Value of used x200t?

[nathanb131]

I'm almost done at my current job where I've been using a x200t for 3 years. Looking forward to my new x220t/i7/ssd with my new employer!

I want to buy my current x200t from my employer and let my 11 year old daughter use it. She's a budding artist and too young to justify a 'new' laptop, let alone tablet.

I'd like a little guidance from those of you familiar with the used market for these things. I'm thinking of offering like $250 for it and was surprised to find one on ebay for over $600. Though that was a requested price, not an auction result.

Stats:
Core2Duo 1.86mhz, 4mb ram, win vista, 160gb 5400rpm drive. Base screen (not outdoor or multitouch).

Condition:
Keyboard is worn. Some keys are starting to stick so I might need to swap in a new one (don't you LOVE that you can do that with thinkpads?)

Crack on lower left corner from a tragic drop onto concrete. The wireless toggle switch is practically falling off from that damage and the usb and ethernet on that corner are un-reliable.

I have frequent memory problems which may go away with a wipe and re-install but I might have to get new memory modules. (I the occasional bsod that references memory issues and also see lots of error popups of specific memory locations that couldn't be read)

8 cell and 4 cell battery, both are pretty much done though. Barely an hour charge with either. I'd need to get a new one.

Plan:
If I buy it I would like to put win 7 on it, get a new battery, and possibly have to replace memory.

So what is the machine worth? Any other 3 year old laptop with these specs would be pretty low in value but the longevity of it being a thinkpad and also a tablet does raise it's value.

Am I too cheap to only think it's worth $250? Problem is that I'm sure they'll look up the market for it and see some going for like $600 (there are so few out there). Personally it's not worth that to me, considering what I could get new for $600 these days.

What would be the 'kid's tablet' alternative to compare it to? A used t4200 or an inspiron duo maybe?

[dceggert]

Check on ebay by searching for X200t's and checking the 'completed' section to see what they actually went for. You can also check bundled accessories and condition and use all that to determine a value.

I am right with you on the 11 year old budding artist! I am pondering giving my beloved TC1100 to my daughter to draw on, but I have the same issues as trying to get money out of my wallet...my hand will just not let go for some reason!

[Steve B]

IMO, follow the advice about Completed Listings, but besides that, yes, I think 250$ is lower than it'd go on ebay. Probably 400$-500$. Perhaps on the lower end because of the old batteries and general wear and tear. Of course, the real question is how would your employer normally be getting rid of it? I can't imagine they'd go through the trouble of selling it on ebay themselves. If so, then perhaps their take from having someone else use it would be less. If so again, then that's your gain.

[jnjroach]

Thinkpads tend to keep their value longer, X200T's typically are going for $400-$500 even with wear. Look at Craig's List and see what they are going for locally (if you live in a tech center like Silicon Valley, Seattle, Cambridge MA, Ashville NC, Atalanta, etc.)

[AndreR]

The bump could lower the product life a lot, and with worn out batteries so could I not imagine that the price would be much higher than 300$. Lenovo, here in Sweden, also charges outrageous sums for new batteries, and I suspect that a lot of the batteries on Ebay are either used or made by third parties.

[nathanb131]

Thanks for all the help. I had first checked ebay and only saw one. Looked for 'completed' listings but couldn't find that option. I will check again.

[nathanb131]

Ha, only found 1 additional completed auction for one. Though it occurred to me that I'm the only guy at the company who'd know there is a difference between an x200 and x200t....there's LOT's of x200's on there that sold in the $300's....

[nathanb131]

Check on ebay by searching for X200t's and checking the 'completed' section to see what they actually went for. You can also check bundled accessories and condition and use all that to determine a value.

I am right with you on the 11 year old budding artist! I am pondering giving my beloved TC1100 to my daughter to draw on, but I have the same issues as trying to get money out of my wallet...my hand will just not let go for some reason!

You have the tc1100? Isn't that one of the original tabletPC's for XP that came out in like 2003? The little 10-inch slate with the detachable keyboard? That was a fabulous design and I was reminded of those when I was searching ebay for the used tablet market.

I remember watching closely when motion, elecrovaya, hp, toshiba, even NEC had a good set of tablets when Microsoft was really trying to make it happen.

I guess it had to take Apple to dumb it down and make an appliance version to wake the world up to the idea of a slate interface. Now with the new slates coming out again and Windows 8 looming, it's like we are re-living that original push with xp tablets.

Pretty cool that the new crop won't look that much more sleek and sophisticated than the tc1100 was so many years ago! There's not a whole lot of 'classics' in the computer world. Yours is definitely one of them.

[Agent 9]

You have to be sure to search for both "X200t" as well as "X200 tablet" as you will get a lot of results with "X200 tablet" but not many with "X200t" IDK why, but that's how people list them on ebay... but yes, the dead batteries as well as the broken up and malfunctioning parts of it (and lack of any unique things like the better screens) would mean its not worth too much in a re-sale market