X220 Tablet i5 2520M or i7 2640M?

Well, I'm pretty much new to this site and want to thank all of you for the wonderful threads of information on there. I've been reading them for a few months while deciding on which laptop will be ideal for my college courses. I finally settled on the X220 Tablet.

This is my configuration below: (It's basically loaded)

?????Intel Core i5-2520M Processor (2.5GHz, 3MB L3)1
Genuine Windows 7 Professional 6412
12.5" Multitouch HD (1366x768) LED Backlit Display, Mobile Broadband Ready, 2x2 Antenna
Intel® HD Graphics 3000
4 GB DDR3 - 1333MHz (1 DIMM)8
Fingerprint Reader
Intel 160 GB Solid State Drive, Serial ATA4
ThinkPad Battery 52+ (6 cell)60
Bluetooth 3.0
Intel Centrino Advanced-N 6205 (2x2 AGN)10
Integrated Mobile Broadband - Upgradable65
4294 : 1 Year Depot Warranty - TopSeller7

Is there a noticeable difference between the i5 and i7 options? The most tasking thing that I do is run 4 or 5 (light) VMWare sessions at the same time (I'll be upgrading RAM myself). And I don't do that often. Other than that is all document creation, and web browsing, etc.

One of my biggest concerns is resale value. I'll upgrade to a new system with Ivy Bridge and Windows 8. I generally upgrade every 8 to 10 months anyways. The difference in price between i5 and i7 options is about $200. Do you think that will be recoverable 10 months from now?

THanks!

 

No, there's no way you'll recover a $200 price difference. If the difference were ~$50, you might be able to make up the difference in resale (but even that'd be tough). In real usage, the i7 will provide you with no noticeable performance difference at all. Bottom line: definitely stick with the i5.

 

The i7 dual core doesnt offer a whole lot for the price increase. I would stick with i5.

 

Thanks for the quick response MidnightSun and lead_org.

I have a feeling that I'm going to enjoy this community. My first Thinkpad was a 486 in 1996 in Middle School... and several T series that followed. I currently have an x120e, which I'll be getting rid of when I get the X220 Tablet.

How do you guys feel about the 128GB SSD vs 160 Intel SSD? Price difference about $68. I figure that I should opt for more space if I plan on having multiple VMWare images.

 

i5

And I highly recommend this. Loaded with a 3/yr warranty. No tax, free shipping.

Mine will be here Wed.

Lenovo ThinkPad X220 42962WU 12.5" LED Tablet PC - Core i5 i5-2520M 2.5GHz - Black

No SSD of course, but 3rd party models are affordable. Plus my additional 4 gig stick (making 8 total) was $19 and will be here Wed as well.

Good luck!

 

I get better pricing direct from Lenovo through my employer. The spec I have listed about above (w/i5) is $998 plus tax.

Opted for only 1 year warranty since I will not keep it for that long. Considering 2 incase I decide to keep it longer or for resale value.

 

How do you guys feel about the 128GB SSD vs 160 Intel SSD? Price difference about $68. I figure that I should opt for more space if I plan on having multiple VMWare images.

 

i would go with the 160 gigs Intel SSD.

 

Thanks everyone. I'll post my order config once it's ordered. I'm excited!

 

Well I bit.

Intel Core i5-2520M Processor (2.5GHz, 3MB L3)1
Genuine Windows 7 Professional 6412
12.5" Multitouch HD (1366x768) LED Backlit Display, Mobile Broadband Ready, 2x2 Antenna
Intel® HD Graphics 3000
4 GB DDR3 - 1333MHz (1 DIMM)8
Fingerprint Reader
Intel 160 GB Solid State Drive, Serial ATA4
ThinkPad Battery 52+ (6 cell)60
Bluetooth 3.0
Intel Centrino Advanced-N 6205 (2x2 AGN)10
Integrated Mobile Broadband - Upgradable65
4294 : 1 Year Depot Warranty - TopSeller7

Subtotal: $998.92
Tax: $69.92
Total: $1,068.84

Est. Ship Date: 11/24/11

 

Not bad. The deal I posted has a 3-yr warranty but your's has an SSD.

Good tradeoff if you won't keep it long (which you said you won't). I plan on tossing either an mSATA or single SSD when mine gets here tomorrow. That and an additional 4 gig RAM when it arrives tomorrow ($19).

Great choice!

 

Thanks. I looked at mSATA options, but they were a bit pricey for me. They seem to be great if you want SSD and the large capacity of a hard drive at the same time.

My x120e has 8gb of RAM. I'll transfer 4GB of it to the x220 Tablet before selling it.

I was going back and forth with the warranty options.... but I really wanted to have more of a reason to flip it for a new laptop next year.

Unfortunately, Abes charges me tax as I'm in NJ (and so are they). boo.

 

Where are you guys getting deals like that?

I saw a decent deal on the Lenovo site, but they said they weren't honoring the price because it was a mistake. Also, if I order straight from Lenovo, I don't like the machine and want to return it, I have to pay a 15% restocking fee. I have several concerns about the machine and want to try it out to make sure it will work for me, but the only way to try it out is to buy it. That is fine, but I don't want to lose 15% if it doesn't work for me. I do programming and content creation and the things I am worried about are low screen resolution, keyboard needs to be easy to type fast, and the digitizer needs to be accurate.

So far my interactions with the Lenovo sales team has left a lot to be desired. I am worried that if their sales team is this bad, their support team might be worse, and where does that leave the engineers? After over 20 years in the IT industry, I have learned that if one arm of the company is bad, then the others are likely not much better.

I was also looking at the EP121, so I am about to see if their sales team is any better. I wish I could speak to a decent sales rep from Lenovo.

Anway, if I still decide to go the x220 route, where are you getting these great deals at?

Also, I was thinking of getting the 2yu configuration, then maybe upgrading it myself later. That way, I could have it shipped immediately, but that config seems to hovering around the $1,300 mark.

Thank you.

 

They have better pricing on the lenovo website

$1240 for ($190 more for i7)

Processor: Intel Core i5-2520M Processor (2.5GHz, 3MB L3) Edit
Operating system: Genuine Windows 7 Professional 64 Edit
Operating system language: Genuine Windows 7 Professional 64 English
Display type: 12.5" Multitouch HD (1366x768) LED Backlit Display, Mobile Broadband Ready, 2x2 Antenna Edit
System graphics: Intel® HD Graphics 3000 Edit
Total memory: 4 GB DDR3 - 1333MHz (1 DIMM) Edit
Keyboard: Keyboard US English
Pointing device: TrackPoint and TouchPad Edit
Fingerprint reader: Fingerprint Reader Edit
Camera: Camera, HD 720p Edit
Hard drive: 128 GB Solid State Drive, Serial ATA Edit
Battery: ThinkPad Battery 52+ (6 cell) Edit
Power cord: Country Pack North America with Line cord & 65W AC adapter Edit
Bluetooth: Bluetooth 3.0 Edit
Integrated WiFi wireless LAN adapters: Intel Centrino Advanced-N 6205 (2x2 AGN) Edit
Integrated mobile broadband: Integrated Mobile Broadband - Upgradable Edit
Language pack: Language Pack US English

 

My X220 Tablet arrived today. What speed RAM is adequate? I have 1066 lying around... will that cause performance issues?

 

The included (standard) RAM is PC3-10600, running at 1333MHz. If you install a 1066MHz (PC3-8500) stick, the RAM will operate at the speed of the slowest stick. It will work with no noticeable performance impacts, but given the super-low price of DDR3 SODIMMs nowadays, you may as well just get another 4GB module.

 

I have 2x 4GB lying around from my x120e, but they are 1066. I can flip em on ebay for more than i can pick up a single 4gb stick of 1333. So I'll just do that.

Thanks.