Thinkpad T420s Owners' Thread

Strange that this would be happening, especially since so many others have installed it already. I'm also installing the 80gb Intel 310. Could it be because the drive needs to be formatted before installing? I literally just popped it into the PCIe slot and did nothing else.

 

I have my T420s on order (it's been a long wait...). I was wondering why there aren't that many reviews on the T420s out there? I've checked out all the available ones but how come the main laptop review websites don't have much on it?

Also, I was impressed to see the new Dell XPS 15z. As far as slim, desktop replacements go, the dell seems to offer the same and more than the T420s at about $300 less. What do you think?

 

What do I think? Ugly. Did you really "see" the XPS 15z? Slim? Yes. Desktop replacement? Hardly. That 15z keyboard is an utter failure (as it is, and not from the ThinkPad keyboard perspective).

Warning: We're about to get off topic. Please exercise restraint.

 

Ha sorry. Yea, I'm not sold on the keyboard either but the other specs and price looks great.

How about the reviews for the T420s? Why aren't there any with the laptop review websites? Looking around, I'm not sure I see that many for the T420 either. What's the reason?

 

^^^ You're right about the lack of reviews on T420s (as well as T520). Don't know why...

 

Started the install process with Legacy boot and came up with this error-- cannot install because the drive is formatted at GPT.

What in the world is going on? I thought it should be formatted in that way.

 

If you are trying to use a GPT partition, you need to have the BIOS on UEFI mode. If you want to use BIOS Legacy mode, whack the GPT partition in setup and leave the entire drive unallocated. Windows setup will then create two MBR partitions and format them NTFS.

 

Hi John, so after you used fan control with custom setting the computer works quieter? when playing an HD movie does the CPU go wild?
when you work with the keyboard, is it hot?
thanks,
Marat.

 

Just realised there's a glitch in the T420s, similar to the ones faced by T420 and X220.

The "power source optimized" performance profile isn't activated when your laptop is line-powered with the battery removed.

Basically, my i7 is stuck at 783 MHz when that happens. Put in the battery with line-power, and voila, 2.7 GHz and beyond (with turbo).

But I have this habit of taking out the battery once its fully charged to preserve it. Does anyone know if there's any BIOS patch coming for this?

 

There is no need for that habit if Power Manager is installed and properly set.

 

You have a point. I'm paranoiac when it comes to manufacturer bloatware, but I see that under the Power Manager setting, there is an automatic optimization setting to stop the battery from being constantly charged.

Hard habit to break still.

 

I have absolutely no data to back this up, but I suspect at most you're extending your battery life from 3 years to 3 years and a month.

 

Someone else talked about putting their battery in the freezer.

I think anyone who does that is patently crazy.

 

I have no data to suggest otherwise too.

Its just a habit which I picked up with the older generations of Thinkpad (T41 -> X61 -> T420s) and I still tend to do it now.

 

The keyboard stays cool. It's normally around 30C with some warming over the fan area (but less than 40C) when the CPU is stressed. An HD movie shouldn't cause any stress. The intel GPU includes an H.264 decover.

Use the battery maintenance option in Power Manager to set your battery recharge threshold. eg start charging at 75% and stop at 95% if you want a battery that will be kept at near-full condition.

John

 

Yeah saw that when I was messing around with PM, thanks anyway

 

And I should add that the latest version of PM (released on 20 May) seems to start up much faster. As far as I can see, PM uses little system resources. Personally, I'm not worried about processes that use only a few seconds of CPU time when the computer is running for a whole day.

John

 

Nice find, got right on it.

Now that I've discovered why my clock speed was stuck at 783 MHz, I'm running it with battery in and line-power on.

Cold starting Photoshop CS5.1 and then MATLAB 2010b took 5 and 10 seconds respectively. Microsoft Office programs cold start near instantly.

Happy days!

 

How long have to waits been from order date to actual receipt of the notebook, recently?

 

Any idea how this might have happened. I installed Windows 7 Prof 64 bit on my mSATA 80gb drive today, but after the install process finished, I checked to see and it installed as 32 bit.

I'm certain that it said 64 bit as I installed it, but now it is saying it is 32 bit. Has anyone had this problem before?

 

I'm not sure where you were installing it from, but as far as I know, Windows 7 install DVD's can only install one or the other. (i.e., there's a 64 bit DVD and a 32 bit DVD.) I'd check your install media.

 

finally got my shipping announcement today (after placing the order on the 5th of this month), so thankfully I'll soon have something to plug this bay battery into, which has been sitting on my desk since being delivered separately two weeks ago

Still no sign of any retailers with the Intel 310 80GB mSATA in stock. I'm thinking of getting the MyDigitalSSD 64GB unit instead. Anyone have any experience with these? Good or bad idea?

 

Hello,
I'll receive my T420s on monday.

It will have the swiss/french keyboard and I was thinking of changing it to US keyboard.

A friend of mine has the exactly opposite problem with the X220 keyboard: he has the US keyboard and he wants to change it with the french one...

Do the T420s and the X220 models have the same keyboard? Is it possible to swap them instead of buying the new ones from lenovo?

 

I ordered mine in the middle of May and, based on shipping estimates, I expect it will be delivered close to a month later. It's a long wait.

 

Strange thing is that during the install screen, it clearly states Windows 7 Professional 64 bit. I did get the .iso from this link:

http://forum.notebookreview.com/win...-7-download-links-just-like-vista-before.html

 

I am currently deciding between the T420 and the Dell Vostro 3450.

For the T420i, around how much battery life would I be getting with these specs? And is it worth upgrading to the 9cell battery? Does it stick out too much? Also, is Windows 7 Professional really needed?

Lenovo Thinkpad T420 - Price: $685

Intel Core i5-2410M Processor (2.30GHz, 3MB L3)
Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium 6412
14.0 HD+ (1600 x 900) LED Backlit Anti-Glare Display
Intel HD Graphics 3000
4 GB DDR3 - 1333MHz (1 DIMM)
UltraNav with TrackPoint & touchpad
500 GB Hard Disk Drive, 7200rpm
DVD recordable multiburner
6 cell Li-Ion Battery
Intel Centrino Wireless-N 1000

 

This thread relates to the T420s, which is thinner and lighter than the T420. Disscussion of the T420 is here.

However, I'll give a couple of comments: (a) Windows 7 Pro gives you the option of running the XP Mode virtual machine which is useful to have around if you encounter compatibility issues with some older programs that don't get on with 64 bit Windows; and (b) many people think it is worth paying the small cost to upgrade to an Intel WiFi card.

John

 

Edit: Oh, I guess you were faster than me John.

 

Oh woops, my bad, thanks John!

Hmm, see thats the thing, as an engineering student in college I am not sure if I will run into XP programs. Also, in my specs did I include the intel wifi card? Or is it something else?

 

As a practising engineer I occasionally use some ancient programs which do need XP mode. You can see the difference between the Windows versions here.

My mistake there. I didn't look hard enough. However, it may be worthwhile going up one more step in the options in order to improve the likelihood of decent wireless performance in congested areas.

John

 

I have noticed that Lenovo gives promotional prices all the time throughout the year. With the specifications listed below, it adds up to $2,633.00.

Intel Core i7-2620M Processor (2.7GHz up to SC 3.4GHz, 4MB L3)
Genuine Windows 7 Professional 64
14.0 HD+ (1600 x 900) LED Backlit Antiglare Display, Mobile Broadband Ready
NVIDIA NVS 4200M Optimus Graphics 1GB
8 GB PC3-10600 DDR3 SDRAM 1333MHz SODIMM Memory (2 DIMM)
720p HD Camera
Intel 160 GB Solid State Drive, Serial ATA
DVD Recordable
Express Card Slot & 4 in 1 Card Reader
6 cell Li-Ion Battery - 66+
Country Pack North America with Line cord & 90W AC adapter
Bluetooth 3.0
Intel Centrino Ultimate-N 6300 (3x3 AGN)
Integrated Mobile Broadband - Upgradable
3Yr Basic Warranty Extension

Are these specifications really worth $2633? If not what would be a reasonable price?

Thanks!

 

Guys, there is a great sale that ends today, I bought this specification for 1301.20$ before taxes


Processor Intel Core i5-2540M Processor (2.6GHz, 3MB L3, 1333MHz DDR3)
Operating system Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium 64
Operating system language Genuine Windows 7 Home Premium 64 US English
Display type 14.0 HD+ (1600 x 900) LED Backlit Antiglare Display, Mobile Broadband Ready
System graphics Intel HD Graphics 3000 with Intel Core i5-2540M Processor
Total memory 4 GB DDR3 - 1333MHz (1 DIMM)
Keyboard Keyboard US English
Camera 720p HD Camera
Hard drive 320 GB Hard Disk Drive, 7200rpm
Optical device DVD Recordable
System expansion slots Express Card Slot & 4 in 1 Card Reader
Battery 6 cell Li-Ion Battery - 66+
Power cord Country Pack North America with Line cord & 65W AC adapter
Bluetooth Bluetooth 3.0
Integrated WiFi wireless LAN adapters Intel Centrino Ultimate-N 6300 (3x3 AGN)
Integrated mobile broadband Integrated Mobile Broadband - Upgradable
Language pack Language Pack US English
4yr Basic Warranty - this you can get only if you speak to a sales rep.

I also asked for the LG-Philips LCD panel and he assured me that it will be assembled with it.

I got this price only after speaking with the sales rep via Lenovo chat.

there is 25% off on all warranties, 4gb memory and 320GB 7200 free upgrades.

Enjoy ,
Marat.

 

Are they using multiple displays now? What's the alternative to the LG-Philips LCD one?

 

You fell for that?

 

FYI, another review of the T420s.

John

 

Did you try reducing gamma to 0.9 happy?

Don

 

Thanks John! I've been waiting for a good review and yours was a pleasent read.

I think I'm going to calibrate the screen right ahead, before I start using the T420s as my main laptop. The 1920x1200 display I have on my current Dell will probably make my eyes sore at first but I will probably get used to it.

If it's not too much trouble, do you think you can post the settings that you used in your calibration? I will go through the settings myself, but it would be nice to have some different comparisons. Stock, yours, mine, and so on...

Again, nice review.

 

There's no easy way of checking on the settings for either Calibrate or ClearType tuner. They actually caused me a lot of anguish as reported near the start of this thread. It is unclear to me whether the gamma adjustment for Calibrate starts from the same place each time or from the previous setting, but each time I tried it it seemed to come up with something different. After advice from another member I used the first option for the various pages of the ClearType tuner except on the last page where I tried something else and, since the result looked very nice, I haven't been there again.

So I finally went to the color enhancement section of the Intel graphics control panel and dropped gamma to 0.9 for all colour bands and then, for blue, made the saturation -2 (note this is for the LG panel which is slightly blue by default).

However, before fiddling with any settings make sure that you have the latest BIOS (19 May) and graphics driver (16 May for Intel). You can get them here. It is possibly that they include some adjustments that improve the display appearance.

John

 

Thanks John for the detailed review.

As not to double post (since I didn't mean to post my thanks to John in the actual review discussion):

The only hang up I keep worrying about are basically i5 vs i7. From what I've read, the i7 is a great case of diminishing returns. All that extra money offers minimal benefit. It's just that I use DICOM viewers for work (CT/MRI scans - multiplanar reformats/volume rendering), and I am wondering if the i7 may be better in that respect. Anybody have any experience with these programs? I'm sure it's less intense than real graphic rendering/CAD.

Any thoughts or advice would be great.

 

Nice review John.

 

I posted my thoughts here.

John

 

Thanks, John by the way (double thanks

 

Didnt know you have big enter key in your T420s. Mine is same as in t410s. Is it an option to purchase or something?

 

The big Enter key is dependent on the region of your keyboard. UK QWERTY keyboards generally come with the big Enter key though other regions such AZERTY (French) and QWERTZ (German) keyboards can also have this setup too. The US versions however have the smaller horizontal Enter key in comparison.

 

I've got a double height enter key but a small left shift key (same width as the left Ctrl key). This may be a regional keyboard variation. Mine's a UK keyboard.

John

 

I just received my Intel SSD 320, 160Gb. I have decided to go against what most people are recommending in the forums and did not do a clean install.

I've cloned my perfectly working system using this utility: http://downloadcenter.intel.com/Deta...&DwnldID=19324
Took me about 30-40 minutes to do the whole process.

I have used the cage that comes in the HDD and the rubber brackets of course. I did not have short screws for the SSD, but I don't think that's going to be a problem.

I've also installed Intel's SSD toolbox. The software scans windows and allows you to turn off features that are not recommended when using SSDs. Everything worked soothly.

So, for those interested in a different alternative for installing an SSD other than doing a clean install, here you go!

As for performance: definitely snappier.

Waiting for the additional 4Gb of ram now...

 

Could you re-post this link? This site mangled it.

 

^^^ Here you go: http://goo.gl/KJU6m

It's my preferred way of cloning an existing boot HDD onto a new SSD. Intel now bundles the migration software with non-OEM (consumer packaged) SSD products.

 

thanks I was going to post it right now

 

I have just been informed that my T420S ordered on 5/21 has been shipped. It is one week earlier than the estimated shipping date and I am really glad. Now I have to start ordering a SSD to be used to replace the stock HHD. I am, however, still struggling between the Intel 320 vs 510. To me, 320 has the benefits of lower cost, better size (160GB of 320 is a better size than 120GB of 510. 250GB being too expensive), good reliablity and balanced performance (good with small files). It is, however, not maximizing the full potential of the SATA 3 interface . Even though it seems the SATA2 interface should not really be the bottleneck except for large file transfer, I am still kind of worrying if I would be making a wrong decision by going with Intel 320 SSD. Any advice would be appreciated