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IBM

Off lease Lenovo W520 - i7, 8GB, 160GB SSD - $437

  • Last Updated:
  • Mar 22nd, 2015 10:11 am
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Sr. Member
Apr 29, 2008
591 posts
165 upvotes
Toronto
aviador wrote: @ b3lb3lMine came with 4x2GB and after having the battery exchanged and tweaking the display factory settings...
Why did you have to tweak display settings and what changes did you make?

Seems there is no HDMI port. Recommendations for a cheap DV to HDMI adapter?
Deal Addict
Sep 9, 2010
4863 posts
3538 upvotes
Burnaby
b3lb3l wrote: Why did you have to tweak display settings and what changes did you make?
Seems there is no HDMI port. Recommendations for a cheap DV to HDMI adapter?
I bought a dp-hdmi adapter for the laptop port (to use an hdmi cable) at amazon. On a second thought I think it's better (more room at the ports and less strain on the laptop port) to use a dp-dp cable and a dp-hdmi adapter for the monitor (I still have to buy them, but I found some at dx.)

I found my laptop's screen a bit blueish and too bright/too dim. I adjusted the settings for the Intel HD3000 manually for the three colors (gamma and contrast, no brightness) to my taste to get less saturated colors, good contrast and reduce the blue hue. I adjusted the brightness on the power profiles. You might want to adjust as well how the laptop switches gpus depending on task/program being used (it can be distracting). I just let it on discrete gpu all the time on AC power when I want to use a program that uses the nvidia gpu. On battery, I let it switch gpus but changes (brightness, colors, font sharpness, etc.) can be a bit distracting.
Sr. Member
Apr 29, 2008
591 posts
165 upvotes
Toronto
Okay, I'm really confused now. Is the port a DV or DP? Some have been saying DPI but that looks too big for the machine. I don't want to get the wrong thing. Can you post a link if you find something suitable?

I also turned down the brightness... OMG, it was burning my eyeballs.
aviador wrote: I bought a dp-hdmi adapter for the laptop port (to use an hdmi cable) at amazon. On a second thought I think it's better (more room at the ports and less strain on the laptop port) to use a dp-dp cable and a dp-hdmi adapter for the monitor (I still have to buy them, but I found some at dx.)

I found my laptop's screen a bit blueish and too bright/too dim. I adjusted the settings for the Intel HD3000 manually for the three colors (gamma and contrast, no brightness) to my taste to get less saturated colors, good contrast and reduce the blue hue. I adjusted the brightness on the power profiles. You might want to adjust as well how the laptop switches gpus depending on task/program being used (it can be distracting). I just let it on discrete gpu all the time on AC power when I want to use a program that uses the nvidia gpu. On battery, I let it switch gpus but changes (brightness, colors, font sharpness, etc.) can be a bit distracting.
Deal Addict
Oct 31, 2012
4547 posts
1045 upvotes
London
b3lb3l wrote: Okay, I'm really confused now. Is the port a DV or DP? Some have been saying DPI but that looks too big for the machine. I don't want to get the wrong thing. Can you post a link if you find something suitable?

I also turned down the brightness... OMG, it was burning my eyeballs.
The port is a full-sized DisplayPort. Not to be confused with mini-DVI (common on older Mac machines) or miniDisplayPort (newer ThinkPads/other laptops and modern Macs).
Deal Addict
Sep 9, 2010
4863 posts
3538 upvotes
Burnaby
b3lb3l wrote: Okay, I'm really confused now. Is the port a DV or DP? Some have been saying DPI but that looks too big for the machine. I don't want to get the wrong thing. Can you post a link if you find something suitable?

I also turned down the brightness... OMG, it was burning my eyeballs.
The laptop video output port is (full size) Displayport.

Use [ DP(male)-to-HDMI(female) adapter #1 #2] + [ your usual HDMI cable ] to use monitor's HDMI input port.
or you can buy a DP(male) to HDMI(male) cable #3
or use a standard DP cable and get an adapter for the monitor side, in this case DP (female) to HDMI (male) adapter #4.

Please someone correct me if I'm mistaken.

LOL at the brightness.

Some places to buy are dealextreme, amazon or ebay. It takes long to receive them though since most of the time they are shipped using regular mail from China or Hong-Kong.
Deal Addict
Jun 19, 2006
3401 posts
715 upvotes
Toronto
To those who remove the DVD drive and replace it with Ultra-Bay with SSD drive on your W520, do you get 7mm or 9mm SSD drive? Tried googling, but still isn't sure.

I got this Caddy:
http://www.ebay.ca/itm/New-2nd-Hard-Dri ... 3ce2706e2e

It indicated "Working with SATA 2.5" inch 9.5mm / 12.7mm Serial ATA Hard drive and SSD (Solid State Drive) as well.".

Does that mean it works only with 9 mm SSD drive?
Deal Addict
Oct 31, 2012
4547 posts
1045 upvotes
London
albundy99999999 wrote: To those who remove the DVD drive and replace it with Ultra-Bay with SSD drive on your W520, do you get 7mm or 9mm SSD drive? Tried googling, but still isn't sure.

I got this Caddy:
http://www.ebay.ca/itm/New-2nd-Hard-Dri ... 3ce2706e2e

It indicated "Working with SATA 2.5" inch 9.5mm / 12.7mm Serial ATA Hard drive and SSD (Solid State Drive) as well.".

Does that mean it works only with 9 mm SSD drive?
Almost all devices that work with 9.5mm drives work just fine with 7mm drives as well, this is also the case with your caddy. The only ones that have difficulties are those that are friction fit and don't use screws at all.
Sr. Member
User avatar
Oct 29, 2007
802 posts
147 upvotes
Scycotic wrote: Almost all devices that work with 9.5mm drives work just fine with 7mm drives as well, this is also the case with your caddy. The only ones that have difficulties are those that are friction fit and don't use screws at all.
How about the speed, does it directly use SATA interface or USB conversion?
Deal Addict
Oct 31, 2012
4547 posts
1045 upvotes
London
andyhejob wrote: how about the speed, does it directly use sata interface or usb conversion?
sata
Deal Guru
User avatar
Mar 8, 2003
11234 posts
3800 upvotes
Richmond Hill
andyhejob wrote: How about the speed, does it directly use SATA interface or USB conversion?
sata 3 6gb/s
Sr. Member
User avatar
Aug 26, 2006
778 posts
527 upvotes
Montreal Area
My w520 just died,,, anyone wants to buy the powersupply brick for 60$ in montreal?
Sr. Member
Aug 20, 2006
935 posts
184 upvotes
tkboyz wrote: My w520 just died,,, anyone wants to buy the powersupply brick for 60$ in montreal?
From where? USED IBM EQUIPMENT?
Jr. Member
Dec 1, 2013
104 posts
27 upvotes
bluespecv wrote: This is back in stock by the way..
Bought one this week, the condition is really bad and have to return. Price upped at least $50 compared to last december.
Sr. Member
Apr 29, 2008
591 posts
165 upvotes
Toronto
So I thought I got a great deal with this computer, but my battery just died. It's weird because I was getting about 5 hours with the battery. When I first got it the cycle count was 110, condition was good. But it suddenly just stopped working. It says it is fully charged but in Power Manager it states "The battery has failed due to normal wear and tear. The battery cannot be charged. Replace the battery". Could this be some kind of fixable glitch?
Sr. Member
Apr 29, 2008
591 posts
165 upvotes
Toronto
I've discovered that this has happened after an automatic update to Lenovo battery monitor software. I think it has affected the chip in the battery so I don't think it is reversible. Beware auto updates if all is working well on your computer.

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