T430s owners'/would-be owners' thread.

It does not matter. Anything that is Wifi Link 6300 Ultimate will work

 

Finally received my T430s and have a quick question for any fellow linux users.

When docked with the Mini Dock Plus Series 3 (model 433810U), I get no audio from the headphone out jack nor USB headphones plugged into one of the dock's USB ports. Audio from the laptop headphone jack and laptop speakers works fine though.

Without getting into tons of detail, I have tried the one fix floating around (adding options snd-hda-intel model=thinkpad to alsa-base.conf) without luck.

If anyone has any clues or can point me in the right direction I would appreciate it!

 

Was just wondering if anyone that has a t430s and kept the box, could give me the dimensions of the box (HxWxL)? I'm trying to work out a volumetric shipping charge, thanks in advance!

 

4.75"x11.25"x15"

 

I always keep the packaging for my electronics, in case I need to sell them later.

 

I've been debating whether I should get the outgoing T420s or the new T430s. The current pricing on the T430s makes it a no-brainer, so I'm planning to submit my order later this evening!

Are there any issues with the 1600x900 display? Is it the same unit used in the T420s?

Also, is there any reason I should choose the Intel 6300 WiFi card rather than the Intel 6205?

Otherwise, I think I'm set to go! I'm ordering it with 4GB of RAM and I already have a compatible 4GB DDR3 RAM module that I can install to make 8GB total. I also have a brand new 128GB Samsung 830-series SSD waiting to replace the standard 320GB 7200rpm hard drive.

Thanks in advance for your input!

 

The display is the same display used in the T420s and some seem to hate it. If you really examine it closely it may bother you but for most people, it shouldn't present a problem. I also wouldn't think you would really need the 6300 card over the 6205. The 6300 will bring you better range and reception and possibly better speed so you just need to decide if it is worth the upgrade. I have a Samsung 256gb SSD and it is so much faster than the standard hdd's I am used to using. I am sure you will be happy with the SSD!

 

how will they known if I change back to the stock bios?

 

Depends if the system keeps a log of the BIOS' flashed and their respective checksums, I wouldn't be surprised if there are others way as well though

 

Just an update on T430s battery life. I seem to be getting 7-8 hours on wifi with normal use with the 6-cell/bay battery. I've seen the meter go as high as over 14 hours when idle, but regular use seems to last right in that 7-8 hour neighborhood for me. I am definitely loving the computer still - no regrets. One small thing is that I wish the delete key weren't moved to the very top right of the keyboard. Hard to hit without moving my whole hand.

 

Yes i also have no complaints with the machine. Screen is good. keyboard is pleasure to type on. trackpad is really nice too. doesn't burn my lap, heat dissipation is nice. the speakers are absolute brilliant with Dolby on. I can't believe i want to listen to music on laptop speaker rather than headphones. Bass isnt there which i don't expect from laptop speakers, but these ones are brilliant and make music sound so much better.

 

Yes, speakers are far better and louder than my T400. And dare I say I actually like the keyboard *better* than the last design. It just works.

 

Can you share if (1) you have the discrete GPU and (2) what is your brightness setting at?

 

mirkot, did you end up receiving this adapter? / Have you had any problems with it?

Mini DisplayPort DP to HDMI 1.4 Adapter with Audio support 3D for ATI Black | eBay

 

Integrated Intel 4000 graphics on the i7 CPU. My brightness is set to 9/15 with auto-dim enabled after a couple minutes of inactivity. I'm mostly doing general productivity stuff and web via wifi.

 

just received mine two hours ago
its awesome notebook am coming form macbookpro
first thing I noticed its cool unlike the macbook
the display is not as bad as others said about it actually its good HD+ display

 

I am curious about this scenario. What are you doing with the T430s? Playing a DVD on a TV screen?

 

FYI, my review just went up:

 

tbh, both reviews, T430 and T430s, suck and the writer didn't know what to write for cons hence he just wrote down the negated pros. reviewer needs to spend some time with the machines instead of crying out right away. here are my 2 cents for T430s review

Pros
Well built = ~ Cost premium over T430
Quality, backlit keyboard (+ ThinkLight) and pointing options = ~ Keyboard switched to chiclet-style
Capability to have a massive amount of storage with 3 drives installed = ~ Weak battery life


Cons
Weak screen / variability in manufacturers = lenovos are deployed in thousands in offices, can't rely on one manufacturer to meet all demands

 

Jumping through hoops for a clean windows install? Can you elaborate?

 

Sure. The stock image comes with a ton of bloat and the Lenovo Experience customizations. Since the recovery partition and the recovery discs you make include all that bloat, it's very difficult to get a clean image without buying or obtaining a fresh Windows disc and then adding all the drivers back. If you want to use the Windows license you already paid for, there's another annoying step.

 

The only bloat I noticed was Norton, which I removed. The rest is the Thinkpad software, which I find helpful. Much better than other laptops out of the box.

 

Norton Antivirus, Norton Internet Defender, Skype, SugarSync, Chrome, etc...

 

I didn't notice Skype. But I will say Chrome is NOT bloatware. Probably the most useful thing on the whole computer.

 

as per other poster it was only norton which is simple uninstall. Perhaps you should have tried the battery life with the lenovo customizations. it manages cooling efficiently as well as processor, turns off optical drive when not in use.
I am quite impressed with the lenovo customizations I suggest you try them as well

 

False - they are both built to nearly identical standards. Both would be described as equally well built.

False - the pro is that the keyboard is still very good and now backlit. The con is that it's not quite as good as it used to be and island styled.

False - the machine as tested had one drive installed - the stock 500gb 7200 RPM drive. The capability to install more has nothing to do with the battery life.

False - There's no reason myriad manufacturers and direct competitors are able to produce screens of consistent quality while Lenovo cannot. Different suppliers, sure, but extreme variability in the quality is inexcusable.

False - Addressed this earlier, but there are several other programs installed.

This laptop was tested with the Lenovo "enhancements" as well as all of the battery utilities, etc.

 

In my mind, anything that's not part of a standard Windows install, or, debatably, a manufacturer enhancement (e.g. battery monitoring software) is bloat. I happen to like Chrome (even though I'm a Firefox user), but I didn't ask for it to be pre-installed and made the default browser.

 

I gotta agree with Nrbelex on this one. The Lenovo image is getting crowded. I don't like it much but I use it all of a couple of hours before it gets nuked.

I make the Rescue and Recovery DVD set, save off SWTOOLS, and flatten the machine for a clean install.

Issue solved.

 

So do I. Even being (or especially being) a Lenovo Business partner, I always go for (fully automated) clean reinstalls, for all my customers. Matter of service, and all my customers are delighted.

Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD

 

Ditto. I did a clean install before even powering on the computer for the first time, so I was just wondering what did you find hard. OK, it's time consuming but you have full control in the end - that's the important thing isn't it :-D

Edit - And how can you make a clean install without powering on the computer...

 

I did.
.

 

Long time IT guy. I understand the clean install and have done it many times previously with other Win OS. However, for Win7, is there such a need? Won't it be easier just remove the programs that is not being used?

Programs like Norton can be easily removed. Does any unremoved code/file affect system performance at all? Is there any performance numbers for before and after a clean install? It would be interesting to find out. Thanks in advance.

 

Today I went to local post office to pick it up but postman forgot to offload it from the truck, or at least that is what they told me. I hope to get it tomorrow and will report if it works OK.

 

Sometimes I like to watch documentaries from the web and prefer to do it on the big screen. There is a good collection of documentaries here.

 

Cool. Thanks for the information.

When I was testing the Samsung Series 9 notebook, I bought some micro HDMI to HDMI adapters from monoprice.com that worked well on that machine.

You might want to try their mini DP -> HDMI adapter.

 

The only reason I did not get that one was color. Most of the adapters with DP on either end are white. It looks like there are whole segments of electronics industry today catering exclusively to Apple crowd. In my local Best Buy store number of protection cases for iPhone outnumbers cases for all other phones together.

 

Good review and even better photographs. (Which was not surprising after I followed the link in your profile )

 

Yeah similar to Mirkot, I will have the laptop connected up to a TV for watching movies / shows (solves screen issues), I have a displayport - HDMI converter for my t410, but need to upgrade to a miniDP converter for the t430s.

 

Has anyone bought from ebay seller, 'newthinkpads'?
How was the experience?
When I've got the money for my purchase, I'm looking for faster ownership than what Lenovo provides. Waiting suxs! ; )

Gawain

 

Have an old t400 that I'm looking to replace. How does the T430 do when it comes to games?

I'd like to be able to play the Total War and Batman series.

Thanks.

 

Happy to report that adapter works perfectly, sounds goes through and it is also made well.

 

Nice to hear I'll pay the extra $5 just to circumvent "Apple White"

 

cheers for that, will order now!

 

I have a problem, the volume rockers are not responsive sometimes. When I change the volume from the taskpar it become responsive again for some time
I think its software problem
Any Idea?

 

This just arrived for me:

SFBags - WaterField Designs - Laptop Bag - Checkpoint Friendly - Messenger Bag - Briefcase - Travel Tote - Laptop Sleeve - Computer Sleeve
Wicked bag - everything fits perfectly.

Room for t430s +charger + notebook + Asus transformer + other junk (wallet keys ect)

 

Definitely a man purse.

 

Is that a ThinkPad in the sleeve?

In San Francisco, some men can be very different.

 

heh - trust me - its A LOT better than the last one

Wife goes to Coach store.. comes home and says.. 'hey honey, look at the bag I got you" Ya.. you wanna talk about a man purse... it was all leather, 400$ and looked like a purse with a bunch of C on it.

This one is sooo much better... more manly heh

 

I still use an old CaseLogic Student Shuttle I bought three years ago for $20, which I toss into an old Targus bookbag (also bought for $20) for traveling.

I've always thought about going for a Waterfield sleeve-case for my Thinkpad (and buying a messenger bag to replace my Targus), but I never seem to have enough C-notes laying around...

 

I happened to have to do a number factory resets today with a 2011 and 2012 and indeed, the Lenovo standard preload has gained some weight here, even though it still is rather lean compared to other vendors.