Thinkpad X1 Carbon 2012

Don't place too much stock in the ship date prediction. My brother's date got pushed back by a week, but then the laptop shipped a day before the original prediction. It'll vary, for better or for worse!

 

When I check for my order status it says "Message: Max Connection Timeout" and does not show any data on the page. Does anyone else have the same problem?

 

Mine says the same, but I'm pretty sure that was the original estimated ship date before it changed to "released to man....".

 

Are these laptops being shipped from China?

 

Same here. It seems to load forever and when it finally does, this is what I also see.

Yep. A rep confirmed it with me.

 

as 8/26th is Sunday, it would then take likely 5 working days to go from China to the US, right?

even International Express shipments take, i believe, 3 full days to arrive.

 

So funny. I have to wait for it to be shipped from China to the US so I can pay and wait to have it shipped back to me in China lol.

 

No 4G? . . . .

 

There's no LTE Standard support, if that's what you're asking. We'll leave the "what is 4G" debate for another forum.

 

Extra X1 Carbon adapters are now available on Lenovo's site, here is the link: ThinkPad 90W AC Adapter for X1 Carbon - US/Can/LA | 0B46994 | Lenovo | (US). The price is $59.99 and if you have a EPP discount it is $47.99.

 

That is funny.

 

i'm still getting an error page when i click on the order status link in my email confirmation.

is there a way for me to login to a site and check?

 

Has anyone thought of buying a Lenovo 73P2620 wired keyboard?

(link at the bottom of this post)

I ask because while i was thinking originally of buying a USB 3.0 dock/hub, this keyboard has 2 USB 2.0 convenience ports, and it is possible that this keyboard has the touch and feel of the Thinkpad keyboard, despite the fact that it is counterintuitive to buy a wired keyboard from Lenovo.

I may not require the USB 3.0 ports or the 2nd video port of the USB 3.0 dock/hub, so it would be far less expensive to buy this keyboard instead, plus it would be more comfortable at a desk to have this all ready and all there on a daily basis. The USB 2 ports that i anticipate needing at the desk where i will be for 6 weeks is for a laser printer, possibly a scanner, etc. Other items that are more occasionally used like a USB flash drive may use the x1c's side USB ports. I can plug the 24" monitor into a mini DisplayPort to HDMI dongle which I can buy here and bring with me. Hence, i think that this wired keyboard might solve my problem without needing to buy the more costly USB 3.0 dock/hub.

should someone have experience with this keyboard and its touch and feel, i'd be grateful to hear their comments/opinions.

typically, one would more naturally gravitate towards Logitech or some other keyboard-centric company for a desktop keyboard, but in this case, Thinkpad's keyboards, as well as the older IBM desktop keyboards (a la Cherry keys/keyboards), are so well known for their tactile feedback, that i thought that, just maybe, this might be an unexpected "jewel" to have!!

thx in advance and look forward to hearing!

http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.aspx?Item=N82E16823218003

 

I was thinking the same. Anybody have any input?

 

If you're referring to the X1 keyboard, it's the best ultrabook keyboard I've used by a fairly decent margin, but can't match the key depth of the thicker ThinkPad found in the T and X series.

 

ZaZ, have you used a Samsung Series 9 keyboard? If so, is the X1C keyboard about the same, a bit better, or a lot better?

Thanks.

 

Every single review I've read has alluded to the X1C having a better keyboard than the SS9.

 

I'd love to see the Samsung, but I have not.

 

The Samsung is a great looking machine -- very attractive. Tough call between the X1C and the Samsung. Both seem great.

 

I recently received the 15" S9 as a gift, but I plan on switching to the X1C. After only a month of use, one of the USB port pins on the S9 has broken and needs repair. This wasn't actually my reason for deciding to switch to the X1C though... I just can't stand the S9 in terms of usability. I miss having a trackpoint, and the S9 keyboard is ok... but nothing amazing like a ThinkPad keyboard. The occasional wonkiness of the S9 touchpad was enough to push me over the edge and switch.

For what it's worth: the S9 is pretty, has a nice and bright screen, and is a nice ultrabook overall... but even after a month of use, I got frustrated enough with the touchpad yesterday to pull out my T400 again.

Now, just to decide if it's worth waiting until Labor Day for the X1C, or if I should order tonight...

 

IMHO the S9 keyboard isn't so good and the touchpad is very flaky. S9 only has an HDMI port while X1C has a more flexible mini Display Port.
Main thing the S9 has is a great PLS display that's very very bright, but colors are overly saturated OOB.

In the end it really depends what purpose you're buying the notebook for. If for business, then the X1C.
the S9 is a consumer notebook with mail in warranty, while the X1C offers NBD on site warranty service (for an additional cost). Most professionals aren't so keen on mailing their work notebooks in for service.

 

Anyone here upgrading the warranty and/or getting accidental damage protection and battery replacement?

I heard that American Express extends warranty by a year for purchases charged to it. Does anyone know if it will extend, say, on-site, ADP, and battery? or base warranty only?

 

Can you buy the extra warranty after you have purchase the laptop?

 

Yes, within a certain time. Not sure when the cut off is. It might have been posted somewhere

 

zlrenner:

like you, i'm in the same exact boat -- that is, trying to decide to wait for the Labor Day sale, wait for some early recipients' comments/reviews, or, order now and receive it during the first week (roughly) of September.

how will you decide? i can't decide what i'm going to do.

btw, i could have taken this via Private Messages but you turned off your Private Messaging.

 

I'm not sure if I was actually able to "stack" the B&N Gold discount (USXDISCOUNT) with my eNewsletter 10% code, but here's what happened:

1) Selected the 8GB RAM model ($1503.96)
2) Added 256GB SDD (+$280)
3) Total came out to $1,766.26 after I activated the USXDISCOUNT code
4) Applied my eNewsletter 10% code
5) New total came out to $1,503.20

Is this the best I can do? Or did the eNewletter code override the USXDISCOUNT code?

 

GoofyG28: are you not going to buy any warranties?

i wanted to get the 3-year Onsite Next Day/Accidental/Premium Phone Support option.

 

Oh, for sure. I usually get the 3-year depot for my Thinkpads. I just wanted to mention the pricing based on the default models (with 256GB SSD), so everyone can compare the base price with coupons, and because I'm assuming everyone's warranty selection will differ.

 

That's the cheapest I got it down to when I purchased mine on the first day. You can't get that configuration lower than that yet unless you have a better discount.

 

Make a quote, which is a valid for 30 days. That should cover labor day. If you don't see a better price then, you can still get the price from now.

 

I wish I had the problems you guys in the US have, what kind of discount etc.
We in Europe normally don't see many of these.

But, and maybe something changed again, isn't today(Aug 21) the day they wanted to make the X1C globally available? I see no news post and no availability in neither the German nor UK Lenovo(online) shop. Did I miss something? Has the date for the global "launch/avialability" shifted? It would be really lovely, if we, at last, could also donate our money to Lenovo to order a lovely piece of carbon....grrrr....

 

Don't worry, some options here are quite expensives :



These guys are so funny, not the first bug on their www

 

The American Express warranty provides a separate 1-year warranty after the lenovo warranty ends. This should be considered equivalent to a depot warranty for that year... whatever they do, AmEx is not going to come to your home!

It is true though that if you get an extended warranty on a laptop, the AmEx year will kick in *after* that extended warranty ends. So, for example, I got the 3-year onsite + accident protection plan. Because of the AmEx plan, I'll have 4 years of coverage overall, only 3 of which will have lenovo onsite support and only 3 of which will have accident protection.

Really whenever you're planning on taking advantage of a plan like the AmEx extended warranty you need to read it carefully:
https://www.americanexpress.com/us/...aSkymilesCard/EW-DOC-CCSG1_02-07_06.01.11.pdf

 

Hmm. Good to know this about the Series 9. Thanks.

I still like the Series 9... but if another big Lenovo sale comes around I might just snag the X1 Carbon. My only concern is the hard drive space (or lack of it). Getting the 256gb version would be more than I'd like to spend, but I'm not sure if I can live with 128.

This is off topic, but in researching the X1C I keep seeing nothing but positive comments about the x230. I don't think I'd be happy with its smaller screen size and lower resolution, but wow, talk about a well liked machine!

 

Good news about the X1 Carbon SSD: Sandisk confirmed that the SSD in the X1 Carbon is not the lame U100 like the one in the Asus Zenbook. It is the X100.
SanDisk Provides Custom Storage Solution for Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon - Businessweek

 

Better, yes. As far as ultrabooks go it's the best I've seen.

 

Within one year.

 

Here is a link to the Sandisk press release wherein the Sandisk senior VP states:

"“Lenovo’s leadership pioneering the X1 Carbon pushes the envelope in terms of bringing ‘no compromise performance’ to an extremely thin, light and connected form factor,” said Tom Butler, director Worldwide ThinkPad Product Marketing, Lenovo. “Collaborating with SanDisk has helped us enable the ThinkPad X1 Carbon’s design.”

“The Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon is stunning both in terms of its aesthetics as well as its capabilities,” said Kevin Conley, senior vice president and general manager, Client Storage Solutions, SanDisk. “Our custom version of the SanDisk X100 SSD helps Lenovo deliver high-capacity and high-performance storage for this innovative Ultrabook product.”

So I think that means that less expensive 3rd party SSDs that a user could install are not going to be available.

SanDisk Provides Custom Storage Solution for Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon | techPowerUp

 

I doubt they wont be available but theyre definitely going to be more expensive. The MBA uses a custom SSD too but a few aftermarket SSDs have shown up but they're expensive. I do find it laughable that they went with the custom form factor to "save weight". Unless you're an ant you would never see the difference between it and a mSATA SSD.

 

This is probably my plan. Although it would be nice to have it ASAP, I'm in no real rush.

 

A little concern here - I was reading through my terms (VISA) for extended warranty and it has a clause stating that "Items which carry a purchased warranty of longer than one year;" will not be covered. I'm not sure how that affects the 3-year extended warranty, if it will extend that to 4-years.

The AMEX seems to have a (slightly different) clause as well, "11. additional service contract or extended warranty coverage for a computer, computer component or part that You buy which
already comes with an original United States of America manufacturer’s warranty, unless such coverage is provided and administered by the original manufacturer;"

Has anyone had experience with this kind of issue?

 

I've heard Visa can be bit more finnicky with warranties but AMEX is os easy to deal with and will extend coverage on a purchased manufacturer's extended warranty. If you have a choice go with AMEX

 

That's good news, thanks! That explains why most reviews have been saying good things about it in this area.

 

While the rest of the world lives in a metric world...back here in the sticks in Amerrica its pounds, not kilos. I would be willing to bet that some higher up at Lenovo decreed that the X1 Carbon would be LESS than 3 pounds. The techical specs on the Lenovo site state the weight is: "1.36 kgs (2.99 lbs)." I'll bet some engineers at Lenovo were sweating blood to get that last .01 pound of weight off the design. The weight of the SSD probably wasn't the issue. More likely the size of the opening and weight of the case or motherboard?

 

Another cool Lenovo Ad about the X1 Carbon: ThinkPad X1 Carbon Ultrabook tour - YouTube

 

i know how to "save my cart", but i don't understand what "make a quote" means.

may i ask you to explain further please?

i'm all ready to order now, but would prefer to:

- see what early recipients' comments are, see if oddball issues pop up.

- see what possible Labor Day-type sale coupons/codes might pop up -- hey, it's only days away, and the timing coincides with when the early recipients will receive theirs! i'm hoping that the kind early recipients will post as much of their feedback/feelings as possible, so the rest of us will get to drool

 

I had a chat rep give me a confirmation that the i7/8/256 would be available mid-October. At first he said next week, but then asked his manager and came back with mid-October.

 

What's available now? i7/8/128?

 

in the i7:

i7/4/128 or i7/4/256

8GB RAM option is currently missing... rumoured for mid-October according to lenovo reps.

 

I want the 8gb i7, I heard the ram is soldered on to the mobo so the ram amount you order with is the amount your going to living with, can anyone confirm?