What are some decent, older, used laptop makes/models (~$100 range)?

[jaydee]

I would like to buy an older laptop to put Linux on, will not be installing a desktop environment, so I don't really care much about CPU or GPU performance or screen quality (resolution important though). I do intend on word processing, listening to music, maybe some network diagnostics, etc.

So I am looking for something with a 13-15" screen with a resolution of 1440x900 or even better 1440x1050. C2D era is fine... don't know if I want to go older than that. 1 GB of RAM would be enough, hard drive, whatever, I will probably re-use a 32GB SSD that I have kicking around anyway. Good keyboard is pretty important. Since I don't need much processing power, a ULV processor is preferred to keep power consumption down and help with the thickness/weight of the laptop, but not a huge deal.

I know a Thinkpad T61, or x300 are candidates, what other laptop makes/models should I keep an eye out for on ebay/craigslist/forums/etc? Are there any other websites to look at where I could find corporate laptops go after lease?

 

[gmaster456]

http://www.ebay.com/itm/DELL-Latiti...832?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item4192bd58e0

 

[jaydee]

http://www.ebay.com/itm/DELL-Latiti...832?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item4192bd58e0

1280 x 800 res. And no AC adapter/charger.

 

[Puffnstuff]

You should either lower your expectations or increase your budget.

 

[dave_the_nerd]

Why does resolution matter if you're not installing a desktop environment?

 

[jaydee]

Why does resolution matter if you're not installing a desktop environment?

Using Wordgrinder to write out some thoughts/essays, I prefer extra vertical space to see more lines.

 

[Towermax]

I bought a Dell Latitude D630 for $85 on Craigslist. It is 14" with 1440x900 and now runs Linux Mint. And luckily, it's like new and has a C2D T9500 at 2.6.

Try the Latitude D830 and D530 also. They're often available for $100 or less on eBay. The D830 has resolutions up to 1920X1200 and the D530 is available with 1400x1050.

The D530 often sells for $75 or less. All of these Latitudes are C2D.

 

[ninaholic37]

So I am looking for something with a 13-15" screen with a resolution of 1440x900 or even better 1440x1050.

I gave my 1440x1050 15" laptop away for free because I couldn't stand how tiny everything was, and kept my 1024x768 one instead, and couldn't be happier.

edit: When I "Exit to Prompt" in Linux, it lets me see 128x48 (width height) letters on my 1024x768 screen and in WordGrinder by default. 6144 characters!

 

[jaydee]

I played around with debian on a VM and found where to change the font size, which applies to WordGrinder as well. So I guess resolution isn't a big deal.

I pulled the trigger on this on ebay. 1 more available if anyone wants it!

http://www.ebay.com/itm/271815924544?_trksid=p2055119.m1438.l2649&ssPageName=STRK:MEBIDX:IT

Thinkpad T400
2.2 Ghz C2D (Penryn / 45nm)
4GB RAM
14" screen, unknown resolution, either 1280x800 or 1440x900
no HDD or OS
Comes with battery and power adapter (I assume battery holds next to nothing charge, but who knows). A lot of these laptops on ebay don't provide these.
$68 shipped!

If I feel adventurous, maybe I can take a look at undervolting, but it appears that would have to be at the OS level.

 

[Mushkins]

I'd be worried any older laptop you can get for $100 has both feet in the grave. Assuming someone actually used the thing and it didnt sit in the closet, very rarely do I see a laptop last more than 4-5 years before hardware starts failing left and right.

 

[ninaholic37]

I pulled the trigger on this on ebay. 1 more available if anyone wants it!

http://www.ebay.com/itm/271815924544?_trksid=p2055119.m1438.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT

Thinkpad T400
2.2 Ghz C2D (Penryn / 45nm)
4GB RAM
14" screen, unknown resolution, either 1280x800 or 1440x900
no HDD or OS
Comes with battery and power adapter (I assume battery holds next to nothing charge, but who knows). A lot of these laptops on ebay don't provide these.
$68 shipped!

If I feel adventurous, maybe I can take a look at undervolting, but it appears that would have to be at the OS level.

Looks good. I have a Thinkpad T42 as my main laptop and it's a very solid machine. You can probably set the CPU to run at lowest frequency (I think 800MHz) by using "on demand" scaling when it's not working hard, or just not letting speedstep go to the max at all. I have my Pentium M set to only 600MHz-1200MHz (and it only goes up to 1200MHz when CPU usage is 80% or above) even though the CPU can do 1.7GHz, so it usually runs pretty quiet. Core2Duo at 2.2GHz is a lot of power for writing in plain text and playing music, and 4GB RAM, wow. If hardware is in good shape then those specs should last you at least 10 more years with Linux at the helm. :biggrin:

 

[XavierMace]

If this is just being used for word processing, you'd be far better off with a new Android tablet with keyboard. Will use way less power and the battery will last forever by comparison.

 

[jaydee]

I'd be worried any older laptop you can get for $100 has both feet in the grave. Assuming someone actually used the thing and it didnt sit in the closet, very rarely do I see a laptop last more than 4-5 years before hardware starts failing left and right.

Thinkpad's have a bit more of a reputation for reliability, even if Lenovo did own it by this point. Time will tell, but I'm optimistic.

If this is just being used for word processing, you'd be far better off with a new Android tablet with keyboard. Will use way less power and the battery will last forever by comparison.

That would be missing the point. I am aiming for a nice clean, distraction-less interface, that's a bit more updated than a typewriter. I estimate my power usage to be around 15-20w, as the laptop will be running near idle, which isn't too bad. Battery life is always a plus, but I don't project my usage to really necessitate a long battery life. So those are sacrifices I am willing to make. I already have an iPad air and BT keyboard, but I'm planning on selling it.

 

[jaydee]

Looks good. I have a Thinkpad T42 as my main laptop and it's a very solid machine. You can probably set the CPU to run at lowest frequency (I think 800MHz) by using "on demand" scaling when it's not working hard, or just not letting speedstep go to the max at all. I have my Pentium M set to only 600MHz-1200MHz (and it only goes up to 1200MHz when CPU usage is 80% or above) even though the CPU can do 1.7GHz, so it usually runs pretty quiet. Core2Duo at 2.2GHz is a lot of power for writing in plain text and playing music, and 4GB RAM, wow. If hardware is in good shape then those specs should last you at least 10 more years with Linux at the helm. :biggrin:

More I looked into it, the more I liked the late C2D cpu's as they had a big impact on idle power (going from 65nm to 45nm), which is why I decided against anything older. Totally agree that it's overkill, would have liked to have found an x301 with a CULV, but they're $150 and up.

I will look into "on demand" scaling. What OS are you using?

 

[jaydee]

Quick update, received the Thinkpad T400, it does have the 1440x900 screen, and it's overall in pretty good shape physically. Haven't really quantified how good the battery is still, but it's enough to unplug it, close the lid for an hour or two, and still be good.

I have it pretty much setup the way I want it, I threw in a 5 year old 32GB ssd, updated the BIOS/EC, installed Debian 7 Stable, latest wordgrinder and moc (music-on-command), and it's ready to go. Don't have wifi setup, but don't have a need for it right now; it may be nice someday as I do have a home server that I could back my stuff up to, but I can make due with USB drive.