I have the x230t, and the mini dock with 4 display outs and usb 3 i can CONFIRM that the Usb 2 ports do not work (none of them), only displayport/dvi port 1 works, and USB 3 does work through the dock. That's all I tested.
I looked at the user guide and there there is a 4-in-1 card reader on the X230t, but it never says anything about how to insert a card into the reader. It has only one slit and it seems too big even for the largest type of SD card that I could find, how do you go about using it?
I just got one of these Lenovo Thinkpad X230T computers for college and bought a new Lenovo battery and even a 16GB ram upgrade for it! It was my first time ever adding my own RAM to a computer!
Ok... It's time for my love letter. This PC that I am still using runs mac os Mojave, and with 16G of ram and i5-3320m, it is the best mac there is, yet in the ThinkPad x230t form with the vintage keyboard. I just loved it so very much.
I didn't find on internet the correct setup for the x230t, expecially because every time something like the Wi-Fi card doesn't work, so, which method did you use in order to have a good hackintosh on it? I'm curious because i would buy that fabulous tablet.
@@SuperJANUARIUS You can actually buy mine if interested. And the method is a USB wifi card... Which is unable to be seen by itself considering its size...
Watched this on my X230 while my X230t is charging, love both these machines. The X230t I bought like a month ago, pretty much in mint condition, the cool thing is people will have HDD's in them, making them so slow and think they are slow overall, so pop in an cheap SSD and you are good to go. I run Linux on both with the KDE desktop environment which works really well.
Yes, so glad you did a review on this machine, its amazing for drawing, and my daily driver but Its missing some Thinkpad things I love(battery, keyboard, thinklight, and hinges)
I got an x230t with the i7, and it’s great. It does have a problem, that is that it just turns off instantly at random. I think it’s an overheating issue, and I’ll have to check this at out, but I’m so happy that there are actually fairly modern videos of this wonderful Thinkpad.
Be aware that sometimes a fan swap is needed. Bearings wear out or the electrical motor fails. If you can run it with the keyboard deck dislodged but plugged in, watch for fan spin and it's behaviour.
I'm so glad you booted it up to show it in action! I've seen a few of these pop up on Craigslist every now and then, and have always been intrigued. Whenever you open up a ThinkPad, I am impressed at how much thought and care was put into making them easy to service and upgrade. A friend of mine is looking to buy a new laptop, and I wish I could talk her into considering a secondhand ThinkPad instead because she'd get so much more bang for the buck!
@@LaptopRetrospective I absolutely agree with you! But some people, like my friend, are reluctant to buy secondhand. Given we're in the midst of a pandemic, I doubt I'll be able to change her mind even though I personally think it's perfectly safe as long as precautions are taken.
No better way to "educate" someone than let them do their own thing, pay more than you did for your X240 and get so much less. :-D Some people won't learn from others and need to have their own experiences. Just try not to be too smug when they start asking you questions. The other way, if you have one handy, is let them borrow it for a week. See how they feel on the seventh day.
@@LaptopRetrospective Well, she's at least leaving the expensive Apple ecosystem when I told her how much further her money would go if she bought a Windows laptop. Baby steps, baby steps :-)
Great video! I bought my X230T two years ago and other than the battery, it's still going strong. I upgraded the RAM from 4 GB to 16 GB, replaced the hard drive with a 240 GB SSD, and I also added a 256 GB mSATA SSD. Currently running Windows 10 on the 240 GB and Xubuntu on the 256 GB. I cannot ask for more with this machine. After replacing the battery and the CPU paste, this laptop could still soldier on for a few more years.
@@LaptopRetrospective yes you did, great review, both of my laptop can tip over because of those rubber feet and i thought my laptops were the only one that does that
Honestly even if I had the times it would save a huge amount of work. Once I have the times for each video I just paste them in to the box and it does the rest. Of you're able to help, please reach out on Twitter or email. 😉
I had one of these as my workhorse when I worked in IT back in 2015. Used it for 3 years running Windows 7 Enterprise, then Windows 10 the last few months. I had the i5 variant with 8GB of ram and we had paid for the 120GB SSD. I had a docking station for it, but didn't use it much. Worked great in the field diagnosing IT issues and testing AV equiptment. Tough as nails. We had a fleet of 30 of these things, and after all these years I think we still had 15-20 of them still working by the time I left. I'm not much of a lenovo fan but I do miss my X230T in some way due to its versatility.
@@LaptopRetrospective They certainly did. It's something modern OEMs should take a look at. We used to have great IO and tons of ports that were useful. If you needed more expansion you bought a docking station. Even my current workhorse laptop, a 2015 Dell Latitude e7450, still has 3 usb 3 ports, HDMI and mini display port.
some thing worth mentioning: •compared to X200/X201 tablet, X220/X230 tablet lacks display latch and has fewer hardware tablet button •probably it will be interesting to compare against X220t and S230u twist
X230T has been a great laptop. I bought mine new in 2013 and has been put through heavy use, only problem I have is that it only works on power I replaced the battery and it wasn't a battery problem. Have been using Linux Mint on it for the last 2 years
I love my x230's and 220's they will outperform some newer laptops with ULV processors and have good enough battery life. Even the 230's have better keyboards than most new Thinkpads IMHO.
@@LaptopRetrospective he previously owned and used an HP convertible which unfortunately broke down. Since I have my second-hand TP Yoga 370 as my daily driver, I lent him the X230T. Prior to this, got a Helix 2nd Gen (also 2nd-hand) which I don't know why but suddenly stopped working. Salvaged the 256GB SSD from that and transferred to my Y370. Great 2 in 1 I must say! I watch your vids as guidance for my purchases and so far these have helped me much, so keep up the good work on your reviews!
It's amazing the love for this model (and believe me, I'm there with everyone else.) By today's standards it really feels kludged together to me -- Guess these days I'm used to slates posing as a laptop, not a laptop acting like a slate. Sure, mine is semi-retired, but no way am I giving mine up :)
It's actually not a new intro. 🤣 It's really old, if you look at the videos in the selection screen you can back date it. Sadly I'm all out of slots so this is likely the last time I'll get to use it.
Nice review, all the problem like wear and tear are very true. Included the broken corner left keyboard. I like to use it, combo with compact slim keyboard usb and its stylus, i able to run Blender sculpting no problem. Manage to do light cg paid work on this. My advise, better use thermal pad on cpu, use ssd and ram with dual channel so its can benefit Intel HD 4000 by 20-25%. its a beast.
@@LaptopRetrospective Just ordered an optical drive for the new docking station, so all it needs is RAM, and my girlfriend's a tinkerer and she's gonna see if she has some compatible ones lying around.
im so glad you covered this one, ive got a really good base unit with 8gb ram for 90€. the only downside to this laptop is the bad retention on some panels.
Well I found one for 75€ shipped, I'm field testing it and compare it to a X220 (Unlocked with Bios 1.46 thanks to the mod updates). The IPS on my unit shows some burning effects when images are displayed for more than 20secs, I wonder if this can be resolved with a panel replacement (and keep the touchscreen abilities). Something I'm really missing is a button to turn the touch function OFF, it can prevent accidental operations while working on sensitive data.
1600mhz ram speed isn`t the upper limit in this model btw, my x230t with i7 worked fine with 16gb 2133mhz ddr3l ram, which gave me a slight but noticeable bump in igpu workloads and games
I am watching this on my x201T. There are some 230Ts up for grabs at a local store but I am not sure it is worth it. I can add US 3 with the Express Card slot but I am wondering how much longer it will be before 8GBs of RAM becomes an issue. Modern browsers especially are absolutely ridiculous on memory usage.
If your X201T still does what you want then you're probably okay to keep using it. What a user needs and does with their laptop is the key to hardware requirements.
@Daniel-Stewart: I am currently-using (as my daily-driver) a Asus P43E-XH31 laptop, with a Intel Core i3 2330M processor, a 802.11N built-in WiFi network card, 12 gigabytes of DDR3 1333MHz 1.5v Ram (one Samsung module of 4 gigabytes, plus one Kingston the-Standard-ram--not-"ValueRam" module of 8 gigabytes), and a 500 gigabyte SATA3 Seagate "Barracuda" 7,200rpm 2.5-inch--platter hard-drive, running Windows 7 Professional 64-bit and the most-recent version of Mozilla Firefox. Mozilla Firefox currently-reports that I have 5,223 active-tabs currently open. (And my laptop's running without a hitch, or even a hiccup. Whereas my half-brother's HP Spectre 360 with a 6th-generation Intel Core i5 processor is hiccuping in Google-Chrome when he runs more than 3 tabs open on only 8 gigabytes of Ram. Your mileage may vary though. Including but-not-limited-to on, like @Laptop-Retrospective said before, what kind of software you are using, the hardware-requirements--&--hardware-demands of each software, etcetera).
Whats up man, sub of yours here. Thanks for this review. I just ordered one to add to my Thinkpad collection! It will be the 9th one. How many do you have btw? Just wonderin 😀 You have the best Thinkpad reviews on YT btw👍
Hey there, glad you enjoyed the video. I definitely have reviewed more than I own. If machines are usable they tend to go to good homes rather than stay in my collection. I think I have around 25 units, maybe a few more.
@@LaptopRetrospective Collected the Ultrabase earlier and replaced the DVD drive in the Ultrabay with a HDD caddy. Will try to replicate the same for the X6 Ultrabase I have lying around for the X60s.
@@LaptopRetrospective it's essentially the x260 in convertible form. The x380 yoga might have been a better example. I guess the x230t was the last true x tablet though.
Bought mine almost a week ago, there's a question I have: what type of plastic is the "bezel" around the keyboard? Because like the one on the video, mine don't have the two rubber feet on the sides of the keyboard that serve as block for the "tablet mode" and I need to purchase the right glue to attach them without losing them one week after. Hope I've been clear. Anyway, great content as ever, keep it up!
@@LaptopRetrospective Yeah. They should prevent the rotation of the closed lid on both sides, and if anyone knows the type of plastic used for that piece I'll know what kind of glue to use!
@@LaptopRetrospective my version is just similar to this video (after i find out) And i use the small gap from the hardrive to pull it out (maybe i wil buy new hard drive spacers)
Bought a used x230t for 130 USD + 15 for shipping. Looks brand new and comes with the Core i7 configuration and 12 GB of ram. Looking forward to using it all throughout this semester for coding assignments. 😊
Can I use this without docking station, but with dual monitors, and using the device's keyboard rather than periphereal one? The reason I ask, is it requires me bending the screen down and back to a flat position. Is that an okay position for the longevity to use? Would you reccomend I turn around the screen first, before plopping it down, so it's face down?
Here's what I've found on the subject: hardforum.com/threads/x230t-used-with-dual-1920x1200-monitors.1723466/ forums.lenovo.com/t5/ThinkPad-X-Series-Laptops/X230-and-running-2-external-monitors/m-p/1431567 I'm not sure what is the final say on the issue, but the Docking station and its port are desigend to carry quite a few signals. Without the docking station, I think it will only drive two displays total, including the laptop screen itself.
This is a tempting laptop but Idk why almost every used X230t and X220t I came across has the stylus removed from the machine, and the stylus costs a lot if I buy it separately. That really deterred me from buying this laptop
Hey man, great video! How much battery life does this laptop have? I'm thinking of getting me one, but I'd use it for college note taking and I'm a bit worried it won't last that long, keeping in mind one entire class can last up to 5 hours. Would you recommend it for this particular use?
This is older battery tech and the batteries themselves are harder to come by and therefore won't have a full capacity of OEM and third party has hit and miss quality control. If battery life is important and you want a tablet experience that is a bit more modern, check out the L390 Yoga, X380 Yoga or X1 Yoga. I have videos of all three on my channel.
Laptop Retrospective hmm that’s a tab if I’m not wrong. I was looking for 2in1d so I can do schoolwork too. But anyway thanks!! 😃 If u have any more suggestions, please do tell :D
Weldone sir Nice content I got a ThinkPad S230u... So was trying to twick the graphics memory through the bios But it doesn't have the advance bios settings like the x220 you uploaded some time ago Was wondering if the advanced bios file would work for the s230u
@@LaptopRetrospective pls I have searched the internet I can't find anything Can you pls help me pls It's a bit urgent Would love if you could help Thank you sir
i need help if anyone notices just yesterday i recieved a blue vertical line left of the center, it was all fine until it appeared. checked cable, fine checked ribbon and connector, fine external display, no issue i dont know how it happened, just randomly. i read somewhere about a similar problem in wacom tablets.
Thanks for sharing this. I bought mine many years ago brand new as a spare because I just love the keyboard and wanted to keep it as a collector laptop. Only issues I found is the fan noise and also with the screen is HD. Is the fan noise a common issue for X230T? Even not for heavily used, the fan turns on as soon as logged into windows 10. Thanks
I bought my x230T like 2 months ago. Yes, the noise is related to old thermal paste, but after replacing it (in my experience) it's sometimes still rather hearable, just not as horribly when my thermal paste was old. As for the resolution, every x230T has a 768p screen, which is a bummer.
Does anyone know how to use the 4-in-in card reader on the right hand side? It has only one slit and it seems too big even for the largest type of SD card that I could find, how do you go about using it?
@@LaptopRetrospective thanks for replying. After all the updates and downloads, I figure it out. For anybody else who might have the issue, just down load the ""Lenovo tablet button" drivers. The buttons now work, but I could not get auto orientation to work no matter what I did.
Yeah, some of the buttons on modern operating systems aren't supported because they were mapped for functions that aren't programmed the same way anymore. Screen rotation on XP supported manual buttons but modern ones I think rely on accelerometers.
I'm also having x220t but it is having some prob can anyone solve the prob for me, battery is dead, when i plug the adapter it runs only 40 to 45 min with battery (without battery not even a min) and automatically turns off after that no power (low power) till 2 to 3 hours then same cycle repeats plz in need of help Thank's in advance Config I7 2nd gen 16gb ram 500gb hdd
@@LaptopRetrospective battery is totally dead if i start my laptop without battery plugged in it only runs a min and turns off after that u have to wait 2 to 3 hours to start it again with battery and adapter plugged in it runs 40 to 45 min then turns off, in between 2 to 3 hours of u plugged in it indicates low power the light is so dim u have to see it in dark
@@zia365 If you're running Windows you can check your battery capacity by running this command in the command prompt: fossbytes.com/powercfg-check-battery-capacity-battery-health-report-windows-using-cmd/ If it needs to be replaced, then that's easily fixed. The different times seem a bit odd, but this report will help you figure out the problem.
@@LaptopRetrospectiveI will let u know the exact prob, it will be easy for u to understand, first take a laptop keep wherever u want on a table etc battery is totally dead u have to run it on an adapter now plug the adapter in a wall don't open the laptop screen now plug the adapter in a laptop where u will be plugging in u will see the indicators after u plug in they will blink and u can see them blinking clearly, now open the screen turn on the laptop it will run for sometime and then automatically it will turn off, mow close the screen unplug the adapter from the laptop then plug in again those indicators will not blink do this for 2 to 3 times u will not see them blinking, but actually they r blinking to see them clearly u have to take ur face toooo close to the indicators or else u can see them in dark, now what to do unplug the adapter and keep the laptop for 2 to 3 hours then it will run normally for sometime then turns off now the cycle repeats
@@zia365 If I understand you correctly, it also sounds like it could be a thermal problem, again you should be able to collect temperature data to find out if that is the issue or not.
I was so worried this might run into issues with pen input on Linux but kudos to the Linux community because once you get the drivers all set on Kubuntu it is flawless. Absolutely incredible how all the displays on this laptop are ips. Great machine although it doesn't feel as sturdy as the good ol T430 which all things considered is understandable. I do miss this old design element on older 2 in 1s. Because it feels more seamless and instant. Although this is to be handled with a little more care than other models it isn't horrible and still more serviceable than the Microsoft surface 💀
@@LaptopRetrospective just basic stuff , surfing the net , Microsoft office ...I'm a sucker for small well built machines . planning to upgrade from 4gb RAM to 8 or 16 gb ... maybe even get an SSD for better performance . Thanks for the video by the way.
I have the x230t, and the mini dock with 4 display outs and usb 3 i can CONFIRM that the Usb 2 ports do not work (none of them), only displayport/dvi port 1 works, and USB 3 does work through the dock. That's all I tested.
Thanks for that information. Much appreciated.
No problem! Let me know if you want me to text it more, as long as i have the necessary stuff i will!
Once I get back to my main computer, I'll probably pin this comment. 😁
@@LaptopRetrospective Awesomeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee
I looked at the user guide and there there is a 4-in-1 card reader on the X230t, but it never says anything about how to insert a card into the reader. It has only one slit and it seems too big even for the largest type of SD card that I could find, how do you go about using it?
I just got one of these Lenovo Thinkpad X230T computers for college and bought a new Lenovo battery and even a 16GB ram upgrade for it! It was my first time ever adding my own RAM to a computer!
Congrats on your success! I hope it serves you well.
Ok... It's time for my love letter. This PC that I am still using runs mac os Mojave, and with 16G of ram and i5-3320m, it is the best mac there is, yet in the ThinkPad x230t form with the vintage keyboard. I just loved it so very much.
I can see why, so much to like down to the fine touches of front-firing speakers, USB 3, etc.
I didn't find on internet the correct setup for the x230t, expecially because every time something like the Wi-Fi card doesn't work, so, which method did you use in order to have a good hackintosh on it? I'm curious because i would buy that fabulous tablet.
@@SuperJANUARIUS You can actually buy mine if interested.
And the method is a USB wifi card... Which is unable to be seen by itself considering its size...
@@SuperJANUARIUS And the change of Wifi card on a forum is applicable, too.
That shall be the ones that in the existing whitelist that TonyMac or others may mention.
This dude deserves a million subs.
Haha, thanks. Maybe in a few years I'll get there.
Omg... I love the simplicity of disassembly
Yep, very handy.
Watched this on my X230 while my X230t is charging, love both these machines. The X230t I bought like a month ago, pretty much in mint condition, the cool thing is people will have HDD's in them, making them so slow and think they are slow overall, so pop in an cheap SSD and you are good to go. I run Linux on both with the KDE desktop environment which works really well.
Yep, that SSD is a game changer.
Which SSD will go in it. Could you pls let me know..I will buy it and replace it with hdd in my x230t
@@9899013543 These should support any 2.5" SATA SSD that you care to use. I personally like the SAMSUNG EVO line but I've tested this with most brands
Yes, so glad you did a review on this machine, its amazing for drawing, and my daily driver but Its missing some Thinkpad things I love(battery, keyboard, thinklight, and hinges)
I miss the ThinkLight too especially when you don't have the backlit keyboard.
I'm using mine for the same thing, it gets the job done!
I got an x230t with the i7, and it’s great. It does have a problem, that is that it just turns off instantly at random. I think it’s an overheating issue, and I’ll have to check this at out, but I’m so happy that there are actually fairly modern videos of this wonderful Thinkpad.
Yep, sounds like overheating. Check fan spin and thermal paste. Often when it gets that hot it's because the fan has given out.
Yeah, it does seem to be fairly hot even if I’m just on the desktop. I’ll buy new thermal paste and clean out the fan when I can, Thanks for the info!
Be aware that sometimes a fan swap is needed. Bearings wear out or the electrical motor fails. If you can run it with the keyboard deck dislodged but plugged in, watch for fan spin and it's behaviour.
I'm so glad you booted it up to show it in action! I've seen a few of these pop up on Craigslist every now and then, and have always been intrigued. Whenever you open up a ThinkPad, I am impressed at how much thought and care was put into making them easy to service and upgrade. A friend of mine is looking to buy a new laptop, and I wish I could talk her into considering a secondhand ThinkPad instead because she'd get so much more bang for the buck!
I'd sooner buy a 3rd to 5th Intel generation based ThinkPad than anything consumer grade. They are tanks.
@@LaptopRetrospective I absolutely agree with you! But some people, like my friend, are reluctant to buy secondhand. Given we're in the midst of a pandemic, I doubt I'll be able to change her mind even though I personally think it's perfectly safe as long as precautions are taken.
No better way to "educate" someone than let them do their own thing, pay more than you did for your X240 and get so much less. :-D Some people won't learn from others and need to have their own experiences. Just try not to be too smug when they start asking you questions. The other way, if you have one handy, is let them borrow it for a week. See how they feel on the seventh day.
@@LaptopRetrospective Well, she's at least leaving the expensive Apple ecosystem when I told her how much further her money would go if she bought a Windows laptop. Baby steps, baby steps :-)
Haha, fair enough. Good thing she has you for guidance.
Great video! I bought my X230T two years ago and other than the battery, it's still going strong. I upgraded the RAM from 4 GB to 16 GB, replaced the hard drive with a 240 GB SSD, and I also added a 256 GB mSATA SSD. Currently running Windows 10 on the 240 GB and Xubuntu on the 256 GB. I cannot ask for more with this machine. After replacing the battery and the CPU paste, this laptop could still soldier on for a few more years.
I hope that it does, sounds like a well tuned machine.
Wow!
watching from my X230T, got two of 'em the non-touch anti-scratch model and the multi touch model
Awesome! I hope I did them justice.
@@LaptopRetrospective yes you did, great review, both of my laptop can tip over because of those rubber feet and i thought my laptops were the only one that does that
Yeah, the tipping seems to be widely shared and known to those that own them.
I am loving the chapters! It is really awesome to see people using this.
Glad you like them Jack. If I get time I hope to add them to older videos but it's time consuming work.
@@LaptopRetrospective Haha yes I understand it. I'd be happy to do it on some too but I don't think there's a way for viewers to do so.
Honestly even if I had the times it would save a huge amount of work. Once I have the times for each video I just paste them in to the box and it does the rest. Of you're able to help, please reach out on Twitter or email. 😉
@@LaptopRetrospective I'll shoot you an email with some times.
Cheers Jack, whenever you can and no rush.
Ahh that classic intro. Very nice video. X230T is my main machine, and it does a great job at it.
Cheers William, glad you enjoyed it. Great machine.
Wow, i only had an X60T
You don't find such devices anymore. I love this laptop.
It is special, for sure.
I had one of these as my workhorse when I worked in IT back in 2015. Used it for 3 years running Windows 7 Enterprise, then Windows 10 the last few months. I had the i5 variant with 8GB of ram and we had paid for the 120GB SSD. I had a docking station for it, but didn't use it much. Worked great in the field diagnosing IT issues and testing AV equiptment. Tough as nails. We had a fleet of 30 of these things, and after all these years I think we still had 15-20 of them still working by the time I left. I'm not much of a lenovo fan but I do miss my X230T in some way due to its versatility.
They crammed a lot into a single computer in terms of functions and features.
@@LaptopRetrospective They certainly did. It's something modern OEMs should take a look at. We used to have great IO and tons of ports that were useful. If you needed more expansion you bought a docking station. Even my current workhorse laptop, a 2015 Dell Latitude e7450, still has 3 usb 3 ports, HDMI and mini display port.
True enought on that!
some thing worth mentioning:
•compared to X200/X201 tablet, X220/X230 tablet lacks display latch and has fewer hardware tablet button
•probably it will be interesting to compare against X220t and S230u twist
Good point.
TH-cam getting real comfortable with the double unskippable ads. I'm sure Pretty soon they'll add triple unskippable ads
Yeah I've noticed. Not sure what's with that.
X230T has been a great laptop. I bought mine new in 2013
and has been put through heavy use, only problem I have is that it only works on power
I replaced the battery and it wasn't a battery problem.
Have been using Linux Mint on it for the last 2 years
I have Mint on my X220 and I've enjoyed the experience. Thanks for sharing, glad to hear yours is still in use.
Basically, this is ver. 1 of thinkpad twist (but same 230 family series)
Very similar in many ways. The twist mechanism being older still.
I love my x230's and 220's they will outperform some newer laptops with ULV processors and have good enough battery life. Even the 230's have better keyboards than most new Thinkpads IMHO.
ThinkPad keyboards are awesome, especially compared outside the brand.
if I'm correct, the 30 series uses the same switches as the 20 series, which is why it probably fells better
Could very well be that they just changed the keycaps, but kept the mechanism more or less the same.
Laptop Retrospective wonder if it's possible to make custom classic keycaps that are backlit? 🤔
I suspect it would be tricky but with a 3D printer, I bet you could.
Just bought one, I love it.
Good choice!
Got one of these! Lent it to a bro for his illustration work :-) Great vid as always!
Very kind of you to lend out such a great computer.
@@LaptopRetrospective he previously owned and used an HP convertible which unfortunately broke down. Since I have my second-hand TP Yoga 370 as my daily driver, I lent him the X230T. Prior to this, got a Helix 2nd Gen (also 2nd-hand) which I don't know why but suddenly stopped working. Salvaged the 256GB SSD from that and transferred to my Y370. Great 2 in 1 I must say!
I watch your vids as guidance for my purchases and so far these have helped me much, so keep up the good work on your reviews!
Glad to be of service Wralph!
It's amazing the love for this model (and believe me, I'm there with everyone else.) By today's standards it really feels kludged together to me -- Guess these days I'm used to slates posing as a laptop, not a laptop acting like a slate. Sure, mine is semi-retired, but no way am I giving mine up :)
Well said. Twisting displays truly mark an era of computing.
I like your new intro. I had a moment of panic though, thought I forgot the password!
It's actually not a new intro. 🤣 It's really old, if you look at the videos in the selection screen you can back date it. Sadly I'm all out of slots so this is likely the last time I'll get to use it.
Nice review, all the problem like wear and tear are very true. Included the broken corner left keyboard.
I like to use it, combo with compact slim keyboard usb and its stylus, i able to run Blender sculpting no problem.
Manage to do light cg paid work on this.
My advise, better use thermal pad on cpu, use ssd and ram with dual channel so its can benefit Intel HD 4000 by 20-25%.
its a beast.
Yes, it has lots of performance to give.
Does the X230/230T have any real advantages over the X220? I frankly like the X220 keyboard. ;)
Better CPU, better integrated GPU and USB 3 on all models. Only the i7 has USB 3 on the x220.
@@LaptopRetrospective WHOA...I had no idea you can get USB3 on the x220..thank you!!
I managed to find an abandoned one of these in my job's e-waste bin. Been slowly gathering parts for it.
What an awesome project! What parts does it still need?
@@LaptopRetrospective Just ordered an optical drive for the new docking station, so all it needs is RAM, and my girlfriend's a tinkerer and she's gonna see if she has some compatible ones lying around.
Better still a project for the both of you. 😁
@@LaptopRetrospective Sadly it turns out I ordered the wrong drive, and I still can’t figure out what drives the dock takes.
So you're looking for a DVD drive for the dock of a X230T correct? What did you order?
im so glad you covered this one, ive got a really good base unit with 8gb ram for 90€. the only downside to this laptop is the bad retention on some panels.
Nice price!
Well I found one for 75€ shipped, I'm field testing it and compare it to a X220 (Unlocked with Bios 1.46 thanks to the mod updates).
The IPS on my unit shows some burning effects when images are displayed for more than 20secs, I wonder if this can be resolved with a panel replacement (and keep the touchscreen abilities).
Something I'm really missing is a button to turn the touch function OFF, it can prevent accidental operations while working on sensitive data.
1600mhz ram speed isn`t the upper limit in this model btw, my x230t with i7 worked fine with 16gb 2133mhz ddr3l ram, which gave me a slight but noticeable bump in igpu workloads and games
Yeah very often official specs are based on what's available at the time it's released.
Watching this from my X200T.
Love the keyboard on those earlier machines.
Watching this through x230t
Awesome!
just snatched one off ebay for $80, it's the 2.6 i5 but still.... can't wait to get it
That's a great find. Well done.
Love your content, i'm about to pick one of these up!
Thanks for watching! Hope you can find a good price, some out there are listed for a bit more than they should be I feel.
I am watching this on my x201T. There are some 230Ts up for grabs at a local store but I am not sure it is worth it. I can add US 3 with the Express Card slot but I am wondering how much longer it will be before 8GBs of RAM becomes an issue. Modern browsers especially are absolutely ridiculous on memory usage.
If your X201T still does what you want then you're probably okay to keep using it. What a user needs and does with their laptop is the key to hardware requirements.
@Daniel-Stewart:
I am currently-using (as my daily-driver) a Asus P43E-XH31 laptop, with a Intel Core i3 2330M processor, a 802.11N built-in WiFi network card, 12 gigabytes of DDR3 1333MHz 1.5v Ram (one Samsung module of 4 gigabytes, plus one Kingston the-Standard-ram--not-"ValueRam" module of 8 gigabytes), and a 500 gigabyte SATA3 Seagate "Barracuda" 7,200rpm 2.5-inch--platter hard-drive, running Windows 7 Professional 64-bit and the most-recent version of Mozilla Firefox.
Mozilla Firefox currently-reports that I have 5,223 active-tabs currently open. (And my laptop's running without a hitch, or even a hiccup. Whereas my half-brother's HP Spectre 360 with a 6th-generation Intel Core i5 processor is hiccuping in Google-Chrome when he runs more than 3 tabs open on only 8 gigabytes of Ram.
Your mileage may vary though.
Including but-not-limited-to on, like @Laptop-Retrospective said before, what kind of software you are using, the hardware-requirements--&--hardware-demands of each software, etcetera).
@@reoencarcelado5904 Still using my X201T since I posted this although I run OpenSuse linux on it now instead of Windows and it works just fine.
Always good to hear hardware living on. 👍
Whats up man, sub of yours here. Thanks for this review. I just ordered one to add to my Thinkpad collection! It will be the 9th one. How many do you have btw? Just wonderin 😀 You have the best Thinkpad reviews on YT btw👍
Hey there, glad you enjoyed the video. I definitely have reviewed more than I own. If machines are usable they tend to go to good homes rather than stay in my collection. I think I have around 25 units, maybe a few more.
I recently acquired an older model, the X220T to complement the X61T I found last year.
That's awesome. Nice find.
@@LaptopRetrospective Will be collecting the Ultrabase for the X220T tomorrow. As for the X61T, still looking for the dock.
@@LaptopRetrospective Collected the Ultrabase earlier and replaced the DVD drive in the Ultrabay with a HDD caddy. Will try to replicate the same for the X6 Ultrabase I have lying around for the X60s.
That's going to be a great setup.
**Thinkpad Yoga 260 exists**
Laptop Retrospective: I'm going to pretend I didn't see that
Not sure I follow you.
@@LaptopRetrospective it's essentially the x260 in convertible form. The x380 yoga might have been a better example. I guess the x230t was the last true x tablet though.
Ah yes, gotcha. I tried to be as specific as possible with the title to ensure the claim was as accurate as possible. ;-)
Watched on my X230t docked with RX580 sapphire connected through the PCI Express.
Very nice!
@@LaptopRetrospectiveone of the best laptops ever made
@@LaptopRetrospective back to report I'm still using it daily, can play Rimworld & Stellaris
I love mine I use it primarily as a graphics tablet, I put a x220T keyboard on mine as I used to use that keyboard before upgrading
Yes, that is a popular mod.
Laptop Retrospective it’s a bit more complex on the tablets as you do have to cover the keyboard pins to stop it cooking but highly highly recommend
I've heard rumors of that happening even in the standard models.
Bought mine almost a week ago, there's a question I have: what type of plastic is the "bezel" around the keyboard? Because like the one on the video, mine don't have the two rubber feet on the sides of the keyboard that serve as block for the "tablet mode" and I need to purchase the right glue to attach them without losing them one week after. Hope I've been clear. Anyway, great content as ever, keep it up!
I think I understand your question. Are there cut outs for where the rubber feet should go? If not it sounds like a different palm rest is installed.
@@LaptopRetrospective www.ebay.it/itm/333590743003
Ahhhh, so that is what is supposed to go there. Yeah I suspect those are missing on a lot of them.
@@LaptopRetrospective Yeah. They should prevent the rotation of the closed lid on both sides, and if anyone knows the type of plastic used for that piece I'll know what kind of glue to use!
I'd start with something mild like a good double sided tape compound.
Damn the displayport tripped me up when you had the community post. I assumed they shrunk it on the T as well. Oops.
Haha, no worries. The bezel clips and USB ports I think have it away to most.
If I purchased this today, would you recommend it as a daily driver?
Depending on your use case, these have life left to give.
That Hard Drive spacer is looks like mine (normal X230) which makes me surprised since lot of x230 equipped with a plastic tab
Usually there are two parts. The cage with the pull tab and the rubber spacers in the side.
@@LaptopRetrospective my version is just similar to this video (after i find out)
And i use the small gap from the hardrive to pull it out (maybe i wil buy new hard drive spacers)
Bought a used x230t for 130 USD + 15 for shipping. Looks brand new and comes with the Core i7 configuration and 12 GB of ram. Looking forward to using it all throughout this semester for coding assignments. 😊
Very nice!
i just bought this second hand item 3 days ago with core i7 16 gb ram
Nice and maxed out. What are you going to use it for?
will buy one soon and install egou to that expresscard :3
That will be a fun project. Good luck.
Great video, good machine, can you test jamboard on this machine please? I really want to buy one to teach
Jamboard is browser based so I cannot imagine any issues.
Can I use this without docking station, but with dual monitors, and using the device's keyboard rather than periphereal one? The reason I ask, is it requires me bending the screen down and back to a flat position. Is that an okay position for the longevity to use? Would you reccomend I turn around the screen first, before plopping it down, so it's face down?
Here's what I've found on the subject:
hardforum.com/threads/x230t-used-with-dual-1920x1200-monitors.1723466/
forums.lenovo.com/t5/ThinkPad-X-Series-Laptops/X230-and-running-2-external-monitors/m-p/1431567
I'm not sure what is the final say on the issue, but the Docking station and its port are desigend to carry quite a few signals. Without the docking station, I think it will only drive two displays total, including the laptop screen itself.
How current Windows 10 work on it? Is it a good laptop for students?
It works well enough depending on your specific needs.
Can this laptop be directly connected to a HDMI monitor? When DP output is converted to HDMI will it still able to detect the external monitor?
Yes, Display Port is easily converted to HDMI for video feeds.
This is a tempting laptop but Idk why almost every used X230t and X220t I came across has the stylus removed from the machine, and the stylus costs a lot if I buy it separately. That really deterred me from buying this laptop
Stylus' are pretty easily replaced, at least here they are, even third party ones are available at a low cost.
You could buy a samsung note 3 pen and it works flawlessly with wacom screen.
Nice advice. 👍
Hey man, great video! How much battery life does this laptop have? I'm thinking of getting me one, but I'd use it for college note taking and I'm a bit worried it won't last that long, keeping in mind one entire class can last up to 5 hours. Would you recommend it for this particular use?
This is older battery tech and the batteries themselves are harder to come by and therefore won't have a full capacity of OEM and third party has hit and miss quality control. If battery life is important and you want a tablet experience that is a bit more modern, check out the L390 Yoga, X380 Yoga or X1 Yoga. I have videos of all three on my channel.
Excellent video!
Thank you! I'm glad you like it.
Hey is this good for drawing or animating digital art? I mean to ask is the touchscreen good quality along with the stylus??
It doesn't have tilt or pressure sensitivity like new stylus pens do.
@@LaptopRetrospective hmm thanks! Do you know any 200-300 dollar 2 in 1 convertible laptops that do tho? :D
Possibly a used Surface Pro 3?
Laptop Retrospective hmm that’s a tab if I’m not wrong. I was looking for 2in1d so I can do schoolwork too. But anyway thanks!! 😃
If u have any more suggestions, please do tell :D
Has a keyboard so I'm not sure what other requirements you have for a 2 in 1.
what do you think of the yoga thinkpads? I have the X380 yoga and I overall like it a lot
I haven't much time with them honestly. I've seen the newer X380 and they look really cool. I hope one day to get my hands on one.
@@LaptopRetrospective I might make a review on it I'll let you know
Please do let me know if you decide to.
Weldone sir
Nice content
I got a ThinkPad S230u...
So was trying to twick the graphics memory through the bios
But it doesn't have the advance bios settings like the x220 you uploaded some time ago
Was wondering if the advanced bios file would work for the s230u
No idea if they are available, I'd suggest searching on Google to see what you find.
@@LaptopRetrospective have checked the internet I couldn't find
Was wondering if I could use the one for the x220 maybe it would work
Nope, that one is unique to the x220.
@@LaptopRetrospective pls I have searched the internet I can't find anything
Can you pls help me pls
It's a bit urgent
Would love if you could help
Thank you sir
You will need a HW SPI Programmer to do anything to that BIOS, it is write protected.
i need help if anyone notices
just yesterday i recieved a blue vertical line left of the center, it was all fine until it appeared.
checked cable, fine
checked ribbon and connector, fine
external display, no issue
i dont know how it happened, just randomly. i read somewhere about a similar problem in wacom tablets.
If it does it outside the OS or if you boot into a live Linux environment and it still does it, then I suspect the screen is damaged.
@@LaptopRetrospective unfortunately the issue persists in the bios as well, so its a due replacement.
Yep, sad to say that sounds like the situation.
@@LaptopRetrospective EDIT: the line is gone and i am as happy as i can be, turns out the display is behaving weirdly.
Well hopefully it doesn't come back but don't be surprised if it does. 😉
Thanks for sharing this. I bought mine many years ago brand new as a spare because I just love the keyboard and wanted to keep it as a collector laptop. Only issues I found is the fan noise and also with the screen is HD. Is the fan noise a common issue for X230T? Even not for heavily used, the fan turns on as soon as logged into windows 10. Thanks
Fan noise could be related to older thermal paste that's dried out over the years. I don't recall it being on all the time.
Laptop Retrospective thank you
I bought my x230T like 2 months ago. Yes, the noise is related to old thermal paste, but after replacing it (in my experience) it's sometimes still rather hearable, just not as horribly when my thermal paste was old.
As for the resolution, every x230T has a 768p screen, which is a bummer.
i opened up this laptop only a bit, and behind one of the ram sticks is a little slot. anyone know what's that for?
The Hardware maintenance manual will tell you everything. 😉
what is the keyboard’s key distance travel?
I plan to buy this laptop. It's 3y old, price is 270eur. Looks ok. Can I buy?
Sounds decent.
@@LaptopRetrospective Thank you for your response
You're welcome. Let us know how it goes.
Does anyone know how to use the 4-in-in card reader on the right hand side? It has only one slit and it seems too big even for the largest type of SD card that I could find, how do you go about using it?
does the screen rotation button work, or can you get it to work in Manjaro? I was thinking about putting Manjaro with the Gnome desktop on it.
You can program the buttons. The Arch Linux wiki goes into detail on how to make it work.
@@LaptopRetrospective thanks. I'll look at that and see what I can find
I purchased a 220 and noticed the screen orientation buttons do not function. Any idea why that might be?
The tablet buttons only work on specific operating systems with the original software installed.
@@LaptopRetrospective thanks for replying. After all the updates and downloads, I figure it out. For anybody else who might have the issue, just down load the ""Lenovo tablet button" drivers. The buttons now work, but I could not get auto orientation to work no matter what I did.
Yeah, some of the buttons on modern operating systems aren't supported because they were mapped for functions that aren't programmed the same way anymore. Screen rotation on XP supported manual buttons but modern ones I think rely on accelerometers.
No thinklight but backlit keyboard was an option.
Correct, sadly not on this model.
watching this on my x201t i just changed the thermal paste on. using it to test temps haha
Repasting is a good idea to maintain thermal performance.
Wow why did they stop making this
Time moved on and hinge designs changed.
@@LaptopRetrospective I like those better .
I have a X220T and it is bulletproof.
Very nice, i5 or i7 variant?
@@LaptopRetrospective i5, with a 256GB SSD
Oooo, SSD, that's good to hear.
Fingerprint reader does not work properly in KDE, it's a shame.
Linux isn't super easy in my experience to set up fingerprint readers unless its Ubuntu.
I just picked one up for $130. I7 8gb ram128gb ssd. USB c mod and coreboot are next. 😳
Very cool! Interested to hear how the USB C mod goes.
Laptop Retrospective th-cam.com/video/yVrLU-w-EEg/w-d-xo.html
Thanks for the link!
I love my x220t :3
👍
It stopped charging since last week. It's showing 0% even if plugged. What should i do?
You're probably looking at a battery replacement.
i am just wondering why your x230t pen is color gray? mine is red im confuse pls let me know and btw i got i73530.
No idea. For all I know mine may not be original.
Thanks
Does it support multi touch?
Depends on the display version if I remember right.
can your x230t use multi touch screen. please answer thanks
It supports five finger so long as it isn't the outdoor, pen only model.
Thanks
is there an internal battery?
No.
thanks bro @@LaptopRetrospective
No problem.
hellow, i wont to buy 3CELL battery, where i can buy it?
That really depends on what is available in your area. eBay is generally a good place to start if you want to save some money.
what do you think of the new yoga l13 ?
I'll defer to Dave's opinion as he knows Lenovo machines well. twitter.com/geordiemuppet/status/1266461811500449792
@@LaptopRetrospective thx I already know Lisa
also what do you think of the x1 fold so far ? do you think it will be more like a laptop or a tablet ?
I'm watching the Fold with great interest. I think they know it has to function like a laptop better than a tablet for its business customers.
The x380 yoga feels neglected
Fair, this would be the last of the X series with this specific design.
Nice
Someone clearly likes Mega Man.
Yep.
I'm also having x220t but it is having some prob can anyone solve the prob for me, battery is dead, when i plug the adapter it runs only 40 to 45 min with battery (without battery not even a min) and automatically turns off after that no power (low power) till 2 to 3 hours then same cycle repeats plz in need of help
Thank's in advance
Config
I7 2nd gen
16gb ram
500gb hdd
So you need to replace the battery? Have you checked the remaining capacity?
@@LaptopRetrospective battery is totally dead if i start my laptop without battery plugged in it only runs a min and turns off after that u have to wait 2 to 3 hours to start it again with battery and adapter plugged in it runs 40 to 45 min then turns off, in between 2 to 3 hours of u plugged in it indicates low power the light is so dim u have to see it in dark
@@zia365 If you're running Windows you can check your battery capacity by running this command in the command prompt:
fossbytes.com/powercfg-check-battery-capacity-battery-health-report-windows-using-cmd/
If it needs to be replaced, then that's easily fixed. The different times seem a bit odd, but this report will help you figure out the problem.
@@LaptopRetrospectiveI will let u know the exact prob, it will be easy for u to understand, first take a laptop keep wherever u want on a table etc battery is totally dead u have to run it on an adapter now plug the adapter in a wall don't open the laptop screen now plug the adapter in a laptop where u will be plugging in u will see the indicators after u plug in they will blink and u can see them blinking clearly, now open the screen turn on the laptop it will run for sometime and then automatically it will turn off, mow close the screen unplug the adapter from the laptop then plug in again those indicators will not blink do this for 2 to 3 times u will not see them blinking, but actually they r blinking to see them clearly u have to take ur face toooo close to the indicators or else u can see them in dark, now what to do unplug the adapter and keep the laptop for 2 to 3 hours then it will run normally for sometime then turns off now the cycle repeats
@@zia365 If I understand you correctly, it also sounds like it could be a thermal problem, again you should be able to collect temperature data to find out if that is the issue or not.
express card 2.0?
I was so worried this might run into issues with pen input on Linux but kudos to the Linux community because once you get the drivers all set on Kubuntu it is flawless. Absolutely incredible how all the displays on this laptop are ips. Great machine although it doesn't feel as sturdy as the good ol T430 which all things considered is understandable. I do miss this old design element on older 2 in 1s. Because it feels more seamless and instant.
Although this is to be handled with a little more care than other models it isn't horrible and still more serviceable than the Microsoft surface 💀
Yes, so many things are more serviceable than a Surface.
If only a fhd or qwhd ips would be possible!
It would be cool, but it would destroy the battery life.
I bought one at 2021
Nice, what do you plan to use it for?
@@LaptopRetrospective just basic stuff , surfing the net , Microsoft office ...I'm a sucker for small well built machines .
planning to upgrade from 4gb RAM to 8 or 16 gb ... maybe even get an SSD for better performance .
Thanks for the video by the way.
You're welcome. The SSD world's be my first stop.
Try MX Linux ... you'll be pleasantly surprised.
I'll put it on the list.
First!
Congrats on your excellent timing. ;-)
Fourth
👍
Shame about they keyboard being trash.
Compared to what? ThinkPads have good keyboards whether it's the 7 or 6 row.
@@LaptopRetrospective i just hate chiclet keyboards they're not really trash
Here's a wonder: does the key cap or the mechanism make a keyboard "chiclet" in the eyes of the masses?
@@LaptopRetrospective I'd say the cap itself because even the squishy beveled caps feel better to me.