2017 IdeaPad 720s is looking good!

I'm also jumping into the topic! I am currently very indecisive between the Ideapad 720s 14" and the thinkpad X1 carbon 6th gen. I know Lenovo will also release the external graphic doc with a 1050 - which is specified to be optimised for the Ideapad -, and I believe might suit my occasional gaming needs (like online RPGs and real time strategy games or Civilzation VI - like, I guess that even the MX150 will do the job just fine).

The 720s appeals me for the integrated graphics and price tag, the x1 carbon for overall build quality and the ports selection (and the 2X TB3-4 lanes ports).

With all it has been discussed so far about fan noise and display issues, do you think it would make still sense to save some money and go for the Ideapad, or to step up and have a X1 carbon+(portable)eGPU?

I work as a researcher in a hospital, in terms of power the new gen i5 + SSD is more than enough to elaborate all data I have and prepare spreadsheets and presentations. I'm looking for a future proof-all rounder solution!

Thank you!!

 

That X1 Carbon is a super cool machine! But, it's an add-on machine for you. If you want the jack of all trades based on your "all rounder solution: then the 720s is the way to go. If you want to have add-ons and the trouble shooting to go with it, aka time and money then the X1 Carbon based on your wants sounds just fine.

I personally like simplicity and that makes the 720s THE choice for me between the two.

A decked out X1 solution with the add-on bells and whistles would be quite the site. It definitely has it's place too! Especially in the battery life department! I think these have a quick charge capability that should feed about 3/4 power back into the machine in about a 60 minute charge time. I have a few clients that I would recommend this laptop too just based on that alone. They're terrible about remembering to plug in their hardware lol..

 

Thank you so much! I think I'll try to save some money and go for the IdeaPad 720s. I'm currently living in Germany, and I see we only have the i7-8550u with 8GB RAM. I was reading the discussion about potential upgrades: but that holds true for the US model only, or ALL 720s with i7-8550u have the possibility to upgrade the RAM? (most likely breaking the warranty terms)

I could buy from the US the 16GB version (and would be actually cheaper) but then I fear I might have problems with the IWS (international warranty service) in the unfortunate case I will need replacement!

 

Does anyone have the 15" IdeaPad 720s with Nvidia GTX 1050 Ti? Is there 2 x DDR4 RAM slots and 2 x M.2 SSD slots? This laptop is better choice than LG Gram 15Z980 2018 version?

 

May I know if the 512g ssd is Samsung pm961?
Is it NVMe PCIex4 or x2?
Would you please run a benchmark on it?

Thanks

 

Anyone able to please assist on this?
Thanks

 

Hi!

I'm really seduced by the Ideapad 720s. Great CPU (i5-8250) and dedicated GPU (mx150), good battery life from what I read, ok screen (better than Acer Swift 3 I was considering before).

The only thing that makes me hesitate is the fan noise. Is it really that bad? I'm going to use it in class, and I don't want to be the annoying dude with the loud laptop bothering everyone.
The other option I have is the Zenbook UX430UN, which has similar specs and a better screen, but it seems to have a similar fan problem and some heating problem too.

 

Mine is:
http://www.userbenchmark.com/UserRun/6987883

Edit: Here's one showing mx150 performance
http://www.userbenchmark.com/UserRun/6893514

 

Hi Jcf!

Did you try this with a USB-C dock? In that case which one did you get, and did you also charge the computer while having it connected to the dock? I´m having trouble finding people who has a working setup like this with the 720s. Have found some docks that looks good, but since the computer comes with the proprietary connector still, im not sure what charging cable to get. Thankful for your help! / S

 

Hi,

I have this USB-C dock and works great.

https://www.amazon.com/Lenovo-Adapt...D=41gZdUHH%2BpL&preST=_SY300_QL70_&dpSrc=srch

I can charge the laptop using an Inateck 60W that I also got from Amazon.
It also allows me to have a dual monitor setup, one with the HDMI port on the laptop and another with the HDMI port on the dock.

 

Yes. I use one that people from design dep work with the Macs. It has a ethernet connection which is important to me. Note that you can not use both screen outputs (HDMI or VGA) at the same time.

https://www.amazon.es/gp/product/B06XGWD2VT/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

 

Just to add that I was able to install another 256Gb with an SD card using the bellow adapter. It sticks out a milliliter or 2 but, since I have a mouse dongle in the usd nearby, I dont see much risk on it.

https://www.amazon.es/gp/product/B00TTFOJ4A/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o00_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Also, putting the maximum CPU Power State at 98% seemed to solve the fan issue although I noticed some performance issues, even in other power modes like the High Performance Mode

Not sure why and, honestly, didn't have the time to put much research into it.

 

So like many people I have applied the 98% power state "fix", but I was searching to see if there have been any bios updates for these machines, and I have only come across a bios update for the 80XC versions dated January 3, 2018. Apparently there were some temperature related fixes to this bios. Has anyone with an 80XC version of the 720s applied this bios and if so has it done anything?

My next question is a bit stupid I realize, but has anyone with an 81BD version of the 720s applied this bios (the one for the 80XC)? Usually applying bios updates to machines not intended for is a very bad idea, but wondering if someone has been brave enough to try, and if it has done anything.

In the least, it would be great to find out if anyone who applied the bios to find out if it did anything at all!

Cheers,

Dan

 

I have the 720S 15. It's a "jack of all trades" laptop, and should be approached as such:
>Good battery life (7-8 hours browsing @ 40% brightness and stock clocks)
>Sleek and professional appearance, with zero "gaming bling"
>1050Ti with sufficient cooling for gaming on the go
>Good FHD screen, though I have heard reports of bad backlight bleed on some of the HD units
>"Tier 1.5" build quality. It's not a single block of machined aluminum, but the metal exterior is competent and firm and it overall looks quite nice.

I bought this to be "a professional laptop that can game on the side." After my XPS13 died for the second time, I needed a notebook that I could bring to a class, client, or professional event and wanted a device that would allow for some gaming on the side. While you might be able to snag a 1060 for less (Inspiron 7000), or pay more for a 1060 in a sleeker chassis (Razer Blade 14), those options have downsides that would necessitate a second laptop. The 720S gives me the15.6" screen, battery life, and appearance I need for 8AM-6PM and the 1050Ti I like for an evening of Fortnite, DOTA2, or Doom to blow off steam.

This laptop does throttle during intense gaming, but not in a way that I've noticed with a 60Hz display. The MaxQ setup seems to reduce processor speed before GPU clocks, and the games I play are more dependent on graphics oomph to hit 60 FPS. Trying to run an external 144Hz display off this unit could be trouble (maxing out CPU and GPU), but performance is excellent in my gaming library at 1080P/60Hz. If you use some sort of compute app that maxes out your GPU and CPU simultaneously, you will run into power and thernal throttling.

My unit undervolt like a champ, with -100mV on the GPU and -150mV on the CPU. These undervolts have been tested in 3DMark, IBT, and Prime95, with very low temps. Undervolted and capped at 60 FPS in games, my GPU runs a steady 1770MHz. If uncap FPS that becomes ~ 157X-175X MHz, which is equally playable if not perfect. I might be able to push clocks or voltages more but haven't had the time to dig deeper.

You will need dongles if you use a lot of USB-A peripherals, as there is just one of the venerable sockets on this laptop (plus USB-C, TB3, 3.5mm, and a SD card reader). Given this laptop's footprint I would have preferred another USB port and HDMI out.

The fingerprint reader is a nice addition, and the trackpad is not a downgrade from my former XPS13. I enjoy the keyboard but am not picky with that part.

All in all, this is a good laptop. The week I bought mine the i7/512GB unit was down to $1,200, and the it/256GB SKU has been under $1,000. At the full $1,500 I would have a tougher time recommending my mid-range SKU, as that puts you very close to the next tier of notebooks with more RAM and beefier GPUs. Also, mobile Coffee Lake is right around the corner and may offer more cores or better battery life. But Lenovo is offering a number of coupons and discounts for these models, so they've been very competitive with the XPS line. The top SKU is quite a deal for anyone who is ok with a 4K display, as it bundles 1TB of fast storage and 16GB of RAM for $1,600 (before discounts).

 

Can someone download gpu-z and screenshot the results for the 720s... Then we will 100% know what kind of MX150 chip they have used.

https://www.notebookcheck.net/Nvidi...12-variant-onto-some-Ultrabooks.289358.0.html

 

I downloaded gpu-z and checked my 720s-14 81bd000sus. It does have the "standard", faster 1D10 MX150, not the newer, gimped version.

 

i7-8550U/16GB/512GB

 

In the same boat at this poster. Fan noise is a biggy for me, especially when "just" working: browsing, multiple tabs and apps open, BUT also video calling and watching Youtube. Also, how is the screen brightness looking? And is the battery enough to get one through the day?

A Dutch review site said the CPU/GPU are weirdly configured (at 10W I believe) and therefore hamper performance. What are your experiences here?

 

Just bought the 720s with the i7, 512gb ssd and 16gb RAM from Microcenter, and I am thrilled with this machine. I was initially worried about the fan noise as everyone seems to make it out to be some ear bleeding, unusable noise, but it's honestly no louder than my Dell Latitude E7440 that I use for work (its probably quieter than it I think). The fan ramp up and down is kind of odd I agree, but playing Battlefield 4 through the laptop speakers you don't notice the fan at all.

I've spent the past couple days getting the voltages and such settle in - I've so far seen stable undervolting on the CPU a -0.100mv, the iGPU at -0.075mv, and I've overclocked the MX150 200MHZ on the core, 400MHZ on the memory. I still need to work on the MX150 - I haven't had too much time to fine tune the voltage curve in Afterburner. Even still, the highest GPU temps I've seen are around 70 degrees C, and the CPU usually maxes out around there as well. It's definitely not the gimped MX150 (its the 1D10 variant) - I can play Battlefield 4 at 1080p on high settings and Vsync 60fps solidly. CS:GO on high everything holds around 120fps at 1080p as well. SSD is a Samsung PM961, WiFi card is an Intel 8625. I was even able to get the laptop to charge on my Galaxy S8+ stock charger, albeit incredibly slow. I plan on buying the Startech Thunderbolt 3 Dock and using that as a 1 wire solution for everything on my desk, so I'll report back when I get it.

The fit and finish of the machine is impeccable - its a little heavier than I thought it was going to be (compared to my wife's X1 carbon), but in a good way. Its as solid as a brick. No issues for me so far...definitely loving this machine!

 

Is all of that hard to do, undervolting and such?

 

The laptop deal is now $679 from BJs.

 

Just picked the i5 8250U/256gb/8gb version from MC for the wife. Did a clean install so far so good. Really liking this little device for her. Everything on it seems to be pretty dang good, the keyboard, the screen, the touchpad is great, and the speakers are not too bad for the size of the laptop. The laptop exceeds all of her needs and the fact that it has TB3 and a dGPU is just unnecessary extras. I wasn't too keen on the glossy screen at first, but honestly after using it and seeing it in person it's not like some glossy screens I've used in the past. I actually like it and remember how much they seem to make colors pop.

I managed to overclock the display to a nice 72Hz with reduced LCD timings which is noticeably smooth feeling than the default 60hz.

On the CPU side of things with some tweaking I managed to get a CB multi score of 670. Not bad for a very low TDP i5.

 

and your wife needs a overclocked lcd??????????????????

 

If anyone is curious about docking solutions, I can say that the StarTech Thunderbolt 3 Dock here works great:

https://www.amazon.com/StarTech-com...8-1&keywords=startech+thunderbolt+3+dock&th=1

Charges the laptop, runs a 1440p monitor and gigabit Ethernet along with a couple usb dongles with no issues. I'm absolutely loving this machine!

 

How are you guys finding the screen brightness? On the Yoga 720 I kept wanting to turn it up, but it was already as max level.

 

Is anyone having problems with hibernate in Windows 10 since last BIOS update?
Most of the times it doesn't work and I think it started after the BIOS update.

 

FYI to everyone, I had a weird problem with my 720s, where I could only power on with the ac plugged in, and the battery was doing some strange charging things. I ended up contacting lenovo support and sent the computer in, and they ended up putting a new motherboard in it. Pretty happy with the support received, they even sent a nice box to put the computer in and free shipping. Took about 10 days total I think since I contacted them. Everything smooth now though!

Dan

 

Btw, the problem went away after the last major Windows update.

 

I'm currently looking at this laptop with the 8550U and MX150 - are there any issues or caveats I should be aware of? How's performance? THermals? Throttling? Battery?

 

fast.good low.none.10 hrs...


tip read the thread

 

I've just ordered the i5-8250u, 8gb, 14" version of the 720s with the MX150 onboard. I've looked through the thread and can't see anything concrete. I've seen it said on this thread that the i7 version has the non-gimped MX150, does this also apply the i5 version I have on order?

Also, the vendor I'm buying it from claims it's upgradable to 16gb which obviously suggests the current 8gb is in a SO-Dimm slot rather than soldered contrary to some early posts on here.

Has there been any update regarding improvements in the fan noise with new bios updates?

Cheers in advance.

 

Answering my own question. This arrived today, it's definitely the full 1D10 non-gimped MX150. My brother owns a HP Envy 13 and I checked his which is listed as 1D12 in Device Manager. A little bit naughty from the manufacturers and NVidia to sneak that s**t out without so much as a whisper.

Also, the i5-8250u version of this laptop definitely has a SO-DIMM slot so can be upgraded to 16gb. From a thermal perspective it appears the i5 is the better option given the minimal impact that exists between the i5 and i7 in gaming.

 

Here is my 12+ month review of the laptop...

I bought this laptop just over a year ago and it's been my daily driver at work with great results.

Pros:

- Battery life has been outstanding still after a year I get easily 7+ hours on my battery (40% brightness, WIFI and BT on). This is office work using reporting software like Spotfire, Office 365, other database management software, browsing, presentations, etc. Nothing heavy.
- Build quality is better than expected. I dropped the laptop twice from about 3 feet, both times I tried to catch it with a foot, but still a corner would hit the ground. In both cases there is only a minimal dent and no other damage to report. As a matter of fact nothing has deteriorated, keyboard, screen, hinges, mouse pad, etc. are all in perfect working condition.
- The form factor is perfect for me. I don't like large laptops that weigh in over 5lbs, nor do I need a 15 or 17in screen. If I do, I hook it up to a monitor at work. It's unobtrusive and I can carry it all of our work campus without feeling I am getting a weight lift workout.
- Speakers are very loud and crips, no complains at all and we have been watching some movies on this when my wife and I are out on a weekend and never felt that we had to put our ears on the speaker to hear what's happening.
- USB-C port: This was early on a controversial topic as we didn't really know if it was able to handle full bandwidth for an external GPU via the thunderbolt 3 port, however I never ended up being in a situation where I would need it. I can attest that the USB charging works in both directions, meaning you can charge a phone via the laptop battery and you can also charge the laptop battery using a USB-C charger (slow, but it works). I also tested HDMI out on the main interface a main screen, laptop screen as second and an attached USB-C adapter with an additional HDMI monitor as screen 3.​

Only minor CONS:

-The screen has while very slight a yellowish hue. I tried different color settings, but really never quiet got a 'brilliant' white.
- The fan noise was originally my biggest concern and initially it did get very loud as soon there was any load even minimal from simple office suite applications. Then I tried the discussed 3rd party apps in this thread and really never got any good results until I came across the 99% CPU load trick that is also mentioned in this thread. That change in the power options reduced the fan issue nearly completely. I only seldom now get the fan to spin up full speed and that when I use apps like Solidworks or running math heavy applications in the background.​

Only wish:

If this laptop was available with a touchscreen while still be able to get the MX150 would be a perfect solution. Not that I do much in terms of touchscreen at work, but at home were I use it more for browsing that would be a very welcome addition.​

Bottom line:

I would recommend this laptop to anyone that needs a decent work laptop and does some light gaming. While I didn't game on it much, I did run Sniper Ghost Worrier 3 on this and it worked pretty well. Given, not on the top settings, but it was very playable at medium settings.​