X200/X201 hybrid
Posted: Thu Apr 17, 2014 10:35 pm
So I'm back to using ThinkPads, and my current one is...
Well I couldn't find one that was what I wanted, so I made one.
I wanted the LED-backlit WXGA+ display from the X200s. I wanted a ULV processor. I did want a Core i7. I wanted 8+ GB of RAM. I wanted more (larger!) WWAN/WLAN antennas. And I wanted it all to fit in the X200s case (thinner and lighter than the X200).
Solution?
Well if you look on the X200/X201 parts list, you'll notice that there is indeed a ULV board matching my needs (a couple with the U5400 chip).
So I got that. Then I got an X200s and ditched the existing board. I added the antennas that I wanted, and I replaced the board with the one I ordered and...
... oops. The fans are different. Turns out while the case of the X201(s) and X200(s) are compatible (board-wise), the fans are not. More specifically, the X200/X201 uses a thicker fan than the 's' variants, and the X200(s) and the X201(s) use different heatsink designs.
Back to eBay. Pick up a fan with the FRU 60Y5424. That's a low profile one that'll fit the X201 board design.
Add that, re-assemble everything and we're all good (hardware-wise.) Boot up with the HMD, nuke the serial, product, and type, and we're all set (UUID was already non-existent when I got the board).
In summary: the X200 and X201 boards are compatible, as are the tablet/'s' boards. If you go across generations/variants you'll probably need to get a new fan, but apart from that it's easy (though time-consuming). So if you can't find what you want, assemble it yourself!
Well I couldn't find one that was what I wanted, so I made one.
I wanted the LED-backlit WXGA+ display from the X200s. I wanted a ULV processor. I did want a Core i7. I wanted 8+ GB of RAM. I wanted more (larger!) WWAN/WLAN antennas. And I wanted it all to fit in the X200s case (thinner and lighter than the X200).
Solution?
Well if you look on the X200/X201 parts list, you'll notice that there is indeed a ULV board matching my needs (a couple with the U5400 chip).
So I got that. Then I got an X200s and ditched the existing board. I added the antennas that I wanted, and I replaced the board with the one I ordered and...
... oops. The fans are different. Turns out while the case of the X201(s) and X200(s) are compatible (board-wise), the fans are not. More specifically, the X200/X201 uses a thicker fan than the 's' variants, and the X200(s) and the X201(s) use different heatsink designs.
Back to eBay. Pick up a fan with the FRU 60Y5424. That's a low profile one that'll fit the X201 board design.
Add that, re-assemble everything and we're all good (hardware-wise.) Boot up with the HMD, nuke the serial, product, and type, and we're all set (UUID was already non-existent when I got the board).
In summary: the X200 and X201 boards are compatible, as are the tablet/'s' boards. If you go across generations/variants you'll probably need to get a new fan, but apart from that it's easy (though time-consuming). So if you can't find what you want, assemble it yourself!
