keep x301 or buy x1 ?

i am really confused to decide whether to leave x301 or not ! but i feel that some people love to keep x301 over x1 ! how do you think ? thanks in advance !

 

Buy the X220!

 

What are you using your laptop for? Your answer will depend entirely on that. The X1 does have better CPU and graphics performance over the X301, but the X301's display and general build are better.

 

I remember the X301 display being horrible. Then again, at least its matte.

You also lose your optical drive, Thinklight, and 7 row keyboard if you switch to an X1.

I would look at.
T420s. Its T-series, but its under 4 lbs and its the thinnest traditional Thinkpad if you don't count the X1.
X220. No optical drive. Relatively thick compared to T420s/X1/X301, but light weight. Epic Battery life with slice + 9 cell.

 

The X301's display is not top notch, but then again, neither is the X1's. The X301 has, however, a 1440x900 resolution and a matte finish.

 

I recommend you wait.
With intel pushing "ultrabooks" (MacBookAir clones hehheh) in late 2011-2012, hopefully Lenovo will redo the 13" thinkpad and get it right sometime soon.

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Look how fat the x1 is with the battery slice.
Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Review: Thin is In | Heat and Connectivity, Battery Life and Portability

 

Keep your X301 or buy the X220 or T420s

 

I would keep the x301 (13.3" with an optical drive and WXGA+, and should be fine for most tasks, shouldn't be compiling code on a 13.3" ultraportable anyway).

Not liking the X1's keyboard also.

 

I would defiantly keep your X301.

 

I just posted my X1 vs X301 review a few links up. May help with your decision.

 

It's pretty rare that I use an optical drive any more. I think the X220(i) is probably a better option from what I've gathered, but I haven't actually seen the X1. The X301 is certainly a great ThinkPad, but there are some things to consider. The screen while having a great resolution, is fair quality wise. It's the old quality vs quantity debate. Personally, I prefer quality, but you certainly could make a good argument for the other depending on your needs.

The X301 also has only a 1.8" hard drive, which will limit your options to upgrade. There's no modular bay for the X301 either, which means you won't have a lot of space. I don't know if that matters to you. The single drive is one thing I disliked about my X200/X200t. You could have speed or space, but not both. That has been solved with the X220 and mSATA drive.

If you like your X301 and it's meeting your needs, I don't see a reason to upgrade. My R60e is certainly more than capable of meeting my needs.

 

Well ya personally I have no need of an optical drive either, but they are nice to have (USB Samsung one can be had for ~40-50 USD), but for some business professionalsit's just one thing to have. But also x301 are incredibly overpriced, might be nice to keep one around.

 

thanks, IMO, x1 has the blacklit keyboard, but really do not like the glossy screen with the lower resolution ! i need a laptop with screen over 13 inches ! but i do like the quality of x301, it really a good one i have ever owned !

 

keep the X301 and get a new X220.

 

really confused with LENOVO THINKPAD, too much complaints about the quality of thinkpad , in particular , x220 , x1 t420s,!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

I just bought a x1, i own a x301, and a t410s.
Lenovo kind of keeps pissing me off. I love hate them but keep coming back.
They cant seem to get it all right.
Anyways to answer your question. I like the x301 better then the x1.

bdoviack has an excellent review and i agreed with every point.
Why couldnt they just have kept the x301 construction and added the faster processor. The X1 is too heavy for what it is supposed to be. It also is not as confortable to hold, its just too angular.

Pros: The x1 is more stylish and the trackpad is better, the keyboard is amazing, and I like a lit keyboard vs the thinklight but it is distracting. The battery life on the x1 is definately longer then my x301. And the rapid recharge is cool. The best thing about it is that its just so fast. Whether you like the glossy finish vs the matte is a matter of preference. Its thinner but that is not a margin of difference.

On paper the x1 seems great but here I am using my old x301 in bed and the x1 is laying on the floor. The x301 is the best experience I have had yet from lenovo.

Keep your x301 till they get it right

 

i vote for keeping your x301 and waiting until they update the X1, im 90% sure a better display is on it's way

 

X1 thinkpad is not really aimed at the traditional thinkpad users, they are more aimed at people whom can't decide between traditional thinkpads and macbook pro sort of customers. Hence why it combined different elements of these two laptops.

The biggest problem i have with the X1 is the trackpoint's click button, it is weird and not very comfortable to use. Other than that i have a problem with the 1366 x 768 resolution, it is not enough.

In terms of performance, thermal management and durability, the X1 is definitely the best in the class.

The X30x is one of the best Thinkpads in the recent years in terms of keeping to the traditional Thinkpad design, and it is a collector piece. There is no point selling it, it is a really nice machine to use for non-CPU intensive processes.

 

You are wrong actually...
there are modular bays for sale at very good price, so you can have a 2nd sata HDD/SSD (7mm) in the place of dvd or extra battery!
In that caddy, I have put inside a 320GB 1.8" sata drive (taken from an X220!), and I successfully extended the space to what i needed, finally!!

X301 is the best ThinkPad Business Laptop ever made!!!

 

I have sold my X1 and bought another X301!

 

Keep the X301, definitely!

 

A thread from the dead.

Yo Dondino, do you have a link to the X301 Ultrabay hard drive adapter that you are using?

I just bought another X301 and it will be here next week.

 

I keep looking at these on Ebay. I like the 16:10 aspect ratio, WXGA+ display and great keyboard.

 

Hi Thors!
just search "X301 caddy" on ebay, and it will open a world for you
there are a few different options... but they are all the same, just branded differently!

EDIT: it seems that actually there are no more available... of these caddys. Search for the auction # 170757537943, that is the one I bought in the past.
There it says the seller is away till the end of the month, I think that from February you can buy it again.

 

Every time discussion about the X301 comes up I start checking prices. X(

 

Thanks. I have it bookmarked. I just bought the X301 so I will wait for it's arrival before I start buying goodies to go with it.

 

Using the steps outlined here should get your X301 idling at 4.6-5.2W. That's what I get a L9600-2.13 2530P doing. A DC Optimized 2560P with Sandy Bridge cpu gets slightly more battery life for the same web surfing activities.

Suggest someone FSLx PLL pinmod their X301 from 200->266 MHZ (SU9400-1.4 to 1.86, SU9600-1.6 to 2.13) like shown in http://forum.notebookreview.com/har...verclocking-methods-examples.html#post4998927 .

If can disable EIST via a modded bios, then can run dual-IDA and gain another 200Mhz (or 266Mhz if PLL pinmod overclocked).

Word about the X301 caddy

A X300/X301 uses a PATA optical drive so the caddy too is PATA. Meaning there's a sata-to-pata bridge chip which will add an extra 0.7-1W overhead to your idle power consumption. If battery life is important to you then consider adding a power kill switch to the front of the caddy and only switch it on when needed.

Extreme modders might want to track down the pata-to-sata bridge chip Lenovo added and wire directly to the sata lines. Lenovo added such a chip so they could use the thin 7mm PATA optical drive in a ICH9M-equipped X301, an I/O chip that doesn't include a PATA interface.

 

Hey nando4, thanks for all these useful infos!
when are you going to buy one X301 and start "extreme" experimental modding?

 

Looking at the schematic snippet here tells us a X301 uses a ICS 9LPRS393AKLFT, a number not too far from the ICS 9LPRS397DKLF used in a 2530P so it would be feasible to TME-unlcok it and program the PLL using setPLL OR to hardwire it from 200 to 266Mhz operation. Ref: 2530P PLL pinmod here.

If Lenovo did a switcharoo and used a SLG PLL instead then it may be similar to the Dell E4300 pinmod I did here.

I'm a big fan of a similar gen HP 2530P (small, 16:10 LCD, great keyboard, awesome battery life) so I can see why X301 owners would want to extend their performance to keep their X301's relevant. Glad to accept a low grade X301 (scratched, etc) to do such mods on if someone is prepared to donate a shipped one to Australia.

 

Check out this X301. Metal-flake blue. See Lenovo ThinkPad X301 Ultraportable Laptop @LOOK@ (008843433528) | eBay

 

nice machine but I still prefer the more clear original design and colour... the palmrest on that model probably doesnt even have the typical rubber finish which I liked a lot also in the X1.

nando4, unfortunately I dont have enough skills to make those modifications which are relatively easy for you! but I can't hide the fact that i'm so tempted to attempt these moddings ... but as you say, its better to sacrify a "not perfect" machine... we will need to wait still...

 

Feasible mods to extend the working life of a Lenovo X301

Just in summary, the following three mods would extend the working life of a X301:

1. a dual-IDA modded bios, no whitelist, SLIC 2.1 (contact middleton - a request has already been made). This would allow a U9400-1.4 to run at 1.6Ghz and a U9600-1.6 to run at 1.8Ghz using Throttlestop's dual-IDA mode.

2. A PLL 200->266Mhz PLL pinmod. Combined with (1) would see a U9400-1.4 running at 2.13Ghz and a U9600-1.6 running at 2.40Ghz.

This would involve changing the the FSL_B pin from logic 1 to 0 as seen in the X301 schematic snippet below. I'd solder a < 100ohm resistor to the right leg/side of the R763 resistor then run it to GND to accomplish that.



This may require increased voltage supplied by doing VID mods on the voltage regulator pins to support the higher running frequency. See the X301's voltage regulator snippet below:



3. patch through a sata 2.5" drive connector directly from the sata controller, bypassing the sata-to-pata bridge used to connect the 7mm PATA optical drive. This would allow a 7mm 2.5" SSD or HDD to run on the faster native SATA interface. This could be fiddly work as depends on how accessible the 4 RX/TX SATA lines are near the bridge chip. They are shown in the schematic snippet below. Hope there are resistors or vias nearby to attach wires to as attaching to the bridge chip pins would be painful.



My previous offer of a X301 donation stands if anyone wants me to kickstart these mods into guides for others to replicate. A sacrifice machine ...

REF: Lenovo X301 schematic (Kodachi2)

 

If the X301 affectionados want to start a X301 Owner's Lounge then feel free to post the above info into it. It would be a better place for it than this thread. Can use the 2510P/2530P/E4300/2560P links in my sig as a template of the sort of information you may want to include in the lounge.

 

Did you manage to do the mod? I belive you're aiming way too high with the Dual IDA + PLL mod on a SU9600. TDP for a P8600 (which would be the equivalent running at 2.4 GHz and 1066 MHz FSB) is 25W but the X301 only has a 10W cooling system. It's going to overheat badly.

PLL only mod on a SU9400 is far more realistic (you don't need to adjust anything manually as with Dual IDA) and is quite a jump in performance already. I belive that it won't even need voltage adjustments. Plus 1.4 GHz machines / motherboards are far more common than 1.6 GHz ones which makes it far less expensive to experiment.

 

A SU9400 would probably be a better candidate to try the 200->266 FSLx pinmod on. There it would run at 1.86Ghz or 2.13 (Dual-IDA).

Core2Duo CPUs can often be significantly undervolted to run at their specced highest multiplier so TDP values are then way off. Eg: I was pleasantly surprised to find a P8400 I checked recently could run 0.875v @ x6, near the 0.85v @ x6 a ULV CPU can run at. A L9400 could only run at 0.925V. @ x6.

No X301 to try such mods. Though happy to accept a X301 donor machine to demonstrated them.

 

nice mod, but i think i like my X301 the way it is.

 

I will not be of much help there because I don't even have an X301 myself, just the original X300. But I've been watching eBay lately and X301s are selling now for a reasonable price of $400 or so. If you're willing to buy one and do the mod I'll gladly donate $50 for the cause.

Indeed, the C2D is fantastic. My machine uses the L7100, still built on the 65nm process yet it undervolts nicely. I've got mine running at 0.9v for all frequencies except IDA, which works stable at 0.95v. But as good as it is, I don't think it's possible to go much beyond 1.86 GHz con this machine. It simply doesn't have the cooling capacity (my processor idles at about 50 °C).

I've been thinking about upgrading it, though. Do you think it's just a matter of swapping the motherboard and base plastics?

 

You sending it back when they're done?

 

I'll be happy to send mine. Shipping will be $1000.

You'll receive an X301 in mint condition with 8GB of RAM, brand new 160GB Intel Series 320 SSD, and a brand new expansion bay battery.

 

Appears middleton did make a dual-IDA bios for a X301 and released it via the German Thinkpads forum. X301 owners may want to track it down to gain an extra 200Mhz dual-IDA overclock on their systems and link it on here for other English speaking owners to benefit from.

REF: Dual bios for IDA X301 (3:15 to 1:05) (google-translated).

 

I sent an email asking for the Bios. Thanks for the heads up. I'll let you know what I find out. From reading through the translation on the German lenovo site, the only problem I see with the bios is that an older version of the bios has been modified and Lenovo has added a couple of revisions since then. But, if there is nothing really critical in the updates, it would be nice to get a free .2ghz boost without a lot of work. Then, as time passes, maybe a pin-mod to jack the speed of the SU9400 a bit.

I picked up the X301 listed in my sig for $425 and love it. I am amazed how competent the little SU9400 is, even without any software boost. The battery is a bit worn, with only 33,000wh capacity left, but with the OD battery, I can get decent life. I can pick up a new 48,000wh for $40. The high resolution display gives me plenty of real estate to work with. The keyboard is great. My only complaint is that the keyboard is barely broken in and the space bar clicks too loudly. Another odd thing is that there is no SD card slot. What is that about Lenovo? I guess I'm going to have to figure out how to sync with my tablet through the Network at work or use a thumbdrive.

So, in all, I was able to buy this X301 and still have enough in my budget to buy a new Microsoft Surface 10" I5UM Ivybridge Windows 8 tablet when it is introduced later this year, all for the price of an X1 carbon. Not to knock the carbon, it looks great. But so is the price.

 

Congrats on the acquisition which works well for the future Microsoft Surface purchase. It and the Acer W700 (with Thunderbolt) tablets look very tasty.

Did you want to start a X301 owner's thread? You are welcome to transpose any bits of mine over to it. A X301 is a great little system worthy of a place to collect and summarize tidbits for owners to reference.

 

Great Idea ... I'll do that when I get a chance.

 

I just picked up an X301 and would love to see a dedicated thread!

 

X301 successfully pinmodded 200->266Mhz already

We find that a SU9600 X301 has already been successfully PLL pinmod overclocked to 2.13Ghz.

CPU overclocking X301 (51nb.com - google translated)
[Hardware] ThinkPad X301 is overclocking, direct 2.13GHz ZT (nbclub.net - references above link. Google translated.)

Do note that the dual-IDA bios would give an additional one extra full multipler, Meaning a SU9600 could be overclocked up to 2.4Ghz depending on whether there was sufficient voltage available to do so with full stability AND the CPU could remain under TJmax (100degrees) temp under full load.

 

I just picked up a 1.4ghz but now contemplating to get the 1.6. I want to invest in this machine because I really loved it when I had one a couple years back. Is the difference neglible between the processors?

 

That's a good candidate for the PLL Mod. From what I read 2.13 GHz may be a bit too much but 1.86 GHz should be possible without voltage pumping. It's a good boost, not only to the CPU itself but to the whole system (GPU, FSB, etc.)

 

Feel weird reviving an old thread but I have an update to the original question. My revised question is "keep X301 or keep X1 Carbon"?

I've been using the X301 for over 4 years now and it's performed admirably. Being in the tech field, I thought 4 years on a lightweight laptop, it would be time to upgrade to something more powerful like the X1 Carbon. I just received my X1 Carbon last week and am now on the fence what I should do.

X301 Pros
"Just works". The des.ign is rock-solid and reliable. Has all the ports you need and even a DVD-ROM when needed.
Feels better in the hand than the X1. I think the X1 has actually become too thin. The X301 feels just right. Not too thin or too thick.
Thinklight. I think the backlight is quite bad on all the new ThinkPads. The backlight only looks good when viewing the keyboard directly overhead. When used in a regular typing position, you see the backlight shining through all the gaps in the keys and not the actual letter. Seems this was a "me too" feature added to compete with Apple

X301 Cons
Can't pick out any major flaws in the X301, just that it is getting old and the lack of CPU power sometimes shows through. As today's media becomes more processor intensive (more HD videos), faster streaming, it would be nice to have a bit more "oomph"
Best speakers/sound in a modern laptop. The X301 still has the richest set of speakers I've experienced in a notebook. Maybe it's because they're on the top of the palm rest and not

X1 Carbon Pros
Obviously the speed boost is nice but not dramatic over the X301.
Bigger touch pad is handy

X1 Carbon Cons
My biggest pet peeve of the X1 is the lack of any "true" port replicator or docking options. As the X1 has not many ports, you're forced to use a USB-based port replicator. The port replicator duplicates the mouse, keyboard and ethernet ok, but the video output is not very good. You get a lot of ghosting and pixelation not to mention extra CPU usage. Forget watching any HD fast motion video.
Sound is quite tinny on the X1
Keyboard backlight (see backlight topic above in X301 pros)
Powersupply. The powersupply connector just doesn't look or feel solid. Prefer the old barrel-style connector

Overall I'm still on the fence on what to do. Maybe I'll give it a few more days and the answer will present itself to me

 

I did not notice any ghosting on the dock when I used it, though I did not use it extensively. Perhaps something is amiss.

 

If possible, try playing an HD video first on your native display and then through a display that's connected via your dock. For me, I notice some pixelation issues. I'm assuming that the USB 3.0 does not have enough bandwidth and/or the latency of the signal is too long to reproduce every bit of the image data in real-time (as compared to a native display). I heard there is a firmware update on the dock so may try that and see what happens.