i7 X220

[jlee1]

I just placed an order on an Core i7 X220 today and I can't wait until it gets here. I was originally looking at a T420 or even an X120e to save some money, but the X220 was going for $790 at the outlet NEW. Anyone else own the same model? Can I get some insight on the notebook(what should i watch out for, what i should upgrade/do?) Thank You

[lead_org]

i got the i7 X220. My machine that i got was perfect, so far i am impressed by the build quality of my machine, everything seems to exude a quality feel that reminds me of the X300 and X301 machines. The fit and finish of parts are also top rate. My screens does have some backlit bleed through, but other than that everything on my machine are perfect. Also, the battery life with the 9 cells battery is amazing, i don't even need to take a power adapter with me now.

[asiafish]

I just placed an order on an Core i7 X220 today and I can't wait until it gets here. I was originally looking at a T420 or even an X120e to save some money, but the X220 was going for $790 at the outlet NEW. Anyone else own the same model? Can I get some insight on the notebook(what should i watch out for, what i should upgrade/do?) Thank You

Did you get the IPS screen (Premium HD)?

I have one lower processor (i5 2540) and am extremely impressed with performance; yours should be even better with the i7.

Hardware-wise, this is the best laptop I've ever owned.

[hyde]

I also went with a step lower i5, i thought it would give me a much better battery life, and I am happy to say that it is more than satisfactory. Yesterday I did not even realize that I forgot my powerbrick in the office after using my x220 to watch two episodes of HDtv shows and doing some work.

[jlee1]

Did you get the IPS screen (Premium HD)?

I have one lower processor (i5 2540) and am extremely impressed with performance; yours should be even better with the i7.

Hardware-wise, this is the best laptop I've ever owned.

I don't think I got the IPS screen IIRC, it's the regular HD Display. Did I mess up?

[pianowizard]

I don't think I got the IPS screen IIRC, it's the regular HD Display. Did I mess up?

If you have seen only crappy laptop screens your whole life (which is true for most people), then you will probably find the regular display acceptable. So, don't sweat over this.

[asiafish]

I don't think I got the IPS screen IIRC, it's the regular HD Display. Did I mess up?

Can you still cancel and change? The IPS screen will make a far bigger difference everyday than the i7 will. I would argue that it is the single most important feature of the X220 compared to competing laptops.

[azX32]

When X220 ThinkPads started showing up on the outlet, I never saw any with IPS displays, maybe because none of them had it (which seems unlikely) or maybe because they somehow left it out of the specs. But now a lot of the X220s on the outlet do have IPS. It still doesn't appear in the category filters on the left side of the page, but "IPS" will be included in the Display specs if the machine has it. That's interesting, because Lenovo doesn't use the IPS term in the configuration options for an X220 on their main website. They use "Premium HD", without any explanation of what the premium is.

[asiafish]

When X220 ThinkPads started showing up on the outlet, I never saw any with IPS displays, maybe because none of them had it (which seems unlikely) or maybe because they somehow left it out of the specs. But now a lot of the X220s on the outlet do have IPS. It still doesn't appear in the category filters on the left side of the page, but "IPS" will be included in the Display specs if the machine has it. That's interesting, because Lenovo doesn't use the IPS term in the configuration options for an X220 on their main website. They use "Premium HD", without any explanation of what the premium is.

They come in waves. When I ordered mine, it was one of two with IPS (the other one was much more expensive and had lower specifications). Mine was $840 after all taxes with the i5 2540, 9 cell, 128 GB SSD (defective, Lenovo sent me the Intel 160GB to replace) and IPS. It had only 2 GB RAM and no camera or fingerprint, but did have Bluetooth and the all-important IPS display. I've since added a 40 GB Intel 310 mSATA and an Expresscard 54 smart card reader (I use my X220 for military duty) and will add the slice battery. Mine also was pre-configured with Windows 7 Home Premium 64, but I used my Win 7 Pro license to do the "anytime upgrade".

I am absolutely thrilled with this computer. Now that I have the Intel SSD I don't get the frequent BSODs that I used to, though I'm not certain that the SSD was the cause as I've not installed IE9 since the drive replacement.

IPS is really what sets this machine apart. I originally bought an X220i with the regular display through Amazon and ended up sending it back. The display wasn't terrible, but it wasn't as good as the 11.6" TN display on my MacBook Air. The X220 IPS display is quite a bit nicer than the Air's display.

[wolfman]

Can you still cancel and change? The IPS screen will make a far bigger difference everyday than the i7 will. I would argue that it is the single most important feature of the X220 compared to competing laptops.

You can't cancel orders from the Lenovo outlet unfortunately. The only option is to refuse delivery and pay a 15% restocking fee - even if they have not yet shipped the item. I light of that, I'd just keep the regular panel. It's still a very good deal vs. regular Lenovo web site price.

[pianowizard]

On the bright side, a TN panel is probably slightly lighter and consumes less power (i.e. longer battery duration) than an IPS panel.

[jlee1]

thanks for all the helpful replies. this sounds kind of stupid, but once i saw that item i immediately added it to my cart and checked out without carefully examining the specs. there was one left and i was on the outlet refreshing the page for a good hour lol! so i had to snatch it up. anyway, i'll make sure to take a couple pics of it and write a review from a student's POV. thanks again guys!

[AvalonXIII]

Yeah you have to be fast in order to get in on the deals. I was lucky enough to get a 750 i7 IPS (before tax) machine for a relative.

[Cunha]

Are these real cheap ones actually coming through the outlet..such as http://outlet.lenovo.com/laptops/thinkp ... dfm3a.html ??

They often have a lot of "out of stock" laptops on the site..are they just constantly watched by ebay resellers nowadays? Ever since the outlet was revamped it seems like it has more google presence or something and its no longer very..outletty.

[azX32]

They often have a lot of "out of stock" laptops on the site..

Yeah, what's up with the "out of stock" weirdness with the X ThinkPads on the outlet the past few days? I've never seen that before. There's usually only one of any particular outlet part number available anyway, and once someone places it in the cart it typically disappears from the list, only to reappear if it's not purchased. Plus, some of these prices seem unusually low or high.

More weirdness: On Monday I saw an outlet X220 with the configuration I wanted and at a sale price of $790. I knew I should add it to the cart and buy it before someone else grabbed it. Once it was in the cart, it took less than a minute to log in and select the address and delivery options. When I got to the last page to enter my credit card info, the pre-tax price had increased by $200. i reviewed the machine specs to make sure I hadn't somehow added the wrong item to the cart, but it was exactly the same machine and part number. I called the outlet's phone line and explained the situation to a sales rep. Fortunately he was able to override the price increase.

[Cunha]

AX - Good advice, it is often prudent to call to get those type of situations worked out.

[asiafish]

AX - Good advice, it is often prudent to call to get those type of situations worked out.

I had to call during my order as well. It showed 1 in stock of the model I wanted, I added it to the cart, and then for whatever reason the site wouldn't let me pay for it.

The support number solved it, took my payment over the phone and I had the laptop in my hands 4-days-later.