X220 Build quality problems

Hello,

I received a new x220 a few days ago. Since then, I've discovered some build problems.

1. Molded dimples on LCD bezel are deforming the palm rest.

Shown below is a picture of what the bezel has done to the palm rest. As you can see, the plastic near the palm rest has deformed to the shape of the molded dimple.

The dimple is in the bottom right corner of the touch pad

deformed palm rest




2. Flex near the express card slot. The left side of the palm rest has about half a milimeter of play which can result in some annoying creaking noises.

Before (no forces acting on it)



Problem:



Given these problems, do you think it's worth sending to lenovo to repair? I asked them several times to just send me a new palm rest and bezel as I'm more than comfortable dismantling the unit but they refused. I'm told it could take 9 days to change the part out.


I'm worried that if I send it in, it'll come back worse.

 

I can't see any issues in pics one and two. If you want it fixed, then you best send it in.

 

I'd check to see if you have all your screws on the bottom. Check every hole. But about your trackpad, that's a really tiny nick. Are you really that concerned about it?

 

I see the same flex, but no squeak in mine. Might be coming from somewhere else.

No deformity though in the palm rest.

 

I realize I'm being really anal about this.

I'm probably just overly concerned about the the dimple...It in no way effects functionality of the laptop. I was just a bothered by it as the laptop is only 4 or so days old.

As for the gap in the 3rd picture, I had a similar problem with my dell m4400 near its SD card reader. The workaround was to use a dab of superglue :/. I didn't want to use that option but given to tolerances for these laptop parts, I doubt sending it in will solve anything....Since the design isn't going to change, I'll probably see the dimple reappear on the new palm rest. I may try to sand down those dimples at the top of lcd bezel

 

I have the dimples too because I jam my laptop into my small bag with lots of books. They appeared after a few days, but haven't gotten any worse over the past two months. I wouldn't worry about it; laptops are made to be used so they will show wear. Babying a laptop means you won't be able to use it to its fullest extent, IMO.

Also, don't sand the dimples down. They're there for a reason, which I assume is to keep the flat part of the bezel from contacting the keyboard tray. Also sanding them down may or may not void your warranty, but you don't want to give Lenovo any excuses to do so.

 

Sanding down the "dimples" will allow the bezel to rub against the palmrest, causing faint lines to appear along the palmrest where the edge of the bezel is (and you can't remove those faint lines). Those plastic ridges are there for a reason.

 

I have the same flex on the expresscard and it pops if you lean on it way too hard. But you shouldn't do that. There is no gap for me so maybe you need to tighten a screw or even take the palmrest off and make sure all of the tabs are in line. There is a tab right where you are pulling it up in the pic. I can't do that with mine, and I took it apart for upgrades and made sure I aligned the tabs correctly when I put the palmrest back on. I'm guessing out of the factory they didn't angle it correctly on your machine when it was buttoned up.

Overall if you got a good screen and a fan that isn't crying, if those are your only complaints, I would keep it. Really minor stuff.

 

Mine has those issues too, but how perfect can you expect a mass manufactured item to be? After a few weeks of use, you'll forget all about it.

 

I would not use any kinds of superglue. You can get real rubber (plumbing store to stop leakage on a pipe and it comes in rolls) or use highly flexible heatlglue. There is another glue which remains extremely flexible but I cannot recall the name of it. The bottom line is that the glue you use on this MUST be more flexible than the X220 plastic.

These highly flexible glues/tapes have a great advantage. They can actually be removed without causing damage.

I hope this helps

 

I can confirm the dimples' indents on the palmrest. It bothered me at first, too, but I just forgot about it after a while.

 

I can also confirm the dimple indents on my x220 as well. Aesthetically, not a big deal, but it does cause a creaking noise in the pastic when held from the side, as the plastic points would dig into the palmrest.

I had my x220 at a repair depot because of the ghosting screen, and mentioned the issue with the dimples. The repair guy put four rubber pads (basically, miniature rubber feet that you'd find on alaptop) on the top bezel so that the plastic at the top does not touch the palmrest.

He secured it with double-sided tape so it comes off easily if I want to just go back natural. Seems like an effective solution, not perfectly in that the lid now closes maybe 98% versus a full 100%, but definitely protects from scratches and reduces noise 100%.

 

Interesting, could you post a picture of this?

I've also noticed some wear at the bottom of the bezel due to rubbing against that plastic piece surrounding the power button and volume control when the lid is closed.

Arg...It pisses me off that "ultra durable" stigma associated with the thinkpad brand doesn't seem to be as high held as I imagined... It's a solid laptop however these wear issues appearing only after a few days of use are concerning. I do plan on keeping the system however it looks like I'll have to spend some time to sort these things out.

I placed a tiny dab of super glue between the express card slot and the bottom chassis which appears to have solved the creaking problem while typing.

 

I can't even see anything in the first picture that you posted. Maybe my eyes are poor, but I honestly can't for the life of me see what you think is the problem. The second one makes sense: when you exert pressure on plastic, it bends.

 

Here are some photos. The four rubber pieces are attached via double-sided tape so they come off of the bezel without too much difficulty.

I also included shots from the side to show you how the lid isn't exactly flush from the side profile due to the rubber, but also a shot from the front to show that the lid does still close very effectively. It looks completely flush from the front.

As originally mentioned, I'm not 100% sure I'll stick with this. But it definitely fixes the problem of the bezel scratching the palmrest, and the creaking sound that it causes.

(I should add that while I think there are a few things design-wise that this computer comes up lacking, I still think it's a superb laptop).

 

Hi all

Proud owner of a X220 who is getting a little disappointed. I have the exact same issue with the OP, except to the extent that the little dimple indentation he shows on his model has now converted into a crack in the exact spot on my one. Furthermore, please go to this link: Re: Crack in X220 casing + poor support - Page 5 - Lenovo Community

There is another case with the crack occurring at the exact same spot as I state in my case. This is no coincidence.

Lenovo is being hard on another fellow for a crack which occurred at manufacturing on his model. Help us by following the thread there.

Many thanks.

Andrew

 

If you are referring to wimute(?)'s crack on the right side of the machine (near the headphone plug), he is "claiming" that the crack occurred due to manufacturing defect/design flaw.
I have my doubts about his claims.

And his issue and this "bump" issue are two very different issues.

 

I was under the impression that the bumps and dimples associated with them were an intentional design feature.

Anyways, assuming your crack is like wimutes, there is no way that the bumps/dimples caused it. The crack involved an entirely different component than the two involved in the bump/dimple "problem."

btw, "Not a coincidence" would be like the motherboard failures on specific batches of X220's purchased around November/December, or the bumpgate nV GPUs a while back, not two machines both having cracks near the headphone imho. Anyways, it sucks that Lenovo won't fix it unless you have accidental damage protection though.

 

Even if Wimute's situation is different ( http://forums.lenovo.com/t5/X-Series-ThinkPad-Laptops/Crack-in-X220-casing-poor-support/td-p/670587), the crack described and photographed in this thread is located in almost the exact same spot where the dimple issue occurs: Chassis Crack on X220 - covered under warranty? - Lenovo Community. So it is very possible that the dimple issue is actually a design flaw that leads to a crack problem.

Add to that, reports of cracks occurring in the lid here http://forums.lenovo.com/t5/X-Series-ThinkPad-Lapt​ops/X220-Lid-breaking/td-p/559871 and Wimute's problem and that of AndrewPh and what are we to conclude?

Even if the problems are not exactly identical, there is ample evidence of shoddy materials or workmanship in the build of these expensive machines.

Earlier in this thread, someone asked

I'd say perfect. Or in my case, the answer is about $1,600 worth of perfect. This is particularly so when laptops are selling in a price environment that is more like $800-$1,200. I am paying more for everything on my X220, from the guts to the plastic. And I have a right to expect more. After all, are these machines are not sold and advertised as having an "okay build quality, for a mass manufactured machine that is"? No. They are advertised as having top quality (or even the best) build and as being in perfect condition when purchased, at least insofar as design, workmanship and materials are concerned.

I haven't even got my darn X220 yet and I am already pretty concerned about quality and displeased at how Lenovo warranty service is treating owners.

 

If the dimples caused the crack, I would have expected the crack to originate at the dimple. I'm still far from convinced that the dimples are causing any problems. The bumps are obviously intentional, since the dimples show up really quickly, I would expected if it was a mistake, it to be caught and fixed. This leads me to believe that both the bumps and dimples are intentional.

There are a few reports of cracks scattered throughout various components. I personally agree that Lenovo should fix them even if you haven't bought accidental damage protection, but these problems are problems affecting a few lemon X220 machines, and not problems affecting the X220 series as a whole or even a specific subset of X220's produced. It's a given when mass producing something that not every object produced will meet your standards, thus you try your best to catch these and make sure they don't end up in the hands of a customer, but there will be some that slip through.

Not every single unit will be perfect. There is no practical way to guarantee that. That is a fact of mass produced products.

Of course, Lenovo could try treating their customers that do receive these faulty units better.

I wouldn't worry. The vast majority of X220's are fine. Every laptop series will have specific problems affect very few machines, and people are more likely to complain than to just chime in and say that everything is good.

If you are really worried, invest in accidental damage protection so Lenovo will fix physical damage under warranty. It's generally a good idea anyways and NBD onsite is included as well.

 

Darn straight. Which is why this search

site:forum.notebookreview.com/lenovo-ibm/ hate

returns far more results in your favorite search engine than this search

site:forum.notebookreview.com/lenovo-ibm/ love

Except that it's the other way around. Maybe all the haters went to the subforums.

 

And really, with precise, scientific data like that, who can argue?!

 

LOL!

Why does this have to be about "haters" or anyone "versus" anyone else? Its a little silly to feel emotional (defensive) about a machine that you purchased from a multi-national company. The battle lines between "I'm a Mac" and "I'm a PC" are far too trite to draw further lines between "I'm a proud X220 owner" versus "I am an unhappy X220 owner."

If there is a manufacturing or materials defect issue that shows up (whether the number of times it occurs is within or outside the statistical norm or tolerence percentages for product issues of a particular type), its good to know that you are not the only person experiencing the issue. And its good to share information like this so owners can pass the collective experience along to Lenovo who will hopefully address the issues in a prompt, reasonable and fair manner. I think that is the intent of posting about problems that develop with these machines.

 

It's good that people report problems in case there is an actual issue affecting the X220 series or significant subsets of it, like the motherboard failures in some batches for example. I'm more complaining about people claiming that a few isolated incidents affecting individual units that are barely related at best is a major problem. Unless there is a sudden influx of people with very similar cracks, that is what the supposed build quality issues of the X220 are, problems affecting individual faulty units.

 

A little silly?

Usually, a "problem report" seems to be taken as personal attack on someone's wise purchase decision, profound technical knowledge, or sophisticated business understanding.

TGIF!

 

Or, if you're a T61 owner with limited opportunities for constructive posting, a chance to stir the pot. Sorry.

 

Build quality on the X220 is pretty good, but there are design quirks on the X220, like that dimples on the top of the screen leaving a deep mark on the palmrest and sometimes causing it to crack.

Not sure why these hard plastic dimples were used. But overall i am super happy with my X220 and the 10 hour battery. I can now leave home the power adapter when meeting clients for extended discussion.

 

I agree with the intent.

I think the issue some people have with problem reports is when people extrapolate from one unit to an entire line or an entire brand.

A while back I posted a fairly long screed against Lenovo's ownership of ThinkPad brand over at ThinkPads.com. I based it on what I perceived as build quality problems with my X200s.

Yeah, about that... my assertions were pretty stupid. I was extrapolating from a single unit of a single model to an entire brand. Turns out -- once I actually used the machine for a while and widened by basis of comparison -- the issues I saw with my X200s weren't indicative of much of anything. So my approach was a pretty bad idea.

What I should have done was to simply post something like r00bin did in his/her first post. That's a lot more level-headed way of approaching it.

 

I am actually very pleased with the build quality of my x220. It is certainly not indestructible, and I don't pretend that the x220 can withstand the same damage that you see from TP videos on YouTube. However, I find that it has been holding up to the daily grind better than my previous laptops despite not paying the same premium for it. For instance, I don't need to worry as much about how I place my laptop in my bag before heading out in fear of denting the lid because of the weight of my books. One other thing that reassures me is that if a part does need to be replaced (i.e. palm rest) that I will likely be able to find a replacement part on the cheap. My pseudo-rant above doesn't mean I don't take care of it, but I also don't feel the need to constantly baby it. In the end, it's just a laptop, and I treat it like one, which is how I want it to be. Real "TLC" is given only to wife, family and friends and not my gadgets.

 

Over the years, I've learned to take pretty good care of my electronics. It's cheaper that way.

 

Yeah, level-headed fault reporting and requests for help are good.

There are some hurdles to the level-headedness:

first: the expensive new machine failed, and it wasn't your fault. You're feeling a little less level headed.

second: the customer service people make you go through lots, and lots and lots of loops and treat you with contempt, and deny you the service you think is the minimum reasonable service, and deny your contractual rights. Your head is sort of 45 degrees from level by now.

third: you post you situation to forums and get some hope, some encouragement, lots of trite and befuddled comments, and ultimately just a sense of helplessness shared with the odd sympathetic poster.

Wouldn't it be amazing if there was some perfect system for collecting statistics on failure rates for all parts on all machines! Because ultimately product reviews are skin-deep, and forum posts are statistically insignificant. Still, that doesn't mean the odd customer stuck with a "lemon" should be ignored by the likes of Lenovo. But it does mean they can be ignored by the likes of Lenovo.

I just had a look through related issues recently posted on the Lenovo forums and I see lots of evidence of similarly low build / assembly / materials quality on Lenovo notebooks, and similarly poor customer service and contract fulfilment from Lenovo regarding such issues. Here some quotes from related threads (associated URLs at bottom):

"I am very disappointed in the "military grade" build of this thinkpad";

"it was a no brainer to get an other X220 [...] so I got one. That was my first mistake.";

"Having two old IBM ThinkPads (R51 and X31) I'm also rather disappointed by X220 build quality.";

"Hello, I am dissapointed with the poor built quality on the X220.";

"I hate to say it, but I've seen better built Acers.";

"Pray you never have to have any interaction with their warranty department";

"Maybe one morning my laptop will be split in 2 pieces, two computer for the price of 1!"

Chassis Crack on X220 - covered under warranty? - Page 2 - Lenovo Community

A thinkpad is no longer a Thinkpad. - Lenovo Community

Thinkpad X220 outer crack. - Lenovo Community