T420/T520 up on lenovo site

Honestly the dedicated graphics aren't that important but I did want to play Amnesia on pc . It doesn't run with intel integrated graphics at all (intels fault I believe, not the developers). At the same time though I mainly game on the PS3 so I am still considering just ordering one with integrated graphics because the dedicated graphics cards on the T series tend to lean towards the business side (I am sure it would perform good with most games though).

Plus I guess I could save some money at the same time. I didn't really want to spend $1400 so that is why I tapped the brakes on the ebay deal (even though it was actually a great deal). I would like to keep it at $1200 or less if possible.

 

I was of the same mindset. I wanted a light laptop with tons of battery and no heat, and since I can game on the 360 or PS3 I figured I would keep my nice new Thinkpad uncluttered from games.

Look for good deals on the T420. I got mine with specs in my sig for $1150 with the 1 yr Thinkpad Priority Support (no India tech support!) and accidental damage. Add another $100 for WD Black 500gb and RAM and you're all set.

 

There was an i5 Sandy Bridge review a long time ago (I think it might even've been before CES 2011). Pretty sure it had a few benchmarks against desktop processors.

 

I didn't really want to get discrete graphics for just one game. I just have a PS3 now because I barely have time to play even one console, lol. That's a good point though. I am not buying this for games, it will be my desktop replacement (actually laptop, a 3 year old R61).

I have integrated graphics in my old thinkpad and honestly never felt the need for a discrete option. Maybe I just answered my question, lol.

 

My thought on the discrete graphics is that it doesnt hurt to have it if its cheap. You can always disable it. Then in the future when windows 8 or 9 or whatever comes out and might need better graphics, you will get a little more life out of your laptop before you will have to upgrade.

 

The Discreet Graphic T420 is on the Lenovo website now... I've customized two identical unit, one with discreet and one without. The one with Discreet Graphic is $225 more than the one without discreet graphic. Is that price a little bit steep? Is that worth the upgrade?


ThinkPad T420 - $1214.10
Intel Core i5-2540M Processor (2.60GHz, 3MB L3)1
Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium 6412
14.0 HD+ (1600 x 900) LED Backlit Display, Mobile Broadband Ready
NVIDIA N12P-NS1 Optimus Graphics with 1GB DDR3 Memory
2 GB PC3-10600 DDR3 SDRAM 1333MHz SODIMM Memory (1 DIMM)8
UltraNav with TrackPoint & touchpad
250 GB Hard Disk Drive, 5400rpm4
DVD recordable multiburner5
9 cell Li-Ion Battery - 55++60
No Bluetooth
Intel Centrino Advanced-N 6205 (2x2 AGN)10
Integrated Mobile Broadband - Upgradable65
4177: 1 Year Depot Warranty - TopSeller7

ThinkPad T420 - $989.10
Intel Core i5-2540M Processor (2.60GHz, 3MB L3)1
Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium 6412
14.0 HD+ (1600 x 900) LED Backlit Display, Mobile Broadband Ready
Intel HD Graphics 3000
2 GB PC3-10600 DDR3 SDRAM 1333MHz SODIMM Memory (1 DIMM)8
UltraNav with TrackPoint & touchpad
250 GB Hard Disk Drive, 5400rpm4
DVD recordable multiburner5
9 cell Li-Ion Battery - 55++60
No Bluetooth
Intel Centrino Advanced-N 6205 (2x2 AGN)10
Integrated Mobile Broadband - Upgradable65
4177: 1 Year Depot Warranty - TopSeller7

Thanks.

 

Wow I really wish I would have jumped on that deal from last weekend after seeing these prices with the discrete graphics. Oh well, I guess I will play the waiting game.

 

a WQXGA 30" monitor - dell 3007/3008, samsung 305t (we have a few around the office)

thanks for the heads up. Yeah, I currently have 2 docks(home/office) for my t61p. But they ain't cheap.

 

What's that graphic card : NVIDIA N12P-NS1 Optimus Graphics with 1GB DDR3 Memory ?

Is that the NVS4200m?

 

I believe that's the codename or driver id for NVS4200.

 

What's the current best coupon/site combo people are using for Lenovo discounts for these new models?



My current config:

Intel Core i7-2820QM Processor
Windows 7 Professional 64
15.6" FHD (1920 x 1080) Screen
NVIDIA 4200M Graphics
2 GB Memory
250 GB Hard Disk Drive, 5400rpm
9 cell Li-Ion Battery
Bluetooth 3.0/Webcam/WifI-N 6300 (3x3 AGN)
base warranty

$1,647.54 after coupons, before taxes. I plan to stick in 8GB RAM and a nice SSD.

 

The seller from the weekend listed a few more T420's with discrete graphics so I jumped. Even with the 10% off coupon flying around for lenovo's site, I still saved quite a bit and got a faster processor, more memory, and a bigger hard drive for less (compared to what lenovo wanted on their site). Plus I had a $100 off coupon from Ebay so it made it an easy choice. I really wanted the discrete graphics in the end which is why I was holding out.

I will be sure to post impressions when I receive it.

 

Anyone know what the battery life performance hit is for going from i5 to i7 Second Gen CPU?

 

There is a preview for T520. The battery life is very good (11.5 hours, 6 cells).

Lenovo ThinkPad T520 Review: First Thoughts | StorageReview.com

 

According to NotebookCheck.net, the NVS 4200M is the same as GT 520M, with drivers optimized for business apps, meaning it will be slower in games than the GT 520M. From the information in the link below, it seems like it is 1.5-2x faster than the integrated Intel HD 3000 graphics. From the chart, it seems to be only 15% faster. The NVS 4200M is a pretty low end card, being sold for a $225 premium. I wonder if I should go integrated as the way to go?

http://www.notebookcheck.net/NVIDIA-GeForce-GT-520M.43104.0.html
NVIDIA GeForce GT 520M - Notebookcheck.net Tech

 

I am definitely not an expert on this, but I was also considering the discrete graphic card option. I read about graphic card on the notebookcheck websites as well. In my opinion, it is totally not worthy. The improvement in the performance is minimal. Unless you want to play certain games in which HD 3000 does not support well (because of the drivers), I think it is only a waste of money + it will reduce the battery life (which is very important for me).

 

I ran into this exact problem when I configured a T420 with the discrete graphics card. For roughly the same price I could get a W520 with the Quadro 1000M.

I know a 15.6" may not be plausible to some people but if you're on the fence between a 14" and a 15.6" like I was the W520 is the way to go over either the T420 or the T520 IMHO. Also, the fact that the W520 with a quad-core and the Quadro 2000M is getting 6+ hours of batter with the 9-cell doesn't hurt either.

All of this is assuming you need discrete graphics of course. Otherwise the T420 with the integrated Intel graphics would get my vote.

 

If it was a $50 or maybe even $100 upgrade..... ehh why not? But $225 for a slightly better upgrade on the gpu is hard to accept. I ordered my t420 without it.

 

Found this unboxing video for those like me waiting on impressions of the T420:

YouTube - Unboxing the Lenovo ThinkPad T420

 

I totally agree. When I noticed how much lenovo wanted for the discrete graphics, I basically decided on the integrated option. The seller from the weekend listed the discrete graphics T420 back on ebay yesterday so I jumped. I had a $100 off coupon on Ebay, so I payed $150 more than a stripped T420 with integrated graphics, 2GB of memory, lowest processor and hard drive. By the time I added upgrading the ram and hard drive I was already at $1200 and that was after a 10% off coupon on lenovo's site. For $150 more, I got 8GB of memory (double what I was buying separately), the fastest I7 processor available on lenovo's config (instead of the intro I5 processor offered by lenovo), and the dedicated graphics.

I feel like I justified the extra $150, at least for me . I won't be using it for games but if I ever wanted to play Amnesia, it wouldn't run on the intel graphics (intel's fault from what I understand). If I had not got a good deal (or had that $100 off coupon from ebay), there is no way I would have bought the discrete graphics. That should be a $100 option at most, not what they are charging.

 

Hello Guys,

Just to get some of your feedback. I've recently bought this new notebook:

General
Model name 41785YA
Description ThinkPad T420

Main Features
Intel® Core™ i7-2620M Processor ( 2.70GHz 1333MHz 4MB )
Genuine Windows 7 Professional 64
NVIDIA N12P-NS1 Optimus 1GB
4 GB PC3-10600 DDR3 SDRAM 1333MHz
14.0 " HD AntiGlare 1600x900
500GB 7200
Intel Centrino Advanced-N 6205 (2x2 AGN WiFi 300Mbps)
DVD Recordable
Bluetooth Version 3.0
Fingerprint Reader


I'm curious the fact that i've run "dxdiag" on windows.. it shows that my graphic is running on intel HD instead of the Nvidia. On top of this, the device manager shows that my notebook has two graphic card (intel HD and Nvidia)

Is this normal? Im not sure if i do play games, it'll run as Intel or Nvidia. Appreciate your comments.

 

When your do something with graphically intensive the Nvidia card kick in. Just go to bios that bios to see if the graphic setting is set to Optimus switchable, there should also have two other option which are integrate and discrete.

 

Really? You can disable the nvidia card in the BIOS?

 

Lenovo Support - NVidia Switchable Graphics adapters vs NVidia Optimus Graphics adapters - ThinkPad T410s, W510

Pretty sure you can, unless they remove that option which is in their previous generation.