Best Battery for X230T ?

[E350]

I have two X230T (tablet). One came without a battery. One came with an oem Lenovo battery built in 2013, FRU P/N 45N1079 / ASM P/N 45N1078 and I am surprised that it provides power as long as it does for being 9 years old.

Apparently, you cannot buy Lenovo batteries on their website. You must telephone them (at least in the U.S.A.) during the work week at:

Lenovo Parts (incl. batteries) 1-866-779-0021

The last battery I bought from them (for a T61p) is still working well but it was quite expensive. But it is lasting a long time compared to allot of ebay batteries which only lasted about a year.

I remember years ago someone recommended a Samsung battery for my x61, but I was never able to find them for sale.

So, I ask all of you, what is the Best Battery for X230T ?

Update: Battery FRU numbers can be found in the following parts list:

https://support.lenovo.com/us/en/soluti ... 30i-tablet

x230t_fru_bom_20140421.pdf

[E350]

Found these oem Lenovo batteries on ebay:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/325342467333

[E350]

I bought this on ebay:

New Genuine 67+ 45N1078 45N1079 Battery for Lenovo ThinkPad X220t X230t tablet $59.99

https://www.ebay.com/itm/325342467333

Has not arrived yet.

[E350]

Update: Above battery has been working fine.

[CompanyChoam]

I bought this on ebay:

New Genuine 67+ 45N1078 45N1079 Battery for Lenovo ThinkPad X220t X230t tablet $59.99

https://www.ebay.com/itm/325342467333

Has not arrived yet.

Be aware that the battery you posted and purchased is not a Lenovo genuine battery.

Chinese battery retailers on eBay have cleverly crafted their listings to fool people into thinking they're going to get a genuine Lenovo battery, but the listing says genuine battery FOR Lenovo Thinkpad XYZ model, not genuine Lenovo battery. Notice also that in their listing images, the Lenovo logo is absent. I'm betting that yours did not come in a box with a Lenovo color-shifting security seal either.

The way they've worded the listing, they can claim that it's a genuine Chinese brand battery for the ThinkPad model, although they'd never say it upfront or even through the ebay return system, that's what they mean and it's a rather slimy practice.

I noticed that they have some refuse in the description about the logo being "smeared" to avoid high tariffs, that's just nonsense, it's to safeguard them from Lenovo's lawyers and prevents Lenovo from taking down the listing outright.

I fell prey to the exact same thing when I bought my first T440p and needed a new battery for it.

The reason this is an issue and that I make a big deal out of it is Chinese manufacturers that make aftermarket batteries care little for safety and often design batteries that are unsafe, either for the device they're powering, or are unsafe in terms of being a fire hazard.

The batteries they make for ThinkPads are not UL or ETL listed at all, so there is no safety oversight applied in their manufacture. You basically take your chances with batteries like this and hope nothing goes wrong, because nobody on the design end of things put forward that level of concern when they designed these batteries, their primary motivation is making them as cheap as possible so they make the most money as possible.

[E350]

Thank you for your warning post!
Do you have a recommendation for a genuine oem battery?

[dr_st]

As Lenovo likely does not manufacture these batteries any more, any stock you find will be older, and even if unused, no way to know how well they work and for how long.

Even now, there are a handful of US-based sellers selling genuine 67+ batteries in sealed Lenovo boxes, e.g.,:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/155091240370
https://www.ebay.com/itm/304637207719

As you can see from the images, these are batteries from 2016 and 2017.

You have to decide what you trust more - a genuine battery that may have degraded, or a third-party battery that is new, but has all the associated risks. And factor in the fact that the genuine battery will almost always cost more. Sometimes twice as much.

[CompanyChoam]

As Lenovo likely does not manufacture these batteries any more, any stock you find will be older, and even if unused, no way to know how well they work and for how long.

Even now, there are a handful of US-based sellers selling genuine 67+ batteries in sealed Lenovo boxes, e.g.,:
https://www.ebay.com/itm/155091240370
https://www.ebay.com/itm/304637207719

As you can see from the images, these are batteries from 2016 and 2017.

You have to decide what you trust more - a genuine battery that may have degraded, or a third-party battery that is new, but has all the associated risks. And factor in the fact that the genuine battery will almost always cost more. Sometimes twice as much.

It's a sad reality we have to deal with in trying to keep these older laptops running.

I previously bought a new in box genuine lenovo battery for a T61, only to find the BMS circuitry inside the battery had completely drained the 18650 cells, and refused to charge when put in a working T61.

This is because while the battery was sitting on the shelf, the residual charge Lenovo put into it after it was manufactured had completely discharged since the BMS is always using a small amount of power; compound that over 10 years or so, and it'll be completely dead.

There is a way to revive the battery but it requires messing around with the BMS and an Arduino to get working, of which I don't really know how to do.

[E350]

Update: Battery seems to be working fine. However, I have not tested it and really don't know how to test it.