Unfortunately, these days the general public is totally obsessed with everything that is super slim, no matter if that causes overheating, throttling, loss of performance or the keyboard is junk. The X220 is boxy, but is still very light, quiet and is just extremely pleasing to use.
I have one in my X230 and it is definitely a required modification. It's a huge performance improvement. I've tried both the X240 and X250 and the X230 is way better than both.
This solution is fantastic on the light x220, giving option to dual boot independently or hot swap data storage. Option 1: Testing future main distros without VM (I'm doing that for LARBS, maybe Gentoo), troubleshooting other OS or make back ups before reinstalling.. Option 2: Extend the storage without using USB adapters.
I got one last week as i love the design and wish they still made them just the same! Mine has the following specs: Operating System Windows 10 Home 64-bit CPU Intel Core i7 @ 2.80GHz 55 °C Sandy Bridge 32nm Technology RAM 8.00GB Dual-Channel DDR3 @ 664MHz (9-9-9-24) Motherboard LENOVO 4286CTO (CPU) Graphics LCD 1366x768 (1366x768@60Hz) Intel HD Graphics 3000 (Lenovo) Storage 298GB Seagate ST320LT007-9ZV142 (SATA ) 33 °C Optical Drives No optical disk drives detected Audio Conexant 20672 SmartAudio HD I will be putting a new 500GB ssd i bought in tomorrow hopefully she will really fly! Cheers....
Amazing, never knew my 13yo x220 has this msata port. Now it has 2 ssds, thanks Just be careful when inserting the msata drive, try not to insert in an angle, i bent few pins in the slot, took me a while to kind straighten the pins😅😅
Yeah. In my country it's hard to find legit MSATAs by the usual suspects. Ramsta is the only brand in the "mall" (official brands) section of my shopping app. The 256 gig version is going for around $30 so I figure it's worth a gamble.
Yes, get an Intel Dual Band Wireless 7260 (Bout $25 USD). You will need to install the custom BIOS I feature in one of my other X220 videos. It will give you AC speeds and Bluetooth 4.0 to boot. Then you just need to tape over Pin 51 for Bluetooth to function properly. i.imgur.com/0FksEIi.jpg Hope that helps!
I would have kept the old HD in there, and wiped it, then reformated it for Linux. I know the machine will last longer on a battery charge without it though.
What a great video, thank you so much. Im a bit confused about one thing. Which better, the msata ssd, or the standard 2.5 inch ssd? If the standard is better because its sata3, why did you change to the msata instead of the standard 2.5 SSD? Thank you in advance.
Great question. I used the mSATA drives even though they are slower because it leaves the 2.5 bay open for me to swap out quickly for drives with other operating systems. Hope I explained that well.
@@LaptopRetrospective Oh Ok, nice idea though. But one more question, if the mSata is installed with linux, when you put the sata disk installed with windows into the laptop, will that the linux be coming up first on boot? Because the bootloader is linux, right? Then how can you boot to Windows? Correct me if I'm wrong. And sorry for my bad english
Great video, thanks! I was bummed that I couldn't put an mSATA SSD in my X200 (no electrical connection from PCIe slots to the SATA controller) but this will be the first upgrade that I do when I find an X220 in decent condition.
Tablets and phones are so popular that electronics are viewed as appliances. Apple has also attempted to get laws passed that say that only their stores and approved 3rd party shops can repair your Apple device. That "right to repair" is being whittled away.
I'm confused as to why you took out the 2.5 HDD, if you not swapping it out? A extra HDD doesn't affect speed or stability, just maybe a few minutes of battery life? and could be used in other ways.
Hey really enjoy your informed videos on the x220. Can you give a list of all the essentials I would need to get best upgrades with price. Obviously the i7 xpu is best and the ips screen, 9 cell battery, but how much ram can I install and what else would I need for the fastest x220? Thanks in advance
16GB of RAM is the max it will take but I'd do an SSD upgrade as you'll notice that jump in performance more. That and unlocking the BIOS for that nicer WiFi speeds.
Nicely done video - I'm resurrecting an x220t that I've had since new, with an msata drive internally that finally failed. A 2T Crucial SSD (around $100) worked fine in the 2.5" bay, any idea what the biggest mSATA drive that will work is? (Looks like those are much harder to find but went up to 1T at least?)
@@LaptopRetrospective just to close the loop: turns out that a "Samsung SSD 850 EVO mSATA 1TB" (listed on ebay as MZ-M5E1T0 in the $120-$150 range) did actually work in my x220 tablet, I just installed ubuntu 23.04 on it, no problems. (Was able to avoid mucking with the wifi antenna cables by just pulling the wifi card first and pushing a little bit out of the way.)
Hi Laptop Retrospective. I love your channel! I am thinking of upgrading my just bought X220t from HDD to SSD. Do I need to transfer the files before swapping it? I am using Windows 10.
That depends, do you want the SSD to have the operating system on it or are you just wanting the extra storage. Having the os on the SSD would give a noticeable boost in performance.
@@LaptopRetrospective Thank you for your reply. I'd like the SSD to load the OS. I am thinking about how to transfer the files as I only see 1 slot with the HDD. 🤔
This video is about an mSATA SSD that goes into a different slot. But the Madrid essentially remains the same. Macrium Reflect is what I use to transfer data. Lots of tutorials out there and free to use.
Thank you for the great video. I loved it. I have an X220 tablet and it has no Bluetooth card. Do you know how should I add one? Also let me know if it interferes with the mSata deck.
Most computers have the Bluetooth built into the WiFi card. Since the WiFi card is whitelisted on this unit, you will either need the factory card or do the BIOS update to enable the use of other WiFi cards. I don`t think you would need to use the mSATA slot for such an application.
When I was opening my x220 to reapply the thermal paste, I already had something in the msata slot, it wasn't a drive. Any idea what it was? I have the i7 x220.
@@LaptopRetrospective I must agree though! I, myself have a Pebble Time, because my original Pebble's screen died. The community and rebble.io are helpful though!
Partition into 2 and format. Hope it works. Im trying 850 500GB t420 lenovo with working win 7 research upgrades its worth not installing some since hardware missing
Hello there, I need some recommendations in buying either an x220 or an x230. The x220 I found is in very good cosmetic condition (i5-2520m,4gb,320sata) for 3600nt(around $120), and then the x230 i found is in okay condition (i5-3320m, 4gb, 240gb ssd backlit Keyboard), for around $150. So, should I shave of some $ for a fine x220 or just go with the x230? Either will be my secondary laptop for very light programming since I have a desktop.
The keyboard is the first thing I'd check. Make sure the keyboard keys needed to activate the ThinkLight work individually. If the keyboard works fine, then it's either the cable going to the ThinkLight itself or the actual LED.
If you want to know more about the ThinkLight in general and how it was made, I've done that. If you are talking about fixing it, you need to look up the Hardware Maintenance Manual (HMM) for the X220 and review the steps to replace it. It's a great guide.
I just installed mSATA 256 GB, and already installed a 2.5 inch SSD. I plan to make mSATA as additional storage. But after I installed mSATA it was not read as storage. I wonder why? -thanks
Hey I recently dusted off my x220 because of your website. I was wondering would it be possible at all for you to do a video on how to install mSATA SSD on the mini PCI-E, please? If not a video maybe the necessary parts? thanks for your time!
Hey San, unless I have misunderstood you, that's what this video covers. I install the mSATA drive here. Let me know if I can provide any assistance and I'm glad I could be a part of giving your x220 some attention.
Hey thank you for your reply. For some reason I had equated my express port with mPCI-E port. I kept thinking there was a way to put an SSD into my express port, that way I would be able to avoid, what looks (to me) a bit of a daunting work to install the SSD, I especially fear not being able to plug the wires properly thus making the keyboard and wireless card useless. Either way, I may give it a try. Thank you for your videos, they helped me revamp my x220.
Not sure about using the express card slot or even the bandwidth you'd get from it. Putting in the mSATA drive is quite easy and I'd encourage you to give it a try! Good luck.
Hello. Found your amazing channel yesterday( I technically got into laptops much better now), I want to get a laptop for university now. I like these X220s there is also X200i option or X1(Core I3), they are so nice and mobile? Do you think these are good choices? So, I’m sorry, but I want to make a disclaimer, so you added a small SSD and took out the 2.5 one(and if you don’t remove that you can have 2 SSDs) and if there will be a X220 with 4GB RAM, I’m planning to add another 4GB DDR3l RAM, it’d be ok I guess? And how slow are these i3 2nd gens? Is it worth to spend 50$ more to get i5 2nd gen? Thank you very much.
Hi BaG, Thanks for the kind words about the channel, I will do my best to answer your questions: I'd stay clear of the i3 variants. The extra money you spend is worth every penny because you are stuck with what you buy with the X series, those CPUs are soldered on. The X1 is nice, as is the X220 and X230, I'd stay clear of the i and s variants as they often have reduced features/options. This mSATA drive is installed in an unoccupied slot and does not impact the 2.5" drive bay, so you can have two drives at the same time. Depending on what you are using the computer for, 8GB is a nice amount of RAM. Let me know if you have any other questions.
@@LaptopRetrospective Thanks, when I said ‘X200s’ I meant in plural not the X200s model, sorry. So it can be said that I’m kinda on budget now, the X1 core I3 with 8GB ram and SSD is like 150$, the X220 with i3, 128GB SSD and 8GB ram would be 210$, and the X220 with 256 SSD, 8GB ram and i5(2nd gen of course) would be like 250$ so is that extra 100$ actually worth it? I just need it for University(I’m not even going to be gaming xD), movies and web. I appreciate your attention mate, means a lot
No problem, I try to answer every comment. If budget is tight, the X220 is one of the most moddable ThinkPads in its class. So to me, it's worth it. Parts for it are also a lot more common than the X1. The X1 and X220 will outperform the X200.
@@LaptopRetrospective Oh I did it again, I’m so sorry, I’m kinda clumsy today, I again meant the X220, but still, they have the same stats, same RAM same SSD, and almost the same CPU( I mean X220 i3 and X1 i3) I meant that it’s be enough for my aims, but not totally sure. On the other hand the i5 version is 100$ more expensive. And as I can see libreboot is still unavailable on X220 right?
I'd suggest Coreboot which is available. I'd still lean towards the X220 because of parts availability and mods especially if your budget might only allow you to upgrade a bit at a time.
@@LaptopRetrospective That's great to know, my friend, now I can go for my hard drive update, I'm thinking to replace it for an SSD 860 EVO 1Tb, do you think is fine? THANKS, A LOT!!!!
Hi i have a question. If my OS (either Windows or Linux) boots from the SSD, can I also add a M.SATA drive in there to use to save my files WHILE I'm working on them on my normal OS? In other words, does it kind of replace a USB memory stick? Maybe silly question but just trying to make sure
Hi there. I wanted to install msata SSD in my X230 but it seems that I will have to disconnect the WWAN card first inorder to connect the msata. After connecting the msata will my Wifi work or does wifi have a dependency with WWAN card?
I have a question to add to this, what functionality will be lost by removing the WWAN? I searched but I couldnt understand what it provides (I thought it was wifi but from what you say here this is wrong)
I put in the msata and now my x220 won t boot to my SSD main drive unless I hit f12 and use the boot menu. I use uefi and legacy ssds same issue . I am using a flashed bios w/ no white list. What am I doing wrong?
@@LaptopRetrospective thanks for the reply but i cannot find this boot order option in the new bios version.I only see a boot order option for networ booting (also tried there ) otherwise I only found uefi or legacy first bu t no hhd priority list.
@@LaptopRetrospective I am now thinking that the bios flashing went wrong because I cannot find the boot order configuration anywhere on the bios setup screen. can someone that has actually done this please tell me what screen i have to go to and verify that this line is actually there in my bios. I remember that when I flashed it the program retried flashing my bios many times and kept failing untill it stopped giving me that message. When I restarted the computer the bios had the advanced tab rhat wasn't there before but now I am not sure it went totally well. Thanks
Could someone tell me why my x220 stutters overall also the sound stutters when I turn on my wifi adapter. Its perfect if I connect a LAN cable to it and keep the wifi turned off. Tried with different drivers, didn't work, installed Win 10, still the same. Im just curious what could be the issue ?
@@LaptopRetrospective Yes. I looked everywhere around the web but didnt find a working solution to the problem. I saw other people with a simillar problem though. Is it possibe that the wifi adapter is just defective or something like that ?
@@LaptopRetrospectivePretty much, sucks either way, the least painful thing to do is to replace the card. Problem is I dont know if they are easy to find, especially where I live.
Thank you for the video. I have a question regarding ssd's. I think i'll go and buy a x220 but with a hard drive, and swap out HDD with an SSD (its cheaper this way). How do I know which SSD will go inside the new x220? In the specs it says the HDD has protocol "esata", but when I try to search for esata ssd disk, the only protocols I could find were SATA and SATA3 (and other older pci, etc).
Since when is it a "bygone era of computing?" Most full-featured laptops still offer the ability to replace components when you perform the same procedure. X220/X230 don't have a socketed CPU or GPU either, so it's not like these are the most expandable PCs ever. They're still excellent computers, but I don't buy into some of the lore.
At this price point, you could get a Chromebook, which tons of students are getting now. They're almost completely un-expandable. I'm not sure about new Macbooks, but Airbooks aren't very upgradeable. In the X220/X230 age, all laptops (AFAIK), could take RAM and drive upgrades. Bygone era!
@CuvitoxNot a "bygone era" at all. There were just as many minimally-serviceable computers 5 years ago as there are today. Also, Chromebooks don't need "expandability." They're typically little more than glorified smartphones. The only service you might need to perform is a screen replacement, and that's typically no problem.
Short answer, probably. You might want to consider using a modified BIOS that allows you to take advantage of better RAM if you're going that route. It will also help with which DDR3L is compatible.
Yes, it will. I have 2 x 8Gb Ddr3L on my X220. I am not sure about all X220 are the same in this way, but mine is work, and do it pretty quick on 16Gb and win10.
@@LaptopRetrospective US $13.73 45%OFF | KingSpec mSATA SSD Solid State Disk SATA III 64gb 120gb 128gb 240gb 256gb 500gb 512gb 1tb ssd Hard Drive for laptop netbook a.aliexpress.com/_mtmR3dV
Unfortunately, these days the general public is totally obsessed with everything that is super slim, no matter if that causes overheating, throttling, loss of performance or the keyboard is junk. The X220 is boxy, but is still very light, quiet and is just extremely pleasing to use.
Agreed. Great piece of kit.
And very portable, I'm taking it anywhere I go
People don't need 10mm thin laptops for "portability" when 99% of school students carry a 5" thick binder in their backpack every day with no problem.
"Boxy but good"
x230 with x220 keyboard best
I love your omnious remarks on the great destiny of the laptop. Lovely.
😁
the comment about repairability and a certain company *cough Apple cough* made me chuckle
The sad part is, it used to matter to them.
I knew he meant apple but when he flash the logo it made me laugh. 🙂
Apple killer
I have one in my X230 and it is definitely a required modification. It's a huge performance improvement. I've tried both the X240 and X250 and the X230 is way better than both.
What modification was required?
This solution is fantastic on the light x220, giving option to dual boot independently or hot swap data storage.
Option 1: Testing future main distros without VM (I'm doing that for LARBS, maybe Gentoo), troubleshooting other OS or make back ups before reinstalling..
Option 2: Extend the storage without using USB adapters.
Yep, I absolutely love it.
thanks for this vid, I've been thinking about a cheap way to not having to use my 128gb sd card and this will do.
Happy to help!
Just bought one at a local thrift store for $14.75...let's see how this goes...didn't come with a HD or Ram...let's go!
Can't go wrong at that price. If you want, hit me up on Twitter with some pictures. Sounds like a fun project.
I know right?
Very nice price for such a godess of a laptop
I got one last week as i love the design and wish they still made them just the same! Mine has the following specs:
Operating System
Windows 10 Home 64-bit
CPU
Intel Core i7 @ 2.80GHz 55 °C
Sandy Bridge 32nm Technology
RAM
8.00GB Dual-Channel DDR3 @ 664MHz (9-9-9-24)
Motherboard
LENOVO 4286CTO (CPU)
Graphics
LCD 1366x768 (1366x768@60Hz)
Intel HD Graphics 3000 (Lenovo)
Storage
298GB Seagate ST320LT007-9ZV142 (SATA ) 33 °C
Optical Drives
No optical disk drives detected
Audio
Conexant 20672 SmartAudio HD
I will be putting a new 500GB ssd i bought in tomorrow hopefully she will really fly!
Cheers....
That SSD will make such a difference. Enjoy!
@@LaptopRetrospective Cheers mate!
Right back at you!
Oh, i7 i see, nice!
@@mmcblk05studio Thanks it still runs well.
Amazing, never knew my 13yo x220 has this msata port.
Now it has 2 ssds, thanks
Just be careful when inserting the msata drive, try not to insert in an angle, i bent few pins in the slot, took me a while to kind straighten the pins😅😅
Glad you got it sorted!
I'm also subscribing because you make very cool videos
Thanks for your support!
Great video, thank you
You're very welcome and thank you for the sub!
This reminds me i still need to get one for my t430
SSD ftw.
Its a shame i was right when i got my first ssd cuz now i "need" at least a boot ssd now
This might be an old video but thanks for the Msata feature, my only hard task is finding one here in my country which is difficult
Yeah, mSATA is not a super common format even when the video was new. 🤣
Yeah. In my country it's hard to find legit MSATAs by the usual suspects. Ramsta is the only brand in the "mall" (official brands) section of my shopping app. The 256 gig version is going for around $30 so I figure it's worth a gamble.
Good luck!
My X220 takes about 2 minutes+ to boot up. Considering upgrading the disk to a Sata SSD
The difference is staggering. Highly recommended.
wow great video man
im getting a 850 msata drive soon
do you know any better wifi cards i can install for my x220?
Yes, get an Intel Dual Band Wireless 7260 (Bout $25 USD). You will need to install the custom BIOS I feature in one of my other X220 videos. It will give you AC speeds and Bluetooth 4.0 to boot. Then you just need to tape over Pin 51 for Bluetooth to function properly. i.imgur.com/0FksEIi.jpg
Hope that helps!
i was hoping u were counting down the booting system, after u installed the msata ssd.
I would have kept the old HD in there, and wiped it, then reformated it for Linux. I know the machine will last longer on a battery charge without it though.
Quite true.
What a great video, thank you so much.
Im a bit confused about one thing. Which better, the msata ssd, or the standard 2.5 inch ssd? If the standard is better because its sata3, why did you change to the msata instead of the standard 2.5 SSD?
Thank you in advance.
Great question. I used the mSATA drives even though they are slower because it leaves the 2.5 bay open for me to swap out quickly for drives with other operating systems. Hope I explained that well.
@@LaptopRetrospective Oh Ok, nice idea though. But one more question, if the mSata is installed with linux, when you put the sata disk installed with windows into the laptop, will that the linux be coming up first on boot? Because the bootloader is linux, right? Then how can you boot to Windows?
Correct me if I'm wrong. And sorry for my bad english
Put drive in, hit the Think button to get the option to select alternative boot drive.
@@LaptopRetrospective oh, right, forget about that think button, lol. Thank you so much for assisting me
My pleasure. Hope it was helpful info. I use my x220 to run a variety of operating systems and I just need to swap the drives. No dual Boot or VM
Muy Bueno m sirvio, un monton. GRACIAS
Who to blame for fashionable computers? EHEM *coughs and apple symbol appears* =)) GOLD!
Only in part. The rest followed.
Great video, thanks! I was bummed that I couldn't put an mSATA SSD in my X200 (no electrical connection from PCIe slots to the SATA controller) but this will be the first upgrade that I do when I find an X220 in decent condition.
You're welcome. Hopefully, you can find one in good condition. They are a fun little project machine.
Tablets and phones are so popular that electronics are viewed as appliances.
Apple has also attempted to get laws passed that say that only their stores and approved 3rd party shops can repair your Apple device.
That "right to repair" is being whittled away.
Sad but true, guess that`s why you can buy a fridge that takes a picture of your food...
I'm confused as to why you took out the 2.5 HDD, if you not swapping it out? A extra HDD doesn't affect speed or stability, just maybe a few minutes of battery life? and could be used in other ways.
I leave the bay empty to swap out different OS drives.
Hey really enjoy your informed videos on the x220. Can you give a list of all the essentials I would need to get best upgrades with price. Obviously the i7 xpu is best and the ips screen, 9 cell battery, but how much ram can I install and what else would I need for the fastest x220? Thanks in advance
16GB of RAM is the max it will take but I'd do an SSD upgrade as you'll notice that jump in performance more. That and unlocking the BIOS for that nicer WiFi speeds.
Nicely done video - I'm resurrecting an x220t that I've had since new, with an msata drive internally that finally failed. A 2T Crucial SSD (around $100) worked fine in the 2.5" bay, any idea what the biggest mSATA drive that will work is? (Looks like those are much harder to find but went up to 1T at least?)
Good question on the largest size, I'm not entirely sure. mSATA isn't cheap so I haven't bought larger than 512.
@@LaptopRetrospective just to close the loop: turns out that a "Samsung SSD 850 EVO mSATA 1TB" (listed on ebay as MZ-M5E1T0 in the $120-$150 range) did actually work in my x220 tablet, I just installed ubuntu 23.04 on it, no problems. (Was able to avoid mucking with the wifi antenna cables by just pulling the wifi card first and pushing a little bit out of the way.)
Ah great to know. Thanks for commenting on your success!
Hi Laptop Retrospective. I love your channel! I am thinking of upgrading my just bought X220t from HDD to SSD. Do I need to transfer the files before swapping it? I am using Windows 10.
That depends, do you want the SSD to have the operating system on it or are you just wanting the extra storage. Having the os on the SSD would give a noticeable boost in performance.
@@LaptopRetrospective Thank you for your reply. I'd like the SSD to load the OS. I am thinking about how to transfer the files as I only see 1 slot with the HDD. 🤔
This video is about an mSATA SSD that goes into a different slot. But the Madrid essentially remains the same. Macrium Reflect is what I use to transfer data. Lots of tutorials out there and free to use.
Apple logo was neat😂
Hi, my Lenovo X230 has an HD SATA, to improve performance it is more convenient to upgrade with a SSD Sata 2.5 or an SSD M.2
Not sure if you have an M.2 slot to play with. You have mSATA but it isn't full speed. You'd be better off doing a 2.5 SSD.
Thanks for your help, I will then consider installing a 2.5 SSD@@LaptopRetrospective
@@saucedoroberto1 You're welcome! Best of luck with your upgrade.
Thank you for the great video. I loved it. I have an X220 tablet and it has no Bluetooth card. Do you know how should I add one? Also let me know if it interferes with the mSata deck.
Most computers have the Bluetooth built into the WiFi card. Since the WiFi card is whitelisted on this unit, you will either need the factory card or do the BIOS update to enable the use of other WiFi cards. I don`t think you would need to use the mSATA slot for such an application.
Thanks for sharing how to install the msata SSD on X220. But what if the BIOS didn’t detect this new hardware? Any solutions? Thanks.
That's strange. It should if it is working correctly. There's no need to flash a custom BIOS for this addition.
01:20 nice watch there... what kind of watch is it? is it metal gear themed? :p sorry for out of topic question
Ticwatch E. LED watch face.
@@LaptopRetrospective You sure? That looks like an OG Pebble to me?
Ah, if it is the Pebble then it is the Seiko watch from MGS V.
5:38, yes, we all know.
When I was opening my x220 to reapply the thermal paste, I already had something in the msata slot, it wasn't a drive. Any idea what it was? I have the i7 x220.
Could have been an LTE card or wireless USB? Trying to remember what else shipped in that slot.
Good video, and nice Pebble! Do you still use it?
I generally use my Ticwatch E2 now. The screen on the Pebble doesn't work well anymore.
@@LaptopRetrospective I see, anyways, I think you make awesome content!
Thank you very much! I really wish Pebble didn't get bought out. They were amazing watches.
@@LaptopRetrospective I must agree though! I, myself have a Pebble Time, because my original Pebble's screen died. The community and rebble.io are helpful though!
Good to know. Might need to learn more if I get the time to stop running about.
Is it possible..booting via msata ssd...and Hdd 2.5 for the storage?
Yes.
Is 250G mSATA required, or will 125G suffice? TIA
Size shouldn't impact it.
Partition into 2 and format. Hope it works. Im trying 850 500GB t420 lenovo with working win 7 research upgrades its worth not installing some since hardware missing
Partitions are always options but I like the security and simplicity of the separate drives.
Hello there, I need some recommendations in buying either an x220 or an x230. The x220 I found is in very good cosmetic condition (i5-2520m,4gb,320sata) for 3600nt(around $120), and then the x230 i found is in okay condition (i5-3320m, 4gb, 240gb ssd backlit Keyboard), for around $150.
So, should I shave of some $ for a fine x220 or just go with the x230? Either will be my secondary laptop for very light programming since I have a desktop.
SSD gets points in my book. Keyboard style is personal preference. X230 should have USB 3 and newer integrated graphics. Hopefully good screen.
Choose X220
The mSATA is limited to SATAII speeds on this machine.
Correct.
Thinklight on my Thinkpad x220 doesn't work. Could you please let me know what the problem is?
Make sure that all the keys needed to activate it are functional. After that, you will probably need to replace some parts.
@@LaptopRetrospective thank you for reply. So the problem is from the keyboard? How to activate its function?
The keyboard is the first thing I'd check. Make sure the keyboard keys needed to activate the ThinkLight work individually. If the keyboard works fine, then it's either the cable going to the ThinkLight itself or the actual LED.
@@LaptopRetrospective could create one video discussing about thinklight? I apologize I was searching about this on TH-cam and I found no one 🙏🏻
If you want to know more about the ThinkLight in general and how it was made, I've done that. If you are talking about fixing it, you need to look up the Hardware Maintenance Manual (HMM) for the X220 and review the steps to replace it. It's a great guide.
Just what to make sure. Your machine now has both hdd and ssd?
Yes.
What tool is that? with the screwdrivers
Pretty sure it came from Lee Valley.
I just installed mSATA 256 GB, and already installed a 2.5 inch SSD. I plan to make mSATA as additional storage. But after I installed mSATA it was not read as storage. I wonder why? -thanks
Probably needs to be formatted for your OS.
Hello, friend. I have a Lenovo ThinkPad X220i laptop. Can I install an mSATA SSD in that laptop? Please Answer.
The i should just denote the i3 CPU. If it still has a WWAN slot, then you should be good to go.
@@LaptopRetrospective Yea, there is a WWAN slot. Thank you for answering.
@fikriahmadpratama8420 My pleasure. Good luck!
Is it compatible with 2.5" 1TB SSD? Curious..🤔
Should be.
Hey I recently dusted off my x220 because of your website. I was wondering would it be possible at all for you to do a video on how to install mSATA SSD on the mini PCI-E, please? If not a video maybe the necessary parts? thanks for your time!
Hey San, unless I have misunderstood you, that's what this video covers. I install the mSATA drive here. Let me know if I can provide any assistance and I'm glad I could be a part of giving your x220 some attention.
Hey thank you for your reply. For some reason I had equated my express port with mPCI-E port. I kept thinking there was a way to put an SSD into my express port, that way I would be able to avoid, what looks (to me) a bit of a daunting work to install the SSD, I especially fear not being able to plug the wires properly thus making the keyboard and wireless card useless. Either way, I may give it a try. Thank you for your videos, they helped me revamp my x220.
Not sure about using the express card slot or even the bandwidth you'd get from it. Putting in the mSATA drive is quite easy and I'd encourage you to give it a try! Good luck.
@@sanhawk6554 You could put SSD into it, search for "thinkmods", they have NVME expresscard
Yes, it's still in development though.
Is this laptop has Bluetooth
It can yes, there is a spot for the module or you can swap out the WiFi card with one that is dual.
I don't consider it "fully booted" the second you see the desktop. That's more like 60% done.
To me it's booted when I can perform a command on the desktop and get a response. Thanks for the comment.
@Laptop RetrospectiveYou're welcome. This condition is not often met the second one sees the desktop, even with an SSD.
Hello.
Found your amazing channel yesterday( I technically got into laptops much better now), I want to get a laptop for university now. I like these X220s there is also X200i option or X1(Core I3), they are so nice and mobile? Do you think these are good choices?
So, I’m sorry, but I want to make a disclaimer, so you added a small SSD and took out the 2.5 one(and if you don’t remove that you can have 2 SSDs) and if there will be a X220 with 4GB RAM, I’m planning to add another 4GB DDR3l RAM, it’d be ok I guess?
And how slow are these i3 2nd gens? Is it worth to spend 50$ more to get i5 2nd gen?
Thank you very much.
Hi BaG,
Thanks for the kind words about the channel, I will do my best to answer your questions:
I'd stay clear of the i3 variants. The extra money you spend is worth every penny because you are stuck with what you buy with the X series, those CPUs are soldered on. The X1 is nice, as is the X220 and X230, I'd stay clear of the i and s variants as they often have reduced features/options.
This mSATA drive is installed in an unoccupied slot and does not impact the 2.5" drive bay, so you can have two drives at the same time. Depending on what you are using the computer for, 8GB is a nice amount of RAM.
Let me know if you have any other questions.
@@LaptopRetrospective Thanks, when I said ‘X200s’ I meant in plural not the X200s model, sorry. So it can be said that I’m kinda on budget now, the X1 core I3 with 8GB ram and SSD is like 150$, the X220 with i3, 128GB SSD and 8GB ram would be 210$, and the X220 with 256 SSD, 8GB ram and i5(2nd gen of course) would be like 250$ so is that extra 100$ actually worth it? I just need it for University(I’m not even going to be gaming xD), movies and web. I appreciate your attention mate, means a lot
No problem, I try to answer every comment. If budget is tight, the X220 is one of the most moddable ThinkPads in its class. So to me, it's worth it. Parts for it are also a lot more common than the X1. The X1 and X220 will outperform the X200.
@@LaptopRetrospective Oh I did it again, I’m so sorry, I’m kinda clumsy today, I again meant the X220, but still, they have the same stats, same RAM same SSD, and almost the same CPU( I mean X220 i3 and X1 i3) I meant that it’s be enough for my aims, but not totally sure. On the other hand the i5 version is 100$ more expensive. And as I can see libreboot is still unavailable on X220 right?
I'd suggest Coreboot which is available. I'd still lean towards the X220 because of parts availability and mods especially if your budget might only allow you to upgrade a bit at a time.
Thank you for the video, one question my friend, I have the Lenovo T520, does it has sata 3 or sata 2?
mSATA will be 2, regular bay will be 3.
@@LaptopRetrospective That's great to know, my friend, now I can go for my hard drive update, I'm thinking to replace it for an
SSD 860 EVO 1Tb, do you think is fine? THANKS, A LOT!!!!
We talking the mSATA bay or the regular 2.5?
@@LaptopRetrospective 2.5 LR, on windows 10 or 7, do you think it would work fine? THANKS!!!!
I'd go 10 or Linux. Not 7.
Hi i have a question. If my OS (either Windows or Linux) boots from the SSD, can I also add a M.SATA drive in there to use to save my files WHILE I'm working on them on my normal OS? In other words, does it kind of replace a USB memory stick? Maybe silly question but just trying to make sure
The mSATA drive is a legit second drive. You can boot to it or use it to store files. Up to you.
update the bios to version 1.46 but not the modified one, can i boot from the pcie?
You mean with an mSATA drive?
@@LaptopRetrospective yes and the hdd for storagr
I run Linux on my mSATA just fine.
i have lenovo l420 will this drive work on my laptop?
Yep. Should be fine. www.manualslib.com/manual/92029/Lenovo-Thinkpad-L420.html?page=79
this even works for the tablet version?
It should.
Hi there. I wanted to install msata SSD in my X230 but it seems that I will have to disconnect the WWAN card first inorder to connect the msata. After connecting the msata will my Wifi work or does wifi have a dependency with WWAN card?
WWAN isn't what connects you to WiFi, that's WLAN. You do not lose WiFi functionality.
@@LaptopRetrospective Thanks for helping out buddy!👍🏻
No problem!
I have a question to add to this, what functionality will be lost by removing the WWAN? I searched but I couldnt understand what it provides (I thought it was wifi but from what you say here this is wrong)
hi do you have a link to the screwdriver set?
Canadian Tire special.
Mine has a factory intel ssd so I get about a 10 second boot up not bad though.
Nice.
Nice to know though that there is a spot for a m sata
Yeah, makes it handy to have the regular bay open for whatever.
Expandable storage for me would of been nice if it were the size area of a normal ssd
Can I fit WWAN card in the same slot you did install your SSD?
Yes, that's it's intended purpose. Please check the maintenance manual for compatible cards.
I put in the msata and now my x220 won t boot to my SSD main drive unless I hit f12 and use the boot menu. I use uefi and legacy ssds same issue . I am using a flashed bios w/ no white list. What am I doing wrong?
You need to change the boot device order in the BIOS
@@LaptopRetrospective thanks for the reply but i cannot find this boot order option in the new bios version.I only see a boot order option for networ booting (also tried there ) otherwise I only found uefi or legacy first bu t no hhd priority list.
@@clutchSA It is in there, go through all the menus and I'm sure you will find it.
@@LaptopRetrospective I am now thinking that the bios flashing went wrong because I cannot find the boot order configuration anywhere on the bios setup screen. can someone that has actually done this please tell me what screen i have to go to and verify that this line is actually there in my bios. I remember that when I flashed it the program retried flashing my bios many times and kept failing untill it stopped giving me that message. When I restarted the computer the bios had the advanced tab rhat wasn't there before but now I am not sure it went totally well.
Thanks
BIOS, then Startup then Boot, first option says "Boot" select it and configure as desired.
hey! thanks for the video. is it the same for x230 ? thanks
+Benacris subtle differences I believe. Don't have the hands on time with one to confirm.
Yes it's same for x230
Thanks for the info!
Could someone tell me why my x220 stutters overall also the sound stutters when I turn on my wifi adapter. Its perfect if I connect a LAN cable to it and keep the wifi turned off. Tried with different drivers, didn't work, installed Win 10, still the same. Im just curious what could be the issue ?
So the computer stutters when WiFi is turned on?
@@LaptopRetrospective Yes. I looked everywhere around the web but didnt find a working solution to the problem. I saw other people with a simillar problem though. Is it possibe that the wifi adapter is just defective or something like that ?
@@TheRojman It sounds like you have tried every other possibility. It is either your card or something wrong with the board.
@@LaptopRetrospectivePretty much, sucks either way, the least painful thing to do is to replace the card. Problem is I dont know if they are easy to find, especially where I live.
@@TheRojman Check the maintenance manual for the parts you need or you could install a modified BIOS and put in a nicer card.
Windows 10 also slow as crap on x220 whereas 7 still runs ok
I haven't found it that bad. I'd be wary running an OS online that isn't getting security updates anymore.
Thank you for the video.
I have a question regarding ssd's. I think i'll go and buy a x220 but with a hard drive, and swap out HDD with an SSD (its cheaper this way). How do I know which SSD will go inside the new x220? In the specs it says the HDD has protocol "esata", but when I try to search for esata ssd disk, the only protocols I could find were SATA and SATA3 (and other older pci, etc).
If you're not using the mSATA slit then you've got the standard 2.5 inch bay.
Can I put an SSD drive into a Thinkpad x200s? What kind of drive would I need?
2.5inch SSD should fit. X200S is capped at SATA 3.0GB/s.
@@LaptopRetrospective Thanks. This is all new to me. So should I not use drives labelled SATA II or III?
Use a SATA 3 drive as they are the most common. It will still work.
@@LaptopRetrospective Thanks, very helpful!
You're welcome.
Since when is it a "bygone era of computing?" Most full-featured laptops still offer the ability to replace components when you perform the same procedure. X220/X230 don't have a socketed CPU or GPU either, so it's not like these are the most expandable PCs ever. They're still excellent computers, but I don't buy into some of the lore.
I was more referring to the level of serviceability. Many laptops have RAM soldered as well.
Many do, but most full-featured computers (non-ultrabooks) like the X230 have socketed memory and storage.
I think it's more of a ease-of-service thing, everything just fits together so neatly. Replacing the entire keyboard takes, like, a few minutes.
At this price point, you could get a Chromebook, which tons of students are getting now. They're almost completely un-expandable. I'm not sure about new Macbooks, but Airbooks aren't very upgradeable. In the X220/X230 age, all laptops (AFAIK), could take RAM and drive upgrades. Bygone era!
@CuvitoxNot a "bygone era" at all. There were just as many minimally-serviceable computers 5 years ago as there are today. Also, Chromebooks don't need "expandability." They're typically little more than glorified smartphones. The only service you might need to perform is a screen replacement, and that's typically no problem.
Will DDR3L 8*2 (16) will work on this laptop X220?
Short answer, probably. You might want to consider using a modified BIOS that allows you to take advantage of better RAM if you're going that route. It will also help with which DDR3L is compatible.
Yes, it will. I have 2 x 8Gb Ddr3L on my X220. I am not sure about all X220 are the same in this way, but mine is work, and do it pretty quick on 16Gb and win10.
what is the link on how to swab between two mSATA DRIVES 125 GB to 500 GB 860 EVO?
Sorry, I do not understand your question.
Hmm does this apply to X230 also? (im lazy to take a look)
Yep.
Will sata3 M2 ssd going to work with this laptop because I can't find sata2 M2 ssd?
This takes mSATA, not m.2
@@LaptopRetrospective I understand but on the product it says SATA III? Will it work, thanks .
@@LaptopRetrospective US $13.73 45%OFF | KingSpec mSATA SSD Solid State Disk SATA III 64gb 120gb 128gb 240gb 256gb 500gb 512gb 1tb ssd Hard Drive for laptop netbook
a.aliexpress.com/_mtmR3dV
Yes, so long as it's mSATA.
@@LaptopRetrospective thanks
Do u know what is the max gb I can install as sata ??
In the 2.5 Bay or the mSATA Bay?
msata that what u do in the video tks
After doing a quick search I didn't see any caps or max sizes mentioned.
Is it possible to swap the keyboard from a qwerty to a qwertz style one?
Not sure. Never heard of one.
Thank you very much !
You're welcome.
If you'd find one on aliexpress, then no problem
The cough......you need apple syrup to clear that out
😂
Coreboot it and put a 3rd gen intel inside.
Coreboot is one thing but the CPU is soldered to the board.
@@LaptopRetrospective is it in the x models? I didn't actually know, I have a T420 so that's what I did.
T models is socketed, X is soldered.
@@LaptopRetrospective Good to know, thanks.
No problem!
what is the use of above blue button
+danish ahmad primary use is booting into the BIOS.
Yeap. fking Apple!
Waaaayy too much talking dude waaaay too much
One of my first videos, much has changed. ;-)
Hi Team, I am upgrading my x230 with mSata, but how do I clone my drive to the mSata, on windows 10. Any guidance on this please.
Macrium Reflect.