I have a Lenovo X220 in near mint condition. Bought on eBay last month for £109.00. It has 8gb's of DDR3 ram, an original 44+ battery in great condition! (5.5 hours of use) and a 500gb hard drive. It's running Windows 10 Pro. I love My Thinkpad.
@@victormontivero1998 listen to Victor get an ssd AND that small, dont know how its called, short m2 RAM like drive which is on right hand side of the trackpad.
Thank you for all your content on Thinkpads, really appreciate it! I blame you personally for making me buy some of those old classic Thinkpads! Bought an X220 and an X230. And a T430. And a T60. God I love those old machines. With an SSD and 8GB dual channel RAM, the Core-i5 models are perfectly viable Windows 10 machines even today, and shockingly portable thanks to user-swappable batteries (something every "portable device" should have! who the hell thought built-in batteries were a good idea?). Even the T60 is still usable, either with Linux, or as a retro gaming machine, since I was lucky enough to get one in good condition with the 15 inch 4:3 higher resolution "Flexview" display, a Core 2 Duo T7200 and an ATI X1400. It's a bit ironic that the only non-IPS, horrible, grey, dull, washed-out TN panel is found in the "most modern" of the four, the T430. Has the best keyboard of the four, though (I know, heresy, but I personally prefer the more tactile feel of the chiclet style X230/T430 keyboards, and I know I'm not the only one ;-)
By far the best IBM/Lenovo thinkpad guru on UA-cam. The knowledge that this gentleman knows is amazing. I'm really interested in the full boat W series Lenovo thinkpads and i hope he does a series on them as well. I know that was their top of the line model and probably still super expensive today but i would love to be educated on them before i buy.
I currently have a W700 and a T440p. The latter may not be considered a "W" series model but it has similar expandability and performance to the W540 from the same generation. I may try to find a few more W/P series ThinkPads before devoting a whole video on them.
Still love my i7 X220. After doing a factory reset and then updating to Win 10, it still works just fine and does what I need. Thanks for the info about disparity in power of the Mobile and Ultrabook CPUs. Didn't know that.
I bought two used x230. One with i7 and back-light keyboard + fingerprint scanner, the other one with i5 non back-light keyboard. I love them both. Switched them between days for works. 12" is the best, 14" is too big for me to carry around. I also bought 95-Watt chargers to replace standard ones in order to get full boost performance without battery attached.
Hi... Im really happy with my Lenovo x230...with docking station and ssd, 16Gb ram and 128gb msata, win7, and i used external graphic card....Love it.....
Great video. Love my X220 which is upgraded with an IPS panel, SSD and 16gb ram. The all Intel chipset also makes these excellent Linux machines. Using a good quality 3rd party 9 cell battery (e.g. Duracell or greencell) I can get 5-6 hours from a charge. An i5 mobile Sandybridge with 4 threads is still ample for all but heavy work such as video editing - and even that works if you're not in a hurry.
I have used my T430 for editing all of these videos, and while I now have a quad-core i7 in mine, for a long time it had the standard Core i5 3320M, which is the same processor found in the X230. It could edit 1080p60 video with no problem, and with an i7 it just works even better!
I got a near mint X230 back in March and got it upgraded to 8 GB of RAM for the sweet dual channel performance boost and is a great little machine that's running Linux. Now all it needs is a SSD, but in the meantime I found a fairly well preserved X61s for $66 shipped and had to order it. It will need some love, cleaning and new thermal compound, but will make a great machine to put in my workshop or girlfriend's flat.
My X220 is still purring along with the same specs and outlasted my TP Yoga 14 which had multiple problems. It's been dual-boot Linux/Win7 for about 6 years now and is my travel laptop and back-up. Looks like it will be for the foreseeable future. Still a better keyboard than all of the modern chiclet types. And, the X220 is crazy fast for its age and size - boots to Windows7 in 14 seconds.
Excellent video! I have been using my X220 i7 CTO version since Dec 2011 almost every day. It is my only laptop and I have used it at all the different workplaces I have been employed at since 2011. i have often junked or opted out of the office laptop. Since 2012 I have been using my Thinkpad X220 with 16 GB ram and recently I upgraded my 64 GB mSata from 2012 to a 512GB Msata. The harddrive was upgraded from a 320 gb to a 500 gb and now a 1tb 7mm drive. It was difficult to get 7mm hard drives earlier. I have a 6 cell and a 9 Cell battery handy. I recently swapped the lcd bezels and the palm rest along with the TN 720p display to a IPS 720p display. The laptop simply flies and it is one of the few things I absolutely adore! The final configuration of my X220 is as follows: i7 2720m 16 GB (1600mhz Gskill 8Gbx2) Samsung 512gb mSata Seagate 1tb hdd IPS 720p display 6 or 9 cell battery depending on the monthly rotation I have in place The best laptop keyboard ever! I routinely travel across India for work and often abroad. This has been my only laptop and I am sure it will keep serving me easily for a few more years!
They're certainly great machines! I'm typing this from my X230. I'm currently working on a follow-up video about the best used ThinkPads to buy in 2019, and the X series will definitely have a starring role!
Cristal and clear explanation. I just bought an x230 (core i5, 4 GB Ram and 256 SSD. The seller assures it was not used at all. It looks brand new. Good pc. Bought it for my son, for school. Previous broke down. I liked a lot, I almost bought an x250. I noticed the processor is not "M" any more. Just "U". Thanks to you I didnt make that mistake. I bought a t440p instead. I know, different league, but a lot of upgrades could be done.
X230 with an X220 keyboard/palmrest and a 120 GB SSD has been my daily driver for about a year and a half now. Used a T430 for some time before that. Both solid machines!
I have an X220. I spent a few years lugging around a big Dell laptop. The X220 is amazing. Plenty of power for what I use it for. Small and light and the keyboard is amazing. I hate chicklet keyboards with a passion. I paid £100 (UK !) for it. I upgraded to an SSD but everything else is standard. It really is a fantastic machine.
My first thinkpad is Edge 11, which many people said it was not real thinkpad, but it got me addicted to the thinkpad keyboard setup with trackpoint. Then i got first real 'thinkpad' was X201, i buy 2nd hand for quite cheap price back in 2013, and it become my daily laptop for study and work till around 2016, because it suddenly dead. Then i buy thinkpad x250, this time i can afford to buy new one, i got pretty good deal comparing to normal retail price, even later I need upgrade the battery so it will have 9cell total and also swap the hdd to ssd to boost the performance. Thinkpad really got me to the keyboard setup, even in my home PC I use old thinkpad usb keyboard which still have 7 rows keys setup. It's kind of sad that lenovo strip many feature that older thinkpad have, especially with the X series, which is my favorite. When my boss asked me to start thinking about the new laptop to pick, since he plan to buy me new one for work, i'm hesitate to choose the X series, and leaning toward the T series, since the T series now is quite light these day, and still have many essential ports. Anyway, nice video man, keep it up.
Dear Sebi; great video but kindly do a piece on tablet series i.e X200T, X201T, X220T, X230T, as these machines guarantee that one will get the IPS (or wide view-able) display, so some light needs to be shed on them as well.
If I get ahold of a few ThinkPad tablets I will gladly do a video on them, however as of now I do not have any of the ThinkPad tablets and since they are basically just touch screen versions of the standard X series, I feel it is a little redundant to dedicate a whole video to it.
In Pakistan these tablets are dirt cheap, X201T is available for less than 80$, while X220T for less than 100$ (less than the price of apple stylus 'Apple Pencil' alone), I bought X220 reluctantly, but once I got the machine and used it for a while, one get to know why these things were more expensive than normal variants when sold new, they are little bit bigger from power button on-wards on both the lower part (which extends further half an inch compared to screen) as well as the lower bezel on screen, which looks a bit odd but all of that is for reason, these parts are over-engineered for that single hinge mechanism in the middle, its tight enough that there is no chance of accidental screen swiveling and one needs two hands to open the machine. If you get hold of at-least couple of variants like X201T (which has lower powered processor compared to X201) to X220T/X230T which use normal processors, these were sold with windows 7 which was not touch screen optimized, but with presence of windows 10 there is better utility of these tablet machines now (with renewed interest from Samsung and Apple in Stylus computing, behave like they have reinvented the wheel) compared to when they were sold new that's why old/existing reviews are bit outdated from usage perspective, anyhow if you do get hold of them, these machines have good 15~20 minutes worth of video material compared to normal variants. I have subscribed you, keep up the good work.
Great stuff. I have a T420 and an X230 and, as you say, my X230 tends to be used most. I did replace the the backlight keyboard with the non-backlight keyboard on the X230, though. It's a better keyboard for my use case.
Glossy means it would also attract grime and stuff from the fingers no? How's the non-backlit feel? Heard it feels like fine sandpaper, better traction. Might as well get myself an X220 keyboard if I could let go of the backlighting and use Thinklight instead.
I prefer the ThinkLight, sure it doesn't "look pretty" like the backlit keyboard does but it is certainly a lot more practical, and I wish Lenovo hadn't removed it on the newer ThinkPads. The non-backlit keyboards definitely feel better, and I do remember hearing that the glossy finish does attract more finger crap.
I prefer both depending on the situation. if I wanted to illuminate the keys subtly in dark without flooding anything else I'd use the backlight. If I wanted to illuminate anything else above the keyboard, like papers and other things besides the laptop, I'd use the Thinklight. I'm happy with X230 because it has both of them. I'm also saddened that Lenovo removed the Thinklight on later Thinkpads...and yeah, I did hear about the glossy keyboards somewhere in Louis Rossman's rants, something about his preference of non-backlit keyboards to backlit ones because of that. But trust me, it will be harder to type because Thinklight is gone, and there are no alternative ways of illuminating the keys from above except for sticking USB LED above the keyboard, making a poor man's Thinklight. EDIT: My personal experience with the backlit keyboard though? You're trading off cleanliness for backlighting. A lot of finger oils and fingerprints here and there on mine and sometimes I get to wipe them with 70% alcohol...it just looks, eugh.
My work laptop is an x280! I didn’t pay for it but I certainly love it.. I’d like at least an x260 (usb-c and hdmi if at all possible). I’d be interested in seeing an update to this series if an hopefully scalper pricing will go away once working from home isn’t a thing any more!
I have an X200s, and yes I was the guy who brought it to a robotics programming competition, and yes I did make my 2 friends struggle without the trackpad.
i just bought a x260 for ~300 euros and put ubuntu on it. It looks like brand new and the performance is exactly what i needed. I thought about buying an old Macbook, but im glad that i didnt. The X260 is amazing for Students and Unity GameDevs.
2:41 Actually no, some Panasonic toughbooks had 4:3 displays all the way into the ivy bridge era. 3:52 While I also prefer Thinkpads, it's worth knowing that Fujitsu lifebooks had upgradable cpus in their 12" laptops until the T732. (T731 was the last upgradable one) Fujitsu also manages to cram an "ultrabay" into a 12" laptop. 7:44 You really should show the X220/X230 tablets on your channel! They are the cheapest and easiest way to get a 12" thinkpad with an IPS display, as all tablet models have IPS.
the older X series still has plenty of purposes for applications that don't need to max out the hardware too much. Being able to type plenty of text on it or recording a lecture / class (either audio or with a webcam), listening to some music, checking your emails, working on a presentation, doing some graphic editing... you know stuff where you really don't need a bigger laptop but just something that runs all day on a single 9-cell Battery charge.
I'm playing with T61 and T60 models at the moment because of dumping prices and some system recovery research. The X series got used more and longer (worn down) in comparison to the Ts within the ebay sandbox possibilities. Nothing from eBay can beat my lucky find: The X230/i7, except "what is a typewriter" - a concept that vanished with IBM.
I got my girlfriend an X220t for Christmas last year and she said it's her favorite laptop that she's ever used. She likes doing digital art, so the touchscreen on the x220t was a big plus for her.
I'm still having x200 today, with 8GB Ram, Win10 Pro 64-bit.. still can function google sketch, Adobe PS, Corel X7, Camtasia, all at the same time. With extended battery & regular one. Ultradock bay.
I broke the motherboard when trying to replace the screen with an IPS panel on my X230 (long story). got a used i7 X230 off ebay with a broken Display and a missing drive cover. just replaced the display, threw in my SSD and replaced the keyboard with my backlit model. and now I'm happy. still a damn good Laptop model for its age
I need more "thumbs up" buttons for these videos! Every time I watch them I am angry I can't like them because I had done so weeks ago... Amazing job - thanks!
Considering the current trend, no. I don't think 90% of the world agrees with you, which is just sad. I love serviceable and upgradeable laptops, but the world doesn't care about that.
Great video. You forgot to mention the X301. The thinkpad flagship back then. I have one since 10 years ago, and I love it. I recently bought an X260 (because it can handle a 4K monitor), and the build quality went down the drain: the X301 is way better in any aspect, but unfortunately, the speed is now lacking.
I have x230 tablet for 7 years. I have both love/hate relationship with the machine. Agree on the point that the machine is more than capable to get the job done with 3rd Gen processor. I actually have GTX 980Ti eGPU for gaming if needed. I recently bought the X201 tablet as I missed the old Thinkpad design. On the built quality, I think X230 (at least for my Tablet version) is not great compared to the previous generation. The corner of the palm rest usually broken, the plastic is much cheaper and thinner. Also, the Function key is continuous...There is no space between groups so you have no way to tell (in the dark) what F key you will press. It was partially fixed on the keyboard of subsequent generations.
You could always put an X220 keyboard in to fix your complaints about the function row! :P I agree that there were some design flaws in the X220/230 chassis, however I’m willing to overlook that since they are in almost every other way an improvement over the older X200/201.
Nice video. The x280 is not a worthy successor to the x-line of Thinkpads. I have a x240, its main limitation for me is the 8 GB RAM limit. I ordered an x270 from Lenovo over Memorial weekend, they accepted the order, then e-mailed me a few days later saying it had been cancelled as they *oversold* their x270s over the weekend! I thought I was buying a laptop, not an airline seat :-/ Very disappointed. I've been buying Thinkpads for 20 years (my first, a T560x) .. not really interested in the x280, so this may be the first time I'll be getting a non-Thinkpad. I wish they had just refreshed the x270 with an 8th gen processor and some other tweaks .. instead of making all the negative changes they made on the x280 as you correctly pointed out in your video.
I know the screen size is larger, but the T480 still has most of what was removed from the X280. If you have good eyesight you could turn off scaling with the 1080p screen. Also I refuse to pay $35 for a passive Ethernet dongle, when USB 3 Ethernet adapters go for $15.
My Thinkpad Yoga 14 never felt or performed as well as my X220. It's only now with my 3rd-gen X1 Yoga iwith Core i7 that this "upgrade" is *starting* to feel like it's a speedier beast.
Good video and thanks for mention! I do have another small correction though: The X250 could also do 16 GB RAM, it was the first model to support 16 GB RAM modules, though those are DDR3 modules. Only the X240 is limited to 8 GB. I generally think that the concept of the 12" laptop is mostly dead these days. I would expect Lenovo to change the screen size to 13" in the future.
I was not aware that 16 GB DDR3 sticks even existed. And sadly that seems to be the truth, since the X240 the 12” laptop has been pretty much dead for serious use.
The thing that really killed them IMHO are the Ultrabooks. Back in the days of the X201 or X220, those were the only systems that really were portable, so people put up with the smaller screens. But nowadays, even some 15" systems are very thin & light. Truth is, most people prefer bigger screens than 12", even if the laptop is slightly bigger. There are things like the the XPS 13 now, which has a 13.3" screen in a smaller chassis - or the X1 Carbon with 14" and very slim bezels. So these systems lost their mainstream audience. With the X240 to X270, Lenovo had like a hybrid between a classical Subnotebook and an Ultrabook, but it seems with the X280, they have decided to make it into a cheaper X1 Carbon alternative.
Great machines dont die i had many different laptop brands among them 2 thinkpad from different generations. My experience using thinkpad had always be awesome with great amazing satisfaction.
The last great x series Thinkpad was X270 as it combined both practicality and modernity. You've got 2 USB-A ports, a USB-C port, HDMI, sd card reader, RJ45, dual batteries, 2.5 drive bay that can also be used with converter for nvme ssd, WWAN slot for 2242 type ssd, upgradeble RAM up to 32gb though it's single dimm and upgradeble wifi card. Fantastic machine. All it needed was an upgrade to quad core cpu and ram in dual channel. Oh, and easier keyboard removal. 13.3 screen is also welcome. That's it. At 1.4kg it's merely 200g heavier than so called thinner/lighter ultra books. Are 200g really going to break your back?
@@SebisRandomTech The only "issue" with them is that they are not as portable as the X ones. 14" screen is better for general usage, but if you carry your laptop on your bag all the time, use it in plane/train, opening it at a café etc., those 2" (with extra bezels of course) surprisingly matter. I went from X230 (7row keyboard) to T470 and yeah, I feel the difference. It's just different. I borrowed EliteBook x360 for a few days and wow - I literally fell in love again to with it partly for it's size. T-series are OK but generally aim to different market... But yeah, their thickness and weight now basically equal to old X series.
Unfortunately, newer ThinkPads have to be made thinner (sacrificing a lot of features) because that's what businesses want, and businesses are the vast majority of people buying ThinkPads. Recently got an X230 though, the battery life is crap with 50% capacity remaining (already ordered a 9 cell one) but I'm absolutely loving it. Such a big upgrade in terms of build quality from stuff like HP Pavilions.
I agree that the peak of the X line was x220 (classic keys) and x230 (backlit keys) and hot swap-able batteries. . I also prefer the mylar touchpad over the glass and notice the keyboard quality go down as well.
luckily i still mange to purchase a x230 which is the most versatile x model ,, specially those easy to upgrade ram and hdd bays and lots of ports needed
They nearly use the same generation cpu with the x series having a sandybridge while the other has an ivybridge. Would say it depends on what you plan to use it for.
My 10-year-old i5 T430s with 8gb of RAM/256 SSD is as fast or faster than my i5 6300U T470s with 20gb of RAM/256 NVMe. That's for most daily work, like Office, Lightroom, Internet. The T430s is my daily driver at home, but the much lighter and slimmer is my go everywhere ThinkPad. I really love them both. What's interesting is that Lenovo outfits all of their in-the-field repair technicians with the T470. Tells you what they think about the T480 onwards.
I recently bought the x380, I almost spect it full out 16gb ram, i7-8550U, 500gb ssd. And yes that sucks. It is doing a really good job and the port selection is really decent for today, i would say.
They’re a supplement not a replacement for an ultrabook. Sometimes you want to carry something smaller around and a 12-13 inch ultraportable is easier to stow away than a 14-15 inch ultrabook.
Love the thorough videos and have peaked my interest. Was looking at new thinkpads(never owned a Lenovo) and really liked how you can still still swap out ram, battery, etc. Is there a model new or old that you would recommend? I generally do UA-cam, Netflix, light gaming(Homeworld remastered, DoW 2, and lighter games) and a lot of writing. Anyways, just curious if you had suggestions. Cheers and keep up the great videos.
I've made a few videos about this topic, and am looking into making a new, updated video giving my full list of recommendations. If you are looking into getting a brand new laptop, the T480 (with FHD screen, *not* the 1366x768 option which is stock) will be an excellent choice. It has a lot of the upgradeability that you could want. The Intel HD graphics that are built in can handle some light gaming, and if you want a little more oomph then you can get the Nvidia MX-150 graphics card with it. When it comes to used or older machines, there's a whole world of recommendations. In my opinion, if you value portability and excellent battery life, the T440/440s and T450/450s are good options and are becoming fairly cheap. If you want power and more expandability, the T420, T430, and T440p are excellent machines, with the necessary upgrades. The X220 and X230 are also great laptops, I am editing a video about the X230 as we speak.
Thanks for your feedback, I'm leaning now at getting a older T430 I just found locally thats refurbished. Has the I5 3320M, 4G RAM and a 320G SATAIII for $240 CAD. Might go check it out today, and then upgrade to what I need. I like the idea of it being cheaper and I can tinker with it(not an expert, but I have dabbled a little bit over my lifetime).
Exactly. But not all laptops act like this. They charge the same no matter the adapter . This one does charge a lot faster with 65 or 90 watts adapter ( these two are the only ones I have - no difference in speed, although you need 90w adapter for the port replicator unit ). Discovering that Lenovo x230 does fast charge, was a sweet thing. I do recommend this laptop.
Don't know if it's the same for the other X-series, but my X220 is the same area as a sheet of A4 paper if you use the small battery. So anywhere a folder will fit, it will fit
On my brand new T480. I have two batteries. Built-in and 66+ model (additional). But, I can install one of two options SSD or HDD. not both. And yes I love My ThinkPad too.
Really nice info , I plan to buy old thinkpad maybe t430 because your video :). Hi sebi is that a huge diffrent compare mobile processor and ultrabook processor ?
Mobile processors are faster and have more thermal headroom but use more power. The ultrabook processors use less power and are more energy efficient at the expense of speed.
So I'm here again, question myself whether to stick with the X240 or to grab a X230 or even X220. The ExpressCard slot would be in my interest because of the eGPU and so would be the classic keyboard, the X240 at least under Linux has some weird issue where it'd update packages very slow, just as if the CPU hangs for that task.
Hello, i am not really computer literate I purchased the Lenovo T460S I don't really know what I am doing. I have trouble with moving the cursor around with my finger. At times it can be hard to navigate. I don't even understand the red button by the letters. Do you have a video that explains all of this. I am completely dumb when it comes to computers.
They aren't a good value for the money. xx40 series ThinkPads (with the exception of the T440p, T540p, and W540/41) are actually less powerful than their xx30 counterparts, and don't give you the same level of expandability and upgradeability as the xx30 line.
Aw man... I am still hoping to find a decent replacement for my beloved x220. My currently installed 4gb of RAM is becoming more and more of a limitation, and since one of my usb ports broke and linux mint kde is not getting updates anymore soon, i don't feel like upgrading the ram on this decade-old notebook. I just wish there were some recent thinkpads (or really, notebooks) out there that feature a replaceable battery, an actual ethernet jack, a few usb jacks and and hdmi jack. A vga jack for legacy beamers, which are still around widely, would be a huge plus as well. The non-replaceable battery really is a dealbreaker for me after the experiences i have had with my galaxy s5 mini's battery, which lost capacity very quickly, and the poorly performing battery of my current x220 that i bought used, which could be replaced. I can't just buy a used x280+ like i did with my x220, because if the battery turns out to be worn, i just have to throw the entire notebook away! ThinkPads have really lost my admiration quite a bit. I feel like they've removed everything that made them special and now they're just as overpriced as Macbooks.
with the newer gens, lenovo is trying to attack the macbook 12-type of laptops, so no user-upgradeable battery or ram doesn't matter as much as a thinner device. For instance, if you really needed more power, on old x230s you still needed to pring a battery. Now you still have to bring a powerbank with a cable, the only extra clutter is the cable. Most people looking for something small and thin will be satisfied.
They should have made an X280 with a more classic design and an X280s for those who really want those extra few millimeters shaved off. That way, those who want a smaller screen with more power can get what they want, and those who don't care about extra power or upgradeability can have their thin laptop. They already do that with the T480/T480s and the X1 Carbon for the 14" machines, and for 15" machines you have the T580/P52s for those who want something thinner, and the P51 for power users. I am aware that the X230 would require an extra battery, but the X280 is still a downgrade from the X240-270 in that regard. Most of the people looking for a small and thin laptop aren't going to buy a ThinkPad. Most of those people would probably look in the direction of Apple. That is why I criticize Lenovo for neutering the ThinkPad line to appeal more to Apple users; most of the people who buy MacBooks are never going to buy a ThinkPad, and vice versa. So why compromise the ThinkPad to make a half-assed product that still won't appeal to the target market and also disappoints the existing market?
Very informative video. I am considering an x230 for myself. However, I am confused between the x230, T430 and the Dell E5430. They cost almost the same here, and have more or less, the same configuration. Could you suggest one between the three? I'd like to upgrade to an SSD and 16GB of RAM, and also an i7 if I can get my hands on one. Please suggest one which is easiest to upgrade, and can withstand rough usage.
I don't have much experience with Dells, however I can tell you both ThinkPads you mentioned will be very durable. Both have upgradeable RAM and storage, but while the X230 has an i7 option, it is soldered to the motherboard. In addition it is only a dual core processor. The T430 uses a socketed CPU that can be upgraded, for example in mine I replaced the original Core i5 3320M with a core i7 3612QM (a quad core processor).
Thanks. I subscribed to your channel & look forward to seeing it. As well as any other Lenovo related videos you do. I see the W541 as the end of an era. I would love to have a P51 but can't justify the cost to performance over my $320 classic.
Great video on the X series. I also agree with your view point on ULV Cpus. I own mostly Dell hardware. My latitude e series is the bomb. But my e6530 with an i5 with an ssd is still worlds faster then my 2017 e7480 with an i7 and NVS ssd. Ironically it was more money too. Dont get me wrong, it's fast, it's just not that kind of money fast:)
Agree. I can't stand my x230 because of the short vertical screen size and flat cursor buttons. Instead I continue to use my x61 and recently discovered how great the x201 is after buying one. The x201 came with a HDD but is so zippy that I haven't even felt the need to migrate to a ssd. Amazingly I feel the x201 performs better than my x230. Love it so much that I am buying a second one.
I don’t have any of the T variants of the X series. I should have mentioned them but since they are basically just tablet versions of the non-T models, I felt it wasn’t necessary to mention.
Depends on what things you value. The X250 has better battery life, is thinner and lighter, and has a few better screen options without modifications (FHD 1080p displays). The X230 has a better keyboard, better port selection/expandability, and stronger performance at the expense of some battery life. It only has 720p screens, but can be upgraded to a 1080p display with a mod if the user desires.
@@SebisRandomTech thanks a lot mate for the detailed advice. I m not concerned much with screen as my work is simply php Python programming , neither a gamer nor a video lover. I think I should be happy with a i7 x230 which you said in one of your video can outperform a ultra processor of higher gen i5. you cleared my confusion and will go with older 3rd 4th gen CPU with x230 or a t 440 p . Can you also suggest me where to grab a nice deal, I mean where you get cheap machines from.
@@neerajbg Living in the United States, it's easy for me to get used machines for very cheap from eBay and Craigslist, and sometimes have luck at local thrift stores or flea markets. Depending on where you live and what your definition of "cheap" is, your luck may vary.
@@SebisRandomTech thanks brother, you are so kind having helping hand, unfortunately eBay takes a lot for shipping to India. But yes I m in love with thinkpads. I do have a L 440 with i7 4800 mq as my workstation. I m looking for another one and will go with x230. Thanks a lot mate.
Excellent video. I totally agree with you about Lenovo design. They screw up the ThinkPad worse every year, to the point where now it is only marginally better than Dells and HPs. I especially agree about the downgrades to the X280, which is now basically just a smaller X1 Carbon, not a real X-Series. The X220 was the peak of ThinkPad design and is still reasonably quick, with upgraded RAM and an SSD. An X230 has better USB, but swapping out the keyboard is a nuisance. If you're going to use the crummy chicklet keyboard, than you might as well get an X270, which is faster still, and pretty cheap now. I would avoid the X240 (with the horrible no-button "clunkpad") and the X280 or later models at all costs.
Well the X230 can at least accept the classic keyboard easily, and the X240 can accept the X250's touchpad, so there are ways to get rid of the bad aspects of those machines' designs. But I still think the older ThinkPads were designed better (even as I type this comment from a newer one!)
Very great video regarding Lenovo/IBM laptops I had a X220 and after swapping with an SSD the performance it's many fold better than using an optical drive it came with. However doing video editing on this machine it's just super lagging... I've max out the RAM but still it's not suit for video editing as no dedicated graphic cards. It is still a good portable laptop though. It would be good to have technical video diving into the function of the Think Vantage weather you recommend it or it's bloating the com itself (Windows backup vs Think Vantage backup etc)
As I write a lot I'm sticking with my T60p for its full-height display - Widescreen was just a scam to reduce the cost of displays by reducing the height by 20% and that means for the same font size I would need a 17-20% reduced height (widescreen) screen. When the fan finally dies I shall give up on laptops other than for note taking as the displays are not practical for writing. I turn off the touchpad as it is crap compared to the trackpoint (that 'click here at random' feature of scratchpads really annoys me).
I did buy one, right fan wrong pipework then another, right pipework bad fan and the fans themselves on T60s have a bad reputation. But it's still a good machine for writing. I did think of building a briefcase machine with a 17 0r 20 inch display in the lid, the guts of a lappy, a full KB and a FOB trackball (the industrial 2-3 inch ones are cheap and well made). There would be room for a 2-day battery and your sandwiches as well but having retired I now have so little free time I probably won't. Cheers
Plan is to try adding an external fan and at the same time rebuild the battery to serve as a plug for a larger battery pack - Love the machine, now a big fan of trackpoint (to the point where I opt for that in preference to anything else for complex graphics work). The work world be worth it as the alternative is a 17 or 20 inch machine to get the same readability on screen which is a bit big.
The first wide screen laptops (and computer monitors) had 16x10 screens, the current crop uses 16x9. It's not a scam, just a cost cutting method by making use of surplus TV panel glass. The difference between 16x10 and 16x9 may seem small, but it makes a big difference. Dell still makes computer monitors in the 16x10 format, and I wouldn't buy anything but for the desktop. For 'basic low cost' laptops, the 16x9 is acceptable, but any machine made for the 'road warrior power user' should have a 16x10 glass in there.
Shout out to the weird middle child that is the X250. I think i say that since it's the last thinkpad with VGA, miniDP, DDR3 Ram, as well as having the 5th Generation intel cpus, the last before 14nm tech that would make intel the butt of many jokes. Its just so stuck in an odd position on the timeline. Objectively worse specs than the X260 and X270, reassuringly better than the x240, but still fundimentally changed from the x230 and those that came before. I have no clue what to make of it, and I say that as the proud owner of one. It was my first thinkpad, and I think it should have been my only one. I got a T480 after it, believing that to be the true thinkpad I wanted. But when I got it, I couldn't help but feel disappointed. I figure that is the same feeling lovers of the 20's and 30's felt when later thinkpads came out. Its a much better piece of technology, but it lacks the personality that I had gotten used to with this bizzaro i had before. Perhaps this is my ode to the x250. Born too late to see all the classic Thinkpad features and upgrades, born too early to be the ultra-optimised future-proof 12 inch model ultrabook. Born just in time to be mine, and for that, I'll cherish it.
x230 with msata boot > linux, and a big ssd and battery. it boots in a few seconds from full shutdown. have that for 8 years and don't want to replace, (maybe a t430?)....
How do I take advantage of that replaceable battery? Mine shuts off when I try to remove the battery, am I missing something? One more thing the powered USB is not charging my devices when the laptop is off.
There’s a BIOS setting to turn on the always-on port when the laptop is off or unplugged. The biggest benefit of the replaceable batteries is being able to swap them out on the go if you’re away from an outlet.
i feel like some of the arguments about the x280 were just for the lulz. yeah, it doesn't have a removable battery, because it has a bigger battery. or a 2.5 inch drive, but it has a bigger battery. Your point was: if it has an external battery, you can carry another one, but then when you are given the option of using a type-c power bank(which you can use with even more devices), you call it clutter. if you need it, you need it, but for all the people that needed 5h of battery life instead of 3h on the old thinkpads, they no longer need to carry a spare battery, therefore less clutter. I agree with the point about the keyboard and the ram and performance, but you dint consider the added features like, insanely fast ports like thunderbolt which you can use to upgrade the gpu(which hasn't been an option since the pci docks) and the way better screens and smaller weight.
I really like the fact you’re not some cringy teenager talking generic shit. Useful and exhaustive information, wonderful presentation. New sub!
I can watch thinkpad reviews all day. thank you. I drive the t510, fully upgraded and adore it.
also
I have a Lenovo X220 in near mint condition. Bought on eBay last month for £109.00. It has 8gb's of DDR3 ram, an original 44+ battery in great condition! (5.5 hours of use) and a 500gb hard drive. It's running Windows 10 Pro. I love My Thinkpad.
Get an SSD and will be even better :D
It's a great machine. Don't know why I didn't buy one sooner.
@@victormontivero1998 listen to Victor get an ssd AND that small, dont know how its called, short m2 RAM like drive which is on right hand side of the trackpad.
@@fyi_it I think you are talking about the nvme ssd
@@shuwan4games X220 came out before NVMe went mainstream, it's mSATA your looking for. I think. I don't know much about X220.
Thank you for all your content on Thinkpads, really appreciate it! I blame you personally for making me buy some of those old classic Thinkpads! Bought an X220 and an X230. And a T430. And a T60. God I love those old machines. With an SSD and 8GB dual channel RAM, the Core-i5 models are perfectly viable Windows 10 machines even today, and shockingly portable thanks to user-swappable batteries (something every "portable device" should have! who the hell thought built-in batteries were a good idea?). Even the T60 is still usable, either with Linux, or as a retro gaming machine, since I was lucky enough to get one in good condition with the 15 inch 4:3 higher resolution "Flexview" display, a Core 2 Duo T7200 and an ATI X1400.
It's a bit ironic that the only non-IPS, horrible, grey, dull, washed-out TN panel is found in the "most modern" of the four, the T430. Has the best keyboard of the four, though (I know, heresy, but I personally prefer the more tactile feel of the chiclet style X230/T430 keyboards, and I know I'm not the only one ;-)
By far the best IBM/Lenovo thinkpad guru on UA-cam. The knowledge that this gentleman knows is amazing. I'm really interested in the full boat W series Lenovo thinkpads and i hope he does a series on them as well. I know that was their top of the line model and probably still super expensive today but i would love to be educated on them before i buy.
I currently have a W700 and a T440p. The latter may not be considered a "W" series model but it has similar expandability and performance to the W540 from the same generation. I may try to find a few more W/P series ThinkPads before devoting a whole video on them.
You are right! I have at home x230 and I am happy with Lenovo.
Levski Levov Me tooo
Respect because OpenBSD and Thinkpad
Still love my i7 X220. After doing a factory reset and then updating to Win 10, it still works just fine and does what I need. Thanks for the info about disparity in power of the Mobile and Ultrabook CPUs. Didn't know that.
I'm on an i7 x220 too. Woo! Not a windows fan though, so running good old Debian.
I bought two used x230. One with i7 and back-light keyboard + fingerprint scanner, the other one with i5 non back-light keyboard. I love them both. Switched them between days for works. 12" is the best, 14" is too big for me to carry around. I also bought 95-Watt chargers to replace standard ones in order to get full boost performance without battery attached.
I have t420 and I feel the same its just to big.. im loking for x220 or x230
I have Lenovo X240 and it´s my daily driver since 2017 and I have no issues with it at all..
Hi... Im really happy with my Lenovo x230...with docking station and ssd, 16Gb ram and 128gb msata, win7, and i used external graphic card....Love it.....
Great video. Love my X220 which is upgraded with an IPS panel, SSD and 16gb ram. The all Intel chipset also makes these excellent Linux machines. Using a good quality 3rd party 9 cell battery (e.g. Duracell or greencell) I can get 5-6 hours from a charge. An i5 mobile Sandybridge with 4 threads is still ample for all but heavy work such as video editing - and even that works if you're not in a hurry.
I have used my T430 for editing all of these videos, and while I now have a quad-core i7 in mine, for a long time it had the standard Core i5 3320M, which is the same processor found in the X230. It could edit 1080p60 video with no problem, and with an i7 it just works even better!
I got a near mint X230 back in March and got it upgraded to 8 GB of RAM for the sweet dual channel performance boost and is a great little machine that's running Linux. Now all it needs is a SSD, but in the meantime I found a fairly well preserved X61s for $66 shipped and had to order it. It will need some love, cleaning and new thermal compound, but will make a great machine to put in my workshop or girlfriend's flat.
My X220 is still purring along with the same specs and outlasted my TP Yoga 14 which had multiple problems. It's been dual-boot Linux/Win7 for about 6 years now and is my travel laptop and back-up. Looks like it will be for the foreseeable future. Still a better keyboard than all of the modern chiclet types. And, the X220 is crazy fast for its age and size - boots to Windows7 in 14 seconds.
They say it's good for hackintosh
Excellent video! I have been using my X220 i7 CTO version since Dec 2011 almost every day. It is my only laptop and I have used it at all the different workplaces I have been employed at since 2011. i have often junked or opted out of the office laptop. Since 2012 I have been using my Thinkpad X220 with 16 GB ram and recently I upgraded my 64 GB mSata from 2012 to a 512GB Msata. The harddrive was upgraded from a 320 gb to a 500 gb and now a 1tb 7mm drive. It was difficult to get 7mm hard drives earlier. I have a 6 cell and a 9 Cell battery handy. I recently swapped the lcd bezels and the palm rest along with the TN 720p display to a IPS 720p display. The laptop simply flies and it is one of the few things I absolutely adore!
The final configuration of my X220 is as follows:
i7 2720m
16 GB (1600mhz Gskill 8Gbx2)
Samsung 512gb mSata
Seagate 1tb hdd
IPS 720p display
6 or 9 cell battery depending on the monthly rotation I have in place
The best laptop keyboard ever!
I routinely travel across India for work and often abroad. This has been my only laptop and I am sure it will keep serving me easily for a few more years!
wow this was informative! i dig these older X series
They're certainly great machines! I'm typing this from my X230. I'm currently working on a follow-up video about the best used ThinkPads to buy in 2019, and the X series will definitely have a starring role!
Cristal and clear explanation. I just bought an x230 (core i5, 4 GB Ram and 256 SSD. The seller assures it was not used at all. It looks brand new. Good pc. Bought it for my son, for school. Previous broke down. I liked a lot, I almost bought an x250. I noticed the processor is not "M" any more. Just "U".
Thanks to you I didnt make that mistake. I bought a t440p instead. I know, different league, but a lot of upgrades could be done.
X230 and put an SSD drive in it and wallah... 10 year laptop.
X230 with an X220 keyboard/palmrest and a 120 GB SSD has been my daily driver for about a year and a half now. Used a T430 for some time before that. Both solid machines!
Had a X230 for 8 years heavy use, Hdd gave out
I use my X220 Tablet to this day. Upgrade the RAM, throw in a decent SSD and this thing is running.
I have an X220. I spent a few years lugging around a big Dell laptop. The X220 is amazing. Plenty of power for what I use it for. Small and light and the keyboard is amazing. I hate chicklet keyboards with a passion. I paid £100 (UK !) for it. I upgraded to an SSD but everything else is standard. It really is a fantastic machine.
i actually tried buying a x220 as my first thinkpad off of ebay i had to get a refund cause the package was never shipped
are you still using the 220 in 2023? i just got a 201 and it works pretty well
My first thinkpad is Edge 11, which many people said it was not real thinkpad, but it got me addicted to the thinkpad keyboard setup with trackpoint.
Then i got first real 'thinkpad' was X201, i buy 2nd hand for quite cheap price back in 2013, and it become my daily laptop for study and work till around 2016, because it suddenly dead.
Then i buy thinkpad x250, this time i can afford to buy new one, i got pretty good deal comparing to normal retail price, even later I need upgrade the battery so it will have 9cell total and also swap the hdd to ssd to boost the performance.
Thinkpad really got me to the keyboard setup, even in my home PC I use old thinkpad usb keyboard which still have 7 rows keys setup.
It's kind of sad that lenovo strip many feature that older thinkpad have, especially with the X series, which is my favorite.
When my boss asked me to start thinking about the new laptop to pick, since he plan to buy me new one for work, i'm hesitate to choose the X series, and leaning toward the T series, since the T series now is quite light these day, and still have many essential ports.
Anyway, nice video man, keep it up.
Damn,, I love the way you narrating the video.. Good job dude
Dear Sebi; great video but kindly do a piece on tablet series i.e X200T, X201T, X220T, X230T, as these machines guarantee that one will get the IPS (or wide view-able) display, so some light needs to be shed on them as well.
If I get ahold of a few ThinkPad tablets I will gladly do a video on them, however as of now I do not have any of the ThinkPad tablets and since they are basically just touch screen versions of the standard X series, I feel it is a little redundant to dedicate a whole video to it.
In Pakistan these tablets are dirt cheap, X201T is available for less than 80$, while X220T for less than 100$ (less than the price of apple stylus 'Apple Pencil' alone), I bought X220 reluctantly, but once I got the machine and used it for a while, one get to know why these things were more expensive than normal variants when sold new, they are little bit bigger from power button on-wards on both the lower part (which extends further half an inch compared to screen) as well as the lower bezel on screen, which looks a bit odd but all of that is for reason, these parts are over-engineered for that single hinge mechanism in the middle, its tight enough that there is no chance of accidental screen swiveling and one needs two hands to open the machine.
If you get hold of at-least couple of variants like X201T (which has lower powered processor compared to X201) to X220T/X230T which use normal processors, these were sold with windows 7 which was not touch screen optimized, but with presence of windows 10 there is better utility of these tablet machines now (with renewed interest from Samsung and Apple in Stylus computing, behave like they have reinvented the wheel) compared to when they were sold new that's why old/existing reviews are bit outdated from usage perspective, anyhow if you do get hold of them, these machines have good 15~20 minutes worth of video material compared to normal variants.
I have subscribed you, keep up the good work.
Great stuff. I have a T420 and an X230 and, as you say, my X230 tends to be used most. I did replace the the backlight keyboard with the non-backlight keyboard on the X230, though. It's a better keyboard for my use case.
I agree with you on that, also the backlit keyboards have a glossier texture than the non-backlit ones, so I prefer the non-backlit keyboards.
Glossy means it would also attract grime and stuff from the fingers no? How's the non-backlit feel? Heard it feels like fine sandpaper, better traction.
Might as well get myself an X220 keyboard if I could let go of the backlighting and use Thinklight instead.
I prefer the ThinkLight, sure it doesn't "look pretty" like the backlit keyboard does but it is certainly a lot more practical, and I wish Lenovo hadn't removed it on the newer ThinkPads. The non-backlit keyboards definitely feel better, and I do remember hearing that the glossy finish does attract more finger crap.
I prefer both depending on the situation. if I wanted to illuminate the keys subtly in dark without flooding anything else I'd use the backlight. If I wanted to illuminate anything else above the keyboard, like papers and other things besides the laptop, I'd use the Thinklight. I'm happy with X230 because it has both of them.
I'm also saddened that Lenovo removed the Thinklight on later Thinkpads...and yeah, I did hear about the glossy keyboards somewhere in Louis Rossman's rants, something about his preference of non-backlit keyboards to backlit ones because of that. But trust me, it will be harder to type because Thinklight is gone, and there are no alternative ways of illuminating the keys from above except for sticking USB LED above the keyboard, making a poor man's Thinklight.
EDIT: My personal experience with the backlit keyboard though? You're trading off cleanliness for backlighting. A lot of finger oils and fingerprints here and there on mine and sometimes I get to wipe them with 70% alcohol...it just looks, eugh.
My work laptop is an x280! I didn’t pay for it but I certainly love it.. I’d like at least an x260 (usb-c and hdmi if at all possible). I’d be interested in seeing an update to this series if an hopefully scalper pricing will go away once working from home isn’t a thing any more!
Brilliant video. Your content is as good as it gets. Thanks so much for all of the work that you put in.
I have an X200s, and yes I was the guy who brought it to a robotics programming competition, and yes I did make my 2 friends struggle without the trackpad.
i just bought a x260 for ~300 euros and put ubuntu on it. It looks like brand new and the performance is exactly what i needed. I thought about buying an old Macbook, but im glad that i didnt. The X260 is amazing for Students and Unity GameDevs.
Was just looking at an x240 for peanuts, I'm thinking twice now mainly due to the single ram slot. Very informative!
2:41 Actually no, some Panasonic toughbooks had 4:3 displays all the way into the ivy bridge era.
3:52 While I also prefer Thinkpads, it's worth knowing that Fujitsu lifebooks had upgradable cpus in their 12" laptops until the T732. (T731 was the last upgradable one) Fujitsu also manages to cram an "ultrabay" into a 12" laptop.
7:44 You really should show the X220/X230 tablets on your channel! They are the cheapest and easiest way to get a 12" thinkpad with an IPS display, as all tablet models have IPS.
the older X series still has plenty of purposes for applications that don't need to max out the hardware too much. Being able to type plenty of text on it or recording a lecture / class (either audio or with a webcam), listening to some music, checking your emails, working on a presentation, doing some graphic editing... you know stuff where you really don't need a bigger laptop but just something that runs all day on a single 9-cell Battery charge.
I'm playing with T61 and T60 models at the moment because of dumping prices and some system recovery research. The X series got used more and longer (worn down) in comparison to the Ts within the ebay sandbox possibilities. Nothing from eBay can beat my lucky find: The X230/i7, except "what is a typewriter" - a concept that vanished with IBM.
I have 4 Thinkpads: W520 with 1080 IPS, X220 with IPS, X230 and X61. The X220 is my favourite.
This is amazing I might get my younger sister an X220 or X230 when she goes to college.
They are very solid laptops. Typing from one now!
I got my girlfriend an X220t for Christmas last year and she said it's her favorite laptop that she's ever used. She likes doing digital art, so the touchscreen on the x220t was a big plus for her.
I'm still having x200 today, with 8GB Ram, Win10 Pro 64-bit.. still can function google sketch, Adobe PS, Corel X7, Camtasia, all at the same time. With extended battery & regular one. Ultradock bay.
got one today, still amazing but with linux
How long last your battery?
@@diegomillan2806 with 9 cell battery, it will last for 5 hours, the 6 cell is 3 hours.
this video series is really great , it only misses to compare the weights of each one
I still have my old Edge 11 and X230. Both upgraded to SSD and works fine.
I broke the motherboard when trying to replace the screen with an IPS panel on my X230 (long story). got a used i7 X230 off ebay with a broken Display and a missing drive cover. just replaced the display, threw in my SSD and replaced the keyboard with my backlit model. and now I'm happy. still a damn good Laptop model for its age
2 years ago I got an X220 with i7-2640M and IPS panel for 300$ it runs very well under linux. I will not give it away for a million.
thats dumb. you can sell it for a million and buy another one for $200, and keep the rest $999,800
@@pinkipromise u can earn a lot from theses units
I need more "thumbs up" buttons for these videos! Every time I watch them I am angry I can't like them because I had done so weeks ago... Amazing job - thanks!
I'd rather have a slightly thicker upgradeable laptop than a thin and light donglebook. I'm pretty sure 90% of the world agrees with me
I certainly do!
Absolutely!
Yes!
I wish Lenovo would listen to its install base.
Considering the current trend, no. I don't think 90% of the world agrees with you, which is just sad. I love serviceable and upgradeable laptops, but the world doesn't care about that.
Great video. You forgot to mention the X301. The thinkpad flagship back then. I have one since 10 years ago, and I love it. I recently bought an X260 (because it can handle a 4K monitor), and the build quality went down the drain: the X301 is way better in any aspect, but unfortunately, the speed is now lacking.
Maybe I should have specified that this is only about the 12" ThinkPads. I also never talk about the X1 series.
1:22 X61
4:26 X200 & X201
6:36 X220 & X230
I have x230 tablet for 7 years. I have both love/hate relationship with the machine.
Agree on the point that the machine is more than capable to get the job done with 3rd Gen processor. I actually have GTX 980Ti eGPU for gaming if needed. I recently bought the X201 tablet as I missed the old Thinkpad design.
On the built quality, I think X230 (at least for my Tablet version) is not great compared to the previous generation. The corner of the palm rest usually broken, the plastic is much cheaper and thinner. Also, the Function key is continuous...There is no space between groups so you have no way to tell (in the dark) what F key you will press. It was partially fixed on the keyboard of subsequent generations.
You could always put an X220 keyboard in to fix your complaints about the function row! :P I agree that there were some design flaws in the X220/230 chassis, however I’m willing to overlook that since they are in almost every other way an improvement over the older X200/201.
Awesome to have this information. Your way of presentation s really impressive .
X230 Tablet is the pinnacle of versatility. It really does let you think and use your imagination like nothing in it's class to this day.
Nice video.
The x280 is not a worthy successor to the x-line of Thinkpads. I have a x240, its main limitation for me is the 8 GB RAM limit. I ordered an x270 from Lenovo over Memorial weekend, they accepted the order, then e-mailed me a few days later saying it had been cancelled as they *oversold* their x270s over the weekend! I thought I was buying a laptop, not an airline seat :-/ Very disappointed. I've been buying Thinkpads for 20 years (my first, a T560x) .. not really interested in the x280, so this may be the first time I'll be getting a non-Thinkpad. I wish they had just refreshed the x270 with an 8th gen processor and some other tweaks .. instead of making all the negative changes they made on the x280 as you correctly pointed out in your video.
I know the screen size is larger, but the T480 still has most of what was removed from the X280. If you have good eyesight you could turn off scaling with the 1080p screen. Also I refuse to pay $35 for a passive Ethernet dongle, when USB 3 Ethernet adapters go for $15.
My Thinkpad Yoga 14 never felt or performed as well as my X220. It's only now with my 3rd-gen X1 Yoga iwith Core i7 that this "upgrade" is *starting* to feel like it's a speedier beast.
I love your way of explaining things dude ...☺
Thinkpad X series is sometimes jokingly called "My Little Thinkpad" due to its small size. :P
Good video and thanks for mention! I do have another small correction though: The X250 could also do 16 GB RAM, it was the first model to support 16 GB RAM modules, though those are DDR3 modules. Only the X240 is limited to 8 GB.
I generally think that the concept of the 12" laptop is mostly dead these days. I would expect Lenovo to change the screen size to 13" in the future.
I was not aware that 16 GB DDR3 sticks even existed. And sadly that seems to be the truth, since the X240 the 12” laptop has been pretty much dead for serious use.
The thing that really killed them IMHO are the Ultrabooks. Back in the days of the X201 or X220, those were the only systems that really were portable, so people put up with the smaller screens. But nowadays, even some 15" systems are very thin & light. Truth is, most people prefer bigger screens than 12", even if the laptop is slightly bigger. There are things like the the XPS 13 now, which has a 13.3" screen in a smaller chassis - or the X1 Carbon with 14" and very slim bezels.
So these systems lost their mainstream audience. With the X240 to X270, Lenovo had like a hybrid between a classical Subnotebook and an Ultrabook, but it seems with the X280, they have decided to make it into a cheaper X1 Carbon alternative.
@@ithinkabout4369 I prefer a 12" screen over a bigger laptop.
@@timgooding9464 But why, if you can have a 13 inch screen with the same size? Too much wasted space on the classic 12 inch models.
Great machines dont die i had many different laptop brands among them 2 thinkpad from different generations. My experience using thinkpad had always be awesome with great amazing satisfaction.
Love the 4:3 display of the x60 and x61 but the keyboard is too small for me. Plus the wifi card gets really hot
I didn’t mind the smaller keyboard, but the hot Wi-Fi card was always an annoyance when I used the X61.
The last great x series Thinkpad was X270 as it combined both practicality and modernity. You've got 2 USB-A ports, a USB-C port, HDMI, sd card reader, RJ45, dual batteries, 2.5 drive bay that can also be used with converter for nvme ssd, WWAN slot for 2242 type ssd, upgradeble RAM up to 32gb though it's single dimm and upgradeble wifi card. Fantastic machine. All it needed was an upgrade to quad core cpu and ram in dual channel. Oh, and easier keyboard removal. 13.3 screen is also welcome. That's it. At 1.4kg it's merely 200g heavier than so called thinner/lighter ultra books. Are 200g really going to break your back?
Hey, great video man. Keep up the good work!
It’s better to get the T series now
Pretty much, especially since they’re as thin and light as the old X series laptops were.
@@SebisRandomTech The only "issue" with them is that they are not as portable as the X ones. 14" screen is better for general usage, but if you carry your laptop on your bag all the time, use it in plane/train, opening it at a café etc., those 2" (with extra bezels of course) surprisingly matter.
I went from X230 (7row keyboard) to T470 and yeah, I feel the difference. It's just different. I borrowed EliteBook x360 for a few days and wow - I literally fell in love again to with it partly for it's size. T-series are OK but generally aim to different market... But yeah, their thickness and weight now basically equal to old X series.
Yes, the T450s is better than an X250
Love my X230! With SSD RAM upgrade still rocks!
X series thinkpad is the Batman of the laptop world
Unfortunately, newer ThinkPads have to be made thinner (sacrificing a lot of features) because that's what businesses want, and businesses are the vast majority of people buying ThinkPads.
Recently got an X230 though, the battery life is crap with 50% capacity remaining (already ordered a 9 cell one) but I'm absolutely loving it. Such a big upgrade in terms of build quality from stuff like HP Pavilions.
I agree that the peak of the X line was x220 (classic keys) and x230 (backlit keys) and hot swap-able batteries. . I also prefer the mylar touchpad over the glass and notice the keyboard quality go down as well.
Man, I dont thinner, lighter and more portable... I want some good like the old T430
I really hope they can bring up a different X series product line specifically for engineers, in which extreme portability is not so important.
T series?
luckily i still mange to purchase a x230 which is the most versatile x model ,, specially those easy to upgrade ram and hdd bays and lots of ports needed
Hello,
Should I stick with my x230 or should I get a T430?
They nearly use the same generation cpu with the x series having a sandybridge while the other has an ivybridge. Would say it depends on what you plan to use it for.
Wow, I never knew the X280 was so useless. It makes IBM weep, jesus christ!
My 10-year-old i5 T430s with 8gb of RAM/256 SSD is as fast or faster than my i5 6300U T470s with 20gb of RAM/256 NVMe. That's for most daily work, like Office, Lightroom, Internet.
The T430s is my daily driver at home, but the much lighter and slimmer is my go everywhere ThinkPad. I really love them both.
What's interesting is that Lenovo outfits all of their in-the-field repair technicians with the T470. Tells you what they think about the T480 onwards.
I recently bought the x380, I almost spect it full out 16gb ram, i7-8550U, 500gb ssd. And yes that sucks. It is doing a really good job and the port selection is really decent for today, i would say.
They’re a supplement not a replacement for an ultrabook. Sometimes you want to carry something smaller around and a 12-13 inch ultraportable is easier to stow away than a 14-15 inch ultrabook.
Love the thorough videos and have peaked my interest. Was looking at new thinkpads(never owned a Lenovo) and really liked how you can still still swap out ram, battery, etc. Is there a model new or old that you would recommend? I generally do UA-cam, Netflix, light gaming(Homeworld remastered, DoW 2, and lighter games) and a lot of writing. Anyways, just curious if you had suggestions. Cheers and keep up the great videos.
I've made a few videos about this topic, and am looking into making a new, updated video giving my full list of recommendations. If you are looking into getting a brand new laptop, the T480 (with FHD screen, *not* the 1366x768 option which is stock) will be an excellent choice. It has a lot of the upgradeability that you could want. The Intel HD graphics that are built in can handle some light gaming, and if you want a little more oomph then you can get the Nvidia MX-150 graphics card with it.
When it comes to used or older machines, there's a whole world of recommendations. In my opinion, if you value portability and excellent battery life, the T440/440s and T450/450s are good options and are becoming fairly cheap. If you want power and more expandability, the T420, T430, and T440p are excellent machines, with the necessary upgrades. The X220 and X230 are also great laptops, I am editing a video about the X230 as we speak.
Thanks for your feedback, I'm leaning now at getting a older T430 I just found locally thats refurbished. Has the I5 3320M, 4G RAM and a 320G SATAIII for $240 CAD. Might go check it out today, and then upgrade to what I need. I like the idea of it being cheaper and I can tinker with it(not an expert, but I have dabbled a little bit over my lifetime).
12:10 X230 also has fast charge.
Not that I know of.
I have one and instead of 3,5 hours, it charges 50% in around 40 minutes.
It may also depend on the power adapter you’re using. For example, a 90W adapter typically charges faster than a 45W or 65W adapter.
Exactly. But not all laptops act like this. They charge the same no matter the adapter . This one does charge a lot faster with 65 or 90 watts adapter ( these two are the only ones I have - no difference in speed, although you need 90w adapter for the port replicator unit ).
Discovering that Lenovo x230 does fast charge, was a sweet thing. I do recommend this laptop.
Don't know if it's the same for the other X-series, but my X220 is the same area as a sheet of A4 paper if you use the small battery. So anywhere a folder will fit, it will fit
On my brand new T480. I have two batteries. Built-in and 66+ model (additional). But, I can install one of two options SSD or HDD. not both. And yes I love My ThinkPad too.
Really nice info , I plan to buy old thinkpad maybe t430 because your video :). Hi sebi is that a huge diffrent compare mobile processor and ultrabook processor ?
Mobile processors are faster and have more thermal headroom but use more power. The ultrabook processors use less power and are more energy efficient at the expense of speed.
So I'm here again, question myself whether to stick with the X240 or to grab a X230 or even X220.
The ExpressCard slot would be in my interest because of the eGPU and so would be the classic keyboard, the X240 at least under Linux has some weird issue where it'd update packages very slow, just as if the CPU hangs for that task.
X230.
Hello,
i am not really computer literate I purchased the Lenovo T460S I don't really know what I am doing. I have trouble with moving the cursor around with my finger. At times it can be hard to navigate. I don't even understand the red button by the letters. Do you have a video that explains all of this. I am completely dumb when it comes to computers.
would be nice if Thinkpad on a Budget would include some newer xx40 series thinkpads.
They aren't a good value for the money. xx40 series ThinkPads (with the exception of the T440p, T540p, and W540/41) are actually less powerful than their xx30 counterparts, and don't give you the same level of expandability and upgradeability as the xx30 line.
@@SebisRandomTech 9 months later: yeah I gotta agree. planning to get a T430 as my next laptop.
@@oinkey Solid choice, I'm glad you could come to a decision.
Aw man... I am still hoping to find a decent replacement for my beloved x220. My currently installed 4gb of RAM is becoming more and more of a limitation, and since one of my usb ports broke and linux mint kde is not getting updates anymore soon, i don't feel like upgrading the ram on this decade-old notebook.
I just wish there were some recent thinkpads (or really, notebooks) out there that feature a replaceable battery, an actual ethernet jack, a few usb jacks and and hdmi jack. A vga jack for legacy beamers, which are still around widely, would be a huge plus as well. The non-replaceable battery really is a dealbreaker for me after the experiences i have had with my galaxy s5 mini's battery, which lost capacity very quickly, and the poorly performing battery of my current x220 that i bought used, which could be replaced. I can't just buy a used x280+ like i did with my x220, because if the battery turns out to be worn, i just have to throw the entire notebook away! ThinkPads have really lost my admiration quite a bit. I feel like they've removed everything that made them special and now they're just as overpriced as Macbooks.
with the newer gens, lenovo is trying to attack the macbook 12-type of laptops, so no user-upgradeable battery or ram doesn't matter as much as a thinner device. For instance, if you really needed more power, on old x230s you still needed to pring a battery. Now you still have to bring a powerbank with a cable, the only extra clutter is the cable. Most people looking for something small and thin will be satisfied.
They should have made an X280 with a more classic design and an X280s for those who really want those extra few millimeters shaved off. That way, those who want a smaller screen with more power can get what they want, and those who don't care about extra power or upgradeability can have their thin laptop. They already do that with the T480/T480s and the X1 Carbon for the 14" machines, and for 15" machines you have the T580/P52s for those who want something thinner, and the P51 for power users. I am aware that the X230 would require an extra battery, but the X280 is still a downgrade from the X240-270 in that regard.
Most of the people looking for a small and thin laptop aren't going to buy a ThinkPad. Most of those people would probably look in the direction of Apple. That is why I criticize Lenovo for neutering the ThinkPad line to appeal more to Apple users; most of the people who buy MacBooks are never going to buy a ThinkPad, and vice versa. So why compromise the ThinkPad to make a half-assed product that still won't appeal to the target market and also disappoints the existing market?
Sig
Very informative video. I am considering an x230 for myself. However, I am confused between the x230, T430 and the Dell E5430. They cost almost the same here, and have more or less, the same configuration. Could you suggest one between the three? I'd like to upgrade to an SSD and 16GB of RAM, and also an i7 if I can get my hands on one. Please suggest one which is easiest to upgrade, and can withstand rough usage.
I don't have much experience with Dells, however I can tell you both ThinkPads you mentioned will be very durable. Both have upgradeable RAM and storage, but while the X230 has an i7 option, it is soldered to the motherboard. In addition it is only a dual core processor. The T430 uses a socketed CPU that can be upgraded, for example in mine I replaced the original Core i5 3320M with a core i7 3612QM (a quad core processor).
I bought a used W540 and upgraded the tn display to an IPS. I am happy with it but am still interested in your thoughts on the W540 & W541 laptops.
I may have a video on some of the Performance (T60p, T440p, W540, etc) in the works. Life has a way of delaying projects though.
Thanks. I subscribed to your channel & look forward to seeing it. As well as any other Lenovo related videos you do. I see the W541 as the end of an era. I would love to have a P51 but can't justify the cost to performance over my $320 classic.
I can't choose. I want them all.
They are cheap enough to get them all.
I'm a ThinkPad X260 user. I'm happy with it, but I wish it's WWAN slot can support M.2 SSD.
I'm still using a X230 in 2019 :D
Typing this reply from mine! :)
@@SebisRandomTech yeap, me too :)
Still using it in 2020
Great video on the X series. I also agree with your view point on ULV Cpus. I own mostly Dell hardware. My latitude e series is the bomb. But my e6530 with an i5 with an ssd is still worlds faster then my 2017 e7480 with an i7 and NVS ssd. Ironically it was more money too. Dont get me wrong, it's fast, it's just not that kind of money fast:)
The x220/230 onwards are really crippled by 16:9 screen ratio. Vertical resolution is terrible for work.
I'd like to disagree seeing how I am typing this from my X230!
@@SebisRandomTech but you have to restrict yourself to single sentence ;)
@@pattoman5568 *X230 with the classic keyboard* Happy now?
Agree. I can't stand my x230 because of the short vertical screen size and flat cursor buttons. Instead I continue to use my x61 and recently discovered how great the x201 is after buying one. The x201 came with a HDD but is so zippy that I haven't even felt the need to migrate to a ssd. Amazingly I feel the x201 performs better than my x230. Love it so much that I am buying a second one.
Very informative,ty ,I use a X131e daily and still works fast and dependable
Please make some content on the W series. Not many on UA-cam.
If/when I get my hands on some of the W series computers, I definitely will.
Sebi's Random Tech Thanks man, appreciate your work.
4:24 Did you say X61 is good for web browsing and typing notes? Are you serious?
Yes.
Nice video, I think you miss the x220T and the x230T that are very intersting nowadays. Greets from Uruguay!
I don’t have any of the T variants of the X series. I should have mentioned them but since they are basically just tablet versions of the non-T models, I felt it wasn’t necessary to mention.
I m bit confused with which one to go with. 230 or a 250. Is x230 still better than x250 in 2020 ? Can you advise a better deal please.
Depends on what things you value. The X250 has better battery life, is thinner and lighter, and has a few better screen options without modifications (FHD 1080p displays). The X230 has a better keyboard, better port selection/expandability, and stronger performance at the expense of some battery life. It only has 720p screens, but can be upgraded to a 1080p display with a mod if the user desires.
@@SebisRandomTech thanks a lot mate for the detailed advice. I m not concerned much with screen as my work is simply php Python programming , neither a gamer nor a video lover. I think I should be happy with a i7 x230 which you said in one of your video can outperform a ultra processor of higher gen i5. you cleared my confusion and will go with older 3rd 4th gen CPU with x230 or a t 440 p . Can you also suggest me where to grab a nice deal, I mean where you get cheap machines from.
@@neerajbg Living in the United States, it's easy for me to get used machines for very cheap from eBay and Craigslist, and sometimes have luck at local thrift stores or flea markets. Depending on where you live and what your definition of "cheap" is, your luck may vary.
@@neerajbg eBay.
@@SebisRandomTech thanks brother, you are so kind having helping hand, unfortunately eBay takes a lot for shipping to India. But yes I m in love with thinkpads. I do have a L 440 with i7 4800 mq as my workstation. I m looking for another one and will go with x230. Thanks a lot mate.
Excellent video. I totally agree with you about Lenovo design. They screw up the ThinkPad worse every year, to the point where now it is only marginally better than Dells and HPs. I especially agree about the downgrades to the X280, which is now basically just a smaller X1 Carbon, not a real X-Series.
The X220 was the peak of ThinkPad design and is still reasonably quick, with upgraded RAM and an SSD. An X230 has better USB, but swapping out the keyboard is a nuisance. If you're going to use the crummy chicklet keyboard, than you might as well get an X270, which is faster still, and pretty cheap now. I would avoid the X240 (with the horrible no-button "clunkpad") and the X280 or later models at all costs.
Well the X230 can at least accept the classic keyboard easily, and the X240 can accept the X250's touchpad, so there are ways to get rid of the bad aspects of those machines' designs. But I still think the older ThinkPads were designed better (even as I type this comment from a newer one!)
Very great video regarding Lenovo/IBM laptops
I had a X220 and after swapping with an SSD the performance it's many fold better than using an optical drive it came with. However doing video editing on this machine it's just super lagging... I've max out the RAM but still it's not suit for video editing as no dedicated graphic cards. It is still a good portable laptop though.
It would be good to have technical video diving into the function of the Think Vantage weather you recommend it or it's bloating the com itself (Windows backup vs Think Vantage backup etc)
As I write a lot I'm sticking with my T60p for its full-height display - Widescreen was just a scam to reduce the cost of displays by reducing the height by 20% and that means for the same font size I would need a 17-20% reduced height (widescreen) screen. When the fan finally dies I shall give up on laptops other than for note taking as the displays are not practical for writing. I turn off the touchpad as it is crap compared to the trackpoint (that 'click here at random' feature of scratchpads really annoys me).
Just replace the fan when it dies! They’re easy to find and cheap on eBay or Amazon and not too hard to replace.
I did buy one, right fan wrong pipework then another, right pipework bad fan and the fans themselves on T60s have a bad reputation. But it's still a good machine for writing. I did think of building a briefcase machine with a 17 0r 20 inch display in the lid, the guts of a lappy, a full KB and a FOB trackball (the industrial 2-3 inch ones are cheap and well made). There would be room for a 2-day battery and your sandwiches as well but having retired I now have so little free time I probably won't. Cheers
Sorry to hear you had bad luck with the heatsinks, maybe you could transplant the good fan into the good heatpipe!
Plan is to try adding an external fan and at the same time rebuild the battery to serve as a plug for a larger battery pack - Love the machine, now a big fan of trackpoint (to the point where I opt for that in preference to anything else for complex graphics work). The work world be worth it as the alternative is a 17 or 20 inch machine to get the same readability on screen which is a bit big.
The first wide screen laptops (and computer monitors) had 16x10 screens, the current crop uses 16x9. It's not a scam, just a cost cutting method by making use of surplus TV panel glass. The difference between 16x10 and 16x9 may seem small, but it makes a big difference. Dell still makes computer monitors in the 16x10 format, and I wouldn't buy anything but for the desktop. For 'basic low cost' laptops, the 16x9 is acceptable, but any machine made for the 'road warrior power user' should have a 16x10 glass in there.
Shout out to the weird middle child that is the X250. I think i say that since it's the last thinkpad with VGA, miniDP, DDR3 Ram, as well as having the 5th Generation intel cpus, the last before 14nm tech that would make intel the butt of many jokes. Its just so stuck in an odd position on the timeline. Objectively worse specs than the X260 and X270, reassuringly better than the x240, but still fundimentally changed from the x230 and those that came before. I have no clue what to make of it, and I say that as the proud owner of one. It was my first thinkpad, and I think it should have been my only one.
I got a T480 after it, believing that to be the true thinkpad I wanted. But when I got it, I couldn't help but feel disappointed. I figure that is the same feeling lovers of the 20's and 30's felt when later thinkpads came out. Its a much better piece of technology, but it lacks the personality that I had gotten used to with this bizzaro i had before.
Perhaps this is my ode to the x250.
Born too late to see all the classic Thinkpad features and upgrades, born too early to be the ultra-optimised future-proof 12 inch model ultrabook. Born just in time to be mine, and for that, I'll cherish it.
You have to swap the motherboard out to upgrade the processor since it's soldered on
I’m fortunate to have an X240. Yes, I know, but I got it for $20 at a thrift store.
x230 with msata boot > linux, and a big ssd and battery. it boots in a few seconds from full shutdown. have that for 8 years and don't want to replace, (maybe a t430?)....
How do I take advantage of that replaceable battery? Mine shuts off when I try to remove the battery, am I missing something? One more thing the powered USB is not charging my devices when the laptop is off.
There’s a BIOS setting to turn on the always-on port when the laptop is off or unplugged. The biggest benefit of the replaceable batteries is being able to swap them out on the go if you’re away from an outlet.
i feel like some of the arguments about the x280 were just for the lulz.
yeah, it doesn't have a removable battery, because it has a bigger battery. or a 2.5 inch drive, but it has a bigger battery. Your point was: if it has an external battery, you can carry another one, but then when you are given the option of using a type-c power bank(which you can use with even more devices), you call it clutter. if you need it, you need it, but for all the people that needed 5h of battery life instead of 3h on the old thinkpads, they no longer need to carry a spare battery, therefore less clutter.
I agree with the point about the keyboard and the ram and performance, but you dint consider the added features like, insanely fast ports like thunderbolt which you can use to upgrade the gpu(which hasn't been an option since the pci docks) and the way better screens and smaller weight.
X270 internal 24WH battery + external 72WH battery = 96 WH
X280 internal "bigger" battery = 50 WH.
Do the math.
Watching on my X201T.
my x220t still works, this is very very good piece of laptop
TBH I actually daily drive a Lenovo ThinkPad T440s that I hackintoshed. UPDATE: I now use a ThinkPad T480 running macOS 13.4 Ventura.
Just subbed and already a new video. Great stuff!
nice video! great job guy!!