T400 general build quality? Did I get unlucky or is this normal?

[Skurvy_Pirate]

I bought a T400 in September 2008, so just about 2 years ago. I was really pumped because of the Lenovo reputation for good laptops and I like the way they look. I got to customize it with switchable graphics etc.

Well right from the start I had some issues. My fingerprint reader wasn't working correctly. It would sometimes not wake up from sleep properly or something and be unavailable, or take over a minute to become ready (effectively making it useless). Well I called and got the palm rest replaced right away. The customer service was very good and quick.

Then my headphone port cracked for no reason, other than plugging in headphones. It still works but doesn't hold onto the plug anymore so it comes out easily. This is part of the MB and could not be replaced easily without sending in my whole laptop for repairs which would take a couple weeks. I couldn't do without my computer that long because I was a student and needed it everyday, and it wasn't that major of an issue, more of a stupid annoyance.

Then my disk drive started not reading discs all the time. It wasn't really a big issue, just had to try a few times. But it got worse. By the time it got pretty much unusable (can't even install Windows from DVD, have to use a USB), my comp was out of warranty.

Most recently my computer started shutting off randomly. Happened once, then again, then more frequently. I noticed that it happened when the CPU was under load and noticed I was getting a Critical Thermal Event error. So installed TPFancontrol and made sure my fan was working, and it was. But my temps were very high, they would be around 75 idle and go up to mid-high 90's under load!!! I took my computer apart and removed the fan heat sink. It looked like the thermal compound was put on very poorly and there was barely any at all on the actual CPU. I cleaned it off the CPU and GPU and reapplied some AS5. Now my temperatures are back down to 55-60 idle and below 80 under load.

My question is, are other people experiencing these kind of quality issues with the T400 or other newer Lenovo laptops? I know that Lenovo took over IBM and from what I thought, the quality was the same, at least the first year or two. But with these kind of issues I don't think I am likely to buy a Lenovo again. Unless my experience is abnormal.

[lead_org]

nope... my T400 is rock solid even after the recent 1 m drop on the carpeted ground... i got a long stress fracture on the right side of my laptop near the right usb port.... but the laptop just keep on working despite this. 

[Mark_Lenovo]

Skurvy,

Man, all those little things seem to add up over time... 

Honestly, I've not seen any widespread comments on headphone jacks or the optical drive, so seems either that you've had some bad luck with individual components, or it's environmental. I've not seen optical drive issues specific to T400, but opticals in general don't do well in a dusty environment and it sounds like it was degrading over time. Have you tried a cleaning disk? Just a thought.

The thermal grease on all the fans and heat sinks are pre-applied as a matrix of little dots of exact spacing and diameter so that they spread out to a uniform film when installed. As it ages, the factory grease does seem to get hard, not specific to the T400 and generally not an issue. Arctic Silver or equiv does seem to work rather well if you have it apart- glad that lowered your temps. I assume you blew out the heat sinks with canned air while you were at it? They can accumulate an amazing amount of dust over time that can lead to overheating too.

Also, I assume you've applied all BIOS and driver updates? Sept 2008 was a fairly early build of the T400, so there have been a number of updates released. You sound pretty savvy, so you probably have, but just thought I'd mention it.

Best regards,

Mark

[beickus]

"My question is, are other people experiencing these kind of quality issues with the T400 or other newer Lenovo laptops? I know that Lenovo took over IBM and from what I thought, the quality was the same, at least the first year or two. But with these kind of issues I don't think I am likely to buy a Lenovo again. Unless my experience is abnormal."

just browse a while this forum and will be tired of the variety and quantity of "issues" 

There is a difference between a Chinese laptop and a laptop made in China as it seems... 

This is not Europe this is not Japan this is not America : If you are lucky you have no issues at all - if not then you just curse the day you bought it...

[BrishenHawkins]

I find that the DVD drives will fail to read after awhile, usually due to hard impacts. This happened when IBM was making thinkpads too.

[zoltanthegypsy]

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Skurvy_Pirate wrote:

My question is, are other people experiencing these kind of quality issues with the T400 or other newer Lenovo laptops? I know that Lenovo took over IBM and from what I thought, the quality was the same, at least the first year or two. But with these kind of issues I don't think I am likely to buy a Lenovo again. Unless my experience is abnormal.

---

Don't know about newer units. but my T400 has been rock-solid.  That is, once I got rid of Vista.

Z.

[Skurvy_Pirate]

Well that is good to know that it is probably just bad luck. I have barely used my CD/DVD drive and it isn't dirty at all but I may try a cleaning disc. It couldn't do any more damage. The interior was surprisingly clean and not very dusty but I still blew it out with canned air just to be certain. I also did install the latest BIOS when I started experiencing shutdowns and it seemed to work for a couple days, but I think the situation was degrading quickly and it started to overheat again. I should probably get on eBay and search for a cheap replacement drive now since the system seems stable again.

[sys3175]

Low profile dvd/cd drives have given me issue as long as they have existed, I find that Lenovo/IBM seem to outlast the average but any of these drives can fail without any warning.

[psom]

Skurvy,

I also had the same overheating problems with my T400... A week ago I took my computer apart and removed and cleaned the fan. But i didn't know I had to reapply the thermal paste and as a result my T400 shuts down immediately after starting it up.

I had a look at the manual, and it says: 

"When installing (the fan):

Before you attach the fan assembly to the computer, apply thermal grease, at

an amount of 0.2 grams, on the part marked a as in the following figure.

Either too much or too less application of grease can cause a thermal problem

due to imperfect contact with a component. In some modes, you need to peel

the thin film off from the rubber b"

I need some advice on what to do with the "thin film on the rubber b"... Is your T400 one of the models with the "thin film on the rubber b"???  (i.e. with switchable graphics)

I'm not really confident about what I'm supposed to do..

Any help would be appreciated.

thanks

psom

[ColonelONeill]

You only need to peel off the thin film if you just got a new heatsink/fan component. The thin film is tinted; the underlying thermal pad is a greyish square.

I replaced my heatsink/fan due to some clicking with the fan, and replaced the stock paste with MX-2 because it was convenient. MX-2 is marginally better than the stock thermal paste.