Posted this on reddit - my new ThinkPad x240s (with pics)

[doubledown]

Warning: This is a long post. Also all prices listed below are in USD, prices for components in your region may vary widely.

I finally got it. That rarest of unicorns, the ThinkPad X240s. It's extremely similar to the X240 except it's thinner, lighter, only sold in Asia, and if you're willing to live with a few tradeoffs, just plain better. I currently had an X240 with i7-4600u and FHD+MultiTouch and wanted to make as few tradeoffs as possible when "upgrading".

First, the tradeoffs. They removed the docking port, power-bridge (the rear battery similar to the front battery is a sealed internal 3-cell), and the credit card Smart Card reader. Also, instead of going up to the i7-4600u (2.1/3.3 GHz) it only goes up to the i7-4500u (1.8/3.0 GHz). The i7-4500u (as mine is configured) does not have Intel vPro or Intel VT-D (the Intel VT extensions for directed hardware access). It does at least have Intel VT so I can still get decent performance in virtual machines. Additionally, in order to get the machine to be thin and light I opted for a non-touch FHD version of the X240s. Also, this machine does not have a webcam.

Put them both on the scale and my X240 weighed in at 3.243lbs (1.471kg for non-Americans). Put the X240s non-touch model on the same scale and it comes in at 2.769lbs (1.2559kg). It's a thinner machine to be sure but honestly, and while the base is a bit thinner and lighter, I have to admit that most of the thickness lost is actually in the lid/screen though some can definitely be attributed to the better build quality. The X240 uses carbon-fiber for the lid, magnesium for the bottom (base cover), and plastic for the keyboard bezel. The X240s is 100% carbon-fiber and it really does feel lighter and more premium even just at the base because of it. Pictures and numbers don't sound all that different, but trust me, there's an immediate feeling of thin/light/high-quality with the X240s that just isn't there when you hold the X240 (recall that the X240 is definitely not heavy but just feels dense).

I wanted to buy the X240s variant for a while but Lenovo HK/Japan/Korea will each only ship to their specific country (this made me angry). There were (and still are) two on eBay at absurd prices of $2100 and $2800 USD for relatively low specced models. Finally one came up on eBay at a price I could swallow - $1400 (though way higher than an equivalent X240 in the USA) for a new sealed in box model with FedEx shipping to the USA.

It came well specced with i7-4500u, a fingerprint reader and 8GB DDR3-L. It sadly also came 1366x768 TN screen, 500GB 7200RPM, 802.11n, Japanese Keyboard and for some reason the fingerprint reader didn't work straight out the box (the BIOS couldn’t detected it). All five of those things were unacceptable to me. I bought the USA keyboard, a Samsung EVO 250 SSD, 802.11AC card (more on this later) off eBay and found that installing a keyboard in the X240/X240s is about the most painful thing to do in these machines. You literally have to take the whole computer apart. The website (http://www.frusonfone.com) was a godsend in the process. I often had to switch between guides for the X240 and X240s because the X240s guides list was incomplete, but the X240 is similar enough that most videos for the one were easy to follow for the other.

While inside the PC I hoped that just tightening the cable in the FP reader was the issue. After opening and closing the PC like 5 times – I discovered that no, the cable and/or using electrical tape to insulate the wire was not going to solve the issue.

All ThinkPads are supposed to have international warranty so I tried making use of Lenovo international warranty service (IWS) for the fingerprint reader. Cue days of back and forth on the phone with Lenovo because their tech support systems couldn't understand my machine type (20AJ). It turns out that while all ThinkPads have international warranty, different models can only be serviced in different countries. Weirder still, is that according to the international warranty page Mexico can service my PC but not the USA (http://support.lenovo.com/en_US/product ... e/iws.page Enter Machine Type: 20AJ). Eventually it occurred to me that the best option was to swap the part from the X240s and my X240, and then send the X240 in for tech support; but to my surprise the fingerprint reader was still functioning in the X240 and not in the X240s even after the swap. So obviously, it was the simple internal cable that was broken. According to the FRU lists the X240s cable was a different FRU from the X240 variant but when I saw them side by side I could see it was the same, so I gambled that it would work and told Lenovo tech support the problem was with my X240 and to just ship me the FRU. It arrived in one day with overnight shipping and as I expected, it worked like a charm.

The screen was tough though. The FRU for the non-touch FHD display (sold typically only in Europe and not the USA of course) is 00HM111. I had such trouble finding this thing even when contacting Chinese suppliers on alibaba. I could find the touch version (as low as $60 shipped) but didn't want to make this thing a much more expensive project by having to replace the whole lid (and frankly I wanted it thin and light). Eventually I got lucky and one showed up on Amazon for $91 shipped by a seller named US Eagle. There's actually one on Amazon now, but the seller (East Coast LCDs) is charging $169.99 shipped so not as good a deal. (http://www.amazon.com/LENOVO-00HM111-SU ... B00LEZ4QFA) Either way IBM spare parts doesn't have them anymore and has switched to FRU 00HM745 and both are priced there at the astronomic $349 + tax (ouch!). Following the process for installing the screen was easy but you really need to be careful with it as the cable leading to the screen is super delicate and looked like it was coming apart as I tried to replace the screen, but luckily it is now in. Also, Lenovo thinks you’ll need to replace the bezel every time you take it off but luckily I didn’t need to. I didn’t know where to get a bezel that said X240s and didn’t want to have to buy a X240 bezel (even though functionally I knew they’d be identical).

I didn’t do a full restart before replacing the LCD. Win8 does that hibernation trick. When it came up the screen was wavy and I thought the upgrade didn’t work or worse that the rare panel I had was broken. What actually had happened was that Windows didn’t attempt to detect hardware when it came up. After a reboot (I just wanted to see the BIOS) suddenly everything was fine. Also as a point of interest, it was extremely hard to navigate Windows 8 (not 8.1) in Japanese and having a Win 8.1 PC near me was of little help as for some things MS had changed where the different options are between releases (of course).

I was saddened to learn that not all Intel 7260 AC cards are created equal. My first replacement card wouldn't get recognized by the BIOS whitelist, and I had to buy the more expensive Lenovo FRU branded one at about $50 shipped. (-10 points for Lenovo).

I’ve worked way too hard, spent way too much money, and I've opened and closed the innards of this computer way too many times by now as I kept testing each minor upgrade, tested the fingerprint reader multiple times after attempting to tighten and then finally replace the reader and then the cable, and was timid about some things, but hope I'm finally done with all that nonsense. After all other upgrades worked I swapped in the SSD, did a clean install of Windows 8.1 Pro and got Lenovo System Update to get my machine running in no time.

I've got some pictures of the PC next to the X240 at http://imgur.com/a/TVEtF - The rear battery can be seen at http://www.myfixguide.com/manual/wp-con ... mbly-5.jpg Note how the connector looks exactly like the one for the X240/T440s

On a related note, if someone lives in the USA and is in the market for an X240 with warranty and i7/8GB/FHD/MultiTouch/120GB_SSD/802.11AC/24GB_NGFF_SSD/FPR get in touch with me before it's sold, (discount available if someone wants to pick it up in NYC and avoid shipping). I’m also selling a Japanese X240/X240s keyboard, two 500GB 7200 RPM HDDs, and a replacement 1366x768 TN LCD if yours ever breaks and you need a quick replacement.

Bonus comparison of the bottoms: http://imgur.com/A9mX2v7

[Atreides]

A very interesting read. Looks like the old "s" variant has returned once more, rarer than ever.

[doubledown]

There was an X230s also (a China only model) which is actually the same laptop but with ivy bridge instead of haswell. One sold on eBay in the US a few months ago for about 500$ - it would be compatible with the FHD screen if you can find the two and it would be a hell of a lot cheaper than what I paid

[doubledown]

The X240 has been sold as has the Japanese keyboard. I still have the 500GB 7200RPM and the 1366x768 LCD if someone is in the market

[dr_st]

Thank you for the detailed review.

I, however, cannot understand the statement:

if you're willing to live with a few tradeoffs, just plain better

It sounds like you have some pretty big "trade-offs" (that is, deficiencies, compared to the non-s model):

They removed the docking port, power-bridge (the rear battery similar to the front battery is a sealed internal 3-cell), and the credit card Smart Card reader. Also, instead of going up to the i7-4600u (2.1/3.3 GHz) it only goes up to the i7-4500u (1.8/3.0 GHz).

And how is it better? 200 grams lighter, a bit thinner, and "feels lighter and more premium"?

Did I miss something substantial?

[doubledown]

I suppose the tradeoffs may seem too big for some but for me it didn't. For example, the SmartCard reader is something I didn't have even in my X240. The pictures of it on the X240 (above) hide the fact that the shell simply had a plastic bump where that would have been had I bought one.

I never buy docking connectors (again, some people swear by them and that's not for me to judge) because I don't see the point of spending hundreds of dollars to avoid plugging in cables occasionally.

Similarly, I don't need touch, and actually prefer the computer without. In Europe you can get an X240 with FHD without touch, but such an option was never available in the USA. In the US, if you want FHD you have to take multi-touch. (Obviously now that I acquired the FHD panel, I could have bought a non-touch X240 and upgraded it to FHD in a similar manner, but when I first bought the PC in March there was no option anywhere for non-touch FHD on the 240).

Powerbridge is something I had no real need for as I was hoping to not need to buy multiple batteries (and if I ever need to replace the rear internal battery, the FRU is shared between the X240s and X230s and it seems like I can get one shipped to the USA new for about 55-60 USD)

The pros though:
1. Lighter and Thinner (215g sounds unimpressive but 1.471kg vs 1.256kg is noticeably different in the hand)
2. 100% Carbon Fiber shell on the X240s; the rim around the keyboard/clickpad (aka the palm rest) in an X240 is plastic and feels cheap (not worthy of the $1600 I spent on the X240) The magnesium bottom of the X240 feels fine enough but the dichotomy of materials in the X240 construction causes the colors to slightly deviate between all three parts (Lid = carbon fiber, Palm Rest = plastic, and Bottom = magnesium).
3. Matte: Not really a function of the laptop over the LCD but the FHD nontouch is matte which I prefer over the semi glossy FHD with touch.

My only regrets:
1. Webcam - while the webcam in the X240 isn't that good, I'd admittedly rather have one than not.
2. i7-4500u vs i7-4600u - I haven't noticed it to be slower but I know when I do virtual machine work soon I'll miss losing VT-d

[dr_st]

OK, well, I understand that these particular things did not appeal to you, but I daresay that they are pretty big deal-breakers for many. Not the smartcard reader (that's for a very small niche), but docking and removable battery - heck yeah!

The benefits you mention, on the other hand, seem pretty insignificant - 215g (difference is noticeable in the hand, but means nothing in a backpack. And in reality, the difference is smaller - because you were comparing the touch version to the non-touch, if I understand correctly.

Now you did say that the FHD non-touch configuration was never available in the US, but let us not forget that the X240s at all is not available in the US, and you basically had to take the whole laptop apart just to change the keyboard to something that suits your needs.

Apparent quality difference in construction materials is a very old and popular issue, but IMO, very subjective and overall pointless. To me the argument that something "feels/looks cheap" just "feels/looks silly".

Forgive the apparent harshness of my tone. It is just that I was very curious by your rather bold "plain better" statement, so I read your whole review (which, again, is excellent). But found nothing objective to support this statement...

To me it looks like the X240s is a laptop that fits your needs exactly, and so for you it was an excellent purchase. However, objectively (if something can truly be objective), with all trade-offs accounted for, it seems to me to be a great deal worse than the standard X240.

[doubledown]

And I don't begrudge you your opinion but something I didn't mention originally is that my previous laptop is a 2012 x1 carbon. It had a 100% carbon fiber body and the x240 didn't feel like a proper upgrade. Sure the screen was better but the build quality was lower and it was heavier. This X240s is almost as thin (though not quite of course) but with build quality that feels as good if not better.

Quite frankly it's not entirely subjective, the internet seems to agree that carbon fiber is better than plastic.

Things like removable battery and docking port weren't there on either PC (2012 Carbon or X240s) which might have acclimated me to not having either. If you buy an X240 you won't be disappointed but you'll wish the X240 was a little more like the X240s once you can see them side by side.

Also while I needed to do some "surgery" on this machine to get a US keyboard in it, it is available for purchase in Hong Kong with US keyboards, I just don't live there but I don't consider that a con on the X240s because it is (thankfully) something you only do once IF you need to and had I bought a Japanese X240 I would have gone through a similar process.

[dr_st]

Good point. It seems you and I have different models in our past, and thus different expectations/priorities.

[doubledown]

True, also I just updated the previous post (slightly) right before you replied. I hope whatever model you use (X240 perhaps?) you enjoy because ThinkPads are awesome.

[dr_st]

My Thinkpad list in my signature. That's all I have / have ever had.

As you can see, the X220 is my latest, and is likely to stay this way for a while. While new Thinkpads are nice in many ways, I just could not reconcile myself with the keyboard layout changes (and later trackpoint changes) that came to the models after the *20 series.