Considering purchasing a W520, have some questions

Hi There,

I'm considering upgrading my home laptop (a 3+ year old trusty HP NC6400) and debating whether to get the 2.2GHz MacBook Pro 15" with the hi-res matte screen or the W520.

Honestly, I wasn't considering the W520 at all initially, however, I've started using a W510 at work recently (replacing the horrendously bad Dell E6400) and despite it's rather orthodox looks and weight, felt like a good sturdy laptop with a decent(ish) screen, so an upgrade with sandy bridge would be great, I thought.

Also, given that Mac or not, I'd be using Windows most of the time and reading that on a Mac, Windows is more or less a second class citizen (lack of drivers for switch-able graphics, the awesome pouch pad etc.) even with a dual boot strategy, I thought maybe I should re-think my MacBook Pro decision. The price difference, also makes a difference

Anyway, getting back to the W520, I was thinking of getting the 2.2 GHz model, with FHD screen. Assuming that's the base config, I have a couple of questions:

1. Graphics: Quadro 1000M or 2000M? I don't plan to play demanding games on the W520, however, I do intend to use Adobe Lightroom and Photoshop on it quite a bit. For now, I'm assuming 1000M would suffice, however, I'd love to hear from the photographers out there
   
2. RAID: Honestly, I don't need need it. The only reason I ask is, given a number of complaints out there regarding the quality and/or fitting of the ultra bay caddy, I was wondering if I'm better off getting the RAID configuration so that I can later use the ultra bay already configured by Lenovo to install a SSD? Am I even correct in assuming that I can even do that?
   
3. SSD: To mSATA or not. That is the question Seriously, the reason I'd want a SSD on my W520 would be to have a fast OS drive (and keep the various app cache/temp folders for faster app performance). Given this, should I bother with a full blown 2.5" SSD (and even if that is the case, 3GB SATA vs. 6GB SATA?) or a mSATA would do me fine? What are your experiences?
   
4. Ultrabay Caddy: If it turns out that my RAID plan is no good and I need a ultrabay caddy anyway for SSD, can you recommend me one that fits nicely and matches the texture and color of the W520?
   
5. Accessories: What are the must have accessories for the W520? I plan to get a skin, a DisplayPort to HDMI adapter for starters
   

Thanks.

P.S. Anyone know if there's a better eCoupon than the one available on Lenovo ordering page?

 

1) quadro 1000m, for battery savings alone 1000M (45W) and 2000M (55W). extra CUDAs dont matter AT ALL for anyone but video renderers, ask the interwabs if you dont believe me. price is also killer.
2/3/4) get the ultra bay caddy, and a 120 GB 6gb/s ssd disk. you will NOT be sorry.
heres what i have, and i dont think you can do better:
SATA hard drive Adapter LENOVO Thinkpad T520 W520 DV16 - eBay (item 290574126692 end time Aug-04-11 20:51:40 PDT)
Newegg.com - OCZ Vertex 3 Series – MAX IOPS Edition VTX3MI-25SAT3-120G 2.5" 120GB SATA III MLC Internal Solid State Drive (SSD)

the caddy's texture is close but not perfect. there is no gap on the top like some other ones, but there IS a small gap on the skinny part on the side.

put your OS on the ssd, select it as your boot, and stick it in the caddy. the OCZ Vertex 3 MAXIOPS is the best SSD ive ever seen, and not terribly expensive. it fits nicely in the caddy above, tho it doesnt fit very nicely in the main slot. keep your games, , videos, music, yodeling lessons on the 500gb in the main slot.

5) slice battery, 9c battery! another brick ac adapter. too heavy to lug around in the car.


general advice:
-THE INTEGRATED GRAPHICS CARD IS NOT CONNECTED TO THE DISPLAY PORT OR THE CRT PORT. you MUST be running the discrete card to hook up an external monitor. {optimus makes this ok in windows, you wont lose much power having it enabled. linux users will have bumblebee soon, i hope}
-if you use linux, be aware that there are cpu scaling issues even with latest firmware that requires occasional reboot, once every coupla days.
-there is no way to select the battery that discharges yet- it will discharge your slice to 0. {old thinkpads had an easy way to do this, they removed it in the embedded controller}
-get 4gb ram to save money, upgrade yourself later
-swing for the 2.3ghz if you can, its a better proc
-FHD, FHD, FHD. its BEAUTIFUL

 

1) If you don't play games, get the 1000M. Even if you do, I hear that the 1000M is still a decent card; I only bought the 2000M for future-proofing purposes (yeah, it's a stupid concept, but I have money the burn).
2) My setup is an Intel 320 series SSD in the computer, and my 500GB stock HDD is sitting in an anti-static bag at the moment. If what you're looking for is speed, SSD > RAID of any flavor. SSD makes the speed-oriented RAIDs obsolete in my opinion.
3) I wanted to buy the 80GB version of the Intel 310 series mSATA (don't buy the 40GB for any reason), but I grew tired of waiting for the drive to come back to stock, so I went with the 320 series instead. I have an external HDD dock, so I still have plenty of storage (or, you can buy a caddy).
4) A few people on NBR have had good experiences with this caddy. It's 12.7mm tall, so there's really not much of a gap at all.
5) It depends on what you want, and what you already have. I bought an extra 8GB of 1333MHz RAM, the SSD, Logitech G9x, HDD dock, and a computer repair "kit" (ESD band, screwdrivers, newspaper and foil for making diy anti-static bags). If you travel a lot, look at the slice battery and/or extra 9-cell.

Honestly, teleshoes's suggestions are a bit over-the-top. If you get the quad-core W520, stick with the 2720QM since the tiny increase in speed for the 2820QM isn't worth what Intel charges for it. Also, the Vertex 3 is an unreliable drive to use, and I wouldn't trust it (or any other Sandforce-based drive) yet. The Intel 510 also has warm boot issues with the W520, which is why I didn't buy it. If you need a SATAIII drive, look at the Crucial M4 drives, which are suppose to be good. In my opinion though, if you're okay with mSATA SSD speeds, you'll be more than happy with a SATAII SSD, especially if you've never owned a SSD before; that was what my case was and I'm very happy with my Intel 320.

I agree with the FHD screen; it's just amazing... Colors look great as well; it looks just as good as any glossy screen I've seen as far as color is concerned. Buy RAM aftermarket, like teleshoes said, a 2x4GB kit of 1333MHz DDR3 is around $60 these days. Ignore the 2820QM; you'll be more than happy with the 2720QM (800MHz throttling issues aside; the 2820QM suffers from this as well).

By the way, I bought my W520 for $1500 before taxes; the retail config is around $2000 for what is in my sig (minus 8GB RAM and SSD). I can PM you my rep if you like.

 

If you go through the Barnes and noble site you can get a very large discount. The Quadro 2000 is a pricey upgrade, and probably not worth it for your needs. The docking stations and slice batteries are the popular accessories.

 

I bought mine with the B+N discount, and an extra 10% off. It's always better to call and haggle rather than settle for any online price. Think of a computer purchase in the same way you think of a car purchase.

 

Good thread maxxxpayne, I as well is considering purchasing a w520.

How much did the B&N take off?

 

My total discount was around 23.2%, so around 12-14%? When I configured a W520 like mine (it had a 6205 instead of a 6300, though), it came out to be $1656.56

 

Check out ebay also before buying. Sometimes they have deals on systems.

 

Hey,
That's great advice. Thanks for that.

I think I'll stick to the 2.2 GHz config since I'm trying to keep the price down (using my somewhat wrapped logic that since I'm not buying a MacBook and only a windows box, it should be cheap and cheerful ), knowing that the 2.3 Ghz is better... not because of the speed increase, but the 2 extra megabytes of cache goodness

Lenovo is doing a promo right now, which means I get 6 GB RAM thrown in instead of 4, so I reckon I'll take it for now and upgrade later.

Thanks!

 

Hi,

Right now with online eCoupon, my config (500GB HDD + 6 GB RAM + 1000M + 2.2 GHz i7 + 2 year basic warranty + color sensor) comes down to $1660 with free shipping.

Reckon I could do better? How do I get the B&N discount?

Cheers.

[updated to add color sensor information]

 

What exactly are you using your laptop for? Additional cache and clock speed won't translate into any difference for most apps. Even CPU bound programs will only see a slight benefit at a fairly high cost per upgrade. Most users don't need anything more than the 2720QM, but if you have a specific need or the cash to spend, then go higher.

 

I'm in the same boat as the OP. I just noticed the 6GB RAM and 500GB free upgrades this weekend. Does anyone know if the 6GB of RAM is a 4GB stick and a 2GB stick?

I'll probably have the same specs as you, too. A lot of people go for the 1000M GPU, but my experience has shown that the GPU's always get outdated first, so it's best to get the best option available, especially since you can't upgrade it.

 

With Optimus, whichever separate gpu you choose, the Intel will drive everything most of the time, when differences in power use will not be a question. When you need serious gpu grunt, your separate gpu will kick in - the 1000 or the 2000 will need more power and create more heat than the intel, but will do the job so much better; the 2000 a little better with a little more electricity and heat than the 1000. If you don't really need the grunt, it probably doesn't matter whether you choose the 1000 or the 2000 - it won't be in use much anyway. (As you can see from my system's specs below, I never need such serious gpu grunt, so am very very happy with my NVS4200M!)

 

It's a 4GB stick and a 2GB stick.

 

Can you PM me the rep you had? I want to get a config like yours; did you get a 3 yr warranty?

Thanks!

 

I bought a 2yr Onsite+TPP warranty for $120.

 

Hi,
You are right and I believe we agree that the 2.3 would be an over kill most of the times. The 2 extra MB of cache will matter for some usecases, but I don't think mine (photo editing) would fall into that.

I would rather spend that extra money on things like SSD, that will give a visible difference in performance, not just on paper

Thanks.

 

Hi,
I believe it's 2+4 for the RAM. You can always get a 4 GB stick later and eBay the 2

Regarding GPU choice, mine was based on the use cases I would have and 1000M, combined with the pretty decent built in Intel chip should be good enough I think.

In fact the Intel chip is a little gem and has done quite well in benchmarks like video encoding tests.

The other thing is, the 1000m and 2000m differs only in the number of CUDA cores and nothing else, so you'll have to run applications and games that take advantage of CUDA to see any noticeable difference?

Cheers.

 

Hi privatejarhead,
Can you please PM me the rep name and B&N details? I tried PM'ing you, seems you've got it disabled
Cheers.

 

PM sent

10char

 

Thanks for letting me know; only used this site to browse.

Any other way to get me that rep information? Thanks, man.

 

Quick update.

Using the B+N discount, I can get a config with color sensor and 1000M for $1638 before tax on Lenovo website. No matter how much cajoling I did, no rep was going to beat the price substantially :-/ The lowest I got to was $1600.

In the mean time, I've come across two listings on eBay, from newthinkpads and ellen_mouse (see LENOVO THINKPAD W520 i7-2720QM, FHD, 8GB, 500GB 7.2K | eBay and New Lenovo ThinkPad W520 Core i7 2720QM w/FHD,8GB | eBay, both of whom are selling the same config (in fact, better, cause they come with 8GB RAM, instead of 6) for much lower prices (less than $1550) and no tax and with 3 year basic warranty!

Question is, is it worth going for eBay sellers?

Cheers.

 

Personally, I refuse to use eBay because of the requirement to use PayPal, and I will not ever give my money to an abusive pretend bank. As for eBay itself, I haven't personally used them, so I can't comment.

What I did to get my $1500 W520 from Lenovo was that I also bought a 2yr TPP warranty and laptop lock with mine (about $150 at the time). Reps love the thought of getting additional commission, so that will help. Also, I put emphasis on the fact that I'm a rising college student (and implying that I'm tight on money; I also low-balled at a ~$1400 offer that I knew I wouldn't get). think of this as the same process as buying a car; I pressed on my rep pretty hard and it took about 90 minutes of talking over two days.

 

Sorry for hijacking your threa maxxxpayne but...

privatejarhead could you send me the details of the B&N details and the rep you spoke to?

I can't send or receive PM (you already know that) but hope you can send me an email at jonnie_list[at]hotmail[dot]com

 

Has anyone had experience of running server virtualisation on the W520? I am not 100% on where best to spend my budget (c.£2000), although currently thinking SSD with the 2720 processor.

Question I have is for this scenario would there be much benefit in upping the L3 cache for the 2820?

I know i could get better prices on the RAM elsewhere but I need this to be rolling on arrival (and its not my money!)

current shopping list is:

Intel Core i7-2720QM Processor (2.20GHz, 6MB L3)1
Genuine Windows 7 Professional 6412
15.6" FHD (1920 x 1080) LED Backlit Anti-Glare Display, Mobile Broadband Ready
NVIDIA Quadro 1000M Graphics with 2GB DDR3 Memory
8 GB PC3-10600 DDR3 SDRAM 1333MHz SODIMM Memory (2 DIMM)8
128 GB Solid State Drive, Serial ATA4
DVD recordable multiburner5
9 cell Li-Ion Battery - 55++60 (and probably the battery slice too)
Intel Centrino Ultimate-N 6300 (3x3 AGN)10
ThinkPad Serial ATA Hard Drive Bay Adapter III (which will get a second SSD - probably the Crucial M4)

Any thoughts on this scenario would be very helpful

 

The 2820QM doesn't offer a lot of improvement over the 2720QM. Also, don't buy RAM or a SSD from Lenovo as they charge you way too much for it. Buy your SSD and RAM aftermarket on sites such as Newegg and you'll save plenty of money. A 4GB Stick of 1333MHz DDR3 RAM is around $30-35 dollars on Newegg, and two Crucial M4 128GB drives are $430.

 

Hi,
Looks like the B+N discounts being offered rigjht now is too good to be true... so no excuse left for pulling the trigger

Regarding RAM, I was thinking of buying a 4 GB stick to comppliment the 4 GB stick that comes with the stock config.

Question is, should I get a Samsung module (cause apparantly Lenovo uses them) or my choice of Crucial would be good enough?

Cheers.

 

Yeah, I saw on the W520 owners' forum that Lenovo is offering a B+N plus 10% offer. Perhaps it'd be a little easier to haggle for an additional 2 to 5% if a caller works hard enough for it.

As for RAM, it doesn't matter what brand you use, so long as it's the same timings and DDR technology as the one in the notebook. I have two sticks of Mushkin RAM in addition to the Samsung RAM and everything is running fine on my laptop.

 

hey privatejarhead can you pm me your rep.