Secondhand Thinkpad - Advice and Tips

Some advice and tips.
Nothing should be taken for granted and use at your own risk and discretion!
  • If you can (aka have the time) – meet in person and run some quick tests on the computer to make sure it works.
  • See if you can get a warranty, and whether it’s upgradable. If not see if you can get another warranty – perhaps through a site such as SquareTrade.
  • All data you put on a secondhand device BACK IT UP. Computers are prone to fail, all of them.
  • Small splits are common, especially in the palm rest – this can be fixed or replaced
  • Do a visual check for any major cracks/or broken screens. Maybe you can get it cheaper if it’s still operational, otherwise screens are very expensive to replace.
  • Do all the keys work and are not too sticky? Some wear and tear is ok. Do a quick typing test, such as “the quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog” this phrase uses all the alphabet keys.
  • Make sure all the cards are still inside and work, test for the wireless card as this is most often used and the easiest to remove – remember they aren’t too expensive to replace but if it’s missing negotiate a better price.
  • Check the CD player, use headphones to make sure Audio works too
  • Burn a CD if it has a burner and run a error check on the burning program.
  • Listen to the harddrive to make sure it sounds ok, if not don’t buy it – this can be easily done with a disk defragment, just start it, don’t run the whole thing.
  • Tell the buyer what you plan on doing so they don’t feel threatened.
  • Remember secondhand is designed for simple essential tasks – checking emails, browsing, and office. The odd old game and movie is usually fine too. For a intense machine buy a desktop – they are easier to upgrade and pack more grunt.
Good Luck. Remember nothing is ever reliable.