The Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Review (2015)
by Brett Howse on May 21, 2015 8:00 AM EST- Posted in
- Laptops
- Lenovo
- ThinkPad
- Ultrabook
- Broadwell-U
In January of this year, I walked into the Lenovo booth at CES and almost immediately to the right there was a large display case set up, and inside was Eve. Eve looked great in the case all dressed in black, and was well attended to by her hosts. Eve is the one hundred millionth ThinkPad to be created, and I remarked at the time that it was likely not an accident that Eve is a ThinkPad X1 Carbon.
Eve, the 100,000,000th ThinkPad
The X1 Carbon has been Lenovo’s flagship ThinkPad since it was launched, and it brings the world of the ThinkPad business class notebook down into a much thinner and lighter form factor. Today we have the third generation of the X1 Carbon, and although the competition for the best Ultrabook keeps increasing, Lenovo brings a lot to the table with the X1 Carbon.
Lenovo keeps the ThinkPad lineup outfitted with features that the average consumer does not need, and the price is higher accordingly. But if you are someone who travels a lot, and needs a full featured notebook with all of the goodies, you can find it in this X1 Carbon. While the Ultrabook initiative started out with smaller devices, it gradually worked its way up to include larger notebooks as well, and the X1 Carbon certainly fits the bill for an Ultrabook despite the larger than average 14 inch display.
Despite the somewhat larger chassis, the X1 Carbon keeps the weight in check partially through the use of its namesake – carbon fiber. The display cover is created with carbon fiber reinforced plastic, and glass fiber reinforced plastic. This lets the display be lighter, thinner, and stronger than one made of aluminum or plastic alone. And it is strong. You can certainly flex the display, but it never feels like you are going to bend it by accident. The bottom of the X1 Carbon is made of aluminum and magnesium, so it is plenty strong as well. Lenovo even points out that the X1 Carbon has passed eight MilSpecs with fifteen individual tests, including shock, vibration, temperature, humidity, and silica dust exposure.
For many devices, 2015 is the year of the spec bump to Broadwell based processors, and Lenovo is not immune to this. Luckily that is a good thing though, and the new X1 Carbon is now powered by the latest Broadwell-U based processors from Intel. Buyers get a choice of the i5-5200U, i5-5300U, or the i7-5600U processor. None of these are slow, but luckily Lenovo has sent us the i7 model so we can get a feel for how it competes against some of the other Broadwell devices we have seen this year. Let’s take a look at the full specifications below.
Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon (2015) | |||||
As Tested, Core i7-5600U, 8 GB RAM, 512 GB SSD, 2560x1440 IPS display with Touch | |||||
Processor | Intel Core i5-5200U (2C/4T, 2.2-2.7GHz, 3MB L3, 14nm, 15w) Intel Core i5-5300U (2C/4T, 2.3-2.9GHz, 3MB L3, 14nm, 15w) Intel Core i7-5600U (2C/4T, 2.6-3.2GHz, 4MB L3, 14nm, 15w) |
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Memory | 4GB or 8GB DDR3L-1600Mhz | ||||
Graphics | Intel HD 5500 (24 EU, 300-900 MHz on i5, 300-950 Mhz on i7) | ||||
Display | 14.0" 1920x1080 TN Optional 2560x1440 IPS Optional Mult-touch |
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Storage | 128GB SATA SSD 180GB or 256GB SATA SSD with Opal 2 Support 512GB PCIe SSD Samsung SM951 |
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Networking | Intel Dual Band Wireless-AC 7265 (802.11ac, 2x2:2, 866Mpbs Max, 2.4 and 5GHz) | ||||
Audio | HD Audio, Realtek ALC3232 codec Stereo Speakers (downfiring) 1 watt x 2 dual array microphone |
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Battery | 50 Wh Battery 45 Watt charger |
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Right Side | USB 3.0 Ethernet Extender |
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Left Side | USB 3.0 Ports Headset Jack Mini-DisplayPort HDMI Power and OneLink Connector |
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Dimensions | 331 x 227 x 18.5mm (13.03 x 8.94 x 0.73 inches) | ||||
Weight | 1.27-1.45 kg (2.8-3.2 lbs) | ||||
Extras | 720p Webcam Backlit Spill-Resistant Keyboard |
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Pricing | $1088-$2300 USD (As Tested: $2100) |
Since this device falls into the ThinkPad line, you get a lot of customization options when purchasing that Lenovo does not do for their consumer models, and that is very welcome because on a lot of devices if you want feature X you have to also buy features Y and Z, which can really bump up the costs. However a few things need to be called out on the X1 Carbon. This is a premium Ultrabook, so it is a bit sad that in 2015 the base model is still offered with just 4 GB of memory, and because this is soldered on (like all of these very thin devices) it would be money well spent to just add the extra $75 Lenovo charges for the 8 GB model. Luckily even though Lenovo calls it 1x8 GB in the guide, it is in fact dual-channel memory. The other big complaint is the 1080p model is offered with a TN panel. That is not really acceptable in a $1000+ device in 2015 any longer. Moving to the QHD version of the panel for $150 would be money well spent since that will bring you an IPS panel.
There are also a lot of options for storage, and the base model comes with just a scant 128 GB of SSD space available, but for not too much more you can bump that up to 180 or 256 GB. For those that need even more storage space and speed, Lenovo offers the SM951 equipped 512 GB PCIe based Samsung SSD. When the X1 first launched, it was a hefty $700 upgrade, but now it is a mere $425 over the base 128 GB offering.
The X1 Carbon is even offered with optional LTE connectivity, via the Sierra EM7345, for those that need mobile data connectivity without tethering.
103 Comments
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mmrezaie - Thursday, May 21, 2015 - link
I wish they had Iris GPU and also better battery life. I feel Macbook Pro 13 inch is still better option for developers like me.Kristian Vättö - Thursday, May 21, 2015 - link
As an owner of the X1 Carbon, I can say that the battery life is really awful. I went back to my 2010 13" MacBook Air because it provides better and more consistent battery life and in my usage there's no difference in performance.lilmoe - Thursday, May 21, 2015 - link
A review for the T-series is long overdue guys.T2k - Friday, May 22, 2015 - link
True.Samus - Thursday, May 21, 2015 - link
Lenovo has destroyed the Thinkpad name. They destroyed it years ago. The only high-end corporate laptops to consider are HP Elitebooks\Zbooks and a handful of Dell's. Every Thinkpad I've interacted with over the past few years is either on a replacement battery, has cracked USB ports with bent fingers, overheating issues causing flaky behavior, or a combination of these. Then there is the support, which is downright awful. Lenovo is notorious for throwing end-users under the bus, especially once they're out of warranty for such widespread symptoms that they should be recalls.Don't believe me? Search google for any of these issues, you will come across thousands of them, even though Lenovo has tried their damnedest to bury them within their own forums.
neo_1221 - Thursday, May 21, 2015 - link
I've got 40 4-year old T420 Thinkpads and 20 3-year old T430 Thinkpads at my school. Of those, I've only had to send two back for repairs - one with a dead battery, and one with a failed display. They may not be as solid as they were under IBM, but they're by no means bad laptops.CasualUker - Thursday, May 21, 2015 - link
The T420 and T430 where IBM designs. It wasn't till we switched over to the 540/440 series that it was done "in house." And looking at how they where built, I have zero confidence in them for long term durability vs the older series.Also on looking at the refurb department and seeing how many X1 Carbon Genesis and Mystics that needed to be repaired because of "faulty" mobos... Doesn't speak to well in terms of quality and for their future products.
chrnochime - Thursday, May 21, 2015 - link
Any link that states the T420 and T430 were designed by IBM? The closest I could find was that Lenovo kept some of the IBM thinkpad designers around for T430.CasualUker - Friday, May 22, 2015 - link
It was of IBM design, using the same suppliers and tolerance levels.I too thought it was strange since it was no longer that of a IBM company and Lenovo had bought out the Thinkpad name in 2005. But when we started on the Oasis and others in the x40 lines the engineers where very proud to tell me that the the whole thing was done "in house."
T2k - Friday, May 22, 2015 - link
IBM had nothing to do with the T420 and newer laptops, this is patently false.