Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Review

1. Introduction2. Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon3. Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon (Super High Res Gallery)4. Testing Methodology & Configuration5. Synthetic: SiSoft Sandra6. Synthetic: PCMark 77. Synthetic: Cinebench R11.5 64 bit8. Synthetic: Unigine Heaven Benchmark9. Synthetic: 3DMark 1110. Synthetic: Hard Drive Performance11. Real World: BluRay Playback With PowerDVD1112. Real World: MKV 1080p Performance13. Real World: Flash HD Performance14. Real World: Media Encoding15. Gaming: World Of Warcraft16. Gaming: Battlefield 317. Technical: Battery Life18. Technical: Acoustics Performance19. Technical: Thermal Performance20. Closing Thoughts21. View All Pages

The Windows experience index isn't the most detailed analysis, but it can give a quick, brief overview of the system and subsequent performance. A score of 5.8 is quite good, held back a little by onboard Intel HD4000 graphics.

Lenovo install a plethora of their own applications under the ‘Lenovo' and ‘Thinkpad' names.

Many of these software suites are very useful – such as the Solution Centre, System Update and Mobile Access. The list includes many Intel software packages as well.

On the other hand we aren't so sure they really need to install software such as Norton Internet Security, Evernote and Google Chrome. We feel it is always best leaving those software installations to the choice of the individual.

Our specific system for review today is:

ThinkPad X1 Carbon, 34602SG, UK

• – 14.0″ HD+ LED B/L (1600×900) Antiglare w/ Camera
• – Intel Core i5 3427U 1.8-2.8 GHz w/ HD 4000
• – 8 GB RAM onboard
• – Intel QS77 Chipset
• – w/o Ethernet (RJ45)
• – 256 GB HDD SSD Platine SATA 3 (6 GB/s) (SanDisk SD5SG2256G10.10.0)
• – WWAN Ericsson H5321
• – WLAN Intel Centrino Advanced-N 6205S A B G N
• – Bluetooth
• – 1 x USB 2.0 Always On
• – 1 x USB 3.0
• – Mini Displayport
• – HD Audio
• – Energystar
• – Cardreader
• – TouchPad
• – Fingerprint Reader
• – Intel AMT
• – 4-cell Battery
• – Power Supply 90W
• – Power Plug UK
• – Keyboard Backlight UK
• – 3 Year On-Site Warranty
• – Windows 7 Professional 64 Bit UK

Our X1 Carbon includes a 22nm Core i5 3427U processor, a dual core processor with hyperthreading (total of 4 logical cores). There is 3MB of level 2 cache on this chip. The 3427U is a mid range processor clocked at 1.8ghz, with a turbo up to 2.8ghz.

There is 8GB of DDR3 memory installed in a dual channel configuration. The memory is clocked at 1333mhz with 9-9-9-24 timings. As this is a business machine Lenovo have wisely opted to use onboard HD4000 graphics. This should help improve battery life, and reduce operating temperatures.

Comparison Systems (for specific synthetic test compares):
Lenovo ThinkPad Edge S430 (PC Specialist Vortex III HD72 (featuring Core i7 3610QM).
Asus G74SX-91013Z (featuring Core i7 2360QM).
Dell XPS 14z (featuring Core i7 2640M).
AlienWare M18X (featuring Core i7 2960XM Extreme Edition).
MSI CX640 (featuring Core i5 2410M).
Intel Core i7 2600k desktop processor.
Intel Core i5 2500k desktop processor.

Software:
3DMark Vantage
3DMark 11
PCMark 7
Cinebench 11.5 64 bit
FRAPS Professional
Unigine Heaven Benchmark
CrystalDiskMark
Cyberlink PowerDVD Ultra 11
Cyberlink MediaEspresso
HQV Benchmark V2.
World Of Warcraft

Technical Monitoring and Test Equipment:
Asus USB BluRay Drive
Lacie 730 Monitor (Image Quality testing)
Thermal Diodes
Raytek Laser Temp Gun 3i LSRC/MT4 Mini Temp
Extech digital sound level meter & SkyTronic DSL 2 Digital Sound Level Meter
Nikon D3X with R1C1 Kit (4 flashes), Nikon 24-70MM lens.

Game descriptions are taken with courtesy from Wikipedia.

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