For the IdeaPad Y510p, Lenovo combined two middle-class GPUs from Nvidia's GeForce 700 series. Even though these graphics cards are still based on the older Kepler architecture, the significantly higher clock speeds enable the GeForce GT 750M (SLI) to outperform the GeForce GT 650M (SLI) by a fair margin.

The DirectX 11 GPU improves upon the clock speeds of the predecessor - 790 MHz core and 2000 MHz memory: the GT 750M reaches 967 MHz and 2500 MHz, which is an increase of +22% for the core and +25% for the memory. Using GPU Boost technology (dynamic overclocking), the graphics card tops out at 1058 MHz according to GPU-Z.

The amount of RAM has not changed: 2048 MB GDDR5-VRAM is addressed via a 128-bit bus (although the bandwidth is now 80 GB/s instead of 64 GB/s). The number of shader units (384) is also identical. The next stronger GPU in Nvidia's lineup - the GeForce GTX 760M - has twice as many shader units. All Kepler GPUs are manufactured using the same - still up-to-date - 28 nm process.

To ensure maximum graphics performance, Lenovo equipped the IdeaPad Y510p with two GT 750M GPUs, which are linked together in an SLI setup. Just like the direct competitor from AMD (CrossFire), Nvidia's dual-GPU setup has certain disadvantages - one of them the much higher power draw and cooling requirements.

Much more critical, in our opinion, is the occurrence of micro stuttering. Since the two GPUs render the frames in turn, the delay between the frames can be irregular at times, which leads to stuttering. The SLI GPU-combo unfortunately falls below the critical threshold of 40 fps - at least for Full HD and high to maximum details (usually the preferred settings for playing games). Some titles - like Far Cry 3 - seem particularly prone to micro stuttering.

At times, a game that looks good on paper does not perform that well when it is actually played. High-performance dual-GPU setups - like the GeForce GTX 765M SLI (Schenker XMG P723) - are not affected as much.

Another drawback is the strong dependence on drivers. Games that are slower or only marginally faster when played with dual GT 750Ms are usually missing a profile for the driver, which is necessary for the SLI setup to reach the full potential. Nvidia needs to implement such a profile for each and every game. In addition to some lesser-known games, brand new games are also sometimes not included yet. We checked 32 games and only found Dirt: Showdown and Company of Heroes 2 to be affected - not bad considering that AMD's drivers support is spotty.