New company laptop: Lenovo X220 or T420 - Hmmmm

[RichUK]

I'm leaning towards an X220, but I'm not sure about the 12.5 inch screen. It would be nice and portable, though.

Currently have an R61.

Hmmm!

 

[Wyndru]

http://forums.anandtech.com/forumdisplay.php?f=23

 

[Capt Caveman]

I had the option of those two plus a 17" Thinkpad. I went with the 14" screen but still tempted to go with the smaller laptop sometimes.

 

[BrokenVisage]

I love Lenovo, seems to be the only company that isn't putting freaking mirror-like glossy displays in their laptops. Matte all the way.

 

[RichUK]

I had the option of those two plus a 17" Thinkpad. I went with the 14" screen but still tempted to go with the smaller laptop sometimes.

It would be nice for meetings/presentations, but I'm wondering whether the small screen might be a pain when working from home. At my desk, I have my R61 connected to a 19inch 1280x1024 extended desktop.

I've never used a laptop with a screen smaller than my R61 (which I think is 15 inch).

 

[RichUK]

I love Lenovo, seems to be the only company that isn't putting freaking mirror-like glossy displays in their laptops. Matte all the way.

There was talk of a possible switch to Sony laptops for this refresh cycle - thankfully that didn't happen. Lenovo FTW.

 

[Capt Caveman]

It would be nice for meetings/presentations, but I'm wondering whether the small screen might be a pain when working from home. At my desk, I have my R61 connected to a 19inch 1280x1024 extended desktop.

I've never used a laptop with a screen smaller than my R61 (which I think is 15 inch).

Same thought. For caring around and going to meetings, the X220 is super nice and convenient but unless you have a docking station/external monitor, it can be tough looking at such a tiny screen.

 

[Puddle Jumper]

I have a X220 and highly recommend it.

I would also keep in mid that the X220 has a IPS screen while the T420 does not.

 

[ra990]

I would also keep in mid that the X220 has a IPS screen while the T420 does not.

Keep in mind that is an optional upgrade.

 

[RichUK]

I have a X220 and highly recommend it.

I would also keep in mid that the X220 has a IPS screen while the T420 does not.

What's it like for general Office (2010) apps use?

 

[Puddle Jumper]

Keep in mind that is an optional upgrade.

True but a very cheap one. We always get the upgraded displays on laptops we order provided the cost difference isn't significant but I'm sure that isn't the case everywhere.

 

[evident]

i love our X220 i got for my fiance.

with that said, I am not a fan of the touchpad it comes with. while it's not a dealbreaker, it feels a little weird to use and takes a few days to get used to.

 

[mjrpes3]

I have the X220 and highly recommend it. In my history, I've gone from 12" 4:3 dell laptop, to two 14" dell laptops, now back to a smaller screen with the 12.5" IPS x220. This is all for work.

1366x768 is adequate for work, however I do miss the 1400x900 resolution I had on my previous Dell. This is mitigated by having an external 1280x1024 display. At home I work from a Desktop with 30" screen, but am using the x220 around the house a whole lot because if its size, much more than I was with my 14" dell.

I am totally happy with the smaller screen, because the portability makes up for it.

 

[Puddle Jumper]

What's it like for general Office (2010) apps use?

I've never had any problem using it for office work. I have dual 24" monitors on my desktop and going from them to the x220 isn't a painful transition like you would expect.

To be honest I like working on the x220's 12.5" IPS screen a lot more than the awful displays you find in most 15" laptops these days but I may be in the minority.

 

[mjrpes3]

About the touchpad, I have disabled it because I find the eraser to be much better. It's right where you type so you don't have to move your hands, and when you bump up the sensitivity it responds well. This is the opposite of my experience with dells, where the eraser sucks and the touchpad is the more usable device.

 

[jimhsu]

If you need it, also consider the X220 tablet version, which offers some compelling advantages also (esp for note taking, etc). I currently have one and highly recommend it.

 

[drum]

I like my 420 except for the screen which is utter rubbish. Someone in another thread said the screen was very poor and I thought, aw it can't be that bad. It is that bad.
Viewing angles are pathetic, very poor

 

[vbuggy]

If you need it, also consider the X220 tablet version, which offers some compelling advantages also (esp for note taking, etc). I currently have one and highly recommend it.

The problem is, it's a boat anchor for what it is, and you have less options in the way of runtime. You've REALLY got to want the tablet features to justify it IMO.

I'd go for the X220 you have to have a Lenovo and you want it to be practically portable along with your daily detritus. However, the Sony Z2 is my daily Windows portable and to me it's a vastly superior carry - although I also use X220's and X201T's, and I have to say as a modular concept (i.e. if you buy into all the peripherals) it can be an awesome setup.

 

[Cheesetogo]

Typing on an X61T right now, which has a 12.1" screen. No problems at all for general office and web usage. However, it's 1400x1050 rather than 1366x768, so it's hard to say.

 

[hans007]

I considered an x220 for my main computer but got the t420 instead. Its heavier sure but its maybe 1.4 pounds. But for me its worth it. As much as I'd like ips I'd rather have 1600x900. I even have the dock with a 23" ips too but 1366x768 is just not enough for when its not docked. If your company is paying and you want something with a t420 screen and only slightly heavier than the x220 consider a t420s. Also you can remove the optical drive and replace with an empty data bay to make it even lighter

 

[vbuggy]

I considered an x220 for my main computer but got the t420 instead. Its heavier sure but its maybe 1.4 pounds. But for me its worth it. As much as I'd like ips I'd rather have 1600x900. I even have the dock with a 23" ips too but 1366x768 is just not enough for when its not docked. If your company is paying and you want something with a t420 screen and only slightly heavier than the x220 consider a t420s. Also you can remove the optical drive and replace with an empty data bay to make it even lighter

Or you could just get a Z of course...

 

[hans007]

Or you could just get a Z of course...

sony Z?

yeah too expensive... the S honestly is not bad even price wise (you can get like a core i5 , 1600x900 screen and geforce 6630 for something like $1250). though i like the thinkpad keyboard better than the chiclet key trend.

i mean the Z is just way way expensive. 1920x1080 on a 13.1" is crazy, i am not even sure that is that useable (i've seen 1920x1080 on a 15.6" and i'd say that is bordering on the limits of useable, and yeah i realize i'm getting old haha)

 

[vbuggy]

sony Z?

yeah too expensive... the S honestly is not bad even price wise (you can get like a core i5 , 1600x900 screen and geforce 6630 for something like $1250). though i like the thinkpad keyboard better than the chiclet key trend.

i mean the Z is just way way expensive. 1920x1080 on a 13.1" is crazy, i am not even sure that is that useable (i've seen 1920x1080 on a 15.6" and i'd say that is bordering on the limits of useable, and yeah i realize i'm getting old haha)

Really? You can hit $1.5K pretty easily with an X220 if you load it to a (what I consider) usable config. Is $500 more that big a deal for what the Z is, I wonder.

 

[ViviTheMage]

I love my x220, i've been doing some gaming on it...and it's solid. Had to snag some 1866 memory though from Kingston to bump my FPS up 25%~ and it's been gorgeous.

 

[hans007]

Really? You can hit $1.5K pretty easily with an X220 if you load it to a (what I consider) usable config. Is $500 more that big a deal for what the Z is, I wonder.

I don't know, i dont think i could blow $2000 on a z. I mean in my case i spent my own money and there are so many coupons on the X series etc, that you can get an X220 below $900 and even $800 decently equipped . i did notice on sonystyle they are throwing in the 1080p screen for free now though (though 1080p on a 13" screen is really going to be hard to use)

seeing as the T420 is my personal laptop i spent just about $950 on it (which is a lot ocmpared to say a deal on some acer/asus consumer laptop)

but for my 950 i got a core i5, the 1600x900 screen, a full docking station on ebay, 8gb of ram and a 64gb msata ssd. even got the BT And webcam. so spending say $1500 on a loaded x220 or $2000 on a Z would be for a personal machine kind of a lot.

as for the OP, if his company is like other companies he probably can't get anything but a lenovo anyway. I know i suggested the T420s, but i think most companies probably wouldnt allow that either. Last company I worked for our choice was t410 or w510 or maybe if you wanted to justify it an X201 at the time if you were a non r&d person (like a sales engineer). and that was it as far as choices. we did not have the ability to choose any specs other than order ram upgrades later either