X200 Quickie Review

ThinkPad X200 Quickie Review​

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Overview
I've had my X200 for a week plus now. I'd thought I'd throw up my first impressions. Since the newer X201 shares a lot of parts with the X200, I thought maybe this could be of use to X201 buyers too.

Intro/Buying
I decided a while back I wanted a smaller notebook. Though my R60 is first rate, it's heavy. I might as well be putting an anvil in the case. I wanted something small and light with decent performance while being wallet friendly, with the wallet friendly being the important part. I wasn't in a hurry. On several previous occasions I almost bought this or that notebook, but pulled back because I wasn't sure I wanted to spend the money. I finally picked up a U150. Didn't like it. Luckily, Amazon didn't charge me any fees to take it back, whew!

I happened on the 20% off coupon in the outlet. At first I wasn't going to buy anything, but found one for $600 and change shipped. What can I say? I couldn't resist the deal. The fact that I could upgrade to the AFFS screen down the road was a big plus for me and allowed me to rationalize spending a bit more. After some incompetence on the Outlet's part and a PM to [email protected], I got my X200 about three weeks later. Though it was a refurbed unit, it looked pretty much new to me. I even got a free upgrade to Bluetooth and a camera, which I didn't really care about. The only bad part about buying from the outlet was the battery was in poor condition. Perhaps cause it was sitting in the outlet for a long time. It held only a 68w charge out of 84w design capacity and it eventually failed completely a few days later. Lenovo is replacing it for free.

Specs
Here's the major specs:

• CPU – 2.4GHz Core 2 Duo P8600
• Memory - 2GB
• Hard Drive - 500GB 7200RPM(I upgraded this myself)
• LCD - 12” WXGA Matte 200 Nits
• GPU – Intel 4500MHD
• OS: - Vista
• Input – 89 Key Keyboard and TrackPoint with Buttons
• Network – Intel 5300 WiFi, Ethernet, Modem, WWAN Upgradeable
• Ports/Slots - 3USB ports, Card Reader, ExpressCard54
• Other - Bluetooth, Camera, ThinkLight, Docking Port
• Battery - Nine-Cell
• Weight – 3.5 pounds

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Build & Design
Simple, elegant and timeless are words I would use to describe ThinkPad design. The X200 is certainly no different. It's one of those things you either like it or you don't. I like it. As for the build quality, it feels solid. The screen is stiff. Fit and finish are good. While the rubberized lid feels good, it's a fingerprint magnet. It reminds me of my T4x machines. I like the ABS plastic on my R60 better as it's easily wiped. I know there's been a lot of talk about the declining quality of ThinkPads, but I have to say the X200 feels as solid as any other ThinkPad I've used. The fact you're getting it for half or less what used to in be the “good ole days”, is pretty impressive to me.

Screen
Being a long time ThinkPad owner/user, the X200 is the first widescreen notebook I've ever owned. On a smaller notebook I think the WXGA works better than XGA. One of the reasons I never bought a X6x is I use the bookmarks sidebar in FF, which would cut webpages on a XGA screen. The LCD in the X200 is CFFL backlit. It's a Samsung screen and is rated at 200 nits of brightness. There's a bit of bleed, but I've certainly seen much worse. I guess I could best describe the LCD as sufficient. It'll get the job, which is probably fine for most of its users, but don't expect to be blown away. The angles are terrible like most notebooks, but it's plenty bright, if a bit washed out. It's way better than the U150's screen.

One big plus for me about buying the X200 is the ability to upgrade it to an AFFS screen, which offers much better picture quality. I plan to do this fairly soon. After having used many FlexViews it's really hard to use another notebook screen. I'm hoping to find a matte version, which I doubt I'll find within my budget, but I'd take a good glossy screen over a crappy matte one every time. Do keep in mind this will likely void the warranty, if you care, which I do not.

CPU & Performance
For its intended usage - Office, Media and Internet, the X200 offers plenty of performance. Given that it's a full-fledged Core 2 Duo, it'll probably be relevant longer than any laptot I could have bought. Perhaps at some point down the road, I'll upgrade to a SSD if the prices continue to fall, which they should. Though it's not the Core i, the X200 offers a much better cost/benefit ratio, which is much more important to me.

Keyboard Area
I won't spend a lot of time on the keyboard, but the keyboard on the X200 is excellent. It's very firm with good key travel and depth. It's a ThinkPad. I would expect no less.

One of the main reasons I've never had an X series ThinkPad is my preference for the trackpad, but the value the X200 offered was so compelling, it was more easy to overlook this one flaw. I guess it's true what they say, there's no perfect computer. I actually went a bit off the deep end, a short trip for me, and picked up a trackpadless palm rest from the R60e to use with my R60. In for a penny, in for a pound I guess. You can see it in the picture above.

As for using the stick, I think I'm getting better. Going from one side of the screen to the other, especially on my high resolution R60, is more suited to the stick as is scrolling, but for some reason I'm less accurate with the stick. I don't know if it's a time thing or what. I actually like the settings in Windows before installing the trackpoint driver, but it gets all jumpy on me after installing the driver and if I don't install the driver, there's no scrolling. I played around with the settings but couldn't find the right one to mimic Windows. If anyone knows the answer, please feel free to let me know. I'm going to give it six months at which point I'll either have seen the light or buy a mouse for my X200.

Battery & AC
I got the nine-cell battery. I would have preferred the six-cell, but the extra cells do make a convenient handle for carry the unit around. Like my R60 there's a little bit of jiggle on the battery. I don't mind it, but I know some do. I'd pick up the a four-cell if ever shows up in the outlet. It's hard to give an accurate assessment of battery life since the battery is defective. I'd probably say seven hours if pressed, which is probably at least twice what I need. The good news is my R60 and X200 adapters are interchangeable. I have an extra.

Heat & Noise
The fan comes on low speed now and again, but I wouldn't call it noisy. It gets a little warm, but never too hot to handle.

Wireless & Networking
You know they come out with new WiFi cards every year, but they all seem about the same to me. The X200's 5300 works about as well as any other I've used. The X200 also has the antennas for WWAN should you want/need it. Since I live in a rural area, it's of little use to me. A couple people I know where I live have 3g and it's worse than dial-up. I ain't paying for that.

Ports & Connections
The X200 covers all your major bases with 3 USB 2.0, card reader, VGA, Ethernet, expresscard and modem. The only thing I didn't like is the fact that two of the USB ports sit toward the front of the unit, which I find kind of awkward.

Drives
As you probably know the X200 lacks an optical drive. My R60 has a Blu-ray drive on it. A few years back I did manage to pick up this little doo-hickey on eBay, which lets my drive function as an external drive. I used it to install XP and have used it on many other PCs, always without trouble. I played a few Blu-rays on it. Since the Intel integrated GPU can help with Blu-ray playback, BD playback works better than on my R60.

Sound
I was pleasantly surprised here. There's one speaker and it's on the underside, but somehow it's not bad. It's not good either, but not bad. It's certainly good enough for a movie or listening to some music if you're not an audiophile.

Software
The first time I turned on my X200 it literally took five minutes to boot, probably due all the crapware running in the background and the slower drive. It's sad to say ThinkPads now have crapware. I burned off the recovery discs and dumped the SWTools folder onto my external. I swapped in the bigger/faster drive, downloaded the apps/drivers and did a clean install. The boot time is now much better.

Like all ThinkPads you're getting the full suite of ThinkVantage tools. It's a set of applications allow you to manage, secure and recover your data. All of them have their place, but no one uses them all. You may wish to pick and chose the ones you want. I personally only use the Power Manager and Hard Drive Protection. If all the ThinkVantage tools are running in the background it can dampen performance.

Warranty & Support
I did have to call support in regards to my battery. It's the fist time I've called support in quite some time. The phone was answered quickly and total call time was about five minutes. The important part is Lenovo is sending me a new battery. All refurbed units, even if it says something different in the warranty look up because they've not updated it, the X200 comes with a one year depot warranty. I've got warranty until next march.

Conclusion
Why didn't y'all tell the X200 was so great? I would have bought one much earlier. The X200 packs quite a punch for such a small package. It's light/mobile, well built and offers the performance of a much larger machine. It provides more battery life most people could use in one sitting. What more could a road warrior ask for?

The amazing part is because I got it in the outlet, I paid only an extra $50 over what I paid for the U150, which I think I already mentioned I didn't like. I think that's what they call value. My R60 can stay home for when I want to plop on the couch and watch a movie while surfing the net. That's when I want the extra real estate and don't mind the weight When I need to be more mobile, I bust out the X200, which after having carried my R60 around for so long, I hardly know the X200 is on my arm. It's the best of both worlds with my soon to be FlexView twins if you ask me.

Pros & Cons

Pros

• Excellent Quality and Support
• DTR Like Performance in a Small Package
• Light and Portable
• Fantastic Keyboard
• Runs Cool and Quiet
• Beaucoup Battery Life
• Excellent Price from Outlet

Cons

• Fair to Middling LCD
• Awkward USB Placement
• Slow Boot Time/Bloatware

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Very clear review thank you. I am about to pick up an X200s hopefully. I am also a tad woried about only having the trackpoint but being sensitive to LED I don't have much of a choice in models anymore. 6 cell battery is what I will get on a 2.13 SL9600 so somewhat slower than your machine. Is there a thread on here on how to do the full wipe and re-install minus the bloatware? I have never really used ThinkVantage on my T400. Don't know why but the latest version on W 7 is not exactly nice to work with. I will get XP Pro on it (SP 2). Use skype a lot for business and loathe version 4 on W7. I need a light sturdy laptop, the T400 screen is too big LOL. I am getting a refurbished one which still sets me back about 1,200 bucks ! Normal price is way over 2,000 here.

 

10 char .

 

I've been saying that for a year and a half

Aside from the display (which can be upgraded) the X200 and its variants are fantastic notebooks and a great upgrade from my old T40.

 

ZaZ, I thought you couldn't live without a trackpad. I would have never considered you to like an X series .

Glad you're liking it.

 

Nice review ZaZ. Those in the market for one are gonna love it.

A couple of interesting notes though: I've heard people say that it gets warm but mine feels pretty cool most of the time. Sometimes it almost feels like the air coming out of the vents is cool air, but I'm sure that's just our different expectations and ways of interpretation.

Are you running on a 5400 RPM drive? Five minutes from a factory load seems a little too long. When I got it it had a 7200 RPM drive and Vista Business, and that didn't even seem to have taken five minutes. I'm running on 7 now and it's pretty quick - I would say 2 minutes from pressing the button. If anything I would expect XP to load faster. I'm not doubting your judgment - just wondering what might have caused that.

Interestingly, the palmrest of the X200 feels sturdier than that of my T400, which makes sense, I guess, since the T400 has more room inside. But I agree, the X200 is the ultimate roadwarrior's machine. It is literally smaller than my paper notebook.

 

Warm is really relative. If there is no venting space then it can get warm, but hardly ever hot. I mean maybe hot for a thinkpad .

 

True jaredy, but you gotta understand where I'm coming from: the previous computer I owned was a 17" Dell Inspiron E1705 with an NVIDIA 7900GS. Anything is considered "cool" compared to that.

 

True, any dedicated card will be hotter for sure.

 

Definitely agree with all the build quality and keyboard comments, it's so incredible to me when I realize my keyboard is the same size as the one on that giant 15" laptop someone is lugging around campus.

Also especially agree on WXGA. The only thing keeping me form getting any older x series was the 4:3 low res screen, I could just get a modern netbook with the same resolution. SXGA+ is still going for a premium as well, so WXGA on the x200s was a good compromise.

The fan noise is great, but mine doesn't even turn on until temperatures hit 48C, so after prolonged use on A/C the underside gets pretty warm.

 

Nice writeup ZaZ, you definitely seemed to have gotten a good deal with that! Let us know when you upgrade the panel.

 

Good review. Thanks.

I agree on most points. Only thing I cannot recognize at all is the part about it getting a little warm. Despite its size, the X200 is one of the coolest running ThinkPads I've have had or used. Even when I am in Southeast Asia it runs cool and is comfortable to use. I also have the P8600 2.4GHz, albeit with a SSD. Used to have a few X200/X200s with 5400RPM drives, which also ran very cool. Did not test these in Asia though.

Yes, me too. Been praising it on this board for ages!


As for the issues with the TrackPoint after installing the ThinkPad driver - I experience the opposite. Or rather it is not sensitive enough for me with Windows drivers. Try fiddling around with Motion Speed and TrackPoint Stick Sensitivity and see if you can make it suit your preferences. It definitely should not be jumpy in any case. Is it only jumpy when scrolling or also when navigating?

 

Seagate 7200.4. I put the Hitachi 7k320 I had laying around into my R60 and the 500GB from my R60 into the X200. I figure since my R60 is now my couch potato notebook, I don't need a lot of space on it.

I did play around with the settings, but haven't found the right mix. Right now I got it set to have the pointer move slower, but the stick has a lighter touch. I find I often overshoot my destination. I'm also having a bit of trouble with double clicking like if I double click on the name of a file or folder, it goes to rename it instead of opening it up. I'm not sure if that's trackpoint related, but I never had this issue when using a trackpad. I will keep at it.

 

Jabbajabba I have bitten the bullet and ordered an X200s with the 2.13 SL9600 chip. I hope it is nice and cool and not noisy ... that is why I am getting thinkpad. My T61 is so quiet... really quiet and never gets hot. I am writing this on al old office HP it is almost burning the table ! I hope the X200s is very much like the T61 in the noise/heat department. Since it runs a LV chip compared to the X200 I am guessing it may be a little cooler.

 

Ya x200s should be no problem at all regarding heat. Did you get it with the LED display? I thought that bothered your head.

 

Congrats with your X200s. I've had a few X200s SL9400 1.86GHz and compared to my X200 P8600 I did not feel or measure any differences. All were equally cool and quiet.

Note that there have been some versions of Power Manager which apparently change the settings for fan control so that the fan is enabled at lower temps (runs at mid range rpm even at relatively low temps) and runs more frequently. In other words you will hear the fan more often, which can be annoying. I'm running XP and the latest versions of the Power Management Driver and Power Manager and the fan behavior is back to its normal quiet self, unless the system is stressed.

 

ZaZ - congrats on the purchase.   if you need help with that display, let me know.

perfectionseeker - i have an SL9600 in my X200T and it's cool and quiet.   the X200s is essentially identical save for the boxy chassis on the tablet.   no worries there.   you bought the right system.

 

It's the CFFL, on the X200s that is.

 

Jaredy yes I finally found a used (demo) X200s with an SL9600 in it and as Erik puts it a surprise CCFL !! It's still about 1200 dollars but that is 50% cheaper than normal price here. I chickened out of the HP since it was to heavy and I usd my friend's again and though not as bad as the T400 LED the screen did effect my eyes ... so no choice back to CCFL on Lenovo.

I should get it in about 5 working days with XP Pro on it. It had Vista on it but they will put XP Pro on it for me. I prefer it. Hopefully the unit is in as good an order as they claim. I will write a review maybe add it to ZAZ X200 review.

 

I bought one. I'm going to take a stab at myself. You don't learn anything if you don't try. I can always back come with my tail between my legs later.

 

having worked on and repaired over 200 thinkpads over the last 15+ years, i can't argue that one bit.

 

love my x200.

The only complaint is the rubbery finish which scratches off so easily. They need to go back to a hard plastic finish

 

I'm a big fan of the rubberized topcoat for both appearance and grip. This is despite its tendency to pick up fingerprints and rub off at the corners.

 

Agree with jon. Everyone says it is a finger print magnet but if you compare it to shiny plastic consumer laptops or the Dell E series then it is rather muted even when dirty (finger prints and dust).

Nobody notices anyways in my experience.

 

one these puppies would be a nice replacement to both my T41 and my netbook simultaneously! the lenovo website specifies no roll cage in the X200 though; which is the only part of the notebook i find just a tad disappointing considering the relative costs involved.

 

Great user review. Q: Does rmclock allow the P8600 to be undervolted by any considerable margin?

Port layout of X200?

Zaz - any chance you could identify what the port layout of the X200 is by swapping the wifi card into each of the other two mPCIe slots and seeing what it comes up in Everest as? Trying to identify if port1 is an additional mPCIe slot. WE know this about the port layout. This is for the DIY VIDock project, trying to get a x2 1.0 link by ganging port1+port2 together.

 

I don't use RM clock.

If you don't mind waiting a couple a while, I'm going to have the machine ripped apart to do the screen. If it's not too time consuming, I don't mind.

 

Zaz have you found the screen yet ? I am still tryng to source the matte variety of that AFFS screen. I know where to get the -110 gloss but I am hoping a matte one may still fall in my lap. I watched the videos on LCD replacement but that was not what I needed, just the simple screen change. I am actually paying less for the SL9600 CPU than I would here for a SL9400 go figure ! Hopefully I can find an 128 SSD for a cheap price.

 

I love that laptop! No touch pad and beautiful styling. I want to trade my t400 for an x200s with wxga+ screen BAD.

 

I bought the glossy version of the screen. I'm not picky one way or the other. I'd prefer the matte version as well, but the getting a better screen is the important part. Maybe the glossy would be nice too. I saw a few other places that it wasn't too glossy on the glossiness scale. We'll see when I get it next week. Just got to take a crash course in removing the touch panel.

 

Zaz when it is all done would love to see a PIC on how glossy or not it is ! I am trying to contact a friend in China to see if he can get the screen somewhere. Though I have no clue what AFFS technology does to eyes... imagine doing the whole swap to find out I am sensitive to it ! oh well then I can still sell it to someone here.

 

AFFS is a display technology like IPS, PVA, TN, etc.   there's no reason why AFFS/AFFS+ by itself would affect your eyes negatively.   if it does, you probably have your brightness turned up too high.   most people run their panels on 100% brightness unaware of how hard it is on their eyes.

 

You are brave ZaZ, more brave than I.

 

No dice on the P8400. So I assume same applies to the 8600.

 

Would love to get my hand on the matte version as well, but since I bought the glossy version for $50 on ebay, I can't complain.

 

Wouldn't a glossy screen + a screen protector be a good alternative to buying a matte screen? Most of them say they're anti-glare but I've never seen one live.

 

Erik I guess that it correct. AFFS does not equal LED. Will keep searching for that screen. Another sensitive people query. I have a lady friend who actually feels the radiation as it were from a laptop etc. She can never use wireless as she gets splitting headaches. She asked me the other day what the least EMF emitting hard drive would be. I have no clue. HDD does not bother me. LED does and so does Wifi after 30 min.

 

That's a cute ThinkPad big brother little brother picture.

The reason you didn't hear people tell you a long time ago to get the X200 is because people prefer to nitpick and complain than extol the actual purchase of a laptop

Thanks for the review and hope the X200 continues to grow on you.

 

Try an x200 next to a W700 .

 

I agree that the x200 is a very good deal.

 

Welcome to the X200 family! Finally, you upgraded.

 

You mean like this

 

Wait did you get a W700? The x200 looks so small next to the behemoth w700. I did the same thing when I was at CES.

 

Definitely not. The picture is from GottabeMobile's w700ds review. I just bookmarked the link because the size difference is hilarious.

 

so portable jon you could bring the x200 as a backup in your pocket by comparison

 

Nice review. Thanks.

 

I thought about having a W700 and X200, both extremes if you will, but I like the size of R60. It's got a better screen with 1200 lines of vertical resolution already. I saw no reason to drop $2k since my R60 already offers more than enough performance.

 

Zaz yes that is a lot of money ! How's that 2.4 on battery life? I am not sure how the SL9600 stacks up to it but I am guessing in normal usage it will be the same. Have you used the webcam? I am eagerly awaiting my X200s.... payment should be through by Monday, then a delay to put XP Pro on it and get rid of Vista, so by Thursday I should really have it. Am practising with trackpoint on the T61.

 

I've got way more battery life than I need. Let's just say I've got a face for radio and will probably not be using the webcam much.

 

Personally i like the X200 much more than the X6x design, since the keyboard is nearly full sized due to the wider dimension of the x20x laptop.

So planning to upgrade the ram to 8 gigs any time soon? (just a joke)...