Lenovo ThinkPad X230 2306-2AU Laptop Review

[Redaktion]

Upgraded Professionalism. The 2012 refresh of the X220 may look the same on the outside, but the X230 is the first in the 12.5-inch lineup to introduce both the an Ivy Bridge CPU and the new "Precision" Chiclet keyboard in place of the traditional beveled design. Has Lenovo hit a home run? Or is the backlash against the new keyboard design really warranted?

http://www.notebookcheck.net/Lenovo-ThinkPad-X230-2306-2AU-Laptop-Review.75317.0.html

[moogle]

Hi - could you provide some additional information regarding the temps please. Specifically the fan activity during load and idle - I am interested if it can be forced to a higher default level in order to lower the normal temps as I'm not sure I would like my default laptop to run that hot...

[Alex Li]

Could you please test this one with Diablo III , see it I can run it on X230, which I know X200 is not capable of and which make me want to purchase a new laptop.

[Yi Wang]

Please test with Diable III. Thanks very much!!!

[psx]

Maybe this helps:

Game Benchmarks
Diablo III (2012)
» With all tested laptops playable in detail settings low.

http://www.notebookcheck.net/Intel-HD-Graphics-4000.69168.0.html

[Allen.Ngo]

@Moogle:

Our load temperature test is less representative of real-world conditions and is more of a hardware stress test. Users will likely never reach such high load temperatures under typical day-to-day usage.
Fan activity is low (~3100RPM) with a very slight hum even under 1080p Youtube playback. However, the utility TPFanControl allows you to force the fan to spin at specific levels (up to ~5700RPM) if you so desire.

@Yi Wang and Alex Li:
Diablo III is absolutely playable at low settings (~50FPS) but may approach <20FPS under medium settings and large battles. Specific benchmark numbers for the X230 are unavailable at the time of writing.

[Axel Mammes]

Can we use an mSata drive + Intel RST to accelerate the mechanical hard drive? What is the maximum capacity aftermarket hard drive we can use? 320 GB is a bad joke these days.

[Allen.Ngo]

@Axel
Unfortunately, attempting to install Intel RST was unsuccessful on the reviewed X230. The installation returns a "does not meet minimum requirements" error message despite the QM77 chipset being advertised as compatible with the Intel software.

Lenovo will offer 500GB HDD as well as 256GB SSD and 32GB mSATA configurations when this notebook launches later this month. A higher capacity aftermarket HDD/SSD should install without problems. If going the SSD route and speed is a concern, the 6gb/s interface of the X230 would benefit from a SATA III drive.

[Petr]

Does the display frame still bend in sunlight ?

[leidmensch]

I realized that I have just used my old T61p to play the whole of Mass Effect 2. The Trackpoint is by far the best feature of the ThinkPad series.

The x230 looks very impressive, but I still can't wait for fanless laptops.

[Appl P]

Thank you for such a detailed review.  I have now read about ten reviews of the X230, and this one is by far the best.

[xlvii]

Please review x230t too. Thanks

[sdalksk]

...the manufacturer has managed to shave off a third of an inch from the 34.6mm (1.36 inches) rear end of the previous model to just 26.6mm (1.05 inches)...
This information is from Lenovo Tabook or it is real measurement. When I looking at the pictures X220 and X230 they looks like there are no difference in thickness.

[Allen.Ngo]

...the manufacturer has managed to shave off a third of an inch from the 34.6mm (1.36 inches) rear end of the previous model to just 26.6mm (1.05 inches)...
This information is from Lenovo Tabook or it is real measurement. When I looking at the pictures X220 and X230 they looks like there are no difference in thickness.

Hello,

They are official measurements from Lenovo. You can find the necessary data for comparison in the following PDFs:

http://www.lenovo.com/products/us/laptop/thinkpad/x-series/x230/x230-datasheet.pdf
http://shop.lenovo.com/us/ww/pdf/x220_datasheet.pdf

[R,B]

Why you do not test all the notebooks with the same room Temperature?
I think that you mislead!