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Don't think I've seen any discussion threads focused on Lenovo's (formerly IBM's) legendary line of sturdy, business-oriented laptop computers known as ThinkPad, so I thought I'd make one.

I'll just start off by asking if any of you use (or have used in the past) a ThinkPad, and if so, have you used it for gaming?

If yes, simply post what ThinkPad model(s) that you use(d), and describe what you think of them. Moreover, this thread is just here for general all-around discussion about anything ThinkPad-related.

Yesterday I ordered a used W500 from eBay which should arrive next week. It's replacing my T60p, which died on me a few weeks ago. My T60p may not have been as powerful spec-wise as the computer you may have, but I liked it. It had a fabulous IPS display with 1400x1050 resolution (unfortunately unavailable on later ThinkPad models), which was perfect for watching videos and DVDs, and of course, gaming. It was able to run most older (90's to mid 2000's) games reasonably well. (KotOR series was a bit choppy in spots, but I was still able to finish the first game) Of course I'm not sure if they would run any better on native Windows. (I use Linux/Wine, but the open source ATI drivers worked good on it)

I also have an X31, which I'm sure most here would consider.... ancient. :D Certainly not very powerful, but it still works for basic email/internet use/work/etc, and I just love its keyboard. Still works, so I've kept it as my spare/travel laptop.

My W500 will most likely be better for gaming as far as graphics/ram/processor/etc are concerned, and according to the seller it has a big 1900x1200 resolution, so it should be pretty good. I'll have to report back when I have it and get it all set up.
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BillyMaysFan59: Don't think I've seen any discussion threads focused on Lenovo's (formerly IBM's) legendary line of sturdy, business-oriented laptop computers known as ThinkPad, so I thought I'd make one.
I don't remember the specs but about 10-15 yrs ago I have used my class mate's IBM ThinkPad mainly for programming and making presentation.
I occasionally used it for playing Motocross ,Prince of Persia, Dangerous Dave, Mario Forever and A DOS racer whose name I can't remember.
At that time I was not able to afford any flash drive (they were costly as I would have to sell my soul to get my hands on one of them) so I used to have 3-4 floppys having my favourite dos games and for my presentation.

With advancement of technology floppys became out of market and laptops stopped to come with floppy drives (which was logical).
My floppys became dead but I still miss playing those games.
I also remember using a 755 CSE and 755 CX looooong ago. Bet those are a rare find these days :D
Here is an happy user of a ThinkPad X60, obviously not for gaming ;)
Well, I actually did put Alpha Centauri, Faster Than Light and a couple ScummVM games on it, but it doesn’t have the hardware for anything more hungry than these games.

It’s my work machine whenever I’m not at home, and it’s pretty good at it. Plus, except for the games, it runs on free software only, including the BIOS that has been replaced by libreboot.
http://www.libreboot.org/
Post edited June 23, 2015 by vv221
Look at all the cutting edge, state-of-the-art technology in this stunning 755 CD!!!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XIJWfXfGI4o
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vv221: Here is an happy user of a ThinkPad X60, obviously not for gaming ;)
I'm sure newer models like the X300 would be better for gaming, because of newer overall guts :P
Post edited June 23, 2015 by BillyMaysFan59
Proud owner of an X230 here. Is my only PC since I ran away from a MSI laptop.

This little beast can run everything but the most demanding games on high. I mean it:

.The Witcher (only in medium)
.Source games (Portal 2 being the newest one)
.Metro 2033 (in low)
.Tomb Raider 2013 (medium)
.Alan Wake (low)

And I also use it for HD editing and sound post-production. It truly is a beast :) Since I can also plug it into my 40" LED TV I don't even use a monitor now xD

Unfortunately my configuration in particular didn't come with and HDMI, but oh well... I'm taking the "heavy weight" games from it and into my PS3 anyway :P

My next laptop will surely a (yet not announced) X260 (40 and 50 use a low voltage CPU and mine has a full desktop one so I don't see the advantage there except on battery life which is more than 4 hours on constant use anyway).
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vv221: Here is an happy user of a ThinkPad X60, obviously not for gaming ;)
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BillyMaysFan59: I'm sure newer models like the X300 would be better for gaming, because of newer overall guts :P
No model after the X200 is supported by coreboot/libreboot, so if I go for a new one it will be a X200.
Still a bit short for gaming I think, even if better than the X60 obviously.
I’m into ThinkPads for their "hackability" so I lost interest in the brand after the X200, their last hacker-friendly model in my opinion.
My 'work' E531 (ThinkPad Edge) is handling all kind of games pretty well (i5 3230M, 4GB, NV gt740M-2GB), unfortunately I'll have to part with it soon :(

Btw do you guys do something about the heating? Currently it sits on top of 4 bottle caps, but that's not a very stable position :)
Post edited June 23, 2015 by leon30

No model after the X200 is supported by coreboot/libreboot, so if I go for a new one it will be a X200.
Still a bit short for gaming I think, even if better than the X60 obviously.
I’m into ThinkPads for their "hackability" so I lost interest in the brand after the X200, their last hacker-friendly model in my opinion.
Coreboot supports models after the X200, including the X220 and X230.
What I find strange about the newer X series models is their crippled memory support. While the X230 supported up to 16 GB, the newer models only support up to 8 GB. You could have 8 GB since the X200 already.

I'm a X200s user myself and even though it is not a gaming rig by any means, I still use it for some gaming. I'm running Linux on it and play mostly games with native Linux support. It seems quite a few Thinkpad users run Linux on their machines. :D
2D games usually run just fine (e.g. classic and modern 2D adventure games). Even some less demanding 3D games are quite playable, like Race The Sun for example.
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jpilot: Coreboot supports models after the X200, including the X220 and X230.
Oh, thanks for the information, looks like I always lag behind a bit ;)
I had a T20 that I bought second-hand because I was soon to need a laptop at the time, when the screen controller board broke, I bought a W500, when the motherboard on that broke (a while after warranty ended, I tried getting a replacement motherboard but got one from a W400 instead which obviously didn't fit, and the seller wouldn't accept that it was wrong), and now I have a T500 that also was second-hand. The only other laptop I've had (well, all those "had" should be "have", as I haven't thrown any of them away, still keeping the hope that I can repair them) is an Asus Eee 1001PX, a 9-inch netbook, because I saw some value in having a cheap machine to try out web designs on and see how well they worked on a low-resolution screen.

The T20 was bundled with Windows 2000, though it got replaced with Windows XP as soon as I got home, the W500 was bundled with a Swedish Windows 7 Professional which likewise quickly got replaced ASAP, with an English Windows 7 Ultimate. I can't remember if the T500 came with an OS preinstalled (it was second-hand, after all), but the first thing I did was install the Win 7 Ultimate license from the W500 to it.

The T500 now runs Arch Linux and has an SSD so it's fairly nice and quick, the other two were broken at the time of my switch. I do play a little bit of games on it, though I really only use it when away, as I have my tower at home and much prefer using that with superior keyboard and screen(s). The Thinkpad also has switchable graphics, which isn't quite optimal on Linux (at least not with the open-source Radeon driver), and the GPU is a Radeon 3500M or something, so it isn't very good anyway, so I mostly have the BIOS set to only expose the Intel one to the OS, and gaming isn't my primary reason for the machine so it's good enough.

When looking to get a primary portable machine, my first choice have always been the ThinkPad "professional/workstation" series, though I've become more hesitant as machines after the *500 (for example 520, 530) have been said to have a worse keyboard.
Post edited June 23, 2015 by Maighstir
Bump for the night crowd
T510 from my college days. It's a brick and I love it. Sturdy yet surprisingly powerful. I enjoyed a lot of game time on it.

I have a lenovo Y50 now with 16 GB of ram and a 512 SSD and a touch screen. I miss the forward and back buttons from the T510 for browsing and the keyboard isn't quite as good, but it runs modern games better.
t60 to the recent ones, used various models, they are good and durable and okey for gaming
One thing to note is that ThinkPads aren't designed for gaming: they're designed for business. The reason I use them is because they aren't built like garbage like a lot of other laptops are. At least the ones I've used have a solid, sturdy design, and overall I've been very happy with them. Also the keyboards are good, especially on my X31. (I just loooove my X31's keyboard, hardly any other laptop keyboard I've used comes close)

I'll have to see how well my W500 will handle gaming. Its graphics card (which will likely be an ATI Mobility FireGL v5700 with 512 MB VRAM) is designed for CAD stuff, if I remember correctly. Certainly should be better than the hardware in my T60p, and at the very least most of my games should run smoother. (newer GPU + faster processor, more RAM, etc)