ThinkPad X220 (i/T) Owners Thread

Yup. That's why I sent mine back. That's the worst touchpad I've ever had on any notebook computer. Reminds me of an old, old Compaq I saw in the junk bin at Goodwill.

 

How is the touchpad garbage? I installed the normal non Thinkpad specific drivers from the Synaptics site and the touchpad is much better (at the expense of the the right and left click buttons above it a little).

 

Am I doing something wrong, or did I just get lucky? CPU temp is at 67c.

Bios version is on the screen shot.

 

I'm wondering about these Touchpad comments as well. I'm using the Lenovo driver. Granted, I primarily use the trackpoint (because it's so much superior ) and only occasionally use the touchpad (and mainly for scrolling) so maybe I don't know how it's supposed to be, but it seems to work perfectly fine without any problems. What are all your complaints?

As for touchpad problems with a 90W adapter, that must be limited to the Ultraslim one since I'm typing this connected to a normal size 90W adapter and the touchpad is working fine.

 

after finished reading all the 96 pages , freaked me out and wonder should i still go for X220T or not i5 or i7 ..i sold my i5 X201 as well LOL

 

- It is very imprecise
- It is erratic
- Two-finger scroll fails to function 50% of the time
- One-finger scroll fails to function 50% of the time

Special Mention:
1. Left-click dragging is horrible. Here is why:
a. You can press down hard anywhere on the touchpad with one finger, then move your finger around while pressing very hard, to drag. The amount of constant force needed to do this is uncomfortable and silly.

b. You can press and hold one finger at the bottom-left corner of the touchpad, and use another finger to move around on the touchpad, to drag. This is similar to how a normal touchpad with real buttons works.

This causes a conflict however, because now you are touching the x220 with two fingers, so it freaks out and functions poorly.

2. As I mentioned above, it is a normal reaction to click the bottom-left corner. Not only is this the learned behavior of most people, but this corner also offers the least push-down resistance. However, these clicks often do not register. One possible reason for this is that this area of the touchpad is also used for horizontal scrolling.

Several published reviews and owner-forum-posts describe problems with the x220 touchpad. I am not the only one.

This touchpad is so bad, I am using the trackpoint to type this post.

Thank you for the suggestion. I will attempt this.


edit:

I'd also like to note that the trackPOINT works surprisingly well. Perhaps Lenovo tacked on this novelty touchpad to lure in buyers like me, knowing we'd eventually be forced to get used to the trackpoint nub.....

 

Installing the non-thinkpad specific drivers helped me as well. Touchpad works great now.

 

So I just got my new x220 (the one in my signature), previously I had returned my old defective x220. One difference that was immediately obvious to me was the fan sound. The new x220 has a very annoying high pitched whining sound (the thing everyone has been complaining about I guess) but my old unit sounded nothing like this, it was very pleasant.

Lenovos QC must be crap these days with so much variation from unit to unit.
At least my new one isn't defective.

Now to turn my attention to the throttling issue of the i7...

 

You need to stress both the GPU and the CPU at the same time.

 

How do I do that?

 

Very carefully.


Just kidding. A few pages back there was a tool mentioned.. OCCT. This is the GPU stresser. For the CPU stresser, go grab wPrime or something like that.

 

OtherSteve, I can confirm!

I ran OCCT at Max Performance power profile with battery in, and it hardly throttled at all (let alone perma).

As soon as I plugged in AC (while OCCT continued to run), the throttling kicked in savagely and went perma within 5 mins.

Interesting... thanks for testing the boundaries!

Petrov.

 

Hi.

I just did some more testing, this time I did NOT use hwinfo32, but I used coretemp and cpu-z for monitoring.

stressors:
cpu: intelburntest
gpu: furmark

This time, when I DIDNT use hwinfo32, under super heavy load both with the cpu and gpu, when temps got to about 90c, the cpu and gpu throttled to 100%. Basically, it was not turboing at all. so, cpu ran at 2.7ghz, and gpu at 650mhz.

I think hwinfo32 has something to do with this strange behavior.

 

Floz, what power profile had you set to, how many 3dmark06 runs?

Have you tried occt as described in my post a few pages back?

Petrov.

 

In this case, should we start gathering up what kind of power adapter we're all using? Are the people having this issue all using the 65W adapters? Do people with the 95W adapters have any problems?

 

I ran OCCT without hwinfo32 in the background, and I still saw throttling down to 800mhz quite quickly. This was shown in OCCT own info pane and also via cpu-z.

Petrov.

 

Good idea - I have a 65W adapter.

Petrov.

 

65W adapter here too. I've successfully replicated the problem (using OCCT), however I am not able to reproduce it every time. I've had it perma-throttle after 2-3 min, 10-15min, and then not at all on a 1 hour run w/ OCCT AND wPrime. This was all done on AC power. Don't have the time to do a battery only test now, so I'll post results if I have time tomorrow.

 

Also, to x220 owners. Have you tested out your webcam yet? (Aside from when you first got the machine and played with everything..) I mean try testing it right now (presumably you've patched and updated everything from Microsoft and Lenovo). Does your webcam still work?

I have 2 drives, the stock HDD that came from lenovo that was initialized during setup, and then cloned and not used again, and a C300 SSD that I imaged the stock HDD onto. My SSD install has all the latest patches from both companies, however trying to start the webcam initially caused the system to hang, and now its just showing up as driver problem with integrated camera.

Confirmed that it is NOT a hardware issue as when I plug the factory HDD in (without patches and updates) the webcam works.

 

Oh my gosh. Some lenovo "front office" lady (her term) called me just now to say the throttling issue I'd identified was 'normal' according to their techs. Needless to say, I wasn't very happy. I suggest anyone with an i7 calls lenovo tech support and lodges this perm throttling issue with them!

Petrov.

 

If the issue has been escalated to Japan as JameZ indicated, don't worry about what the low level monkeys say.

 

I guess I'll add my 2 bits -
1. the webcam didn't hang on me but doesn't work in Live Movie Maker;
I'm guessing it's a driver issue

2. we need to standardize the testing for the throttling issue; some people run with 95w "fat" adapters, some slim, some 65w, and some without adapters only on batteries. And there are 6 and 9 cells ones.

In order to properly replicate Petrov's and anyone else's throttling issues, we need to know their precise scenarios and then see if we can replicate them.

sounds fair?

*just received shipment notification... the one with the fingerprint reader is now shipped from China... ordered May 19th... hehehehe*

 

Glambert, for now your system appears to be working fine with no throttling since many reported that just by running the gpu test on occt, they will immediately get the throttling come up. But as floz23 suggest try to stress the cpu also at the same time to see what happens (prime95, wprime). You can also try the 3DMark06 test (by itself with hwinfo32 to get your stats, not together with occt) where you perform the test back to back 4-5 times. If it passes those tests, then you are a lucky one.

One more thing, do you have the laptop on ac power or on batery? Which power adapter you have? As others have mentioned that the problem seems to happen only on ac power.

 

Looks like it might be a BIOS issue for you guys with the i7. glambert's screenshot shows BIOS version 1.12. Pretty much all of the rest of us have gotten 1.11 from the factory; and since the Lenovo support site is down right now, I believe only 1.15 has been available from the site.

 

I experienced throttling on 1.12, see my screenshots a few pages back.

I think the AC power issue appears to be the most likely cause, though has anyone tested on a clean install with only Windows as power management (no Lenovo software running)?

 

Ok ya'll, I am expecting UPS to arrive today with my X220. As previously mentioned, I am a decade long Mac guy going back to PC. When do I NEED to do when I first get this thing? I see a lot about making backup discs, etc. Do I install the few pieces of software I will need before doing that? Seriously, I am a total noob about this stuff. A quick "todo" list would be great to get the best performance/use of my new machine.

Thanks!

 

The very first thing I would do is create your recovery discs. That way, if anything goes horribly wrong, you still have an out. From there, I'd perform updates via the Lenovo System Update software followed by Windows Update. And finally, I'd pick out a security solution (I prefer ESET myself) and stick with it.

Next, install a better web browser (I recommend Google Chrome w/ the AdBlock and WOT extensions to all of my clients) and keep your browser plugins up to date. More than anything else, this will keep you protected against any web-based exploits/threats. Anything that slips by your security should catch, and it's doubtful you will have any trouble with security if you stick with this arrangement.

You might also want to make yourself a drive image via some sort of imaging software (like Acronis from example). That way, once everything's setup, you can simply reimage if you ever have a massive failure of some sort.

From there, there really isn't much else to worry about. PCs are fairly trouble-free these days when properly configured. It's the old XP dinosaurs that everyone always seems to think are so great which actually experience most of the problematic (11-year-old) behavior.

 

800MHz

10char

 

I didn't mess with the south bridge chip. I just left the thermal pad as is. The unit seemed to have went together ok. The palm rest was a bugger for some reason, but it seems as good as it was. I did notice some keyboard flex after doing it, but I think that it was there from before I had just never "tried" to notice. It should keep the fan a bit quieter I would think.

 

Thanks Othersteve! That's what I was looking for. One more question; when I use something to make a drive image, how do I do that? I know on a Mac you have to boot off another drive to make an image of the master drive. Is that the case on the PC or is there some other way to do it. I really do want to do my base install of software and make a master image in case I want to reinstall for some reason. Thanks again.

 

Hey weddings,

It's my pleasure. You can image a drive either from within Windows or by booting to another device containing the software, but the most reliable way to do it is the latter. My personal favorite software for this is Acronis True Image, but none of them is perfect. However, that's what I use for nearly all of my customers' drive images (after which I provide them with the software in case they need it), and generally everyone is pleased with that arrangement.

True Image is pretty failsafe if you do it from a boot CD/USB device. If you have trouble making the bootable device let me know and I can help.

 

I left the thermal pad too, btw.

 

Here is the message I just submitted to JameZ, ( a moderator on the official lenovo forums.)


Greeting James,

Sorry for the late reply, I just got back to the office.

Here is some additional info, along with the image attachment.

I have not been able to reproduce this issue with a 90watt ultraslim adapter. On the 90watt adapter, the laptop will throttle exactly to it's rated speed, 2.7ghz cpu, 650mhz gpu.

The screenshot attached, the laptop is on an ultrabase3, powered by a 65watt adapter. Sometimes the cpu gets "stuck" at 800mhz, other times it will throttle back up to 2.7ghz in a few moments.

Let me know if there is anything else I can do to help. Honestly though, this x220 has had one issue after another, and I'm really thinking of returning this laptop, and taking a gamble on the Sony SA series. I hope we can get to the bottom of this.

 

Ironic, because the 90W UltraSlim makes the touchpad unusable.

Sounds to me like these laptops have power issues.

 

It is funny. Power issues somewhere. The jumpy touchpad seems to suggest some type of EMF interference. But then again, I'm no electrical engineer.

 

Posting from a X220i. Overall, it looks like a sweet machine. The screen is gorgeous, though I'm no pro. There's a slight bit of bleed, but you'd only notice it when booting. I have noticed some fan noise as others have. Mines more of an ever present dull hum as opposed to a on/off thing. It's not terrible, but is there. Hopefully, this will get fixed soon. It seems well built. The touchpad has a nice feel, but is lame otherwise. It'd be nice if there was a X200 like palm rest option.I'm at 50% battery and I've 4.5 hours left, which is probably about 7 more than I need. Overall, I'd give it a 8.5 out of ten. It'll be 9.5 if the fan issue gets fixed. I'm just so happy to have a notebook again.

 

Do you have a 6 or 9 cell battery?

 

I have the 65W adapter and I can't have my laptop plugged in when using a corded phone otherwise there's this static hum like no tomorrow...

 

I have the six-cell battery.

 

Interesting... I assume you mean static type noise on the corded phone? How far away do you have to be from the plugged in laptop before the noise goes away?

 

^^^ Jealous of your estimated 8 hour battery...

 

Isn't that the way it goes. I only need about two give or take.

 

Engadget.com has picked up on the x220 throttling issue...

Petrov.

 

It will help the apple fan-tards to be reminded that their beloved Macbooks suffered a similar issue previously, as was mentioned in this thread a while ago.

 

And I distinctly remember a throttling issue with i7 Dell Studio that came out not last xmas but the xmas before. It was to do with the power adapter. Possibly using the 130-watt adapter resolved the issue or it could have been the smaller adapter- I can't remember. It was discussed in the Dell section of this forum.

 

People in there are saying it only happens when the battery is out and ac plugged in. Is it true? I thought it was when ac plugged, but together with the battery, not without the battery. Which is it? Thanks.

 

Howdy Mello. Don't be infected by the engadget user comments, they are from the hip and/or uninformed.

It is happening with BOTH battery and ac plugged in at the SAME time. I was at pains to point this out on the Lenovo forums.

Petrov.

 

This is the case. I have the 1645 and the 130W adapter and I do not throttle. However whenever I forget and leave my power adapter at home, and temporarily use my 90W adapter at work, I throttle just a little bit when doing intensive work. In this case it is a matter of insufficient power coming from the AC adapter. Please note, however, that my throttling goes away on its own after a while - it is not "permanent" in that I need to reboot to lift the throttling.

It's possible that the current problems are similar due to insufficient power draw, but I'm not going to really weigh in on the current Lenovo throttling as I have no experience with it (but am clearly lurking and watching the progress - I am buying a x220i soon).

 

Understood, but I think the earlier point was made that it could be only when using a 65 watt adapter with the battery plugged in. Perhaps the 90 watt adapter would make a difference?

 

If you want to stop the throttling, use Throttlestop at your own discretion.
http://forum.notebookreview.com/har...arket-upgrades/531329-throttlestop-guide.html

Really helped me out, especially while doing PS2 emulation.