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Lenovo IdeaPad Y700-15ACZ Notebook Review

Badly designed. Even though it might not be the fault of the processor manufacturer, AMD-based notebooks do not have the best reputation. The reviewed model of the new Lenovo Y700 confirms this statement. The alleged gaming notebook is hardly suitable for gaming, although the performance should be sufficient in theory.

For the original German review, see here.

Regardless whether 15.6 or 17-inch, the successors of Lenovo's Y50 and Y70 series are all called Y700 and are advertised as gaming laptops by the manufacturer. Each size is available in different configurations. We have already reviewed the 17-inch Lenovo IdeaPad Y700-17ISK with a very similar case in December 2015. At the time of testing, the German Lenovo site only listed four 15-inch variants for prices between 999 and 1699 Euros (~$1110 and ~$1887). These are based on different Intel Skylake quad-core CPUs and the Nvidia GeForce GTX 960M. Apart from a plethora of 15-inch models, you could also take a look at several 17-inch models at a big Berliner price-comparison portal.

Lenovo kept its options open and not only offers models with Intel/Nvidia power but also variants like our test model, which completely rely on AMD for graphics and CPU. Our Y700-14ACZ weighs in at 2.7 kg and is available for just under 1000 Euros (~$1111). It comes with the current Carrizo top model for notebooks called AMD FX-8800P (4x 2.1 to 3.4 GHz, 12 to 35 Watt TDP), which is set to 15 Watt according to CPU-Z here. However, in view of our benchmark results, we doubt that and assume a higher TDP. The processor is combined with 8 GB of RAM. The AMD Radeon R9 M385X mid-range GPU with 2 GB dedicated GDDR5 VRAM handles 3D graphics. In addition, the SoC integrates the AMD Radeon R7 (Carrizo) GPU. Moreover, you can enjoy a matte IPS display with 1920x1080 pixels.

We compare our test model to two 15-inch devices, the Acer Aspire V5-591G-71K2 and the HP Envy 15-ae020ng, with similar performance and price which achieved quite good ratings. In addition, we add the Y700-15ISK variant with Intel and Nvidia hardware for about 1200 Euros (~$1333) to our comparison. The fifth model is the not necessarily comparable HP EliteBook 745 G3 with professional AMD Pro A12-8800B, which, however, is technically almost identical to the FX-8800P.

80NY000DGE (Y700 Series)
Processor
AMD FX-8800P 4 x 2.1 - 3.4 GHz, Carrizo
Graphics adapter
AMD Radeon R9 M385X - 2048 MB VRAM, Core: 1000 MHz, Memory: 4800 MHz, GDDR5, 15.201.1301.1007, AMD Enduro
Memory
8 GB 
, DDR3, 1600 MHz, single channel, 1 of 2 slots used, max. 16 GB
Display
15.60 inch 16:9, 1920 x 1080 pixel, Samsung SDC3752 (LTN156HL09401), IPS, Full HD, glossy: no
Mainboard
AMD KernCZ
Storage
WDC Slim WD10SPCX-24HWST1, 1000 GB 
, 5400 rpm, HDD
Soundcard
Realtek ALC235 @ AMD K15.6 - High Definition Audio Controller
Connections
1 USB 2.0, 2 USB 3.0 / 3.1 Gen1, 1 HDMI, 1 Kensington Lock, Audio Connections: 3.5 mm audio combo, Card Reader: SD/SDHC/SDXC/MMC
Networking
Realtek RTL8168/8111 Gigabit-LAN (10/100/1000MBit/s), Realtek 8821AE Wireless LAN 802.11ac PCI-E NIC (ac = Wi-Fi 5/), Bluetooth 4.0
Size
height x width x depth (in mm): 26 x 387 x 277 ( = 1.02 x 15.24 x 10.91 in)
Battery
60 Wh Lithium-Ion, 4-cell
Operating System
Microsoft Windows 10 Home 64 Bit
Camera
Webcam: HD
Additional features
Speakers: 2.1 JBL (Dolby Home Theater), Keyboard: Chiclet, Keyboard Light: yes, power adapter: 135 Watt, 24 Months Warranty
Weight
2.69 kg ( = 94.89 oz / 5.93 pounds), Power Supply: 460 g ( = 16.23 oz / 1.01 pounds)
Price
999 EUR
Note: The manufacturer may use components from different suppliers including display panels, drives or memory sticks with similar specifications.

 

Case

Case, connectivity, input devices and speakers remained the same as the Lenovo IdeaPad Y700-15ISK 80NW's. Please check our review for information about these. 

Lenovo IdeaPad Y700-15
Lenovo IdeaPad Y700-15
Lenovo IdeaPad Y700-15
Lenovo IdeaPad Y700-15
Lenovo IdeaPad Y700-15
Lenovo IdeaPad Y700-15
Lenovo IdeaPad Y700-15
Lenovo IdeaPad Y700-15
Lenovo IdeaPad Y700-15
Lenovo IdeaPad Y700-15
Lenovo IdeaPad Y700-15
Lenovo IdeaPad Y700-15
Lenovo IdeaPad Y700-15
Lenovo IdeaPad Y700-15
Lenovo IdeaPad Y700-15
Lenovo IdeaPad Y700-15
Lenovo IdeaPad Y700-15
Lenovo IdeaPad Y700-15

Display

Subpixel grid
Subpixel grid

The test model uses a matte IPS display from Samsung with mediocre brightness. Its Full HD resolution is ideal for gamers. We did not notice the slow response time in a negative way. The brightness distribution of 83% is about average, but unfortunately significant screen bleeding is visible in completely black images along the bottom edge. This weakness is not apparent during normal use.

227
cd/m²
229
cd/m²
199
cd/m²
240
cd/m²
236
cd/m²
210
cd/m²
233
cd/m²
239
cd/m²
220
cd/m²
Distribution of brightness
Samsung SDC3752 (LTN156HL09401) tested with X-Rite i1Pro 2
Maximum: 240 cd/m² (Nits) Average: 225.9 cd/m²
Brightness Distribution: 83 %
Center on Battery: 236 cd/m²
Contrast: 1180:1 (Black: 0.2 cd/m²)
ΔE Color 7 | 0.5-29.43 Ø5
ΔE Greyscale 6.7 | 0.57-98 Ø5.3
59% sRGB (Argyll 1.6.3 3D)
38% AdobeRGB 1998 (Argyll 1.6.3 3D)
41.33% AdobeRGB 1998 (Argyll 2.2.0 3D)
59.8% sRGB (Argyll 2.2.0 3D)
39.99% Display P3 (Argyll 2.2.0 3D)
Gamma: 2.39

The black value of only 0.2 cd/m2 is exemplary, which conforms to black appearing deep. As a result, the display achieves a great contrast of 1180:1, although its maximum brightness is not very high. In our comparison group, only the HP EliteBook is significantly brighter. Due to its marginally higher black value, it delivers a similarly high contrast. In particular, the Acer Aspire and HP Envy fall significantly behind in this aspect. All things considered, there is little to complain about sharpness.

Let's turn to color shifts represented in DeltaE values. Serious image editing is first possible with DeltaE values smaller than 3. For an IPS model, our device only accomplishes a not that good 7 (gray scale + ColorChecker) out-of-the-box. However, the competitors do not perform much better. You can see in the much too high deviations of the Acer and HP, that they only use cheaper TN panels. The color profile linked in the box removed the slight green tint of our sample. However, the AdobeRGB coverage of only 38%, which is much too low for (semi-) professional graphics work, cannot be improved.

CalMAN grayscale pre-calibration
CalMAN grayscale pre-calibration
CalMAN ColorChecker pre-calibration
CalMAN ColorChecker pre-calibration
CalMAN Color saturation pre-calibration
CalMAN Color saturation pre-calibration
Lenovo Y700 vs. AdobeRGB
Lenovo Y700 vs. AdobeRGB
CalMAN grayscale post-calibration
CalMAN grayscale post-calibration
CalMAN ColorChecker post-calibration
CalMAN ColorChecker post-calibration
CalMAN Color saturation post-calibration
CalMAN Color saturation post-calibration
Lenovo Y700 vs. sRGB
Lenovo Y700 vs. sRGB
response time - black-white-time (rise)
response time - black-white-time (rise)
response time - black-white-time (fall)
response time - black-white-time (fall)
response time - grey-to-grey (rise)
response time - grey-to-grey (rise)
response time - grey-to-grey (fall)
response time - grey-to-grey (fall)
Lenovo Y700-15ACZ
Samsung SDC3752 (LTN156HL09401)
Acer Aspire V5-591G-71K2
ChiMei N156HGE-EAL
HP Envy 15-ae020ng
CMN15C4
Lenovo Ideapad Y700 15ISK 80NW
LG Philips
HP EliteBook 745 G3
 
Display
94%
-2%
-4%
76%
Display P3 Coverage
39.99
84.9
112%
39.3
-2%
38.55
-4%
75.7
89%
sRGB Coverage
59.8
99.8
67%
58.7
-2%
57.6
-4%
95.8
60%
AdobeRGB 1998 Coverage
41.33
83.3
102%
40.64
-2%
39.86
-4%
74.5
80%
Response Times
9%
-9%
15%
Response Time Grey 50% / Grey 80% *
54 ?(21, 33)
44 ?(25, 19, short plateau)
19%
40.8 ?(16.4, 24.4)
24%
46.8 ?(18, 28.8)
13%
Response Time Black / White *
30 ?(7, 23)
28 ?(11, 17, short plateau)
7%
24 ?(4, 20)
20%
25.2 ?(6, 19.2)
16%
PWM Frequency
200 ?(20)
200 ?(90)
0%
58.1
-71%
Screen
-16%
-39%
-8%
16%
Brightness middle
236
249
6%
240
2%
258.6
10%
319
35%
Brightness
226
240
6%
226
0%
242
7%
301
33%
Brightness Distribution
83
86
4%
88
6%
88
6%
74
-11%
Black Level *
0.2
0.48
-140%
0.48
-140%
0.277
-39%
0.29
-45%
Contrast
1180
519
-56%
500
-58%
934
-21%
1100
-7%
Colorchecker dE 2000 *
7
10.15
-45%
12.14
-73%
8.1
-16%
7.23
-3%
Greyscale dE 2000 *
6.7
12.13
-81%
12.74
-90%
7.23
-8%
6
10%
Gamma
2.39 92%
2.48 89%
2.49 88%
1.99 111%
2.14 103%
CCT
6288 103%
13445 48%
15295 42%
6567 99%
6904 94%
Color Space (Percent of AdobeRGB 1998)
38
74
95%
38
0%
36.5
-4%
65.8
73%
Color Space (Percent of sRGB)
59
100
69%
59
0%
57.2
-3%
95.3
62%
Total Average (Program / Settings)
29% / 11%
-21% / -30%
-7% / -7%
36% / 29%

* ... smaller is better

On cloudy days, you have to deliberately position the screen towards the sky in order to make it difficult to read from the matte, yet not overly bright display. However, it is not possible to read from the screen in sunlight (see image). The image in the middle depicts an unfavorable position in the shade, the right one shows an ideal scenario with a doorway behind.

IPS panels are known for wide viewing angles, which are also delivered by our test model. When looking at the screen from below or the sides, brightness and contrast loss are small and colors remain unchanged. The image only suffers a bit when viewed from above at a certain range of angles. The images in the corners of our viewing-angle collage show simultaneous horizontal and vertical shifts, which are seldom in practice. While the colors actually deteriorate a bit, the effect is not that big as the images suggest.

viewing angles
viewing angles

Display Response Times

Display response times show how fast the screen is able to change from one color to the next. Slow response times can lead to afterimages and can cause moving objects to appear blurry (ghosting). Gamers of fast-paced 3D titles should pay special attention to fast response times.
       Response Time Black to White
30 ms ... rise ↗ and fall ↘ combined↗ 7 ms rise
↘ 23 ms fall
The screen shows slow response rates in our tests and will be unsatisfactory for gamers.
In comparison, all tested devices range from 0.1 (minimum) to 240 (maximum) ms. » 77 % of all devices are better.
This means that the measured response time is worse than the average of all tested devices (21.6 ms).
       Response Time 50% Grey to 80% Grey
54 ms ... rise ↗ and fall ↘ combined↗ 21 ms rise
↘ 33 ms fall
The screen shows slow response rates in our tests and will be unsatisfactory for gamers.
In comparison, all tested devices range from 0.2 (minimum) to 636 (maximum) ms. » 89 % of all devices are better.
This means that the measured response time is worse than the average of all tested devices (33.9 ms).

Screen Flickering / PWM (Pulse-Width Modulation)

To dim the screen, some notebooks will simply cycle the backlight on and off in rapid succession - a method called Pulse Width Modulation (PWM) . This cycling frequency should ideally be undetectable to the human eye. If said frequency is too low, users with sensitive eyes may experience strain or headaches or even notice the flickering altogether.
Screen flickering / PWM detected 200 Hz ≤ 20 % brightness setting

The display backlight flickers at 200 Hz (worst case, e.g., utilizing PWM) Flickering detected at a brightness setting of 20 % and below. There should be no flickering or PWM above this brightness setting.

The frequency of 200 Hz is relatively low, so sensitive users will likely notice flickering and experience eyestrain at the stated brightness setting and below.

In comparison: 53 % of all tested devices do not use PWM to dim the display. If PWM was detected, an average of 18110 (minimum: 5 - maximum: 3846000) Hz was measured.

Performance

Processor

We have already mentioned the key figures of the used Carrizo top model AMD FX-8800P in the introduction. It is almost identical to the AMD Pro A12-8800B for professional use in the Lenovo EliteBook 745 G3. Despite a supposedly same TDP of 15 Watt (see above), our CPU performs significantly better than the latter. It outperforms the Intel Core i7-5500U (2x 2.4 to 3 GHz, Hyper-Threading, 15 Watt TDP) dual-core CPU in the multi-core tests of the Cinebench benchmarks. With only one thread, the AMD typical, low single-thread performance becomes apparent again, and the AMD quad-core falls behind. The i7-6700HQ chips (4x 2.6 to 3.5 GHz, Hyper-Threading, 45 Watt TDP) in the Acer and in the Y700-15ISK play in a completely different league. Actually, the performance should be sufficient for not slowing down most games. 

When we run Cinebench R15 in a loop, the clock rate remains at 3.4 GHz most of the time, but the big problem of the Lenovo IdeaPad Y700-15ACZ already shows here: Again and again, the clock rates fall to 1.4 GHz for a short time in mostly all four cores. We suspect that this is why it is cumbersome to play almost all games. More about that later.

Clock rates @Cinebench R15 loop
Clock rates @Cinebench R15 loop
Cinebench R10 Rendering Single 32Bit
2791
Cinebench R10 Rendering Multiple CPUs 32Bit
8900
Cinebench R10 Shading 32Bit
5087
Cinebench R11.5 CPU Single 64Bit
0.96 Points
Cinebench R11.5 CPU Multi 64Bit
3.36 Points
Cinebench R15 CPU Single 64Bit
82 Points
Cinebench R15 CPU Multi 64Bit
277 Points
Cinebench R15 OpenGL 64Bit
44.8 fps
Cinebench R15 Ref. Match 64Bit
98 %
Help
Cinebench R15
CPU Multi 64Bit (sort by value)
Lenovo Y700-15ACZ
AMD FX-8800P
277 Points
Acer Aspire V5-591G-71K2
Intel Core i7-6700HQ
677 Points +144%
HP Envy 15-ae020ng
Intel Core i7-5500U
250 Points -10%
Lenovo Ideapad Y700 15ISK 80NW
Intel Core i7-6700HQ
676 Points +144%
HP EliteBook 745 G3
AMD Pro A12-8800B
202 Points -27%
CPU Single 64Bit (sort by value)
Lenovo Y700-15ACZ
AMD FX-8800P
82 Points
Acer Aspire V5-591G-71K2
Intel Core i7-6700HQ
148 Points +80%
HP Envy 15-ae020ng
Intel Core i7-5500U
108 Points +32%
Lenovo Ideapad Y700 15ISK 80NW
Intel Core i7-6700HQ
129 Points +57%
HP EliteBook 745 G3
AMD Pro A12-8800B
72 Points -12%
Cinebench R11.5
CPU Multi 64Bit (sort by value)
Lenovo Y700-15ACZ
AMD FX-8800P
3.36 Points
Acer Aspire V5-591G-71K2
Intel Core i7-6700HQ
7.48 Points +123%
HP Envy 15-ae020ng
Intel Core i7-5500U
2.74 Points -18%
Lenovo Ideapad Y700 15ISK 80NW
Intel Core i7-6700HQ
7.46 Points +122%
HP EliteBook 745 G3
AMD Pro A12-8800B
2.45 Points -27%
CPU Single 64Bit (sort by value)
Lenovo Y700-15ACZ
AMD FX-8800P
0.96 Points
Acer Aspire V5-591G-71K2
Intel Core i7-6700HQ
1.68 Points +75%
HP Envy 15-ae020ng
Intel Core i7-5500U
1.28 Points +33%
Lenovo Ideapad Y700 15ISK 80NW
Intel Core i7-6700HQ
1.48 Points +54%
HP EliteBook 745 G3
AMD Pro A12-8800B
0.88 Points -8%
Cinebench R10
Rendering Multiple CPUs 32Bit (sort by value)
Lenovo Y700-15ACZ
AMD FX-8800P
8900 Points
Acer Aspire V5-591G-71K2
Intel Core i7-6700HQ
20433 Points +130%
HP Envy 15-ae020ng
Intel Core i7-5500U
8369 Points -6%
Lenovo Ideapad Y700 15ISK 80NW
Intel Core i7-6700HQ
20302 Points +128%
HP EliteBook 745 G3
AMD Pro A12-8800B
6430 Points -28%
Rendering Single 32Bit (sort by value)
Lenovo Y700-15ACZ
AMD FX-8800P
2791 Points
Acer Aspire V5-591G-71K2
Intel Core i7-6700HQ
5547 Points +99%
HP Envy 15-ae020ng
Intel Core i7-5500U
4470 Points +60%
Lenovo Ideapad Y700 15ISK 80NW
Intel Core i7-6700HQ
5283 Points +89%
HP EliteBook 745 G3
AMD Pro A12-8800B
2183 Points -22%

System Performance

Using the test model was not much fun. First of all, the lack of an SSD has a negative impact. Booting takes a long time for today's standards. Launching games is particularly slow. In addition, the test model tends to show delays, during which it does not respond at all. In particular, after ending a game, it sometimes takes an eternity until the device becomes responsive again. As far as the reviewer can recall, the subjective performance of notebooks with an Intel Core i3 chip (dual-core, Hyper-Threading, no Turbo, 15 Watt TDP) and conventional hard drive felt better. We added the Asus F555LJ (Core i3-5010U, GeForce 920M) for 500 Euros (~$555) in our diagram.

Thus, the low scores in PCMarks 7 and 8 are not surprising. In particular, the productivity score (PCMark 7) is significantly worse than expected. Something slows the system down. Presumably, Lenovo did not correctly implement the components and made mistakes in the configuration and/or the BIOS or UEFI. We have certainly checked this, but we did not find a solution in the few configuration options. We suspect that this problem can only be fixed with a BIOS/UEFI update.

PCMark 7 Score
2615 points
PCMark 8 Home Score Accelerated v2
3039 points
PCMark 8 Work Score Accelerated v2
3610 points
Help
PCMark 8
Home Score Accelerated v2 (sort by value)
Lenovo Y700-15ACZ
Radeon R9 M385X, FX-8800P, WDC Slim WD10SPCX-24HWST1
3039 Points
Asus F555LJ-XX110H
GeForce 920M, 5010U, Hitachi Travelstar Z5K500 HTS545050A7E680
2972 Points -2%
Acer Aspire V5-591G-71K2
GeForce GTX 950M, 6700HQ, Toshiba MQ02ABF050H (SSHD 500 + 8 GB)
3719 Points +22%
Lenovo Ideapad Y700 15ISK 80NW
GeForce GTX 960M, 6700HQ, Samsung MZNLN128HCGR-000L2
3845 Points +27%
HP EliteBook 745 G3
Radeon R7 (Carrizo), Pro A12-8800B, Samsung SSD PM851 256 GB MZNTE256HMHP
2445 Points -20%
Work Score Accelerated v2 (sort by value)
Lenovo Y700-15ACZ
Radeon R9 M385X, FX-8800P, WDC Slim WD10SPCX-24HWST1
3610 Points
Asus F555LJ-XX110H
GeForce 920M, 5010U, Hitachi Travelstar Z5K500 HTS545050A7E680
3613 Points 0%
Acer Aspire V5-591G-71K2
GeForce GTX 950M, 6700HQ, Toshiba MQ02ABF050H (SSHD 500 + 8 GB)
4747 Points +31%
Lenovo Ideapad Y700 15ISK 80NW
GeForce GTX 960M, 6700HQ, Samsung MZNLN128HCGR-000L2
5011 Points +39%
HP EliteBook 745 G3
Radeon R7 (Carrizo), Pro A12-8800B, Samsung SSD PM851 256 GB MZNTE256HMHP
3424 Points -5%
PCMark 7
Score (sort by value)
Lenovo Y700-15ACZ
Radeon R9 M385X, FX-8800P, WDC Slim WD10SPCX-24HWST1
2615 Points
Asus F555LJ-XX110H
GeForce 920M, 5010U, Hitachi Travelstar Z5K500 HTS545050A7E680
2574 Points -2%
Acer Aspire V5-591G-71K2
GeForce GTX 950M, 6700HQ, Toshiba MQ02ABF050H (SSHD 500 + 8 GB)
4673 Points +79%
HP Envy 15-ae020ng
GeForce GTX 950M, 5500U, Seagate ST1000LM014 Solid State Hybrid Drive
3760 Points +44%
Lenovo Ideapad Y700 15ISK 80NW
GeForce GTX 960M, 6700HQ, Samsung MZNLN128HCGR-000L2
5918 Points +126%
HP EliteBook 745 G3
Radeon R7 (Carrizo), Pro A12-8800B, Samsung SSD PM851 256 GB MZNTE256HMHP
3407 Points +30%
Productivity (sort by value)
Lenovo Y700-15ACZ
Radeon R9 M385X, FX-8800P, WDC Slim WD10SPCX-24HWST1
1298 Points
Asus F555LJ-XX110H
GeForce 920M, 5010U, Hitachi Travelstar Z5K500 HTS545050A7E680
1339 Points +3%
Acer Aspire V5-591G-71K2
GeForce GTX 950M, 6700HQ, Toshiba MQ02ABF050H (SSHD 500 + 8 GB)
3382 Points +161%
HP Envy 15-ae020ng
GeForce GTX 950M, 5500U, Seagate ST1000LM014 Solid State Hybrid Drive
2920 Points +125%
Lenovo Ideapad Y700 15ISK 80NW
GeForce GTX 960M, 6700HQ, Samsung MZNLN128HCGR-000L2
5008 Points +286%
HP EliteBook 745 G3
Radeon R7 (Carrizo), Pro A12-8800B, Samsung SSD PM851 256 GB MZNTE256HMHP
3052 Points +135%
Entertainment (sort by value)
Lenovo Y700-15ACZ
Radeon R9 M385X, FX-8800P, WDC Slim WD10SPCX-24HWST1
3094 Points
Asus F555LJ-XX110H
GeForce 920M, 5010U, Hitachi Travelstar Z5K500 HTS545050A7E680
2689 Points -13%
Acer Aspire V5-591G-71K2
GeForce GTX 950M, 6700HQ, Toshiba MQ02ABF050H (SSHD 500 + 8 GB)
4020 Points +30%
HP Envy 15-ae020ng
GeForce GTX 950M, 5500U, Seagate ST1000LM014 Solid State Hybrid Drive
2988 Points -3%
Lenovo Ideapad Y700 15ISK 80NW
GeForce GTX 960M, 6700HQ, Samsung MZNLN128HCGR-000L2
4503 Points +46%
HP EliteBook 745 G3
Radeon R7 (Carrizo), Pro A12-8800B, Samsung SSD PM851 256 GB MZNTE256HMHP
2831 Points -9%

Storage Device

HD Tune
HD Tune
CrystalDiskMark 3.0
CrystalDiskMark 3.0

Just above 100 MB/s in sequential reading (CrystalDiskMark 3.0) is not a great value for a modern 5400-RPM hard drive. The HP Envy achieved 120 MB/s. HD Tune reports an average transfer rate of 83 MB/s for the 1 TB hard drive, which is slightly above the average over comparable HDDs. The storage device performs quite well in reading small, distributed data blocks with several threads (4K Read). However, no hard drive is able to keep up with SSDs, even the hybrid model in the HP Envy cannot.

WDC Slim WD10SPCX-24HWST1
Transfer Rate Minimum: 42.6 MB/s
Transfer Rate Maximum: 114 MB/s
Transfer Rate Average: 83.7 MB/s
Access Time: 19.1 ms
Burst Rate: 152.3 MB/s
CPU Usage: 7.1 %
Lenovo Y700-15ACZ
WDC Slim WD10SPCX-24HWST1
Acer Aspire V5-591G-71K2
Toshiba MQ02ABF050H (SSHD 500 + 8 GB)
HP Envy 15-ae020ng
Seagate ST1000LM014 Solid State Hybrid Drive
Lenovo Ideapad Y700 15ISK 80NW
Samsung MZNLN128HCGR-000L2
HP EliteBook 745 G3
Samsung SSD PM851 256 GB MZNTE256HMHP
CrystalDiskMark 3.0
-27%
44%
12431%
9525%
Read Seq
103.2
100.8
-2%
116
12%
515
399%
446.1
332%
Write Seq
103.5
79
-24%
116
12%
156.5
51%
268.9
160%
Read 4k
0.368
0.377
2%
0.609
65%
37.81
10174%
27.12
7270%
Write 4k
1.143
1.003
-12%
2.954
158%
112
9699%
84.4
7284%
Read 4k QD32
0.933
0.243
-74%
1.433
54%
379.9
40618%
239.8
25602%
Write 4k QD32
1.138
0.586
-49%
0.733
-36%
156.4
13643%
188.9
16499%

Graphics Card

In terms of performance, the incorporated AMD Radeon R9 M385X with 2 GB of GDDR5 VRAM (4800 MHz effectively, 128-bit interface) ranks in before the Nvidia GeForce GTX 960M according to the 3DMark 11 Graphics score. In the Firestrike benchmark of 3DMark (2013) it comes in behind, but before the GTX 950M. Thus, it belongs to the upper mid-range.

It still uses the GCN architecture from the 7000 desktop series. DirectX 12 is supported with feature level 11_1 now. The special AMD feature, Mantle, can be enabled in several games like Dragon Age: Inquisition and might be a powerful Direct3D replacement. However, we faced graphics errors and crashes again and again and dare to predict that the end of Mantle is near, since DirectX 12 is supposed to reduce the overhead, too. We noted whether Mantle or Direct3D was used for each game.

3DMark 06 Standard Score
14024 points
3DMark Vantage P Result
12453 points
3DMark 11 Performance
4350 points
3DMark Cloud Gate Standard Score
8890 points
3DMark Fire Strike Score
2982 points
Help
3DMark
1280x720 Cloud Gate Standard Graphics (sort by value)
Lenovo Y700-15ACZ
AMD Radeon R9 M385X
22670 Points
Acer Aspire V5-591G-71K2
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 950M
21715 Points -4%
HP Envy 15-ae020ng
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 950M
19046 Points -16%
Lenovo Ideapad Y700 15ISK 80NW
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 960M
30561 Points +35%
HP EliteBook 745 G3
AMD Radeon R7 (Carrizo)
4250 Points -81%
1920x1080 Fire Strike Graphics (sort by value)
Lenovo Y700-15ACZ
AMD Radeon R9 M385X
3469 Points
Acer Aspire V5-591G-71K2
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 950M
3238 Points -7%
HP Envy 15-ae020ng
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 950M
2931 Points -16%
Lenovo Ideapad Y700 15ISK 80NW
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 960M
4361 Points +26%
HP EliteBook 745 G3
AMD Radeon R7 (Carrizo)
782 Points -77%
3DMark 11 - 1280x720 Performance GPU (sort by value)
Lenovo Y700-15ACZ
AMD Radeon R9 M385X
5520 Points
Acer Aspire V5-591G-71K2
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 950M
4482 Points -19%
HP Envy 15-ae020ng
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 950M
4046 Points -27%
Lenovo Ideapad Y700 15ISK 80NW
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 960M
5322 Points -4%
HP EliteBook 745 G3
AMD Radeon R7 (Carrizo)
1546 Points -72%

Gaming Performance

Now, we have to face the truth: Even if the extensive benchmarks list leaves a different impression, you can hardly play any 3D game without frustration. The reason is slowdowns appearing in short intervals. It is strange that they do not show in the frame rates recorded by FRAPS, but, subjectively, they are all the more disturbing. It's like a car going at a constant speed where the driver touches the brakes for a short time again and again. Only masochists will stand that for longer than 3 minutes. The frequency and the intervals of the slowdowns conform well to the clock rate decreases of the CPU to 1.4 GHz mentioned above. Without this bad habit, many 3D games could be enjoyed in high settings. We do not know why exactly Thief from 2014 and the brand-new Just Cause 3 ran extremely slowly.

Since the Y700-15ACZ cannot display a resolution of 1366x768, which we use in several of our benchmarks, with the preinstalled driver, we used the 1280x720 resolution with a similar pixel count in these measurements.

low med. high ultra
The Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim (2011) 57.3 49.8 43.2 35.5
Crysis 3 (2013) 48.5 36.2 14.8
Tomb Raider (2013) 133.1 125.4 98 43.5
BioShock Infinite (2013) 89 79.6 75.1 32.4
Metro: Last Light (2013) 36.9 35.6 34.7 21.7
Battlefield 4 (2013) 66.8 56.1 52.5 26.2
Thief (2014) 25 19.5 22.8 19.2
Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor (2014) 60.3 51.2 37.8 27.5
Civilization: Beyond Earth (2014) 0 game wont start 0 game wont start 0 game wont start 0 game wont start
Dragon Age: Inquisition (2014) 50.6 42 27.3 17.6
Battlefield Hardline (2015) 60.5 39.7 25.8
Dirt Rally (2015) 124.2 53 40.7 27.1
The Witcher 3 (2015) 53.6 44.4 21.8
Batman: Arkham Knight (2015) 43 40 24
Metal Gear Solid V (2015) 57.3 56 41.4 25.2
Mad Max (2015) 47.9 32 29.1
FIFA 16 (2015) 59.2
Anno 2205 (2015) 47.4 50.5 24.1 9.9
Call of Duty: Black Ops 3 (2015) 39.8 38.9 21.1
Fallout 4 (2015) 39.2 35.5 23.3 19.3
Star Wars Battlefront (2015) 34.6 31.4 20.9
Assassin's Creed Syndicate (2015) 13.3 12.5
Rainbow Six Siege (2015) 74 severe graphical problems 64 severe graphical problems 48 severe graphical problems 27 severe graphical problems
Just Cause 3 (2015) 21.4 22.1 18.8 17.5
Rise of the Tomb Raider (2016) 39.4 34.8 19.7 15.2

Emissions

System Noise

The fan is not even silent when the Lenovo IdeaPad does not need to work. However, the noise can hardly be distinguished from the usual environment noise half a meter from the device. When a processor benchmark is launched, the CPU fan gets slowly faster without steps until a quiet noise is audible. Under maximum load during our stress test with Prime95 and FurMark, the notebook gets quieter again (heavier throttling). The measured emissions are on par with comparable notebooks' overall.

System noise idle
System noise idle
System noise load
System noise load
Pink & White Noise (speakers)
Pink & White Noise (speakers)

Noise Level

Idle
32 / 33 / 36 dB(A)
HDD
33 dB(A)
Load
44 / 45 dB(A)
  red to green bar
 
 
30 dB
silent
40 dB(A)
audible
50 dB(A)
loud
 
min: dark, med: mid, max: light   Audix TM1 (15 cm distance)
Lenovo Y700-15ACZ
Radeon R9 M385X, FX-8800P
Acer Aspire V5-591G-71K2
GeForce GTX 950M, 6700HQ
HP Envy 15-ae020ng
GeForce GTX 950M, 5500U
Lenovo Ideapad Y700 15ISK 80NW
GeForce GTX 960M, 6700HQ
HP EliteBook 745 G3
Radeon R7 (Carrizo), Pro A12-8800B
Noise
2%
3%
4%
15%
Idle Minimum *
32
32.6
-2%
32.9
-3%
30.4
5%
29
9%
Idle Average *
33
32.6
1%
32.9
-0%
30.5
8%
29
12%
Idle Maximum *
36
32.6
9%
36.7
-2%
33.3
7%
31.1
14%
Load Average *
44
42.7
3%
37.2
15%
41.4
6%
35.6
19%
Load Maximum *
45
45.5
-1%
42
7%
47
-4%
35.6
21%

* ... smaller is better

Temperature

Clock rates @stress test (Prime95 + FurMark)
Clock rates @stress test (Prime95 + FurMark)

Even under load the test model did not reach critical temperatures anywhere. However, 50 °C on the underside could already be too much for gaming on the lap. If the notebook sits on a table, the left palm rest is most important for gamers. The temperature does not exceed 27 °C here, while we have measured a quite high 43 °C right of the touchpad. It is striking that the temperatures of the Acer Aspire V5 get very hot in some spots with up to 68 °C on the top side.

Our screenshot shows that the core clock rates of the FX-8800P heavily fluctuate and fall to 1.4 GHz time and again when the CPU and GPU are used to capacity. We cannot provide information about the temperatures, since HWiNFO64 did not display any.

Max. Load
 46.1 °C
115 F
48.6 °C
119 F
48.7 °C
120 F
 
 35.7 °C
96 F
47.8 °C
118 F
48.8 °C
120 F
 
 27.3 °C
81 F
42.3 °C
108 F
42.8 °C
109 F
 
Maximum: 48.8 °C = 120 F
Average: 43.1 °C = 110 F
49.4 °C
121 F
48.8 °C
120 F
45.8 °C
114 F
48.6 °C
119 F
40.7 °C
105 F
32.1 °C
90 F
37.8 °C
100 F
35.7 °C
96 F
29.3 °C
85 F
Maximum: 49.4 °C = 121 F
Average: 40.9 °C = 106 F
Power Supply (max.)  50.2 °C = 122 F | Room Temperature 22 °C = 72 F | Voltcraft IR-900
(-) The average temperature for the upper side under maximal load is 43.1 °C / 110 F, compared to the average of 31.2 °C / 88 F for the devices in the class Multimedia.
(-) The maximum temperature on the upper side is 48.8 °C / 120 F, compared to the average of 36.9 °C / 98 F, ranging from 21.1 to 71 °C for the class Multimedia.
(-) The bottom heats up to a maximum of 49.4 °C / 121 F, compared to the average of 39.1 °C / 102 F
(+) In idle usage, the average temperature for the upper side is 26.4 °C / 80 F, compared to the device average of 31.2 °C / 88 F.
(-) The palmrests and touchpad can get very hot to the touch with a maximum of 42.8 °C / 109 F.
(-) The average temperature of the palmrest area of similar devices was 28.8 °C / 83.8 F (-14 °C / -25.2 F).
Lenovo Y700-15ACZ
Radeon R9 M385X, FX-8800P
Acer Aspire V5-591G-71K2
GeForce GTX 950M, 6700HQ
HP Envy 15-ae020ng
GeForce GTX 950M, 5500U
Lenovo Ideapad Y700 15ISK 80NW
GeForce GTX 960M, 6700HQ
HP EliteBook 745 G3
Radeon R7 (Carrizo), Pro A12-8800B
Heat
-19%
-11%
3%
-6%
Maximum Upper Side *
48.8
67.7
-39%
49
-0%
43.8
10%
39.5
19%
Maximum Bottom *
49.4
47.1
5%
51.9
-5%
47.8
3%
43
13%
Idle Upper Side *
27.5
34.1
-24%
31.5
-15%
27.4
-0%
32.9
-20%
Idle Bottom *
26.1
30.6
-17%
32.6
-25%
26.8
-3%
35
-34%

* ... smaller is better

Energy Management

Power Consumption

Smart is something different: The IdeaPad is power hungry. 0.4 and 0.6 Watt, respectively, when off or in standby are above average for a multimedia notebook. Under load, our test model requires significantly more energy than similarly fast of even faster Intel/Nvidia-based models. The 135-Watt power adapter can cope with the maximum power consumption.

Power Consumption
Off / Standbydarklight 0.4 / 0.6 Watt
Idledarkmidlight 8 / 12 / 20 Watt
Load midlight 100 / 134 Watt
 color bar
Key: min: dark, med: mid, max: light        Metrahit Energy
Currently we use the Metrahit Energy, a professional single phase power quality and energy measurement digital multimeter, for our measurements. Find out more about it here. All of our test methods can be found here.
Lenovo Y700-15ACZ
Radeon R9 M385X, FX-8800P
Acer Aspire V5-591G-71K2
GeForce GTX 950M, 6700HQ
HP Envy 15-ae020ng
GeForce GTX 950M, 5500U
Lenovo Ideapad Y700 15ISK 80NW
GeForce GTX 960M, 6700HQ
HP EliteBook 745 G3
Radeon R7 (Carrizo), Pro A12-8800B
Power Consumption
23%
53%
38%
Idle Minimum *
8
6
25%
4.1
49%
6.2
22%
Idle Average *
12
9.8
18%
6.9
42%
9.4
22%
Idle Maximum *
20
11.4
43%
9.2
54%
14.8
26%
Load Average *
100
84
16%
45.3
55%
44.8
55%
Load Maximum *
134
113.5
15%
47.7
64%
45.2
66%

* ... smaller is better

Battery Life

As the battery capacity is equal to the Acer's and the HP's, a direct comparison is possible. While idle as well as under load, the high power consumption leads to relatively low battery runtimes. Only in our realistic WLAN test (our test criteria) at medium brightness does the IdeaPad not fall behind that much and achieves a useful three-and-a-half hours. The results confirm that Intel platforms are very superior in this aspect.

Battery Runtime
Idle (without WLAN, min brightness)
4h 48min
WiFi Websurfing
3h 31min
Load (maximum brightness)
1h 13min
Lenovo Y700-15ACZAcer Aspire V5-591G-71K2HP Envy 15-ae020ngLenovo Ideapad Y700 15ISK 80NWHP EliteBook 745 G3
Battery Runtime
72%
103%
67%
15%
Reader / Idle
288
715
148%
753
161%
617
114%
442
53%
WiFi v1.3
211
255
21%
308
46%
353
67%
187
-11%
Load
73
108
48%
148
103%
88
21%
76
4%

Pros

+ improved build quality
+ expandable RAM, M.2 and 2.5 inch slots
+ quiet keyboard
+ IPS panel with great contrast
+ good sound

Cons

- Maintenance could be simpler
- pretty few interfaces (no USB 3.1 Type-C, no DisplayPort)
- limited gamut
- slow response time of the display (measured) & PWM
- partly slow
- relatively high power consumption
- clock rate drops under 3D load

Verdict

In review: Lenovo IdeaPad Y700-15ACZ. Test model provided by Cyberport.de
In review: Lenovo IdeaPad Y700-15ACZ. Test model provided by Cyberport.de

All things considered, the Lenovo IdeaPad Y700-15ACZ left a mediocre impression. We do not want to explain this in detail here, since:

Lenovo presents a gaming notebook with which you cannot play computer games well in its current state. Thus, we advise against buying it. The manufacturer definitely needs to revise it and check the clock rate problem mentioned in the test.

If you like the case design, you would be better off buying one of the (more expensive) Intel/Nvidia variants of the Y700 series - we are sorry about that for AMD.

Note: We decrease the total rating by 6% because of extensive stuttering during 3D applications. The rating would have been 80% if the FX-8800P had clocked constantly. Currently, the Y700-15ACZ only deserves a "satisfactory".

Lenovo Y700-15ACZ - 01/31/2016 v4.1(old)
Sven Kloevekorn

Chassis
76 / 98 → 78%
Keyboard
81%
Pointing Device
83%
Connectivity
58 / 81 → 72%
Weight
59 / 20-67 → 83%
Battery
79%
Display
84%
Games Performance
85 / 85 → 100%
Application Performance
71 / 92 → 77%
Temperature
80%
Noise
74 / 95 → 78%
Audio
80%
Camera
80 / 85 → 94%
Add Points
-6%
Average
70%
74%
Multimedia - Weighted Average

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> Expert Reviews and News on Laptops, Smartphones and Tech Innovations > Reviews > Lenovo IdeaPad Y700-15ACZ Notebook Review
Sven Kloevekorn, 2016-02- 3 (Update: 2018-05-15)