I don't really know what fact or experience you're looking for, but I'll try and address my points, based primarily on what's been posted in this thread -

Heating issues -

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I just want to let everyone know I have had the 256 gb i7 version for several days... I love it however after ten minutes it's so hot it almost burns my hands. I have been told it is defective and am shipping the item back to macmall... But just be aware the tablet was unusable to me because of the heat. I was also just using one-note :(

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http://forums.lenovo.com/t5/X-Series-Tablet-ThinkPad-Laptops/When-is-the-Helix-release-date/td-p/1047985/page/38

****Overheated, returned, probably defective.

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Hello, i have just received my Helix 36986DG and i'm having issues with the lenovo software.

for one the solution center keeps telling me there is 2 unknown devices, but the device manager doesn't show any. i have just disabled this.

the second and more annoying thing is the system update. it did all its updates including a bios update, but now it still keeps showing a recommended update Intel Smart Connect Technology 3.0 - 8 [64] version 3.0.42.1767. It refuses to go away, i tried to let it install and rebooted a dozen times and even installing the new 4.0 one from the intel site it still shows. even disabling the notification for this update doesn't really help because the tile in the metro start menu just keeps telling me there is an update.

Any suggestions?

 

About the heat discussion from earlier:

mine has the i5 cpu and in normal browsing and such the back becomes handwarm, but during the first installation and the windows updates/performance check it became quite hot on the right center side and the back there, too hot to touch actually. The fan noise isn't disturbing me, but the lit red dot on the thinkpad logo is...

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http://forums.lenovo.com/t5/X-Series-Tablet-ThinkPad-Laptops/When-is-the-Helix-release-date/td-p/1047985/page/61

****Another that was hot, "too hot to touch," possibly corrected itself - in my opinion still cause for mild concern.

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...

The temperature of the CPU got into the mid- to high 40s (C), which resulted in a very scary "fry" moment; it had clearly over heated. The only way to shut it down was with the emergency reset hole in back. I should have seen this coming because it was getting awfully hot under my hand as I took notes while listening to a webinar.

...

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It should have absolutely no problems in the 40C range.    It should be able to run just fine even in the 80C range.    Once it hits about 100C, I believe it will auto-throttle itself.    

 

I changed the levels in smart mode 1 to be a ltitle more conservative than the default:

52 - 0

55 - 1

60 - 2

75 - 3

80 - 7

90 - 128 (bios controlled)

 

At these levels, the fan will generally not run with light browsing, office application work, one note or light game apps.    It will kick on for applications where the CPU goes high for several seconds, which is what I want it to do.

 

It's been perfectly stable with no signs of instability and I've thrown everything I could at it to test it out, including burn-in tests and extended 3D game playing at full resolution (Half Life).

 

I just now tried to duplicate what the unluck other fellow has with screen overheating.   Brought up a couple of browsers , set the screen to 100% brightness with no auto-adjust (so max brightness) and drew with onenote for about 10 minutes.   While the screen was slightly warmish, it was by no means hot.   Very comfortable to draw on.

 

I then even ran the Intel Burn test in addition and continued to use onenote, and while the overall temp increased understandably, there was no discomfort in using the screen, just warmth.

 

I feel quite confident using TPFC set as above, and am even considering bumping the first 3 entries up a little (maybe 53, 57, 62)

  

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http://forums.lenovo.com/t5/X-Series-Tablet-ThinkPad-Laptops/When-is-the-Helix-release-date/td-p/1047985/page/44

****Another behaving unusally hot considering the reported temp range. This one may or may not have been overheating, but there is no evidence to the contrary other than a failure to reproduce.

Fan Noise - 

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Regarding heat, I have the i7 as well and have no issues.  I use TPFC to solve the horrifically obnoxious fan issue, but it does indeed solve it completely (the default threshold is simply too low -- no biggie).  Sorry to say that the other fellow's unit may indeed be defective in some way.

 

The machine gets hot when the A/V runs or is otherwise under load, but I have yet to see the CPU exceed ~67C.  No issues in tablet or laptop mode regarding physical touch and heat after ~2 weeks.

 

It's a great machine.  My only beef after all this time is that Windows 8 continues to be a little schizophrenic to me. Lately I am in desktop mode since the Helix is such a fantastic laptop, which makes me wonder about the purpose of Metro/Modern UI except when the tablet is detached.  But that is off-topic.

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http://forums.lenovo.com/t5/X-Series-Tablet-ThinkPad-Laptops/When-is-the-Helix-release-date/td-p/1047985/page/42

"Horrifically obnoxious fan noise," an issue that is repeated throughout the thread.

Other Random Issues Including Connection to Dock and USB -

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Interesting, have you all done this?


4/16 update changelog is quite long



UEFI: 1.10 / ECP: 1.13
•(Fix) Fixed an issue where the computer might hang when attaching/detaching
the USB device to/from the computer or Docking Station.
•(Fix) Fixed an issue where no sound was heard from the ThinkPad internal
speakers while the computer was locked when SmartAudio was set to
Multi-stream mode and headphones or external speakers were attached to
the computer. This fix is to follow Windows' behavior.
Hint: To disable sound from the internal speakers in lock state, press the
mute button on the keyboard.
•(Fix) Fixed an issue where some settings were not updated immediately after
loading default settings in ThinkPad Setup.
•(Fix) Fixed an issue where some unexpected characters might be shown on the
left-top on screen when a diagnostic splash screen was displayed.
•(Fix) Fixed an issue where the LED on the Fn key of the Enhanced Keyboard Dock
for ThinkPad Helix might not be updated when docked with it.
•(Fix) Fixed an issue where the system configuration including cTDP might not
be updated when docked with the Enhanced Keyboard Dock for ThinkPad
Helix.


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Hmmm...wonder what my problem is then. Did you upgrade your Bios yet?



Have not touched my bios was I supposed to?



dave

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http://forums.lenovo.com/t5/X-Series-Tablet-ThinkPad-Laptops/When-is-the-Helix-release-date/td-p/1047985/page/39

Screen-door effect -

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Sorry to say, hansolo82, but I just got back from returning the Surface to the Microsoft Store (no problems inside the 30 day window with that, for the record). I can say that although my eye is not as discerning as yours probably is--as I'm not a pro-- I did feel the Helix's color tint was a bit warm until I turned off auto-brightness. Also, and this one may serve as a **bleep** hard disappointment to some folks, but I do see what looks like a very mild screen door effect on white backgrounds when viewed close up. I don't think it's a manufacturing defect; probably just the way it is. It's *nowhere near* the X1 Carbon's effect, however, and is entirely livable. I'd hold off to hear from other users before panicking -- this so far is pretty mild and the screen is otherwise fine to my relatively untrained eyes once, as mentioned, auto-brightness is disabled.

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http://forums.lenovo.com/t5/X-Series-Tablet-ThinkPad-Laptops/When-is-the-Helix-release-date/td-p/1047985/page/13

Other Facts Possibly in Question -

Haswell supposed release date:

http://www.anandtech.com/show/6898/intel-details-haswell-overclocked-at-idf-beijing

Intel North Cape Prototype Reference Design:

http://www.engadget.com/2013/01/07/intel-north-cape-haswell-reference-design-eyes-on/

Dell Warranty Policy:

http://www.dell.com/content/topics/global.aspx/services/client_support/completecare_svc?c=us&l=en

Samsung Ativ Priced at $999:

http://www.microsoftstore.com/store/msusa/en_US/pdp/productID.257325300

Samsung Ativ Wacom Drivers:

http://www.mobiletechreview.com/notebooks/Samsung-ATIV-700T.htm

Lenovo Misses Expected Release Date:

http://www.ubergizmo.com/2013/02/lenovo-thinkpad-helix-misses-february-release-date/

No Innovation:

http://www.engadget.com/2010/05/31/asus-eee-pad-ep101tc-and-ep121-hands-on/

***At computex in 2010 the ep121 was supposed to come wih dock. The transformer series followed up on this, with the book being the first to announce a built it battery in the dock. The video at the bottom shows the ep121 in the dock back in 2010.

I sadly no longer have the pictures of my machine teardown so I can't verify the internal customizations I spoke of but I can confidently say that replacing a hard drive, motherboard, and RAM in is a pain in the rear, and the gpus on an M18x are on there real good, but in the meanwhile, here's a shot of a non-standard hard drive for my configuration and her name

Hopefully that'll do.

Finally, I'm not entirely sure what my name, or yours for that matter, has to do with this but I'm not concealing my identity - I use the username or a variation on every board I participate, and have for the past 10 years, as well as gamertags and IDs, but if you absolutely must know, my name is Jose Soriano. I'm also not bashing the product, this whole thing started because I said that Lenovo waiting too long was bad and by the time it actually releases the product it will no longer be top of the line, and for some people, the quality/reliability/company history/whatever is not enough to negate that. I also never used the word "crazy," that was another poster, and I'm not trying to dissuade anyone from anything, just stating my opinion that Lenovo's current decision making is poor.

So if there's anything elso you would like me to verify, then please let me know, and I'll do my best to provide you with whatever you need.

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The Helix is here. Now.

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The Helix is sorta here, kinda now. I think this is where the frustration driving these posts are coming from. It's a great device and people want to get their hands on it and can't.

Moderator note: Vigorous debate regarding Lenovo products and services, both constructively critical and complimentary, are welcomed as long as it remains civil and members are respectful of one another. It's perfectly reasonable to ask for references / sources to reports and for clarification of viewpoints, again, as long as it's civil and doesn't stray towards personal attack. When that happens, posts will be moderated or, in egregious cases, removed altogether.

In the last few pages of this thread there has been some straying towards that danger zone. So... let's please keep it respectful.

For reference: the Community Rules, specifically the "Prohibitons" section starting at "No Personal Attacks" and including the next paragraph.

Thanks.

Lenovo has missed their delivery dates on ALL THREE of their last flagship devices.  I can tell you many companies that haven't (including Apple which delivers millions of devices in a single day).

The Helix is a great device.  But, I don't think I am alone in being a business user that wants 3g/4g in my laptop embedded.  I think it is safe to assume that if I don't mind paying $2,000 for a laptop, I can handle $15 a month for convenience and a tablet that has 3G  (my ipad use would drop 70% if it was wifi only). 

The Helix is a few months late (or more) and is coming in under-speced (like the Carbon).  I'm glad that you are having no problems selling them, but your economic success is irrelevant to a lot of the points being discussed here. 

Helix in March- cutting edge and intruiging.

Helix in June- not as cutting edge, which is why some of us are questioning alternatives and production dates.

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The Helix is here. Now.

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The Helix is sorta here, kinda now. I think this is where the frustration driving these posts are coming from. It's a great device and people want to get their hands on it and can't.

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Exactly.

davewhittle, do you not realise you are speaking from the priviledged position of  being an owner/retailer/reseller.  Most people are not willing to pay the premium to get the Helix NOW. 

And in my experience, my last IBM (not Lenovo) Thinkpad was the A20p.  You may or may not recall, it too had this ridiculous delay of being several months past its supposed release date.  That was more than 13 years ago.  These are facts.  Tell me why I shouldn't be more than a little miffed with this Helix release?

I think that the Helix is a great machine, and I have yet to see one, other than in pictures on the internet. I have been waiting to buy one since February.

I'm fifty years old, and I'm patient. I only wished that Lenovo would be more forthcoming as to when the Helix will be available to the general market.

I have found myself coming to this forum to feed a fix that I need because I want one of these machines so bad.

OK, I apologize for interrupting the kvetching going on here by pointing out that these are actually shipping and actually available now. Yes, I'm in a privileged position. Priviliged as in I've worn out my phone ear and e-mail fingers over the past several months, while taking some major risks, to get these systems in. Sure, they're expensive. I have to pay more for them too.  Lenovo isn't offering their usual incentives on these, so I had to stick my neck out to purchase them and hope that they'd sell. So if you want one, go buy it now before supply dries up again. If you can't afford it, buy something you can afford. If it doesn't have all the features you want, make a decision about the trade-offs you face. Again, I have no problem with those who are honestly seeking information - but those who are just stirring the pot and whining and playing fast and loose with facts and dates, apparently to manipulate the opinions of those who are trying to make a decision, should be ashamed of themselves.

What I don't understand is how and why a thread on Helix release date where I attempted to answer the question for the benefit of those looking for one and trying to make the time/price trade-off decision, turned into an exercise in sour grapes bashing the Helix...

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What I don't understand is how and why a thread on Helix release date where I attempted to answer the question for the benefit of those looking for one and trying to make the time/price trade-off decision, turned into an exercise in sour grapes bashing the Helix...

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You're totally right about that, and I'm personnaly very grateful to you for your input about the availability of the Helix and your time clarifyling this point (but I still think "bashing" is not the right word :]).