Lenovo ThinkPad Edge S430 Review

1. Introduction2. Lenovo ThinkPad Edge S4303. Lenovo ThinkPad Edge S430 (Super High Res Gallery)4. Testing Methodology & Configuration5. Synthetic: SiSoft Sandra6. Synthetic: PCMark 77. Synthetic: Cinebench R11.5 64 bit8. Synthetic: Unigine Heaven Benchmark9. Synthetic: 3DMark 1110. Synthetic: Hard Drive Performance11. Real World: BluRay Playback with PowerDVD 1112. Real World: MKV 1080p Performance13. Real World: Flash HD Performance14. Real World: Media Encoding15. Gaming: Resident Evil 516. Gaming: Call of Duty: Black Ops17. Gaming: Left4Dead218. Technical: Battery Life19. Technical: Acoustics Performance20. Technical: Thermal Performance21. Closing Thoughts22. View All Pages

If you are in the market for a new laptop, then there are certainly no shortage of options available today. We tend to focus on gaming machines at Kitguru, however today's review product will appeal to a business user who values performance, portability and build quality. The Lenovo ThinkPad Edge S430 is designed for productivity, equipped with a fast Intel Core i5 processor, Nvidia Optimus graphics and 4GB of DDR3 memory.

Lenovo have a range of laptop computers designed specifically for the business user. The Edge S430 is targeted at the ‘small business' user, weighs less than 1.8KG and has a rated battery life around 6 hours.

For a frequent flyer, this machine looks to be an ideal choice, especially as it uses an almost identical keyboard to the class leading unit incorporated into the ThinkPad X1 back in September last year.

Feature Set:

• 2GB NVIDIA® discrete graphics with Optimus™ technology
• Integrated DVD reader/writer or second HDD
• Trusted Platform Module
• Progressive, clean design in soft-touch mocha black
• Lenovo Solutions for Small Business
• InstantResume
• Durable dropdown hinges
• Spill-resistant keyboard
• HDD Performance Booster
• Active Protection System™
• ULE Gold-certified
• Integrated 720p HD camera with face tracking
• USB 3.0, mini-DP/Thunderbolt™, mini-HDMI, 4-in-1 card reader

The bundle isn't very comprehensive. Lenovo supply an information sheet explaining the key commands and various ports on the laptop. There is also a power supply with regional specific plug.

The ‘Lenovo' branded power adapter is quite small, rated to 90W. This works in all countries across the globe, between 100-240V.

The Lenovo ThinkPad Edge is slim and weighs a little less than 1.8KG. While it may be difficult to see in the images, the lid colour is not black, but a very dark purple. This looks a lot better than it sounds!

The 14 inch HD+ LED screen has a resolution of 1600×900 and is coated with an antiglare covering. As you can notice in the images above, the screen is not reflective and it is easy to use in a variety of situations. There is a camera in the center of the chassis, just above the panel circumference.

The screen is above average and while the colours are a little over saturated, the overall experience is very positive.

Working in direct sunlight isn't possible however as the screen doesn't get bright enough to compensate. In all other situations however, it is very good.

Viewing angles are also well above average, on both planes. Colour shift is noticeable past 45 degrees in a vertical direction, but this is also above average for the specific class.

The Lenovo ThinkPad Edge S430 keyboard is absolutely superb and almost as good as the Razer BlackWidow Ultimate which I use as my main work board. Lenovo are without question the masters of laptop keyboards in the current climate.

The keys measure 15mm x 15mm and have a concave shape which balances the tip of the finger in the center point of each key. Quite why this hasn't become an industry standard is baffling

Due to the limited physical dimensions there is no numpad on the ThinkPad Edge S430, however the company have optimised the keyboard for typists with a set of arrow keys bottom right. A double height return key and perfectly positioned spacebar and shift keys enhance the work experience significantly.

This keyboard is spill (liquid) resistant, although it does not have a backlight option for working in poorly lit environments, such as the one found on the ThinkPad X1. Lenovo have instead included a little light next to the camera on the top of the screen area which can be toggled on or off. This isn't as good as a dedicated backlit keyboard, but it is better than nothing.

The upper row of keys can be used to directly adjust the volume, screen brightness, environmental light, wireless functionality and media playback.

Above the ‘B' key, is the famous little ‘red' joypad interface which I much prefer to a standard trackpad. The Lenovo trackpad and left/right buttons are fantastic, and almost as good as the keyboard. Lenovo also include a very accurate fingerprint reader at the side. We only experienced a ‘misread' when we carelessly tracked our finger tip sideways across the scanner.

The power button is positioned just above the ESC key on the left side of the chassis. The speaker is positioned close by, running along the top of the keyboard. Sound quality is decent, with a reasonable volume level available without distortion. That said, it lacks bass response and a dedicated pair of speakers or headphones would be required for the best experience.

The strong metal hinges on the panel hold it steady in place, regardless of the positioning. Very reassuring.

The right side of the chassis has a power connector, optical drive, card reader, USB 3.0 port and headphone jack. The left side has a mini HDMI port, ThunderBolt, GB lan connector and another USB 3.0 port. There are three sections of vents on the underside of the chassis to help with airflow.

The battery is not easily accessible. The upper side of the device has to be removed, including the keyboard and optical drive.

On this page we present some super high resolution images of the product taken with the 24.5MP Nikon D3X camera and 24-70mm ED lens. These will take much longer to open due to the dimensions, especially on slower connections. If you use these pictures on another site or publication, please credit Kitguru.net as the owner/source.

The Windows Experience Index isn't an indepth tool, but it is useful for a quick ‘overview' of overall system performance. The system seems quite capable, let down by the graphics power which reduces the score to 5.0 out of a possible 7.9.

The 64 bit version of Windows 7 Professional is installed, with the updated Service Pack 1. 4GB of memory is installed.

The Core i5 3210M processor built on the 22nm manufacturing process. This processor has two physical cores and a total of 4 logical cores. This is a low power draw processor, rated at a TDP of 35W. The 4 GB of DDR3 runs at 1,600mhz with 11-11-11-28 1T timings. The Optimus graphics solution comprises the low end Nvidia GT620M and the Intel HD4000.

The install isn't the cleanest we have seen, with a plethora of third party applications installed, such as Norton Internet Security, Splashtop Streamer and Evernote V4.2.3.

There are a lot of proprietary Lenovo applications installed, however a lot of these are actually very useful.

Comparison Systems (for specific synthetic test compares):
PC Specialist Vortex III HD72 (featuring Core i7 3610QM).
Asus G74SX-91013Z (featuring Core i7 2360QM).
Dell XPS 14z (featuring Core i7 2640M).
AlienWare M18X (featuring Core i7 2960XM Extreme Edition).
MSI CX640 (featuring Core i5 2410M).
Intel Core i7 2600k desktop processor.
Intel Core i5 2500k desktop processor.

Software:
3DMark Vantage
3DMark 11
PCMark 7
Cinebench 11.5 64 bit
FRAPS Professional
Unigine Heaven Benchmark
CrystalDiskMark
Cyberlink PowerDVD Ultra 11
Cyberlink MediaEspresso
HQV Benchmark V2.
Left4Dead2
Resident Evil 5
Call Of Duty: Black Ops

Technical Monitoring and Test Equipment:
Asus USB BluRay Drive
Lacie 730 Monitor (Image Quality testing)
Thermal Diodes
Raytek Laser Temp Gun 3i LSRC/MT4 Mini Temp
Extech digital sound level meter & SkyTronic DSL 2 Digital Sound Level Meter
Nikon D3X with R1C1 Kit (4 flashes), Nikon 24-70MM lens.

SiSoftware Sandra (the System ANalyser, Diagnostic and Reporting Assistant) is an information & diagnostic utility. It should provide most of the information (including undocumented) you need to know about your hardware, software and other devices whether hardware or software.

Sandra is a (girl’s) name of Greek origin that means “defender”, “helper of mankind”. We think that’s quite fitting.

It works along the lines of other Windows utilities, however it tries to go beyond them and show you more of what’s really going on. Giving the user the ability to draw comparisons at both a high and low-level. You can get information about the CPU, chipset, video adapter, ports, printers, sound card, memory, network, Windows internals, AGP, PCI, PCI-X, PCIe (PCI Express), database, USB, USB2, 1394/Firewire, etc.

Native ports for all major operating systems are available:

• Windows XP, 2003/R2, Vista, 7, 2008/R2 (x86)
• Windows XP, 2003/R2, Vista, 7, 2008/R2 (x64)
• Windows 2003/R2, 2008/R2* (IA64)
• Windows Mobile 5.x (ARM CE 5.01)
• Windows Mobile 6.x (ARM CE 5.02)

All major technologies are supported and taken advantage of:

• SMP – Multi-Processor
• MC – Multi-Core
• SMT/HT – Hyper-Threading
• MMX, SSE, SSE2, SSE3, SSSE3, SSE 4.1, SSE 4.2, AVX, FMA – Multi-Media instructions
• GPGPU, DirectX, OpenGL – Graphics
• NUMA – Non-Uniform Memory Access
• AMD64/EM64T/x64 – 64-bit extensions to x86
• IA64 – Intel* Itanium 64-bit

The Dual core processor doesn't deliver groundbreaking performance results in the Sandra tests, falling close to the bottom of the charts.

PCMark 7 includes 7 PC tests for Windows 7, combining more than 25 individual workloads covering storage, computation, image and video manipulation, web browsing and gaming. Specifically designed to cover the full range of PC hardware from netbooks and tablets to notebooks and desktops, PCMark 7 offers complete PC performance testing for Windows 7 for home and business use.

The overall score of 2,622 points is quite reasonable, considering the dual core processor in this system. Not a marvellous set of results, but more than adequate for the target business audience.

CINEBENCH R11.5 64 Bit is a real-world cross platform test suite that evaluates your computer’s performance capabilities. CINEBENCH is based on MAXON’s award-winning animation software CINEMA 4D, which is used extensively by studios and production houses worldwide for 3D content creation. MAXON software has been used in blockbuster movies such as Spider-Man, Star Wars, The Chronicles of Narnia and many more.

CINEBENCH is the perfect tool to compare CPU and graphics performance across various systems and platforms (Windows and Mac OS X). And best of all: It’s completely free.

The dual core processor delivers modest results, with a final score of 2.75 points. Still it would be adequate for light rendering duties on the move, in a pinch.

Unigine provides an interesting way to test hardware. It can be easily adapted to various projects due to its elaborated software design and flexible toolset. A lot of their customers claim that they have never seen such extremely-effective code, which is so easy to understand.

Heaven Benchmark is a DirectX 11 GPU benchmark based on advanced Unigine engine from Unigine Corp. It reveals the enchanting magic of floating islands with a tiny village hidden in the cloudy skies. Interactive mode provides emerging experience of exploring the intricate world of steampunk.

Efficient and well-architected framework makes Unigine highly scalable:

• Multiple API (DirectX 9 / DirectX 10 / DirectX 11 / OpenGL) render
• Cross-platform: MS Windows (XP, Vista, Windows 7) / Linux
• Full support of 32bit and 64bit systems
• Multicore CPU support
• Little / big endian support (ready for game consoles)
• Powerful C++ API
• Comprehensive performance profiling system
• Flexible XML-based data structures

We use the following settings: 1600×900 resolution. Anti Aliasing off. Anisotrophy 4, Tessellation normal. Shaders High. Stereo 3D disabled. API: Direct X 11.

The Nvidia Geforce GT 620M isn't exactly a powerhouse graphics solution as we can see by the results. The system averaged in the single digits at a resolution of 1600×900.

3DMark 11 is designed for testing DirectX 11 hardware running on Windows 7 and Windows Vista the benchmark includes six all new benchmark tests that make extensive use of all the new features in DirectX 11 including tessellation, compute shaders and multi-threading.

After running the tests 3DMark gives your system a score with larger numbers indicating better performance. Trusted by gamers worldwide to give accurate and unbiased results, 3DMark 11 is the best way to test DirectX 11 under game-like loads.

If you want to learn more about this benchmark, or to buy it yourself, head over to this page.

The system scored 802 points at the standard ‘performance' setting. As this machine isn't specifically designed for high resolution gaming it won't be crucial.

A very important part of overall system responsiveness is down to hard drive performance. We use two of our favourite benchmark utilities Crystalmark X64 Edition and HD Tach to rate performance from the onboard SATA drive.

Performance from the hard drive is pretty much as good as we could expect from a 2.5 inch mechanical unit, averaging around 110 MB/s in both sequential read and write tests.

The ATTO Disk Benchmark performance measurement tool is compatible with Microsoft Windows. Measure your storage systems performance with various transfer sizes and test lengths for reads and writes. Several options are available to customize your performance measurement including queue depth, overlapped I/O and even a comparison mode with the option to run continuously. Use ATTO Disk Benchmark to test any manufacturers RAID controllers, storage controllers, host adapters, hard drives and SSD drives and notice that ATTO products will consistently provide the highest level of performance to your storage.

ATTO Disk Benchmark shows a peak performance of around 125MB/s write and around 170 MB/s read.

Cyberlink PowerDVD 11 is one of the finest solutions for the BluRay experience on Windows and we found this software to work perfectly with this chipset. We tested with the new extended Bluray Disc of Lord Of The Rings.

No problems handling the load of a high definition bluray disc. Plenty of CPU cycles left over to handle other tasks.

The Matroska Media container is a very popular, open standard Multimedia container which is usually found as .MKV files. It is a very popular format in enthusiast circles and can be played directly in Windows Media Player with suitable codecs installed. We use the Combined Community Codec Pack (CCCP).

We ripped our BluRay disc of Sniper Reloaded to 1080P MKV and use Windows Media Player to playback the file.

37 percent CPU time was demanded to play this heavy load media file. Still a good percentage of CPU cycles left over for multitasking.

Many people using this system will be enjoying Flash related content so we feel it is important to test with some of the more demanding material available freely online. Full hardware acceleration is enabled.

Flash playback demands vary between 7 and 28 percent and the average demand was around 16 percent. Hardware acceleration helps reduce CPU load.

CyberLink MediaEspresso 6 is the successor to CyberLink MediaShow Espresso 5.5. With its further optimized CPU/GPU-acceleration, MediaEspresso is an even faster way to convert not only your video but also your music and image files between a wide range of popular formats.

Now you can easily playback and display your favourite movies, songs and photos not just on your mobile phone, iPad, PSP, Xbox, or Youtube and Facebook channels but also on the newly launched iPhone 4. Compile, convert and enjoy images and songs on any of your computing devices and enhance your videos with CyberLink’s built-in TrueTheater Technology.

New and Improved Features

• Ultra Fast Media Conversion – With support from the Intel Core i-Series processor family, ATI Stream & NVIDIA CUDA, MediaEspresso’s Batch-Conversion function enables multiple files to be transcoded simultaneously.
• Smart Detect Technology – MediaEspresso 6 automatically detects the type of portable device connected to the PC and selects the best multimedia profile to begin the conversion without the need for user’s intervention.
• Direct Sync to Portable Devices – Video, audio and image files can be transferred in a few easy steps to mobile phones including those from Acer, BlackBerry, HTC, Samsung, LG, Nokia, Motorola, Sony Ericsson, and Palm, as well as Sony Walkman and PSP devices.
• Enhanced Video Quality – CyberLink TrueTheater Denoise and Lighting enables the enhancement of video quality through optical noise filters and automatic brightness adjustment.
• Video, Music and Image File Conversion – Convert not only videos to popular formats such as AVI, MPEG, MKV, H.264/AVC, and FLV at the click of a button, but also images such as JPEG and PNG and music files like WMA, MP3 and M4A.
• Online Sharing – Conversion to video formats used by popular social networking websites and a direct upload feature means posting videos to Facebook and YouTube has never been easier.

For our testing today we are converting a 3.3GB 720p MKV file (2h:12mins) to Apple Mp4 format for playback on a portable device. This is a common procedure for many people and will give a good indication of system power. We are using the newest version which has been optimised for Sandybridge processors.

We couldn't get the Nvidia GT620M to become accessible in MediaEspresso, however Intel's processor supports hardware acceleration. We enabled it.

The system delivers a good final result in this test, with a final score of 15 minutes and 40 seconds. By comparison, an Intel ATOM processor will take around 1 hour and 15 minutes to complete the same task.

Resident Evil 5, known in Japan as Biohazard 5, is a survival horror third-person shooter video game developed and published by Capcom. The game is the seventh installment in the Resident Evil survival horror series, and was released on March 5, 2009 in Japan and on March 13, 2009 in North America and Europe for the PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. A Windows version of the game was released on September 15, 2009 in North America, September 17 in Japan and September 18 in Europe. Resident Evil 5 revolves around Chris Redfield and Sheva Alomar as they investigate a terrorist threat in Kijuju, a fictional town in Africa.

Within its first three weeks of release, the game sold over 2 million units worldwide and became the best-selling game of the franchise in the United Kingdom. As of December, 2009, Resident Evil 5 has sold 5.3 million copies worldwide since launch, becoming the best selling Resident Evil game ever made.

At these settings, the game is playable, although the frame rate dips a couple of times close to the danger zone at 25 frames per second.

Call of Duty: Black Ops is a first-person shooter video game developed by Treyarch and published by Activision. It was a huge seller, as expected and is the seventh game in the Call Of Duty series. The game runs on an enhanced World at War engine (which itself was improved from Call of Duty 4‘s) at 60 frames per second on consoles. It features a streaming texture technology (also seen in Modern Warfare 2), making bigger levels possible such as “Payback” where the player controls a helicopter. Lighting effects have been improved as well.

At 720p resolution, the system manages to maintain a playable experience, averaging just over 40 frames per second. This drops to just under 30 in a couple of sections of the environment. Good results.

Like its predecessor, Left 4 Dead 2 is set shortly after a worldwide pandemic of an infectious disease that rapidly transforms humans into zombie-like creatures and mutated forms that demonstrate extreme aggression towards non-infected (much like the ones in 28 Days Later). Few humans are immune to the disease, still carrying the infection but showing no symptoms.

A smooth game experience at 720p, averaging over 50 frames per second.

The battery inside the Lenovo ThinkPad Edge S430 is a 48 Wh unit, which is quite small.

To test today, we are putting the machine through a variety of ‘real world’ situations, mirroring the real world usage of a potential customer.

One as a media movie lover on the move (wearing headphones), a person wanting to watch high definition media on a train journey or bus with two thirds screen brightness.

Second as a businessman, with screen brightness around half way. Wireless was enabled. A mixture of checking, answering emails using Microsoft Office and editing pictures in Adobe Photoshop.

Lastly as a gamer, playing Left4Dead until the machine turned itself off.

Battery life is actually quite good, especially for general office duties and surfing. We achieved a maximum of just over 6 hours when used solely as a ‘business' machine, which is impressive. When watching high definition movies, the battery life dropped to just over 2 hours and 30 minutes. When gaming in Left4Dead2, the battery died at around 1 hour and 45 minutes.

We measure from a distance of around 1 meter from the chassis and 4 foot from the ground with our Extech digital sound level meter to mirror a real world situation.

KitGuru noise guide
10dBA – Normal Breathing/Rustling Leaves
20-25dBA – Whisper
30dBA – High Quality Computer fan
40dBA – A Bubbling Brook, or a Refrigerator
50dBA – Normal Conversation
60dBA – Laughter
70dBA – Vacuum Cleaner or Hairdryer
80dBA – City Traffic or a Garbage Disposal
90dBA – Motorcycle or Lawnmower
100dBA – MP3 player at maximum output
110dBA – Orchestra
120dBA – Front row rock concert/Jet Engine
130dBA – Threshold of Pain
140dBA – Military Jet take off/Gunshot (close range)
160dBA – Instant Perforation of eardrum

The Lenovo ThinkPad Edge S430 is surprisingly quiet, barely audible most of the time, except when loaded with a game or a synthetic benchmark. Even when watching a high definition movie file, the fan noise isn't intrusive.

The tests were performed in a controlled air conditioned room with temperatures maintained at a constant 24c – a comfortable environment for the majority of people reading this.

Idle temperatures were measured after sitting at the desktop for 30 minutes. Load measurements were acquired by running Furmark and Cinebench together. Room ambient temperatures were 23c.

We measured results with CPUID Hardware Monitor software. The CPU was loaded with Cinebench in a loop and Furmark stress test.

The processor can get quite hot under load, peaking at 85c. Its still within what we would consider ‘acceptable' levels, but borderline.

We attached 5 diodes to the machine and measured the temperatures after loading it for 90 minutes.

The rear, right side of the laptop (from above) can get toasty after extended load, peaking at 47c. This can be rather uncomfortable if the machine is placed directly on your lap. The other areas of the underside are actually quite cool. Some hot air is also expelled out the right side of the chassis.

The Lenovo ThinkPad Edge S430 is designed for the business man on the move needing a portable, capable laptop. The light weight and excellent build quality offer reassurance and the high quality screen and keyboard ensure productivity in many situations.

The 1600×900 resolution is a good compromise between true 1080p HD and real world usability on a 14 inch panel. The matte finish ensures that the screen can be used in a variety of less than perfect environments. It only loses the fight against direct sunlight, but very few screens can truly deliver in this situation. Overall, the quality of the panel is well above average, with good viewing angles and balanced colour definition.

The keyboard on the ThinkPad Edge S430 is class leading, and maintains the same high standards of the ThinkPad X1 which we reviewed many months ago. The anti spill feature is useful and the large keys with full sized spacing ensure that typists will feel at home. I had no problems maintaining a 100 word per minute typing rate, which is extremely rare in the mobile space.

The onboard sound system is decent, if unremarkable. A set of headphones or external speakers would be recommended if you want to get the most from the media experience.

Lenovo have managed to maintain a low weight, due to the adoption of a small battery. Battery life is certainly nothing groundbreaking, but it is acceptable for remote office duties. You will likely need to recharge in the afternoon, but it is no worse than many other machines we have tested in recent months. We experienced anywhere between 2 and 6 hours battery life, depending on the system settings and demand.

Noise levels are excellent and the machine is barely audible, unless when gaming or running CPU intensive software such as Cinema 4D. We rarely noticed the cooling system, although it can get hot at the rear right of the machine, as most of the air is expelled in this particular area.

It is important to be aware of limitations before contemplating a purchase, because the ThinkPad Edge S430 is not designed for gaming or heavy duty, processor intensive tasks. The dual Core i5 3210M feels a little weak when compared against the latest Intel quad core processors and the Nvidia GT620M is not able to power the latest Direct X 11 gaming engines. If you are happy running a couple of older, less graphically intensive titles then it may be adequate.

If you are in the market for a lightweight, well built machine for general office and browsing duties then the ThinkPad Edge S430 is an excellent choice. Lenovo have very high engineering standards and at a starting price of £635 in the United Kingdom it is highly recommended.

Pros:

• Great build quality.
• fantastic keyboard.
• screen quality is commendable.
• light weight.
• quiet.
• competitive pricing.

Cons:

• can get hot in one corner.
• not all day battery life.
• not designed for gaming.

Kitguru says: An excellent all round machine designed for work based tasks and portability.

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