Which thinkpad should I go for?

[chrisjsmithuk]

Hi all,

I'm a returning Thinkpad user. After a little bit of a detour into Apple land I need to escape to run some windows software.

My history is a long one owning a T43, T61, X201, T410, T420, T440, T470 and for a short period a T495s. My kids retain my old T440 and T470 units but I can't steal them back for obvious reasons.

So the question is: what's my best option for a decent second hand T-series unit at the moment with the following basic specifications. This will be used for some very light 2d CAD work, some programming, some simulation stuff and usual boring office/admin stuff like Excel/Word etc:

1. i5 processor. Mid range is fine.
2. 16Gb of RAM preferably upgradeable.
3. 256Gb SSD
4. 1080p IPS 14" display
5. Preferably a replaceable battery or at least one that is integrated and not dead.
6. Any graphics
7. Preferably old square charger socket as USB-C ones are crazy fragile.

I would buy another T495s but the supply of cheap ones we had here in the UK at around the £570 mark has dried up suddenly

I did consider a new one but there is no supply available here other than basic units with 8Gb soldered RAM.

[RealBlackStuff]

Try for a used T480 (with 8th Gen CPU, such as i5-8350U), it has both internal and external battery and 2 RAM slots for up to 32GB.

[dr_st]

I second that recommendation. It meets all your characteristics, except the charging socket. Unfortunately to get the rectangular plug on a 14" Thinkpad you'd have to go one generation older (Thinkpad T470), which limits you to dual-core CPUs, instead of quad-core. Not a worthwhile trade-off, in my opinion.

[chrisjsmithuk]

Thanks both.

My worry with the USB-C ones is founded on my daughter's T470. My wife threw a cushion at me and it landed on the USB-C cable and damaged the port which I found when I opened it was on the motherboard rather than a daughterboard which is a bit of a rubbish design. The port isn't easily replaceable as such on the motherboard due to the USB-C socket design as well.

Agree with the compromise though on core count. Will look at the T480 and make sure no one goes near it