD drive is not region-sensitive, possibly a plus.

--Steve

+++++++++++++++
On 11/11/02, Jordan wrote, in part:
> ...
>I've followed much but not all of this thread.
>Can you synopsize for me why this particular model is
>considered so desirable for folks like us ?
>How well can it compare to current model TP's in terms of key
>features: H/D, screen, keyboard, CD-drive, memory, battery life,
>expandability (if any), etc. ?
>Also, I think current models like the T-series were somewhat
>"rugged-ized," vs. the earlier models, no ?
>Jordan
>=====================================================

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