Thinkpad x230 Questions & Purchase

O

OrangeWolf

Gawd
Joined
Jan 6, 2011
Messages
884
Hey guys, so, with the Black Friday deal at Lenovo it's finally time for me to bite the bullet and pick up the x230 I've been "thinking about buying" for ages. GREAT deals at the moment, especially through the Barnes and Noble Gold thing, but I have a few questions.

I know it's possible to install an SSD in addition to the hard drive that comes with the computer. But there are different kinds of SSDs, which kind do I need? I know that Crucial M4 and Samsung 830 are supposed to be fantastic, but would I want a 2.5" or... or what? There are two different options on sizes here right? One would be for replacing the drive that comes with the computer and one would go in the extra slot, but those are different sizes?

Any reason I'd be better off just replacing the hard drive with an SSD instead of adding one to go with it? I heard somewhere that the added SSD will only work at SATA II instead of SATA III -- is that accurate and would I notice it?

Speaking of adding the SSD... Do I need to purchase the "54mm ExpressCard Smart Card Reader" on my laptop when I order it? I had always assumed no, but the way that Lenovo words it when you click "more information" implies that the slot to add something (eGPU, SSD, etc.) won't be there unless you buy this... but that's stupid, right?

For RAM... I was thinking of buying this 2x 4 GB kit -- that would work, right? Is there better? Upgrades on RAM from Lenovo are really expensive though.

Is there any reason I might get BGN over AGN? I've always heard that A was faster than B, but generally G/N are more in use now?

Sorry for all the dumb questions. I do know that I love this laptop, having used both the x220 and the x230 a fair bit, but I'm still a bit iffy on getting the upgrades from somewhere else and installing them. I've got a legit copy of Win7 Ultimate I was going to install too, on the SSD, but I didn't want to lose functionality of the ThinkVantage button so I need to figure out how to make a ... copy/image of the original Hard Drive to port over, and I can't remember which software to use to make an image, and I guess ... I don't know what to do after that, hah, to get anything to be like I want it. I much prefer being able to order what I want at a decent cost, but Lenovo just charges too much for SSD.

Cheers?
 
Last edited:
I'd suggest you get an mSATA SSD and install it into the free mSATA slot right next to the WiFi card in the laptop. You can use that as a boot drive and the HDD as storage after you format it.

I'd get an Intel Centrino 2x2 or 3x3 cards with dual band support. If you're going to be using the laptop where there's lots of over-the-air traffic, having the 5ghz band is something you'll need. The 2x2 or 3x3 antennas also help quite a bit.

You don't need the Expresscard reader unless you've got something to plug into it. You can plug in external GPUs or SSDs or a whole bunch of other devices, but generally speaking it's just not worth the extra cash unless you've got a specific need that expresscard could fulfill.

I'd buy 1.35V RAM for the laptop. Lower power usage and a bit less stress on the IMC.

I own an x220 and ordered an aftermarket Centrino 6205 2x2 card as well as a Crucial m4 mSATA drive. I yanked out the HDD and I'm using the mSATA drive alone. All of the ThinkPad ThinkVantage software and drivers are available via their site after you plug in the model number. I was pleasantly surprised to see the laptop I bought had an extra screw sitting idle in the open mSATA slot, so all I had to do was plug in the card and screw it in place. Not sure whether or not this is common, though.

The ThinkVantage button might not work unless you make a restore disc, but I've found that I haven't needed it. To make the restore you'll need 2 USB sticks, one that's over 8GB in size and another that's about ~4GB. You can make the restore discs/images through the ThinkVantage software as it's one of the first things it asks you to do after your first boot. You don't have to do this but it is recommended. You can also create the images on a disc if you've got an external DVD+R drive.

Here are some helpful links:
http://www.lenovo.com/shop/americas/content/user_guides/X230_ug_en.pdf
http://support.lenovo.com/en_US/guides-and-manuals/default.page?#

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Lenovo-Thin...trino-Advanced-N-6205-wifi-card-/140659884571
^^ that's the card I bought, but they offer upgrades via the Lenovo site so you don't have to do this. Keep in mind that not all WiFi cards are the same even if they read the same -- Intel Centrino 6205 in this case. OEMs often have their own proprietary form factors so one card won't fit all. I'd suggest just paying the extra ~$20 and getting the Intel 5ghz-band card.

Click on Take Course and it'll bring up the videos on how to disassemble and reassemble the laptop if you wish to tinker with it. I've taken it apart completely twice now and those videos provide an accurate step-by-step guide on how to do it if you feel want to buy the mSATA drive, as you'll have to get beneath the keyboard and palm rest to do so. It is incredibly easy :p All you need is a 3mm phillips head screwdriver. The palm rest/trackpad portion is the most difficult because it feels like you might break it. The reason for that is that there are clips along the front of the laptop that snap into place, so you should gently lift the palm rest by top end where it merges with the keyboard. You'll hear the clips snap out of place and then you can disconnect the trackpad. Sounds complicated but it's pretty easy.

I'd also recommend the IPS display and a 9-cell battery. I get roughly ~12 hours of internet time on Linux. With WiFi off and the display at ~30% (300 nits screen) I was getting roughly 13-14 hours on Win7.

If you're planning on going Linux you should know the drivers are pretty good and it's got good kernel support. The only issue I had was the shitty default Realtek card I bought was chewing up 3-6watts and providing horrible reception so I replaced it with the aftermarket card I linked above. The Centrino card only chews up a couple hundred milliwatts and provides way better reception (2x2).

You'll love the laptop. It's certainly my favorite I've ever owned. Hope all of this helps :)
 
Last edited:
As an eBay Associate, HardForum may earn from qualifying purchases.
Why get an msata deal when 256gb ssds are so cheap? I have a 250gb Samsung 830 in my x220t.
 
AQ_OC said:
Why get an msata deal when 256gb ssds are so cheap? I have a 250gb Samsung 830 in my x220t.
Click to expand...

Depends on your usage. If it is just a portable machine to supplement a desktop or other system, then I agree with a cheaper, full-sized SSD; however, if this is someone's main system, I could see having a beefy mSATA and then a decent sized data only drive. Although, the latter is going to be at the cost of battery life with a mechanical drive.
 
Yeah -- it's meant to complement my desktop. If it was going to be a primary computer I'd go with a T430 or W530 instead. At the moment I decided to just try it as is. The upgrade to 8 GB RAM on the site ended up being just 50 bucks (with the coupon), so I got that instead of buying a 40 dollar kit and installing it.

I will probably still nab a mSATA drive to put in the computer but I guess it's not vital that I do that *now* instead of in a week or three.

So, with tax/shipped, it came out to $834 I think: i5-3320m, 8GB ram, IPS display, 6205 wireless adapter, 6cell battery.

Thanks dudes
 
Consider getting a full SSD. Lots quicker, no moving parts, longer battery life. Easier configuration on the laptop. Use the HDD that come with the laptop for backup.
 
AQ_OC said:
Consider getting a full SSD. Lots quicker, no moving parts, longer battery life. Easier configuration on the laptop. Use the HDD that come with the laptop for backup.
Click to expand...

Well, he can just buy an mSATA for a boot drive, which is what I did. Keep the HDD as a storage drive and you've covered both sides of the coin :p The 128GB Crucial M4 models are cheap, though even a 64GB would do it.

It's also not exactly true about the battery life. The battery might even decrease depending on what SSD and HDD the system has.
 
pelo said:
Well, he can just buy an mSATA for a boot drive, which is what I did. Keep the HDD as a storage drive and you've covered both sides of the coin :p The 128GB Crucial M4 models are cheap, though even a 64GB would do it.

It's also not exactly true about the battery life. The battery might even decrease depending on what SSD and HDD the system has.
Click to expand...

Smallish boot drives are a pain in the butt. Just get a 256GB or even a 512 GB SSD and be done with it. Do one backup after installing the OS and software load, do a backup of that for restoring needs. Then store your data under my documents and just back that up from then on. Having a spinning hard drive in a mobile device is a pain the butt. Partitioning via boot and data drive is a PITA too.
 
Well, if he's trying to save money it's a viable option. If you're only needing an OS and a small selection of applications then a 64GB is more than enough.

I've got a small-ish boot drive on my desktop and have no problems whatsoever. I yanked the HDD in my x220 but only to save a bit of weight. I'm using the mSATA drive to boot Linux and the HDD still has the original Win7 Lenovo installation, so if I need to boot into windows I just unscrew the flap, pop the drive in and tell grub2 to boot win7 :)
 
pelo said:
Well, if he's trying to save money it's a viable option. If you're only needing an OS and a small selection of applications then a 64GB is more than enough.

I've got a small-ish boot drive on my desktop and have no problems whatsoever. I yanked the HDD in my x220 but only to save a bit of weight. I'm using the mSATA drive to boot Linux and the HDD still has the original Win7 Lenovo installation, so if I need to boot into windows I just unscrew the flap, pop the drive in and tell grub2 to boot win7 :)
Click to expand...


I've done it both ways...still do it your way on my desktop. Started with a 160GB Intel SSD and a 1TB data drive. Now the SSD is getting full...you just never know what you're going to load up.

On my X220t, I just popped in a 256 GB drive and am happy with that. Took that HDD put it in a case, and now it is my backup.

On my desktop, I'm going 512 GB SSD and 3 TB data drive. Soon.
 
I'm thinking og getting an X23 as well but I dont really see the need for a webcam (for my needs) so I was thinking of getting the 12.5" Premium HD Display 3x3 Antenna along with the Intel Centrino Advanced-N 6205 Wifi card. If I ever do need a webcam I could get a USB version. But do you guys think there's really much improvement over the 2X2 antenna and the ntel Centrino Advanced-N 6205 card?
 
Not a huge improvement. But the 3x3 premium IPS HD display is a cheaper upgrade than the 2x2 with webcam. I know they both say $50, but they don't actually add $50 to the total.
The 3x3 antenna Premium IPS upgrade is only $15 or so...
 
Yeah I didn't notice that before but you're right. One thing that's amazing is it says subtract $50 for the non premium display after you upgrade, so if you upgrade to the 3x3 it only adds $15 but then downgrade back to the original screen it subtracts $50 and makes it cheaper than before!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top