Lenovo T530 Owner's Thread

Happy New Year! Glad you got a T530 and are enjoying it.

You've done great with your upgrades. Fantastic experience, eh? Installing the second RAM stick should be easy: just flip the notebook over and undo 2 screws to open a door.

I know.

 

I recently purchase the T530 (2359CTO). It came with Windows 8 Pro x64 installed.

For some odd reason, I cannot seem to get Windows 7 to install. I normally install with my UEFI USB drive (which by the way worked for 5 other laptops). I have a Mushkin 256GB mSATA and a Crucial M4 512GB on the main drive bay. Install hangs at the glowing Windows logo and stays there forever.

I've tried disabling secure boot etc. Nothing seems to help. Any ideas?

 

In BIOS, disable UEFI Secure Boot and turn on Legacy Boot.

If you plan to install Windows 7 on the Mushkin mSATA, remove the Crucial from the main bay to simplify the situation.

I would install from DVD. (The .ISO file for Windows 7 can be freely and legally downloaded. Burn it to a DVD.) Put the Windows 7 installation disc in the UltraBay optical drive. In BIOS, set the boot order appropriately.

 

Thanks!

A couple of quick questions (and sorry if they're dumb )
1) I read somewhere that the 2 screws removed should not be reused after putting in the RAM to close the slot? I sure hope this isn't true because I haven't got any spares!
2) In the rare eventuality that I need my optical drive again, how would the system behave if I swap the locations of my SSD and stock HDD now? Will I not get past the BIOS or will the system behave like almost nothing's happened (I have a bad feeling it's the former). I'm asking this because my primary boot drive on the SSD is still in the caddy bay!

 

Those two small, black screws are of excellent quality and can be reused many times. Check the ThinkPad T530 Hardware Maintenance Manual ( PDF), pages 68 through 70.

I'm glad you bring this up so that I have a context to say what I wanted to say in response to your last post. That is, I avoid "mapping" folders. Instead, I always create my own folders on the separate storage drive in the UltraBay, for example: D:\Documents, D:\Downloads, D:\Music, D:\Temp, etc. and use them explicitly. That way, Windows 7 will not get confused in the eventuality that I need to pop out the storage drive and pop the optical drive back in (temporarily, for a brief session).

In other words, I separate the system drive and the user drive completely. Even if I had only one physical drive, I would separate the system partition and the user partition completely.

 

Thanks. That's a relief.

Yes in hindsight, it might've been better to retain the Users folder on the SSD because I now have the two drives both of which will be needed by Windows to function. I just did that because I thought I could extend the SSD life by reducing frequent writes that happen to the Users folder.

Assuming that I'll never need to use the optical drive for DVD's again, is there any advantage to having the SSD in the main drive slot instead of the optical bay? (e.g. performance)

 

I usually keep the boot/OS/programs drive in the main bay (in this case, your new SSD) and keep the storage drive (in this case, the "re-purposed" stock HDD) in the UltraBay. Advantage? It is harder to remove the boot drive in this arragement.

If you chose to deploy mSATA SSD as your boot drive, the storage drive could stay in the main bay.

In certain situations, where I handle different projects having distinct requirements on OS/applications, I have a few UltraBay caddy adapters, each holding a different system load. When working on customer project A, I pop in caddy adapter A, and reboot. At another time in the week, when working on customer project B, I pop in caddy adapter B, and so on. The storage drive in the main bay is completely separate from those A, B, C drives.

To me, maintaining a discipline of regular backups is more important than worrying about the "wear" and "life" of a particular drive.

 

I'll be sure to make a note of the regular backups bit because I've been lazy about those in the past.

I'm now thinking I'll start over from scratch i.e. swap the drives so that boot drive SSD is in the main bay and the stock HD is in the optical bay and then go through the installation procedure again without remapping User folder this time. And no, I'm not planning to use mSATA SSD.

 

Mapping user-folders aside, you can always physically swap places of the SSD and the stock HDD. Just remember to change the boot order afterwards.

I mentioned that as a hypothetical case.

Invest in an external USB drive, 1TB or 2TB. Their prices have been coming down nicely.

 

It worked! Does this mean I cannot install Windows 7 in UEFI mode?

 

Happy for you.

Blame the rest on convoluted Windows 8.

 

In fact I went through the entire procedure again to get the Users folder back on the SSD (I couldn't find a fullproof way to transfer it in the earlier setup). I did the physical hard disk swap and memory upgrade before this, and I couldn't believe how straightforward it was!

But at the end of it, I'm satisfied with the results :



Not too shabby for Intel HD graphics!

 

Again, very happy for you!

 

Can anyone tell me the latency on the ram that ships with a T530? I'm guessing it's 11? I ordered the default single 4gb stick, and I'd like to have another matching 4gb ready to install when it arrives. Newegg's got a sale on today that I'd like to order from if possible. Thanks in advance!

 

It doesn't really matter. If you want to take advantage of the sale, buy it. If you want to be sure, wait until you receive your T530. If you want to be extra sure, buy a kit of two sticks.

(In one of my ThinkPads, I added an 8GB stick to the stock 4GB. The extent they are "the same" is DDR3 204-pin 1333MHz. The system has been working fine.)

 

Kaso: Thanks for the tip. I did buy the stick on sale, works great. For anyone else curious, my T530 came with stock ram that had a latency of 11.

 

I still haven't gotten around to pulling out the single "stock" (Lenovo supplied) 4GB memory stick, but I expect it to be latency of 11.

If you look at the faster (more expensive) PC3-12800 (DDR3-1600) memory at Newegg, it is generally labeled either CL (Cas Latency) of either 10 or even 9.

Perhaps the pairs of 8GBx2 make it easier to see; check: Newegg.com - Computer Hardware, Memory, Laptop Memory, 16GB (2 x 8G)

But I do not have any clue as to if the current T530 mobo, and/or BIOS firmware, might benefit from a slightly faster CL of either 10 or even 9.

 

I see that there is a new BIOS for the T530.

Prior BIOS was ver=2.07 14 Dec 2012.

New BIOS is ver=2.50 09 Jan 2013.

>"CHANGES IN THIS RELEASE Version 2.50

[Important updates] None.

[New functions or enhancements]
- Added support for new 10-digit part number and serial number format.
(Note)
To support the new format, rolling back to the version before 2.50 can not be done.
- Improved fan noise.

[Problem fixes]
- Fixed an issue that might have screen corruption on Linux."<

 

You don't have to "pull out" anything. Use HWiNFO64.

Nothing to do with mobo and BIOS firmware. Such a number indicates one performance aspect of the memory module itself.

 

Got it via google search, and the name you supplied.

Pretty slick program, especially given that it is free.

Thanks for the mention of the name!

BTW it shows my two current memory sticks, both PC3-12800 (DDR3-1600), but the Lenovo supplied one is only 4GB (CL 11, Samsung (I think)) while the new one is 8GB (Newegg sale, CL 10 G.Skill); I'll put in the 2nd 8GB DIMM in the next 10 days.

FWIW my own experience with memory that actually benchmarks as "faster" is that the improvement is generally so minor that I can't tell any difference with the feel of the PC.

But those are all desktop PCs.

I'll do the final part of this move (to 16GB total memory) to faster CL memory last.

Tiller is of course one of the most vocal, on NBR, in saying that if the price is the same (or not much more expensive), then to always buy the faster memory for any laptop running a boot SSD.

 

I like to buy an 8GB module making a total of 12GB of ram. Will the laptop underclock the memory even if both modules are of the same speed and latency?

Thank you

 

The answer on "underclock" is maybe.

e.g. given that the 2 DIMM are different size (one 4GB and one 8GB) will the memory really run in true dual channel mode?

And just how much of a performance hit does one really take if one runs 2 different DIMMs???

To my view, the single 4GB DIMM (that Lenovo supplies in the T530) can be bought new for less than $20.

The one safe approach with 2 DIMM is to run an identical pair of same sized DIMMs.

Wait for a sale at Newegg; e.g. my 10 CL G.Skill was $65 for the packaged pair (8GBx2, PC3-12800 (DDR3-1600)).

 

The system will run fine with 4GB stick + 8GB stick. Just get DDR3 204-pin 1600MHz.

 

Agreed that they'll run together.

But he asked about "underclock"

HWiNFO64 ver. 4.10 shows that my 2 mixed SO-DIMMs, totaling 12GB, runs at 1333 and not the 1600 that both are rated at.

The 4GB has CL 11, the 8GB has CL 10. Both are rated at 1600 speed by themselves. Of course, if I only run one by itself, then it'll likely get the rated 1600 speed but won't run dual channel.

Typical result when you mix memory.

 

Hi guys,
I'm really interested in buying this wonderful machine. I'm a java developer, I occasionally run a db and a virtual machine in local, use a lot of virtual machines in remote and sometimes i'd like to play, though I'm not looking for a gaming machine. I would use the laptop mainly for work. I'm particularly interested to the configuration with i7-3520M, because i don't need a quad core at all (I think), 8 GB RAM and it would be nice to have a decent graphic card, like Nvidia NVS 5400M.
Two questions:
1) I read reviews talking about termal issues under load, are these rumors true?

2) For my purpose would be fair enough using an i5 CPU, or i would notice a big difference with an i7?

Thanks a lot!

 

Well there's a mixed message and JAVA also!

My answer is as always: the sky's the limit!

All it takes is money and more money!

Given that you're "a java developer" then this money issue shouldn't be new to you?

My own very new T530 runs very cool. So no thermal issues. This is with a very new Intel i5-3320 3rd gen cpu.

Just my own hunch, but odds are that you'll find i5-3320 cpu to be more than adequate for your needs.

As well as it covers your VM interests.

OTOH running VM on a laptop may well come up short of what you're hoping for in terms of performance?

 

Thank you for testing this combination.
I think I will get a single 8GB module and replace the 4GB module with the same kingston 8GB later.

 

Well, in one of my laptops, there are one 4GB RAM stick (Samsung, stock) and one 8GB RAM stick (G.Skill, upgraded):

​

HWiNFO64 shows a total of 12GB and shows that both sticks are operated at 1600MHz (800MHz x 2, for DDR, Double Data Rate) and in dual-channel mode.

 

Please tell us the name and model of this laptop.
Is that G.Skill module "G.SKILL 8GB 204-Pin DDR3 SO-DIMM DDR3 1600 (PC3 12800) Laptop Memory Model F3-1600C11S-8GSQ"?

I tried adding a link to newegg but it seem to have broken the post.

Thanks

 

Yeah, I believe it is the one. (It's been a while, and I don't go crazy about these things.)

 

What is the laptop brand & model you have this memory instaleld?

 

^^^ I'm posting in a T530 thread.

 

Alright, I just wanted to be sure.

Thanks.

 

Interesting.

Maybe the exception that proves the rule of: "don't mix memory"?

Meaning you have 2 different sticks (both different size and different maker) with the same speed (1600) and same CL (11/11/11/28/39).

What are the odds of that?

Not that I'd bet my life on it, but odds are that it is pretty unlikely???

Meaning: one small difference and the memory performance gets down-clocked.

 

Same speed? Trivial. Same CL specs? Not impossible.

I buy computers to get things done, not to get into debates like this. As I said, to get on with your life, buy a kit of two 8GB sticks of the same specs -- only $80 (or $60 if you shop well) -- end of story.

 

Agreed on "trivial"

LOL! Which is to say that I'm amused.

Even when you're caught with your hand in the cookie jar you come up with stuff like the above.

Which is to say that you're a hard nut.

Why on earth do you see this exchange as a "debate" ???

Agreed on getting "a kit of two 8GB sticks of the same specs"

 

That I am. Show your HWiNFO64 screenshot of your RAM and maybe I can help you tell where the hangup is.

 

Agreed.

That assumes (a*s*s*-u-me) that there is a hangup.

So you think that my 2 sticks of mixed memory on my new Lenovo T530 (both SO-DIMM modules spec'd at 1600 speed, but running at 1333 together (12GB total memory)) can somehow be made to run at 1600 speed that they are individually both spec'd for???

Seems a very big stretch to me.

Or is it that you doubt that my mixed memory is running at 1333?

Or is it that you think there's a simple change in my BIOS setting?

I have 2 sticks of the same 1600 high speed (10 CL) memory, each 8GB in size. I just haven't gotten around to prying up the keyboard to replace the stock 4GB memory module with my 2nd 8GB memory module.

So kindly give a clue first.

Coz I fully expect this sub-clocking problem to go away when I move to 2 sticks of the same 1600 speed 8GB memory modules, for a total of 16GB of working memory.

 

You're a*s*s*-u-ming.

You're a*s*s*-u-ming.

Screenshots.

 

Trouble in paradise. Ram's great and running at full tilt. BUT, I'm having some serious problems hooking up a monitor through the mini Displayport. Every time I plug one in, the computer hangs. I've got the NVS 5400M with Optimus.

I have tried disabling the video card and only running the integrated graphics, but that seems to disable the Displayport entirely. When I switched to only the dedicated graphics, Win7 Ultimate installed new drivers without prompting for the video card. On reboot, it goes to BSOD until I uninstalled the new drivers and installed the stock drivers from Lenovo's site. Which led me back to the same initial problem: hangs on Displayport use!

So I've uninstalled and reinstalled the drivers for both the dedicated and integrated graphics, but no dice. Any thoughts out there about what's going on?

EDIT: Forgot to mention that the monitor does work through the VGA port (but not a VGA adapter through DP).

 

Has anyone tried the external GPU via the expresscard?

 

Thanks everyone for the helpfull information.

I have a question about real time audio processing, VSTs and RAM.
Everything else being the same in the machine, a lower memory latency would not make any difference on how small the buffer and how high the sampling rate can be set right?

Thanks!

 

There is a whole thread of everything eGPU here. Have a read

 

Some good experiences with CTO shipping and some bad news about quality.

I've ordered three CTO T530's in the past seven weeks. As to shipping, the first two arrived from China to Connecticut in 13 days from the order date. The third machine arrived in eight days.

The first one was returned because I ordered the wrong configuration under the pressure of a Cyber Monday sale deadline that was stated to end in a few hours, but in fact was thereafter extended for more than a week.

The second machine was returned because of almost immediate and repeated BSOD's and device failures, as to which Lenovo tech support felt a new system board was needed.

My third machine has a green ellipse on the screen when the camera is on, and sometimes the camera won't come on. After scrutinizing this ellipse -- which reminds me of a Ray Harryhausen flying saucer from a 1950's movie, a happy era when no one needed computers -- I realized that light is bleeding from the top of the display bezel, which does not fit flat and flush against the LCD. This is only prominently noticeable when the green camera light is lit, which shines down at an angle through the spaces between the LCD and bezel.

So, now this third machine is getting sent in to repair factory defects.

I've had IBM PC's and ThinkPads since the mid-1980's. I used to be under the impression, or the illusion, or perhaps the delusion, that ThinkPads meant high quality. I'm not sure I believe that anymore. But they sure can build and ship fast from Kunshan.

 

Some notes on my recent T530 experience (very new unit)...

1st this is a great laptop; excellent keyboard, excellent trackpoint (I early on disabled touchpad in the BIOS), runs cool, doesn't make much noise, has excellent (or at least more than adequate) I/O options!

I'm very close to doing a fresh install of Win7/64_Pro (the OS that I paid $50 to Lenovo for).

The Hearst thread on this has been very helpful.

When doing clone backup of the boot HDD, with 3 NTFS primary partitions totaling ~97GB, I got these following timings and/or problems...

I 1st cloned the Lenovo 500GB HDD (a Toshiba 7200rpm) to a 750GB WD Scorpio Black using the free Clonezilla program, which worked fine.

But Clonezilla won't clone from a 750GB drive to a 500GB drive.

Even when the 750GB HDD has over 250GB unallocated!

I beat on this and came up short; maybe there's a way but I'm not holding my breath.

Since all that is on the HDD is 3 primary NTFS partitions, I then booted the Acronis True Image Home 2011 CD disc (I did NOT load it into my Windows!), and Acronis True Image Home 2011 CD allows one to clone from a larger HDD to a smaller HDD "as is"

I also used Acronis True Image Home 2011 CD to clone from the laptop boot HDD to an external USB 3.0 HDD.

So key timings for cloning ~97GB of data:

To an external USB 3.0 HDD = ~46 minutes.

To a HDD in the ultrabay = ~16 minutes.

 

Well I am officially a T530 owner. Props to Lenovo, my computer arrived 6 days after ordering!!!!

Any recommendations on setting up and testing out my new laptop?
-

 

Great choice!

BTW "6 days" for a special order computer is quick!!

While it's tempting to say "just use it for a few months" (which is what I'm doing to break mine in)...

...perhaps a better immediate question is: Which O/S did you have lenovo put on it?

e.g. Win7/64_Pro or Win8/64_Pro or Win?_whatever or ... ???

As well as: how/what do you think you'll use it for in the near future???

 

I purchased a T530 from the outlet hoping it would ship pretty quickly since it was a refurb. I also think it was a good deal so that helps, but Lenovo never seems to be able to deliver a machine in a time manner. I ordered it last Tuesday and it still hasn't shipped yet. You'd think the machine, being a refurb after all, was sitting on the shelf somewhere waiting to be sold / shipped. Here I am 4-5 business days later and nada, nothing, zippo. Typical Lenovo I must say.

 

I bought it with win7/64. It was $50 less because I didn't have to pay for the DVD drive licensing. Also all of my other computers are win7 so I'm more familiar with it. I have thought about buying the upgrade to win8 pro while it is still low cost, but I'm not too convinced yet. Longer term I'll probably try a clean install onto a separate mSATA for the OS and programs. Like you, I'll probably let it burn for a couple of months before going too deep in case of issues.

Is the Computer Optimization Guide still relevant? I think I used it last time I bought a laptop. All of my subsequent computers were fresh builds/installs.

I was super nervous when I placed my order. I had read several stories about ordering nightmares. It almost killed the deal until I learned that all other manufacturers are nearly as bad or worst. It's a sad state of the industry. I will say my experience so far was positive. That said there seems to be a lot of variation in the system!

 

I can fully relate to this.

1st I did 3 rapid/regular orders (Y580 (screwed up by Lenovo), then T430 (cancelled by me at last second), then T530 (finally received OK!)).

And now a X220 from their Outlet. My Outlet experience is that it's a black hole; be very very very careful what you order there!!

So while I'm clearly a Lenovo fan, there is already a certain love/hate relationship with on-line ordering of laptops from Lenovo.