IBM laptop...need new HD

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clicker2659

#1
#1
what kind of hard drive can i use in my IBM thinkpad? do i have to get one from IBM or can i get any kind like western digital, seagate or ? any help appreciated. thanks
 
wolf5958

wolf5958

lil Fuzzybear
#4
#4
You should be able to just pickup a new drive at like Best Buy and if you want the Geek squad will install it for you. That's the easy part the hard part is reinstalling your OS and recovering your data. I hope you had backed it up..
 
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Bandaid

#7
#7
You don't need a drive made for a ThinkPad. Just tell them when you order that it's for a ThinkPad R51. I've got a ThinkPad and I'm pretty sure you just need a standard model.
 
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clicker2659

#8
#8
Bandaid said:
You don't need a drive made for a ThinkPad. Just tell them when you order that it's for a ThinkPad R51. I've got a ThinkPad and I'm pretty sure you just need a standard model.
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The HD i have in it now is almost full. it still works but everything takes forever to get on screen. its like a 15-20 MB when i bought it new years back.
I need one thats like 80-120 GB or above.

Do i actually need one made by IBM? thats all i wanna know.
 
wolf5958

wolf5958

lil Fuzzybear
#9
#9
clicker2659 said:
The HD i have in it now is almost full. it still works but everything takes forever to get on screen. its like a 15-20 MB when i bought it new years back.
I need one thats like 80-120 GB or above.

Do i actually need one made by IBM? thats all i wanna know.
Click to expand...
Answer from a Certified Tech Me NO any laptop hard drive will work(brand) they are not perpitery. Sorry for spelling errors. May I suggest that you back up your laptop to an ext drive before you install the new drive. You will need to install windows and restore your data..So the answer is you do not need a drive from IBM as I said earlier just go to best buy or a place like that and buy the drive you want..
 
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clicker2659

#10
#10
wolf5958 said:
Answer from a Certified Tech Me NO any laptop hard drive will work(brand) they are not perpitery. Sorry for spelling errors. May I suggest that you back up your laptop to an ext drive before you install the new drive. You will need to install windows and restore your data..So the answer is you do not need a drive from IBM as I said earlier just go to best buy or a place like that and buy the drive you want..
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Wolf...Thanks a million. Thats what i wanted to know. I will backup to a Zip drive and go from there.
 
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elmo16

#11
#11
Beware! I have an old Toshiba Lap Top that came with a 15 Gig hard drive. I tried to buy a larger hard drive for that computer from an online hard drive web site. They claimed that they had a 100 Gig HD that was compatible with my computer. When I received it I tried to install it. It wouldn't fit. I noticed that pin configuration on the new drive was totally different from the old drive. The online merchant kept insisting that the drive was, in fact compatible, and I was installing it wrong. Finally, after three weeks, they finally agreed to take back their drive.

A few months later I tried the same thing with another online HD merchant. The results were more or less the same.

The best thing to do is to go to the IBM web site, and see if an upgrade is available. That is the only way to know, for a fact if a larger, or replacement drive is available for your lap top.
 
wolf5958

wolf5958

lil Fuzzybear
#12
#12
elmo16 said:
Beware! I have an old Toshiba Lap Top that came with a 15 Gig hard drive. I tried to buy a larger hard drive for that computer from an online hard drive web site. They claimed that they had a 100 Gig HD that was compatible with my computer. When I received it I tried to install it. It wouldn't fit. I noticed that pin configuration on the new drive was totally different from the old drive. The online merchant kept insisting that the drive was, in fact compatible, and I was installing it wrong. Finally, after three weeks, they finally agreed to take back their drive.

A few months later I tried the same thing with another online HD merchant. The results were more or less the same.

The best thing to do is to go to the IBM web site, and see if an upgrade is available. That is the only way to know, for a fact if a larger, or replacement drive is available for your lap top.
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And that is the rub my friend some manufactors have prepiartary hardware Toshiba ans Sony and Panasonic are notorious for this. Thother like HP/Compaq, IBM, gateway and Dell, buy their componets in such bulk that in most cases things like hard drives, CD/DVD roms and rams are all interchangible. On some models and across brands you can even share memory and CPU chips as well.
 
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elmo16

#13
#13
wolf5958 said:
You should be able to just pickup a new drive at like Best Buy and if you want the Geek squad will install it for you. That's the easy part the hard part is reinstalling your OS and recovering your data. I hope you had backed it up..
Click to expand...
I wouldn't let the Geek Squad any where near my computer, or believe any thing anyone of them tell me about any thing technical. Best Buy opens a store, puts out notices about jobs for sales clerks. They take the ugliest, most socially awkward applicants, have them act as if they know computers, and give them special buttons marked "Geek Squad". The people they use to install home theaters are different, they are real technicians who, for the most part, know what they are doing.
 
wolf5958

wolf5958

lil Fuzzybear
#14
#14
elmo16 said:
I wouldn't let the Geek Squad any where near my computer, or believe any thing anyone of them tell me about any thing technical. Best Buy opens a store, puts out notices about jobs for sales clerks. They take the ugliest, most socially awkward applicants, have them act as if they know computers, and give them special buttons marked "Geek Squad". The people they use to install home theaters are different, they are real technicians who, for the most part, know what they are doing.
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That is not 100% true. I don't know about the store you use but the ones by me (patchoge) have A-plus Techs on site. A-plus is an idustry cert for PC repair it is one of the certs I myself have. The home thearter installers are certifiy Techs electronic device installations Techs, I'm not sure of the certs for these guys buy they have to be certified to maintain their liability insurance. The car stero installers also have full training and at least one on site must have a cert. Now just because someone has a cert doesn't mean they are good but they are more than just sales clerks.
 
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elmo16

#15
#15
wolf5958 said:
That is not 100% true. I don't know about the store you use but the ones by me (patchoge) have A-plus Techs on site. A-plus is an idustry cert for PC repair it is one of the certs I myself have. The home thearter installers are certifiy Techs electronic device installations Techs, I'm not sure of the certs for these guys buy they have to be certified to maintain their liability insurance. The car stero installers also have full training and at least one on site must have a cert. Now just because someone has a cert doesn't mean they are good but they are more than just sales clerks.
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I think the Best Buy near me is a second tier (if such a think exists) store. I say that because many of the items Best Buy has on their web site are not in my Best Buy.
 
wolf5958

wolf5958

lil Fuzzybear
#17
#17
That is not new and anytime you put your PC/laptop in the hands of someone else there is a danger of this happening. Like anything accountants, Tax preparer and any other repair type people you need to be able to trust them. But if that was my PC/laptop my porn collection as well as any finacal stuff would be password protected. Which in the long run will stop almost anyone but a true hacker.
 
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