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    Way to make X220's palm rest on top express card slot more rigid?

    Discussion in 'Lenovo' started by colinstu, May 3, 2012.

  1. colinstu

    colinstu Notebook Enthusiast

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    Like the title suggests, the plastic palm rest above the expresscard slot is pretty bendy (can go down like 2-3mm!).

    Is there any useful things to pop in there that are known to make it more sturdy here? I was personally thinking one of those "flush mount" USB 3.0 cards that can fit in there. Anyone try something like this? Does it fill in this gap and prevent the bendyness?

    Newegg.com - StarTech ECUSB3S254F 2 Port Flush Mount ExpressCard 54mm SuperSpeed USB 3.0 Card Adapter is what I'm thinking of using. But if anyone has tried other products, do tell!
     
    colinstu, May 3, 2012
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  2. unreal25

    unreal25 Capt. Obvious

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    Same problem occured with my old X200 (not so much with X200t however). What I did is used the "hard sponge" in which SSD was packaged (in it's box) and cut it to the ExpressCard slot size. It made the bend completely go away. Just be careful as the plastic near the edge of Expresscard is pretty fragile and can break if you try to force things too much. I guess this adapter would do the job too, but it costs $40 more than my solution. :)
     
    unreal25, May 3, 2012
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  3. Pintu

    Pintu Notebook Consultant

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    I use a dummy-plastic express card from an old Dell laptop. It fits perfectly and the palm rest does not bend at all.
     
    Pintu, May 4, 2012
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  4. JohnsonDelBrat

    JohnsonDelBrat Notebook Evangelist

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    I agree with this. Either find an old one or buy a filler card off ebay for a few bucks. They are only about 4 or 5 dollars, cheaper than most other solutions.
     
    JohnsonDelBrat, May 4, 2012
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  5. Colonel O'Neill

    Colonel O'Neill Notebook Deity

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    Eh... Might as well fill it with USB 3.0 ports. Two birds with one stone.
     
    Colonel O'Neill, May 4, 2012
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  6. Pintu

    Pintu Notebook Consultant

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    Tried that, but the card I used got really warm (even when nothing was attached) and hence must have consumed quite a lot of energy.
     
    Pintu, May 5, 2012
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