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MagyarLenovo B50-70 Notebook Review Update
For the original German review, see here.
According to Lenovo's website, the B-Series is to offer "affordable laptops for small businesses." All members of the B-Series are to be regarded as office machines and should thus fulfill certain requirements: Good input devices, decent battery runtimes, matte screens, easy maintenance. The previously reviewed B50-30 and B50-45 are members of the B-Series that could only fulfill the two latter demands. Since the B50-70's build is identical with the two other B50 models, this laptop also has a wobbly keyboard that is not appropriate for a work device. Our test report reveals whether purchase arguments can be found for the laptop beyond that.
Contenders of the B50-70 are 15.6-inch laptops with prices of around 600 Euros (~$747). We just recently tested a corresponding model in the form of Dell's Inspiron 15 3542-2293. HP's Pavilion 15-p008ng is also a rival of the B50-70.
Since the B50-70 is identical with the B50-30 and B50-45, we will not go in-depth about casing, input devices, connectivity or speakers. The corresponding information can be found in the review of the B50-30.
Display
The B50-70 has a matte, 15.6-inch screen with a native resolution of 1920x1080 pixels. The screen's brightness of 189.8 cd/m², contrast of 266:1 or black level of 0.77 cd/m² are not compelling. The rates can be called bad in every respect. The competition proves that better is possible. The Full HD screen in the Pavilion 15-p008ng offers good brightness and the screen of the Inspiron 15 3542-2293 offers good contrast.
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Brightness Distribution: 83 %
Center on Battery: 205 cd/m²
Contrast: 266:1 (Black: 0.77 cd/m²)
ΔE Color 10.91 | 0.55-29.43 Ø5.2
ΔE Greyscale 11.1 | 0.57-98 Ø5.4
38% AdobeRGB 1998 (Argyll 1.6.3 3D)
41.02% AdobeRGB 1998 (Argyll 2.2.0 3D)
59.5% sRGB (Argyll 2.2.0 3D)
39.7% Display P3 (Argyll 2.2.0 3D)
Gamma: 2.47
| Lenovo B50-70 Radeon R5 M230, 4210U, Seagate Momentus SpinPoint M8 ST1000LM024 HN-M101MBB | HP Pavilion 15-p008ng GeForce 840M, 4210U, HGST Travelstar 5K1000 HTS541075A9E680 | Dell Inspiron 15 3542-2293 GeForce 820M, 4210U, Seagate Momentus Thin ST500LT012-1DG142 | Lenovo B50-45 Radeon R4 (Beema), A6-6310, Seagate Momentus Thin ST500LT012-1DG142 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Display | 22% | -2% | ||
| Display P3 Coverage | 39.7 | 48.78 23% | 38.83 -2% | |
| sRGB Coverage | 59.5 | 71.3 20% | 58.2 -2% | |
| AdobeRGB 1998 Coverage | 41.02 | 50.4 23% | 40.16 -2% | |
| Screen | 19% | 33% | 20% | |
| Brightness middle | 205 | 343 67% | 228 11% | 192 -6% |
| Brightness | 190 | 329 73% | 211 11% | 191 1% |
| Brightness Distribution | 83 | 87 5% | 86 4% | 86 4% |
| Black Level * | 0.77 | 1.02 -32% | 0.33 57% | 0.37 52% |
| Contrast | 266 | 336 26% | 691 160% | 519 95% |
| Colorchecker dE 2000 * | 10.91 | 10.9 -0% | 9.6 12% | 11.03 -1% |
| Greyscale dE 2000 * | 11.1 | 12.09 -9% | 10.17 8% | 11.59 -4% |
| Gamma | 2.47 89% | 2.01 109% | 2.55 86% | 2.3 96% |
| CCT | 13887 47% | 10388 63% | 12431 52% | 13897 47% |
| Color Space (Percent of AdobeRGB 1998) | 38 | 46.1 21% | 37 -3% | |
| Total Average (Program / Settings) | 21% /
20% | 16% /
23% | 20% /
20% |
* ... smaller is better
The screen has a DeltaE 2000 shift of 10.91 in state of delivery - a common rate in this price range. A rate less than 3 would be desirable. The screen also has a bluish cast.
The matte surface makes it quite possible to use the laptop outdoors. However, the low brightness and low contrast prevent using it in exceedingly bright surroundings. The installed screen is a TN model, and thus it can only offer limited viewing angles.
Performance
Lenovo offers a 15.6-inch office laptop with its B50-70. The computing power is more than sufficient for routine operations. The installed graphics chip allows playing some games. Our review sample is sold for approximately 600 Euros (~$747). Lenovo has countless other configurations within its B50-Series with both Intel and AMD processors.
Processor
The processor installed in the B50-70 is dubbed Intel Core i5-4210U (Haswell). This dual-core processor clocks with a base speed of 1.7 GHz, which can be increased to 2.4 GHz (both cores) or 2.7 GHz (one core) via Turbo. The CPU's TDP is 15 watts. The processor's full computing power is available in both AC and battery modes. The CPU tests of the Cinebench benchmarks were performed with the full speeds.
System Performance
The system runs smoothly. We did not experience any problems. The PCMark benchmark scores are also very good.
| PCMark 8 Home Score Accelerated v2 | 2797 points | |
| PCMark 8 Creative Score Accelerated v2 | 3313 points | |
| PCMark 8 Work Score Accelerated v2 | 3702 points | |
Help | ||
| PCMark 8 - Home Score Accelerated v2 (sort by value) | |
| Lenovo B50-70 | |
| Lenovo B50-45 | |
| Dell Inspiron 15 3542-2293 | |
| HP Pavilion 15-p008ng | |
| Acer Aspire E5-551-T8X3 | |
| Asus X555LN-XO112H | |
Storage Devices
The hard drive in the B50-70 comes from Seagate. It has a capacity of 1 TB and spins with 5400 revolutions per minute. The drive's transfer speeds are satisfactory and correspond to the performance of modern 5400 rpm hard drives.
Graphics Card
Both the HD Graphics 4400 core from Intel and AMD's Radeon R5 M230 GPU have found their way into the B50-70. The Intel GPU is enabled in routine and battery mode, and the Radeon core is demanded in performance-devouring applications like computer games. The chips create an Enduro array (AMD's answer to Nvidia's Optimus technology). The technology does not always function as smoothly as Nvidia's counterpart. The user has to sometimes make manual readjustments. The Radeon GPU is a member of the entry-level range. It supports DirectX 11.1 and clocks with speeds up to 855 MHz. The graphics core's 3DMark benchmark scores are marginally lower than those of a GeForce 820M GPU.
| 3DMark 11 Performance | 1265 points | |
| 3DMark Ice Storm Standard Score | 37809 points | |
| 3DMark Cloud Gate Standard Score | 3871 points | |
| 3DMark Fire Strike Score | 686 points | |
Help | ||
Gaming Performance
The CPU-GPU combination in the B50-70 manages to render many games smoothly in low resolutions and low to sometimes medium quality levels. It is not possible to use the screen's native resolution in almost any game. Although the Radeon R5 M230 graphics core is just behind the GeForce 820M GPU in the 3DMark benchmarks, Nvidia's chip reaps in a clear advantage in gaming practice. Neither graphics core is really suitable for users who play on a regular basis. They should turn to laptops with at least a Radeon R9 M265X graphics core or a GeForce 840M. Alternatives for the B50-70 would, for example, be HP's Pavilion 15-p008ng. The laptop features the mentioned GeForce 840M graphics core and also has a matte Full HD screen. HP's laptop is available for approximately 600 Euros (~$747).
| low | med. | high | ultra | |
| Tomb Raider (2013) | 51.8 | 25.3 | 16.3 | |
| Splinter Cell: Blacklist (2013) | 30.4 | 23.9 | 10.1 | |
| Risen 3: Titan Lords (2014) | 30.5 | 16.9 | 7.2 | |
| Sims 4 (2014) | 130.9 | 38.9 | 16.1 | |
| Fifa 15 (2014) | 44 | 27.7 | ||
| Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor (2014) | 19.1 | 13.9 | 6.9 | |
| Alien: Isolation (2014) | 27.4 | 18.6 | 9.8 | |
| Ryse: Son of Rome (2014) | 20.2 | 12.5 | 5.6 | |
| The Evil Within (2014) | 14.8 | 10.4 | 5.6 | |
| F1 2014 (2014) | 77 | 52 | 29 | 16 |
| Civilization: Beyond Earth (2014) | 17.5 | 12.6 | 7.8 |
| Lenovo B50-70 Radeon R5 M230, 4210U, Seagate Momentus SpinPoint M8 ST1000LM024 HN-M101MBB | Dell Inspiron 15 3542-2293 GeForce 820M, 4210U, Seagate Momentus Thin ST500LT012-1DG142 | HP Pavilion 15-p008ng GeForce 840M, 4210U, HGST Travelstar 5K1000 HTS541075A9E680 | Lenovo IdeaPad Z50-75 Radeon R6 M255DX, A8-7100, WDC Scorpio Blue WD10JPCX-24UE4T0 | Acer Aspire E1-572G-54204G75Mnkk Radeon HD 8750M, 4200U, TOSHIBA MQ01ABD075 | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tomb Raider | 51% | 81% | 50% | 83% | |
| 1024x768 Low Preset | 51.8 | 74.8 44% | 85.1 64% | 70.7 36% | 92.6 79% |
| 1366x768 Normal Preset AA:FX AF:4x | 25.3 | 40 58% | 52.2 106% | 39.7 57% | 45.5 80% |
| 1366x768 High Preset AA:FX AF:8x | 16.3 | 24.6 51% | 28.1 72% | 25.5 56% | 30.8 89% |
| Risen 3: Titan Lords | 32% | 80% | -3% | ||
| 1024x768 Low, Off | 30.5 | 40 31% | 49.9 64% | 26.2 -14% | |
| 1366x768 Medium, Off | 16.9 | 22.8 35% | 32.3 91% | 15.9 -6% | |
| 1920x1080 High, On AF:8x | 7.2 | 9.3 29% | 13.4 86% | 7.9 10% | |
| Total Average (Program / Settings) | 42% /
41% | 81% /
81% | 24% /
23% | 83% /
83% |
Emissions
System Noise
The fan spins with a consistently low speed in idle that is not distracting. The noise level climbs to 39.8 dB in medium load (via 3DMark06) and 41.5 dB during full load (stress test via Prime95 and Furmark). These are normal rates for a laptop with this configuration.
Noise Level
| Idle |
| 33.9 / 33.9 / 33.9 dB(A) |
| HDD |
| 34.8 dB(A) |
| DVD |
| 38.8 / dB(A) |
| Load |
| 39.8 / 41.5 dB(A) |
 | ||
30 dB silent 40 dB(A) audible 50 dB(A) loud |
||
min:  , med:  , max:  Voltcraft sl-320 (15 cm distance) | ||
Temperature
The B50-70's CPU performed the stress test (Prime95 and Furmark run for at least one hour) with 2.4 GHz in both AC and battery modes. The GPU ran the stress test with 650 to 750 MHz in AC mode but throttled to 400 MHz in battery mode. The casing's temperatures were very moderate with below 40 °C on every measuring point in the stress test.
(+) The maximum temperature on the upper side is 38.8 °C / 102 F, compared to the average of 34.2 °C / 94 F, ranging from 21.2 to 62.5 °C for the class Office.
(+) The bottom heats up to a maximum of 39.6 °C / 103 F, compared to the average of 36.7 °C / 98 F
(+) In idle usage, the average temperature for the upper side is 24.6 °C / 76 F, compared to the device average of 29.5 °C / 85 F.
(+) The palmrests and touchpad are reaching skin temperature as a maximum (33.7 °C / 92.7 F) and are therefore not hot.
(-) The average temperature of the palmrest area of similar devices was 27.8 °C / 82 F (-5.9 °C / -10.7 F).
Energy Management
Power Consumption
The B50-70 is overall quite energy efficient. The idle power consumption was clearly below 10 watts. The requirement climbed up to 39.8 watts during full load. It thus obviously consumes less power than comparable devices, such as Dell's Inspiron 15 3542-2293.
| Off / Standby | 0.1 / 0.2 Watt |
| Idle | 4.1 / 6.6 / 6.6 Watt |
| Load |
24.2 / 39.8 Watt |
   
| |
Battery Runtime
Websites are opened automatically every 40 seconds using the energy-saving profile and a screen brightness of approximately 150 cd/m² in the practical Wi-Fi test. The B50-70 achieved a runtime of 3:15 hours here - a poor rate that corresponds to its sister models with similar runtimes. The low battery capacities of the three Lenovo laptops are noticed here (32 Wh).
Verdict
Lenovo's B50-70 would actually have what it takes for a work machine on the desk at home or in the office. It offers a good portion of application performance, usually runs quietly, and it barely heats up. The high-capacity storage and easy maintenance as well as upgrade options also contribute to that. Not to forget the matte, Full HD screen that, however, cannot offer good rates. Unfortunately, Lenovo shows weaknesses in a decisive point for office laptops: The keyboard. The installed model wobbles evidently. We have seen considerably better keyboards in cheaper laptops. The laptop's battery life is not awe-inspiring either. Users who can live with these shortcomings will, however, get an overall decent office laptop. Lastly, one final word about the warranty period. Lenovo only includes a 12-month warranty, which is too little for a 600-Euro (~$747) laptop and does not demonstrate confidence in its own product.
