This is a review of the Lenovo x220 Core i7 with 128 Gb SSD (rather than 320 Gb hard drive) and bought directly from Lenovo. Came with 2 Gb RAM but I put in 8 Gb of Crucial RAM for $94. This little machine in this configuration is pricey but literally screams. Boots in 20 seconds; shuts down in 7 seconds; switches programs with iPAD2-like speed. Great keyboard for touch-typing, but Thinkpads always have the best keyboards IMO. The screen is extraordinarily bright. Weighs about 3 lbs. I've gotten b/w 6-7 hours on the battery with typical office use. Three USB ports (one hot) and HDMI/VGA. I use the x220 with Dragon Naturally Speaking, and it handles the software very well -the best of any laptop I've used with Dragon. My accuracy has improved, and digitized text pops on the screen quicker than any other machine I've used. This is my seventh Thinkpad, and I've had very good luck with all of them. I think Lenovo has a winner with the x220, especially with SSD. I doubt I'll ever buy another machine without SSD -so quiet and so fast. You might want to check out Lenovo's recently released e220s -same size as the x220 but runs about $500 cheaper than the x220, depending on your configuration. It's really hard to find anything not to like about the x220.
I am a longtime Lenovo notebook fan -I own an x100, 120E, T61, x200, and x201, and now an x220. The main reason I have stuck with the brand is the quality keyboards and Matte displays.
In terms of battery life and processor speed, this notebook is outstanding. However -the touchpad was completely redesigned for the x220 and Lenovo blew it here. If you are typing a document, you'll find that the cursor flies all over the screen as you type -even if you have the 'turn touchpad off while typing' option checked! It's highly annoying. The problem is that your hands are always resting on the touchpad if your fingers are on the keyboard. In previous designs, this was not the case.
The only workable solution for me is to completely disable the touchpad, which is stepping back to an earlier era. My x200 doesn't have a touchpad either, so I don't absolutely need to have one, but they're nice to have.
I agree with another reviewer here who identified this as a serious problem that reduces the usefulness of the notebook. My Dad also has he same issue -he just bought an x220 and needed to turn his completely off as well. People who do very little typing, who just view web-pages or watch movies, etc will probably not be affected. Those needing to do serious work will be.
Lenovo, you're doing a great job overall, but I hope you're listening! This is a serious problem that you'll need to fix in the next design cycle.
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Thinkpad x220 Intel i5, 128 ssd, 8gb RAM, 9 cell battery, IPS screen
This is my 4th thinkpad x-series notebook. In the last 12 years I've had x-20, x-31, x-61. Then swithced to the sexy Macbook Air, then back to the Thinkpad x-series x220. This is by far the bestest laptop I've ever had.
Macbook Air is sure sexy and can run windows, but a real PC makes me feel more at home. Boot time of the x220 is about equal to the ssd Macbook Air (17 seconds). response is lighting fast and crisp. The Macbook Air with 4gb Ram (non-upgradable) running windows alongside Mac OSX would give me long delays with the beachball of death. The x-220 response is instantenuous.
Even the famed Thinkpad keyboard (best in the business for touch typing) feels crisper than previous Thinkpad models.
The screen is equal or better than the Macbook Air. This IPS screen is a huge leap for Thinkpads. My former models had a dim screen. If you buy this computer, insist on an IPS screen and not the ordinary screen.
Battery life is great. I think I should have gotten the 6 cell battery instead of the 9 cell I got. It would make the laptop even lighter and better looking without the extra protrusion in the back.
The 128 GB ssd is a bit small for me. I could have bought a model with 160 GB ssd but it would still be a bit tight. So I bought an OCZ msata 120 GB ssd card from Amazon for $165 and installed it in the slot under the palmrest (instructions on how to do it yourself are here: . (Alternately, his slot can be also used for a mobile broadband card). Now I have an adequate space of 248 GB. I moved the location of all my documents, videos, etc. from the original ssd to the msata ssd (right click on the folder, > properties > Location, type the path to the new location and click "move". Done. All the moved folders continue to appear in the explorer as if they've never been moved. Transparent integration.
The machine runs much cooler than my previous models. No problem putting it on my lap.
I read people complaining about the touchpad. Since I've grown used to the red trackpoint, and could never stand touchpads anyway, I disabled it in the "mouse" control panel. My previous models didn't have a touchpad.
The Intel i5 model has 3 usb 2.0 slots but not one USB 3.0 like the i7 has. The i5 processor is so fast, I don't feel the need for an i7 at all. But I bought a pci-express card with dual USB 3.0 slots to be inserted into the PCI express slot so I have a total of 5 USB slots.
Read Best Reviews of Thinkpad X220 12.5" 320GB 4G Here
Too many good things to list... bright screen, fantastic keyboard even though small with my big fingers, lightweight, huge battery life...
Turn off wifi with the exterior switch and I get 5+ hours on this on cross-country flights, working away with the screen on full bright.
I somehow missed that it would come with the docking station and optical drive, which is just what I wanted but had decided to delay purchasing... that puts it at just the right angle on my desk... and the only place I need cdrom / dvdrom.
The ergo is great, and I have to admit that Win7 has it right, perhaps even over my life-long Mac admiration. What a great, fantastic product. Kudos Lenovo!
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I purchased the X220 to replace an aging Dell M1210. I was drawn to the X220 because of it's Premium HD IPS display option and it's battery life. Well I got those features and they are great. The battery life with the optional 9 Cell is incredible, exceeding 10 hours. What I did not expect was the infuriating Touch Pad. Why did they not sort this out before going live. I'm having to learn all over again after growing to really like the Pad on my Dell. The Lenovo pointer jumps and bounces around like it's possessed. At the moment it's almost unusable. The left button press often yields no action or gives the pop down menu that you would expect from the right button.
My final gripe is that I'm not sure I dig the wide screen format. For business use I'm not convinced it is the best option. I may regret this purchase over the long haul, thinking that I should have instead purchased an HP or Dell.
Update: Ok it's been about three months of torment now with the Touchpad and my opinion still stands. For those of you who are conflicted about the usefulness or merits of a Touchpad let me elaborate. The X220 has both a Track Pointer and Touchpad. The Touchpad is a new design that combines the Left and Right mouse buttons into the Touchpad as integral single unit. The difficulty is that the Touchpad often seems confused as to whether you are pushing a button or simply trying to move the cursor about the screen. For those of us used to two handing the Touchpad it will be especially frustrating. As you attempt to scroll with your right hand fingers and control the buttons with your left, the cursor will wander in confusion. It's always amusing to watch a colleague take control of my computer during a presentation only to recoil from the behavior of the Touchpad. The response is usually something to the effect of "Wow what's up with that?"
Also the durability of the trim around the LCD is poor. The top left corner of my panel trim has already failed. I have not imposed any undue abuse that would justify this. This is my first Lenovo and maybe my last.
Update two: I've installed an OCZ Vertex 3 240GB SSD and an addtional 4GB of Memory(now 8GB). The OCZ SSD was troublesome initially but has improved with Firmware updates and a switch away from the Intel Drivers to the native Microsoft Drivers. The SSD has really transformed the Laptop, incredible, I'm now contemplating one for my Desktop since it is now a dog by comparison. Photoshop for example opens almost instantaneously. Finally in addition to the top left corner of the LCD bezel failing, so has the front left corner of the keyboard/palm bezel. Also for all of those Lenovo Keyboard fans out there, you should really try a decent Dell, then maybe you will know what a good keyboard feels like.
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Enjoying everything about my new laptop, from the back-lit keyboard that can be turned off, to how long the charge lasts. It's quick, screen is easy to view. Keyboard has a positive feel but not stiff. Yes, it's heavy but I wanted it for a replacement desktop so won't be hauling it around. Plenty of ports, pleased they are on the sides so no struggle to use them. Fans are quiet and they are at the back. I've not had any problems with heat, any sort of odd behavior.
