Reasons not to move from T510 to T520 (or T530)

[topshot]

I'm picking up a T520 tomorrow and wondered if I should swap my T510's FHD over to it. AFAIK, the only advantage to the T520 is the better processor. I guess in theory the 520 will also unofficially support 16GB RAM whereas the 510 won't. I don't see me using more than the 8GB I have. Looks like the DVD is also SATA II instead of I but don't know that that would make a realistic difference.

The possible advantage to my T510 is the Optimus graphics instead of just the HD 3000 though I don't know that I'd ever really take advantage of it. I am not a gamer or graphic arts person. The only thing graphic intensive I do is watch HD video. I create videos as well but that should only be the CPU rather than GPU.

Would you move "up" to the T520?

ETA: T530

[ajkula66]

Would you move "up" to the T520?

Yes.

mSATA support, cooler-running, better battery life.

In a heartbeat.

[Cigarguy]

^^^ Yep what he said. Especially if you can swap in the FHD screen.

Also, no HDD will come close to saturating SATA II speed never mind a DVD. A modern SSD on the other hand is something different.

[topshot]

The other downside (major to me) to this T520 is the COA is for Home rather than Professional. Don't want to have to buy a license for it.

I am using an SSD in the 510.

[ajkula66]

The other downside (major to me) to this T520 is the COA is for Home rather than Professional. Don't want to have to buy a license for it.

I'm missing your point here...if you have recovery media...as in Lenovo DVDs...

I am using an SSD in the 510.

But now you'll feel how fast that SSD can be...going from SATA II to SATA III...

[topshot]

The other downside (major to me) to this T520 is the COA is for Home rather than Professional. Don't want to have to buy a license for it.

I'm missing your point here...if you have recovery media...as in Lenovo DVDs...

Installing isn't an issue, activating it is. It actually has 8.1 on it right now (YUCK!). AFAIK, you must load the same version as what the COA is for. I don't have Lenovo media (I have Dell OEM), but would use the ISO to load 7 Pro.

I am using an SSD in the 510.

But now you'll feel how fast that SSD can be...going from SATA II to SATA III...

Is the PSREF wrong since it shows all T520 with 3.0Gb/s SATA discs? Or is that what they CAME with, but it does support the 6.0Gb/s?

[ajkula66]

Is the PSREF wrong since it shows all T520 with 3.0Gb/s SATA discs? Or is that what they CAME with, but it does support the 6.0Gb/s?

Yes, SATA 6.0 in the main bay, SATA 3.0 if you're running from the mSATA port.

[topshot]

Thanks for the opinions. I'll likely play with this one a few days and then resell it and get a T520 with an even better processor and Win 7 Pro COA.

How much hotter are the i7 variants? Would trying for a quad core make any sense for me? As I mentioned, I don't do much that intensive aside from creating home movies. I run Visual Studio and some small test databases (Oracle and SQL Server) for my work and am perfectly fine with the 560M I have now.

Edit: or better yet, maybe give it to the wife and sell the Edge 15 she's using!

[ajkula66]

How much hotter are the i7 variants? Would trying for a quad core make any sense for me? As I mentioned, I don't do much that intensive aside from creating home movies. I run Visual Studio and some small test databases (Oracle and SQL Server) for my work and am perfectly fine with the 560M I have now.

Well...if you're going for a real QC and not a DC i7, you'll notice the difference between those and i5 that your "first" T520 is coming with.

Having said that...if I were buying a 15.6" unit, I'd go for W520 since its 4 RAM slots and 32GB RAM cap make it fairly future-proof for quite some time to come.

My $0.02 only...

[jcvjcvjcvjcv]

Or pocket the difference and put it towards an earlier upgrade.

Regardless of how many RAM slots the W520 has, it still has only a 16:9 screen.

[topshot]

Or pocket the difference and put it towards an earlier upgrade.

Regardless of how many RAM slots the W520 has, it still has only a 16:9 screen.

Sadly they are here to stay and I've gotten used to the lack of vertical resolution (but not the lack of Flexview) with the 1920x1080. I've sold off all my lovely UXGA units.

[Cigarguy]

I'm OK with 16:9 on a nice high res desktop monitor but absolutely hate it on my laptops. My HP Elitebook 8470p, X220 and Thinkpad T420 are 16:9 and I don't care to much for it. 16:10 is OK on the T500 and T61. I absolutely love 4:3 Flexview on X61T and T60 which are my daily runners.

You won't really know until you've made the switch from your T60 to T520 or whatever. For me little things and nice things are important (much like a nice cigar), I really notice it when those are taken away.

[ajkula66]

You won't really know until you've made the switch from your T60 to T520 or whatever. For me little things and nice things are important (much like a nice cigar), I really notice it when those are taken away.

Amen to that.

I can flip back and forth within my FlexViews (1600x1200), my wife's R500F (1680x1050) and my own "daily" T61 (1920x1200) with no issues whatsoever.

When I turn on the T420 - which leaves all of them oldies eating dust, although it's not even on a SSD - I'm missing the screen real estate so much that it hurts...

[topshot]

When I turn on the T420 - which leaves all of them oldies eating dust, although it's not even on a SSD - I'm missing the screen real estate so much that it hurts...

That's why the FHD is the only screen I can tolerate. Just wish it was IPS. I guess they have those now on the x40 series, but then you have the keyboard woes.

[jcvjcvjcvjcv]

Or pocket the difference and put it towards an earlier upgrade.

Regardless of how many RAM slots the W520 has, it still has only a 16:9 screen.

Sadly they are here to stay and I've gotten used to the lack of vertical resolution (but not the lack of Flexview) with the 1920x1080. I've sold off all my lovely UXGA units.

It seems you can only pick decent screen (Chromebook Pixel) or decent other hardware...

[Temetka]

Or pocket the difference and put it towards an earlier upgrade.

Regardless of how many RAM slots the W520 has, it still has only a 16:9 screen.

The T510 and T520 also have 16:9 LCD's as well.

[Temetka]

I don't know about Thinkpad's, but I do know some 17" Dell Precisions have 16:10 LCD's. That way you can have your cake and eat it too. I think they even include a back brace.

[ajkula66]

I don't know about Thinkpad's, but I do know some 17" Dell Precisions have 16:10 LCD's. That way you can have your cake and eat it too. I think they even include a back brace.

Those belong to the last generation of Core Duos, I think...

The only fairly modern machine with a really good 16:10 LCD - not counting the Retinas - was the DreamColor version of HP 8740W...and yes, that one requires a back brace as well...

[topshot]

Those belong to the last generation of Core Duos, I think...

Very close. The M6500 was 16:10 beast and could take a Clarksfield processor (i7 quad). The M4500 took those also but switched to 16:9 since it came out half a year later.

[ajkula66]

Those belong to the last generation of Core Duos, I think...

Very close. The M6500 was 16:10 beast and could take a Clarksfield processor (i7 quad). The M4500 took those also but switched to 16:9 since it came out half a year later.

Good to know - thanks for correcting me - but did any of them sport an IPS panel?

[topshot]

Good to know - thanks for correcting me - but did any of them sport an IPS panel?

Not until the 16:9 models.

FWIW, Anandtech reports that the anti-glare RGBLED WUXGA had the best viewing angles of any TN panel they'd reviewed. The CCFL WUXGA on my son's M4300 isn't too bad either - much better than the FHD on my T510.

[ajkula66]

The CCFL WUXGA on my son's M4300 isn't too bad either - much better than the FHD on my T510.

I'd presume that the panel in question is the storied Sharp one, that many folks used to upgrade their T61 and/or 500 series ThinkPads...

To put it this way: I've had both W510 and W520 in FHD guise pass through this house, and ended up keeping the T61 with LG WUXGA panel instead....my eyes just like it better.

[topshot]

The CCFL WUXGA on my son's M4300 isn't too bad either - much better than the FHD on my T510.

I'd presume that the panel in question is the storied Sharp one, that many folks used to upgrade their T61 and/or 500 series ThinkPads...

To put it this way: I've had both W510 and W520 in FHD guise pass through this house, and ended up keeping the T61 with LG WUXGA panel instead....my eyes just like it better.

Not sure about his since I've not taken the display apart, but mine supposedly came from a W520, the highly regarded AUO B156HW01 V4. Brightness, clarity and colors are great but angles are NOT.

[ajkula66]

Not sure about his since I've not taken the display apart,

You can look up the specs using Moninfo freeware

but mine supposedly came from a W520, the highly regarded AUO B156HW01 V4. Brightness, clarity and colors are great but angles are NOT.

Agreed on the viewing angles. Have you calibrated it? There are several profiles floating around the web that are actually quite decent...

I just find the LED-lit panels - even the best IPS ones like DreamColor and Hydis - to be a bit too "aggressive" for a lack of better word...

[topshot]

but mine supposedly came from a W520, the highly regarded AUO B156HW01 V4. Brightness, clarity and colors are great but angles are NOT.

Agreed on the viewing angles. Have you calibrated it? There are several profiles floating around the web that are actually quite decent...

I just find the LED-lit panels - even the best IPS ones like DreamColor and Hydis - to be a bit too "aggressive" for a lack of better word...

If I did, I don't remember doing it. I'm not a graphic arts person so it's not that critical for me. What's involved in doing so? I generally prefer warmer temp (ie, movie profiles) than cool (bright and blue)

Some LED ones are painfully bright. I cranked this one down to 11/15 to be reasonable.

Edit: or better yet, maybe give it to the wife and sell the Edge 15 she's using!

I tried to convince her to switch but she didn't even want to consider it. I didn't even get to power it up. The T520 is up on my local sites now.

[jcvjcvjcvjcv]

If I did, I don't remember doing it. I'm not a graphic arts person so it's not that critical for me. What's involved in doing so? I generally prefer warmer temp (ie, movie profiles) than cool (bright and blue)

Some LED ones are painfully bright. I cranked this one down to 11/15 to be reasonable.

Getting a colorimeter, doing the calibration and letting the software apply the profile. Or alternatively, if you just assume your panel is the same as that of the next guy, just use his profile.

When I calibrated my W520 (FHD, don't know more than that) it got less blueish.

[topshot]

Figured I'd resurrect my old thread and add in the T530 - as in what benefits will I see if I jump 2 generations instead of one (assuming I'm OK with the chicklet keys) or would you pick a 530 over 520 (and can the 510 FHD also fit in the 530)?

Also wondered something else related to this: it used to be with XP, I could upgrade to a new Thinkpad by just swapping in my original drive and letting XP find the drivers for the new hardware and away I'd go. Seemed there was 1 time that may not have worked, but in general it was pretty simple. Will it still work that way with 7 Pro (in general)? There is some software that would be a major pain to reinstall (or that may incur a second hit against a volume key) so I don't want to reinstall 7.

[Hans Gruber]

Figured I'd resurrect my old thread and add in the T530 - as in what benefits will I see if I jump 2 generations instead of one (assuming I'm OK with the chicklet keys) or would you pick a 530 over 520 (and can the 510 FHD also fit in the 530)?

Also wondered something else related to this: it used to be with XP, I could upgrade to a new Thinkpad by just swapping in my original drive and letting XP find the drivers for the new hardware and away I'd go. Seemed there was 1 time that may not have worked, but in general it was pretty simple. Will it still work that way with 7 Pro (in general)? There is some software that would be a major pain to reinstall (or that may incur a second hit against a volume key) so I don't want to reinstall 7.

I would go for a T520 because I like the old keyboard style better. The pricing for the 520 series is more favorable than the 530 series. As far of how you would upgrade in Windows 7. Different than Windows XP you simply need the lan adapter software to be off to the races.

http://support.lenovo.com/us/en/downloads/ds019204

Then you would want to upgrade all your drivers via the Think Vantage System Update.
http://support.lenovo.com/us/en/documents/ht080136

[FragrantHead]

I have a T520 and T410s. Although just one generation apart, there are some surprising benefits to the T520:

(1) T520 is quieter, cooler and less likely to run the fan. It is bigger than what I'm able to compare it to. I guess that factors into it, but my impression is that power management is better on SandyBridge. I also briefly had an X220.

(2) SATA3 is a noticeable benefit for SSDs. I use those, as well as conventional disks, in the Ultrabay to back up virtual machines. With big files you'll realize the full SSD speeds of > 300MB/s. Whatever I do on the T410s, I don't seem to get past 200MB/s in practice, even with SSDs that are capable of more. Yes, quite a bit less than the theoretical speed of SATA2.

(3) You can stick an mSata secondary SSD into the internal mini PCI slot (albeit at SATA2). Only holds cellular modems or the like on the T410s, not SSDs.

The big plus on the later Tx3x series is the inclusion, finally, of USB3 ports. On the other hand they loose the eSATA ports present on some Tx1x and Tx2x machines. It therefore depends on the peripherals you have or intend to use.

FYI drives on the eSATA port on my T410s run at about 115MB/s, e.g. slower than the internal and Ultrabay drives.

All these series share the same docking stations, or at least the one I have. Tx4x onwards is different.

If you go for a quad core, discrete graphics or both, the power supplies get bigger. From 65W to 90W for one of those options. An even bigger power supply, if you select both, as far as I know. If you like cool, quiet, small and light (in as much as that's true for a 15" laptop), and you don't need the power, then that's a reason not to go for those upgrades.

[topshot]

The big plus on the later Tx3x series is the inclusion, finally, of USB3 ports. On the other hand they loose the eSATA ports present on some Tx1x and Tx2x machines. It therefore depends on the peripherals you have or intend to use.

I don't have any eSata devices though I don't think any of the USB ones I currently have are USB3 either, but I'm sure future ones will be.

If you go for a quad core, discrete graphics or both, the power supplies get bigger.

Already have the 90w for my 510 with Optimus graphics, which I guess I don't need. At least I assume I've never used it. I see a popup every so often when I start a video if I want to enable Nvidia and I always decline. Maybe I should do a comparison, but is there any way to know for certain which adapter is truly active at a given moment?