SIDE-BY-SIDE HARDWARE AUDITZero Pricing • Objective Specification Advantage Highlighting
Lenovo ThinkPad T420 (Classic 7-Row Keyboard) vs Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 1 (Carbon Pioneer)
Compare processor microarchitectures, maximum GPU TGP, display color accuracy, RAM upgradability, and battery Watt-hours with automated win badge analysis.
Slot 1 • Lenovo2011
Lenovo ThinkPad T420 (Classic 7-Row Keyboard)
14" TFT LCD • 2.24 kg • x86_64
Slot 2 • Lenovo2012
Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 1 (Carbon Pioneer)
14" TFT LCD • 1.36 kg • x86_64
Reasons to Choose Lenovo ThinkPad T420 (Classic 7-Row Keyboard)
- ✓Larger Battery Capacity (94Wh vs 45Wh)
- ✓User-Upgradable RAM SODIMM/LPCAMM2 (vs Soldered)
Reasons to Choose Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 1 (Carbon Pioneer)
- ✓Lighter Chassis (1.36 kg vs 2.24 kg)
- ✓Thinner Profile (18.8 mm vs 30.5 mm)
- ✓Higher Peak Brightness (300nits vs 220nits)
- ✓Higher Max GPU TGP (17W vs 15W)
01.Platform & Compute Subsystem
Processor architecture, graphics envelope, and power ceilingProcessor / SoC
Intel Core i5-2520M / Core i7-2640M (Sandy Bridge 32nm)
Intel Core i5-3427U / Core i7-3667U (Ivy Bridge 22nm 17W TDP)
CPU Core Architecture
2-core / 4-thread (2.5 GHz base, 3.2 GHz Turbo Boost)
2-core / 4-thread (2.0 GHz base, 3.2 GHz Turbo)
ISA Architecture
x86_64
x86_64
Graphics Hardware
NVIDIA NVS 4200M (1GB Optimus) / Intel HD Graphics 3000
Intel HD Graphics 4000
Maximum Graphics TGP
15 W
17 W+2 W
Operating System
Windows 7 Professional
Windows 7 Professional / Windows 8 Pro
02.Memory & Storage Upgradability
RAM capacity, SODIMM vs soldered, and NVMe expansionRAM Capacity Options
4 GB / 8 GB / 16 GB DDR3
4 GB / 8 GB DDR3L (Soldered)
RAM Technology / Speed
DDR3-1333 MHz SODIMM
DDR3L-1333 MHz
RAM Upgradability
✅ User-Upgradable✅ Upgradable RAM
Soldered Onboard
RAM Sockets / Form Factor
2x SO-DIMM (Upgradable to 16 GB)
Soldered Onboard
M.2 SSD Expansion Slots
1 Slot
1 Slot
Storage Bus & Architecture
2.5-inch SATA III bay + internal mSATA slot in WWAN slot
Lenovo proprietary 20+6 pin blade SSD connector
03.Display & Color Accuracy
Panel technology, screen resolution, refresh rate, and luminancePanel Technology
TFT LCD
TFT LCD
Screen Diagonal Size
14 inches
14 inches
Aspect Ratio
16:9
16:9
Resolution
1600 × 900 px (HD+ Anti-glare)
1600 × 900 px (HD+ Matte Display)
Display Refresh Rate
60 Hz
60 Hz
Color Gamut Coverage
65% sRGB
72% sRGB
Peak Brightness
220 nits
300 nits+80 nits
04.Chassis, Thermals & Battery
Enclosure weight, profile thickness, battery capacity, and chargingChassis Weight
2.24 kg
1.36 kg-0.88 kg lighter
Chassis Thickness
30.5 mm
18.8 mm-11.7 mm lighter
Chassis Materials
Magnesium Roll Cage base with titanium composite top cover, classic 7-row tactile keyboard
Multi-layer carbon-fiber reinforced roll cage with magnesium-alloy bottom
Cooling Solution
Enhanced Owl-wing fin fan with copper heatpipe module
Thin-blade centrifugal blower with RapidCharge heat dissipation
Battery Capacity
94 Wh+49 Wh
45 Wh
Bundled Charger Wattage
90 W
90 W
USB-C Power Delivery
No
No
05.I/O Ports & Connectivity
High-speed buses, external display outs, and media card readersPort Complement
4x USB 2.0 (one Powered USB, one eSATA/USB combo), DisplayPort, VGA, Gigabit Ethernet, ExpressCard/34, 4-in-1 SD reader, Ultrabay, ThinkLight
1x USB 3.0, 1x USB 2.0 (always-on), Mini DisplayPort, 4-in-1 SD card slot, 3.5mm combo audio, rectangular slim-tip power jack
Thunderbolt Ports
None
None
HDMI Revision
DisplayPort 1.1a (Supports full HDMI/DVI audio via adapter)
Mini DisplayPort 1.1a
Card Reader
Full-size SDXC Reader
Full-size SDXC Reader
3.5mm Headphone Jack
✅ Present
✅ Present
Wireless Networking
Intel Centrino Advanced-N 6205 802.11a/b/g/n, Bluetooth 3.0
Intel Centrino Advanced-N 6205S 802.11a/b/g/n, Bluetooth 4.0, Optional 3G Gobi