Interest in upgrade your T420/T420s/T430/T430s to FHD 1080p

[turomini]

I literally just used that link and flashed the BIOS on my T420s 20 minutes ago.

Do share with us as well please

I just got the bios to download off of box.com for my T420s.

https://www.dropbox.com/sh/j0vg116tq7nw ... b5Hfa?dl=0

It also has the latest T420s official bios and a WL remove bios also in the link. (I just want to keep everything together, and just encase anyone needs anything.)

[dddd]

Do share with us as well please

I just got the bios to download off of box.com for my T420s.

https://www.dropbox.com/sh/j0vg116tq7nw ... b5Hfa?dl=0

It also has the latest T420s official bios and a WL remove bios also in the link. (I just want to keep everything together, and just encase anyone needs anything.)

Does this support 1600mhz RAM and eGPU?

[turomini]

I just got the bios to download off of box.com for my T420s.

https://www.dropbox.com/sh/j0vg116tq7nw ... b5Hfa?dl=0

It also has the latest T420s official bios and a WL remove bios also in the link. (I just want to keep everything together, and just encase anyone needs anything.)

Does this support 1600mhz RAM and eGPU?

I haven't tried it myself. I am still on the stock bios, and not even the newest one yet. What I put in the links is exactly what I downloaded, nothing changed.
I turn my laptop off like once a month, for like 2 minutes, otherwise it spends about 95% of the day turned on, and the other 5% is when my laptop is in sleep mode while I am in my car. So I have like no time to try out these bios on my own just yet, but I will get there.

I would assume the bios labeled "Lenovo_ThinkPad_T420s_8cuj19us_ADV_NWL.rar" will support the 1600mhz RAM if the hardware is capable of it.

I would think the eGPU (which I had no prior knowledge of until I just looked it up) would work as well. There would be nothing to in the laptop stopping except hardware and some windows / bios settings that need to be changed, especially if you put officially unsupported ram and ram settings.

Considering I haven't tried this bios, and I had no knowledge of eGPUs yesterday, I take no responsibility on anything that goes wrong. If you do have success or problems, I'm sure a lot of us would like to know, and would probably try to help.

[Lockheed]

I would assume the bios labeled "Lenovo_ThinkPad_T420s_8cuj19us_ADV_NWL.rar" will support the 1600mhz RAM if the hardware is capable of it.

Normally, you would be right. But Lenovo disabled RAM frequencies above 1333MHz from bios version 1.29 onwards.

[turomini]

I would assume the bios labeled "Lenovo_ThinkPad_T420s_8cuj19us_ADV_NWL.rar" will support the 1600mhz RAM if the hardware is capable of it.

Normally, you would be right. But Lenovo disabled RAM frequencies above 1333MHz from bios version 1.29 onwards.

I just updated my bios to "Lenovo_ThinkPad_T420s_8cuj19us_ADV_NWL.rar" and it does give the option of 1600mhz and I think i saw 1888mhz as well.
I didn't look for long, but it was in the Advanced Main, under memory configuration.
Many more options there than I expected honestly, so I didn't have time to look at everything.

[dddd]

Normally, you would be right. But Lenovo disabled RAM frequencies above 1333MHz from bios version 1.29 onwards.

I just updated my bios to "Lenovo_ThinkPad_T420s_8cuj19us_ADV_NWL.rar" and it does give the option of 1600mhz and I think i saw 1888mhz as well.
I didn't look for long, but it was in the Advanced Main, under memory configuration.
Many more options there than I expected honestly, so I didn't have time to look at everything.

I'll install it tonight and report back.

[plympton]

I just updated my bios to "Lenovo_ThinkPad_T420s_8cuj19us_ADV_NWL.rar" and it does give the option of 1600mhz and I think i saw 1888mhz as well.
I didn't look for long, but it was in the Advanced Main, under memory configuration.
Many more options there than I expected honestly, so I didn't have time to look at everything.

I'll install it tonight and report back.

I just did - thanks for the upload! I've been looking for the t420s Advanced BIOS for a while now, and all the links were dead.

Installed this, and got the Advanced Menu. HOLY COW there's a lot of (confusing) options buried in there. I'm going to try some of the thermal tweaks to see if they help with my Hackintosh fan throttling. There are discreet set points, as well as fan speeds (I think - hard to decipher). I'll probably create a new thread to get some better understanding of the options.

[dddd]

Advanced menu is vast, if anyone have a wiki or some information on tweaking it please share.

Unfortunately it doesn't seem to force my RAM speeds to 1600mhz. I set it to 1600 in the bios and I'm still running at 1333. Any solutions?

[turomini]

Advanced menu is vast, if anyone have a wiki or some information on tweaking it please share.

Unfortunately it doesn't seem to force my RAM speeds to 1600mhz. I set it to 1600 in the bios and I'm still running at 1333. Any solutions?

The first question would be what ram are you using?

Secondly, looking here http://ark.intel.com/products/52231/Int ... Hz?q=2620m
Thats my cpu, second best option (I think) for the T420s, and it can only support up to 1333 mhz ram without overclocking. That may be why you can't get anything higher.

[dddd]

Advanced menu is vast, if anyone have a wiki or some information on tweaking it please share.

Unfortunately it doesn't seem to force my RAM speeds to 1600mhz. I set it to 1600 in the bios and I'm still running at 1333. Any solutions?

The first question would be what ram are you using?

Secondly, looking here http://ark.intel.com/products/52231/Int ... Hz?q=2620m
Thats my cpu, second best option (I think) for the T420s, and it can only support up to 1333 mhz ram without overclocking. That may be why you can't get anything higher.

I had it working before, I believe I was using BIOS ver. 1.29 and it supported the 1600mhz RAM. I'm using the 2640m on this machine.

[Lockheed]

Secondly, looking here http://ark.intel.com/products/52231/Int ... Hz?q=2620m
Thats my cpu, second best option (I think) for the T420s, and it can only support up to 1333 mhz ram without overclocking. That may be why you can't get anything higher.

Mine runs fine at automatic 1600Mhz.

[crashnburn]

I am interested in the 1080p & 2K both. I dont have a TP dock but do intend to connect to 4K external display via DP/ HDMI?

No takers for the 2K mod? I'd love to retina the T4xx Is it more difficult/ complex? Is Taobao the only source for it?

[turomini]

I am interested in the 1080p & 2K both. I dont have a TP dock but do intend to connect to 4K external display via DP/ HDMI?

No takers for the 2K mod? I'd love to retina the T4xx Is it more difficult/ complex? Is Taobao the only source for it?

I really must ask, does 2k matter on this little 14" screen?
http://www.blogcdn.com/www.engadget.com ... _chart.jpg (link to image)
Looking at that graph, it doesn't have 14" screen size, or laptop distance, but we can kind of full it in. It looks like that high of a resolution probably would never be worth the cost and time.

I did look at taoobao and there must be some 2k mod out there though: https://translate.google.com/translate? ... rev=search (google translate page, so be warned, its still not easy to read)

[SaskFellow]

There are 2K displays on TaoBao... I wonder if the FHD kit can handle a 2K screen. Still the display would be expensive, and the graphics hardware would cry.

It's too bad we can't mount 3xxx series chips in these machines. Though on TaoBao seems someone has an i7-3860QM in a T420. It's not the CPU cores that are so much more powerful, it's the iGPU that is so much better, lower power memory, and lower power cores, if the chipset would play nice with a 38*0QM, I'd just simply disable hyper threading and I'd risk bricking the mobo in my T420s. As it is an i7-28*0QM just isn't enough of an upgrade over the i7-2640M in the system to risk it.

[sqmaster1234]

Do share with us as well please

I just got the bios to download off of box.com for my T420s.

https://www.dropbox.com/sh/j0vg116tq7nw ... b5Hfa?dl=0

It also has the latest T420s official bios and a WL remove bios also in the link. (I just want to keep everything together, and just encase anyone needs anything.)

I was away for work, thanks for uploading it for those who couldn't use Box. That's the same one I used (with the latest T420s Bios as well) and I'm able to use the WL+ Advanced menus smoothly. I'll have to check my RAM speeds and see if I can get 1333+ working, but I'm not sure if this ram is even faster than that, it's stock ram from my T520.

Advanced menu is vast, if anyone have a wiki or some information on tweaking it please share.

I agree. I'm not familiar with some of these terms and I'd love to do some research before I get to switching options.

There are 2K displays on TaoBao... I wonder if the FHD kit can handle a 2K screen. Still the display would be expensive, and the graphics hardware would cry.

It's too bad we can't mount 3xxx series chips in these machines. Though on TaoBao seems someone has an i7-3860QM in a T420. It's not the CPU cores that are so much more powerful, it's the iGPU that is so much better, lower power memory, and lower power cores, if the chipset would play nice with a 38*0QM, I'd just simply disable hyper threading and I'd risk bricking the mobo in my T420s. As it is an i7-28*0QM just isn't enough of an upgrade over the i7-2640M in the system to risk it.

I'd love to put a 2K+ screen in this T402s but from what I've read on Taobao and elsewhere I don't think it would be worth the money/effort in my situation, if possible. It would certainly tax the CPU. 1080p should be great on this size.

If someone knows if the FHD kit from RMSmajestic can support these screens however.... let me know

[crashnburn]

No takers for the 2K mod? I'd love to retina the T4xx Is it more difficult/ complex? Is Taobao the only source for it?

I really must ask, does 2k matter on this little 14" screen?
http://www.blogcdn.com/www.engadget.com ... _chart.jpg (link to image)
Looking at that graph, it doesn't have 14" screen size, or laptop distance, but we can kind of full it in. It looks like that high of a resolution probably would never be worth the cost and time.

I did look at taoobao and there must be some 2k mod out there though: https://translate.google.com/translate? ... rev=search (google translate page, so be warned, its still not easy to read)

The one we can see is from n51b forums - chinese. Mod pics are up.

There are 2K displays on TaoBao... I wonder if the FHD kit can handle a 2K screen. Still the display would be expensive, and the graphics hardware would cry.

It's too bad we can't mount 3xxx series chips in these machines. Though on TaoBao seems someone has an i7-3860QM in a T420. It's not the CPU cores that are so much more powerful, it's the iGPU that is so much better, lower power memory, and lower power cores, if the chipset would play nice with a 38*0QM, I'd just simply disable hyper threading and I'd risk bricking the mobo in my T420s. As it is an i7-28*0QM just isn't enough of an upgrade over the i7-2640M in the system to risk it.

So, essentially the GPU is not good enough for 2K? PS: Assuming that we want GPU to take the load and not CPU
I thought most of these next gen were capable of driving 4K.
http://forum.thinkpads.com/viewtopic.php?f=18&t=120427

Would a next gen be more able.. say T430 + .. series?

[handai]

Hello guys, I bought the kit for my t420s. I have a question where does the new cable go. I know one end goes to the new screen but I have no idea where the other end goes. Maybe somebody here can help me (with picture if possible)

Thanks and regards

[Tasurinchi]

One end goes to the converter, the other to the panel. There's a good tutorial in the German Sister Forum click here! (If the pictures alone are not enough try with Google translator)

[handai]

That's what I thought it should go. It is very hard to plug the cable to the adapter. I am afraid to break it

[SaskFellow]

There are 2K displays on TaoBao... I wonder if the FHD kit can handle a 2K screen. Still the display would be expensive, and the graphics hardware would cry.

It's too bad we can't mount 3xxx series chips in these machines. Though on TaoBao seems someone has an i7-3860QM in a T420. It's not the CPU cores that are so much more powerful, it's the iGPU that is so much better, lower power memory, and lower power cores, if the chipset would play nice with a 38*0QM, I'd just simply disable hyper threading and I'd risk bricking the mobo in my T420s. As it is an i7-28*0QM just isn't enough of an upgrade over the i7-2640M in the system to risk it.

So, essentially the GPU is not good enough for 2K? PS: Assuming that we want GPU to take the load and not CPU
I thought most of these next gen were capable of driving 4K.
http://forum.thinkpads.com/viewtopic.php?f=18&t=120427

Would a next gen be more able.. say T430 + .. series?

I had a fancy post up talking about the differences, and then I accidentally closed the window...

Anyway...

IvyBridge HD4000 compared to Sandybridge HD3000: HD4000 is at least 50% faster and supports 3 displays rather than 2. A review I read which used a system that could take either or, pitted an i7-2960XM vs an i7-2860QM, the cores are only about 5% faster clock for clock, but the HD4000 really beats up on the HD3000. Also Ivy uses less power, has a few extra extensions/instruction sets, and allows lower voltage DDR3L, which also helps to lower cpu temps, as it drops the memory controllers voltage.

The link, doesn't talk about dedicated GPUs making any difference in the ability for the 4K screen, to be drawn too at a higher refresh rate. So it's probably a hardware limitation. Takes more ram as well to draw to a 4K screen and faster too, as well as the bandwidth limits.

Like the display connections to the screens on the T420/T420s machines, I'm pretty sure the T420s uses eDP rather than LVDS.

LVDS standards:

Single Chan: 1400x1050 @60hz
Dual Chan: 2048x1536 @60hz has 7.56Gbit of bandwidth

Dual channel: 1920x1200 18bit @60hz with 16 signal wires
Dual channel: 1920x1200 24bit @60hz with 20 signal wires
Quad channel: 1920x1200 24bit @120hz with 40 signal wires

eDP or embedded Display Link:

eDPv1.1(2009): Production, changes and tweaks from Prototype only eDPv1.0. Production in 2010.

eDPv1.2(2010): Adds Panel control through Aux Channel. Production in 2011.

eDPv1.3(2011): Adds PSR aka Panel Self Refresh and clarity on how to use the 5.4Gbit transfer mode. Production in 2012.

1-2 Pairs(2 signal wires per pair): 1.6 to 5.4Gbit per pair
1 pair = 1600x900 18bit @60hz
2 pairs = 1920x1200 24bit @60hz
4 pairs = 1920x1200 24bit @120hz

I believe the T420/T430 models only use a single pair equipped eDP connection, which is why the FHD kit has problems. The T420s and T430s uses a dual pair eDP connection, so the FHD kit is almost straight forward. Both would explain why a 2K upgrade kit would have to disable external display connections or cause problems for them, because you are borrowing connection pairs from somewhere to drive the screen.

As a bonus, the eDP standard that came out during the production of the T420 series, but probably wasn't put into use until the T440 series:

eDPv1.4(2012): Partial frame update capability to PSR, additional link modes, lower voltage, transport data compression, regional backlight control, multi-touch input is sent through the aux line to the system processor, and the electrical characteristics of the connection have been improved to support a wider array of uses. Production in 2014. It also has seen several revisions including one that allows 8.1Gbits per connection pair and 8K displays.


Edit of note:

If our machines support eDP v1.3, the PSR frame buffer can be used to improve LCD performance if one is using the LCD Overdrive feature. Of course that means the display itself would have to be eDP v1.3 compatible as the display houses the additional hardware for PSR mode. Interesting indeed!

[Tasurinchi]

That's what I thought it should go. It is very hard to plug the cable to the adapter. I am afraid to break it

The cables I had were quite sturdy actually... Maybe you're trying to connect it in the wrong side? Just speculating...

[crashnburn]

..Edit of note:

If our machines support eDP v1.3, the PSR frame buffer can be used to improve LCD performance if one is using the LCD Overdrive feature. Of course that means the display itself would have to be eDP v1.3 compatible as the display houses the additional hardware for PSR mode. Interesting indeed!

Nice, very informative post Sask Fellow. A short idea; what if we use the existing mDP/ DP port and have it be "connectable/ changeable" between:
1 - Long DP Cable - External DP Display via
2 - Short DP cable - mDP/DP to eDP Adapter - Internal eDP Display {mod}

Only 1 or 2 will work at a time. Anyways, if I have a larger display I wont need/ will use internal display.

Could this be done? I know - 2 - is a bit cumbersome, but can it be done? Then, for those who seek the 2K, it should be worth it.

Heck, I'd carry a 15" Retina/ 4K eDP LCD modded into a Portable External Display - I remember reading someone had used 15" Retina as an external display via eDP.

[SaskFellow]

Lenovo's spec sheets are a little awkward...

T420/T520 maximum external display resolution: 2560x1600 (DisplayPort)@60Hz

T420s maximum external display resolution: 1600x900@60hz(DVI SingleLink mode) {3840x2160@30hz unofficial}

But we know from the 4K display thread, we know the T420s can drive 4K@30hz but not 60hz. So I'd think the external DP port on the T420s would be able to drive the same 2560x1600@60hz. Also, from that link we know the external DisplayPort connection is at least DP1.2, so that's good news.

I'd not push over 2K for a display, but then again, I can't stand a 30hz display.

[crashnburn]

Lenovo's spec sheets are a little awkward...

T420/T520 maximum external display resolution: 2560x1600 (DisplayPort)@60Hz

T420s maximum external display resolution: 1600x900@60hz(DVI SingleLink mode) {3840x2160@30hz unofficial}

But we know from the 4K display thread, we know the T420s can drive 4K@30hz but not 60hz. So I'd think the external DP port on the T420s would be able to drive the same 2560x1600@60hz. Also, from that link we know the external DisplayPort connection is at least DP1.2, so that's good news.

I'd not push over 2K for a display, but then again, I can't stand a 30hz display.

Thanks for the insights. Where do the X220/T stand on a similar note. And what about the next gen i.e. X230/T & T4/530 series?

PS: Which 4K display thread? I tried search but forum search ignores 4k even if I put "4k display"

[Tasurinchi]

Well, I need to report another successful mod to a non-s model. This time a T430.

Using a B140HAN01.1 panel with Debian 8 as OS. I watched a FHD movie and several FHD trailers in full screen while using battery only, AC only, and AC with battery charging. Zero flicker!

I'm typing this in the very same ThinkPad. I'm more than happy with the result, the original panel of this machine was a LP140WH2-TLF1, which was one of the worst panels I've seen in my life (even worse than the X30x ones)

Have a good weekend!

[crashnburn]

Well, I need to report another successful mod to a non-s model. This time a T430.

Using a B140HAN01.1 panel with Debian 8 as OS. I watched a FHD movie and several FHD trailers in full screen while using battery only, AC only, and AC with battery charging. Zero flicker!

I'm typing this in the very same ThinkPad. I'm more than happy with the result, the original panel of this machine was a LP140WH2-TLF1, which was one of the worst panels I've seen in my life (even worse than the X30x ones)

Have a good weekend!

Can you please detail out or point to the things & method you followed?

[Tasurinchi]

Well, the standard procedure actually... Removed battery, keyboard, palmrest, LCD bezel and the old awful panel.

Then plugged the cable from the kit in the new panel, the other cable end in the adapter, installed the new panel and plugged the adapter in the motherboard. E voila!

In a T430 is easier than the T420, in the latter you have to snap a small piece of the mg frame to make room for the adapter.

[Niklas]

@Tasurinchi what CPU are you using for that machine? Is turbo boost turned on?

[Tasurinchi]

It's an i53320M, and I don't use turbo boost (at least not consciously since I'm on Debian and my understanding tb is available in the Windows Power Management software)

[Niklas]

It's an i53320M, and I don't use turbo boost (at least not consciously since I'm on Debian and my understanding tb is available in the Windows Power Management software)

It is my understanding that the flickering is more prone to occur on quad core CPUs and/or when it is working with turbo boost. I think tb is activated be default unless you disable it by underclocking the processor. In your case you have two cores and if it's like you say and you're not using tb, then indeed there wouldn't be any flickering from what I've read. If you run something like:

while :; do :; done

in one terminal window, this will cause one of your cores to work at full load until you terminate that process. Could you try running that and then run:

grep MHz /proc/cpuinfo

in another terminal while it's running? This will tell you what frequencies your cores are operating at, and you'll be able to tell if tb is in use.