ThinkPad X220 (i/T) Owners Thread

Aren't most things in life?

On a typical internet page, that extra 132 is going to get you about three extra lines. I guess I don't see three lines being worth celebrating. Please give an example.

If this were back in the day and you went from XGA to SXGA+, you got about 10 extra lines of resolution. That to me seems a much more exciting.

 

Let's start with a bit of humor: what is the minimum resolution you would accept? How about 636? After all, it's only about three fewer lines than 768? ;-)

More seriously, here are a few examples from my real work that are made more difficult with 768 instead of 900 lines of vertical resolution:

- PowerPoint: in Normal view, it's harder to have a few lines of the Notes view showing at the bottom. I like to edit both the slide and the notes at the same time.

- Outlook: in the Month view of the Calender, fewer appointments are visible on each day so I have to switch between views to see both an overview and the details of my schedule.

- Visual Studio: harder to view both my code and a few lines of the compiler error messages (the standard place for error messages is a small window across the bottom). Fewer lines of resolution mean few lines of code visible which gives you less context at a glance. Scrolling is just not as good as being able to see an entire function on the screen at once. Bumping down the font size helps, but then the text looks less precise.

- Expression Blend: in the Animation Workspace view, the Timeline window is across the bottom since it needs a lot of width to make it usable. However, this leaves little room for the artboard showing the GUI you're creating.

Every time I open my X220 with the IPS display I think "what a crappy screen, this is unpleasant to work on". When I go back to my X200s, I think "wow this is nice".

 

Has anyone had any trouble with their x220 running too hot with intensive, prolonged use of the graphics?

 

I don't see how that small of a resolution bump makes that much of a difference, but to each his or her own I guess.

 

Looking for advise.

I have an x220 with a i5 processor with a Hitachi non SSD drive. I did a clean install of windows.

Almost every time I play an .avi file in vlc video player, the playback is choppy. I have played the same videos in my older and weaker t61 and they work on that.

Has anyone experienced this? I suspect this is a documented problem, but I did several search strings and couldn't find any info. Are there any tweaks you recommend? I am almost positive all my drivers are up to date.

Happy to post any more info that can help solve this. Many thanks. Love the computer otherwise.

 

I have not experienced this and I'm running an i3. My guess would be you're missing a codec or something, which may relate back to files. Is your T61 running XP or Vista? If so, that may help explain it too. I prefer Media Player Classic if you want to try something different.

 

Its funny how you keep telling people about poor 768p resolution as norm and that theres nothing wrong with it
Perhaps watching 720p movies or lesser is OK on such low res screen, but the rest is absolute crap if you are using your laptop intensively for anything else than just lazy movie watching or youtube video in 480p resolution
Why downgrade?
Some of us use desktop monitors that have 1024p vertical resolution or more so going down to 768p is HUGE downside for them, me included, so Ill pass and wait to see if they implement FullHD screens into laptops like they have started to do in tablets, some should start shipping soon.

For some laptop is being used on the desk and on the go equal amount of time and for equal tasks so argument about laptop being mobile and some sacrifices being made is IMO invalid, we NEED that resolution, period.

One could argue that bare minimum 480p resolution should suffice as well, would you mind to have one in your laptop?
After all, its all about portability and not usability, or?

 

In fact, I have more or less related problems not with VLC but with Windows Media player.

At some sites, I cannot enable fast forwarding or rewinding of video playback of the WMP (using seek bar) only with the X220, while there's no problem with the same sites in all other PCs (HP, DIY) & notebooks (Asus UL30A, Lenovo G570, Samsung NC10) I have.

The codec may not be an issue, though, because playback itself is working.

Regards,
K. S. (Joe)

 

Has anyone been able to outfit this machine with 16Gb of ram on 2x8GB DIMMs. Or is it not possible, and if not why? Thanks.

 

Yup, the only thing I miss about my Vaio Z is the 1600x900 screen. The IPS screen does look better, but the resolution is missed. Anything extra would be a bonus.

S

 

I have a Z2 and a x220 and I will selling the Z2 not just because of the screen I prefer the X220 IPS, and the fact that the x220 has upgradeable parts.

 

Okay, I've spent an hour on a phone with technical support on Saturday and we've established that the trackpad is garbage. As much as I absolutely love everything else about my x220, I will be returning it to Lenovo tomorrow. I just can't get over paying almost $1,000 for a computer that annoys the hell out of me every time I try to scroll down on a web page... But for those of you who use the red nub, I couldn't recommend x220 more!

If anyone's interested in a 64GB mSata MyDigitalSSD ($80) or a G.Skill 4GB RAM module ($20) please PM me. Both tested and in 100% working condition, happy to sell together or individually.

 

http://muf.sk/files/IMG_20111219_194242.jpg

dear x220 users, can I use such a adapter with x220 (or the ultrabase)? it's 19V HP charger with the 3 pin connector.

 

New here. I just ordered an x220, stepping up from a T41, a T61 and three or four earlier Thinkpads. I need someone to suggest a light and reliable external DVD burner. I hope to spend $80 or less.

 

Check Newegg.com

any of the Samsungs should be good,

 

There is nothing wrong with it. My point all along is that the difference between HD and HO+ is so small I personally don't think it's worth getting excited about.

 

I'll chime in because I feel so strongly about this... I simply couldn't buy a laptop or otherwise with less than 900p. I've had > 1000p for over a decade of laptop ownership... Now as I debate back and forth about buying the T420s with it's 900p, I know that it as low as I could go. And I haven't even gone there yet... The 900p coupled to the screen itself has caused me to order and cancel waiting on Sony to find another OEM to distribute the 13" FHD to. It is a MAJOR issue for me and others I'm sure, and it's an absolute deal breaker...

 

Hi everyone,

I just got my X220. i7, IPS, 4GB RAM, Intel mSATA 80GB plus standard HDD, Intel wifi 6205, 6 cell battery.

On my first impression, the X220 is not as light as I would have liked (I handled a X41 a couple of times and it seemed lighter), but the screen is not as small as I had feared. I'm coming from a T60 with a 1440x1050 display, and while I miss those extra vertical lines it seems I can get used to this setup.

I would have liked a latch on the lid and maybe softer hinges that allow the lid to be opened with one hand. I don't feel comfortable trying to wiggle it open with my finger in the ethernet port or somewhere.

Before buying I had a hard time deciding between Samsung SSD 830 128 GB and Intel mSATA 310 80GB. In the end I went with the mSATA, still not sure whether it was the right decision, but I figured I'd think that either way.

I don't use a lot of space, managed to live on a 60GB Linux partition on my T60 so far (with a rarely accessed external HDD as backup). I the end I went with the manufacturer with the still better reputation for reliability and an SSD doing active garbage collection (I installed LUKS encrypted Linux on the drive and trim support is still not completely implemented). Reasons for the Samsung SSD would have been weight (but I guess I can still take out the HDD if I don't use it) and better speeds. I read power consumption on the 830 is not great. I don't know if there's a noticeable difference in everyday usage between the mSATA Intel and a SATA 3 Samsung (also keeping in mind that I encrypted the drive). But I'm happy with my 10 seconds boot time (at most) so far.

Just one more thing: there is something wrong with the spring of the Page-Up-Key. It jams when pressed. I called Lenovo this morning and they said they'd express mail a new keyboard to me.

On a more general note, the keys on my X220 are a lot harder to press compared to what I'm used to from my T60. X220 has red domes, so Chicony (?), T60 has white domes, so ALPS (?) (I know it's supposed to be the other way round). Actually I like the softer feel of my T60 better, the X220 keys feel more plasticky and cheaper. But coming back from the X220 to the T60 after just a day made my typing there a lot less reliable. I don't know what Lenovo is going to send me. I tried to explain to the woman that they have different manufacturers for the keyboard (yeah, that's right, I explained it to her) and that I'd like a different one. She said she wouldn't test my replacement keyboard and wouldn't know what it felt like, so I gave up.

 

anyone can check at their charger to see how much voltage does it outputs?

 

Mine says 65 watt (small brick)
90 watt (large brick)
90 watt (slim travel)

 

I bought this DVD burner for 39.99 and it works great. Very small too.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B003YT578O/ref=oh_o04_s00_i01_details

 

Is your boot time really < 10 secs? I have the same setup and at about 25 secs.

 

hey, thanks for the info. but could you check how many VOLTS is it making? like "20V" or something. also is this the same connector as yours: http://muf.sk/files/IMG_20111219_194242.jpg ?

 

Apart from having Lenovo and not HP on them , both my 65W and 90W adapters output 20V. No idea if you can use a 19V adapter or which risks that would entail.

 

Quite. I upgraded the HDD and the RAM in mine. The deal-breaker that totally stopped me going from the Z1 to Z2 though was the fact that the Z is limited to 1920x1200 resolution on both of the video outputs, even though the GPU can go higher.

I use my x220 with a 2560x1440 monitor over DP and it's glorious. About four times the size of it's own display!

S

 

TigerDirect has that one for $10 less.

 

My Lenovo 90W (not slimline) outputs 20V.

S

 

I just got my new keyboard from Lenovo. White domes, I think, like on my T60. It definitely feels different compared to either the other X220 keyboard or my T60 (white domes as well). It's softer than the red-dome-X220-keyboard but not as soft as the T60 one, but I think I'm happy with it for now.

I did it with a stop watch today, turns out I did exaggarate a bit. From GRUB to X login prompt (loading the window manager after login takes no time) it's roundabout 11.5 seconds. I stopped the watch while typing my encryption passphrase. Measuring from power on to desktop probably takes about 25 seconds, like on your setup. I don't know why that BIOS splash screen takes so long.

 

Good to hear about the annoying trackpad problem from first hand users. Can't find any place to demo this unit to try it first and return policy is shabby IMO. It's hard to tell what is perfectly fine, or even preferable, for some people and completely annoying, un-usable, to others, and I haven't purchased yet but was on my way to, this thread and horrible Lenovo salesman helped me to decide not to, and that's a done deal.

The people on Lenovo chat box support that pops up while you browse the site were friendly, but they really don't know anything special, don't believe me, just go ask them various questions, like what slot does the WiFi adapter take up, etc.. Asked them if tablet supports pressure sensitivity and they can't even tell, send me to tech support.... Salesmen on the phone was a #$%off. All I did was say, you know it would be useful for me to try this thing first before buying either via a demo loaner or some store where I can go to check one out in person, or for you guys to have a better return policy (their policy is 21 days +15% restock fee). He actually started to explain to me why they didn't need to do that because of how successful they are... I told him off and hung up. Obnoxious customer service loses sales, I'll skip Lenovo now, thanks. I'll wait until more companies make tablets and do a decent job, not even sure Lenovo is to be honest, unfortunate but I'm not putting up with bad support and reps and shabby return policies. If I do decide to get a Lenovo in the future, I'm getting a used one on purpose.

Monitor size is fine, resolution is a little on the small side, I'd prefer 1080p. Also, Wacom is notorious for not being able to fine tune the corners of their "cintique screens" for accuracy because it's just a wacom board placed behind the monitor sloppily, the tech is old and laughable at this point and you can actually create that effect yourself if you have a little time on your hands. The click pad problem probably would bother me, but I actually think the idea is a good one, and like having bigger track surface but I can see how it's not that usable as is. From what I can see, brush rotation and brush tilt aren't supported either, as well the stylus only has 1 button, instead of the usual 2 click I'm used to on my desktop Wacom. And most of all, these machines should really be able to come with a decent mobile graphics card as an option, integrated graphics was just another thing on top of small resolution I had to justify as a compromise. I'm done trying to compromise around this device before I've even bought it......

Glad to see people like it and can make this thing work well for them, I can see why. I hope it drives the competition to make more, and then I will get something like this. Until then. LOL no deal, Lenovo sales and under-trained personnel plus too many compromises in a non-cheap product have me well turned off, I'll wait till I can find something cheap I can modify or buy something used at a bargain or find some other solution. Done.

 

Yes, that WEI score is low. How did you populate the mSata? Did you format it and do a clean install of Windows? Did you do that while the other SSD/HDD was removed? If your answer is not yes to both questions, you probably have an alignment issue which will make it slower. (I had this SSD problem both on my X220 and on my desktop PC with SSDs.)

You can run the AS SSD or the Anvil Storage Utilities benchmark tools. They will tell you immediately whether there's an alignment issue or not.

EDIT: Sorry, I missed your later post where you said that this was resolved.
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90w slim - 20V
90w brick - 20V
65w - 20V

 

Thanks, all. I just ordered a Samsung from B&H on the advice of an earlier post. I am now anxiously awaiting the arrival of my X220 early next month.

 

Now you tell me. Lol.

 

Got my x220 today. I ordered i5, IPS, 4Gb, 320Gb HDD (5400 one, the only non SSD they had due to the HDD shortage), camera, no BT, Intel 1000 wifi, 6 cell.

First thing first, ordered 8Gb of G Skill RAM from Newegg.. paid 28 dollars for 2x4Gb chips. just happened to come across a deal. Now looking for a 128Gb SSD, hoping BF prices on Intel 320 return

I have a 15 inch T520 as my work laptop and been using 14-15 inch models at work for years so everything looks and feels like home. Performance is great, trackpad is not as bad as others report. Battery life under light usage is 6-7 hours and counting...

One major disappointment though is its SCREEN. It has a yellowish tint, low brightness, and a light bleed visible during the startup. Pretty consistent with what other people are saying. Honestly, I don't see a huge benefit of this IPS over TN which I have in my other Lenovo. Can I live with it? Absolutely. I just set the brightness to 11-12 and don't look at the screen when it boots up

Overall, I am happy with it and it's definitely a keeper.

 

Not sure where to put this so instead of creating a new thread, I'm creating a post. For those of you looking for a vertical bag for the X220, take a look at the Targus Radius 13" vertical messenger back. I've been searching for a vertical bag for a few days now and this Targus has surpass all my expectations. It fits the 9cell perfectly, enough room where the zipper doesn't touch the laptop itself, great number of pockets, feels and is very sturdy and durable. My friend has a 9cell x220 and bought the STM Alley bag and the Targus is by far more protective than the STM. Here's a review from one of the Notebookreview member: http://forum.notebookreview.com/accessories/623086-targus-radius-13-vertical-messenger-review.html and Amazon has it for $52 but if you're close to Fry's Electronics, they have it for $39.99. If anyone would like a picture of the laptop inside the bag itself let me know and I'll post some pics up.

 

Actually, I didn't even search I have this FastestChrome extension (on Chrome) that pops up a little window that said TigerDirect had it for $10 less. May keep using that feature...

 

That yellowish just does not sound right. I would seriously consider getting a replacement while you can.

As far the IPS screen goes, I find it a tremendous benefit over TN. When using other PCs (as I normally am), I frequently am not directly in front the X220. IPS is viewing angles are great and the picture is sharp.

 

I tweaked the color levels to my liking.. definitely not worth repairing. The replacement panel might be even worse, have dead pixels etc.

 

I have the yellow tint on my x220t-- did you use windows calibration or the intel graphics tools to fix it? (and if it's simple enough, what did you do?) Also, has anyone tried some sort of professional calibration tools, and if so, what was the end result?

 

I used the Intel graphics tool. I increased contrast by a couple of points, lowered gamma for green to 0.9.. Looks much better, at least on my screen

 

That's cool. It may be time I switch from Firefox.

 

In order to free up a bit more space on the mSata, I am thinking about deleting the Q: drive recovery partition. I created rescue and recovery disks on a thumb drive and plan on creating another set on an external USB hard drive partition. Is there any reason to keep the Q: drive recovery partition alive?

 

tongdakfiend,

No, if you want the space and have created the rescue and recovery disks, there is no reason to keep the Q: recovery partition.

 

Hey Brian5, did you manage to solve the issue with the slow performance of your Runcore mSATA?

Did you delete your Q Partition? I am still on the fence about deleting the Q drive, even though I have the R&R discs...

 

Azrielsc,

Yes, it was "alignment" issue that one typically gets with SSDs after doing a disk clone, Windows Backup restore, other restores... After recreating a new partition and installing a fresh Win 7, I got the full speeds of 280MB/s Read and 265MB/s Write. I learned a lot last week --- I didn't know about these "alignment errors" that one could get. In this post, I have some pics showing the errors and saying how I found about find out them causing issues with my desktop PC too. Benchmarks like CrystalDiskMark and ATTO do not show any errors.

Yes, I deleted the Q partition. I had made a backup of it but I never plan to use it again. Now that I've done a clean Win install, got everything all configured right, made a backup of that; that's what I would restore from.

 

brian5,

I see. Didn't expect the "alignment" issue to affect the performance so much. I was reading past posters comments and the best way to avoid this is to either do a clean Win7 install or use the R&R discs.

Okay, I will delete the Q partition then!

 

Damn... That was easy! Just double-clicked on the Q partition and a box appeared to confirm if I had made my R&R discs and if I wanted to recover the disk space. I chose recover disk space and automatically, the Q partition disappeared and the 9GB+ is added to my C:

Nice!

 

FYI regarding backups. I have been meaning to look at backup software (like the Easeus ToDo Backup Free) but haven't got around to it.

What I've been using on my laptop and desktop for the backups and recoveries that I've been doing is the free DriveImage XML. That has been working really well for me. After restoring a Windows partition, for example, I just go and set it to be an Active partition.

 

I think i fixed this problem by installing Direct x. (Didn't know it didn't come with windows, lol). Here is the installer that i used. Video now plays flawlessly on media player classic and vlc.

DirectX End-User Runtime Web Installer June 2010 Download - Softpedia

 

Can any X220 users tell me how the keyboard compares to a T410 keyboard?