Thinkpad T420 Owner's Thread

I use the displayport output to connect one monitor, and one of these:

Winstar USB 2.0 to DVI , VGA or HDMI Adapter up to: Amazon.co.uk: Electronics

to connect the other one, I've used the adaptor to play videos and do coding work, but I doubt you could use it for serious gaming really. I've not got the Nvidia in my T420 so im not sure how many displays it can cope with.....

 

For those who have the t420, any thoughts on the lack of USB 3.0? Will Lenovo put one in or will it be put in the next iteration of the t4x0 series?

 

USB 3.0 will most likely be in the next iteration of the T series since Ivy Bridge have included this integration on its roadmap. However USB 3.0 devices haven't really taken off yet so I don't feel I'm missing out from its exclusion. For large file transfers I find myself using the eSATA port more with my external hard drives.

 

Thanks Hearst for the reply.

Still deciding if I should go for Nvidia or just the Intel HD 3000. I'll save almost $100 with a lower spec machine, but I'm not sure if it can run upcoming games. Although I don't play much, I still want to at least have the ability to play with low to medium settings.

 

look at an eGPU, it means you have quite a long time period of capable gaming

 

Hmmm, will definitely look into that since I'm only looking forward to Diablo 3. I can just buy a t420 and see what I'll need when it comes out.

Thanks!

 

Hey guys, ordered my 420 Monday and it finally shipped today. The lowest amount of RAM it would let me configure it with was 4GB 1 DIMM.


So looking around the internets today I happened upon a newegg deal for a http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?SID=u0t0f0fp57390dd0c0s701&AID=10440897&PID=1225267&nm_mc=AFC-C8Junction&cm_mmc=AFC-C8Junction-_-cables-_-na-_-na&Item=N82E168202313414 GB DIMM PC3 1333 MHZ DDR3 G.Skill for 17.99 after coupon code. Thought that was good timing and a good deal for anyone looking to upgrade their RAM!

I ordered my 420 on Monday 8/22 and it shipped today 8/26. Should I expect that by next Friday? I have been trying to read the thread to see trends but most of what I can see is from July.

 

Quick question about doing a clean install:

I'm going through the guide found on this forum, and it says that the fingerprint reader doesn't work under UEFI mode. Is this still true? I'll be installing Win7 Pro 64 bit. Should I install in UEFI or BIOS mode?

 

Hello,

New T420 owner here, just received it in the mail yesterday and let me tell you...its a beaut.

BUT...

the major quibble I have is the sound. I know this is a business performance centered machine so I wasn't expecting sennheiser quality audio, but even when I put the earphones in at max volume there is a serious lack of effort evident. My previous machine is an hp compaq nc6120, which is a dinosaur in comparison and it blows this machines sound out of the water.

I say all of this to say, is it possible to replace the sound card, or sound chip, or whatever is controlling the sound in this thing?

 

Possible? Perhaps. But not practical, and not the sort of thing you could do.

 

There are still issues with the fingerprint under UEFI mode so you need to apply some " workarounds" to get it working. But personally with fingerprint sensors I would use the BIOS Legacy installation to save hassle since the differences to UEFI on bootup are minor by a few seconds.

You're not the only one who found it lacking, unfortunately you can't casually swap out the sound card as its integrated on the mainboard. If it's really bugging you then I would look for some external sound cards that fits in the Expresscard slot such as the X-Fi Soundblaster for example.

 

Hey, everyone! I've been reading through this thread while I wait for my T420 to arrive on Monday, but I have a quick question that I haven't seen any answer for...

Does the combined eSata/USB port on the T420 have port multiplying? I'm trying to use a 4-bay enclosure via the eSata port and apparently multiple drives won't be recognized without it. I could certainly use the USB instead but for transferring big files I'd appreciate the speed boost.

Thanks!

 

excellent info !!

thanks

I am now looking at the 420, 520 and 6520 lol

what you shared helps me immensely

rep +1

 

You're not the only one who found it lacking, unfortunately you can't casually swap out the sound card as its integrated on the mainboard. If it's really bugging you then I would look for some external sound cards that fits in the Expresscard slot such as the X-Fi Soundblaster for example.[/QUOTE]


Great info!! Thanks!

 

get a headphone amp. check out the new ones from Fiio

FIIO-Amplifier

 

Thanks alot.

I purchased the creative soundblaster and the sound was a little better but not $50 better. The reviews for the Fiio look pretty good so I take the soundblaster back and get this one.

 

Hello, I haven't had time to run through all 92 pages of this thread (I'm sorry) but I recently purchased a T420 and I've been having trouble with it.

I received it on Friday and yesterday (Monday) I got a Blue Screen error already. I've had a couple of issues where the wireless doesn't work after coming out of sleep and earlier today the mouse was not working after coming out of sleep saying that the driver was not installed. I really like it otherwise, but I need some help because I don't know how to fix this. I have a feeling there's an issue with the drivers but I can't tell. Could it be the motherboard? I appreciate your help!

 

What a weird post. Are you for real? You're considering "fixing" your motherboard instead of calling for the support you received with your new laptop?

 

First, did you do both the lenovo and the microsoft updates? Did you install anything else new? Did you make the recovery DVDs? All of which are questions you're going to get asked when you call support. Which is your best first-line of action, not getting forum speculation.

 

A new BIOS update is available for the T420 model, quite interesting this one as it combines 3 updates in one package so it skips from version 1.30 to 1.33...

It's available to download in either BIOS Update Utility format or Bootable ISO format from the Lenovo website.

 

But now doesn't go to reboot with connected smartphone. Disconnect android and immediately rebooting.

 

Are there any newer graphics drivers for the Sandy Bridge GPU than the ones on Lenovo's site?

 

Version 8.15.10.2361 (the 2361 is the important part) is the newest driver from Intel as of the last time I checked last week. If you have another version from that, you're not using the newest Sandy Bridge optimization.


From Windows Experience:
Desktop Graphics : 5.9
Gaming Graphics: 6.2

 

Anyone having any issues occasionally resuming from standby where the screen won't turn back on (and then it will appear to freeze if you shut it down blindly, forcing a hard restart)?

 

Yes, indeed. I just received my W520 yesterday and went through this.
Event viewer logged it as a Critical Error because I had to force a hard restart. The screen froze on the Windows page and wouldn't budge.

Make a long story short, in addition to the freeze error, I am sending this laptop back. Not worth the $1300+ I shelled out for it.

 

Oh. I'm not quite sure what the problem is. The event viewer always has this: 0xC000000D Microsoft Security OOBE in it whenever there is a blank screen freezing, and there doesn't really seem to be a fix....

 

I received my new t420 from lenovo today and am trying to install the latest intel graphics driver. When I tried to install it (the driver is the latest .2361) it wouldn't let me because it said that it wasn't supported and to contact the manufacturer. Did anyone else have this issue?

 

This was my experience with it. Clear your temp files (at the location that I pointed to), try the installer. If it doesn't work, use the setup file in your temp folder.

http://forum.notebookreview.com/lenovo-ibm/568372-thinkpad-t420-owners-thread-32.html#post7592430

 

Thanks a lot, it worked perfectly.

 

hmm - i'm trying this without any luck this morning, I would try Hearsts suggestion but when you do the "update driver" method it will only update that one graphics driver and not the other utils that go with it.

clearing the temp folder results in the same "The driver being installed is not validated for this computer. Please obtain the appropriate driver from the computer manufacturer" message.

procmon shows that a log is generated at c:\intel\logs

last line of the log says:

! Installed driver uses 4IDs and installing driver uses less. Get driver from manufacturer website.

so i think the hardware id is different with the subsys code.

not sure how you guys have managed to get it to work though if thats the case...

 

I'm still debating about which laptop I want but here's my question:
I've been using the processor "i5 2520" to denote the Sandy Bridge chipset as oppose to "i5 2410". Is that correct?

When I look at the T420 in The $800 range it's either the 2410 with the better 1600 x 900 resolution or the 2520 with the basic 1366 x 768. To get both better resolution and the 2520 processor the price goes up $250 or more. At over $1000 I can find the T520 with full 1920x1080 resolution and the 2520 processor which seems like the better deal. Unless I'm missing something (am I?).

The size doesn't matter to me and I wouldn't use the mSATA on the 420. I had decided on the 420 but then I saw a thread where some folks didn't like the resolution on it (and that was the better resolution) so I started reconsidering. Alot of places won't let you just return a laptop because you don't like it so I need to be sure of what I want before I order.

 

The i5-2410m is a Sandy Bridge processor. So no, that's not correct. Here's some more detailed information on different Intel processors:
Compare Intel Processors

The i5-2520m is similar to the i5-2410m, but as you'd expect with a bit better performance. It also offers hardware support for virtualization and encryption that isn't in the i5-2410m, but honestly, most people these days could get by with an i3 just fine. I think the i5-2520m is a good value, but so is the i5-2410m-- and you'd probably never miss the difference in performance when you would never have the chance to experience it. (FWIW I have an i5-2410m in my machine, and did the same price assessment you're going through now. This machine seems like a speed demon to me-- VERY fast in the things I need to do.)

mSATA is nice because it will make your machine respond very quickly. If you have never used an SSD, it's hard to convey the difference, but you should be able to find videos on Youtube. The good news is you can add one later, though you will have the hassle of porting the OS over to the drive then. If you're going to do it ever, best to do it now, unless you are waiting for prices to fall further.

I have a 1600X900 display and like it fine. It's quite a bit brighter than my non-IPS ThinkPad screens from the past, and colors are nice. The viewing angles aren't spectacular, but I only have the one pair of eyes and they're only a few inches apart.

It's too bad you can't see a ThinkPad in person. Your next best bet is to read every last review, and view Youtube videos of T420 handling and the user experience. Good luck.

 

@jackie2000 Where are you located and where are you configuring your setup? I get similar prices to what you claim configuring a T420i with i5-2410M with 1600x900 screen ($809) and then a T420 with i5-2520M with 1600x900 screen ($899). Is this what you're working with as far as configurations?

EDIT: I see that you're in the US. I would recommend taking a look at the pricing and config here. You can get much better pricing and order exactly what you want in the config. I ordered my T520 from here on 8/19 and it was delivered on 8/29. My config was i5-2520M, 4GB, 320GB 7200RPM, BT, Win7Pro, Cam, N-6300 wireless, 1366x768 on NVS 4200M graphics for $833. They have some Labor Day discounts on the T-series that I'd recommend if you are ready to buy.

Personally I wanted a larger screen, the laptop is our main machine and doesn't travel. That's what the iPad and Xoom are for. And I sacrificed the higher resolution since my wife prefers larger screen text for readability. So far I can live with it coming from our old Sony Vaio 1280x800 15.4" screen.

My starting config was more expensive because I went for the NVS option. The price difference between the standard T520 and the T520 with NVS, all options being the same, was ~$20 so I went for it. I could have saved more money by going with the T520i and the i5-2410M and all things configured the same, ~$733 right now.

Check out the site and ask questions about the configs and pricing.

 

I configured my T420 with i5-2410m, 1600X900 screen, Win7 Pro, 9-cell battery, and three-year onsite support for $820. {shrug}

 

Hi, I'm trying to install Ubuntu on my T420. I bought mine with thinkpad b/g/n and it isn't working in Ubuntu. I have a netbook with an Atheros card which is supported, and I'm trying to connect it. Unfortunately, those wires are too short to connect to the card. Is this the correct spot for it? Any tips?

Thanks!

 

I checked the Lenova site price--i5-2520 processor, 4gb ram, 320gb hard drive, Win 7 Pro, 1600x900 screen, N-6300, camera, 6 cell battery, just standard warranty and it was $983 which with sales tax is $1079.

I'm still considering the T520; it would be my main computer (except an 8 yrs old desktop); I like large text but I understand you can change font in win7 so I figure photos and such would look better with the upgraded resolution. Funny thing is the T520 configured the same way is the same cost.

I was really hoping to stay at $800 but I don't want to compromise on anything important. I wish I could see the lower resolution (my old desktop sure isn't anything to brag about on resolution but it's not widescreen or matte screen so that might make a difference).

 

Did you check the Barnes and Noble Gold site I linked in my last post? That same config is ~$833 + tax. If you start with the T420i/T520i with i5-2410M then that config runs you $756+tax.

 

The image shown is not the correct slot for the wireless card, that's for the WWAN card instead (or mSATA drives). The wireless card slot is located underneath the keyboard so you will need to remove that before accessing it. Have a read of the T420 Hardware Maintenance Manual for more info.

But even so you may have a problem using the Atheros card in the T420 if it doesn't contain the correct Lenovo ID. Lenovo have a "whitelist" that only accepts their branded wireless cards otherwise it will refuse to work (such as using Dell or HP cards for example). You could either wait until someone modifies the T420 BIOS to remove the whitelist or purchase a Lenovo branded Intel wireless card which tends to work well on Linux.

 

Thanks Gorgonesh I'll check it out (I had thought your link was to lenova's own site).

 

Just wanted to say thanks again Gorgonesh--It's only $733 configured my way on that link; with tax puts me to my $805 (I took out the camera--I don't even want a camero on it). Great. Since the T420i and t520i are the same price, I'm going for the 520i. Guess I better change forum threads.

 

Just ordered a T420 with i5-2540M, Win 7 Home Prem, NVIDIA Graphics, 4GB memory, 500GB HDD. It's replacing my dead T61!

I also had a really great experience with one of the sales reps; he managed to knock the price down on top of the Labor Day Sale. I'd be happy to share his contact info!

 

Mind sharing how much you paid for your computer?

 

I just also hopped on the T420 bandwagon. I got it refurbished though from eBay. Hopefully the laptop is in good condition. $1000 (shipping included) for my sig below.

 

Ordered my T420i on the 29th and it's estimated to ship on the 5th of September (Been changing from 6, to 7, and now down to 5 )

CPU: Intel Core i5-2410M
OS: Windows 7 Home Premium
Display: 14.0" HD+ LED backlight Anti-Glare (1600 x 900)
RAM: 2GB (Gonna upgrade myself, I refuse to pay an extra $80 for an additional 2GB...)
HD: 320GB 7200rpm
Battery: 9 cell
Etc: 720p webcam + Intel Centrino Advanced-N 6205

Total: $922.49 Canadian

 

For reference, my T420 with:

i5 2520m
2gb ram
1600x900 screen
intel 6300
320gb 7200rpm
6 cell
bluetooth

was $808 CAD before tax

 

The available deals and prices are constantly fluctuating. For another data point, here's what got delivered a couple of weeks ago for $820 US:

T420i
i5-2410m
Windows 7 Professional x64
4 GB RAM
1600X900 HD+
Intel Wireless N-1000
320 GB 7200 RPM
9 cell battery
no web cam, no fingerprint reader
3 year onsite support

Another ~$200 later for an mSATA SSD and extra 4 GB of RAM, and I'm set for the next few years. I hope. The main upgrade I foresee making in a couple of years is to the data drive.

 

Before tax, it was $1,010 USD (a little more than $100 less than the Labor Day Sale $1,125 price). I'm sure that I could've tried getting it lower, but oh well. The rep also expedited my order at no additional cost.

Here are the main specs:

ThinkPad T420 - 1 Yr Depot Topseller Warranty
CPU: Intel Core i5-2540M Processor (2.60GHz, 3MB L3)
OS: Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium 64
Display: 14.0 HD+ (1600 x 900) LED Backlit Anti-Glare Display
Graphics: NVIDIA NVS 4200M Graphics with Optimus Technology, 1GB DDR3 Memory
Total memory: 4 GB DDR3 - 1333MHz (1 DIMM)
Pointing device: UltraNav with TrackPoint & touchpad plus Fingerprint reader
Camera: 720p HD Camera
Hard drive: 500 GB Hard Disk Drive, 7200rpm
System expansion slots: Express Card Slot & 4 in 1 Card Reader
Battery: 9 cell Li-Ion Battery - 55++
Bluetooth: Bluetooth 3.0
Integrated WiFi wireless LAN adapters: Intel Centrino Ultimate-N 6300 (3x3 AGN)

 

I'm having trouble updated my HD3000 driver from 8.15.10.2342 -->2361 (Thinkpad T420 build 4177CTO). I tried using the Lenovo Update Utility - It says everything is up-to-date. I going through Device Manager/Properties/ "Automatically Search" -- No luck.

Previous comments on this thread suggest clearing a temp file, but I can't find which one (where on the C: is it located?).

Also - I can't find a download link for the new driver on the Lenovo website. Anyone have a link I can use? Google sends me to the Intel website and gives me 15.22.1.2361, but I don't know if this is the same thing. If I can download it, I can use the Device Manager to manually install.

Help appreciated - Thanks in advance.

--Frisbee

 

Thanks everyone for the input!

Iucounu, is $820 with tax already? I tried configuring that same computer now and it is $875 without tax yet. Looks like you got a pretty good deal with yours.

 

Yes, that's pre-tax (but I live in New Hampshire, where there is no tax anyway). It was the best deal at the time, with a coupon and going through the MasterCard Marketplace. The B&N route for students might be the best deal going right now; see Gorgonesh's post previously for the link.

One thing I've noticed: you can sometimes save a bit of money by carefully looking at the support options on specific models. The pricing might be drastically different. I remember at one point I was leaning towards the T520 because for the same support it would've been something like $50-60 less. On my wife's X201 purchase IIRC we somehow wound up with 4 years of onsite support with accidental damage protection for the normal price of 2 year onsite support with no damage protection. Prices can fluctuate by the hour on the Lenovo site.

ETA: I just ran through the config starting from the Mastercard Marketplace site, and also got $875. It looks like they adjusted the price of the support. On the other hand, it's now so close to the price for three-year with accidental damage protection, might as well spring for that.