W520 + Europe = Problem!

The Thinkpad W520 seems to be exactly the kind of notebook I've been looking for - a great combo of performance and mobility.

The problem is that I haven't been able to find any information on the European release date! Any of the shops I've been trying to look for the information from haven't even listen the thing.

Were we to assume one would want to get his hands on the W520 as soon as possible and lives in Europe, what do you think would be the best way to go about it? I realize ordering from US could get costy but let's assume price wouldn't matter.

 

Usually if you add the TAX and VAT and shipping, it will be still less or the same as a EU price.

Also, I hate the EU keyboard layout, so ordering it from the US is a benefit for me

 

Look no further, the below link is your answer

LENOVO THINKPAD W520 i7-2720QM, 1920 x 1080, FHD, 2000M | eBay

I have just ordered my W520 from him and it is on its way to Singapore. Look at their feedback, many satisfied European customers. Their shipping rates is the lowest I have ever seen and they are able to adhere to your special custom request (hope you know what I mean)

I don't work for them. Just to share a great Thinakpad reseller who deserves more attention

 

I am also thinking about them, but for example shipping from provantage.com is 99 USD and shipping from these guys are 149/200 USD. But you can pay via CC, which is not possible at provantage and they have a fee of 35 USD for a wire transfer...

 

Provtage is on backorder when i shop there whereas the ebay store have immediate stock.

 

That's true.

 

Why not consider Fujitsu CELSIUS H710 which is only released in Europe. It is a nice machine.

 

Thanks a whole bunch for the replies!

Special kudos to hantanbl, I'm definitely considering exactly the notebook you linked me to.

As funny as it was, the keyboard layout never crossed my mind. I know you can remap the keys in windows, but is there any possibility to change the actual keyboard itself, for example later on?

 

Should be pretty straightforward: Instruction video (W510 but W520 shouldn't be any different)

.pdf with instructions: http://download.lenovo.com/ibmdl/pub/pc/pccbbs/mobiles_pdf/0a60078_01.pdf keyboard replacement on page 67

Appropriate keyboards can be usually found on Ebay (no W520 keyboards available yet, probably because it's a new model) or find one on the Lenovo site.

 

+1 for 'newthinkpads'. I bought my W510 there and overall it was a hassle-free experience (even though I had them deliver to South America). You can definitely trust them. The only possible drawback is that the machine is registered in US and I couldn't find an option to upgrade to On-site warranty but the machine came with 3-year EZServ/Depot which is fine too.

 

BlackLion, I'm considering buying from this company and have them ship a T420 to the Netherlands. Two questions, you say you have the 3-year EZServ/Depot warranty and I presume if you do a warranty lookup it will show 'U.S.' as location?

1. Is it possible to change that to current location of the product (Country in South America in your case)
2. EZServ/depot means you have to send in the laptop for repairs, does that mean send it to a depot in your country or all the way back to the U.S.?

(I own a IBM X40 that originated from Singapore and I bought it refurbished, it did however show 'Netherlands' as current location while under warranty)

 

I bought at T410s last year in the US with on-site warranty which then broke while I was in Ireland (the vertical bar in the LCD problem, many people were hit by this one). Lenovo tech came and replaced the screen. I think it depends a bit on the model, but the CTO thinkpads come with worldwide warranty.

 

This page will show you which models are served international, so as long as I buy a model thats support IWS (T420 - 4178 for example) I can get it serviced in the Netherlands no matter where I bought it or what the location is according to the 'warranty lookup'?

Fortunately my brother lives in the U.S. and even better, he will come over this summer! Hopefully by then we'll have official pricing on the X220 and some T420(s) reviews

 

Yes, it's showing up as 'UNITED STATES'.

1) I think this is probably somehow tied to the original retailer which is in US. Unfortunately, I am not aware if it would be possible to change the country - maybe you could send them an eBay message just to clarify things. This wasn't my biggest concern when I did the purchase, after all it should have IWS.

2) I believe it can be serviced in any country other than US (checked here for 4319). I can't tell for sure though, so I believe in the event of any emergency I would just call my service provider in Chile and they will give the right direction.

 

The T420 he's selling doesn't have the 1600x900 screen upgrade for some reason. I really think that's the most important thing to look for, but unless you don't care about the screen I'd recommend buying a T420s from him instead, because all T420s's have the HD+ screen.

http://cgi.ebay.com/LENOVO-THINKPAD...67483291?pt=Laptops_Nov05&hash=item2562915b9b (has 1600x900, only an extra $100, a lot more portable, but doesn't have SSD)
http://cgi.ebay.com/LENOVO-THINKPAD...86171989?pt=Laptops_Nov05&hash=item230fa2a255 (same specs plus 1600x900, has SSD, more portable than the T420, $200 more)

 

Thanks to everyone for the advice! abachofner, your keyboard change links will prove to be handy.

The deal that hantanbl linked to ( LENOVO THINKPAD W520 i7-2720QM, 1920 x 1080, FHD, 2000M | eBay) is now made and the notebook and a separate Thinkpad Battery 27++ are on the way!

 

also +1 for 'newthinkpads' from me
i ordered 28th an received my w520 April 1 in The Netherlands

(W520 i7-2720QM, 1920 x 1080, FHD, 1000M,8gb)

the w520 comes standard whit 3/1 year of international depot support but i still need to get some more info on it.
Lenovo states that in some countries you need to supply a proof of import or can get extra cost when using international support.

 

So they shipped it to the "Nerdelands" Did you have any problems with customs? How much taxes did you pay (if any, maybe you were lucky)

 

Thats damm fast, where do they ship from?

Also too bad they dont make a Quad + FHD + Quadro 1000 (Instead of 2000 as I dont need that and it just adds to the price)

 

they do make them i ordered this one LENOVO THINKPAD W520 i7-2720QM 2.2Ghz 1920 x 1080 FHD - eBay you can ask them when more of them available

about shipping: it took 2 days to plan the shipment at UPS and it whent from LA to The Nerderlands in 3 days whit only a few hours in customs.

@ abachofner:
UPS handels the customs much faster than TNT. Whit TNT it can take weeks or even months that is if they don't lose your pakkage...
i ended up paying €250 import tax +€12,5 handeling cost but that still the price of a t520 whit dual core, hd3000 ,hd+ screen, 4gb,wan card and intel 6300 in the Nederlands.

all items above €1000 will be charge for import tax in the EU you can put Gift on the packige but this will delay it and you will get a fine if they chek it.

 

Well I can buy from https://www.lapstars.de/product_info.php?cPath=392_879&products_id=7215 which will be 13000dkk with danish keyboard and the one you linked is 11500dkk without and with a the 1600x900 screen, and I really want a proper screen

 

flazo and others who has imported their machines to Europe, can you try if the mobile module is working in Europeans GSM cell network? Somebody said that the SIMcard is in a battery area. Thanks.

 

Hi,

Had anyone encountered troubles getting responses from newthinkpads on eBay regarding this notebook or also other thinkpads?
It seems they are simply ignoring and are not giving any answers or details (that I could not find on their eBay pages) that I ask about. It's like they are propagating "no questions asked" selling. Statements in their "Our Feedback Policy" are contradictory to their actual behaviour regarding valuing customer, "happy customer", etc. How would I suppose to give them 4 or 5 stars when they are ignoring my messages. Is this behaviour common amongst eBay sellers, especially, to newthinkpads seller, that was recommended in this forum?

Could someone recommend other eBay seller who ships worldwide thinkpads W520 with international warranty?

Thank you.

 

"newthinkpads" is kinda strange lately, they didn't answer to me either, and I only had some very basic configuration related questions.

 

when i bought from them my w520, they were very responsive and did not take more than 2 days. Usually I got reply in 1 day

 

I'm not sure why no one mentioned it but I was thinking about one more possibility for those who live outside the U.S. There are a number of sites like Shipito, Bongo, MyUS, etc which provide you with a real US address, so my guess is that we can buy directly at Lenovo Shop, specify the new US address during checkout and then the forwarding company would ship outside. Thoughts? Will this work?

 

You have to have US credit card.

 

Good catch. By the way, Shipito also provide Assisted Purchase, so they can purchase on your behalf using their US card.