X200 Discussion & Issues/Critique

critique: rubber feet on the bottom are uneven. Had to cut out some cardboard and super glue it to one of the feet, then it stopped wobbling while I was typing.

left pinky ctrl button rattles when pressed, like something is loose inside. No other key sounds or feels like this.

 

I guess you are just unlucky. My system is very stable in that regard. My front two feet have a tiny nub in the middle that compress to ensure the x200 does not wobble. There is no give anywhere, no matter how hard I press, and I didn't have to use cardboard or superglue.

I also don't experience any rattling with the control button. When I press it, the spacebar, or another wider than average key down I can slide them about .5mm side to side, but there is no rattle. Overall the typing experience is very good. It is quieter than my T40 was (different keyboard manufacture I think), but has no flex and maintains the same quality layout (except the Win keys) and feel.

You could ask for a warranty exchange I suppose. But I don't know if you want to bother on this small of an issue. I guess it depends upon how much you type (and use ctrl+? shortcuts), and your ability to ignore little errors (I have trouble in this regard).

 

you should call.. they usually have something called the "rubber kit" for the machine (I had it replaced on my x40 a bunch of times since they kept falling off) it has all the rubber feet.. they should just send it to you.. same for the keyboard..

 

My rubber feet are great as well :\. Sorry to hear about yours.

 

Thanks for all the help guys. This forum is great =D Hey my cardboard solution works perfectly! But I guess calling for rubber feet replacement would be nice. I will not send this machine back, just a little thing there. What should I say to them when asking for rubber feet? They wouldn't dare charge me for this.

-I fixed the ctrl button. I ripped it out of the socket then bent the metal hinge slightly, then mashed it back in. Rattling stopped. Although now it doesn't depress correctly if you press it in a certain position, but my finger never goes there so I don't notice it.

OT-How do you know it finished charging? Both the plug and battery lights were on, but battery light was blinking periodically. Now it stopped blinking and stays on, adapter is not warm anymore. Finished?

 

When the light stops blinking it means it is done charging. You can always turn the machine on and look at the battery icon, if it says 100% it is done. You should also start charging it again when it reaches 20% since it is a lithium ion battery. You never should fully discharge it as that will shorten its life-span..

 

some quick impressions and comparison to my t43:

- Great screen. Bright, good colors, no dead pixels. Much better looking than my t43. Still a good amount of real estate, despite the smaller screen.
- There is quite a bit of black bezel above the screen. This is not something I thought would bother me, but i keep expecting the screen to be a bit higher. Not a big deal though, I'm sure i'll get used to it.
- Keyboard is good. It's the same as the one on my t43, which i think is the alps; it is good, but not quite as easy to type on as the nmb i originally had on the t43. it's quieter though. Full size keyboard on a 12" laptop is nice.
- Very solidly built. No flex in the keyboard or anywhere else. Screen is just as sturdy as the t43.
- This thing is Fast! It's a huge upgrade over my t43.
- It's also Really quiet and runs really cool. It barely gets warm on the bottom, even if it's sitting on the couch for a long period. Also much better than the ball-toaster that was my t43.
- It's weird not having the touchpad. I never used it, though, so it won't be missed.
- It's pretty light, but not featherlight. This is mostly due to the 9-cell battery. I might get the 4 or 6-cell as well, since I usually bring my power cable (though that might change since the battery on this thing lasts so long.)
- Lenovo's software has gotten more comprehensive, but also more convoluted and less intuitive. I like having all the options, but it just seems like too much going on.
- Same with Vista. So far I'm not a fan. I've had as many program issues in the past two days as I had in the past 6 months with XP. Also, it turns out the versions of a number of programs I have been using for years don't work on Vista. Sweet! There goes several hundreds of dollars.
- Wireless card is very weird. The connection I use has always been tenuous. It fluctuates around 80% on my t43 (atheros); it usually works, but occasionally will drop and I will need to reconnect. On the x200, from the exact same spot, the signal is between 30-40%! However, it connects just as well as the t43. I'm not really sure what to make of that.

Overall, I'm very happy with the purchase.

 

thanx for the impressions!

what wireless card do you have? intel 5100 or 5300?

 

Some other users have found it easier to disable the thinkvantage program for wireless...and just use windows or intel. Some user have had performance issues too oddly (which I haven't experienced when just using window's).

 

Yeah Access Connections is really a convoluted solution for all the users that only connect to a single wireless network (their home). How many users fall into the category of only using 3 or less wireless networks (home, school, work)? I'd guess a *lot*. For all of these folks I'd say the simple windows interface is a much better option.

 

It's probably true that some people don't need access connections. But I have 3 regular Wi-Fi connections, plus guest wi-fi connections (hotels, airports, etc.), modem connections, regular LAN connections, and some static IP lan connections. For this setup I find Access Connections to be invaluable.

 

Sorry if this question has been answered, but I'm wondering what kind of battery life should I be expecting if I'm only going to be using this laptop for surfing the internet with wifi on and Office 2007? I notice that the review done by Andrews doesn't provide any definitive numbers in regards to that. I don't want to know what the battery life is when left to idle. I need to know what the actual battery life is when in use. My current ultraportable with a 6 cell gives me slightly more than 4 hours with screen brightness at the second lowest setting. Ideally I would like an X200 with a 9 cell to give me an adequate brightness and battery life exceeding 6 hours for my intended use.

 

Hey can you guys tell me if any of the DIMMs are integrated into the motherboard? If not, I would like to max the thing out by adding 4GB.

Also what is Lenovo's policy in regards to dead pixels on the screen? If there is one dead pixel, can I exchange for another one?

In regards to the Ultrabase, what kind of connection does it use to connect to the X200? Is there a true digital connection being sent from the laptop to the ultrabase? If so that would be great. If not, then I don't see any advantage to using the displayport on the ultrabase and mind as well use the VGA connection for the analog signal.

 

9 cell at high performance setting usually lasts anywhere between 4-6 hours.

 

Have you tested this before? Ideally I would like to maximize battery life since my intended use doesn't require much CPU power.

 

I have X200 with 9 cell. It goes over 10 (more like 12) hours with power saver option.

 

I have tested that at full load, a brand new 9 cell battery on an X200 with the faster 2.4 proc, bluetooth, wireless, Wlan 3X3, and screen on brightest I clocked in 6:30 minutes with thinklight on as well btw. With power saver which disables everything but wireless internet it reads 12 hours, but may be in the range of 10 in actual use...

 

wow that's amazing battery life....

 

Are you telling me the number that Windows is displaying or you have actually tested this to run over 10 hours?

I would be happy if I get 8 hours just using this laptop for surfing the net and Office 2007.

 

You can get over 8 hours with realistic brightness and wifi...light document work and browsing (videos or music don't count). I haven't used it 8hrs STRAIGHT...but I have used it for 4-5 with plenty of juice left, picking it back up after quick breaks.

 

What do you mean by light document work?

I fully realize videos and music doesn't count. I can't listen to music and watch videos while class is in session and or at work.

 

I was in the library one time for about 8 hours and it still had quite a lot of battery left.

 

Yesterday I was working on a huge Illustrator document and surfing for 5 hours before plugging in. That was with wifi on, ethernet, standard USB mouse, and driving a 19" LCD.

Battery life is impressive for the power this little thing has. Illustrator is just about as responsive as my quad core desktop. The X200 slows a bit during multi-tasking where the quad plows right through.

Highly recommended unit. It works beautifully and the screen great even for design work. I will still use my S-IPS desktop monitors for critical color work but 90% of people would be just fine with the X200 image quality. Now they just need to move that stupid left FN key.

The Lenovo bluetooth laser mouse works great too. Very responsive and connects right away.

-Art

 

What kind of hard drive do you use?
7200rpm or 5400rpm

 

Using the 160GB, 5400RPM.

-Art

 

Typing documents...

 

did you enable battery stretch? Mine doesn't by default when I unplug the computer I have to right click and enable it... :S

 

My DisplayPort to HDMI adapter came from Monoprice.Com. I'm running a beautiful picture to my 32" Sharp LCD TV, but music is still running through my speakers. In fact I can't seem to find an option in any settings. I'm running Windows XP Pro. It was relatively simple in Vista, where you just told it to output the sound from HDMI port (or DisplayPort in this case). Is there a driver or software I should download? Who makes the component for the DisplayPort on the X200 UltraBay?

 

I just wanted to add my three cents about the x200 I got.

Compared to netbooks:

pros:
-build quality (magnesium body, light, strong, and unplastic-y)
-full keyboard (no flex, no odd sized keys)
-fast processor (vista runs very well, XP probably does as well)
-decent screen size (no squinting)
-trackpoint (much better navigation than a tiny touchpad, imo)
-hard disk drop detect (or whatever lenovo/ibm want to call it)

cons:
-bigger (with the nine cell battery, it pushes the envelope of "ultra portable")
-heavier (same as above)
-um... blacker (finger prints smudges unfortunately)


Compared to most 15 inchers:

pros:
-smaller, lighter, um... blacker (more professional looking)
-long batter life
-runs cooler (no need for cooling pad)

cons:
-screen is smaller (not good for sharing a view with another person)
-screen is also very "cold" (blue) (needs calibration for photo work, though I don't intend to use it for photo work. I've got a much bigger/better S-IPS monitor for that. Movies seem to be an issue.)
-no optical drive (though for me, that's kind of a plus. I'd rather small size + big battery than the optical drive which I infrequently use. Can make recovery problematic, though not impossible (like netbooks))
-only VGA out (no HDMI, no S-video, display port needs the "ultrabase" mobile dock)
-integrated graphics (c'mon, who's playing games on a business laptop?)
-no touchpad (some ppl need/like it)
-mono speaker, with very limited fidelity


Compared to other higher-end-ultra-portables
(in no particular order)

-relatively inexpensive!
-Waiting game (twiddle some thumbs for lenovo shipping, my experience was only three weeks! )
-no optical drive
-no cake slicing thinness
-three fully accessible usb ports
-Vista and XP available!
-fast processor (well, comparatively currently available)
-fairly bright matte-screen (some like glossy, others like matte)
-vertical view angle is poor (needs to be viewed almost dead on)
-horizontal view angle is fine


That's the x200 in a (overly large) nut shell. I think it could use some more cowbell, particularly in the screen department, but I might be overly critical because I stare at a really nice monitor all day.


Random Musings about the x200


My one pet peeve is the power cable that ships with it (which then attaches to the fairly small/light power brick), is kinda short. The situation has been rectified by scrounging around for another electric cable (it's a standard two prong one) to use in it's place, but it seems like abit of an oversight by Lenovo, or maybe a desire for less cable clutter (the power brick's cable is of a decent length).

Regarding the roll cage. I've got mixed info. Is it Mg base shell, with roll cage lid, or just Mg base shell? From the photos I've seen of the internals, there's definately not a roll cage in the base. I'd like to know if the lid has the cage, or is it the same as the base. And if the lid was Mg as well, wouldn't that affect the wifi??? I'd imagine a faraday cage effect or something of the like.

As for recovery/restore, it appears that there is no "option" to select or de-select various programs, during the factory restore. I've gone through it once looking for it, and was surprised, to find myself ending up doing a full/regular/no-option factory restore. The help menu system clearly states that there should be a way to do a "modified" (I can't recall the exact phrase) factory restore, but I don't see any of that when I played around with the x200's recover/restore. Can somebody enlighten me on the situation?

It's just like this chap's situation:
http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=242187

Also, has anybody else noticed how the fingerprint reader crashes occasionally, on wake up (weither it is suspend or hibernate). The device msg (on the windows log in screen, at the top) says "please wait" and doesn't respond to any finger swipes. The function can only be restored, it appears, with a full system reboot. Annoying, to say the least. I've manage to recreate the problem about four times already...

...And crash vista, or the x200, three times, on hibernate (the screen turns off, and it hangs with occasional disk activity, but doesn't not go into flashing moon mode, and then off. It just stays on untill you hold down the power button for 5+ seconds).

Really, I've only had this computer for four days, and there are surprisingly a few stabilty issues.

Maybe I'll look into how to do a "clean" installation. *sigh* That looks like a another few hours down the drain.


And that concludes my wall of text. Maybe next time I'll spice things up with some pictures.

 

X200 was making clicking sound when I closed the lid since day 1, but I thought it was supposed to make such noise.

Yesterday, I noticed that the circled part in the picture doesn't look proportional. It looks like the band(?) - part is crooked. When I open the lid fully, I can see the left side of band part coming off a little.

What is the exact name called for that part so I can call Lenovo and ask.

I don't want to send it in. I've had enough problems since day 1. Is there way to possibly get this fixed from local Lenovo authorized centers at no cost?

What should I do?

 

I have not read through all 23 pages of this thread, so i apologize in advance if this has already been addressed.

In tabook the dimensions for thickness on the x200 are:
4-cell: 0.8" - 1.4"
9-cell: 0.8" - 1.4"

I know that the 9-cell protrudes, and it also lifts a little bit (like the 6-cell), so would the 1.4" in the back be with the 4-cell or 9-cell?

Overall do you guys think that the back of the x200 with a 9-cell is too thick?
What about with the 4-cell?

Thanks!

 

I believe the 1.4inch is with the 9cell (I just did some measuring). The thickness doesn't bother me, but if I got a spare battery I would go for the 4cell for a lighter weight option to the long battery life of the 9cell .

 

I believe that part would be called the "monitor ribbon," as in "the monitor ribbon is becoming detached from the LCD assembly"

 

Same here. I was contemplating on getting a spare 4cell, but when I thought about it some more (which fortunately occasionally happens before I make random purchases), I think I'd be fine just bringing the power cord without the battery, instead. And for-going the power cord when I bring the 9cell.

 

Thank you very much for the term.

Is this easily fixable? I would rather take it to the local authorized center than ship it to the mainland for another 2-3 weeks (that's what it usually takes in Hawaii).

 

Whoops, my bad. The technical term used in the Lenovo X200 Hardware Maintenance Manual is "LCD cable connector"

Easy to reattach? heck no. It requires a full take down of all the parts. However, the cable attaches at the mother board in one spot. The ribbon that connects up to the LCD hinge, actually goes right past, and up behind the LCD, so it's not really anything to "reconnect". I guess my only advice is to use it until either it breaks, or you can part with it for the required time.

 

But if it eventually detaches and goes out of warranty, don't I have to pay for it?

Does depot warranty covers this problem? I'm going to purchase an extended depot warranty but I haven't had time because I have school till 2:45 pm everyday and Lenovo headquarter is like 6 hours faster than here in Hawaii.

 

http://forum.notebookreview.com/showthread.php?t=306993

I don't know what the best solution for is here Strangesweet. I would send it back to Lenovo with an issue like this and not trust the depot people who have never seen an X200 before since it is so new..

 

Both DIMMs are user accessible and removable (just remove two philips screws and pop off a plate on the bottom. I got mine with 2GB (1 DIMM) and will add another when DDR3 prices drop.

I don't think one dead pixel is enough for a warranty claim. I have read varying reports, but some say as high as 4 or 5 dead pixels are required. However, my screen was free of any dead pixels.

I am reasonably confident that the Ultrabase hooks directly into the motherboard via a PCI-express or similar system bus connection. The bandwidth is very good, and the output from the display port should be as good as you would get from a PCI-express video card in a desktop (although obviously slower for rendering games/3D applications). I was satisfied with the analog output on mine though, and decided to save the $200, because that was the only thing I would need the base for (I don't dock my laptop, just occasionally hook up a second monitor as a clone or extended left).

 

inquiring minds want to know if this worked, i have an x200 and ultrabase, about to get a display port adapter and return it if it doesn't, i searched around couldn't find a follow up to this....

 

pm me to remind me... i have the displayport to hdmi and displayport to dvi already sitting at home. My laptop's coming in today and i'm going home during my 4 hour break to try to catch the UPS truck

 

Likewise, I will be trying the DisplayPort to DVI tonight. Will report back.

 

I believe you should be fine with doing display port to dvi...the question is trying to transport audio via hdmi. Hopefully it should work out with no issues.

 

i failed... missed the ups truck by 45 minutes...

 

darn, the original question wasn't if displayport to dvi adapter would work for video, im sure it does, the question was could you run two displays off the dock with the laptop's lid closed, so one display on vga, the other on displayport

if you find out, hook us up with the info!

thanks

 

pm me so i remember to post tomorrow.... i'll be going to the ups location after class (1:30pm)...

 

You definitely can do this. If you open up presentation director you can adjust the display settings used. You can choose the Laptop and ONE external display, or TWO external displays (1 VGA, 1 Displayport) and NO Laptop display. I am unsure of the supported resolution, but hopefully AZNRacerNSX can verify the results on his twin 24" LCDs at 1920x1200 when he finally gets his x200.

 

You can call and ask about picking it up from the UPS warehouse in the later evening.

 

UPS came a SECOND time =)

So quick answer: X200 can output Duel 24 inch Monitors
more to come... over the weekend! I have to finish my assignments and midterm

 

nice nice nice, this is going to definitely be sweet for my desk setup, I'll have the dock sitting on a shelf under the desk to save space with two 19"s on top with the mouse/kb... thanks for info

__________________
Lenovo X200: P8600, 2gb DDR3, 64gb Patriot SSD, ultrabase, 9cell
windowsXP configured with no swap, 256ram drive for XP/temp firefox cache