X220 - Series 3 Ultrabase Vs. Series 3 Dock

[Harryc]

I was wondering if anyone had tried an X220 is a Series 3 dock? It's supposed to work.
http://www-307.ibm.com/pc/support/site. ... igr-4tpjf4
If yes, what model dock are you using? 4338-10U, 20U, 30U? Which AC adapter?

[erik]

all you need with an X220 is a 90W adapter.   the 135W adapter would only be needed if you still had a W510.   the 170W is intended for the W520.

get 4338-10U unless you have plans to use it with a W510 or W520.

[Harryc]

Thanks Erik

[erik]

sure thing.   enjoy the new X220!

[GomJabbar]

For my X220 I just ordered the Ultrabase Series 3 (0A33932), Ultrabay Slim DVD burner (43N3229), and Ultrabay Slim 2nd Hard Drive Adapter (43N3412) from Cost Central.

Now I just have to buy a (7mm SATA) 2nd Hard Drive - probably from Newegg.

Hopefully in a couple of weeks I'll be home to try it all out.

[GomJabbar]

I decided to get the Hard Drive from Cost Central as well. Newegg did not seem to have what I wanted.

Funny thing, if I choose the "Lenovo" branded hard drive, which is a Hitachi HTS723232A7A364 as seen from Device Manager in my X220, the drive costs $20 more!
[exact same specs]

http://www.costcentral.com/proddetail/L ... /extended/

http://www.costcentral.com/proddetail/H ... /extended/

EDIT: Searching using Google, I found the drive at Newegg.
http://www.newegg.com/Product/Product.a ... _-22145455

[erik]

Funny thing, if I choose the "Lenovo" branded hard drive, which is a Hitachi HTS723232A7A364 as seen from Device Manager in my X220, the drive costs $20 more!
[exact same specs]

true, but for businesses the difference comes with an overnight (24x7 NBD) replacement warranty for the life of the system warranty (up to 5 years).

the same goes for any other component a PC manufacturer sells.   it's all about the warranty.

[Harryc]

true, but for businesses the difference comes with an overnight (24x7 NBD) replacement warranty for the life of the system warranty (up to 5 years).

Wow, I definitely need to start reading the fine print .

[GomJabbar]

true, but for businesses the difference comes with an overnight (24x7 NBD) replacement warranty for the life of the system warranty (up to 5 years).

the same goes for any other component a PC manufacturer sells.   it's all about the warranty.

So as an individual, I would only get the 1 year warranty stated on Cost Central's website, not the 3 year warranty that I have with my X220?

EDIT: The thought occurs to me, does this Lenovo branded hard drive come with a caddy, rails, or other pieces not included with a bare drive?

EDIT 2: I just took the hard drive out of my X220 and see that it does come with rails and a protective cover. I highly suspect the bare drive does not. In light of this, I feel the Lenovo branded drive is worth the extra cost.

[erik]

what i'm saying is that the lenovo-FRU HDD that comes with your system at the time of purchase is covered by your system's warranty, including any subsequent warranty extensions.   if you purchase a lenovo HDD as an upgrade part, many times it will fall under your system's warranty.   i had a lenovo optical drive purchased separately fall under my thinkstation warranty.

here's an example... purchase an X220 today with a 3YR depot warranty and extend the warranty in three years to 5YR total.   if the original lenovo-FRU HDD that came with the system breaks in year 4, it's covered just like it was in year 1.   you'll get an equivalent replacement or closest-available upgraded replacement in one to two business days (since that's currently how IBM ships parts here in the US).

by spending more on the lenovo drive, it gives you the ability to also extend the warranty on said drive.

granted, most people outgrow their HDDs sooner than a system reaches its full warranty period and don't opt for that.   however, for businesses who might keep their systems two, three, or four years, the drive warranty being through lenovo makes more sense.

another point is that a lenovo HDD qualifies for data retention service where a failed HDD is allowed to stay in the possession of the owner.   no drive manufacturer warranty will let you keep the drive in the event of a failure.   everyone requires it to be shipped in beforehand.   if data retention warranty is of any interest (typically business customers) then buying the drive you want from lenovo is the best option.

so, yes, read the fine print.   there are a lot of interesting words there.

[GomJabbar]

Thanks for your answer erik.

I ordered the Lenovo drive from Cost Central and included it with the other order I made the day before (saved shipping costs). It is the identical drive that my X220 came with. Makes cloning a little simpler. Get to try out my Product Recovery Disks as well.

[GomJabbar]

Just got my goodies.

The Ultraslim Bay DVD multiburner comes with the following software on disk:

• InterVideo WinDVD
For playback of MPEG-2 files and DVD movies.
• Creator Business Edition + MyDVD
For capturing, editing, authoring and recording your own videos.
• Drag-to-Disc and UDF Reader (32 bit)
• Drag-to-Disc and UDF Reader (64 bit)

In addition it comes with a fabric protective sleeve for storing.

The hard drive comes assembled with protective cover and 7mm rubber rails. The box comes with a set of 9.5mm rails and protective cover for use in other devices.

The Ultraslim Bay 2nd Hard Drive Adapter is what it is. No software or accessories included.

The Ultrabase Series 3 raises the front of the X220 about 1/2" and the rear about 1-1/8" (the back of the Ultrabase is about 1-1/4" high). It also extends beyond the back of the X220 about 7/8" (probably about the same amount as the 9-cell battery). On the rear are the following ports: Power Adapter, Ethernet, DisplayPort, VGA, Microphone, Headset, and (4) USB. On the right side is the Ultraslim Bay and Ultrabase lock. On the left side is an undock button for electrical disconnection, and a mechanical disconnect release lever. On the front is a Power On/Off button for the ThinkPad. The Power Adapter on the rear of the X220 is fully accessible, so you can connect the AC adapter to either the X220 or the Ultrabase. All other ports on the X220 are fully accessible.

When I get time, I'll try out the Product Recovery Disks I burned on my new hard drive to make sure they work. Later I'll repartition the drive and probably clone my existing X220 drive to it. Then I plan to install several flavors of Linux and play with them a bit.

EDIT: Note the version of WinDVD that comes with the Multiburner is outdated. It is version 5.0.11.1243. To update to version 8, download the update from the following page.
Update to convert installed copy of WinDVD 5 to WinDVD 8 for machines that have upgraded to Windows 7