The Notebook Review forums were hosted by TechTarget, who shut down them down on January 31, 2022. This static read-only archive was pulled by NBR forum users between January 20 and January 31, 2022, in an effort to make sure that the valuable technical information that had been posted on the forums is preserved. For current discussions, many NBR forum users moved over to NotebookTalk.net after the shutdown.
Problems? See this thread at archive.org.

    T420 DVD drive cover

    Discussion in 'Lenovo' started by Eric794, Dec 10, 2011.

  1. Eric794

    Eric794 Newbie

    Reputations:
    0
    Messages:
    2
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    5
    Hi!

    I was wondering if the T420 had any sort of dvd drive cover?

    I've had the laptop now for around 3 months and I absolutely love it! My only problem is the DVD drive button. The DVD button is very sensitive causing the drive to open randomly, which can be very frustrating. I was thinking about taking out the drive because I don't really use it often, but I don't want a giant gap on the side of my computer (OCD thing) So I was wondering if there was some sort of cover that I could buy to replace the dvd drive?

    Thanks!
     
    Eric794, Dec 10, 2011
    #1
  2. PatchySan

    PatchySan Om Noms Kit Kat

    Reputations:
    3,971
    Messages:
    2,248
    Likes Received:
    221
    Trophy Points:
    81
    It has been a known issue on the T420, the button placement is poor so you're not the only one who find this frustrating. If you don't use the DVD drive that much you can use an Ultrabay HDD caddy instead so you can add an additional hard drive to the mix.

    I use this setup myself, I have a SSD in the main bay and a 500GB HDD in the Ultrabay so you have the best of both worlds – speed via the SSD and storage capacity for all your personal files. Lenovo hasn't issued an official 12.7mm Ultrabay Caddy so you have to source these caddies on places such as eBay.
     
    PatchySan, Dec 10, 2011
    #2
  3. Eric794

    Eric794 Newbie

    Reputations:
    0
    Messages:
    2
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    5
    great idea! Thanks!!
     
    Eric794, Dec 10, 2011
    #3
  4. ThinkRob

    ThinkRob Notebook Deity

    Reputations:
    1,006
    Messages:
    1,343
    Likes Received:
    2
    Trophy Points:
    56
    ThinkRob, Dec 14, 2011
    #4
  5. wkearney99

    wkearney99 Notebook Consultant

    Reputations:
    66
    Messages:
    212
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    30
    Is anyone shipping a blu-ray drive that'll work in there? One with a better situated button?
     
    wkearney99, Dec 14, 2011
    #5
  6. ThinkRob

    ThinkRob Notebook Deity

    Reputations:
    1,006
    Messages:
    1,343
    Likes Received:
    2
    Trophy Points:
    56
    The bay is compatible with *any* standard SATA drive, though you'll want to find one that's 12.7mm high. There are plenty on eBay.
     
    ThinkRob, Dec 15, 2011
    #6
  7. wkearney99

    wkearney99 Notebook Consultant

    Reputations:
    66
    Messages:
    212
    Likes Received:
    0
    Trophy Points:
    30
    While any drive might fit, some don't have bezels that line up quite right with the one in the T420. I've got an aftermarket drive carrier that doesn't have the same bezel as a Lenovo unit. This leaves a bit of a gap. I generally try to avoid things that leave holes in the case as those tend to draw stray paperclips and the like from in my briefcase.

    That and there's question of button placement. While "any" unit might fit, I wonder which are truly less annoying than the Lenovo unit.
     
    wkearney99, Dec 15, 2011
    #7
  8. ThinkRob

    ThinkRob Notebook Deity

    Reputations:
    1,006
    Messages:
    1,343
    Likes Received:
    2
    Trophy Points:
    56
    Bezels are usually removable, though you are quite correct that not all of them will line up perfectly. Personally, my solution for the slot-loading drive that I added was to simply take a Dremel to it. Not an officially-supported solution, but a perfectly-successful one.

    There are a few standard bezel formats, and you can always get a decent selection of bezels on eBay...
     
    ThinkRob, Dec 16, 2011
    #8