Getting a Lenovo ThinkPad X1, Generation 9
A month ago I ordered a new ThinkPad X1 of the latest generation - Generation 9. My current ThinkPad is reaching the end of its warranty and things have moved on…
The new generation can be configured with 32Gb of memory, a 5g modem, Gen 4 PCIe NVMe disk, WIFI6 and has terrific battery life and 16:10 aspect screen. Obviously it is 11th gen Intel i7 which is fine, if Apples new M1 processor looks terrific if you are happy with macOS (too big a switch for me I think) and AMD is causing a performance stir but is not available on any laptop I was interested in.
I really like the 14” screen size of the X1 and that coupled to a light machine really means it’s a go anywhere pc. And I do actually take it everywhere, including bed! I’ve dropped my existing X1 a couple of times and no problem at all. If you rely on a Laptop they are dependable and that counts for a lot, if they are not, of course, cheap! As an alternative I did look at a ThinkPad Nano, but the screen felt too small and the processor/disk are less than prime parts. Also a Dell XPS, but the screen felt small and it weighed a fair bit more. Although I’ve generally maxed out my X1 spec I haven’t gone for a hires screen - the ordinary one (1920x1200) is 100% sRGB (so fine enough for photo editing) and gives better battery life. My full spec is at the bottom of this post.
I ordered my X1 on 6 May 2021, and it was a bit of an act of faith - delivery was quoted as “over 6 weeks”. Along with the machine I added various 4 year warranty options and those were shipped and charged for immediately - some £496! Although charged for they only activate when the machine arrives.
The Lenovo website has a page about your order, but for me it doesn’t include anything on delivery other then saying your order confirmation email will tell more. That just says they will email you when its despatched. It’s crazy.
My first try at getting an estimated delivery date was via email and it proved a wretched experience, recorded here: https://www.brucemarriott.com/2021/06/3/lenovo-customer-care-re-buying-a-thinkpad-third-rate
Today I decided to see if I could get anywhere on the phone - in the UK it’s 02037 6914 40. You have to key in your order number to get anywhere and before long I got to speak to somebody and the first thing they ask you for is your order number. Bonkers. But I did get an update on delivery:
Estimated shipping date: 11 June 2021
Estimated delivery date: 22 June 2021
We will see, if annoying I had to call them to get this information.
My spec is…
Processor - 11th Generation Intel® Core™ i7-1165G7 Processor (4 Cores / 8 Threads, 2.80 GHz, up to 4.70 GHz with Turbo Boost, 12 MB Cache)
Operating System - Windows 10 Pro 64
Operating System Language - Windows 10 Pro 64 WE (EN/FR/DE/NL/IT)
Memory - 32 GB LPDDR4x 4266MHz
Solid State Drive - 2TB Solid State Drive, M.2 2280, PCIe 4.0 Performance NVMe, OPAL2.0, TLC
Display - 14.0” WUXGA (1920x1200) IPS, Anti-Glare, 400nits, Multitouch, Narrow Bezel, 100% sRGB
Graphic Card - Integrated Intel® Iris® Xe Graphics
Camera - IR & 720p HD Camera with Microphone
Color - Black
Top Cover Material - Carbon Fiber with Black Paint
Wireless - Intel Wi-Fi 6 AX201 (2x2 AX) vPro & Bluetooth® 5.0
WWAN Selection - WWAN
Integrated Wireless Antenna - WWAN Antenna
Integrated Mobile Broadband - Qualcomm Snapdragon X55 5G Modem-RF System
Fingerprint Reader - Yes
Keyboard - Backlit Keyboard Black English (UK) with Fingerprint Reader, WWAN
TPM Setting - Enabled Discrete TPM2.0
Evo Certified Model - Evo Certified
Absolute BIOS Selection - BIOS Absolute Enabled
Battery - 4 cell, 57Wh, 16 hours
Power Cord - 65W
Display Panel - 14.0” WUXGA (1920 x 1200) IPS Anti-Glare 400nits Multitouch Narrow Bezel 100%sRGB , IR and HD Camera with ThinkShutter, Mic, WLAN, Black
Package Box - Retail Packaging
Language Pack - Publication - Italian/Dutch/German/French/English