Lenovo Yoga S740 (14) review – it has great features but disappoints with performance

Earlier this year, on the brinks of the Spring, we showed you Lenovo’s thinnest laptop up to that date. Now, we have its predecessor and it is very interesting that the company no longer follows the route for a thinnest or lightest device. Instead, the Yoga S740 is now focused on the new Ice Lake architecture processors from Intel, and how to integrate it efficiently enough.

Additionally, Lenovo offers this laptop with an optional GeForce MX250, up to 4K IPS display with extreme color accuracy (according to the manufacturer) and something else – unseen on a laptop before this day. It is the new LPDDR4X memory, which reaches speeds of up to 3733 MHz. Certainly, this is insane, given that most of the gaming computers come with 2666 MHz on the clock.

You can check the prices and configurations in our Specs System: https://laptopmedia.com/series/lenovo-yoga-s740-14/

Contents


Specs Sheet

Lenovo Yoga S740 (14") - Specifiche

  • AUO B140HAN05.A (LEN8894)
  • Precisione del colore  3.8  1.4
  • HDD/SSD
  • fino a 1000GB SSD
  • RAM
  • up to 16GB
  • OS
  • Windows 10 Home
  • Batteria
  • 62Wh
  • Materiale del corpo
  • Aluminum
  • Dimensioni
  • 322.3 x 212 x 14.9 mm (12.69" x 8.35" x 0.59")
  • Peso
  • 1.40 kg (3.1 lbs)
  • Porte e connettività
  • 1x USB Type-C
  • Thunderbolt 3, Power Delivery (PD), DisplayPort
  • 2x USB Type-A
  • 3.2 Gen 2 (10 Gbps)
  • Wi-Fi
  • 802.11ax
  • Bluetooth
  • 5.0
  • Jack audio
  • 3.5 mm combo
  • Caratteristiche
  • Lettore di impronte digitali
  • Telecamera web
  • HD
  • Tastiera retroilluminata
  • Microfono
  • Far-field
  • Altoparlanti
  • 2 Speakers, Dolby Atmos
  • Unità ottica
  • Fessura del blocco di sicurezza

Tutti Lenovo Yoga S740 (14″) configurazioni

#CommissionsEarned

What’s in the box?

Classically for Lenovo, we got a box-in-a-box situation, where the outside packaging looks more like you have ordered a little fridge, rather than a 14-inch laptop. Nevertheless, in order to access the rest of the accessories, you have to remove the laptop itself from the branded packaging. Then, there is the 65Wh power adapter and the standard paper documents.


Design and construction

From first sight, we notice that this notebook has a great build quality. Its outer shell is made exclusively out of aluminum – even the bottom cover, which is pretty rare in the world of portable computers. As we mentioned, the design of this product is not anymore aimed at extremely low weight and profile. Instead, the Yoga S740 (14) starts good at 1.40 kg, while the thickness of the profile goes from 15 mm in its thinnest point up to 18.15 mm at its thickest.

Its lid can be opened with a single hand without any hesitation. However, the hinge is not one of the strongest ones and the lid is a little flippy when you push the laptop ever so slightly. By the way, this laptop has a super small footprint with very narrow bezels all around the screen – similar to the Ideapad S940 and the ZenBook 14 UX434.

On the base, there is a familiar layout – large keycaps, decent tactile feedback and not every long key travel. Moreover, the keyboard is equipped with a backlight, which gives it the extra comfortability points in darker environments. Then, as you can see in the image below, the two speakers of this device are placed on either side of the keyboard. If you think that they are ordinary bangers – you are wrong. Because, they are tuned with the help of Dolby Audio and produce a spacious sound with good quality – more on that, later.

Traditionally, the trackpad is placed below the keyboard. It has very good sensitivity and accuracy, which is enhanced by its glass surface.

Last but not least, the Yoga S740 (14) has its ventilation grills on the bottom and exhales the hot air from two cut-outs on the back of the base. This means all of the hot air is blown at the bottom portion of the display.

Ports

On the left side, you will find the power adapter plug, (which sadly is not a Type-C one), a Thunderbolt 3 connector, a USB Type-A 3.1 (Gen. 1) with Always-On function and an audio jack. Then, on the right, there is a lonely USB Type-A 3.1 (Gen. 1) port.


Disassembly, upgrade options and maintenance

The Yoga S740 (14) has 9 Torx-head screws that hold its bottom plate in place. We recommend starting the prying process from one of the front corners. Make sure you use a plastic tool in order not to scratch the surface of the panel.

This laptop is cooled down by two heat pipes. It is kinda surprising since it doesn’t have a dedicated GPU. Perhaps Lenovo was planning a big welcoming party for the Ice Lake processors and the new Iris Plus Graphics cards from Intel.

As we mentioned in the intro of this review, the Yoga S740 (14) works with 16GB of soldered LPDDR4X memory, clocked at 3733 MHz. Sadly, you cannot upgrade it, and there is only one M.2 storage expansion slot. It supports PCIe x4 NVMe drives.

Lastly, there is the huge 62Wh battery, which covers a great amount of the area inside the machine.

Display quality

Lenovo Yoga S740 (14) has a Full HD display, model number AUO B140HAN05.A (LEN8894). Its diagonal is 14″ (35.56 cm), and the resolution – 1920 х 1080. Additionally, the screen ratio is 16:9, the pixel density – 157 ppi, their pitch – 0.161 x 0.161 mm. The screen can be considered Retina when viewed from at least 56 cm (from this distance, the average human eye can’t see the individual pixels).

Its viewing angles are great. We have provided images at 45 degrees to evaluate quality.

The maximum measured brightness is 361 nits (cd/m2) in the middle of the screen and 362 nits (cd/m2) average across the surface with a maximum deviation of 6%. The Correlated Color Temperature on a white screen and at maximum brightness is 6900K (average) – slightly colder than the 6500K optimum for sRGB. The average color temperature through the grey scale before profiling is again 6900K.
In the illustration below you can see how the display performs from a uniformity perspective.
Values of dE2000 over 4.0 should not occur, and this parameter is one of the first you should check if you intend to use the laptop for color-sensitive work (a maximum tolerance of 2.0 ). The contrast ratio is very good – 1600:1.

To make sure we are on the same page, we would like to give you a little introduction to the sRGB color gamut and the Adobe RGB. To start, there’s the CIE 1976 Uniform Chromaticity Diagram that represents the visible specter of colors by the human eye, giving you a better perception of the color gamut coverage and the color accuracy.

Inside the black triangle, you will see the standard color gamut (sRGB) that is being used by millions of people in HDTV and on the web. As for the Adobe RGB, this is used in professional cameras, monitors, etc for printing. Colors inside the black triangle are used by everyone and this is an essential part of the color quality and color accuracy of a mainstream notebook.

Still, we’ve included other color spaces like the famous DCI-P3 standard used by movie studios, as well as the digital UHD Rec.2020 standard. Rec.2020, however, is still a thing of the future and it’s difficult for today’s displays to cover that well. We’ve also included the so-called Michael Pointer gamut, or Pointer’s gamut, which represents the colors that naturally occur around us every day.

The yellow dotted line shows Lenovo Yoga S740 (14)’s color gamut coverage.

Its display covers 94% of the sRGB/ITU-R BT.709 (web/HDTV standard) in CIE1976.

Our “Design and Gaming” profile delivers optimal color temperature (6500K) at 140 cd/m2 luminance and sRGB gamma mode.

We tested the accuracy of the display with 24 commonly used colors like light and dark human skin, blue sky, green grass, orange, etc. You can check out the results at factory condition and also, with the “Design and Gaming” profile.

Below you can compare the scores of Lenovo Yoga S740 (14) with the default settings (left), and with the “Gaming and Web design” profile (right).

The next figure shows how well the display can reproduce dark parts of an image, which is essential when watching movies or playing games in low ambient light.

The left side of the image represents the display with stock settings, while the right one is with the “Gaming and Web Design” profile activated. On the horizontal axis, you will find the grayscale and on the vertical axis – the luminance of the display. On the two graphs below you can easily check for yourself how your display handles the darkest nuances but keep in mind that this also depends on the settings of your current display, the calibration, the viewing angle, and the surrounding light conditions.

Response time (Gaming capabilities)

We test the reaction time of the pixels with the usual “black-to-white” and “white-to-black” method from 10% to 90% and vice versa.

We recorded Fall Time + Rise Time = 33 ms


Health impact – PWM / Blue Light

PWM (Screen flickering)

Pulse-width modulation (PWM) is an easy way to control monitor brightness. When you lower the brightness, the light intensity of the backlight is not lowered, but instead turned off and on by the electronics with a frequency indistinguishable to the human eye. In these light impulses, the light/no-light time ratio varies, while brightness remains unchanged, which is harmful to your eyes. You can read more about that in our dedicated article on PWM.

Lenovo Yoga S740 (14)’s display doesn’t flicker at any brightness level. This makes it comfortable for use during long work periods, without harming your eyes in the process in this aspect.

Blue light emissions

Installing our Health-Guard profile not only eliminates PWM but also reduces the harmful Blue Light emissions while keeping the colors of the screen perceptually accurate. If you’re not familiar with the Blue light, the TL;DR version is – emissions that negatively affect your eyes, skin and your whole body. You can find more information about that in our dedicated article on Blue Light.

Conclusions

Lenovo Yoga S740 (14)’s display has a Full HD resolution, comfortable viewing angles, good contrast ratio, and wide color coverage. On top of that its backlight doesn’t flicker at any brightness level.

Buy our profiles

Since our profiles are tailored for each display model, this article and its respective profile package are meant for Lenovo Yoga S740 (14) configurations with 14.0″ AUO B140HAN05.A (LEN8894) (FHD, 1920 × 1080) IPS panel.

*Should you have problems with downloading the purchased file, try using a different browser to open the link you’ll receive via e-mail. If the download target is a .php file instead of an archive, change the file extension to .zip or contact us at [email protected].

Read more about the profiles HERE.

Oltre a ricevere profili efficienti e rispettosi della salute, comprando i prodotti di LaptopMedia sostenete anche lo sviluppo dei nostri laboratori, dove testiamo i dispositivi per produrre le recensioni più obiettive possibili.

Lavoro in ufficio

Lavoro in ufficio dovrebbe essere usato soprattutto dagli utenti che passano la maggior parte del tempo a guardare pezzi di testo, tabelle o semplicemente a navigare. Questo profilo mira a fornire una migliore distinzione e chiarezza mantenendo una curva gamma piatta (2.20), una temperatura di colore nativa e colori percettivamente accurati.

Design e gioco

Questo profilo è rivolto ai designer che lavorano professionalmente con i colori, e anche per giochi e film. Design and Gaming porta i pannelli di visualizzazione ai loro limiti, rendendoli il più accurati possibile nello standard sRGB IEC61966-2-1 per Web e HDTV, al punto di bianco D65.

Salute-Guardia

Salute-Guardia elimina la nociva Pulse-Width Modulation (PWM) e riduce la luce blu negativa che colpisce i nostri occhi e il nostro corpo. Essendo personalizzato per ogni pannello, riesce a mantenere i colori percettivamente accurati. Salute-Guardia simula la carta, quindi la pressione sugli occhi è notevolmente ridotta.

Ottenete tutti e 3 i profili con il 33% di sconto


Sound

This laptop produces loud and clear sound with good quality. Its low, mid and high frequencies are clear of deviations.


Drivers

You can download all of the drivers and utilities for the Yoga S740 (14) from here: https://pcsupport.lenovo.com/us/en/products/laptops-and-netbooks/yoga-series/yoga-s740-14iil/downloads/driver-list

Battery

Now, we conduct the battery tests with Windows Better performance setting turned on, screen brightness adjusted to 120 nits and all other programs turned off except for the one we are testing the notebook with. This laptop’s behemoth 62Wh battery gives it extraordinary time away from the plug.

We got 17 hours of Web browsing and 13 hours of video playback.


CPU options

This laptop can be bought with a Core i5-1035G1, Core i5-1035G4 or a Core i7-1065G7 processor.


GPU options

These three CPUs not only differ in their clock speeds but with the integrated graphics they are utilizing – in the respective order, they come with Intel UHD Graphics that has 32 EUs, Iris Plus Graphics that has 48 EUs and Iris Plus Graphics that has 64 EUs. Additionally, Lenovo gives you the option of a GeForce MX250.


Gaming tests

cs-go-benchmarks

CS:GOHD 1080p, Low (Check settings)HD 1080p, Medium (Check settings)HD 1080p, MAX (Check settings)
Average FPS64 fps40 fps25 fps

DOTA 2HD 1080p, Low (Check settings)HD 1080p, Normal (Check settings)HD 1080p, High (Check settings)
Average FPS89 fps52 fps30 fps

GTA-V-benchmarks

Grand Theft Auto V (GTA 5)HD 768p, Normal (Check settings)HD 768p, High (Check settings)HD 768p, Very High (Check settings)
Average FPS45 fps22 fps– fps

rise-of-the-tomb-raider

Rise of the Tomb Raider (2016)HD 768p, Lowest (Check settings)HD 768p, Medium (Check settings)HD 768p, Very High (Check settings)
Average FPS32 fps– fps– fps

Temperatures and comfort

Max CPU load

In this test we use 100% on the CPU cores, monitoring their frequencies and chip temperature. The first column shows a computer’s reaction to a short load (2-10 seconds), the second column simulates a serious task (between 15 and 30 seconds), and the third column is a good indicator of how good the laptop is for long loads such as video rendering.

Average core frequency (base frequency + X); CPU temp.

Intel Core i5-1035G4 (15W TDP)0:02 – 0:10 sec0:15 – 0:30 sec10:00 – 15:00 min
Lenovo Yoga S740 (14)2.64 GHz (B+140%) @ 100°C1.89 GHz (B+72%) @ 83°C1.66 GHz (B+51%) @ 69°C

Lenovo Yoga S740 (14) is the first laptop with the Core i5-1035G4 we’ve tested and honestly, we are kind of disappointed. Apparently, the dual-heat pipe setup is not enough for this processor, or there is not enough breathing space for the fans. Nevertheless, at the first checkpoint, the processor was running at 2.64 GHz and the temperature? You can certainly boil water over it. Then, as the frequencies settle down, the temperatures go down as well, as the laptop finishes at 69C on the CPU Package.

Comfort during full load

The outer temperatures of the notebook were around 39C. Additionally, the noise coming from the speakers is not overhelming, although it is clearly audible.


Verdict

With the new processors of Intel going to the market as fast as bread is sold out in a cold autumn morning, there will be literally tons of laptops flooding the market. For us, the Yoga S740 (14) was the first we were able to test, and we had some mixed feelings by it.

Sadly, the performance that we were able to get from the Core i5-1035G4 was a little controversial. In fact, the Ideapad 730S, which is technically the predecessor to the Yoga S740, performed significantly better with the Whiskey Lake processors. Moreover, the newer Yoga is bulkier and heavier, which should give it the edge when it comes to temperature management.

Now, this is one of the biggest issues with this laptop – the way it handles its thermals is the biggest reason for its inferior scores. Nevertheless, the Iris Plus Graphics deliver as promised in the raw benchmarks with results that are more or less twice the score of the UHD Graphics 620. However, in terms of gameplay, the difference becomes smaller – around 50%, which is still great but is nowhere near a GeForce MX250 for example.

Then, there is the display of this notebook. Its 1080p IPS panel (AUO B140HAN05.A (LEN8894)) doesn’t use PWM to adjust its brightness level, has comfortable viewing angles, great contrast ratio and decent maximum brightness (361 nits). Moreover, the screen covers 94% of sRGB and with the help of our Gaming and Web design profile it manages to get beneath an Average dE of 2.0, which ultimately makes it appropriate for Web designers.

On the downside, you won’t be able to upgrade your memory, and expectedly, there is no 2.5″ drive slot. However, the soldered memory is of LPDDR4X type and works at the whopping 3733 MHz!

Last but not least – battery life. Lenovo was pretty generous with the Yoga S740 by giving it a 62Wh unit. This results in 17 hours of Web browsing and 13 hours of video playback – not bad!

Pros

  • Decent price tag
  • LPDDR4X memory working at 3733 MHz
  • Ice Lake CPUs
  • Has a Thunderbolt 3.0 port
  • Great battery life
  • Covers 94% sRGB (AUO B140HAN05.A (LEN8894))
  • Average dE<2.0 with our Gaming and Web design (AUO B140HAN05.A (LEN8894))
  • Doesn’t use PWM to adjust screen brightness (AUO B140HAN05.A (LEN8894))


Cons

  • No SD card reader
  • Poor upgradability options
  • Unsatisfactory CPU performance

You can check the prices and configurations in our Specs System: https://laptopmedia.com/series/lenovo-yoga-s740-14/

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Wiwid
Wiwid
4 anni fa

It has glossy or matte screen?

Prith
Prith
3 anni fa
Rispondi a  Wiwid

Glossy

Tom O'Rourke
Tom O'Rourke
4 anni fa

Very thorough thank you. Does the Thunderbolt 3 port support 4 lanes?

blnc
blnc
4 anni fa
Rispondi a  Tom O'Rourke

It says officially on https://www.lenovo.com/gb/en/laptops/yoga/yoga-s-series/Lenovo-Yoga-S740-14IIL/p/88YGS701250 it’s thunderbolt 3 port is 8x USB 3.0. Theoretically USB 3.0 has 5Gbps max rate, so 8×5=40Gbps which corresponds to 4 lanes.

Laurens
Laurens
4 anni fa

Do you think maybe the CPU-performance is a bug or a faulty system ? Could it be fixed in the future ?

andraz2012
andraz2012
4 anni fa
Rispondi a  Laurens

it only does so badly under synthetic load. I ran cinebench five times and it settled in to 2.8Ghz and about 90-95C. (i5 1035g4 and no graphics i got 1755 r20 score). All laptops have bad thermal paste that is applied very poorly, so that might be a problem as well.

Vojtěch
Vojtěch
4 anni fa

Would you recommend this one or C740 for a typical student?

Armagan Beb
Armagan Beb
4 anni fa

If you set the lid to best fit position, the camera would miss your head because of vertically narrow lens

eppodepeppo
eppodepeppo
4 anni fa

Two things that should be noted in review: the bottom plate of the laptop is very thin and creaks when you pick up the laptop and the keyboard back light doesn’t turn off when not touching the laptop for a while, you;ll need to turn it off manually if you’re watching a movie.

Aurimas
Aurimas
4 anni fa

Is unsatisfactory CPU performance only with i5 processor or with i7 as well? I’m choosing between c740 and S740 and got a little confused

Merc
Merc
4 anni fa

Got the one with i7. You need to active the performance profile for cooling. (Silent and cool will reduce CPU performance, intelligent mode will also reduce performance too) The CPU will get a lot less throttled.

I can reach 1950 Cinebench(r20) without any issues.

Rick
Rick
4 anni fa
Rispondi a  Merc

Have you found any issues?

Sam
Sam
4 anni fa

C

Ben
Ben
4 anni fa

Is the LPDDR4X 3733Mhz memory running in dual channel mode?

AcidMethod
AcidMethod
3 anni fa

i don’t think that word “predecessor” means what you think it means

Thomas
Thomas
3 anni fa

Hey guys. The one you tested is the full hd display right? Can I use your design and game profile also for the Lenovo S740 with the uhd display?
Thanks 🙂

Gaurav
Gaurav
3 anni fa

How much did you undervolt?

Gaurav
Gaurav
3 anni fa
Rispondi a  Gaurav

I have Yoga S740-15IRH and it heats up insanely moment Nvidia GPU starts up.