Lenovo ThinkPad T470s – What is the best display option?

We had the chance to review all three display options for the current ThinkPad T470s. However, Lenovo still uses several suppliers and the manufacturer lists a total of eight different 14-inch panels (2x WQHD, 4x Full HD, 2x Full HD Touch) in the official parts list. The results therefore only apply for the tested panels and may deviate from other models. You will only know the exact model when you read out the panel ID and it is not visible before the purchase.

We will compare the properties of the three models in this article and also check the differences in terms of power consumption and battery runtime. We recommend our in-depth reviews of the ThinkPad T470s for additional information on the other aspects of the system:

• Lenovo ThinkPad T470s (WQHD, Core i7)
• Lenovo ThinkPad T470s (FHD Touch, Core i5)

We start with the two Full HD models. Both the non-touch (2nd column in the comparison tables) as well as the touch model (3rd column in the comparison table) exceed the advertised luminance, but average results of ~270 nits or ~260 nits, respectively, are still not very good for a premium product. We can see big differences in terms of black value as well as the contrast. While the regular Full HD model even misses the advertised value at 645:1 (0.45 cd/m²), the touchscreen manages very good 1132:1. For comparison: The two Full HD panels in the ThinkPad T470 as well as the ThinkPad X1 Carbon 2017 are a bit brighter and often manage better results in the other disciplines, too.

The high-resolution WQHD screen performs better in our measurements. The advertised luminance is surpassed at 311 nits on average, and the contrast is also very good at 1300:1.

Only the touchscreen model of the T470s uses PWM regulation for to control the brightness. We can measure a flickering at 219 Hz as soon as the maximum luminance is reduced. The frequency is comparatively low and could cause problems for sensitive users (such as visible flickering).

All three IPS displays have comparatively high color deviations ex-works, but the touchscreen in particular performs well in terms of grayscale. The color temperatures and the gamma values could also be closer to their respective ideal values. All three panels benefit from a calibration; the corresponding icc-profiles are available for download in the boxes on the right. The two FHD screens still suffer from high color deviations after the calibration. The high-resolution WQHD panel manages the best results in general.

There are also big differences in terms of the color gamut. The two Full HD models clearly fall behind at ~60% sRGB or 40% AdobeRGB, respectively, so they are not suitable for professional graphics or picture editing. Lenovo shows that it can use better Full HD panels with the current ThinkPad X1 Carbon, which covers the smaller sRGB standard by 85%. Professional users should use external monitors with these two models of the T470s. The WQHD screen of the T470s performs better and almost covers sRGB completely.

All three panels benefit from the matte surface outdoors. There are no problems in the shade, but the Full HD models in particular could have more powerful background illuminations to ensure a more comfortable experience in bright environments. The viewing angle stability is no problem thanks to the IPS technology.

Because of these measurements, we recommend the high-resolution WQHD panel for the ThinkPad T470s. It just offers superior picture quality (also subjectively) and manages better luminance results.

We can only see small differences between the three models in our consumption measurements. However, the minimum consumption of the FHD model is comparatively high. This laptop is also on par with the WQHD panel at the highest luminance. All in all, the T470s with the touchscreen is the most efficient device under light workloads.

The other components obviously have an effect on the consumption when you stress the systems. There are differences, but all three models are pretty similar in general.

All three ThinkPad T470s test models use the same battery configuration with two internal modules and a total capacity of 51 Wh. We only compare the realistic Wi-Fi test (Balanced power profile) at an adjusted luminance of 150 nits for this article.

The T470s WQHD manages the lowest runtime of the three at almost 7 hours, which is not surprising. The regular Full HD model lasts about 30 minutes longer, the T470s with the touchscreen a further 30 minutes longer. The result of the touchscreen version might be surprising at first due to the similar display specs, but we can see the results of the PWM regulation here. The background illumination is turned off and on periodically, which saves a bit of power. One of the Full HD models is therefore the better choice if you need the longest battery runtime possible.