X230(t) Owner's Thread

well for the x220 the premium option is specifically stated to be IPS while this is not the case for the x230. that and the fact that the au lenovo rep told me its not IPS unless stated made me hold back on ordering. you'll notice that even in the us the premium display for the x230 is not specifically stated to be IPS.

 

The datasheet ( http://www.lenovo.com/products/us/laptop/thinkpad/x-series/x230/x230-datasheet.pdf) only gives two options for the display, and the "Premium" one is clearly stated to be the IPS screen. The Lenovo website was a little funky yesterday, and apparently they have not quite got everything straight.

 

Premium HD panel = IPS, standard panel = non IPS. All X220/X230 tablets have IPS panels, it is either IPS multi-touch or IPS Outdoor screen.

 

This might be a noob question, but does anyone know if any other mSATA besides Intel's is compatible with the X230? I read of a 2101 Error with the X220 with the Kingston 64gb mSATA ( http://forums.lenovo.com/t5/X-Serie...or-X220-with-Kingston-64GB-msata/td-p/679033). It appears the problem is bios related. I'm wondering anyone had this problem with the X230 or if Lenovo fixed it.

Disregard I found the answer.

 

That's rather disappointing, I had no idea that was the case, Gorilla Glass adds a pretty horrible glossy finish and is essentially just that -- a glossy screen. I placed an order with the outdoor viewable display and that's certainly not what I had in mind, it's going to reflect like crazy, doesn't make sense.

 

Hi, is there an advantage of ordering core i7?
For example: on the x220, you will have usb 3.0.

 

no added features other than the clock speed/cache/slightly higher clocked hd4000.


lenovo's i5 (3320M)
Cost*: $85
Clock: 2.6ghz
Turbo: 3.3ghz
Graphics clock: 650mhz
Graphics turbo: 1200mhz
L3 Cache : 3MB

lenovo's i7 (3520M)
Cost*: $275 (+223.5%)
Clock : 2.9ghz (+11.5%)
Turbo : 3.6 ghz (+9.1%)
Graphics clock: 650mhz (even)
Graphics turbo: 1250mhz (+4.2%)
L3 Cache 4MB (+33%)


*cost over i3 base processor


obviously the real world performance gains are not linear, especially with the cache, but i still have a hard time justifying the expense, as no matter what the real world performance gains are, they arnt going to justify a processor costing over 3x more money.

 

I did spring for the i7 personally, because Tuesday's sale price was so much lower than I expected, but I absolutely believe that the i5 3320M is the best value (cost/performance) out of the available x230(t) processors.

-impatiently waiting for shipping email

 

I used a 128GB MydigitalSSD mSATA with my X220, T420s and W520.

 

In my experience, going i5 and an SSD (using saved money over the i7) is the best deal. Unless it changed in IB, the i3 is missing more than clock speed over the i5 - AES, some vPro, and other features but the i5 to i7 is just clock and cache.

 

Per the new tabook, the x220t and x230t support "5 finger gesture". Does this mean it has five finger multitouch or two finger multitouch with 5 finger gesture detection? Regardless, this is good because it should make both laptops windows 8 ready.

 

This. Buy an SSD before upgrading the CPU.

 

That's what I'm doing, but I bought a msata drive instead

 

i was going to add the i3 to my processor comparison above, but noticed that the i3 lenovo lists is the sandy bridge 2370m. Is that a mistake (just dont know the naming of the ivy bridge i3 yet?) or is the base model shipping with a sandy bridge processor.

If it is not a mistake, i would advise no-one buys this machine with the i3. $85 more (less when discounted) will get you hd4000 graphics, +8.3% base clock, +37.5% turbo, +4.3% graphics turbo, 22nm die instead of 32nm, and higher max memory, max memory bandwidth, and max memory clocks, pcie 3.0 instead of 2.0, and a higher tJunction (assuming same cooling design, less chance of throttling).

 

A heads up to those ordering, the i5-3210M does not support virtualization, also slower graphics.

My x230 is in production with June 13th delivery estimated...

 

I only see the 3320m as an option. Which country are you ordering from?

 

Bleh, this is a good catch. All models said HD4000 when I ordered and I did not realize the base spec was still SB. Just had to cancel and reorder mine.

What a troll.

 

Does anyone know if the 6 cell battery on the X230t is as large and blocky as the one on the 220t? On the 220t it was oversized and looked like it was fitted on the wrong laptop, which was one of the reasons I avoided the 220t.

 

Order place:
Intel Core i5-3320M Processor (3M Cache, 2.60GHz)
Operating system Genuine Windows 7 Professional (64 bit)
Display type 12.5" Multitouch HD (1366x768) LED Backlit Display, Mobile Broadband Ready, 2x2 Antenna
System graphics Intel® HD Graphics 4000
Total memory 4 GB PC3-12800 DDR3 (1 DIMM)
Keyboard - US English
Pointing device UltraNav™ with TrackPoint® and buttonless multi-touchpad
720p HD Camera
Hard drive 500GB Hard Disk Drive, 7200rpm
Battery 6 Cell ThinkPad Battery X67+
Power cord 65W AC Adapter - US (2pin)
Bluetooth 4.0 with Antenna
Intel Centrino Wireless-N 2200 (2x2 BGN)
Language pack Publication - US English
---------------------------
Final cost: $916.61

I don't get the backlight keyboard, because I never used it on my MBP, and I hate working on the dark.
Going to replace with Vertex SSD and may add another 4gb ram.
Well, I will consider getting a dock later
Now, looking for a good BT mouse.

 

(Your list does appear to include the backlit keyboard.)

Did you have to haggle for that price? Here's a pretty similar config that's going for $1026.75:

• Intel Core i5-3320M Processor (3M Cache, 2.60GHz)
• Genuine Windows 7 Professional (64 bit)
• 12.5" Multitouch HD (1366x768) LED Backlit Display, Mobile Broadband Ready, 3x3 Antenna
• 4 GB PC3-12800 DDR3 (1 DIMM)
• Keyboard Backlit - US English
• Fingerprint Reader
• 500GB Hard Disk Drive, 7200rpm
• 6 Cell ThinkPad Battery X67+
• 65W AC Adapter - US (2pin)
• Bluetooth 4.0 with Antenna
• Intel Centrino Advanced-N 6205 AGN

The only differences I can see are the 3x3 antenna option (free), the fingerprint reader ($20), and the 6205 wifi ($20).

 

I see the 3310m option in the US.

 

It looks like the x230 vanilla has the 3210M and 3320M, but the x230 tablet only has the 3320M.

 

ah, i found it.

Here is the full processor comparison, data taken straight from intel, prices from us lenovo site.



3320 is likely to be the most popular model.


layman's interpretation:
i3 : vanilla - dont buy it stupid, 30 bucks gets you next generation graphics + turbo. Tablet - if you really dont care about graphics, clock speed, or having the latest processor, you can probably save 85 bucks here, but your futureproofing/resale value takes a hit.
i5 3210: if you dont care about graphics that much, vpro, or trusted execution, this is your best value chip. Only available on x230 vanilla.
i5 3320: 55 dollar upgrade (85 on tablet) for 100mhz higher graphics clock, slightly higher processor clock (likely not something you'd notice on vanilla, but on tablet this is the first level that gets you turbo which is noticeable). Has same features as the two higher end chips. Probably best value for either model.
i5 3360: 50 dollar upgrade for a negligible clock speed bump, no effect on graphics or extra features. Save your money, this isnt going to make a noticible difference for anyone. Available for x230 vanilla only.
i7 3520: 190 dollar upgrade (from 3320) for a slightly larger clock speed bump, but also a small graphics clock bump. If you really need the best, go for it, but you will notice more real-world benefit spending on ram or an ssd.

 

I love my X200t, the newer 16:9 tablets makes inking in portrait mode very difficult

 

I've owned all the modern x series tablets but the X201 tablet (who wants that one anyway). My favorite is probably the X200 tablet, just wish it had a higher resolution screen. X61t style with X200 mobo would have been great (Penryn > Merom).

 

fyi - Lenovo unboxing of X230T

Lenovo Unboxed: ThinkPad X230t convertible tablet - YouTube

(lol - it seems the X230 has the mini-display port, but the X230T still has the full sized display port.... first time I've seen that mentioned, guess I shouldn't have pre-ordered the mini-displayport -> HDMI cable then heh)

 

Oh no, I accidentally copy it wrong. I don't have the backlit keyboard. My fault.
I got a chance to have both the X230 and X220 in hand today. My only complain is that I feel the X220 keyboard is better.

 

so, you like the x220 kybd better? I have an in-transit x220 i7; which is about to be delivered. Price was great, $806 + taxes. For $200 more, I can get the x230 i7 with similar specs. Just not sure if it's worth it. If the kybd, can be swapped out then I'm in.

 

Is there that much of a difference in graphics performance between the 3210 and the 3220?

 

Someone already tried swapping the keyboard, it fit just fine but the key map in the BIOS was all off... Only way to fix it will be a BIOS hack, ... I also have a X220 coming and I got the 4 yr coverage on it just so I can enjoy the old keyboard for atleast 4 more years Even if someone does come up with a BIOS hack, I have to admit I would not be jumping to install such a hack considering it would probably void all warranties on the system. There is also the fact that I'm not sure I'd want to be the early adopter on one of these... X220 had alot of problems that have been ironed out over the past year, so I know I should be getting a good solid system now.

 

i'm sure someone will do the bios hack at some point, it might just take some time.

if you have an x220, the only noticeable differences will be
a) HD 4000 vs HD 3000 graphics
b) the keyboard
c) usb 3.0 for non i7's.

processor jump = negligible

 

Hi,
I am hoping to buy the X230. However when i put in the ecoupon code USXJUNESAVINGS2012 when at the shopping cart page and press APPLY the page says "Coupon not valid for current shopping cart". Could someone plz help me and tell me what im doing wrong? Would really appreciate the help

 

Afaik, you need to go through the Barnes and Noble or the Amex thing. There's instructions for the Amex thing a few pages back. Tsunade gave me a link for the B&N thing.

 

What about the reduced fan noise and improved audio?

 

fan noise: says who? Same thermal design as the x220 and the ivy bridge processors dont appear to produce significantly different thermal results based on testing so far.

improved audio: a new audio certification doesnt mean the average person will notice the difference. Reviews havnt really been touting this feature at all, and if it was a significant improvement i'd think they would be.

 

What about DP vs mDP?

 

Built-out a monster (I think). Hope this lasts me 5+ years like my X40.

• Processor Intel Core i7-3520M Processor (4MB L3, 2.90GHz)
• Display type 12.5" Multitouch HD (1366x768) LED Backlit Display, Mobile Broadband Ready, 2x2 Antenna
• System graphics Intel® HD Graphics 4000
• Total memory 4 GB PC3-12800 DDR3 (1 DIMM)
• Keyboard Keyboard Backlit - US English
• Pointing device UltraNav™ with TrackPoint® and buttonless multi-touchpad
• Fingerprint reader Fingerprint Reader
• Camera 720p HD Camera
• Hard drive 320GB Hard Disk Drive, 7200rpm
• Battery 6 Cell ThinkPad Battery X67+
• Power cord 65W AC Adapter - US (2pin)
• Bluetooth Bluetooth 4.0 with Antenna
• Integrated WiFi wireless LAN adapters Intel Centrino Advanced-N 6205 AGN
• Integrated mobile broadband Mobile Broadband upgradable

Also ordered from NewEgg the following upgrades:

• Corsair 16GB RAM (2 x 8GB) Link
• ADATA 60GB mSATA SSD (for creating a system image and storing encrypted files) Link
• Corsair Force GT 240GB SSD (primary drive) Link

Yea it's overkill, but whatever

 

Well improved cooling was one of the things Lenovo touted in their promotional materials. And as for the audio people here and on the Lenovo forums complained, so I hope the sound would have improved.

 

well the sound improved because of the Dolby software, the actual speakers did not really improve. You can use PeterTWJ's Dolby software on the X220 to get similar quality of sound.

The X series cooling is best in the class, only if the Macbook Pro and Air had similar quality of thermal management system then it would be great.

 

I think they said that on every model (improved cooling). I don't really see how, the chassis is identical on the x220, no extra vents and I don't think the fan has changed.

Definitely snag the dolby drivers if you want improved sound. With the dolby drivers, the x220 speakers are pretty awesome for the size.

 

The cooling isn't improved, but the CPU's have dropped in TDP, that alone will put less strain on the cooling system. My X220t will reach the 80-90C zone if I do some light 3D gaming on it and you cannot manually control the fan in tpfancontrol.

 

So, has anyone's X230(t) shipped yet?

 

Pretty sure all the estimated ship dates were June 16--I expect them to start earlier, but how much earlier,,,who knows.

 

my estimated ship date is 2012/06/12

 

hmmm, hate you....

 

Even my re-ordered unit has ESD 6/13. Is yours significantly later?

 

Ordered: 06/05/2012 8am EST
Scheduled Delivery: Wednesday, 06/13/2012, By End of Day
Last Location: Shanghai, China, Friday, 06/08/2012

 

The x230 will likely reach those temps too during gaming, unless of course using an eGPU.

I believe most reviews have said the x230 is actually running hotter than the x220. The CPU's may have dropped in TDP, but it doesn't actually seem to be translating into real world "cooling improvement". I think they just tossed that in there for marketing frankly.

 

Did you order an ssd with it or something?

 

wow lucky you, I ordered 6/5 in the early morning and my estimated ship date is still 6/12