Lenovo W520 Owner's Thread

I'm already using them successfully. In BIOS I have "Discrete Graphics" selected. I don't use Optimus because I heard it could be flaky.

 

Do you play SC2? If so, with this drivers, how's the performance?

 

I play SC2.... I'm booted up under the Intel card right now and can' reboot for a bit, but I have no issues in SC2 with newer drivers.

 

Haven't played on this machine yet, downloading the client right now. Looks like I got about another hour to wait.

 

Hybrid Power is not the same as Optimus. Hybrid Power is an older scheme for switching between integrated/discrete graphics that was rarely used and only worked with nVidia chipsets. Verde drivers support Optimus fine.

 

Well.. Medium GFX settings @ 1920x1080, Optimus enabled, Verde drivers

MUCH better as it starts out around 90fps, however around the 15 minute mark it starts to slow to ~5-10fps and dropping further after that.

 

Well... even on lowest GFX settings, its exactly the same problem...

I do not see any sharp rise in temperature, load on the cpu, over-consumption of memory, hdd queue...

I cannot see any reason for this issue. Anything else that one could suggest?

I will try once more to disable Optimus but I am not hopeful. Just to clarify though, I do play 4s on SC2... maybe its the sheer amount of units? but that doesnt explain 0-4 fps on low gfx.

 

It really does sound like a temperature throttling issue. How sure are you that both the GPU and CPU temperatures are ok? Perhaps the GPU temperature is running into its thermal limits?

Also, try to enable v-sync and see if that helps. One poster on the lenovo forums with a problem similar to yours did that and it fixed the problem.

Let me know if that helps you out any.

 

Use one of the Nvidia gadgets on your desktop, or the nvidia monitor, to record a history of your GPU temp while you game. I've played 4 against 4 with no issues. Never see anywhere near those speeds.

 

Also, what Quadro and CPU do you have?

 

I have the following specs...
CPU: Intel Core i7 2720qm
GPU: Quadro 2000m
Memory: 4gb 1333mhz
HDD: Intel 510 120gb SSD

I was originally thinking this too. At idle, the CPU + GPU sit around 37-40c. I'll try running a game and see how that goes. I have speedfan and the nvidia monitor tracking temperatures.

I will attempt this as well

 

Highest the GPU/CPU got during a 20+ minute game was ~65c. AFAIK, no throttling is taking place due to heat...

It certainly gets better once units on screen are destroyed. The more units the slower it got.... In the 1v1 I tested with, it dropped down to ~10fps when I hit around the 100-110 supply worth of units.

I primarily play 4v4s... It doesn't matter whether its on low or ultra graphics, it starts out great then slows down as the units stack up. The problem does not persist if I start a game immediately after another - it starts back around the 60-90fps range and slows down from there as the game goes on.

 

Just ordered a W520!

i7-2720QM
1080p FHD
Quadro 2000M
4GB 1DIMM RAM
500GB 7200RPM HDD (free promo until 6/8)
Centrino 6300
Bluetooth 3.0 (free promo until 6/8)

$1506.28 before taxes

Plus 2yr TPP and kensington lock for a total of $1664.68 (before tax).

Can't wait for it to arrive at my doorstep (around the 16th, I'm told)!

 

Where did you buy for that price? Would they ship international?

 

I called a rep at Lenovo and applied the Barnes and Noble discount, plus haggled to get a grand total of 23.2% off the retail price of my order, before taxes.

 

Can you tell Lenovo I would like to have the same price as you for that laptop?

 

I could PM you my rep's information. I'm not sure if the Barnes and Noble discount can be used by non-students, though I offered my .edu address and he didn't need it.

 

Hi W520 owners,

Just want to find out has anyone used this on their W520?

Would like to hear from you guys before parting my cash. Thanks for the input guys.



Cheers,
Maclenovo

 

To the starcraft 2 guy. Your problem is Ram. You need 8GB and you will be fine. Someone made a thread about this.

 

His configuration is exactly the same configuration as mine that I recently ordered for $1,671.01. The difference is that he has a 500GB hard drive, while my config only had a 320GB one (Will be augmented with an SSD eventually). Same screen, graphics, CPU, warranty, RAM, etc.

If you have a mastercard, you can probably still get the same deal that I did by ordering online through the mastercard marketplace. I ordered through there and took advantage of a stackable 5% coupon they were running for memorial day. Please let me know if you are able to get a similiar deal. If not, I'll see if I can find some other ways to help you get a good deal.

 

bllahhhh... didn't think that would be the cause since i'm not paging nor consuming more then 75% of my existing 4gb movie...

can you link me to this thread? didn't see it in this topic...

guess i'm off to buy more ram

 

Hello friends - not sure if anyone has heard this one yet, but Lenovo just told me after I returned it for service that (remember I am a newbie) 'my original image was corrupted causing the recurring USB error 'unknown device' and under the device driver it listed the problem as USB Port_#0006_Hub # 0003 (code 43) and they were waiting to receive a replacement disk to reimage it.

Not sure exactly what this means, but I was surprised the service center didnt have a disk and wondered why it would take more than 1 day to get it from thier supplier.... Anyway, I am beginning to wonder if this was why my computer would not run my software program without bogging down!

 

I don't know about RAM, 4GB should be plenty. The real issue seems to be CPU limited due to the gradual degradation of performance as the game continues. Starcraft II only takes advantage of 2 cores, so have you checked to see if your Turboboost is kicking in as it should? I know that Turboboost not kicking in is a documented problem on the W520, and could be why your game stops being playable as there is quite a large difference between the base speed on the turboboosted speed.

 

Played SC2 single player campaign for a couple of hours last night without too much trouble. Did not experience degradation over time. I really need to play that more!

 

Can you try playing 4v4 and see if you experience the same issue?

Thanks!

 

I did a quick search using Google and alot of people out there who have windows 7 and 4gb of RAM are experiencing the same issue. The common recommendation seems to be to add more RAM. I'm not sure if it's so much that SC needs more than 4gb but it sounds like there is a memory leak issue that hasn't been plugged.

 

Interesting... Anandtech has posted a review of midrange SSDs. The article is worth a read for those still on the fence about upgrading to SSDs without playing the benchmarking game we've seen with the ultra-high-end drives very few people actually end up buying.

AnandTech - The 2011 Mid-Range SSD Roundup: 120GB Agility 3, Intel 510 and More Compared

 

Interesting link... Was first considering the 80GB 310 mSATA, though now I'm looking at the 120GB 320 series SSD. Hopefully, there isn't too much of a difference between that and the 160GB version in the review.

 

The difference will be in write speeds and that should be about it, and doubt you can "feel" the difference unless you write big files to other drives, but depends on usage pattern ofcourse.

 

Interesting article. I suppose my take is that with a SB chipset, most of the SSD drives are blazingly fast. The difference for me is in how it operates in the machine.

With the currently available drivers I am staying away from SF controllers. Price also makes a difference here.

I will get my first Intel SSD when the X220 ships (if ever, but that is a different story). I will see if I can "feel" the difference in speed.

Perry

 

Being a previous owner of the W510, updating the BIOS was quite nerve racking. Can anyone say it is any different with the W520?

 

I can't remember the specifics but make sure you are pairing your second stick of memory properly. From what I remember, the proper place to put the second stick is under the keyboard.

 

updating the BIOS was a breeze for me except the fact that the latest one disabled turbo boost for the 2720qm. i rolled my BIOS back to the previous version without any problems as well.

 

I got it to work deleted my other post my cpu is now showing 8 gigs I used the slot (one of 2 both were empty) under the keyboard
anything else I should do

 

I believe the w520 is the same as the w510.

Optimizing memory in W510 - which slots to use - Lenovo Community

Just make sure you are using the proper slots.

 

I am pretty sure I did it correct thanks

 

So far it looks like most W520 owners haven't had any problems... I just hope I'm not the first, whenever my system arrives. Thanks for the reassurance!

 

Mine's been perfect, except it does the same thing that my T61 does - after the fan comes on, it doesn't go back off again, even after temps have dropped and it's blowing cool air. Kind of annoying in terms of noise, but it also helps keep the bottom of the laptop cool.

 

Officially an owner as of today! This thing is great

 

In what way was/is the process "nerve racking"? It is just a case of running the executable file, letting it do its thing...(just ensure you don't lose power in the middle of the process!). Or the other option is to use the bootable-CD version...

 

Quick question as my W520 ships:

Does anyone have a part number for the hard drive Ultrabay adapter? Not the one with the gap, but the one with no gap whatsoever.

 

My first W510 and the BIOS upgrade resulted in a dead mobo using the ThinkVantage Updates, not the bootable-CD version. While I awaited repairs, I was able to obtain a 2nd W510. Updated using the ThinkVantage Updates and it worked fine. Another update came out and this time I used a bootable-CD version, fine. Upon receiving my repaired W510 it was on an old BIOS so I went to update it using the bootable-CD I made for the other machine. Result? Another dead mobo. Update looked like it went through fine, rebooted and blank screen. If you look through the W series forum on lenovo.com you'll see I was not the only one...

 

Now i understand your terror! If that was a common occurrence, I would think it best not to risk it; and leave the old bios alone. I have never experienced or expect to experience such a thing! I too hope the issue has been sorted out!

 

I don't think there is an official part number for an Ultrabay adaptor that fits flush with 12.7mm systems since Lenovo haven't made one. At the moment only third party adapters offer HDD adaptors that fully fit in the 12.7mm Ultrabay.

 

Eh, that's what I heard. Was trying to see if anybody had an Amazon or whatever seller who had a 12.7mm Ultrabay.

I suppose if I can't find one, there's always the 9.5mm bay and strips of foam

 

Unless you work outside in a sandstorm I don't think the small gap makes a whit of difference.

Doesn't bother me in the slightest.

Perry

 

I bought from Ultrabay SATA 2nd Hdd Lenovo ThinkPad T420 T520 12.7mm | eBay

Quality is comparable to the original 9.5" Ultrabay (have that too), obviously fits a lot better and no foam needed.

However, hit a weird issue with the adapter. With C300 SSD it works no problem, SATA 3 etc. With Toshiba 128GB SSD (Lenovo OEM) it did not work at all, failed to detect HDD on boot. Original UltraBay adapter works fine with both drives.

How to explain this I don't know, seems like a simple adapter.

 

The 12.5mm I bought off ebay for $18 has a tiny 3mm gap near the back. But no real complaints so far. It's running the drives I've tested in it at max speed. When troubleshooting it ran my C300 64GB @ 6 Gb/s. With the 1 TB Samsung currently in there it's operating @ 3 GB/s.

 

I take it you had a good experience buying from glassman701 then (sorry, I've just never used eBay before and thus have a bit of a trust issue with it)? I wouldn't mind that 3mm gap so much as I would a gap all the way across the top like on the official 9.5mm Ultrabay.

Aren't 1TB laptop drives currently only 12.7mm high? Would this work with the 500GB drive shipped with the W520 (I'm assuming it's 9.5mm high)?

 

I bought from uq511. Re-check my link. Not sure about seller glassman701. But yes a great buying experience from uq511. Volker from this forum has bought the same caddy too. That is who I got the seller recommend from.

Both 9.5 and 12.5mm tall notebook HDDs fit in the caddy fine. There is a small clip/wedge that keeps the HDD nice and snug. Here is where I bought my Samsung 1 TB drive from. There you can also see the pysical dimensions.