IBM ThinkPad 600 Series
The ThinkPad 600 Series laptops were business thin-and-lights sold between April 1998 and February 2001. They are effectively the predecessor to the T-Series, as they share the same form factor and target market. The 600 Series really feels like an earlier version of the T20 Series.
Specifications
Note: Different configurations of each laptop often had different release and discontinuation dates. In these cases, the earliest and latest dates will be used for each respectively. See the PSREF linked in resources for the specific dates for each configuration.
| Spec | ThinkPad 600 | ThinkPad 600E | ThinkPad 600X |
|---|---|---|---|
| Release Date | April 1998 | November 1998 | December 1999 |
| Discontinuation Date | June 1999 | January 2001 | February 2001 |
| CPU Options | - Intel Mobile Pentium MMX @233MHz - Intel Mobile Pentium II @233, 266, or 300MHz - MMC1 processor cards |
- Intel Mobile Pentium II @300, 366, or 400MHz - MMC2 processor cards |
- Intel Mobile Pentium III @450, 500, or 650MHz - MMC2 processor cards |
| RAM (Standard) | 32 or 64MB | 64MB | |
| RAM (Maximum) | 256MB (MMX models) or 288MB (PII models) | 288MB | 576MB |
| RAM Type | SDRAM, 2 144pin slots | ||
| HDD Standard Size | 3.2, 4.0, or 5.1GB | 4.0, 6.4, or 10GB | 6.0 or 12.0GB |
| HDD Type | IDE 2.5" | ||
| Uses Proprietary HDD Adapter? | No | ||
| Display Options | - 12.1" TFT/Active Matrix - 13.0" HPA/Passive Matrix - 13.3" TFT/Active Matrix |
13.3" TFT/Active Matrix | |
| Display Resolution | - 800x600 (12.1) - 1024x768 (13.0 and 13.3) |
1024x768 | |
| GPU | NeoMagic MagicGraph 128XD | NeoMagic MagicMedia 256AV | NeoMagic MagicMedia 256ZX |
| VRAM | 2MB | 2.5MB | 4MB |
| Sound | Crystal CS4237B | Crystal CS4239, CS4610 | Crystal CS4624 |
| Battery | Lithium Ion | ||
| CMOS Battery | Proprietary Lithium | ||
| Power Supply | Barrel Jack | ||
| PC Cards | 2x PCMCIA (2x Type I/II, 1x Type III) - CardBus and ZoomVideo supported | ||
| Media Drives | UltraslimBay | ||
| Networking | Optional Modem | Modem | |
| I/O (Other) | - 1x USB 1.x - 1x External Floppy - 1x Mic In - 1x Line Out - 1x Infrared - 1x PS/2 - 1x Serial - 1x Parallel - 1x VGA Out - 1x Dock Connector |
- 1x USB 1.x - 1x External Floppy - 1x Mic In - 1x Line Out - 1x Infrared - 1x PS/2 - 1x Serial - 1x Parallel - 1x VGA Out - 1x Dock Connector - 1x Proprietary Video Out port for use with adapter |
|
| BIOS | IBM BIOS with Easy Setup | ||
| Pointing Device | TrackPoint | ||
Resources
 Service Manual (600, 600E) |
Service Manual (600X) |
Withdrawn Models PSREF |
|---|
Common Faults & Maintenance
The ThinkPad 600s are built well and typically don't experience hinge failures.
Rubber Coating and Palmrest Paint
The outside and palmrest of the ThinkPad 600s are coated in a soft-touch rubberized coating. This coating often goes sticky with age and will require removal. On the 600s, the coating on the display housing nearly always deteriorates and goes sticky. For whatever reason, the coating on the base and palmrest doesn't go bad nearly as often.
192 Fan Error
Some 600s will throw a 192 Fan Error with a dead CMOS battery (alongside the expected 161 and 163 errors). This is nearly always caused by the CMOS battery being dead, rather than it actually being a bad fan.
Gallery
If you own a 600 or 600E and want to help out the site, send me some photos of it!
ThinkPad 600X
Click on an image to view the full-size version.
Note: This unit has had the rubberized coating on the display assembly removed. Normally, it would be a matte black rubber coating, not the reflective black plastic shown here.
Page last updated (MM/DD/YYYY): 11/16/2024
Update Reason: formatting updated
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