Lenovo ThinkPad L420 Review

Lenovo ThinkPad L420

Review Summary:

The ThinkPad L420 is a decent small-business laptop with exceptional build quality.

Pros

• Very good build quality
• Excellent keyboard and touchpad
• Good selection of ports

Cons

• Average battery life
• Low screen resolution
• Only 1-year warranty standard

Lenovo ThinkPad L420 Full Review

 

The L-series ThinkPad is an eco-friendly business notebook made from post-consumer recycled content. Read our review to see if the 14-inch Lenovo ThinkPad L420 measures up to the ThinkPad standards for durability and performance.

Our Lenovo ThinkPad L420 review unit has the following specifications:

• 14-inch 720p (1366x768) anti-glare display with LED backlighting
• Windows 7 Professional 64-bit
• Intel "Sandy Bridge" Core i5-2520M dual-core processor (2.5~3.2GHz Turbo Boost, 3MB cache, 35W TDP)
• Intel HM65 chipset
• Integrated Intel HD graphics
• 4GB DDR3-1333 RAM (1x 4GB, supports up to 8GB - 2x4GB)
• 320GB 7200RPM Seagate hard drive (ST9320423AS)
• Intel Centrino Advanced-N 6205 wireless network adapter
• Integrated Bluetooth 3.0 wireless
• Integrated 720p webcam
• DVD burner (MATSHITA DVD-RAM UJ8A0A)
• Integrated biometric fingerprint reader
• 6-cell li-ion battery (10.8V, 5.2Ah, 57Wh)
• Weight: 5.1 lbs.
• Dimensions: 13.54 x 9.17 x 1.26~1.42 inches
• 1-year limited warranty
• MSRP: $969

Our review unit has numerous options which bring the price up substantially from its base of $599. The upgrades include Windows 7 Professional over Windows 7 Home Premium; the Intel Core i5 processor from the base i3; double the RAM (4GB vs. 2GB); a higher-capacity hard drive (320GB vs. 250GB); Bluetooth wireless; a 720p webcam; finally, an upgraded Intel wireless card. The final price of $969 as of writing is not exactly a bargain, especially considering the notebook only comes with a one-year warranty.

Build and Design
What can be said about a ThinkPad's design - these notebooks have always placed function over form. ThinkPads as we know them have changed subtly but steadily from their introduction over 20 years ago. The L420 has an unassuming black plastic exterior with a matte finish. Unlike older ThinkPads the L420 does not look boxy thanks to its inward-cut sides and slightly sloped front. An interesting design feature is the speakers located in the lid below the display; most business notebooks put speakers under the palm rest or on either side of the keyboard.

Overall build quality is excellent; despite its all-plastic exterior, the L420 feels solid. The plastic is thick and durable. The palm rest surface barely moves when pressed down upon, meaning there is excellent support underneath. The chassis hardly bends when twisted by the corners, which is another good indicator of a strong internal frame.

The two metal display hinges are well-positioned to support the lid; they are unmovable. Being all plastic, the display twists a bit more than I prefer; furthermore, pushing in on the back of the display causes some ripples on the screen. This should be a non-issue assuming the notebook is not thrown around. Those looking to upgrade the L420 will find easy access to the RAM, hard drive, and wireless card; simply remove the large main panel on the bottom of the notebook.

Ports and Features
The L420 has an above average port selection for a 14-inch notebook, including DisplayPort, eSATA, and an ExpressCard/54 slot. It also has a docking station port on the bottom of the chassis. The L420 does not have USB 3.0. All picture descriptions are left to right.

Front: Status lights

Back: USB 2.0 port, battery pack, cooling exhaust vent

Left: Cooling exhaust vent, VGA, Ethernet, eSATA/USB combo port, DisplayPort, microphone/headphone combo jack, ExpressCard/54 (top)

Right: Wireless on/off switch, memory card reader, 2x USB 2.0, DVD burner, AC power, lock slot

Keyboard and Touchpad
ThinkPads have always been known for their legendary keyboards; the L420 proudly continues that tradition. Dare I say this keyboard is slightly gimped compared to higher-end ThinkPads (such as the T-series): it has six rows of keys instead of seven. Normally the home, end, page up, page down, insert, and delete keys are clustered together at the top right; with this layout, they are spread across the top in a single row and the page up/page down keys are placed next to the arrow keys. The layout is not as nice as the new T420s but is more than functional. Lenovo likely decided on the six row layout out of space concerns; adding an additional row of keys would likely cramp the touchpad.

Enough about the layout - let's talk about the feel. It's fantastic. Each key is reassuringly made of thick plastic and securely anchored to the surface. There is absolutely no flex, which is another testament to the L420's build quality. The keyboard is reasonably quiet and should not disturb others nearby.

Lenovo's "UltraNav" pointing device includes both a pointing stick in the center of the keyboard and a traditional touchpad in the palm rest. The pointing stick has a grippy rubber surface and three well-placed buttons below the keyboard. The touchpad has a nicely-textured matte surface that is easy to track on regardless of whether fingers are moist or dry. All of the touchpad buttons are quiet and provide good feedback.

Screen and Speakers
The L420 has a 14-inch display with an anti-glare coating and 720p (1366x768) resolution. The display quality is average at best; brightness is satisfactory though by no means "bright". Contrast is average; the Command Prompt window is not quite deep black as it should be. Viewing angles are typical for a TN-type panel; colors quickly distort from above and below. It suffices for business use.

The 1366x768 resolution is subpar considering this notebook is intended for productivity. Unfortunately the L420 is not available with a higher-resolution screen as of publishing. A 1600x900 screen would increase the amount of information viewable on the screen at once; this would mean less scrolling and the ability to use two windows side-by-side.

The L420 has two stereo speakers located directly below the display facing the user. They have typical sound quality for notebook speakers and no perceptible bass.

Performance and Benchmarks
The L420 is well-stocked with performance components. The second-generation Intel Core i5 processor is more than capable of handling business productivity tasks; 4GB of RAM is enough for multitasking; the integrated Intel HD graphics work fine for everything but gaming. The hard drive is not impressive; the Seagate 7200.4, while it runs at 7200RPM, is old and slower than most modern 5400RPM drives. It is also noisier than newer drives.

Wprime processor comparison results (lower scores are better):

PCMark05 measures overall system performance (higher scores are better):

PCMark Vantage measures overall system performance (higher scores are better):

3DMark06 measures overall graphics performance (higher scores are better):

3DMark Vantage measures overall graphics performance (higher scores are better):

CrystalDiskMark storage drive performance test:

Heat and Noise
The L420 has a single fan that exhausts out the left side of the chassis. It is always on and audible, however has no annoying pitch; it mostly sounds like a rush of air. Even under full load, the fan hardly gets louder. It would be nice if the fan turned off when the notebook idles.

The surface of the notebook remains room temperature; under full load, the only warm spot on the notebook is the bottom of the chassis under the fan intake. Overall, the L420 has a good cooling solution.

Battery Life
The L420 has a modest 6-cell 57Wh battery. I measured four hours, 36 minutesof life during our standard battery rundown test (Windows 7 Balanced power profile, 70% screen brightness, wireless active, and refreshing a web page every 60 seconds). This is less than I expected; I was looking for a time well north of five hours.

Battery life test results (higher scores mean better battery life):

Conclusion
The Lenovo ThinkPad L420 is an above-average offering in the value business notebook segment. It succeeds in barely enough areas to get our recommendation, however. Highlights first: very good build quality, an excellent keyboard and touchpad, a good selection of input/output ports, and good overall performance. Now for the downsides; the first is battery life. Four and a half hours is average at best; ideally we were looking for another hour. Secondly, the 1366x768 screen resolution is too low for office productivity and makes multitasking difficult. Lastly, the $969 asking price is a bit high; Lenovo should either knock $100 off the price or include at least a two-year warranty standard.

In the end, the Lenovo ThinkPad L420 is a very well-built machine and meets most of our expectations.

Pros:

• Very good build quality
• Excellent keyboard and touchpad
• Good selection of ports

Cons:

• Average battery life
• Low screen resolution
• Only 1-year warranty standard

Individual Ratings: *
Software & Support 
Upgrade Capabilities 
Usability 
Design 
Performance 
Features 
Price/Value Rating 

* Ratings averaged to produce final score