Lenovo ThinkPad X230 Review: Road Warrior Perfection Discussion

Lenovo's latest and greatest ultraportable business notebook, the 12.5-inch ThinkPad X230 promises to strike the perfect balance between serious performance and mobility. With the latest Intel Ivy Bridge processors and more than 8 hours of battery life is this the best work laptop on the market? Take a closer look to find out.

Read the full content of this Article: Lenovo ThinkPad X230 Review: Road Warrior Perfection

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Although I view Ivy Bridge as a complete letdown of an update, the X230 itself looks like a great notebook. The X series has never failed to impress, and Lenovo has taken the Thinkpad into a great direction.

 

USB 3.0, finally. Can you say "about time"? Excellent review as always. I'm really liking this notebook. The 3dmark06 scores are a little lower than Llano, but not by a whole lot. It's nice to see Intel getting more serious about integrated graphics performance.
All in all I'd have to say it looks like a solid notebook. For those looking for an Intel specific solution, I think I'll wholeheartedly recommend this notebook.

 

That's a LOT lighter than the X220. Maybe the thickness isn't "ultraportable" territory, but the weight is (and that matters more than a quarter-inch of thickness in my opinion).

Great machine.

My only question is whether the Thinkpad X1 Carbon will cannibalize X230 sales. They're both fantastic ultraportables.

 

does it also use the same 7mm harddrive the x220 uses?

 

Yes. The Travelstar Z7K500 is the latest generation of the 7mm HDD from Hitachi. The X220 from last year used the first generation 7mm drives (Z7K320).

 

a very balanced review. great job.

 

When will it be for sale?

 

I thought 2.5" HDDs came in 7.5mm and 9mm flavours.

So I couldn't pop in a 7.5" SSD?

 

mSATA SSDs are getting EXTREMELY close to the same performance as a standard SATA SSD and you can fit a mSATA SSD and mSATA-to-SATA adapter into that space.

 

Wait so i cant use my 2,5" ssd in this laptop without problems? I actually have to search for a smaller ssd? =/

 

Depends on the dimensions of the 2.5-inch SSD. For example, the Intel 320 series SSDs are available in both 7mm and 9.5mm form factors and the Crucial M4 series SSDs are 7mm as are the Plextor M3 Pro series.

On the other hand, the current Kingston 2.5-inch SATA form factor SSD lineup are all 9.5mm thickness unless I'm mistaken.

 

I just found out that i have a 9.5 mm ssd, so that wont fit at all in the laptop?
if so, then that would be a very bad joke =/

 

I just double checked by removing the HDD from the X230 and checking to see if we could make a standard 9.5mm SSD fit. The answer is no.

The only way you might be able to make a standard 9.5mm SSD fit inside is if you open the casing on the SSD (which will void the manufacturer's warranty on the SSD) and place the internal components of the SSD (with SATA connector) inside the drive bay. However, if you do something like that you have to assume all the responsibility and risk.

I would probably use that 9.5mm SSD on something else and buy another 7mm SSD or mSATA SSD and SATA adapter for the X230.

 

Is the display better outside compared to the FHD on W520?

 

Here is an image of the X230 with its IPS panel set at maximum brightness and displaying our standard test image outside under direct (and VERY bright) sunlight. The viewing experience certainly isn't as nice as it is viewing the screen indoors, but you CAN see the screen outdoors under direct sunlight.

 

So its very useable? I have used my W520 outside, so if this is better then I am all over it (Allthough I consider the new Asus with FHD 350nits, but someone said that that one has semi glossy??)

 

I would pick an IPS panel with matte screen surface (like the one on our review unit of the X230) over a typical glossy FHD TN panel any day.

Whether you would consider the X230's screen to be "very useable" depends on how you define "very useable." If I was doing color-critical photo/video editing in Photoshop or Premiere then I wouldn't rely on the X230's screen outdoors under direct sunlight without putting a huge hood or tarp over the screen to block the sunlight (but that's kind of standard operating procedure for people who edit photos or video in the field).

If I was using the X230 as a typical mobile professional who just needs to type emails, edit documents in Microsoft Office, or quickly check a website during lunch I would be perfectly happy using the X230's screen outdoors at maximum brightness.

 

The color correctneess is not important, resolution is however as I work in Visual Studio 2010 and that do not scale that well to lower res monitors

I am considering the Asus zenbook AnandTech - ASUS Zenbook Prime (UX21A) Review: The First of the 2nd Gen Ultrabooks (Thats 11" I want 13") has FHD matte screen with 350 nits, but if its semi glossy as someone suggested somewhere then it ruins some of the good stuff.

 

While I think it is an excellent system, I can't help but feel it is a step down in the overall ThinkPad line up. The ThinkPad brand has slowly been moved towards a system that is more at home with typical users - which isn't to say that it does not retain professional characteristics; it's simply losing, in my humble opinion, the idea of "function over form at all costs". I would still recommend a ThinkPad - just with a lesser enthusiasm I once did. It seems to me that it is losing what differentiated it from a good system and a special one.

I expect to have my X220 for many years to come. That is, if I can get over how yellow the IPS screen is. I'm fairly sure mine is defective. Lenovo doesn't care.

 

I think ALL mainstream manufacturers that produce business notebooks are making design decisions based on the "consumerization" trend in large enterprise businesses. IT departments are still very important, but average employees at large companies are increasingly getting comfortable with technology to the point that they feel they shouldn't be forced to use a traditional thick, heavy, and "ugly" business laptop. IT managers don't want the entire workforce switching to MacBooks or bringing any random piece of technology to work and connecting it to the secure network because of the support nightmare involved. So IT managers are turning to partners like Lenovo, Dell, HP and others and saying, "Help us give employees what they want so they stop bringing their own PCs and tablets into the office, but make sure your products have the IT features and serviceability the IT team needs."

I think we saw that very clearly with the ThinkPad X1 last year (essentially a ThinkPad ultrabook before Intel started calling these things "ultrabooks").

The X1 has VERY LITTLE in common with the traditional ThinkPads we know and love but it was very attractive to corporate execs and high-level or upper-middle employees at large companies who were lucky enough to get one.

When I saw the Chiclet keyboard on the X1 last year I knew the X220 replacement would probably get a Chiclet-style keyboard as well. That said, it really is the nicest Chiclet-style keyboard I've used.

I just wish the touchpad was less frustrating.

 

How about the gaming performance? Like Diablo 3.

 

When are these supposed to ship?

 

around June 5

 

^This, plus toss an extra 4Gb memory stick in there so it runs in dual channel for gaming benchmarks. With Sandybridge we saw a decent boost to performance with faster dual channel memory. Would be nice to know if the same is true with IVB.

 

Can the X230 take a mSATA SSD drive instead the 3G modem?
The X220 could do that, but is it still possible with the X230 ?

 

Yep, it's the same in that regard: "We also found no problems when installing our own mSATA SSD into the X230. In this case, we installed a 60GB Renice X5 SSD with no issues as Windows was able to recognize the secondary drive. In theory, users should be able to install and boot Windows 7 on the mSATA drive for even faster speeds than with a standard HDD. Note, however, that there is only one PCI-e slot for either an mSATA drive or a WWAN card - both cannot be installed simultaneously in the X230."

source: Lenovo ThinkPad X230 2306-2AU Laptop Review - Notebookcheck.net Reviews

With most phones being able to act as a hotspot or wireless tether, I have to wonder how many people really use WWAN?

 

Good news then. Now I hope the prices are not too high on launch and Lenovo might get my money.

 

Keep checking the Lenovo website for a few weeks even if the price is high when it first appears on the Lenovo website.

If the X230 is like other recent Lenovo notebooks then the price will be adjusted a short time after the initial release. For example, the new IdeaPad Y480 was recently listed with an INSANE price of $1,499.00 but it was quickly available on the Lenovo.com website for just $869.00 (a more reasonable price for the specs) with coupon code.

 

Actually, the X220 was quite inexpensive in the beginning. I ordered mine the first day. It cost $750 shipped with the IPS screen and 320GB hard drive upgrade. That first month there were some very good deals, but after that the price went up. There were a few times it got that low again, but it has mostly remained above the introductory price.

 

Is there any way to now if the mSATA interface is Sata 6GB or still the older 3GB from X220? With SSDs it does make a difference and the prices have come down a bit for the 6GB SSDs.

 

x230 mSATA interface is still 3Gb, say SATA II, rather than SATA III.
Lenovo made the two SATA III to the primary and ultrabay...

 

I see that the X230 has no HDMI output. Can the mini displayport be used to connect the X230 to a projector with both video and audio? Is a special cable needed for this? Thanks.

 

If the projector takes mDP, you can use an mDP cable since (m)DP caries both audio and video, just like HDMI.

If it only takes DP (likely), you would need an mDP to Full Sized DP cable. If it only takes HDMI (not as likely, but still pretty likely), you would need an mDP to HDMI cable. Both are pretty cheap.

 

Thanks for the answer. My projector has HDMI only. I have it hooked up to the X120e through the HDMI connector. I have to be sure that there will be no compatibility issue between mDP and HDMI. Can I ask one more question?

On the figuration page, there are some screen options like:

Premium HD 2X2

Premium HD 3X3

What's the difference between the two? Thanks.

 

The 3x3 indicates that there are three antennas wired for the WiFi, but that means you won't be able to configure it with a webcam. For most users, the 2x2 and base Intel WiFi 1000 is more than enough.

 

Thanks for the answer. Can you help me with the options I chose below? Lenovo is running a 40% off sale. The price for my system -- without the Camera, backlit keyboard, bluetooth, and expresscard slot -- is $707 before taxes. This deal ends in two days I think. Is this the best I can do? Or should I wait for the better sale? The premium HD screen is one of those IPS screens, right? Thanks a lot for the help.

12.5" Premium HD (1366x768) LED Backlit Display, Mobile Broadband Ready, 2x2 Antenna

System graphics: Intel HD 4000 Graphics in Intel Core i5-3210M Processor

Total memory: 4 GB PC3-12800 DDR3 (1 DIMM)

Keyboard: Keyboard - US English

Fingerprint reader: UltrNav with FingerPrint Reader

Hard drive: 320GB Hard Disk Drive, 7200rpm

Battery: 6 Cell ThinkPad Battery X44+

Power cord: 65W AC Adapter - US (2pin)

Integrated WiFi wireless LAN adapters: Intel Centrino Wireless-N 2200 (2x2 BGN)

Integrated mobile broadband: Mobile Broadband upgradable

Language pack: Publication - US English

 

How sharp is the text on the IPS display? In the past few years, I've owned an Envy 14(with the 900P radiance display), an Asus UX31A(1080P IPS), and a Retina Macbook Pro 13. Although I have good eyesight(20/15), I have to up the DPI to 125% on the Asus. I find the Retina Macbook's screen perfect, but I was considering switching to an X230.

If you've used both an X230 and a Retina Macbook, is it difficult to adjust to the X230's screen?

 

I've not had the MBPr, but I did have R60 with the UXGA LCD. It was a fantastic screen, but I disliked the six and half pound of weight so I decided to pick up a WXGA X200. I thought I'd miss the 1200 vertical resolution, but I really didn't. The stick is easy to use for scrolling on the X230, which mitigates the lower resolution in my opinion. I personally think a DPI between 120 and 130 is optimal, though some do like it cranked up.

As for the screen itself, it's very nice. Text and movies look good in my opinion, though I'm certainly expert.

 

The difference in resolution is significant - from 1080p to 768p - although the X230's panel is smaller, you'll likely be fine with DPI at 100.

It's a very different type of screen. if you find Retina to be perfect, X230 might not be your cup of tea.