docs: t400-setup

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Filippo Ferrari 2024-03-03 19:23:00 +01:00
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@ -46,7 +46,7 @@ Examples of the procedures are [this](https://thonkpeasant.xyz/guides/other/cool
The bluetooth of the T400 is 2.1, you can easily upgrade the bluetooth 4.0 by swapping the card located behind the LCD front bezel. Most recommended model is **Bluetooth 4.0 Genuine Lenovo FRU 60Y3305 60Y3303**.\
More info [here](https://www.thinkwiki.org/wiki/Bluetooth_Daughter_Card_slot).
### Ultra-bay mods
The most commond usage for the ultra bay, when a cd reader is not needed, is to use an Hard Drive caddy module to have a second 2.5 inch drive. Parts are easily available for about ten euros.\
The most common usage for the ultra bay, when a cd reader is not needed, is to use an Hard Drive caddy module to have a second 2.5 inch drive. Parts are easily available for about ten euros.\
Another rare but worth mentioning accessory is the [Serial Ultrabay Slim Battery](https://www.thinkwiki.org/wiki/Serial_Ultrabay_Slim_Battery): a battery pack that slides into a Serial Ultrabay Slim. It has three 3.6V lithium-ion cells, for up to 2.3 hours of battery life.\
I am currently working on a variation of a mod I have seen floating around the world wide web. It's [this one](https://hackaday.com/tag/thinkpad-ultrabay/). In the article the laptop used is the T420 so I am changing the 3D printed part to fit the T400 ultrabay.\
More info and **maybe** a guide will appear in the future, depending on how much time and effor i want to waste on this idea.
@ -54,25 +54,26 @@ More info and **maybe** a guide will appear in the future, depending on how much
The T400 Express Card slot allows you to slot in any compatible Express Card 54 and by extension any Express Card 34. One common example is using a card with one or two (depending on the model) USB 3.0 plugs, with up to (i think) 5Gbps transfer speed.\
Other types of Express Cards can be found scattered around the web, from the classic card reader, to different port extensions, to SD readers, to even modules for eGPUs with awful performances.
### Screen replacement
The T400 has 14 inch TFT LCD display with resolutions of either 1280x800 or 1440x900. The display backlight is eihter CCLF or LED.\
Detailed information about the diplays that can be found are [here](https://www.thinkwiki.org/wiki/TFT_display).\
The T400 has 14 inch TFT LCD display with resolutions of either 1280x800 or 1440x900. The display backlight is either CCLF or LED.\
Detailed information about the displays that can be found are [here](https://www.thinkwiki.org/wiki/TFT_display).\
The LED model has a way better screen and is quite rare at this point, few are left on the marked. If you have the change, always go for the LED model.
It is possible to replace the CCFL screen with a LED one, like [this one](https://www.panelook.com/LTN141BT04-002_Samsung_14.1_LCM_overview_24142.html). Remember that aside from the screen you will need a new ribbon cable and a new inverter. Search for **LCD Cable for LED (PN: 93P4592) and LED inverter (42W7949).**
### External WiFi antenna
Still have to do some research on this to understand if it makes sense or not.
### Open source Battery
Battery life on these old devices is not ideal, OEM batteries cost alot and garantee only a short period of charge, while off-brand batteries range from being unusable after 25 cycles to being a straight up scam.\
Battery life on these old devices is not ideal, OEM batteries cost a lot and guarantee only a short period of charge, while off-brand batteries range from being unusable after 25 cycles to being a straight up scam.\
T400 batteries come in two different shapes and sizes: a 6 cell battery and a 9 cell battery. There are people experimenting with building their own Thinkpad batteries. It is not impossible but requires a good amount of knowledge and experience on the matter.\
An example can be Alexander Parent which built his own T420 battery and made a guide on how he did it [here](https://beta.aceparent.me/#/battery). The repository with the pbc files is [here](https://github.com/iam4722202468/ThinkpadBattery).\
Another example is the Youtuber polymatt who made [this video](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9PaTKBc88CI) on how he cloned a ThinkPad 701 battery.\
A reddit user posted a comment saying he succesfully did a re-celling of a x230 battery [here](https://www.reddit.com/r/thinkpad/comments/8ue5fz/comment/e1fxtec/).
A reddit user posted a comment saying he successfully did a re-celling of a x230 battery [here](https://www.reddit.com/r/thinkpad/comments/8ue5fz/comment/e1fxtec/).
In summary, it is theoretically possible to disassemble a T400 battery and change the cells with high quality ones and have a functioning battery. It's gonna be tough.
### USB C charging
The jellow barrel jack port used to charge the device can be changed in favor of more modern USB C one. This is a common mod in most old T and X series devices.\
Projects for most models can be found with ease while surfing the web, [here](https://www.reddit.com/r/thinkpad/comments/l5g9cj/convert_a_lenovo_laptop_with_square_power_input/) is a mod that removes the square power input, granted it is not the T400 input, but the procedure is very similar.\
Parts needed to do this modification can be found at [this shop](https://www.tindie.com/stores/mikepdiy/).
### Thinklight mod
TODO
The [thinklight](https://www.thinkwiki.org/wiki/ThinkLight) is the small LED light in the top left of the display bezel. If you're interested about the story behind the thinklight you can find a cool video [here](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=foOCDeiTmAo&list=TLPQMDMwMzIwMjTwoWMxCUa-fQ).
Just disassemble the bezel and desolder the LED, then solder the new one. Easy peasy.
### Parabola GNU/Linux-libre
The distro i use on my librebooted T400 is Parabola GNU/Linux-libre, a community-driven, "labour-of-love" effort to maintain a 100% free (as in: freedom) operating system distribution that is lean, clean, and hackable.\
I made a guide on the manual installation of Parabola with an encrypted setup and Open-RC [here](https://bytemeifyoucan.lol/p/parabola-installation-guide/).