Lenovo Ideapad s340-15 Review: Ultraslim Just Got Better

One of Lenovo’s most affordable 15.6-inch laptops is the Lenovo IdeaPad S340-15, which is priced lower than the midrange IdeaPad S540, high-end IdeaPad S740, and entry-level IdeaPad S940 models. Our test unit costs only around $700 to $800 USD retail and comes with Intel’s newest Core i7-1065G7 Ice Lake CPU, a 1080p IPS display, a 512 GB SSD, and 8 GB of DDR4 RAM. There are less expensive SKUs available for under $400 with the Core i3-8145U CPU, 768p TN display, 128 GB SSD, and only 4 GB of RAM. 

Other affordable 15.6-inch multimedia laptops like the Asus VivoBook S15, HP Pavilion 15, Acer Aspire series, and the Dell Inspiron 15 are direct rivals to the Lenovo IdeaPad S340-15. Since the 15.6-inch IdeaPad S340-15 shares physical characteristics with both the 14-inch IdeaPad S340-14 and the 15.6-inch IdeaPad S540-15, we suggest reading our review of the 14-inch model since many of our previous observations still hold true for the 15.6-inch model.

Lenovo Ideapad s340-15 Specs

Case

Other than a slight change in thickness, the chassis looks exactly like the IdeaPad S540-15. In contrast to the almost entirely aluminum Yoga S900 series, it has an outer lid made primarily of aluminum and a keyboard deck made of slightly rubberized plastic to cut costs. The S340 feels smoother and more streamlined than, for example, the Dell Inspiron 15 or the excessively plastic Asus VivoBook S15 series for a budget laptop. Given the price difference, one would anticipate that surfaces would still warp and creak more than they do on the Yoga C940 or XPS 15.

The HP Pavilion 15, Asus VivoBook S15, Dell Inspiron 15, and Lenovo’s own IdeaPad S540-15 are comparable in terms of size and weight. Therefore, when choosing between these low-cost laptops, you should be more concerned with differences in performance and build quality than with size and weight. The new narrow bezel designs of most newer laptops will help with portability if you’re replacing an older laptop.

Connectivity

There are the majority of the anticipated ports, including USB Type-C, USB Type-A, and HDMI. Except for the cramped HDMI port that is crammed between the AC adapter port and USB Type-C port, port placement is excellent.

SD Card Reader

The integrated SD card reader’s transfer rates are remarkably similar to those we observed on the IdeaPad S540. On the Dell XPS 15, it takes just half the time to transfer 1 GB of images from our UHS-II test card to the desktop. 

Even when fully inserted, an SD card still sticks out by more than half its length, making it dangerous to carry. In contrast, SD cards inserted into laptops like the ThinkPad T490 almost touch the edge.

Communication

For Wi-Fi 5 or 802.11ac speeds, an Intel 9560 provides wireless. Standing one meter away from our Wi-Fi 6-enabled Netgear RAX200 router, we can measure real-world average transfer rates of roughly 1200 Mbps. Throughout our time with the test unit, we had no problems with connectivity.

Maintenance

Ten T5 Torx screws hold down the bottom panel. Users can access two storage bays and one SODIMM slot under the aluminum plate once it has been removed. Compared to the HP Pavilion series, servicing is much simpler here.

Accessories and Warranty

The paper manuals and AC adapter are the only extras in the box. If purchased directly from Lenovo, the standard one-year limited warranty is included along with additional options.

Lenovo IdeaPad S340-15 Input Devices

Keyboard and TouchPad

Lenovo’s IdeaPad S340, S540, and S740 models all share the same keyboard and touchpad. Our previous observations regarding the S540 and S740 are thus applicable to the Lenovo IdeaPad S340-15. Even the clickpad’s dimensions (10.5 x 7 cm) are the same across all three models. Unfortunately, this also means that we are not particularly impressed by the keyboard’s soft feedback. 

In terms of laptop keyboards, Lenovo ThinkPads have some of the best ones, whereas the Lenovo IdeaPad S340-15’s keys feel softer, shallower, and generally less expensive. If you’re used to typing on inexpensive Ultrabooks, you won’t be surprised by this, but if you’re coming from an Ultrabook with firmer keys, like the HP Spectre series or the ThinkPad series, you’ll notice the difference.

Display

As of this writing, there is no other laptop in our database that has the BOE NV156FHM-T03 panel that is on our unit. However, a few laptops, such as the Lenovo Legion Y740 and the Xiaomi Mi Notebook Pro, feature panels from the BOE NV156FHM family. 

To our surprise, the contrast is better than we had anticipated for a matte panel on a cheap laptop, and there is barely any graininess. On the other hand, the panel isn’t as colorful as the ones found on more expensive laptops like the Surface laptop 3 15 or IdeaPad S940 because of the constrained color space and inaccurate colors. 

Our unit exhibits slight to moderate uneven backlight bleeding along the edges and corners, and response times are slow, causing more noticeable ghosting when playing video games.

Processor

The CPU performance measured by CineBench R15 and R20 is within 5% of the average Core i7-1065G7 in our database, which is where we expect it to be. The issue arises when the laptop’s performance endurance is tested by repeatedly running the same benchmarks. For instance, after four full loops of CineBench R15 Multi-Thread, the initial score of 738 points would have dropped to 460 points, signifying a staggering 38 percent decline in processor performance. 

The Surface Laptop 3 15 with the same Core i7-1065G7 CPU would experience a drop of just 6 to 7 percent, in contrast. Strangely, as shown by our graph below, CPU performance would occasionally spike back to normal before declining once more. Users who want consistent CPU performance when running high processing loads will not appreciate this wide performance delta and cycling behavior.

System Performance

Even though the system falters under high stress, as demonstrated by our benchmarks above, PCMark results are where we anticipate them to be in comparison to other laptops powered by the same Core i7-1065G7 CPU. The system should function normally under typical browsing or streaming loads, according to this. 

However, power users may want to consider the Yoga C940 instead if they want to get the most out of the Ice Lake CPU. Throughout our time with the test unit, neither the software nor the hardware presented any significant issues.

Storage Devices

There is a 2.5-inch SATA III bay and an M.2 2280 PCIe slot available. In contrast to the more expensive Samsung PM981 series or Intel’s more recent 760p series, our test unit has a 512 GB Intel 660p, a less expensive NVMe SSD. Even so, the target casual home, school, or office user will have access to sequential read and write rates that are at least two times faster than any SATA III SSD.

GPU Performance

In almost every 3DMark benchmark, graphics performance consistently falls 15–20% short of the average Iris Plus Graphics G7 in our database. Users can anticipate performance that falls somewhere between the GeForce MX150 and the older UHD Graphics 620, which is just about adequate to play popular, low-demanding games like Rocket League or DOTA 2 at low settings. 

We’ve never seen frame rates this low for a Core i7-1065G7 laptop. For instance, when playing Rocket League at the lowest 720p settings, the average frame rate is 45, as opposed to about 114 on the XPS 13 2-in-1. Furthermore, as shown by the Witcher 3 graph below, the system is unable to sustain Boost clock rates for very long. In the game, standing still, the frame rate starts out at 45 FPS before dropping and stabilizing at 33 FPS after an hour.

Emissions

System Noise

The IdeaPad S340-15 is a typical example of a modern 15-inch laptop that is exceptionally quiet because it only uses ULV U-series CPUs. For low loads, such as browsing or streaming, anticipate no fan noise, and for moderate loads, only a slight increase to 30 dB(A). When used for gaming, the fan noise maxes out at 35.5 dB(A), making it quieter than any Ultrabook equipped with discrete GeForce MX250 graphics. In other words, regardless of the load on the screen, fan noise never becomes bothersome. No coil whine or electronic noise can be heard coming from our test unit.

Temperature

Due to the placement of the motherboard and processor inside, the left half of the laptop will always have warmer surface temperatures than the right. Our temperature maps below illustrate how hot spots can range from 34 C on the keyboard to as high as 44 C on the bottom when under heavy loads. Even though they all have the same Core i7-1065G7 CPU, the results are cooler than what we saw on the Surface Laptop 3 15 or XPS 13, probably because these more expensive alternatives have slimmer and more streamlined designs.

Stress Test

HWiNFO can provide an explanation for the poor performance sustainability mentioned in our CPU section above. Only the first 5 seconds or so of Prime95 would see clock rates increase to 3.5 GHz before reaching a core temperature of 93 C. Following that, clock rates gradually decreased to 2.9 GHz before finally stabilizing at just 1.7 GHz and a core temperature of about 54 C. The Core i7-base 1065G7’s clock frequency is 1.3 GHz, so the 400 MHz boost is disappointing. 

The same CPU in the XPS 13 2-in-1 maintains stability at 3.0 GHz when put through the same tests. Performance won’t be hindered by operating on battery power. In comparison to 5819 and 3796 points when using the mains, a 3DMark 11 run on batteries yields Physics and Graphics scores of 6743 and 4083 points, respectively.

Speakers

The stereo speakers on the 15.6-inch, budget laptop don’t provide anything special. The speakers are better for video conferencing than for playing back music or other multimedia because the audio is loud but the bass is weak. Higher volume levels won’t cause any static or vibration in the palm rests.

Lenovo IdeaPad S340-15 Energy Management

Power Consumption

Depending on the brightness setting and power profile, a desktop idles between 3 and 7 watts. When gaming, the system will use between 40 and 44 watts as opposed to between 44 and 64 watts on the IdeaPad S540 with the more potent GeForce MX250 GPU. When running Prime95 or both Prime95 and FurMark simultaneously, we can record up to 47.5 W from the tiny (6.3 x 6.3 x 2.8 cm) 45 W AC adapter. Due to the system’s limited capacity for Turbo Boost, this high consumption is only momentary.

Battery Life

Configurations may come with a 36 Wh or a 52.5 Wh internal battery depending on the region and SKU. The smaller 36 Wh version is the one in our specific unit. The battery size of the IdeaPad S540-15 is much larger at 70 Wh. With just over 4 hours of actual WLAN use, our Lenovo IdeaPad S340-15-runtimes 15’s aren’t very long. 

It takes a while for the system to fully recharge from empty. When compared to most other Ultrabooks, which only need 1.5 to 2 hours, this process takes about 2.5 to 3 hours. This is somewhat disappointing given the IdeaPad S340-already 15’s modest battery capacity. Also ineffective is USB Type-C recharging.

Read: Acer Aspire 7 a717-72g Laptop Review: My New Gaming Addiction

Final Verdict

A few weeks ago, we wrote about the Lenovo IdeaPad S340-15 as one of the least expensive laptops available with the newest Core i7-1065G7 CPU from Intel. The Dell XPS 13 2-in-1 and the Razer Blade Stealth, which are considerably more expensive than our Lenovo and can easily cost twice as much, both use the same processor. On paper, this appears to be good news for Lenovo, but in practice, the IdeaPad S340-CPU 15’s performance is below average when compared to the alternatives mentioned above, especially when running demanding applications or playing games. 

You’ll need to look beyond the IdeaPad series if you want the best that Ice Lake has to offer. The laptop itself is more contemporary and aesthetically pleasing than the rival Dell Inspiron, Asus VivoBook, or HP Pavilion series. Additionally pleasant surprises include the matte touchscreen and accessible dual storage bays, which are uncommon on low-cost laptops. 

Nearly every other aspect of the system is adequate or at least mediocre. For its price range, the limited color palette, light keys, and subpar battery life are all standard. As Ice Lake offers very little extra for the Lenovo IdeaPad S340-15, we advise choosing the less expensive Core i5 or Core i7 Whiskey Lake-U SKUs.