Thinkpads Forum

Right now I am through my third 1704-4JU, and all three of the X6 Ultrabases have come with the same mechanical defect - namely, the latch on the left does not work as it should!
I have ordered my first machine directly from Lenovo.
They have mistakenly sent me TWO... And neither of the Ultrabases have come operational - no matter what I did, only the latch on the right side would engage, and the Ultrabase would not be recognized by the computer.
After returning both units to Lenovo (and going through hoops and bounds to get my money back - I don't want to rant, but, suffice it to say, I am never ordering directly from them again) I have bought another 1704-4JU from a dealer.
Well, my latest Ultrabase has the same defect!
In this case, I can make the latch to engage by pressing underneath the Ultrabase, so it kind of works. Still, I believe it is simply not acceptable for an $2000 notebook.
I have seen other posts on this forum relating to the same defect...
If anyone else has a defective Ultrabase, please post your experiences here. If there will be enough of us to complain, we will be able to make Lenovo fix the problem ASAP.
Since I have seen the defect on 3 units obtained from 2 different sources, I think it is a design problem, and a recall should be in order!
By the way, I did try to call tech support 5 or 6 times, and they have been quite incompetent...

I had to return my ultrabase because sometimes USB device were not recognized.

I have to push on the under side too. I have not tested all the other connections. I don't have a parralle printer. Mine is still under warrenty I will probably wait until they figure it out and then get mine fixed.
Jim

Same here. It's a lot harder to get a docked connection than my X22 with it's X2 Ultrabase.

I have to give it a HARD push before it give a final click. Else usb or vga won't work. Power will usually connect.

The dock status doesn't always change.

Yes, the left latch really doesn't seem that secure OR not even hooked on.

I wonder if the difficult docking is the result of them making the dock connector so much smaller than the X22 and in the center of the laptop.

I bought model number 1709-7HU which includes the ultrabase. When I first snapped it in, it worked fine. All ports worked.

However, if you look from the left or right side, the X60 doesn't look completely seated inside the ultrabase. Not a big deal, as the ultrabase sits at home anyway.

My brother used to work for IBM. Needless to say, he thinks ThinkPads are not that good from a "fit and finish" perspective. I didn't buy my X60 for that reason but I have to agree. But they are rugged which is why I bought it (in addition to the dual core and the battery life).

Tim

Timmy wrote:... ThinkPads are not that good from a "fit and finish" perspective...

At this point, I do feel disappointed.
An expensive "business" laptop just should not have any simple mechanical problems like that. What's more, my experience with their support and customer service was nothing short of horrible. For example, I was refused an exchange on the machine I have right now: the dealer claimed that they have an agreement with Lenovo/IBM and I have to go directly through the manufacturer, and Lenovo stated that I have had the machine for more than 30 days (because, you see, it got shipped to the dealer's distribution center more than 30 days ago; the fact that I have received it two days ago does not count).
I don't consider this "fit and finish"... I think this is simply called "non-existent quality control".
Sadly, the whole experience does remind me of buying things made in USSR
By the way, my X60 has one more small defect: when I open the screen, the case of it, apparently, slightly warps, and the front left corner lifts a fraction of a millimeter from the desk. As a result, the machine slightly wobbles while I am typing.
This is my first Thinkpad, and it is certainly my very last. Never again

valiar wrote:

Timmy wrote:... ThinkPads are not that good from a "fit and finish" perspective...

At this point, I do feel disappointed.
An expensive "business" laptop just should not have any simple mechanical problems like that. What's more, my experience with their support and customer service was nothing short of horrible. For example, I was refused an exchange on the machine I have right now: the dealer claimed that they have an agreement with Lenovo/IBM and I have to go directly through the manufacturer, and Lenovo stated that I have had the machine for more than 30 days (because, you see, it got shipped to the dealer's distribution center more than 30 days ago; the fact that I have received it two days ago does not count).
I don't consider this "fit and finish"... I think this is simply called "non-existent quality control".
Sadly, the whole experience does remind me of buying things made in USSR
By the way, my X60 has one more small defect: when I open the screen, the case of it, apparently, slightly warps, and the front left corner lifts a fraction of a millimeter from the desk. As a result, the machine slightly wobbles while I am typing.
This is my first Thinkpad, and it is certainly my very last. Never again

A friend of mine in IBM informed me that first batch X6 ultrabase has some issues.

most issues are: No USB power, Non power for Optical Drive... etc.

the following batches X6 ultrabase had fixed those issues.

in fact, I just call IBM ezserv to replace my old ultrabase without hassle... I thought they know the problem, but you need to pick up your phone, they will offer you a new one.

regards.

I don't have any problem whatsover with my x6 base. It works as it should and I'm happy.

floyyed wrote: A friend of mine in IBM informed me that first batch X6 ultrabase has some issues.

most issues are: No USB power, Non power for Optical Drive... etc.

the following batches X6 ultrabase had fixed those issues.

in fact, I just call IBM ezserv to replace my old ultrabase without hassle... I thought they know the problem, but you need to pick up your phone, they will offer you a new one.

regards.

What's the phone number for IBM ezserv? I didn't order from IBM, so will this method still work?

I have two ultrabases.
They both work fine.
There is no problem putting them in.

I just rec'd mine today. works as advertised...i've only used cd-rom and usb so far but will plug it into a larger monitor tonight.

I have to pick up the base and laptop together and squeeze both sides several times to get it to lock into place. Seems pretty ridiculous to me. Everything else works as advertised.

I think mine has gotten better. Or I've developed a technique of getting it connected.

I line up the front connectors. Then push down on the left rear side. This seems to give me the 2 clicks that seem to signal that the latches have hooked on. It's only when I turn the laptop on that I find out if all the connections were made properly.

Lately I haven't had any problems. (I do not use the ultrabase to add more features and carry around. It's just so that I don't have to hook up all the cables to my laptop on a daily basis and unhook them when I leave the office. Power, ethernet, usb, external monitor.)

I have had trouble with the USB connected devices, the left latch doesn't usually engage the first time, I can only dock when the x60s is closed otherwise I can't apply the necessary pressure. I have sent it back to the reseller who said he will send a replacement.

If there was a bad batch and they now have ones that work, why didn't they do a recall???

I noticed something today. My Dell LCD, which has a USB hub, is not getting recognized by the laptop. This might explain my USB problems. It seems like it works most of the time and rebooting will fix it if it didn't work the first time.

This time I pluged the LCD usb connector into the laptop's main usb ports and it was unrecognized. It didn't work on any of the ports on the laptop or the ultrabase. I wonder now if it's the LCD's usb hub problem or a laptop/ultrabase problem. The mouse, keyboard and cd burner which were connected to the LCD usb hub do work individually when connected to the laptop or ultrabase.

noamXnoam wrote:
If there was a bad batch and they now have ones that work, why didn't they do a recall???

They [censored] well should recall all of them!
If you look at the poll numbers above, you will see that quite a lot of people have this problem... Heck, I have personally seen it on 3 Thinkpads!
Unbelievable.

valiar wrote:

noamXnoam wrote:
If there was a bad batch and they now have ones that work, why didn't they do a recall???

They [censored] well should recall all of them!
If you look at the poll numbers above, you will see that quite a lot of people have this problem... Heck, I have personally seen it on 3 Thinkpads!
Unbelievable.

Just got my replacement yesterday. Higher success rate in getting the laptop to dock on first try, zero percent success at getting the USB ports to recognize anything. I take the same keyboard/mouse USB splitter plug it in to the base - nothing. Plug it into the thinkpad while still docked - works perfectly. Sheesh!!! I had my x31 for years, docked every morning and after meetings without a hitch. Lenovo: this is not rocket science! just fix the problem, recall the defects and let us work!

A little update...
In the case of my current X60s, it is not the X6 Ultrabase to blame.
It has been sloppy manufacturing of the front rubber feet on the laptop itself!
I have recently noticed that the front left rubber foot does not rest on the desk when the screen is open. Following a helpful suggestion by one of the forum members, I have removed the front right foot, and discovered that the piece of plastick backing has not been removed from it before it got glued onto the machine !
After I have removed the extraneous piece of plastic, my X60s is perfectly level, and latches on to the X6 all the time without any need to push from underneath!

I just got my X60s yesterday. The machine is quite good, but the ultrabase has to be replaced.

I was somewhat lucky, because the vendor tried to dock it himself when I picked up the machine. After a couple of attempts, I did not need to say anything; he put it back in the box and told me that the replacement should arrive in about 5 days.

Apparently, in this case the problem was one of the metallic pins on top of the base. They seemed to be locked in place and did not allow the computer to dock.

We have 8 ultra bases in our office @ work, and they all function properly and are very well made. They see a lot of use and there have not been any problems.

Apparently, even the review unit PC Magazine has got is plagued bu Ultrabase problems. Read on here:

http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,1895,1942268,00.asp

It is clear that some people have no problem with their Ultrabase, but, IMHO, the engineering on the X6 is seriously foobared.
While I have mostly soved my problem (by replacing one of the rubber feet), my next computer will definitely not be a Thinkpad.

valiar wrote:Apparently, even the review unit PC Magazine has got is plagued bu Ultrabase problems. Read on here:

http://www.pcmag.com/article2/0,1895,1942268,00.asp

It is clear that some people have no problem with their Ultrabase, but, IMHO, the engineering on the X6 is seriously foobared.
While I have mostly soved my problem (by replacing one of the rubber feet), my next computer will definitely not be a Thinkpad.

Perhaps the best solution would be to dump your ThinkPad now, especially since it seems to be causing so much distress and ruining your chance for happiness.

I got mine today.

Struggled to get it to seat properly lock key would not lock. Finally got it to connect, but still could not lock it with key.

I think the issue with mine is the little locking latch that is actualy the one the key locks. It sticks up on the surface of the ultrabase on the right side toward the rear (as you are looking at the base). I too am annoyed.

I picked the whole combo up to move it when I finally got it connected and then any movement caused it to alarm and give me on scren messages of how to disconnect it (It was just automatically trying to disconnect itself with movment.

I'm calling Lenovo tomorrow to replace it. Instead of working like a well engineered charm, it dunctions as a cheap plastic piece of ....(I didnt say it did I?).

aweingrad wrote: ...I'm calling Lenovo tomorrow to replace it. Instead of working like a well engineered charm, it dunctions as a cheap plastic piece of ....(I didnt say it did I?).

No, you didn't. You merely implied it.

Interesting reports guys, I'll try mine out soon and report back. I've hooked it up and while it wasn't perfectly smooth connecting it (first time for me using an Ultrabase), it seemed to work fine. I'll be sure to test it out before I post the review,

Hi everybody!

I work in a company that uses nothing but ThinkPads and some ThinkCentres atm. Right now we're throwing out the old ones, and are getting new ThinkPad T60's and X60's.

We have the same problem with the UltraBase's like some of you guys have described in this thread... We cannot get the USB to work and the docking/undocking is a tragedy.

I checked this with IBM in Norway and they've never heard of this. They put a tech on the case and an hour or so later they've found something in their information database that match our problem symptoms.

Like FLOYYED said - the X6 UltraBase portreplicators produced before April 28th may or has a defect causing power failure to USB ports, etc. UltraBase's produced after this date shouldn't have this problem.

They're currently checing if there's a fix or if we have to get new ones instead. My guess is new ones like you guys say.

Cheers,
Anders

Had mine replaced again today. This one seems to work fine. A gentle click and power connects, usb works... wow! hopefully my troubles are over.