Ready to rock! This item Includes (updated on 16 Nov 2022):
- Refurbished X200 laptop
- 8GB of RAM,
- libre-friendly, integrated Atheros WLAN adapter,
- UltraBase docking station,
- Trisquel GNU/Linux preinstalled (SSD required),
- one power supply.
The Vikings X200 - FSF Respects Your Freedom edition
The Vikings X200 a refurbished, ultra-portable, durable, business-grade, slightly vintage laptop that respects your freedom and your privacy. It comes preinstalled with a fully libre software BIOS replacement based on coreboot. Enjoy the freedom of having control of your computing, improve your privacy and security by using this great laptop.
It features a magnesium alloy casing on both the top and bottom of the body. To go along with the external magnesium alloy casing is an internal magnesium roll-cage skeleton that reinforces the overall feel of the notebook, there’s little flex to be found anywhere.
For upgrades and repairs that might come up down the road, the Vikings X200 keeps the user in mind with easy to remove access panels and covers. The most frequent upgrade items being the hard disk and RAM, are accessed through panels on the bottom and side. Other items such as the keyboard and wireless cards can be reached by removing a handful of labeled screws on the bottom and easily pop out.
The Free Software Foundation's "Respects Your Freedom" hardware product certification
The Vikings X200 laptop fully meets the criteria for the FSF's hardware endorsement program and has been certified on 3 March 2017
"The desire to own a computer or device and have full control over it, to know that you are not being spied on or tracked, to run any software you wish without asking permission, and to share with friends without worrying about Digital Restrictions Management (DRM) —these are the desires of millions of people who care about the future of technology and our society.
Unfortunately, hardware manufacturers have until now relied on close cooperation with proprietary software companies that demanded control over their users. As citizens and their customers, we need to promote our desires for a new class of hardware — hardware that anyone can support because it respects your freedom."
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Keyboard and touchpoint
The keyboard on the Vikings X200 is a standout in the field of ultraportables. It’s entirely comfortable for typing with no adjustments necessary for smaller keys you often find on ultraportables. Each key is individual, there’s no sink to the keyboard no matter how hard you push, and the feedback you get from each key is so perfect it’s just plain satisfying for a laptop. It’s also quiet and won’t click or rattle to annoy others.
To save space the Vikings X200 omits the touchpad system in favor of a touchpoint. The touchpoint is easy to use and allows you to move a cursor around the screen more efficiently as you can keep your fingers placed on the keys and use it without lifting a hand down to a touchpad.
The mouse buttons just below the space bar are easy to use with a nice travel distance, good smooth feedback, and no stiffness or annoying click noisiness.
The Vikings X200 is available with ANSI and ISO layouts.
Display
The X200 is equipped with a widescreen LCD with a resolution of 1280x800. This means there is more horizontal desktop space available at no cost to vertical desktop space. The Vikings X200 200nit screen is also brighter than it's predecessor's (X61) 150nit screen and offers a good number of levels of brightness adjustment. The screen also has very good contrast levels and produces decent blacks. Its viewing angle capability and the usable vertical viewing angle is standard among laptops. Overall, we think the screen pleasant to look at indoors in both high and low light conditions. It isn't quite bright enough for use outdoors in direct sunlight.
Because the Vikings X200 is a refurbished laptop, the display that comes built-in is also in a refurbished condition. We can not guarantee a specific condition of the display. It may have blemishes/cuffs/marks. We'll use the best display we have available at the time of the order.
Speaker
The Vikings X200 has one mono speaker located on the bottom of the laptop. System sounds are mostly fine and audible, but you will want to use headphones for a decent music listening experience. You can also use the docking station (see info below), which provides for stereo sound and improved better sound quality.
Battery packs (optional)
The Vikings X200 Laptop can be used with one battery at a time. 6 and 4 cell batteries don't protrude and are a good option for traveling. 9 cell batteries offer the maximum of battery life available with ~7800 mAh. 9-cell batteries protrude a little and are a bit heavier but provide you with the opportunity to hold it safely with one hand and type with the other or carry it around.
Performance
The original Thinkpad X200 has shown an impressive performance when it's been sold as new between 2008 and 2010. Today, the performance is still good enough for the most common use-cases and even occasional graphics design. Especially together with the maximum spec of 8 GB of RAM (included) and a solid-state drive (SSD), the system is fit for some more years of work. You get between 2.26 and 2.66 GHz of dual core power and a 3MB L2 cache, Intel Turbo Memory and RAM running at 1066 MHz. We deem an SSD drive necessary for best performance, but also offer tested/used HDDs for the price conscious. Alternatively you can order the Vikings X200 without any drive and install a hard drive or solid state disc yourself.
Heat and noise
The fan is quiet when it runs and does its job well. You’ll appreciate the fact there’s simply no areas of noticeable heat on the Vikings X200 for normal use-cases. Even if you put your hand up to the heat vent area it’s hard to feel anything more than a bit of warm air coming out.
Libre-friendly wireless (included)
We have an Atheros 802.11n wireless card ready, ensuring full compatibility with libre driver software in GNU/Linux. It provides a data rate of 450Mbps net in 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz wireless networks.
Expansion capabilities/docking station (included)
Partner the Vikings X200 with the optional 'UltraBase' docking station and it can be your desktop replacement. It allows you to use the following ports: UltraBay Slim (SATA), 4x USB 2.0 ports, VGA, DisplayPort (maximum resolution: 2560x1600 or 4,096,000 pixels) Microphone in, headphone out, stereo speakers, RJ-45 Ethernet, cable lock slot and a battery charger. The UltraBase is available from the options menu and is recommended. A key is not necessary to operate (lock/unlock) the docking station and is not included.
No malicious software or back doors
The Vikings X200 does not contain any known back doors. It comes with the Intel Management Engine and Intel Active Management Technology fully removed. The boot firmware is fully free software and as such the source code is fully auditable.
NOTE: Product images shown are representative of the product being sold, but may vary slightly from the product as shipped due to continuous improvement and related changes.
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