As part of my ultra mobile video editing project I’ve bought myself a second notebook. Previously I worked with the Acer Aspire One 522 based on the AMD Ontario APU. This time I’ve bought a Lenovo S205 notebook based on the E-350 Zacate APU and have moved up a notch in my search for a good-value, low-stress 720p editing and rendering solution.
Watch the unboxing video below.
Like the Toshiba NB550D I tested last week, the Lenovo S205 lightweight laptop feels like solid, a well-built device. I’m sure Lenovo could have shaved 100gm from the plastics but it looks like they’ve adhered to their build quality standards with the S205. The materials feel good, the finish is nice and the keyboard is a very high quality feature.
For 399 Euro you get the dual-core Zacate CPU running at 1.6Ghz with the Radeon HD6310 GPU with HD decoders. There’s 4GB of RAM, a useful 500GB hard drive (in two partitions with 400GB free on one, 27GB free on the other intended for ‘One-Touch Recovery’ images) and it’s running Windows Home Premium. The 11.6 inch screen has a useful 1366×768 resolution which, along with the excellent keyboard, reduces stress levels when sat down trying to create any sort of rich document where images, links and other items that need to be pulled together from various sources. Veriface facial recognition software is included which initially quite exciting to use but it’s much slower than typing in a password. One-Touch Recovery is software that can take a snapshot of the operating system drive and save it as am image. This is useful when you’ve got your initial build stable and efficient. A boot optimiser and power management application are included and there’s a DirectShare application which hasn’t been tested yet.
It does weigh 1.47KG though which is a noticeable step up from a 1.2KG netbook. Along with that, there’s a significant increase in battery drain meaning the rather low-end 48Wh 6-cell battery could be drained in 2 hours if you try hard. In a video rendering test with the screen and Wifi on I was seeing 16Watts being used which equates to 3hrs. After removal of McAfee and may Windows 7 effects, a reboot and a settling down period, I’m now seeing an average drain of 6W with Wifi off, screen on a 20% setting and the Livewriter application running. As a typewriter, you’re looking at about 6-7 hours of battery life. That’s quite the dynamic range there. Anything between 2 and 8 hours depending on usage! If only Lenovo had put a high-capacity battery in this. 60Wh would have permitted an ‘up to 10 hours’ marketing statement. 5hrs is the claim and that seems reasonable.
In terms of performance I’m seeing a good step up from AMD C-50 performance although there’s not much of a difference in CPU processing power to what I’ve measured on a dual-core N570 CPU that you’ll find in upcoming netbooks . 3D graphics performance is indeed impressive but not impressive enough to make this a full gaming device. It will certainly boost Google Earth, Cover-Flow and other 3D features in high-end applications though and it boost the UI experience well. Some gaming is possible but don’t expect to use high-end settings. Again, you’ll hit the 2hr mark when gaming so bear that in mind when mobile,
Here’s a comparison of the CrystalMark tests on a stock Asus Aspire One 522 (AMD Ontario C-50 CPU) and the Lenovo (AMD Zacate E-350 CPU)
![crystalmark-stock_thumb[1]](https://www.umpcportal.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/03/crystalmark-stock_thumb1_thumb.jpg)
Acer Aspire One 522, Left. Lenovo S205, Right. Click to enlarge. You can see 50-60% CPU performance increase (which relates to the 60% clockrate increase) and the disk and memory get a boost too. I’m confused about the open GL scores though. CrystalMark is quite an old test so perhaps the improvements aren’t showing up in this test.
Update: I was right to question the graphic scores. It looks like the ‘Power Play’ feature [available in the Catalyst Control Center] was set to restrict GPU performance. With ‘Power Play’ configured for max performance, the scores are very different:
For comparison, here’s the result from a dual-core N570 Atom CPU with Nvidia Ion platform (Asus 1015PN tested at CeBIT 2011) The results across the board match very closely. (See the update above, The Zacate APU outperforms the ION2 platform by a lot in the GPU tests)
I tried 3D Mark 03 on the Lenovo S205 but it crashed after the first test. 3DMark 06 was tested on the S205 over at Ndevil.com with a result of 1995 points. Interestingly, Netbooknews tested the NB550d, based on the Ontario platform, and saw 1889 points. Again I’m confused about the graphics performance here. Update: The results could have been due to the issue I experienced above.
A few more notes before we go into the video…
- Fan On most of the time and varies in pitch a lot. Not annoying, but noticeable.
- Screen Good clarity, contrast and brightness. Excellent side-to-side viewing angles. Opening angle not great, Hinges seem OK.
- Mouse and mouse buttons Good quality. Small touchpad area might take some getting used to but it avoids accidental wrist touches.
- Speaker (Mono I believe) OK for the occasional video, skype session.
- Memory and disk not easily accessible
- USB ports are 2.0 only
- Bluetooth is 2.1 + EDR only
- Comes with McAfee pre-installed.
- Hard drive includes movement detection and protection.
Summary
While the AMD platform inside the S205 idles down nicely to show an efficient build, it’s capable of draining battery faster than any netbook I’ve seen. The 7 hour battery life seen when typing a document could drop to 2hrs when gaming. Heavy CPU usage will also push the drain up and the battery life down towards the three hours mark. Average battery life for the normal user looks to be about 20-30% less than on a 10 inch netbook, about 4 hours with the included 48Wh battery. If Lenovo had dropped in a high capacity battery we would be looking at a much more interesting 5hr figure but that’s not the case. I like the build quality and the 1366×768 screen is OK for my eyes at standard settings in this 11.6 inch frame. It’s also good for some applications that require 768 pixels vertically before they install or run.
Performance is good but not in a new league compared to the latest Atom N570 and Ion2 platform. I honestly expected more from the CPU and I’m confused at the 3D test results I’ve seen. In general, it’s a well-balance system and performs most daily tasks well. In my daily routine, a largely web-based office existence, the S205 performs well. The keyboard and mouse are impressive and when combined with the screen, it’s a noticeably less stressful experience than when using a netbook.
For the price, I paid 399 Euros, the Lenovo S205 is a high quality, well balanced and flexible device that offers enough power for everyday computing, some gaming and an impressive show of high-definition playback performance. It’s a sensible choice, almost boring, but one that will keep many happy and provide a good upgrade from a 2-year old netbook.
Personal Thoughts.
I was really expecting more from the E-350 CPU and it’s clear from early tests that this isn’t the comfortable, ultra-mobile 720p editing solution that I’m looking for. 3hrs rendering battery life equates to about 45 minutes of 720p video rendering. While that might be enough for a days worth of clips, it’s doesn’t leave enough battery life left for typing the articles (although there’s some scope for typing while rendering here it seems to multitask well.) Like the Dual-core Atom and C-50 devices, this is for 480p only and I’d class it in the high-end netbook performance category.
An SSD is going to boost startup performance nicely but with the disk appearing to perform well anyway, it may not be as noticeable as on some other devices. I love the build quality and want to keep the S205 but I know there are better solutions out there. Your suggestions for next-in-line on this test series are welcome! I’m looking at Corei3, i5 solutions next.
Lenovo S205 Test and Review Notes: Read more …
http://bit.ly/gKdxzk
Lenovo S205 Test and Review Notes: Read more … http://goo.gl/fb/Gmk8e
Interesting, the battery life of the Sony E350 equivalent is 5 Hrs for web surfing. (according to notebookcheck). And that is achieved with a 38Whrs battery only.
That was what was initially stopping me from getting the sony, until i realised that there are 2 6 cell options on it. One is 38Whrs and there is an upgraded one that is around 55Whrs (far more expensive though). I have ordered one with the big battery and will see what kind of figures it’ll get. It’ll be interesting to see if it does a lot better than the s205.
“I have ordered one with the big battery and will see what kind of figures it’ll get.”
->
Can you reply it here or to my mail?
I tested the Sony yesterday in a store and I like quite a lot. So a comparison between the Sony an Lenovo would be nice.
My mail (not my primary, in case I get spam now):
coolwars(at)web4panz.de
I’m also interested to hear what sort of battery life figures are obtained on the Sony.
wow,
they want 200€ for the sony 81Whrs battery and 160€ for the 54 Whrs battery (O.O)
Ouch Ouch Ouch. I assume the 81wh battery is quite heavy too?
Here is the page:
http://www.sony.de/product/vn-y-series/vpcyb1s1e-s#pageType=SpecialAccessories
The 81whrs weighs 490 gram.
http://www.sony.de/product/batteries/vgp-bpl21
200€ is “MSRP”
you can get it for 100€
http://www.akku-gebiet.de/akku.php/SONY,VGP-BPS21,Laptop-Akku.htm
Lenovo S205 Test and Review Notes | UMPCPortal – Handhelds …: Average battery life for the normal user looks t… http://bit.ly/hmRlEz
Regarding your ‘Personal Thoughts’:
Why not a powerfull subnotebook from second hand market?
The Thinkpad X200s for example weights under 1 kg(without Battery, with 6cell 57wh Battery it weights 1,3 kg). It has enough horsepower (latest core2duo) for video editing and idles down to 4 Watt. Lower than any netbook i’ve used. At the Second hand market it should be not to expensive.
This would be my definitive ultra-mobile 720p editing solution.
I love the X200’s and want one badly for testing but i’ve set some strict parameters for the ultra mobile video editing project. I will start at the low end, take off-the-shelf solutions, keep the price down and ake sure the solution is flexible. I hope that doing it this way will help as many people as possible.
Chippy.
Chippy, you must not be used to more powerful laptops (CULV & up). they will ALWAYS have a higher dynamic range of battery drain/life. as someone who owns several Intel CULV it is very normal for an 6-7hr battery to get 3hr or less under load. many CULV-equivalent systems have similar-ish idles as Atom but under load their power usage can go 3-5x more than Atom, so naturally the battery life will be much shorter. unlike a 6-7hr Atom machine which when under load usually only dips to about 4-5hrs.
Zacate still looks to be an excellent platform, my friends HP dm1z gets about 6hrs under typical usage. certainly a better platform overall than these half-baked Atom/ION combo’s which are now DOA anyways as NV will no longer be pushing them.
You are right. I focus on lower-end solutions. It’s because it’s near impossible to design a mobile device around a processing platform that could push 30W or more due to thermal issues.
This project is starting at the low-end (in terms of size, weight, price and compute power) and working up and I think it will be great to see the results over time. It’s a learning excercise for me and I hope what I learn and report will help everyone that is also looking for a 720p editing solution in the ‘lowest’ form factor.
As I look at CPU-only solutions I also have a close eye on solutions that include GPU processing (CUDA, Open CL) and tightly integrated software that can even use video encoders for the parts of an encoding process that are simple h.264 re-encodes (like the iPad2/iMovie combo I expect.)
Regards
Chippy
Hi Chippy :)
Long time no chat. I’m actually going to buy another netbook for my collection tomorrow. Looking at the HP dm1z. Have you reviewed that and I missed it? Looks like a great deal direct from HP at $449 (3GB) or $479 (4GB RAM). I looked at this Lenovo as well. I had my finger on the Buy button after your Acer 522 review but I changed my mind at the last minute.
I can’t get the dmz1 here in Europe. It gets a lot of positive mentions tho.
Currently not available direct from HP but they got a page for it…
http://h10010.www1.hp.com/wwpc/uk/en/ho/WF06b/321957-321957-3329744-64354-64354-5046273-5079155.html
“SRP only £350 inc VAT”…
See one on Amazon UK for £579.00, under HP Pavilion dm1-3020us, probably an import.
But basically look for DM1 instead of DM1z for Europe…
Still no word on Lenovo X120e either for Europe either…
Based on recent reports of a badly designed touchpad on the dmz1 I think i would prefer the S205.
Touchpad issue for DM1z is basically its size and placement makes it too easy to hit while typing. But it has a quick way to disable the pad, just takes time getting use to, but can still be annoying having to remember to disable it and enable it when you actually need it. Though it depends on how you type…
For Zacate E-350, the HP is just the best price deal, especially if you can get the coupon code discount. Even though I’d personally prefer the X120e, especially the matte screen and typical Thinkpad build quality, but it cost more for the same setup.
I’ve never been a fan of Lenovo’s Idealpads, tend to be over priced in my opinion. But the S205 is a viable alternative to the DM1z.
Lenovo S205 Test and Review Notes | UMPCPortal – Handhelds …: In terms of performance I'm seeing a good step u… http://bit.ly/iiYnbE
Important update to my Lenovo S205 (Zacate) review. I found a lot more GPU power. http://bit.ly/fcXO6Q
See important update to the GPU testing in the artcle.
So the GPU part is also able to be clocked back?
Yes. Independently of power profile. Quite useful!
I’m suprised noone’s mentioned the thinkpad edge 11 (which is basically the x120e for europe) It’s a “netbook” in all but name….
Or does it have to be an amd machine?
It is no AMD with the better GPU and is more expensive too.
I’ve mentioned it, in a couple of posts recently. I’m very interested in it as my next test device.