ThinkPad X1 Carbon (3rd Gen.) Broadwell

I received now my new X1 with FHD. For me the off-angle viewing is not so bad but I used it for few hours. I checked quickly to see in different position and it looks like acceptable and during the normal work I did not have any problems.

I ordered a SSD 256 GB PCIe x4Ch disk: how can I check if it is really the PCI disk?

 

My X1 has finally arrived so though I would post some first impressions.

It looks / feels amazing, very firm even when held with one hand.

Windows 8 is so unintuitive its close to OSX never have I had to googled "how do I" when I got a new computer from where are the programs to why is the track pad scrolling the wrong way.

Trackpad seems fine will probably take a while to not having buttons at the bottom though.

Screen (got the non touch ips) looks good, have not changed all the brightness settings but does not seem that bright if it is an issue for people. Will run a full check once its all set up but initial viewing side by side with my old Sony VPC SA 13 also rated at 300 the X1 only gets to about 80% .

Fan noise seems minimal not pushed it much but only got a very unobtrusive blowing.

Does any one have a colour profile setting

Thanks

 

For me trackpad is very good: I always used a mouse but with X1 I am often using the trackpad. With the trackpad I use the buttons of the trackpoint and it is ok for me!

Fan noise is zero so I believed that it is not working. But sometimes cold air go out from the fan louvers and temperature is ok so I believe that it is working very well. I tried also to use some programs for fan speed but they are not display any info for fan (maybe are not supported).
How can I check fan?

I did not yet set any colour profile.

 

BIOS 1.05 says that it updates the CPU microcode. What exactly that does that mean?

 

Are there any in-depth reviews on this? Sure, there are some YouTube reviews, but I can't find any written articles that go into measurements, benchmarks, etc.... can only find some brief hands-on impressions (from CES and whatnot.) Hasn't this been shipping since late January? Did they not send out review units? Is the manufacturing so delayed that none of the major review sites have them in-hand yet?

I pulled the trigger anyway, i5-5300u, 8GB, 2560x1440 touch. I'll upgrade the 128GB SSD myself at a later date. Hoping I don't regret it!

 

I order mine on the 29th Jan and received it on 7 March. The best review I have seen was this one, http://www.thinkscopes.com/blog/2015/01/06/lenovo-thinkpad-x1-carbon-gen-3-review-2/
I will try and run a few test over the weekend and do an comparison against my old sony vaio.

 

I got my X1 four days ago with the FHD screen, I5 proc, 8 gigs of RAM and the 128 gig SSD (which I then upgraded to a $200 512 gig SATA M.2 SSD I bought off Amazon). This machine is amazing. It's well built, quiet and runs cool. It also works rather well with Linux, though I'm still waiting for issues with the trackpoint buttons to be worked out for Linux. Nevertheless I'm extremely pleased with this purchase.

 

I have a Gen 1 for like 3 years now, purchased a Gen 2 about 6 months ago and hated it. Wifi sucked and couldn't get used to KB/track so I returned it.

Now i'm looking to buy a Gen 3. I've ready thru the entire thread and I just want to clarify; if I buy a fully optioned touch with 128gb SSD and 4 year depot for $2143, will I be able to upgrade to 512 and beyond in the future?

Thanks!!

 

New review online, and it shows a breakdown of the system! http://www.notebookcheck.net/Lenovo-ThinkPad-X1-Carbon-Ultrabook-Review.138033.0.html

Check the above link - you can remove the SSD yourself no problem. I'll also be upgrading the SSD from the 128GB. Just need to get this delivered... it's been stuck in Kentucky for an agonizing 13 hours

 

Thanks for the confirmation and very nice review. I JUST bought an i7 touch with 256GB SSD on Ebay for $1799 SHIPPED!! I should get it in like 3 days (they have 2 left).

VERY excited!!

 

Updating CPU microcode in my experience has been a generic way of saying "random improvements and/or fixes" - I've seen that address all kinds of random stuff over the years with various motherboards.

Long-time Start8 user here. Just spend the $5 and buy it, ThinkTech - it makes Windows 8 look and act like Windows 7 with the regular Start menu and you don't have to see or deal with the tile crap at all, but you still get all the various other improvements (many of which are under the hood) that Windows 8 does have. Seriously, nobody should avoid Windows 8 because of the stupid default tile user interface.

That is not a safe assumption to make in general terms, as most laptops do not have PCI-Express lanes running to their M.2 connector. The ThinkPad X1 Carbon gen 3 DOES, though. You can use a SATA or PCI-Express M.2 2280 SSD in it, it'll automatically detect/use PCI-Express if that's the type of SSD you stick in it. It's rather pricey, (probably a 225% cost increase on average for the same amount of storage compared to the SATA equivalent) but you can get a PCI-Express SSD if you want for this thing, no problem. The first thing I did upon receiving my X1 a week ago is remove the 128GB SSD and put in a 500GB Crucial SATA one, this model specifically: http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820148956

Aside from putting in my own SSD there, mine is unaltered as ordered: i5 5300U, 8GB RAM, QHD non-touch screen, (nobody should get the FHD one, IPS is so much better than mediocre TN panels) and Windows 8.1 Pro.

I am LOVING this thing. ThinkPad keyboards are so amazing compared to anything else on the market, it's a pleasure to type on and the real-world battery life I'm getting on this is ridiculous.

 

What settings are you guys using in Power Options for Intel (CPPC) Collaborative Processor Performance Control Driver? Mine is set to 0% when plugged in and 100% on battery. I've noticed that it lags a lot when it's on battery and I'm wondering if it has to do with this setting.

 

Arrived! Installing and setting up programs now. SO FAR I LOVE IT! More to come...

 

It's almost perfect. Took me a while to figure out Fn+4 (not F4) puts it to sleep.

As I said I LOVE it in every way, well almost. While the screen is great, it's really not bright enough. It's just barely bright enough for daytime indoors but way too dim to take outside. I keep finding myself wanting to tap the brightness + button in normal light. Also, while I dont notice any RAM problems under normal usage, a 16GB option would have been nice.

All in all, It's everything you would expect for someone who simply wants an UPGRADED Gen 1; faster in every way and a better than HD screen. For those with a Gen 1 who want a worthwhile upgrade without getting used to a whole new laptop, this is it.

 

Yeah, I'm still struggling with not having dedicated function keys, too, but I adapted to having PgUp/PgDn down with the arrow keys faster than I thought I would. I still think that whoever put Delete in the upper right corner should be strung up. Hate. That.

 

Delete is almost always above the backspace key on laptops w/out number pads.

 

Did you turn off all of the adaptive brightness settings?

 

Yes, made NO diff. Also rolled back the driver to the MS basic. Maybe slightly brighter but I think video smoothness suffered. Hopefully they'll come up with a way to get more brightness with the driver.

 

Not on classic ThinkPads.

 

http://www.newegg.ca/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16820148956
Crucial MX200 CT500MX200SSD4 M.2 Type 2280SS (Single Sided) 500GB SATA 6Gbps (SATA III) Micron 16nm MLC NAND Internal Solid State Drive (SSD)

can any one please confirm if this 512G ssd works well on X1 CARBON Gen3?
or if Samsung 2.5" 512GB SSD SATA III MZNTD512HAGL-000L1(Lenovo FRU#04X4405) works too on X1 CABON Gen3?

If working great, I'm planning to pull the trigger on it.please advise, thanks.

 

I got my X1 Carbon G3 a week ago. Fully upgraded to every option - I7-5600, 512Gb SSD, multitouch screen. If anyone wants any benchmarks, post a link to the file and I can try to run it.

JaneL - I agree with the key position; I have used sharpkeys and remap the keys so it's more like a classic thinkpad and it's great.

 

Yes, I specifically mentioned that I inserted it in mine, though I guess I neglected to say it was a gen 3 specifically. I have an X1 Carbon gen 3 that shipped with the 128GB SSD. I removed it (make sure you disable battery in BIOS per the field maintenance manual's instructions first) and inserted the 500GB Crucial SSD I linked there on NewEgg's site and had no problems, I'm running it on my X1 Carbon gen 3 right now. Any 2280-sized M.2 SSD will work in the X1 Carbon gen 3, SATA or PCI-Express.

 

Great to know,thanks.
touch or no touch? any suggestion.

 

There used to be three or four different places to make changes and most people didn't disable them all. There are the properties in the Windows Control panel area (Power options | Display) . There's the property under the Intel Graphics and Media Control Panel. And there used to be some settings in Lenovo power manager though I think power manager is no longer used on the modern ThinkPads.

It would be great if someone could articulate the precise steps.

The T440s I used to have had a great little 14" IPS screen so I'd be shocked to find the X1 Carbon Gen 3 screen is now inferior to that.

 

BIOS 1.06 is out. Flashing it now. Going to do a benchmark on the GPU to see how much it has improved.

CHANGES IN THIS RELEASE
Version 1.06

[Important updates]
- Mitigated the risk of security vulnerability related to DRAM Row Hammering.

[New functions or enhancements]
- Updated the CPU microcode.
- Improved the graphics performance.

[Problem fixes]
Nothing.

 

Looking forward to your findings. Thanks!

 

Did a little test with Furmark on my i7 5600u model, 1280x720 resolution, with its built-in benchmark function. Did three runs before flashing, three runs after:

Pre-1.06 Bios:
569
557
532

1.06 Bios:
631
620
632

Edit: Also for humor value, the Windows 7 benchmark scores for Graphics and Gaming Graphics have both risen from 6.7 to 6.8.

Edit 2: As you could probably guess, it appears that they achieved this sustained increase in graphics throughput (at least, in this synthetic test) by heavily biasing the TDP budget towards the GPU. Unfortunately, I did not record the CPU clock speed while performing a benchmark simultaneously on the GPU and CPU before updating to the new BIOS, but post-update, when using 7-zip's benchmark function to simulate CPU load, the clock speed will quickly drop as soon as Furmark is started.

CPU clock would drop from a persistent 3.1GHz on both cores, down to between 800 and 1400 MHz after only a few seconds. As soon as I stopped Furmark, it would pop back up to 3.1GHz.

This would be something interesting to observe on a pre-1.06 system. Personally, I welcome the change if this is actually what was altered, as this will not hamper CPU clock speed on general productivity programs, while giving the GPU--the limiting factor when trying to play games appropriate for this class of system--all the power they can get.

Final Edit: Dug up some pre-update 3dmark06 (1280x1024) scores to compare as well. The results are pleasing.

Pre-1.06:
3dmark06 Score: 7255
SM 2.0: 2563
SM 3.0: 3045
CPU: 3618

1.06:
3dmark06 score: 8056
SM 2.0: 2846
SM 3.0: 3384
CPU: 4002

 

Looks like it's time to update my BIOS!

 

Updated and now my system is running like crap. Not sure what changed, don't see any services running but system is taxed, slow loading and choppy...

 

Might be the other end of the problem. GPU precedence--if anything in the background is quietly using it, like something in a web browser--could possibly do that. Perhaps run CPU-Z and see if the clock speed is hovering somewhere low?

 

Core Speed around 798MHz @2.6GHz man, running horrible...

 

Speedtest is under 1Mbps now and upload about this same. Called tech support and their answer was to send me restore disks...

 

My X1 is working great after the update. Maybe something went wrong with your bios flash? Perhaps try reflashing it, or in worst case, go back to the previous version.

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-N910A using Tapatalk

 

Perhaps try setting the Graphics power plan settings to 'Maximum Battery Life' and see if your CPU speeds are still affected under load. Also try setting the power plan to the 'High Performance' setting and test the same. If your system is just idling, 798MHz is the normal speed, but it should definitely be bumping up a bit with CPU load. I think you can downgrade your BIOS to 1.05 or earlier, as well, if it doesn't clear up, but don't quote me on this as with the EFI-based stuff it may behave differently than older ThinkPads. I definitely haven't encountered any crippling performance issues myself through this.

 

I reflashed the BIOS, core speed is at 2600 and Wifi is back to normal. Graphics seemed choppy still so rolled back the driver and it seems ok now. Going to mess with the graphiscs driver till I get it right along with some of the other settings.. Thanks for your help

 

I'm not really sure whats going on with wirless. 80Mbps download on Gen one and 15 to 25Mbps on Gen 3.

 

quick question, as I have never replaced an internal ssd before. I assume that to clone my current ssd I would need some form of sata to usb 3 enclosure, correct? if so, any recommendations as to which one?

 

You're mixing up bandwidth speed tests with overall computer performance; two completely different things...I think you need to very clearly state exactly what problems you're having.

 

I did a PC Refresh (system reinstall) and it completely took care of the pc slowdown and sluggish graphics issue. However, my gen one with an Advanced-N 6205 adapter is getting 80Mbps and the max i have gotten with my new Gen 3 is 25Mbps (Wireless-AC 7265).

I went into advanced adapter settings and made sure all were set up the same way. Also latest drivers on both.. :/

 

Yes, if you want to actually clone your current SSD then you'd need a place to copy the cloned image to; either an external enclosure that is housing the new SSD you're putting in the laptop, (I'm not sure external M.2 connector enclosures even exist, but if so, they're probably prohibitively expensive) or to any other hard drive with enough free space so you can then clone it back to the new SSD when you install it. My recommendation is to backup only the data you need to some other drive and just install Windows from scratch. As long as you select the right type of Windows, (i.e., don't select Windows 8.1 Pro if your ThinkPad didn't ship with the Pro version specifically) you can just put Windows 8.1 on a USB flash drive and install it from there onto the new SSD in your laptop as demonstrated here: http://www.redmondpie.com/download-windows-8.1-pro-iso-file-legally-without-product-key/

The BIOS on our ThinkPads has the Windows serial number built into it, you never even need to enter it; it'll use it and activate it automatically. This gives you a clean install of Windows without all the extra crap that every laptop manufacturer unnecessarily puts on their machines. Windows will not recognize the Wi-Fi chip in our X1 Carbon gen 3 machines on its own though, so you also need to download the driver for that first and have it available on a USB thumb drive or hard drive, or something because you'll need to install it to get your wireless working, so you can then download the Lenovo Solution Center to acquire the rest of the software you do need.

Windows 8/8.1 Wi-Fi driver for the X1 Carbon gen 3: http://support.lenovo.com/us/en/pro...inkpad-x1-carbon-20bs-20bt/downloads/DS101701
Windows 7 Wi-Fi driver for the X1 Carbon gen 3: http://support.lenovo.com/us/en/pro...inkpad-x1-carbon-20bs-20bt/downloads/DS101715

Once you've installed the fresh copy of Windows, install the proper Wi-Fi driver linked above, and connect to the Internet. Then download and install the Lenovo Solution Center which you then select all the things you do want for our model of ThinkPad; the Intel graphics driver, Intel chipset driver, etc.

Windows 8/8.1 Lenovo Solution Center download link for the X1 Carbon gen 3: http://support.lenovo.com/us/en/pro...inkpad-x1-carbon-20bs-20bt/downloads/DS014950

You don't have to install a clean Windows copy from scratch if you don't want to, but frankly, I'd highly recommend it. Performance and battery life will be better because of it, and you'll have a little less hard drive space wasted by unnecessary garbage.

 

awesome, thank you so much for the advice!

 

I have the same issue. Updated to 1.06 and YouTube is choppy as hell. The system overall feels a lot slower for some reason. For example, if I try to watch a full HD 1080p youtube video, it will just stutter like I'm running a 0.5ghz Intel Celeron.

 

Consistently getting 80Mbps downloads on Gen 1 and average of about 13Mbps on Gen 3. Going to mess with diff drivers and see what I can figure out.

 

Yup! Try PC Refresh just search and refresh (refresh pc wihtout affecting files). I'm going to go BACK to 1.6 and if it goes choppy again I'm going to refresh one more time. If that doesn't do it I'll just go back to older BIOS. I really WOULD like to figure out this slow wireless thing.

Does anyone else have a gen one to test up against a gen 3 vis-a-vis wireless?

 

Are you running on battery when you see slow WIFI throughput speeds? Does that change when plugged into the wall?

 

Same on battery or AC

 

I'm on the latest BIOS (1.06) and I just got 203.47 megabits down, 208.19 megabits up running a speed test at www.speakeasy.net/speedtest from the Seattle mirror while on my work's 802.11AC Wi-Fi network. Test was run while on battery, NOT plugged in.

 

on wireless? After doing all updates I'm getting 2Mbps down on Gen 3 and 70Mpbs down on Gen 1

 

I believe when he said he used his work's 802.11ac WiFi network, he implied wireless

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-N910A using Tapatalk

 

I wonder what the deal is here...

EDIT: Figured it out! Changed setting on my D-Link (DIR-655) from 20Mhz to Auto 20/40MHz

Now getting 48Mbps on both. Going to see if it gets back up to 70Mbps but happy with 48

EDIT 2: Waited 10 minutes to test again, back to 70Mbps on Gen 1 and 1.4Mbps on Gen 3. I just DONT get it...