One of the strangest X-series thinkpads I've ever seen, that keyboard layout is definitely uhh, unique? Pretty cool function keys, even if it's quite gimmicky
@@LaptopRetrospective can you use this lenovo to copy 30 or 50 GB to an external hard drive and copy the same amount to the laptop ssd please do that test i need it
Still using mine today since I got it new in early 2014. You get used to the weird keyboard and I personnaly endend up loving it. I almost never use the adaptive bar options. I just leave it in f keys mode. Upgrading soon to a 6th gen X1
@@LaptopRetrospective Loking for a battery life higher than 2 hours and the HDR display. I would have kept my 2nd gen but that battery life at university is making it difficult to use
@@fishijoe i delete the old touchbar driver and install a new driver that provided by lenovo in their support webiste. then, using throttlestop, i undervolt this beast and get like 4.5 hours of battery lol
Been watching one of these as well, even the i5 with 4gb gigs ram version can be a great choice and still useful for quite some time.. (there are plenty of linux distros for that).. an overall great machine, and pretty cool both on build quality and design. that's another great pick and review from this channel !! all the best!!
Just wanna say that I have never seen this channel before, and I was searching for Lenovo Carbon gen 2 videos, clicked on this, saw the intro, and immediately subbed
I had a second generation X1C for a couple of months last year before the motherboard failed. When I complained about it and sought advice on Reddit, there were quite a few other people who either themselves or their friends had the same thing happen within the last year or two. So perhaps buyer beware. Oh, and decent replacement batteries are just about non-existant for this and the first generation X1C.
Interesting situation. The original owner had no issues with it. I wonder if it was certain models that failed? The situation regarding the batteries is true though. Not as easy to find as some.
What turned me away from certain ThinkPad models were the keyboards after a couple of minutes my fingers would start to hurt. I went back to my X220 and Thinkpad T430 (swapped keyboard for the T420 keyboard).
Just picked up one of these, was priced at £150 but traded in an old RX 480 and a Focusrite Scarlett Solo and got it for just that. Was looking for a machine to do university work on. I have a HP Omen 2020 that I was bringing into university which granted is a gaming laptop. It's heavy, loud and the build quality leaves alot to be desired. The R and X keys have stopped working (known defect) which is why I wanted to buy another machine. The keyboard on Thinkpad is leagues above the Omen, and all the keys work! I feel much much safer throwing this in my bag compared to my Omen. Got one of these, installed Pop OS! on it and I am very very impressed by both Linux and this Thinkpad, so thank you for your review because it was a factor in me buying it :) Can see this laptop being with me well into the future.
Really glad you're enjoying it. The second generation isn't as well loved as some of the others since they did a lot of experimenting with it but it is still a cool machine.
@@LaptopRetrospective Thanks man. I got the 4gb version but I bought it for simpler things like browsing the web and whatnot - I'm sure the i5 will be more than enough for what I need. May install a WWAN card in it if it doesn't have one already : )
I've been using this great laptop for a few years now. Bought it second hand for 2,000 Turkish Liras which makes less than a hounded USD these days. This is the best laptop I've ever seen so far. I love the simple design of it and don't think that any Lenovo Thinkpad might come close to this. This was my first Thinkpad and I'm looking for a new Thinkpad. But every Thinkpad I checked has this ugly camera, a trackpad that I didn't like that much and the design doesn't look right probably because of the placement of the buttons, I liked how turn on button matches with the adaptive keyboard. It would be great if my Thinkpad didn't had those yellow liquid-like marks on the adaptive keyboard, the rubber around the frame is getting older and this can't run Windows 11. Loved it ❤
just bought an old secondhand X1 Carbon 2nd gen on July 17 2019 (3 days ago) in very good condition. and good! I've no issue altough been using 2018 macbook pro for 6 months. it's lighter and has the same touchbar haha
@@joeldiaz5857 I think this is the best budget for secondhand laptop, you can find much information about this laptop in review article. but my reason of buying this laptop is: 1. I find a "prestige brand", my option were Lenovo thinkpad, HP spectre, Dell XPS. They both have unique signature and strong brand instead of their ordinary laptop. 2. Lightweight and thin 3. have something to shown up, hey.. this X1 has gesture and voice comand and adaptive touchbar. beside those 3, what i did't expected is the screen (anti-glare and bright enough), the anti-spill keyboard, tough ( I try to pinch the corner of the screen with one hand in 180 degree, it still work in flexed body), as this far, I just try the adobe photoshop CC 2019, then it can't open the adobe XD, then maybe i want to try Premiere Pro, but actually I boughtthis laptop for write some code haha what I hate just the battery live, it just stand for about 3 hours, yeah it's an old Laptop..
@@kuralloboyz Hey thanks for your feedback. Since I want a very good laptop that has good quality control I am considering lenovo thinkpad line. I might end up going for the lenovo x1 gen 7 (latest gen) . It's expensive but I am hope it will be great bang for buck/
I'm probably one of the very few Thinkpad enthusiants that LOVED the adaptive row keyboard. I thought it was highly functional and added a touch of class to the machine. Sadly, the biggest draw back in my mind was that the adaptive keyrow faded so badly, as ALL of them did within a couple years, and it made the keyboard look terrible. I had one of these machines and i hunted for over a year trying to find a brand new NOS adaptive row to put into my pristine laptop but i never found one. Every single part that was available was faded and used.
I appreciated what they tried and how ahead of it's time it was. I think if they left.thr rest of the keyboard and trackpad alone it might have lasted longer. But we will never know.
Would probably hunt for a decent second-hand ThinkPad X1 Carbon to replace my ThinkPad Helix second-generation. X1 Tablets are hard to come by in my locale
"Voice activation is not set...but who cares,"--how I feel about all things of late with voice activation...it's cool, but I'm simple. lol Thank you for doing this series overall.
Thought, I wrote to add...I have been using x220(purchased second hand) for years with windows 7...unfortunately, I will have to upgrade or replace as the internal battery prompts a need for replacement.
i was very happy to find a second hand version of the Carbon but unfortunately the funky function bar is broken and keeps repeating function keys rendering the laptop close to useless......
hello, how are you? I have the same laptop but the screen is missing and I already ordered it from amazon. My question is the screen of this laptop is touch or tatil and also tell me if you can change the ram memory and finally can you tell me if it supports 2TB solid ssd I hope please answer me thanks
Hi there, Screens came in three types, 1366x768, 1600x900 and 2560x1440. Touch was only available on the 2560x1440 resolution category. RAM is soldered and cannot be upgraded. This unit takes 2280 M.2 SATA style drives. I'm not sure if it will support 2TB. 512GB was the largest it officially shipped with.
@@LaptopRetrospective thank you very much you can do a power test by trying some games and try to copy 10 or 5 GB AND TAKE THE TIME JUST TO SEE ITS PERFORMANCE
It is lovely to see this fantastic review and feel proud be owning one :-) Thank you. It is indeed a lovely laptop I am still using for last 6 years at least. Although there is a slight problem which I guess you might be able to help me with. My adaptive key has some liquid or moisture in it for over an year now, it seem to spread. And I am concern it will spoil other things. As you mentioned in your video it can easily come out and be cleaned, could you possibly guide me how to remove the glass and clean, please? Many thanks
What a great video! Very informative and comprehensive, leaves no questions! This might be the best tech review video I ever saw. I found one with i7 4600U + 8GB + 256GB in great condition for 500 usd and was considering buying it (this is a really good price for this laptop in Turkey). Thanks to you I know the ram is soldered, so my search for another decent daily carry laptop continues! :P
Hi. How did you make the gestures of the camera and the touch screen work? I have one of those laptops and I can't get it to work and what model is yours? mine is 20A7002QUS I would appreciate the help
I don't have this machine nearby anymore. The camera stuff was done through software; I don't recall any hardware needed. Regarding the touchscreen, you sure yours has one installed?
I have been considering one of these for a while. I have this, a 2015 Chromebook Pixel, Lenovo C630 Chromebook 4k and the X1 Carbon on my list. They'll all do what I want and various price ranges. What kind of battery life does the X1 Carbon 2nd Gen get?
Can someone please let me the Lenovo software which i need to install to make the Adaptive keyboard work ?Mine is stuck at the Function key mode after windows 10 update and I am not getting any sound from the laptop speakers but sound is working when I use a headphone. I have a suspicion that the mute button is on within the Adaptive keyboard but unfortunately I can't toggle to other modes. Any help would be highly appreciated.
wery iteresting laptop, I own X1C1 and it all over different) But I like it laptop, it's have nice screen, it's portable and preaty poverfull, but there is only one issue: trottling. I offered liquid metal and waiting to upgrade)
@@LaptopRetrospective I bought these laptope about month agou refurbished, with new termal paste and clean cooler, problems with termals starts only when I push grafics to it's limit, I whant to avoid temps about 90 C, when I do CAD work or playing some WOW
Hi - I could really use your help. I was offered this laptop by a friend and it didn't come with a charger. I ordered one I thought would work recently but it didn't fit into the slots. I'm trying to figure out which portal is supposed to be for the charger (I love how you showed them all but I'm so not getting the tech verbage). I hope I can get one that works so I can start using it soon - thanks in advance for your input on this. :)
Power port is #1 on the diagram: users.wfu.edu/yipcw/lenovo/2014/X1C2/images/x1c2-setup_guide-conectors.gif Your AC adapter plug should look like a rectangle with yellow trim: i5.walmartimages.com/asr/91785c1f-bb92-4e10-9f8d-7c17b9fb66b6_1.bff0016e5e951bfcf607d34fc3d94d79.jpeg Hope this helps!
Thanks for making the video! Is it possible to clean the touchbar rust? I'm now waiting for a new motherboard with an i7 4600U + 8G to replace the original i5 4210U + 4G.
@@LaptopRetrospective I just bought one, a refurbished mainboard. Now everything seems good EXCEPT the UUID error alert at the bootscreen. I'll have to follow the instructions the seller provided, but it will take some time - at least I need a Windows 7 computer to run the fixtool.
@@LaptopRetrospective Fixed, now I have a top model TP X1C 2nd Gen :), i7 4600U + 8G + HD4600. A few years ago I've already replaced the default 128GB M.2 SSD with a 256GB (enough for me) and upgraded the WiFi module from 2.4G only to dual-band. Now I'm pretty contented to what I've done for it, maybe... cleaning the touchbar glass which now looks very rusty? And add a cellular module after that? I'm also thinking to make it a Hackintosh or maybe not. :p
@@LaptopRetrospective BTW the refurbished motherboard took me about USD 85.00. I'm still testing the durability. USB3.0 tested, coming up next: HDMI, MiniDP, wired network, builtin camera, etc...
I still use my gen2 (i7), which I find still far outpaces my newer work Thinkpad (T470 with i5), but am looking for an IPS drop-in replacement for the horrible TN panel (B140RTN03.0) it came with. Anyone who can point me the right way?
@@LaptopRetrospective Yeah, from what I've gathered so far, upgrading to 1080p IPS has been done with the 20A8, but I haven't found a specific example of a 20A7 like mine. Going to a 1080p seems to require a jump from single to dual lane connectors, and with my luck that would be the difference between 20A7 and 20A8.
@@LaptopRetrospective Mexico, I found a Laptop parts site and purchased these parts except the adaptive keyboard, do you know where can I get it clean and avaliable to import here? Thanks
This is the part number you want to search for: "04X6437" I was able to find a few on eBay as well as through stores on Google Search. forums.lenovo.com/t5/ThinkPad-X-Series-Laptops/X1-Carbon-2nd-Gen-Where-can-I-buy-adaptive-keys-replacement-20A7/td-p/4283258
I have a X1C1 that somehow shortcuircuits/shutsdown/wont boot when the hinges are at a specific angle. I completely disassembled the display, but could not find any defective part... I also own a X1C3 as my daily driver, with a dock. How do you watch videos on them? All of them (even my T420 with an i7 2560qm) struggles with 60fps videos and amazon prime.. its not enjoyable or the temps go 90+ I even installed scripts in the browser to force 30fps, but this only.works on Yt.. its a.shame.one cant choose the.Fps independately as with the resolutio
@@LaptopRetrospective Win10 only, on all 3 devices. I am overall pleased with the Win10 expirience so far, ran Ubuntu only in an VM, but it didnt convince me to switch to Linux
The old microsoft edge on Windows 10 v1704 I think, let's me play RUclips videos at 720p 60fps using the igpu of the i5 520m on my T410 while I could barely watch 720p 30fps videos using opera, Firefox or chrome
Hi How do you remove or replace the discolouration. You said it was removable from the front. Would you mind making a video on how to do that and fix the discolouration. Thanks
Lenovo aren't the first manufacturer to come out with a laptop that had something similar to the infamous Touchbar. HP was the first manufacturer to do it with the HP 6730b (a business laptop that was released in 2009; look at the strip - i.ebayimg.com/images/g/Q00AAOSwBLlU7Orz/s-l1600.jpg ).
@@LaptopRetrospective The keys on the strip don't change but touch is used to alter their state. Even though the keys remain the same the strip is still similar to the Touchbar. Think of the strip as the first revision. Very unusual to see new hardware features appear on business laptops first. Usually consumer laptops have the experimental hardware changes first (aka the consumers are the guinea pigs).
@@Sunny-xo2nn From Laptop Magazine: The $1,499 model offers a 1600 x 900 non-touch display, Core i5-4300U CPU and 180 GB SSD, and a $2,099 model with a 2560 x 1440 touch screen, 256GB SSD and a Core i7-4600U processor.
The keyboard on the Carbon looks claustrophobic compared to the keyboard on the T480 (very comfy keyboard with TONS of extra keys) even though both laptops have a display that is the same physical size. Can easily see why the strip was removed on the Carbon in short order. Who ever came up the bizarre keyboard design with the Carbon should be put in the stocks, LOL. One of Lenovo's worst ThinkPad design blunders.
The keyboard I'm not a fan of but I think the adaptive row had potential. With today's tech and a haptic motor under the keys it would be interesting to see them attempt it again.
@@LaptopRetrospective Don't like the adaptive row due to lack of physical feedback, the keys don't stay consistent, and it removes important keys from the physical keyboard resulting in a non standard keyboard layout being used (a below average keyboard).
@@pixelPlex I understand your view completely, especially if it messes with your workflow. I still think it could work if they put more R&D into it. As it was it needs more work as you say.
I found this generation of thinkpads as a whole totally insulting as a bussiness class devce. Given the failure rate of motherbaords, trackpads and that senseless bar, and that keyboard... I can openly say my investment in to an XPS developer's edition was a sound one. Nearly 5 years old mind you and it still looks and works as well as the day I bought it. The only downside is the limitation of 8gb of ram. It too is un-upgradable. As a lover of the Thinkpad brand, I am glad they corrected many of this models shortcomings but it was this generation as a whole that started this slide of disappointment. Still they can find their fanboys. Can't blame you. I am not here to bash them. I am just being honest.
You're absolutely right that this generation was fraught with problems. No question about that. the thing that I found the most endearing was all the little quirky things that they attempted to do even if they didn't work. but if we move ahead a few years even to the third and fourth generation of the Carbon machines there was significant improvement made. Thanks for taking the time to comment and share your ideas and experience.
The carbon has evolved to be a great platform but between the clunkpad and the touch bar, they threw some REALLY bad ideas into this 2nd gen. I have a 5th gen and love it.
@@miskoma3882 interesting. You can tell by looking if it has the touch display normally as it's super glossy. Be sure to check the community tab btw. 😉
Once again, sighing for Lenovo. Always one step ahead of competitors, yet, failed to perfect his brilliant idea. Maybe I'm geting old enough (at age of 24) to have such sentimentality, which might not be necessary within brutal IT industry market.
It's an interesting market. It wasn't always as consumer driven if you go back in computing history but as thy get easier to use, that changes the demographic and leads to new priorities.
These are the most unreliable ThinkPad's in my opinion. The pre-mac touchbar fails *ALL OF THE TIME* and not to mention the U-PVC coating on it yellows horridly. It would of been an amazing machine if the touchbar wasn't constantly kicked out of Windows by drivers and had a smokers hand tint on it. Otherwise a decent machine for even todays use.
@@LaptopRetrospective I would love it. I have a 2017 MBP touchbar and find it really useful for being productive. I can easily mute microphones, use it for editing, font formatting and play cool animations on it to impress freinds lol. I don't actually know if I prefer Lenovo's old physical buttons or this touchbar (clear and working of course).
![Lenovo X1 Carbon gen 2 - disassemble & keyboard replacement [4K]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/JqYjJfRgBqY/mqdefault.jpg)
One of the strangest X-series thinkpads I've ever seen, that keyboard layout is definitely uhh, unique? Pretty cool function keys, even if it's quite gimmicky
Yeah, it's a shame they didn't perhaps develop it further. Not everything was worth keeping but it was an interesting experiment.
@@LaptopRetrospective can you use this lenovo to copy 30 or 50 GB to an external hard drive and copy the same amount to the laptop ssd please do that test i need it
what a great review! thank you so much. Currently buying one in box pack condition and this review was to the point!
That's awesome. Glad to be of help.
Still using mine today since I got it new in early 2014. You get used to the weird keyboard and I personnaly endend up loving it. I almost never use the adaptive bar options. I just leave it in f keys mode. Upgrading soon to a 6th gen X1
That's quite the upgrade. Thanks for sharing your experience. What are you looking forward to with the 6th Gen?
@@LaptopRetrospective Loking for a battery life higher than 2 hours and the HDR display. I would have kept my 2nd gen but that battery life at university is making it difficult to use
@@fishijoe i delete the old touchbar driver and install a new driver that provided by lenovo in their support webiste. then, using throttlestop, i undervolt this beast and get like 4.5 hours of battery lol
Interesting, thanks for sharing.
Been watching one of these as well, even the i5 with 4gb gigs ram version can be a great choice and still useful for quite some time.. (there are plenty of linux distros for that).. an overall great machine, and pretty cool both on build quality and design. that's another great pick and review from this channel !! all the best!!
Thanks for the kind words. Glad you enjoyed the video.
Just wanna say that I have never seen this channel before, and I was searching for Lenovo Carbon gen 2 videos, clicked on this, saw the intro, and immediately subbed
Hi Darren. Thanks so much for the kind words. I'm honoured to have your support and hope you enjoy the content.
You forgot saying that this beast is so silent and no heat at all. A very nice machine! One of the best for Lenovo.
I had a second generation X1C for a couple of months last year before the motherboard failed. When I complained about it and sought advice on Reddit, there were quite a few other people who either themselves or their friends had the same thing happen within the last year or two. So perhaps buyer beware. Oh, and decent replacement batteries are just about non-existant for this and the first generation X1C.
Interesting situation. The original owner had no issues with it. I wonder if it was certain models that failed? The situation regarding the batteries is true though. Not as easy to find as some.
Laptop Retrospective It’s the RAM modules that dies on these all the time. I’ve had to replace the soldered RAM several times on mine
I'll have to do some reading on that and see what is up; if they were under stress or just bad parts.
Rarely does a whole motherboard need to be replaced. Often that means that don't know what component failed.
@@LaptopRetrospective Or they're an Apple authorized repair center 😉
Thank you for the very interesting video about a laptop that I find very rare in the number of reviews online. This one is indeed bizarre
Thanks for watching. It was a fun machine to play with.
Superb straightforward review. Thank you.
Thanks! Glad you found it useful.
What turned me away from certain ThinkPad models were the keyboards after a couple of minutes my fingers would start to hurt. I went back to my X220 and Thinkpad T430 (swapped keyboard for the T420 keyboard).
All comes down to personal preference and you gotta use what lets you do your best work. Still have yourself a real winner.
Just picked up one of these, was priced at £150 but traded in an old RX 480 and a Focusrite Scarlett Solo and got it for just that. Was looking for a machine to do university work on.
I have a HP Omen 2020 that I was bringing into university which granted is a gaming laptop. It's heavy, loud and the build quality leaves alot to be desired. The R and X keys have stopped working (known defect) which is why I wanted to buy another machine. The keyboard on Thinkpad is leagues above the Omen, and all the keys work! I feel much much safer throwing this in my bag compared to my Omen.
Got one of these, installed Pop OS! on it and I am very very impressed by both Linux and this Thinkpad, so thank you for your review because it was a factor in me buying it :)
Can see this laptop being with me well into the future.
Really glad you're enjoying it. The second generation isn't as well loved as some of the others since they did a lot of experimenting with it but it is still a cool machine.
I just one of these for my kids in middle school. I think for $100 it's a great piece of hardware. Thanks!
Nice! Hope they enjoy it. These are a little older nowadays but have some life left in them yet.
Thanks for the info bro, got myself one of these for $200; can't beat it for the price
Nice price, hope you enjoy it.
@@LaptopRetrospective Thanks man. I got the 4gb version but I bought it for simpler things like browsing the web and whatnot - I'm sure the i5 will be more than enough for what I need. May install a WWAN card in it if it doesn't have one already : )
Still not too shabby.
I've been using this great laptop for a few years now. Bought it second hand for 2,000 Turkish Liras which makes less than a hounded USD these days.
This is the best laptop I've ever seen so far. I love the simple design of it and don't think that any Lenovo Thinkpad might come close to this. This was my first Thinkpad and I'm looking for a new Thinkpad. But every Thinkpad I checked has this ugly camera, a trackpad that I didn't like that much and the design doesn't look right probably because of the placement of the buttons, I liked how turn on button matches with the adaptive keyboard. It would be great if my Thinkpad didn't had those yellow liquid-like marks on the adaptive keyboard, the rubber around the frame is getting older and this can't run Windows 11. Loved it ❤
The G2 is a unique machine, no question. While the ideas on it didn't succeed, it was a fascinating experiment.
i really liked this intro. is this X series specific now ?
Thanks. It will be specific to the X1 series.
Watching this in 2022 and this is nice from u
Glad you enjoyed it!
just bought an old secondhand X1 Carbon 2nd gen on July 17 2019 (3 days ago) in very good condition. and good! I've no issue altough been using 2018 macbook pro for 6 months. it's lighter and has the same touchbar haha
Awesome. Do let us know what you think over time.
I am also planning to buy a used x1 2nd gen. I hope it will be a good buy. Glad to hear you are happy with yours.
So long as you are ready for a learning curve due to the unique keyboard, you'll be fine.
@@joeldiaz5857 I think this is the best budget for secondhand laptop, you can find much information about this laptop in review article.
but my reason of buying this laptop is:
1. I find a "prestige brand", my option were Lenovo thinkpad, HP spectre, Dell XPS. They both have unique signature and strong brand instead of their ordinary laptop.
2. Lightweight and thin
3. have something to shown up, hey.. this X1 has gesture and voice comand and adaptive touchbar.
beside those 3, what i did't expected is the screen (anti-glare and bright enough), the anti-spill keyboard, tough ( I try to pinch the corner of the screen with one hand in 180 degree, it still work in flexed body),
as this far, I just try the adobe photoshop CC 2019, then it can't open the adobe XD, then maybe i want to try Premiere Pro, but actually I boughtthis laptop for write some code haha
what I hate just the battery live, it just stand for about 3 hours, yeah it's an old Laptop..
@@kuralloboyz Hey thanks for your feedback. Since I want a very good laptop that has good quality control I am considering lenovo thinkpad line. I might end up going for the lenovo x1 gen 7 (latest gen) . It's expensive but I am hope it will be great bang for buck/
I strive to be a ThinkPad connoisseur. :D
Though I had no idea the carbon had such a bizarre keyboard.
Just this second generation had this keyboard.
I'm probably one of the very few Thinkpad enthusiants that LOVED the adaptive row keyboard. I thought it was highly functional and added a touch of class to the machine. Sadly, the biggest draw back in my mind was that the adaptive keyrow faded so badly, as ALL of them did within a couple years, and it made the keyboard look terrible. I had one of these machines and i hunted for over a year trying to find a brand new NOS adaptive row to put into my pristine laptop but i never found one. Every single part that was available was faded and used.
I appreciated what they tried and how ahead of it's time it was. I think if they left.thr rest of the keyboard and trackpad alone it might have lasted longer. But we will never know.
You should review the original X1 (non-carbon) or the T431, or some other transition-era oddball Thinkpads.
I've got the T431(s) on the channel already. Let's say I might have something else coming.
Bro help me in that row there is no light showing to me but if I touch functions are working
If you're talking about the Adaptive Row, it probably needs to be replaced.
@@LaptopRetrospective oh right
Would probably hunt for a decent second-hand ThinkPad X1 Carbon to replace my ThinkPad Helix second-generation. X1 Tablets are hard to come by in my locale
Lots of good options out there. It will depend on what features you enjoy and use the most.
Using mine and enjoying it.
What do you use yours for?
@@LaptopRetrospective Coding.
Great intro! This model PLN 1500zl in Poland great stuff but only Battery 1 hour or 1:30 but concept great!
Interesting! Glad you liked the intro btw.
"Voice activation is not set...but who cares,"--how I feel about all things of late with voice activation...it's cool, but I'm simple. lol
Thank you for doing this series overall.
Glad you enjoyed my candid nature on that. I hope you enjoy the rest of the series when it comes out.
@@LaptopRetrospective , Absolutely!
Thought, I wrote to add...I have been using x220(purchased second hand) for years with windows 7...unfortunately, I will have to upgrade or replace as the internal battery prompts a need for replacement.
@@SoulSheIS You mean the CMOS battery? It's very easy to replace.
@@LaptopRetrospective Yes, I get a little notification, suggesting to replace the battery.
the touchbar is the most vile grimey piece of shoot technology that I ever had to use
What was your use case that it was so terrible? I personally didn't mind it, but I could see how some groups of users would find it painful.
@@LaptopRetrospective First of all I think it looks disgusting after 2 days of use. Secondly I think real keys look, feel and work better
i was very happy to find a second hand version of the Carbon but unfortunately the funky function bar is broken and keeps repeating function keys rendering the laptop close to useless......
Thankfully the function bar is an independent piece so a replacement can be found and swapped in if desired.
@@LaptopRetrospective ah I will look into that, Thanks!
Best of luck.
hello, how are you? I have the same laptop but the screen is missing and I already ordered it from amazon. My question is the screen of this laptop is touch or tatil and also tell me if you can change the ram memory and finally can you tell me if it supports 2TB solid ssd I hope please answer me thanks
Hi there,
Screens came in three types, 1366x768, 1600x900 and 2560x1440. Touch was only available on the 2560x1440 resolution category.
RAM is soldered and cannot be upgraded. This unit takes 2280 M.2 SATA style drives. I'm not sure if it will support 2TB. 512GB was the largest it officially shipped with.
@@LaptopRetrospective thank you very much you can do a power test by trying some games and try to copy 10 or 5 GB AND TAKE THE TIME JUST TO SEE ITS PERFORMANCE
To be clear, I don't have this machine anymore.
@@LaptopRetrospective ok
It is lovely to see this fantastic review and feel proud be owning one :-) Thank you. It is indeed a lovely laptop I am still using for last 6 years at least. Although there is a slight problem which I guess you might be able to help me with. My adaptive key has some liquid or moisture in it for over an year now, it seem to spread. And I am concern it will spoil other things. As you mentioned in your video it can easily come out and be cleaned, could you possibly guide me how to remove the glass and clean, please? Many thanks
It can be swapped out but not really cleaned.
is it worth buying at $125 US?
In my opinion, I'd price compare it against the 3rd generation which is overall better.
Next for Project X should be the X301, the predecessor of the first X1.
I'll do whatever I can get.
How can you clean that moist on that adaptive touch key?
If it looks like the one in the video, you replace it.
What a great video! Very informative and comprehensive, leaves no questions! This might be the best tech review video I ever saw. I found one with i7 4600U + 8GB + 256GB in great condition for 500 usd and was considering buying it (this is a really good price for this laptop in Turkey). Thanks to you I know the ram is soldered, so my search for another decent daily carry laptop continues! :P
I'm still curious about how the screen compares to a modern IPS
Thanks for the comments. It compares pretty well for the general viewing experience.
I got one recently but i have been having trouble installing windows 10 do you have a vid that help me install windows 10?
What is giving you problems? There's nothing really unique about running it on this device.
Thank you very much
No problem!
Hi. How did you make the gestures of the camera and the touch screen work? I have one of those laptops and I can't get it to work and what model is yours? mine is 20A7002QUS I would appreciate the help
I don't have this machine nearby anymore. The camera stuff was done through software; I don't recall any hardware needed. Regarding the touchscreen, you sure yours has one installed?
I have been considering one of these for a while. I have this, a 2015 Chromebook Pixel, Lenovo C630 Chromebook 4k and the X1 Carbon on my list. They'll all do what I want and various price ranges. What kind of battery life does the X1 Carbon 2nd Gen get?
Depends on the screen but they can get 5-6+ hours with moderate lifting.
Can someone please let me the Lenovo software which i need to install to make the Adaptive keyboard work ?Mine is stuck at the Function key mode after windows 10 update and I am not getting any sound from the laptop speakers but sound is working when I use a headphone. I have a suspicion that the mute button is on within the Adaptive keyboard but unfortunately I can't toggle to other modes. Any help would be highly appreciated.
Have you grabbed the Lenovo System Update software from them yet?
Aren't you able to replace the trackpad with the T450 one like you can on the T440?
Yes you can in fact.
wery iteresting laptop, I own X1C1 and it all over different) But I like it laptop, it's have nice screen, it's portable and preaty poverfull, but there is only one issue: trottling. I offered liquid metal and waiting to upgrade)
Be careful with liquid metal. If it isn't applied carefully you'll have issues. Have you tried redoing the regular thermal paste or replacing the fan?
@@LaptopRetrospective I bought these laptope about month agou refurbished, with new termal paste and clean cooler, problems with termals starts only when I push grafics to it's limit, I whant to avoid temps about 90 C, when I do CAD work or playing some WOW
@@makarkashirin1409 Not surprised then.
Hi - I could really use your help. I was offered this laptop by a friend and it didn't come with a charger. I ordered one I thought would work recently but it didn't fit into the slots. I'm trying to figure out which portal is supposed to be for the charger (I love how you showed them all but I'm so not getting the tech verbage). I hope I can get one that works so I can start using it soon - thanks in advance for your input on this. :)
Power port is #1 on the diagram:
users.wfu.edu/yipcw/lenovo/2014/X1C2/images/x1c2-setup_guide-conectors.gif
Your AC adapter plug should look like a rectangle with yellow trim:
i5.walmartimages.com/asr/91785c1f-bb92-4e10-9f8d-7c17b9fb66b6_1.bff0016e5e951bfcf607d34fc3d94d79.jpeg
Hope this helps!
Isn't it a 2014 release? I saw the date of your video is 2019.
Well the video wasn't made when the computer was new. 😁
Lenovo did the Touch Bar before Apple did it with the MacBook Pro.
Sure did.
Thanks for making the video! Is it possible to clean the touchbar rust? I'm now waiting for a new motherboard with an i7 4600U + 8G to replace the original i5 4210U + 4G.
Not that I'm aware of, but isn't too bad to replace.
@@LaptopRetrospective I just bought one, a refurbished mainboard. Now everything seems good EXCEPT the UUID error alert at the bootscreen. I'll have to follow the instructions the seller provided, but it will take some time - at least I need a Windows 7 computer to run the fixtool.
@@BlueDRG Interesting, let us know how that goes.
@@LaptopRetrospective Fixed, now I have a top model TP X1C 2nd Gen :), i7 4600U + 8G + HD4600. A few years ago I've already replaced the default 128GB M.2 SSD with a 256GB (enough for me) and upgraded the WiFi module from 2.4G only to dual-band. Now I'm pretty contented to what I've done for it, maybe... cleaning the touchbar glass which now looks very rusty? And add a cellular module after that? I'm also thinking to make it a Hackintosh or maybe not. :p
@@LaptopRetrospective BTW the refurbished motherboard took me about USD 85.00. I'm still testing the durability. USB3.0 tested, coming up next: HDMI, MiniDP, wired network, builtin camera, etc...
No backlit keyboard?
It is backlit. Confirmed in the PSREF.
psref.lenovo.com/syspool/Sys/PDF/withdrawnbook/ThinkPad_X1_Carbon_2nd_Gen.pdf
In 2021 for $150 still a good deal?
If it is in good condition and you don't mind the keyboard layout.
I still use my gen2 (i7), which I find still far outpaces my newer work Thinkpad (T470 with i5), but am looking for an IPS drop-in replacement for the horrible TN panel (B140RTN03.0) it came with. Anyone who can point me the right way?
Hmmmm. Good question. Sue to the unique size that will be tricky I suspect.
@@LaptopRetrospective Yeah, from what I've gathered so far, upgrading to 1080p IPS has been done with the 20A8, but I haven't found a specific example of a 20A7 like mine. Going to a 1080p seems to require a jump from single to dual lane connectors, and with my luck that would be the difference between 20A7 and 20A8.
can you use this lenovo to copy 30 or 50 GB to an external hard drive and copy the same amount to the laptop ssd please do that test i need it
I can't see why it couldn't copy that amount of data.
@@LaptopRetrospective because it could not copy that amount of data I say if it is that you can tell me and also tell me if you still own that laptop
Can you fix the discolouration of the adaptive row?
Not that I'm aware of, you'll probably just have to replace it.
I have the Laptop, I cant find a new battery, neither new adaptive keys, and had the same motherboard problem
Hmmm, where are you located? I haven't looked online recently but I didn't have trouble finding parts.
@@LaptopRetrospective Mexico, I found a Laptop parts site and purchased these parts except the adaptive keyboard, do you know where can I get it clean and avaliable to import here? Thanks
Does eBay go to where you live?
@@LaptopRetrospective Yes
This is the part number you want to search for: "04X6437" I was able to find a few on eBay as well as through stores on Google Search.
forums.lenovo.com/t5/ThinkPad-X-Series-Laptops/X1-Carbon-2nd-Gen-Where-can-I-buy-adaptive-keys-replacement-20A7/td-p/4283258
I have a X1C1 that somehow shortcuircuits/shutsdown/wont boot when the hinges are at a specific angle. I completely disassembled the display, but could not find any defective part...
I also own a X1C3 as my daily driver, with a dock.
How do you watch videos on them? All of them (even my T420 with an i7 2560qm) struggles with 60fps videos and amazon prime.. its not enjoyable or the temps go 90+
I even installed scripts in the browser to force 30fps, but this only.works on Yt.. its a.shame.one cant choose the.Fps independately as with the resolutio
Interesting. What OS have you tried?
@@LaptopRetrospective Win10 only, on all 3 devices. I am overall pleased with the Win10 expirience so far, ran Ubuntu only in an VM, but it didnt convince me to switch to Linux
@@8-P thanks for the info. I'm not a Ubuntu fan either. I prefer Mint or Elementary.
The old microsoft edge on Windows 10 v1704 I think, let's me play RUclips videos at 720p 60fps using the igpu of the i5 520m on my T410 while I could barely watch 720p 30fps videos using opera, Firefox or chrome
@@Brandon-uy1uv it's funny how different web browsers can get the best out of certain hardware.
What kind of keyboard layout is that, strange
It's the Adaptive Keyboard. It was only used on this model.
Hi
How do you remove or replace the discolouration. You said it was removable from the front. Would you mind making a video on how to do that and fix the discolouration. Thanks
Are we discussing the Adaptive Row?
Yea
does this laptop have touch screen?
This model did, but it wasn't standard.
I got one from ebay today for 122 dollars. Is it worth now?
To me it's more of a collectable or retro machine. It can run Windows 10 but it won't win any speed contests. 😁
@@LaptopRetrospective 😂
Lenovo aren't the first manufacturer to come out with a laptop that had something similar to the infamous Touchbar. HP was the first manufacturer to do it with the HP 6730b (a business laptop that was released in 2009; look at the strip - i.ebayimg.com/images/g/Q00AAOSwBLlU7Orz/s-l1600.jpg ).
If I recall that correctly they don't change?
@@LaptopRetrospective The keys on the strip don't change but touch is used to alter their state. Even though the keys remain the same the strip is still similar to the Touchbar. Think of the strip as the first revision. Very unusual to see new hardware features appear on business laptops first. Usually consumer laptops have the experimental hardware changes first (aka the consumers are the guinea pigs).
Yeah, that's what I thought you meant. To me, the two are a bit too different, but you are correct that those are touch buttons.
is NVMe compatible?
No, it predates that technology.
May I know it's price please when it was released
Probably best you check your local listings from back in the day, but I think the base model was close to $1200 or so. I'd need to fact check that.
@@LaptopRetrospective thank you
@@Sunny-xo2nn From Laptop Magazine: The $1,499 model offers a 1600 x 900 non-touch display, Core i5-4300U CPU and 180 GB SSD, and a $2,099 model with a 2560 x 1440 touch screen, 256GB SSD and a Core i7-4600U processor.
No LAN Port and no 3 Keys Touchpad. No IPS FHD Display. Edit OK it have a 14.0" WQHD (2560x1440).
The X1 Carbon 2nd gen was a weird one.
Yep and despite its quirks I rather enjoyed messing about with it.
I tried it out at work one time. The touch bar is fine. But the keyboard layout I could not get used to. It was very annoying for me.
Easy to see why, but thankfully if you plan on using it long term, some of the keys can be rebound to help deal with the issue.
The keyboard on the Carbon looks claustrophobic compared to the keyboard on the T480 (very comfy keyboard with TONS of extra keys) even though both laptops have a display that is the same physical size. Can easily see why the strip was removed on the Carbon in short order. Who ever came up the bizarre keyboard design with the Carbon should be put in the stocks, LOL. One of Lenovo's worst ThinkPad design blunders.
The keyboard I'm not a fan of but I think the adaptive row had potential. With today's tech and a haptic motor under the keys it would be interesting to see them attempt it again.
@@LaptopRetrospective Don't like the adaptive row due to lack of physical feedback, the keys don't stay consistent, and it removes important keys from the physical keyboard resulting in a non standard keyboard layout being used (a below average keyboard).
@@pixelPlex I understand your view completely, especially if it messes with your workflow. I still think it could work if they put more R&D into it. As it was it needs more work as you say.
I like the video intro
Thank you. It was a lot of work. The plan is to use it for any video featured in the X1 series.
I found this generation of thinkpads as a whole totally insulting as a bussiness class devce. Given the failure rate of motherbaords, trackpads and that senseless bar, and that keyboard... I can openly say my investment in to an XPS developer's edition was a sound one. Nearly 5 years old mind you and it still looks and works as well as the day I bought it. The only downside is the limitation of 8gb of ram. It too is un-upgradable. As a lover of the Thinkpad brand, I am glad they corrected many of this models shortcomings but it was this generation as a whole that started this slide of disappointment. Still they can find their fanboys. Can't blame you. I am not here to bash them. I am just being honest.
You're absolutely right that this generation was fraught with problems. No question about that. the thing that I found the most endearing was all the little quirky things that they attempted to do even if they didn't work. but if we move ahead a few years even to the third and fourth generation of the Carbon machines there was significant improvement made. Thanks for taking the time to comment and share your ideas and experience.
@@LaptopRetrospective Your welcome
Is it possible to install linux on this pc?
Yes.
The carbon has evolved to be a great platform but between the clunkpad and the touch bar, they threw some REALLY bad ideas into this 2nd gen. I have a 5th gen and love it.
It didn't work out but it was one of the most experimental machines of the decade.
Can someone tell me if I can replace the i5 motherboard in the 2nd gen X1 with an i7
The boards should be swappable, I don't not believe they are different sizes or chassis.
@@LaptopRetrospective Thank you! Should there be anything else I should factor in such as bios?
@@rdsmith308 BIOS is stored on the same board as the CPU so there shouldn't be an issue with it.
@@LaptopRetrospective Thank you!
@@rdsmith308 See my responses here.
It has touch screen?
Yes, select models have touchscreens.
@@LaptopRetrospective I bought lenova X1 carbon 2nd generation,type 20 A7, 20 A8
4600 U,
So it has touch system or not? Please let me know
That's just the model, it doesn't tell you what screen is in the device. Do you know the screen resolution or have the serial number?
@@LaptopRetrospective yes I will share serial number with you R907EFR8
@@LaptopRetrospective kindly let me know after checking
what is the price of this Laptop?
Since it's used, prices vary by region, specs and condition.
Is that touch screen?
This model has it, but it was only bundled with the top shelf display.
Funny since after this was posted someone in my area puts one of these up on Craigslist
Do you remember the specs?
I7 4600u and 8gb of ram and thats the only specs the seller listed
@@miskoma3882 interesting. You can tell by looking if it has the touch display normally as it's super glossy. Be sure to check the community tab btw. 😉
Looking forward to seeing that video.
@@miskoma3882 better yet, it will be a series.
Im here in 2024
Welcome!
Once again, sighing for Lenovo. Always one step ahead of competitors, yet, failed to perfect his brilliant idea. Maybe I'm geting old enough (at age of 24) to have such sentimentality, which might not be necessary within brutal IT industry market.
It's an interesting market. It wasn't always as consumer driven if you go back in computing history but as thy get easier to use, that changes the demographic and leads to new priorities.
These are the most unreliable ThinkPad's in my opinion. The pre-mac touchbar fails *ALL OF THE TIME* and not to mention the U-PVC coating on it yellows horridly. It would of been an amazing machine if the touchbar wasn't constantly kicked out of Windows by drivers and had a smokers hand tint on it. Otherwise a decent machine for even todays use.
Fair comments on the bar. It would have been interesting if they had another kick at it.
@@LaptopRetrospective I would love it. I have a 2017 MBP touchbar and find it really useful for being productive. I can easily mute microphones, use it for editing, font formatting and play cool animations on it to impress freinds lol. I don't actually know if I prefer Lenovo's old physical buttons or this touchbar (clear and working of course).
intel 4th gen and up thinkpad trackpoints are horrible.
Fifth generation felt fine to me.
This is Shitiest thinkpad I ever owned. Shit track pad. Shit keyboard .
The trackpad can be swapped out for the three-button on this model, but the keyboard sadly is what it is.