Lenovo X230 - The Land Rover laptop.

I recently got my Lenovo Thinkpad x230 and also got a tweet from @Lenovo the OEM :) and this is a review of my experience with Ubuntu 12.04 GNU/Linux on the Lenovo Thinkpad x230 for the past week so far.

The laptop’s configuration:

• Intel Core i5-3230M (3M Cache, up to 3.20GHz)
• 12.5″ Premium HD (1366×768) LED Backlit Display, IPS, 2×2 Antenna
• Intel HD 4000 Graphics integrated on Core i5-3210M
• 720p HD Camera
• 500GB Hard Drive, 7200RPM
• 6 Cell ThinkPad Battery, X44+
• 65W AC Adapter – US Only
• Bluetooth 4.0 with Antenna
• Intel Centrino Wireless-N 2200 (2×2 BGN)

I bought my first thinkpad just when i was out of university February 2007 and the integration with Ubuntu was awesome back in the days. Personally i think these thinkpads are excellent laptops for researchers, Engineers and college students, especially those in computer science. They are durable and have excellent compatibility with Linux.

One thing that i didn’t like initially was that these Lenovo laptops come with Windows pre-installed, i think Lenovo should let me order for a machine with no OS at all if they don’t have one that i roll with and according to my tweet you definitely know my relationship with Windows :).

I made a startup CD with the latest 12.04 LTS Ubuntu ISO. The x230 does not have an optical drive, so i borrowed a USB CD rom from a friend at 88MPH, Nairobi offices that i used.

Pressed Enter, then F12 to get a boot device selection screen, and the USB CD ROM drive appeared as one of the choices.

Lenovo checks for 3 things i.e. Power, Internet and OS before anything runs so make sure you are plugged into AC power (and that the battery is out) when you are installing. This operation generates a lot of CPU heat which could shorten the life of a battery.

I then overwrote the whole Windows OS  and turned on home encryption though i’ll also be going for FULL drive encryption after this process and i was so happy to do that for sure :).

My observations of the x230 so far:

• Battery life is phenomenal. I got the 6-cell 65Wh option. You can get 8 to 9 hours of work on this, granted that you are taking care of your battery. And remember Lenovo gave me 2 batteries :).
• The x230′s “Precision Keyboard” really is a step up from the clunky mechanical ones. The buttons are softer and i’m loving it so far.
• The look and feel of the screen is awesome and renders HD with less emitting of heat to your face while working.
• The Intel Centrino 2200-N chip had no problem connecting using 802.11n to my wifi.

So, that’s the X230. I look forward to using it and updating this blog incase of any issues. Remember i’ll be working from rough African cities and refugee camps and this is the land rover defender for techies.