Thinkpad T420 Owner's Thread

Yes you can remove the recovery partition once you've created your own set of Rescue & Recovery disks since that will recover the factory image regardless if you have a recovery partition or not.

 

So the driver works, but now I get the error that Windows cannot be installed on the Partition 2 (Windows OS_7).

"Windows cannot be installed on this disk. The selected disk has an MBR partition table. On EFI systems, Windows can only be installed to GTP disks."

Thanks for any advice/guidance!

 

Are you trying to install Windows under UEFI mode? You can't mix and match existing partitions that is installed under the original BIOS method (Non-UEFI mode) so you either:

- Delete the partitions clean, start from a clean slate and install from there.

- Go back out, in the BIOS choose Legacy mode instead of UEFI mode and install normally without changing the partition type.

 

Ah Ha! I didn't understand the UEFI Bios instructions. Once I stopped "mis-matching" I was able to format the HDD. Thank you so much for the step by step!

 

Hi Shleepy, I was wondering whether your customized T420 is still up and running (smoothly)? I want a small (max. 14") quad core laptop myself, and because I love the Thinkpad series, your build seems a viable solution.

 

Thinkpad arrived yesterday - so less than a week from order to delivery - pretty impressed by that since it was a customised one too.

I put the ssd in it since the rails were standard on mine, and it's pretty quick now.

I like it so far, still getting used to the keyboard and small arrow keys, I do mostly application development with Visual Studio 2010, I'll try and do a review once i've used it for a couple of weeks. Thanks for the advice so far - i'm sure i'll be back for more...

 

I have a T420 with discrete graphics and the entry-level Core i3 processor, and here are my comments on temperatures:

1. I use TPFanControl to set the fan at its highest setting. The noise doesn't bother me too much. In this scenario, the CPU idles at around 50C, the GPU, 45C. Room temperature was roughly 25C and very humid. No air conditioning.
2. After about twenty minutes with Dragon Age: Origins, the CPU hit 80C, the GPU roughly 70C. These temperatures are similar to the thermals on my 2009 MacBook Pro 13-inch (Core 2 Duo 2.26 GHz, GeForce 9400M).

 

I've re-mapped the keys above the arrows to be pgup/pgdn using KeyTweak

I also remapped the Ctrl key next to them as Del. This makes it quicker to scroll through my Inbox deleting stuff. Some go so far as to remap the adjacent Alt and context menu key as Home and End.

You'll also note the arrows are convex, as opposed to convex like the rest. This makes them easier to feel without looking when moving your hand to use them. One more little touch that makes the Thinkpads nice to use.

 

Hey All

Got my T420s last week and love it. I've only every owned pads, and MBPs.

What I've always done with my ThinkPad’s is:
- buy smallest HDD and then upgrade myself
- buy smallest amount of ram and then upgrade myself

Ram Upgrade
The ram worked out fine. I was under the impression that one of the two RAM slots was under the keyboard, I was quite happy to find out that both were at the bottom of the lappy.

The HDD upgrade is a bit annoying though
- I removed the OEM HDD to find that it was 7mm vs. 9.5mm, this was a bit of a blind side I "assumed" that all 2.5 drives were 9.5mm
- I had to remove the rails from my Intel 320 to get it to fit.
- With the intro of the MSATA drives I think I have a new plan

1. Install 80GB Intel 310 as OS and Install 750GB or 1TB storage drive and have DVD drive aswell

OR

2. Keep Intel 320 SSD, and use Ultra Bay HDD caddy to install storage drive but Lose DVD drive.



Questions

RAM SPACE - Can an Intel 310 MSATA still fit in the required compartment with two sticks of RAM in there?

HDD SIZE - What is the largest capacity 7mm laptop HDD around? From my research I "think" it’s 320GB, is this true? I want to go with option 1, but only if I can get a 500+ GB HDD to hit in the 7mm slot.

Cheers,

 

Thanks wkearney99 - I'm on the case

 

Just ordered my thinkpad yesterday, how long do you think before it comes in? The rep said 3 weeks and I also bought it through the canadian site.

Also was upgrading to an ssd easy, and if you upgraded ram too, was that easy?

 

You'll have some time before your machine gets here. Take some of that time and READ THE MESSAGES HERE. It's all been covered.

 

All I can do is say how long mine took, I've got no inside knowledge of Lenovos lead times at all - sorry.

My machine arrived with the right size rails so yeah my upgrade to SSD was really easy, undo some screws, take out original disk, put ssd in - do up screws.
I didn't copy an image over or anything like that, I generally rebuild my machines from scratch anyway, the only thing I haven't done yet is make a recovery set using the ThinkVantage tools, but im told thats easy enough - i'll do it once all my apps are installed.

I bought it with all the ram so didnt upgrade that.

Going to to the ultrabay and msata next - we'll see how that goes.

 

Like Junior21, I recently ordered my T420.
Just curious but how much of a risk would I be taking to upgrade the RAM under the keyboard?

 

You might damage the ribbon cable that connects the keyboard to the motherboard, but that's pretty much it.

 

What about the SSD? How risky is that?

 

You won't have to remove the keyboard if you are installing an mSATA SSD.

 

Thanks! Just curious, but what do you think is the most crucial upgrade for the T420?

And also, are there any accessories that you would consider to be important if it is being carried around the university campus?

 

1. An SSD is the best upgrade that money can buy. Imagine your system booting up in less time than it takes you to read a full newspaper article. They are that fast.
2. A case, bag or sleeve to protect your Thinkpad would be ideal when transporting it around campus.

 

Can anyone reccommend a good SSD?

 

I hear the Intel 320 series of SSDs are quite good in terms of both performance and reliability. Not so sure about the 510 series (their SATA III model, which uses a non-Intel controller).

 

Just in case anyone else comes across this issue

My 2nd monitor was blurry today (Displayport to HDMI) - I spent a long time trying to unblur it using the windows settings and the Intel HD settings to no avail - no matter what settings I changed or resolution I set it (or the main monitor) to...

Also the Intel utility wouldnt let me set the refresh rate any less than 75Hz for some reason...

To fix it I selected "Screen Resolution" from a desktop right click, selected my second monitor (by clicking on it) then clicking the blue "Advanced settings" link.

Select the "Monitor" tab (see below)

At that point you should get a dropdown of generic PnP monitors (I dont get it any more for some reason) - I selected the bottom one and changed it's refresh rate to 60Hz and voila - instant sharp screen again.

 

So now you get a specific monitor name shown? I've found it's useful to load up a driver for a monitor when windows thinks it's generic. There's often a few issues that crop up when using generic that go away when using a proper monitor driver. Also note nVidia's control panel has a way to create custom resolutions (which include refresh rate).

 

Thanks I did have the profile for the main monitor installed but it still shows generic pnp for some reason...wierdness for most of the afternoon like that really..

the second monitor is a tv so it doesnt have a driver/profile as such, also i'm using the Intel HD graphics and not Nvidia unfortunately - I've always found the NVidia multi monitor capability to be a much nicer/smoother experience than the Intel one....

 

Will the W14 lenovo laptop sleeve fit the 9 cell battery?

 

If it's a TV connected via HDMI then you should get a name for it when it's recognized. This is a basic function of HDMI (related to HDCP handshaking).

Are you connecting straight to the TV? Or through a receiver? Are you using the displayport or a DVI connector?

I ask because there are a bunch of 'behind the scenes' steps win7 goes through with monitors and it can get all kinds of screwy when things aren't connected "just so".

 

Its going through the displayport to hdmi, then onto dvi through another adaptor, so I doubt there's much native handshaking going on.

It's "working" now, and post reboot my laptop monitor shows Thinkpad 1600 900 instead of Generic PnP, so I'm happy with that - I won't tinker with it any more lest it breaks

 

So I take it the TV doesn't have an HDMI connector? You're using DVI into it?

If the TV has HDMI try connecting through it, even if just as a test. See if that passes proper monitor info. What make/model TV is it? Some do a better job than others with this stuff.

Trouble is unless you get it connected properly you're going to run afoul of DRM issues since it can't handshake with the monitor. This may prevent you from playing back movies or using streaming services properly.

 

The Intel 320 recently reported to have some problems where it can cripple itself (see the 8MB bug). The Intel 510 while not perfect, is generally fine if you don't mind the slight warm reboot issue where it freezes for a short time (however in fairness I believe this is down to the Lenovo BIOS with the Active Protection System rather than Intel 510 SSD itself).

The Intel X25-M despite being last generation has a proven reliablility record and decent Random 4k speeds (even better than the Intel 510). I would actually recommend this over the Intel 320 for now.

 

i'm thinking of buying a t420. is the deal they have going on right now any good? should i wait or go ahead and purchase?

Lenovo - ThinkPad Back-to-School YOU PAY WHAT WE PAY SALE

 

They're not bad prices, but the "you pay what we pay" claim? Yeah, that's *definitely* not true.

 

Hi when running on battery in power saving mode. I notice that my brightness goes up and down. When I load a new webpage it changes. Anyone know why? Thanks

 

Strange, my T420 changes brightness when you switch power sources but not during a working session. You don't have Dynamic Brightness Control on by any chance?

 

Looking for an mSATA for the T420, I've heard the Intel 310 series works.

I've found these two and they appear the same but look different in the picture? Can anyone tell me if these are compatible with the T420.

Thanks.

SSDMAEMC080G2C1 | Intel SSDMAEMC080G2C1 MLC Solid State Drive | Canada's best price

Newegg.com - Intel 310 Series 80GB mSATA mSATA (mini PCIe form factor) MLC Enterprise Solid State Disk SSDMAEMC080G2C1 - Enterprise SSD

 

The first one is a standard solid state drive, not a mSATA drive. I think thats actually an Intel X25-M drive which is a great drive BTW and should work fine in the T420. The Newegg link is the actual Intel 310 mSATA drive you want.

EDIT: Actually inspecting closely the first one also sells the Intel 310 but shows the wrong image which is actually an Intel X25-M. >_< TBH I wouldn't really trust a shopping site if they got their stock product images wrong...

 

Okay, I think I'll buy the Newegg one right now then.

But before I do, can anyone verify that this will work in my T420? I bought it from Lenovo Canada. Also will a noob like me be able to install it? I've never had to install anything like this before, I don't even know how to create a backup disc or really know what that is.

 

Other people used the Intel 310's in their T420's so I don't see why it wouldn't work on yours. Installation is relatively easy, just slot it in and go. The slot for the mSATA is located underneath the system where it shares with the second Memory DIMM slot.

The backup discs is a straight forward procedure, just use Lenovo's Rescue & Recovery software preloaded on the factory installation and have some blank discs ready to make your own set and it pretty much does the hard work for you.

 

And is an mSATA really worth the extra $225.00?

I guess I can't buy it from the US site and now I'll be paying an extra $25.00...

What am I even getting out of this? A faster boot time is that all and some quiet?

 

Benefits of SSDs in general are:

* Significantly fast Boot-Ups and Application Loading - Once you get used to this you'll find any rotating hard drive to be very slow!

* Quietness - No spindle and seek noises for quieter computing.

* Low power consumption - Normally they have lower power consumption compared to standard HDD which also may help to increase battery life.

* Robustness - Since it has no moving parts its less likely to suffer failure if you knock it about unlike rotating hard drives.

 

Alright, I just submitted the order.

Thanks Hearst for the help, I would rep you again but it looks like I need to spread around some rep before I can rep you again, lol.

I'm very anxious to get both my T420 and mSATA now as I spent way more than I would of liked to and I'm now debating if i should have just went mac or a better notebook with the money I spent. Regardless I can't wait for it to arrive and I will most certainly be looking for more help on installation once the time comes.

Thanks.

 

Thanks for the DRM info wkearney99, it's only being used for development work though so as long as the screen colours & contrast & sharpness are right then that's all I need.

 

I received my new T420. My first one had two stuck pixels, both in the middle of the screen. Lenovo took it back and shipped me a new one. Everything is flawless but I noticed a very very light smudge/streak in the upper right area of the screen that is not coming off. It's not huge but is basically a dime size smudge with a little streak behind it. You can only see it when the screen is off and if you angle it toward the light in a certain way (which is how I noticed it when I was initially cleaning the screen). The screen came with a few smudges on it like all of my previous thinkpads. Water or screen cleaner has always taken the marks/smudges off though. I highly doubt anyone would notice it unless I showed it to them as I tend to be a little OCD . It's not a scratch and almost looks like it possibly could be behind the lcd screen. Again it is very very light and hard to see unless I point it out. It can't be seen at all when the laptop is turned on.

I thought about calling Lenovo on it but I figure nothing will be perfect and I can find issues with anything if I look hard enough. Plus I think Lenovo would struggle to find the spot and even if they did would probably question me returning it for that reason.

Thoughts? I think I just need reassurance about keeping it. I showed my wife and she thought I was crazy for wanting to send it back, lol.

 

No Dynamic Brightness Control is off. Don't know why it does it, doesn't bother me but it is noticeable when I have the brightness below 7

 

My T420 just shipped today!
Do you know where I can find an intel 310 80GB without ordering delivery? I know newegg.ca has it, but I'd prefer to just walk in and get one.

 

Check out the local electronics shops. Do you live near an NCIX store?

 

I could make the drive. But its not there on the site. I live in Canada, so it may be different.

EDIT: I found the 40GB drive, but I am looking for the 80GB drive.

 

Laptopmag reviewd the T420 recently, the overall verdict is excellent:
Lenovo ThinkPad T420 Laptop Review

Good choice, all! But you already knew that.

 

Well to my surprise, the smudge is gone! Water and lcd screen cleaner didn't work at all. I forgot about trying a little rubbing alcohol. Sure enough, it took the smudge right off. I was surprised that the lcd screen cleaner didn't remove it. It must have been a stubborn smudge/stain.

On a side note, I was surprised by how fast the T420 boots with just the standard hard drive. I know it's not SSD fast or anything but I may just keep the stock hard drive for now and research SSD's some more down the road. Then again I am coming from a 3 year old R61 so it is a huge improvement regardless.

 

Congrats!
How long is the bootup with the standard hard drive?
I'm thinking of getting an SSD But I am not really sure of the benefits right now.