Tech you miss/ new tech trends you hate - ok boomers

[Road Work Ahead]

I think T420 tops out at 8 gigs, doesn't it? Or is it a think like the old unibody macbooks, where Apple said the max ram was 4 gigs, but it was actually 8? This is great news if true. I'll have to look into it.

I too love my T420, but they're getting a bit long in the tooth. I talked myself out of getting rid of it in an effort to reduce clutter a few months ago.

I just use mine for web browsing and light work, so it still is enough for me.

The spec says 8 GB max, but it seems like that's because there weren't any 8GB sticks at the time. A lot of people saying 16GB works though.

I've ordered a 2x8GB kit, I'll let you know if it works.

 

[Enig]

I can tell you all now that 16GB in 2x8 works with both the T420 and T430 as I have 16GB in my corebooted T420 that has an i7 in it, but what I'm not sure of is compatibility with the borderline unicorn tier 16GB SODIMMs that I have seen listed before. If I ever get stupid enough to spend hundreds to get one I will test personally if there is a 16GB barrier because holy hell if I can hit 32GB on a laptop from 2012 it'll be a repeat of me discovering that a lot of Athlon 64x2 laptops in 2006-7 could actually go up to 8GB in an era when 1-2 GB was the norm.

 

[Kosher Dill]

because holy hell if I can hit 32GB on a laptop from 2012...

A quad-core W530 can take 4x8GB. Don't delay!

 

[Never Scored]

I just use mine for web browsing and light work, so it still is enough for me.

The spec says 8 GB max, but it seems like that's because there weren't any 8GB sticks at the time. A lot of people saying 16GB works though.

I've ordered a 2x8GB kit, I'll let you know if it works.

I had a 8-gig sodimm lying around and stuck it in there. Can confirm mine is working with 12 now. Thanks for the tip. I'll pick up another 8-gig stick later.

 

[Flabba Wabba Jabba]

white keyboards

White as in plain white? Because old keyboards that are cream/off-white are awesome.

 

[BootlegPopeye]

The problem with that color scheme is it has a tendency to yellow over time because of the flame retardant used in the plastic. Go to any vintage video game or computer swap meet and you will see yellowed commodore, Apple, IBM computers and computer parts. Infamously this even happens with the super Nintendo.

So I attribute the decline in that cream color scheme to that.

 

[Smaug's Smokey Hole]

I can tell you all now that 16GB in 2x8 works with both the T420 and T430 as I have 16GB in my corebooted T420 that has an i7 in it, but what I'm not sure of is compatibility with the borderline unicorn tier 16GB SODIMMs that I have seen listed before. If I ever get stupid enough to spend hundreds to get one I will test personally if there is a 16GB barrier because holy hell if I can hit 32GB on a laptop from 2012 it'll be a repeat of me discovering that a lot of Athlon 64x2 laptops in 2006-7 could actually go up to 8GB in an era when 1-2 GB was the norm.

If it's the i7-2640m the limit according to Intel is 16GB

Product Specifications

quick reference guide including specifications, features, pricing, compatibility, design documentation, ordering codes, spec codes and more.

ark.intel.com

The 2760QM supports up to 32GB

Product Specifications

quick reference guide including specifications, features, pricing, compatibility, design documentation, ordering codes, spec codes and more.

ark.intel.com

Might be worth it to find your CPU in this list and check and compare it to Intel Ark just to be safe.

Sandy Bridge (client) - Microarchitectures - Intel - WikiChip

Sandy Bridge (SNB) Client Configuration, formerly Gesher, is Intel's successor to Westmere, a 32 nm process microarchitecture for mainstream workstations, desktops, and mobile devices. Sandy Bridge is the 'Tock' phase as part of Intel's Tick-Tock model which added a significant number of...

en.wikichip.org

If it says max memory "8GB" and you're running 16 then it's obviously BS, check if Ark says the same thing, but in my experience Intel strictly enforces their hardware limits. No one gets anything for free.

 

[Enig]

If it's the i7-2640m the limit according to Intel is 16GB

Product Specifications

quick reference guide including specifications, features, pricing, compatibility, design documentation, ordering codes, spec codes and more.

ark.intel.com

The 2760QM supports up to 32GB

Product Specifications

quick reference guide including specifications, features, pricing, compatibility, design documentation, ordering codes, spec codes and more.

ark.intel.com

Might be worth it to find your CPU in this list and check and compare it to Intel Ark just to be safe.

Sandy Bridge (client) - Microarchitectures - Intel - WikiChip

Sandy Bridge (SNB) Client Configuration, formerly Gesher, is Intel's successor to Westmere, a 32 nm process microarchitecture for mainstream workstations, desktops, and mobile devices. Sandy Bridge is the 'Tock' phase as part of Intel's Tick-Tock model which added a significant number of...

en.wikichip.org

If it says max memory "8GB" and you're running 16 then it's obviously BS, check if Ark says the same thing, but in my experience Intel strictly enforces their hardware limits. No one gets anything for free.

Mine has the i7-3632QM thanks to coreboot and according to info online it is also capable of 32GB, so the only thing prohibiting maxing out a T420 to its absolute limit will either be the cost of getting the 16GB SODIMMs or something else going on with the fact that this is a hacky method to get Ivy Bridge running on a board meant for Sandy.

 

[Regenbogen]

White as in plain white? Because old keyboards that are cream/off-white are awesome.

Yes
Cream colored cs 1.6 type keybroads

 

[Flabba Wabba Jabba]

Yes
Cream colored cs 1.6 type keybroads

I'll only agree with you, with exception to IBM Model M keyboards; They're unreal to use.

 

[ToroidalBoat]

I don't like the new trend of scrollbars being these narrow and low-contrast solid grey things.

I like the old scrollbars, like in Windows 98 to XP, Mac OS 9, and early Mac OS X (the "aqua" ones).

 

[Enig]

Another thing I have to state, laptop design peaked with the 12 inch Powerbook G4 and it's been downhill ever since. If another laptop today had that nice of a compact design without being a follower of the thinshit autism that ironically Apple started then I would buy it even if it was an Intel crotch burner, that 12 inch model was the peak of design tightness and in a CD/DVDless era that's more space for the motherboard, cooling, storage, more ports, etc. but no, we live in honk honk three USB-C ports tops world now, enjoy every laptop being a thin wedge or paying $10k starting for a Toughbook.

 

[seri0us]

Another thing I have to state, laptop design peaked with the 12 inch Powerbook G4 and it's been downhill ever since. If another laptop today had that nice of a compact design without being a follower of the thinshit autism that ironically Apple started then I would buy it even if it was an Intel crotch burner, that 12 inch model was the peak of design tightness and in a CD/DVDless era that's more space for the motherboard, cooling, storage, more ports, etc. but no, we live in honk honk three USB-C ports tops world now, enjoy every laptop being a thin wedge or paying $10k starting for a Toughbook.

Gotta "love" the flextoy castrated laptop meme in general.

 

[Thiletonomics]

Although this isn't tech-related when it comes to cars, I don't like how car manufacturers are obsessed with putting third-row seats where there is pretty much no room for passengers back there. The Tesla Model Y is a big example of that, given that it's a $3000 option, and the glass on the rear hatch will be touching your head if you are of over 5', and there is pretty much no leg room in the third-row:

 

[Toolbox]

Although this isn't tech-related when it comes to cars, I don't like how car manufacturers are obsessed with putting third-row seats where there is pretty much no room for passengers back there. The Tesla Model Y is a big example of that, given that it's a $3000 option, and the glass on the rear hatch will be touching your head if you are of over 5', and there is pretty much no leg room in the third-row:

The obsession with huge cars is nonsense anyway. Might as well invest in a minivan service or just actually make buses a thing in areas other than cities and school systems again. Most people aren't going to be carpooling with a vehicle so huge, and you lose out on storage space.

 

[Ginger Piglet]

The obsession with huge cars is nonsense anyway. Might as well invest in a minivan service or just actually make buses a thing in areas other than cities and school systems again. Most people aren't going to be carpooling with a vehicle so huge, and you lose out on storage space.

Yes. This.

Cars today are ridiculously fat. I don't mean long like the landyachts of the 1960s or the pimpmobiles of the 1970s or the Chelsea Tractors of the 2000s. I mean fat as in even normal sized hatchbacks and saloons are unnecessarily wide. They're also taller for no good reason as well. And heavier. This makes them orders of magnitude more sluggish to drive.

Fatness of cars over the years

 

[seri0us]

Cars today are ridiculously fat.

Just like you.

 

[Toolbox]

Yes. This.

Cars today are ridiculously fat. I don't mean long like the landyachts of the 1960s or the pimpmobiles of the 1970s or the Chelsea Tractors of the 2000s. I mean fat as in even normal sized hatchbacks and saloons are unnecessarily wide. They're also taller for no good reason as well. And heavier. This makes them orders of magnitude more sluggish to drive.

Fatness of cars over the years

It's absolutely insane that today's cars are heavier than those made of steel. We use materials like aluminum, plastic, foam in great quantities these days but it makes no difference because we've expanded car scale for space, comfort, and "safety features". The latter being the fault of most of it, which wouldn't be necessary if roads had better features in general and we removed terrible drivers from the road indefinitely.

 

[Ginger Piglet]

It's absolutely insane that today's cars are heavier than those made of steel. We use materials like aluminum, plastic, foam in great quantities these days but it makes no difference because we've expanded car scale for space, comfort, and "safety features". The latter being the fault of most of it, which wouldn't be necessary if roads had better features in general and we removed terrible drivers from the road indefinitely.

The width of a 2021 VW Golf is 1,988mm.

The width of a 1970 Cadillac Deville, the ne plus ultra of landyachts from the era of landyachts and petrol as cheap as tapwater is 2,025mm.

That's right. An average hatchback from current year is almost as wide as a FUCKING PIMPMOBILE.

 

[Kosher Dill]

Cars today are ridiculously fat. I don't mean long like the landyachts of the 1960s or the pimpmobiles of the 1970s or the Chelsea Tractors of the 2000s. I mean fat as in even normal sized hatchbacks and saloons are unnecessarily wide.

Putting a car in a garage feels more and more like docking a space shuttle these days, I guess it's not just my imagination.