IBM Thinkpad R50e harddrive dead!! Warranty expired

tawnyowls

I had that with a USB port that got damaged. Seemed to be totally dead, but a friend suggested taking out the battery and putting it back in again, and lo and behold, it started up. Has happened several times since, with the same result. If the HD isn't working with any other computer, it might be terminal, but you've nothing to lose by sticking it back in the laptop and giving it a shot.

Don't reinstall XP till you make efforts to get the data back, as it's that important - if you reformat the disk, you'll probably wipe it all. You could try ringing IBM and see if they have any ideas about restarting it.

albertross_2

Sorry I thought that you used a usb to 2.5 adapter in a caddy, 2.5 to 3.5 cable are usually fitted internally

Caddy is just the name for the box to put the disk in.