Lenovo ThinkPad X230

144 reviews

May, 2013

Positive
Screen (97)
Keyboard (80)
Build quality (75)
Battery (59)
Portability (52)

Negative
Value for money (12)
Touchpad (6)

General overview
Price comparison
Product Specifications

alaTest has collected and analyzed 144 reviews from magazines and websites. Reviews about the portability and battery are on the whole positive. The build quality and keyboard also get good feedback. Many are critical about the touchpad and value for money.

screen, keyboard, build quality, battery, portability

value for money, touchpad

We analyzed user and expert ratings, product age and more factors. Compared to other Laptops the Lenovo ThinkPad X230 is awarded an overall alaScore™ of 95/100 = Excellent quality.

See all Lenovo Laptops

Review analysis

(Based on 144 reviews)

Expert Reviews

User Reviews

Review Ratings

(43% of reviews)
Show all 5 star reviews (35% of reviews)
Show all 4 star reviews (10% of reviews)
Show all 3 star reviews (6% of reviews)
Show all 2 star reviews (6% of reviews)
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Features

Screen
Show positive (57%)Show negative (18%)(Show all)

Keyboard
Show positive (48%)Show negative (12%)(Show all)

Build quality
Show positive (84%)Show negative (6%)(Show all)

Battery
Show positive (60%)Show negative (12%)(Show all)

Portability
Show positive (49%)Show negative (18%)(Show all)

More features

Showing 127 review(s)

Expert Reviews User Reviews

Showing 1 - 10 of 127 Show Reviews: in English | in other languages (18)

Expert review by: J. Simon Leitner (notebookcheck.net)

Buyer's Guide: Top Notebooks of March 2013

The ultimate superlatives. Innumerable devices found their way to Notebookcheck's tests again in March. We would like to supply an overview of premium devices with this article and facilitate any potential buying intentions. ... read 05/11/2013...

There were no new desktop replacement/gaming devices in for review. Many of the Top Ten ranked laptops have been in their customary place for several months. That suspiciously sounds like innovation doldrums and can ultimately be explained with the...

May, 2013

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Expert review by: Allen Ngo (notebookcheck.net)

Lenovo ThinkPad X230 2306-2AU Laptop Review

Upgraded Professionalism. The 2012 refresh of the X220 may look the same on the outside, but the X230 is the first in the 12.5-inch lineup to introduce both the an Ivy Bridge CPU and the new "Precision" Chiclet keyboard in place of the traditional...

Impressive CPU performance with Ivy Bridge ; Improved battery life over the original ; Slimmer profile with the same build quality as the thicker X220 ; No CPU or GPU throttling ; Easily upgradeable and expandable ; Many available ports (USB 3.0 now...

Tight positioning of physical ports ; Relatively high idle and load surface temperatures ; Slightly louder fan noise at full stress compared to X220 ; Spongy touchpad click keys ; Average multi-touch performance ; Poor speakers ; Precision Keyboard...

The stellar CPU performance means the X230 is capable of heavier tasks that its small size would otherwise suggest. Users can also play modern 3D games in low settings, which while visually unimpressive, is considered a great boon in a notebook this size

May, 2012

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Editor's Choice!

Expert review by: Brian Westover (pcmag.com)

Lenovo ThinkPad X230t

Sometimes, you just need to be able to pick up your laptop and keep working as you go. Be it an office, a retail store, or a factory floor, a lot of people do some (or all) of their work on their feet, and Lenovo has done a great deal to make sure that...

Intel Core i5-3320M processor. All-day battery life. Excellent physical keyboard, swiveling touch screen, and stylus

Thick and heavy

The Lenovo ThinkPad X230t plucks the best features from business ultraportables and adds multitouch and quality convertible tablet design.

Nov, 2012

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Expert review by: Daniel Howley (laptopmag.com)

Lenovo ThinkPad X230 (Tablet PC)

Lenovo's ThinkPad X230 Tablet offers long battery life plus the convenience of pen and touch input.

All-day battery life; Excellent keyboard; Exceptional sound quality; Myriad business software options

Touchscreen offers limited functionality; Underwhelming display quality

Click to EnlargeLenovo's ThinkPad X230 Tablet is a strong business notebook with a comfortable keyboard, long battery life and a display that responds well to both touch and pen input. Provided your business uses applications that can benefit from this...

Sep, 2012

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Expert review by: Jon L. Jacobi (pcworld.com)

Lenovo ThinkPad X230 Review: Pricey, New, Tried and True

Fans of the classic ThinkPad won't be disappointed with the X230. It's the X series ultraportable laptop you love with the same rugged styling and construction, eraserhead cursor control, and comfortable keyboard--with a few innovations. The X230 will...

Great keyboard ; Solid contruction

Software overload ; Middle-of-the-pack performer

This is an updatede version of the ThinkPad that IT types and business users love. Still, modernists may wish for a more svelte look.

Jun, 2012

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Expert review by: Christopher Null (wired.com)

New ThinkPad Leaves Some Love on the Table

Lenovo's re-vamped X-series ThinkPad is a thin and light laptop with an Ivy Bridge processor. But performance is underwhelming, and then there's the keyboard.

Configuration covers all the bases, particularly for business users clinging to legacy peripherals. Street cred in the boardroom

Suddenly thick and heavy in an ultrabook world. Disappointing battery life vs. its predecessor. Acceptable but uninspiring performance. Keyboard switcharoo will cause pitchforks to be brandished

Jun, 2012

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Expert review by: Nate Ralph (theverge.com)

Lenovo ThinkPad X230 review

The last few months have seen a deluge of ultrabooks, with companies tripping over one another to offer sleek profiles with tapered teardrop designs and roughly the same specifications. And now there's Lenovo, breaking the mold by sticking to what it...

Long battery life ; Bright display offers wide viewing angles ; Comfortable keyboard

Disappointing 1366x768 resolution ; Speakers are a bit lackluster ; Small trackpad offers poor gesture support

There’s a sense of gravitas built into these staid black boxes

Jun, 2012

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Expert review by: Avram Piltch (laptopmag.com)

Lenovo ThinkPad X230

The Lenovo ThinkPad X230 pairs a new backlit keyboard with a fast third-generation Core processor and long-lasting batteries, making it a very good business ultraportable.

Click to EnlargeLike the X220 before it, the ThinkPad X230 packs a lot of power into its 12.5-inch frame while offering the promise of true all-day endurance when you buy the extended battery and slice. The island-style, backlit keyboard provides great...

May, 2012

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Expert review by: Dana Wollman (engadget.com)

Lenovo ThinkPad X230

Today is May 31, 2012, the day Intel finally revealed specifics on its dual-core Ivy Bridge processors. That means the month of June is going to be teeming with new laptops, many of them packing Intel's latest chips. Lenovo's 12-inch ThinkPad X230 will...

Long battery life ; Solid performance ; Bright IPS display ; Sturdy, tactile keys

Overhauled keyboard might not appeal to long-standing ThinkPad fans

Lenovo's latest business ultraportable offers fast performance, long battery life and a bright display, but its overhauled keyboard might be a dealbreaker for ThinkPad fans set in their ways.

May, 2012

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Expert review by: Michael Crider (slashgear.com)

Lenovo ThinkPad X230 Review

The ThinkPad family of laptops has had a reputation for reliability since long before Lenovo started making them, and the fervency of their fans is perhaps the only thing that reaches the same level as Apple hardware these days. The X series, Lenovo's...

The Lenovo ThinkPad X230 will go on sale in early June, in both pre-built and configurable versions. You can check out our hands-on video below.

May, 2012