25 Nov
Blog

Lenovo Yoga 7i Review: Too Many Compromises for Greatness

Lenovo Yoga 7i review featured picture

Lenovo Yoga 7i Review: Too Much Compromise to Be Great

“The Lenovo Yoga 7i performs well for a Core i5 if you are mostly using the CPU. Boot up the GPU and you will be disappointed. "

  • Excellent productivity performance for a Core i5

  • Solid build quality

  • Just good looking

  • Good keyboard and touchpad

  • Below average graphics performance

  • Disappointing battery life

  • The display lacks contrast

Lenovo is in a marketing rush, renaming laptops but keeping them apart except for updated internals. For example, the Lenovo Yoga 9i is a renamed Yoga C940, and the Yoga 7i is a renamed Yoga C740. While the laptops are outwardly identical to their predecessors, the internal upgrades are significant – both received the Tiger Lake platform from Intel. For the Yoga 7i, this promises improved performance while leveraging all of the Yoga C740's other strengths (and weaknesses).

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I was given a midrange configuration of the Yoga 7i for review, a $ 899 model available from Best Buy that has an 11th Gen Intel Core i5-1135G7 CPU, 12GB of RAM, a 512GB PCIe solid -State drive and a 14-inch model is equipped with a Full HD (1,920 x 1,080) IPS display. That makes the Yoga 7i a kind of tweener – not a cheap laptop, but not a premium either. You can bring the laptop to over $ 1,100 by upgrading to a Core i7, 16GB of RAM, and a 1TB SSD. On paper, however, my test configuration would be a good productivity workstation for the money. The Tiger Lake upgrade worked well for the Yoga 9i – will it do the same for the Yoga 7i?

design

Lenovo Yoga 7i designMark Coppock / Digital Trends

As mentioned earlier, the Yoga 7i is just like the Yoga C740 before it. That said, it's a rather conservative design with simple lines and angles and absolutely no jewelry other than the metallic logo in the top left corner of the lid. It has been Lenovo's business for a number of years to design laptops that go unnoticed but are nonetheless attractive in their own simplicity. My test device was the Dark Moss color (the other option is a darker slate gray) which was a bit brown with a hint of copper to my eyes. It's subtle, but I liked it.

In terms of build quality, the Yoga 7i is worth its price – and more. Like all Lenovo mid-range or better laptops (and even the budget devices like the Yoga C640), the Yoga 7i is well built and features an aluminum chassis that for the most part does not bend, twist, or bend. I noticed only the slightest sag when I twisted the display with a lot of force, and the keyboard deck had the least amount of flex. But these are nits – you won't notice that flex in real life. One complaint is that the hinge is pretty firm and requires two hands to open, but stays in place thanks to its four 2-in-1 modes (clamshell, tent, media, and tablet).

The Yoga 7i isn't quite in the same league as some newer 2-in-1 models like the HP Specter x360 13 and the Asus ZenBook Flip S to follow the trend towards tiny bezels. It has smaller bezels on the side, but the top bezel is a bit thick and the chin is chunky by the latest standards. That makes the Yoga 7i less modern and a bit bigger than it might have been. It's not the thinnest laptop at 0.61 to 0.69 inches and a little heavy at 3.09 pounds. The Asus ZenBook 14 UX425 clamshell is much thinner at 0.54 inches and weighs just 2.58 pounds, while the Specter x360 13 is 0.67 inches thick and weighs 2.88 pounds. The Yoga 7i is comfortable in use in all modes, except in tablet mode, where it is a bit unwieldy.

Connectivity is a bit poor for a 14-inch convertible. On the left side there are two USB-C ports with Thunderbolt 4 support, on the right side a 3.5 mm audio jack and on the right side a USB-A 3.2 port. Unfortunately, there is no SD card reader, which will be a disappointment for creatives. Wireless connectivity is cutting edge with Wi-Fi 6 and Bluetooth 5.0.

performance

Lenovo Yoga 7i performanceMark Coppock / Digital Trends

My review Yoga 7i is the first one I've tested with the Tiger Lake Core i5-1135G7 CPU, and I looked forward to seeing how it compares to the Core i7s I tested. Suffice it to say, I was pleasantly surprised.

In Geekbench 5, 1,357 points in single-core mode and 4,246 points in multi-core mode were initially achieved. This is in line with my expectations for a laptop like the Dell XPS 13 9310 with its Core i7-1165G7. This laptop scored a more impressive 1,540 and 5432, while the even faster Acer Swift 5 scored 1,580 and 5,836.

The Yoga 7i, which encoded a 420 MB video as H.265 with Handbrake, took just under 3.5 minutes. The XPS 13 was only 6 seconds faster in normal performance mode. Even in performance mode, the XPS 13 only beat the Yoga 7i by 20 seconds. The Swift 5 was 17 seconds faster. I think that's a win for the Core i5 equipped Yoga 7i.

The results were similar in Cinebench 20. The Yoga 7i achieved 513 points in single-core mode and 1,853 points in multi-core mode, compared to the XPS 13 at 518 and 1,921 (525 and 1,988 in performance mode). The Swift 5 was a bit faster at 542 and 2,091, but the rendering of the Yoga 7i was still impressive. It actually beat the Asus ZenBook 14 UX425EA with its Core i7, which only managed 497 and 1,746. And it was much faster than the Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 7 with a 10th Gen Core i5-1035G1 that only managed 355 and 924.

In terms of CPU, the Yoga 7i beats its weight class and is a great option for anyone looking for a laptop with solid productivity and slightly better energy efficiency. You probably won't notice the difference in real life from an 11th gen Core i7 laptop.

Play

Lenovo Yoga 7i GamingMark Coppock / Digital Trends

The graphics performance of the Yoga 7i wasn't particularly impressive, however. I was pretty surprised at how much slower the Yoga 7i was than other Intel Iris Xe laptops (admittedly, all with Core i7 CPUs). Note that the Core i5 has 80 execution units in its Intel Iris Xe graphics compared to the 96 execution units in the Core i7-1165G7, which explains a good part of the performance difference. Still, I was disappointed.

First, the Yoga 7i wasn't impressive in the 3DMark synthetic benchmark. Time Spy only got 913 points, compared to the XPS 13 at 1,647 and the Acer Swift 5 at 1,686. That's faster than an Intel Iris Plus laptop like the 10th generation Acer Swift 5 with 743 points, but not by much.

This feat led to real games. I ran Civilization VI on the Yoga 7i and it only managed 28 frames per second (fps) at 1080p and medium graphics. That is significantly slower than the Acer Swift 5 with 53 fps and even the Asus ZenBook 14 UX425EA with 36 fps, which I considered slower. Only the Asus ZenBook Flip S, which was dramatically underclocked, did almost as badly with 31 fps. I also ran Fortnite and the results were just as impressive. The Yoga 7i only achieved 20 fps at 1080p and high graphics, with the XPS 13 reaching 29 fps and the Swift 5 reaching 31 fps. In epic graphics, the Yoga 7i only achieved 12 fps, 10 fps less than the other comparison laptops.

I'm not sure if this level of performance is unique to the Yoga 7i or what can be expected from the Core i5-1035G7 in general. If it's the latter then you should keep this in mind when choosing your next laptop. While the graphics of the Core i7 is similar to an entry-level GPU like the Nvidia GeForce MX350, the Core i5 in the Yoga 7i is closer to the integrated graphics of Iris Plus from Intel.

display

Lenovo Yoga 7i displayMark Coppock / Digital Trends

The Yoga 7i uses a 14-inch Full HD IPS panel for its display, which in my opinion is the absolute limit for Full HD resolution. I hate pixelated text, and in fact, I prefer 4K displays even on 13.3-inch laptops – which I know will put me in the minority. From this perspective, I found the display of the Yoga 7i hardly acceptable.

I also found my colorimeter to be average in most areas. By that I mean the average for premium or near-premium laptops, which makes for a pretty nice display. For example, the brightness at 281 nits was just slightly below our preferred 300 nits, and the color width was 97% of sRGB and 75% of AdobeRGB with a DeltaE of 1.65 (accuracy of 1.0 or less) in the correct range for these The display class cannot be distinguished by the human eye and is regarded as excellent). The brightness was a bit low compared to the laptops I recently tested, most of which exceeded 300 nits (like the Acer Swift 5 with 327 nits and the XPS 13 9310 with an excellent 458 nits), but the colors were very similar.

As with the Yoga 9i, the Yoga 7i's display stayed below average in terms of contrast, scoring only 690: 1, which is a lower score for a premium laptop today, most of which approach the 1000: 1 ratio we wanted . The Swift 5 scored 950: 1 and the XPS 13 scored 1350: 1. Such low contrast can make the display look washed out, especially when showing black text on a white background (not very convenient for a writer).

Overall, I found the display to be usable with good colors, but I noticed the lack of contrast. I wouldn't recommend this ad to anyone who really wants their text to appear. Of course, it is also not a laptop for creative people, as it lacks the desired color width and accuracy.

The audio was impressive for a thin and light laptop, with lots of volume from upward facing speakers and no distortion. Mids and highs came through clearly, but as always the bass was missing. The Yoga 7i can't compete with the Yoga 9i's soundbar built into the hinge, but it's good enough for solo Netflix sessions. Music makes you want headphones. If you're sharing your screen, a pair of bluetooth speakers won't hurt.

Keyboard and touchpad

Lenovo Yoga 7i keyboard and touchpadMark Coppock / Digital Trends

The Yoga 7i shares the same keyboard as most yogas. Personally, I find it a little flat and the mechanism is a little mushy compared to more precise switches on laptops like the HP Specter x360 13, Dell XPS 13, and the Magic Keyboard on the latest MacBooks. The Yoga 9i has a new set of switches that gives every key press a high level of precision – and that's missing here. The keys are big and nicely shaped, with good spacing.

The touchpad is a good size considering the available storage space and is a Microsoft Precision touchpad with a responsive and precise feel. Windows 10 multi-touch gestures are well supported, but I found the click a little too loud. The touch display is responsive and accurate, giving you flexibility in controlling the cursor, tapping buttons, and scrolling through long web pages. While the display supports the Lenovo Active Pen for $ 100, these accessories are not included.

Windows 10 Hello support is provided by a fingerprint reader that is accurate and responsive. I had no problem logging in without a password.

Battery life

Lenovo Yoga 7i battery lifeMark Coppock / Digital Trends

Intel's Evo certification requires a laptop to have more than nine hours of battery life while in real-world use. I'm not sure if the Yoga 7i gets this certification, even with a battery capacity of 71 watt hours (a good amount for a 14-inch laptop), at least from my tests.

As with all of the Tiger Lake systems I have tested, I was unable to get the Yoga 7i to complete the Basemark web benchmark battery test. We use it to test the longevity under load. So instead, I used the PCMark 10 gaming test to at least compare it to other Tiger Lake systems. In this test, the Yoga 7i lasted 2.45 hours. That's significantly less than the XPS 13 9310, which lasted nearly four hours, but an improvement over the Swift 5 that couldn't quite make it to two hours.

In our web browser test, which best mimics productivity battery life, the Yoga 7i lasted a little over eight hours. This is an average score and less than the nine hours it takes to be Evo certification. It's also like I've seen other Tiger Lake systems like the Acer Swift 5 running on a more power hungry Core i7. I was hoping for more from the Core i5 in the Yoga 7i.

In our video test, in which a Full HD Avengers trailer is repeated until the laptop is idle, the Yoga 7i lasted 12.5 hours. That's a bit better than the XPS 13 and an hour longer than the Swift 5, but I was still hoping for more.

Whether you work a full day with the Yoga 7i depends entirely on your workflow. If you are putting heavy stress on the CPU or GPU at all, it is unlikely that you will make it. And I'm not sure what nine hours it takes to get Evo certification – no Tiger Lake system I've tested so far can do that.

Our opinion

The Lenovo Yoga 7i shows the CPU performance of the Tiger Lake Core i5 well, but also shows its graphical weakness. It's a well-built laptop with good input options, a colorful display without contrast and a long-lasting battery.

Ultimately, the Yoga 7i has too many compromises, even at its $ 899 price point. You can do better.

Are there alternatives?

The HP Specter x360 13 is a strong alternative to the Yoga 7i despite the smaller display. It looks more noticeable, is much smaller and lighter, and has a much better keyboard. However, we'll have to wait to get a Tiger Lake version to see how it works.

The Dell XPS 13 9310 is another strong competitor, albeit with a smaller display. However, it is slightly smaller due to its 13.4-inch dimensions and 16:10 aspect ratio. The XPS 13 is just as well built, has a much better display, and doesn't surprisingly cost you more money.

How long it will take?

The Lenovo Yoga 7i is as well built as you can find in this price range, and it should give you years of service. The components are modern and should keep you updated as well. Remember to buy an extended warranty if the standard 1 year warranty doesn't limit it.

Should you buy it?

No, there are better options for the same or just a little more money.

Editor's recommendations




16 Nov
Blog

Lenovo Yoga 9i 15: Maybe the Fastest 2-in-1 You Can Buy

Lenovo Yoga 9i Featured Image

Yoga 9i (15 & # 39;) 2-in-1 laptop

"The Yoga 9i is very fast for a 2-in-1, and with the right display it could work well for creative people."

  • Excellent performance

  • Solid build quality

  • Very good keyboard and touchpad

  • Excellent audio performance

  • Attractive aesthetics

  • The battery life suffers from a small battery

  • The display has poor contrast

Lenovo recently renamed its Yoga line, for example changing the Yoga C940 15-inch 2-in-1 to the Yoga 9i. This is a purely marketing move – the Yoga 9i is the same as the C940 with updated components inside. Some other new yogas are a little more innovative, like the leather-covered Yoga 9i 14-inch, but Lenovo has chosen to play it safe with its largest, most powerful convertible laptop.

I received a $ 2,000 Yoga 9i review unit that came with a sixth generation Intel Core i7-10750H with six cores, 16GB of RAM, a 1TB PCIe solid state drive (SSD), and a 15.6-inch Full HD display (1920 x 1080) and an Nvidia GeForce GTX 1650 Ti Max-Q GPU. The Yoga C940 was already a fast laptop with a mediocre display and poor battery life that put it off a higher rating. Does the Yoga 9i fix the laptop problem and make it a more competitive proposition?

performance

Lenovo Yoga 9i performanceMark Coppock / Digital Trends

Since the updated CPU is the main difference between the Yoga C940 and the Yoga 9i, we'll start there. And it's a good place to start as the Yoga 9i gets the most out of its components.

In Geekbench 5, the Yoga 9i achieved 1,285 points in single-core mode and 5,551 points in multi-core mode. That is moderately faster than the 1,106 and 5,117 points of the Yoga C940 and beats the closest competition at 1237 and 5013, the HP Specter x360 15. The Dell XPS 15, a logical clamshell competitor, managed 1,314 and 7,549 with a much faster core i7-10875H with eight cores.

In Handbrake, our test that encodes a 420MB video as H.265, it took the Yoga 9i 2.4 minutes to complete the test. Like many newer laptops, the Yoga 9i has a utility for adjusting performance by changing the fan behavior, and the Yoga 9i only dipped for eight seconds in high-performance mode – not particularly impressive. The Specter x360 15 took 16 seconds longer than the Yoga, and the XPS 15 was done in just over two minutes. I'll also mention the HP Envy 15 with its Core i7-10750H, which beat the XPS 15 by two seconds in HP Command Center Performance mode and five seconds faster than the Yoga 9i in normal mode – the HP utility did more The Envy 15 was the fastest in the handbrake test in this group.

In Cinebench 20, the Yoga i9 achieved 2625 points in multi-core mode and 481 points in single-core mode. This is comparable to the Specter x360 15 (2523 and 469), the XPS 15 (3582 and 488), and the Envy 15 (2593 and 436). All of these functions were in the laptop's normal performance mode. The Yoga 9i and Envy 15 showed a slight increase in their respective performance modes, but not enough to catch up with the XPS 15 with its additional two cores and four threads.

Finally, I ran our Premiere Pro test encoding a two minute 4K video and this is where the Yoga 9i surprised. It took four minutes and 51 seconds (oddly enough in both normal and performance modes), which defeated the more powerful XPS 15, which lasted a little over five minutes. The Specter x360 15 lagged behind here and took 7.5 minutes to complete the test. The Envy 15 was the performance leader in performance mode, finishing in just three minutes and 53 seconds. It matched the XPS 15 in normal mode.

That's a lot of data that has to be digested. So let's simplify things. The Yoga 9i is the fastest 15-inch 2-in-1 we've tested, and we suspect it's the fastest you can buy. It can also be upgraded to a Core i9-10980H. If you're looking to spend the money, this 2-in-1 can get you even more performance. From this perspective, the Yoga 9i isn't just a laptop with high productivity and the flexibility of a 2-in-1 device. It's also a candidate for creatives who need quick photo and video editing. Whether the Yoga 9i really lives up to this standard depends on its display, which we'll cover next.

display

Lenovo Yoga 9i displayMark Coppock / Digital Trends

My test device was equipped with the 15.6-inch Full HD IPS display from Lenovo with a nominal output of 500 nits and supports Dolby Vision High Dynamic Range (HDR). Lenovo also offers a 4K IPS display, which is also rated at 500 nits.

According to my colorimeter, Lenovo's demands on brightness are a bit exaggerated. I saw 351 nits, which is way above our preferred threshold of 300 nits, but not nearly 500 nits of course. The colors for premium displays today were average at 97% of sRGB and 75% of AdobeRGB, and the DeltaE 1.42 color accuracy was good but not great (less than 1.0 is indistinguishable to the human eye and is considered excellent viewed). And Gamma was perfect at 2.2, which means photos and videos aren't too light or too dark. You will find that most Full HD displays these days are similar and you will have to switch to high quality 4K IPS and OLED displays to get better. For example, the 4K OLED display on the Specter x360 15 had 426 nits, 100% sRGB and 98% AdobeRGB, and a DeltaE or 1.21. The XPS 15's 4K IPS display was even stronger at 442 nits, 100% of sRGB and AdobeRGB, and a DeltaE of 0.65.

Where the display of the Yoga 9i fell behind was in its contrast, where it only managed 670: 1. This is a bad score for a premium laptop today, many of which meet or exceed our preferred threshold of 1000: 1. The Specter x360 16's OLED display was the typical ridiculous 426,180: 1, and the XPS 15 was great for a 1480: 1 IPS display. Such low contrast sometimes left the Yoga 9i's display a little washed out compared to its main competition appear, especially with black text on a white background.

Still, for the most part, I enjoyed using the display. I'll admit that I like high-resolution, high-contrast displays for the sharpest possible text, which is why I would have preferred a 4K panel – as a writer, the Yoga 9i's display would never make me happy. If you don't mind Full HD in a larger display, you'll find that it gets you through your productivity work with ease. I'll find that Dolby Vision HDR support means that Netflix HDR content is superior to most other Full HD displays – very bright and with dark scenes showing more detail than most other displays.

We haven't tested the Yoga 9i's 4K display yet, but they typically have wider, more accurate colors and better contrast. Whether the 9i is a true creative workstation depends on whether the 4K display meets your color requirements. Unfortunately, this is not a question that we can currently answer.

Audio

Lenovo Yoga 9i AudioMark Coppock / Digital Trends

I normally set the audio performance in the display area, but the Yoga 9i's audio system deserves special attention. Instead of banging a speaker or two somewhere in the case, Lenovo built a soundbar into the 360-degree hinge that houses custom tweeters with vibration buffers to reduce distortion and a pair of darting woofers under the case. When you put the soundbar into the hinge, you'll benefit from Dolby Atmos speakers in all orientations, including the media mode that is most likely to benefit you. And it's excellent audio with tremendous volume that never gets distorted, clear mids and highs, and even a hint of bass. You can use the Yoga 9i to play Netflix all by yourself without the need for headphones or external speakers, even if you share it with a friend. This is unusual for a Windows 10 laptop. The Yoga 9i can't quite compete with the latest MacBooks for the best laptop audio, but it's damn close.

design

Lenovo Yoga 9i designMark Coppock / Digital Trends

The design of the Yoga 9i is unchanged from that of the Yoga C940. First, and perhaps best, this means that the case is very solid with no bending, bending, or twisting of the lid, keyboard deck, or case base. It is made of machined aluminum and enjoys an excellent fit and finish. Small touches like a hinge that can be easily opened with one hand while staying in place during use are abundant and give a very high quality overall feel. The Dell XPS 15 and HP Specter x360 15 have nothing to do with the build quality of the Yoga 9i.

Aesthetically, the Yoga 9i fits Lenovo's very conservative overall picture. The angles are overall clean, and the back of the case and the bottom of the lid have matching rounded surfaces that work well with the rest of the machine. It's a solid dark gray, with the exception of the Dolby Atmos rotating soundbar, which is built into the hinge area and has a coppery hue. The Specter x360 15 is a much more eye-catching laptop with its gem-carved design and copper accents. However, if you prefer a cleaner and simpler look, then you'll love the Yoga 9i.

Like the Specter x360 15, the Yoga 9i has small bezels, while the Yoga uses an inverted notch to give something to grip when opening the lid and to make room for the webcam. The Yoga 9i ranges in thickness from 0.69 to 0.78 inches with a slight taper and weighs 4.41 pounds. That's comparable to the Specter x360 15 at 0.79 inches and 4.24 pounds. The Yoga is slightly wider and deeper than the HP, which ultimately offers a bit more size to take with you and more keyboard deck for working and a larger touchpad. This is a compromise that you will either love or hate. Both 2-in-1s are larger than you would like to use as a tablet, unless you've propped them up on a surface.

Connectivity is mediocre, with a proprietary power port, two USB-C ports with Thunderbolt 3 support, a 3.5mm audio jack on the left, and a single USB-A 3.2 port on the right. Surprisingly, there is no SD card reader, which is a real disappointment, especially for creative people. The Specter x360 15 has a full-size HDMI 2.0 port and can be connected to additional displays without a dock. The wireless connection is via Wi-Fi 6 and Bluetooth 5.0.

Keyboard and touchpad

Lenovo Yoga 9i keyboard and touchpadMark Coppock / Digital Trends

The Yoga 9i's keyboard looks just like the one you'll find on any other yoga. It has big, shaped keys with a lot of space between them and less travel than I like to see. In this model, however, Lenovo has adopted “TrueStrike” technology from its Legion gaming laptops, which use a “soft landing” switch to provide faster ground action. I will admit that I liked this version better than the others that I tried. They were never my favorite and found them more precise and responsive. The Yoga 9i's keyboard still doesn't match my favorites, the HP Specter line keyboard on the Windows 10 side, and Apple's Magic keyboard on the latest MacBooks. However, most of the people will love this keyboard and they will be typing at full speed in no time.

The touchpad is a good size, not as big as the Dell XPS 15, but still bigger (or at least bigger) than the touchpad on the Specter x360 15. It has a glass cover that makes wiping extremely comfortable. Thanks to the Microsoft Precision touchpad drivers, it is responsive and supports all multi-touch gestures from Windows 10.

The touch display reacts like pretty much all touch displays today. And it supports Lenovo's active stylus docked on the right side of the case to charge it and make sure you don't lose it. The disadvantage: it is smaller than a "real" pen and therefore takes some getting used to. The pen supports 4,096 levels of pressure sensitivity and this version has an elastomer tip that is supposed to better mimic the feel of a pen on paper.

Windows 10 Hello support is provided by a fingerprint reader that was fast and accurate. The Yoga 9i has the usual Lenovo privacy shutter for the webcam – slide it over it and it physically blocks the camera from potential spies.

Battery life

Lenovo Yoga 9i battery lifeMark Coppock / Digital Trends

The biggest problem with the Yoga 9i's battery life is that it could be a lot better if only Lenovo had added more battery. It only takes 69 watt hours to power a 15.6-inch display and some powerful components. As we'll see, this results in battery life that isn't terrible but could be a lot better.

First, the Yoga 9i lasted almost 3.5 hours in our demanding Basemark web benchmark test, which is average for laptops with 45 watt CPUs. However, the Dell XPS 15 with its faster CPU and 4K display lasted two minutes less, which means that Dell's inclusion of 86 watt hours of battery capacity pays off here. The Specter x360 15 with its power-hungry OLED display lasted 44 minutes less than the Yoga 9i with its Full HD display (not that the display played such a big role in the Basemark test).

In our web browser test, which best mimics productivity performance, the Yoga 9i lasted a little over 7.5 hours, 40 minutes longer than the XPS 15, and nearly 90 minutes longer than the Specter x360. And in our video loop test, in which a Full HD Avengers trailer is played until the battery is empty, the Yoga 9i lasted a little over 12 hours – a good score that benefited from the Full HD display. The XPS 15 lasted less than 7.5 hours and the Specter x360 15 6.5 hours.

All in all, this is decent battery life for a powerful 2-in-1 with a 15.6-inch display, and the Yoga 9i will last longer than its predecessor. It is possible to spend a full day using the laptop if you save the CPU and GPU. However, if you want to perform demanding jobs, you should carry the power adapter with you. I still can't help but wish Lenovo had a bigger battery because then battery life could be a real strength.

Our opinion

The Lenovo Yoga 9i is even faster than the Yoga C940, which is already one of the fastest 2-in-1s you can buy. Lenovo did some magic with the thermal to get every ounce of power out of it, and it shows. The 2-in-1 is well built, attractive and offers great sound.

The biggest downside is the display, which had poor contrast that spoiled the overall experience. Creatives should check out the 4K display option, which has an impact on battery life but is likely to offer wider and more accurate colors. And I could repeat myself here, but I wish there was a bigger battery in there.

Are there alternatives?

The Dell XPS 15 is a direct competitor of the Yoga 9i in the 15-inch clamshell market and a strong competitor. It has a better display, at least as far as we've tested, making it a better option for discerning creative professionals. The XPS 15 is also cheaper than the Yoga 9i and currently costs almost $ 200 less for an equivalent configuration.

A direct alternative is the HP Specter x360 15, which offers the same configuration as the 9i for $ 300 less (on sale). Aesthetically, the Specter x360 15 is a much more eye-catching 2-in-1 device and offers slightly better connectivity. But the Yoga 9i is faster and can be upgraded to a Core i9 to really blow the HP out of the water.

Finally, you might consider the HP Envy 15, which costs a whopping $ 650 less than the configured Yoga 9i. And for $ 250 less, you get a spectacular OLED display and Nvidia RTX 2060 Max-Q GPU, making the Envy 15 a much more powerful and enjoyable laptop.

How long it will take?

The Yoga 9i is built like a tank and will last forever. Okay, maybe not forever, but as long as you need it. The one-year warranty is industry standard and, as always, is too short.

Should you buy it?

Yes. The Yoga 9i is the fastest 2-in-1 device we know. It has great audio quality and a great design. However, consider the 4K display if you plan to use it for photo or video editing.

Editor's recommendations




30 Oct
Blog

Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Extreme Gen 3: The Same, Only Faster

Lenovo Thinkpad X1 extreme Gen 3 review

Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Extreme Gen 3: The same, just faster

"The ThinkPad X1 Extreme Gen 3 is particularly fast because of its components and strikes against laptops with faster processors."

  • Gorgeous OLED display with the best HDR

  • Great keyboard and touchpad

  • Solid build quality

  • Excellent performance

  • Disappointing battery life

  • Expensive

The Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Extreme Gen 2 made my list of favorite laptops that I checked for digital trends – and for good reason. It was fast, well built, and featured an outstanding OLED display. Now Lenovo has released the third generation model of the laptop and increased the performance to 11.

Lenovo equips this new model with 45-watt CPUs of the 10th generation from Intel to replace the 9th generation options of the previous version. My ThinkPad x1 Extreme Gen 3 tester wasn't quite as well equipped as my Gen 2 model – it has a Core i7-10850H with vPro this time around compared to a Core i9-9880H – but it still had 32GB of RAM and so on beautiful OLED display.

Note that the Core i9-10885H is still an option and the GPU has been upgraded from an Nvidia GeForce GTX 1650 Max-Q to a GTX 1650 Ti Max-Q. The price? A whopping $ 2,404, though this starts at a retail price of $ 4,007. That's a lot of money. Does Lenovo's Gen 3 design still deserve my recommendation?

design

My test device still has a carbon fiber lid, which is part of the optional 4K display. Not only does this add structural integrity, but it also looks more noticeable. The bottom of the case is made of aluminum, with the usual soft-coated ThinkPad plastic for the keyboard deck, making it extremely comfortable to use.

In other words, the ThinkPad X1 Extreme Gen 3 is outwardly identical to the Gen 2. There is nothing wrong with that. No need to mess around with a good thing as the ThinkPad X1 Extreme has the same ThinkPad aesthetic as always. It's all black with just a few red accents, including the iconic blinking LED above the “i” in ThinkPad on the lid, the TrackPoint nubbin, and the edges of the TrackPoint buttons.

Mark Coppock / Digital Trends

ThinkPad fans will be very satisfied. It's not as modern as the new Dell XPS 15, however, as the ThinkPad has fairly large bezels. The XPS 15 has tiny bezels that disappear around the 16:10 aspect ratio. The HP Specter x360 15 is at the other end of the aesthetic spectrum. Its gem-cut design calls for attention, while the ThinkPad likes to sit quietly in the shade.

The build quality of the laptop is consistently first class, with a lid that doesn't warp under pressure, very little keyboard flex and a lower case that doesn't bend or twist. It exudes strength and endurance and inspires confidence that it can withstand a blow. My only complaint is that the hinge is stiff and requires two hands to break it open. However, there is no premium laptop that feels more durable than the ThinkPad X1 Extreme Gen 3.

Mark Coppock / Digital Trends

The ThinkPad X1 Extreme Gen 3 is 0.72 inches thin, almost identical to the 0.71 inch of the XPS 15 and slightly thinner than the 0.79 inch of the Specter x360 15. The ThinkPad weighs 4.0 with the touch display Pounds (3.75 pounds with a non-touch display) compared to the Dell's 4.5 pounds and the HP's 4.23 pounds.

Connectivity remains a strength: a proprietary power port (135 watts), two USB-C ports with Thunderbolt 3, and a full-size HDMI 2.0 port on the left. On the right side you'll find two USB-A 3.2 ports and a full-size SD card reader (a welcome touch for creative professionals). The wireless connection is provided via Wi-Fi 6 and Bluetooth 5.1.

I will also find that the ThinkPad X1 Extreme Gen 3 is upgradeable. The back cover is relatively easy to remove. You can swap out the RAM and use a second SSD slot.

performance

I can't directly compare Gen 3 to Gen 2 due to the differences between the CPU and GPU, but the Dell XPS 15 and HP Specter x360 15 are good comparison devices. The XPS 15 we tested ran with a Core i7-10875H, an 8-core CPU compared to the 6-core Core i7-10850H in the ThinkPad X1 Extreme. The Specter x360 15 is equipped with a 6-core Core i7-10750H, which is clocked a little lower than the CPU of the ThinkPad.

The ThinkPad X1 Extreme Gen 3 ran as expected or better. In Geekbench 5, for example, 1,299 points were achieved in the single-core test and 6,372 points in the multi-core test. The XPS 15 scored 1,314 and 7,549 points, while the Specter x360 15 scored 1,237 and 5013 points, respectively.

Mark Coppock / Digital Trends

In our handbrake test, which encodes a 420 MB video in H.265, the ThinkPad took a little more than two minutes. That was surprisingly close to the XPS 15, which ended up only nine seconds faster despite two more cores and four more threads. The Specter x360 15 was finished in just over 2.5 minutes, making the ThinkPad significantly faster than the difference in clock speed suggests.

In Cinebench 20, the ThinkPad achieved 486 points in the single-core test and 2,888 points in the multi-core test. The XPS 15 was much faster with 488 and 3582 respectively, while the Specter x360 15 held its own against the ThinkPad with 469 and 2523. In this test, Dell's additional cores seem key.

It's worth noting that AMD's Ryzen 4000 chips also compete well with Intel's 45-watt CPUs. For example, the Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 7 with the Ryzen 7 4800U took just two seconds longer to complete the handbrake test than the ThinkPad X1 Extreme Gen 3, and it scored 482 and 3,255 in Cinebench 20 – it beat the ThinkPad and competed with that XPS 15.

Mark Coppock / Digital Trends

Finally, I ran the ThinkPad X1 Extreme Gen 3 through our Premiere Pro review, which rendered a two-minute 4K video. It took four minutes and 52 seconds to complete. The XPS 15 finished in five minutes and the Specter x360 15 took more than seven minutes to complete the test. The ThinkPad excelled here and beat the XPS 15 despite the slower CPU and GPU (the XPS 15 uses the non-Max-Q version of the GTX 1650 Ti). My working theory is that Lenovo outperformed Dell in developing a thermal design that can sustain the combined CPU and GPU performance over a long period of time.

In short, the ThinkPad X1 Extreme Gen 3 is a fast laptop that can meet the demands of the most demanding creative. If your needs lead to more mundane productivity tasks, this is excessive – but is it ever a bad thing to have too much power? I do not believe that.

Play

The ThinkPad X1 Extreme Gen 3 can also handle games and competes strongly with the XPS 15 and Specter x360 15. In the 3DMark Time Spy test, the ThinkPad scored 3572 points, compared to the XPS 15 with 3860 and the Specter x360 15 with 2963 Points.

The ThinkPad X1 Extreme Gen 3 achieved Civilization VI with an average of 124 frames per second (FPS) with 1080p and medium graphics and 68 FPS with ultra graphics. The XPS 15 managed 114 FPS and 64 FPS, respectively, while the Specter x360 15 ran at 89 FPS and 60 FPS. Again, the ThinkPad outperformed its weight class, beating a laptop with a faster CPU and GPU in a game that relies on both to get the best performance. The same applies to 4K, where the ThinkPad averaged 66 FPS with medium graphics and 36 FPS with ultra graphics, compared to the XPS 15 with 51 FPS and 30 FPS and the Specter x360 15 with 55 FPS and 30 FPS.

Mark Coppock / Digital Trends

In Fortnite, the ThinkPad averaged 83 FPS with 1080p and medium graphics and 60 FPS with epic graphics. The XPS 15 achieved 74 FPS and 60 FPS, respectively, and the Specter x360 15 achieved 67 FPS and 47 FPS. Each of these laptops fell below 30 FPS at 4K, so I don't need to report the results at that resolution. Fortnite stays best at 1080p on laptops with discrete GPUs in the mid-range.

Next up is Assassin's Creed Odyssey, where the ThinkPad X1 Extreme Gen 3 reached 52 FPS at 1080p and medium graphics and 30 FPS at ultra-high graphics. The XPS 15 achieved 47 FPS and 26 FPS, respectively, while the Specter x360 15 achieved 40 FPS and 25 FPS. Again, none of the machines exceeded 30 FPS at 4K. It's noteworthy to see that the X1 Extreme Gen 3 averages 30 FPS at ultra high in this game as Odyssey is extremely demanding.

In Battlefield V, the XPS 15 took the lead at 60 FPS at 1080p and medium graphics and 50 FPS at ultra graphics, while the ThinkPad was at 56 FPS and 44 FPS, respectively, and the Specter x360 15 managed 55 GPS and 44 FPS. Once again, 4K was south of at least 30 FPS that we consider playable.

Overall, the ThinkPad X1 Extreme Gen 3 offers very good performance for a laptop in this category. The fact that it outperformed the XPS 15 in all but one game is impressive. While 4K gaming is not recommended, you'll be happy to use modern 1080p titles with the right graphics settings. Those looking for better gaming performance must consider a gaming laptop.

display

I love OLED displays. They are bright, colorful and without contrast. The ThinkPad X1 Extreme Gen 3's OLED is no different, although it isn't the best OLED display we've tested.

The display of this ThinkPad is not as bright as some OLED panels and reaches 369 nits compared to the 426 nits of the HP Specter x360 15. Both laptops have anti-reflective glass, so that the HP looks a bit brighter. Additionally, the contrast on the Specter was 426,180: 1 compared to 369,390: 1 on the ThinkPad – a meaningless difference in real world usage, but a significant numerical difference nonetheless.

Mark Coppock / Digital Trends

Dell's XPS 15 doesn't use OLED and instead opts for a more traditional IPS display. The brightness was 442 nits, and the contrast ratio reached 1480: 1 (which is excellent for an IPS display). The contrast gap isn't as noticeable in real life as the numbers suggest. Still, the OLED panel in the ThinkPad X1 Extreme Gen 3 is superior to the Dell XPS 15 when you are viewing movies or high quality photos in a dark room.

Note that according to the specs, Lenovo increases the brightness when running high dynamic range (HDR) content. I noticed this in my tests.

The color gamut is another area in which the ThinkPad X1 Extreme Gen 3 fell short. It covered 100% of sRGB and 96% of AdobeRGB. This is comparable to the Specter at 100% and 98% and the XPS 15 at 100% of both color bars. It's not a huge difference, but for a creative professional looking for the best AdobeRGB support, these few percentage points might matter.

However, the ThinkPad's color turned out to be accurate with a DeltaE of 0.91 (lower is better in this benchmark). The XPS 15 was 0.65 and the Specter x360 15 was 1.21. All three displays work fine, but the XPS 15's excellent accuracy makes it instantly ready for color-critical work.

Mark Coppock / Digital Trends

None of this should detract from the ThinkPad's display. It's great in practice. Movies and pictures have a high-contrast, vivid look that slopes off the screen, and the darkest scenes in HDR are clear thanks to the panel's support for Dolby Vision. As with the Gen 2 model, the ThinkPad X1 Extreme Gen 3 is one of the best devices you can find for watching Netflix in HDR, and it's way better than the other laptops I didn't enable for Dolby Vision.

If OLED isn't your thing, Lenovo has three alternative display options. There are two full HD options with 300 or 500 nits and a 4K IPS panel with 600 nits to choose from. We generally assume they all perform well for their respective prices, but OLED is our favorite.

Audio was a strong point as two downward facing speakers pumped out lots of volume without distortion. The mids and highs were clear and there was even a hint of bass. You can watch Netflix and YouTube videos fine alone or with a few friends, but good headphones are recommended for music as usual.

Keyboard and touchpad

ThinkPad fans are picky about their keyboards, but the X1 Extreme Gen 3 should satisfy. It has nicely shaped keycaps that are just the right size with excellent clearance. Personally, I find the mechanism a bit stiff, but it gives a lot of feedback and a very precise ground effect. If, like me, you like a lighter touch, the HP Specter keyboard might be more your style. However, if you want more feedback while you type, the ThinkPad's keyboard is for you. Oh, and it's leak proof if that matters to you.

Mark Coppock / Digital Trends

The usual TrackPoint node is in the middle of the keyboard and works as expected. However, it forces a pair of buttons, which takes away some space from the touchpad. Speaking of which, the touchpad is a glass-covered Microsoft Precision touchpad that's great for swiping and using Windows 10's multi-touch gestures.

The display on this model is touch sensitive and precise and responsive. Fortunately, it has an anti-wipe coating that resists fingerprints. In this respect, this corresponds to the display of the HP Specter x360 15.

Windows 10 Hello support is provided by a fast and responsive fingerprint reader and an infrared camera with facial recognition support. There is a privacy lock that deactivates the latter. As a result, you may want to configure both methods to log on without a password.

Battery life

Here you pay the price for all this performance and the power-hungry OLED display. Simply put, the battery life of this ThinkPad X1 Extreme Gen 3 configuration isn't a forte.

In our demanding Basemark Web benchmark test, the ThinkPad managed about 3.5 hours, which is not terrible for a 45 watt CPU. The XPS 15 lasted 16 minutes less, while the Specter x360 15 didn't even last three hours.

In our web browser test, which is the best indicator of overall productivity longevity, the ThinkPad just exceeded 5.5 hours, which is 80 minutes less than the XPS 15 and 32 minutes less than the Specter x360 15. And in our video test, which is repeated over a Full HD Avengers trailer, the ThinkPad was 6.5 hours, 50 minutes less than the XPS 15, and 11 minutes longer than the Specter x360 15.

These aren't great results, but they are expected. If you want longer battery life, go for one of the Full HD display options. Otherwise you should be prepared to carry the Power Brick around.

Our opinion

Lenovo kept the best of the ThinkPad X1 Extreme Gen 2 and made it faster. That makes the Gen 3 model an incremental, yet meaningful, upgrade that simply improves on what was already an excellent 15-inch laptop.

Granted, it's most appealing to ThinkPad fans, and there's nothing wrong with that. If you are looking for a laptop that is as powerful as any other in its class, the ThinkPad X1 Extreme Gen 3 is a great choice.

Are there alternatives?

The Dell XPS 15 is the ThinkPad's most obvious competitor. They are both powerful, thin, and light, and well-built 15-inch machines that appeal to the same type of users. The XPS 15 gives you a 16:10 display and a more modern look and feel, but the ThinkPad has the better performance.

If you're a 2-in-1 gamer, the Specter x360 15 is an excellent choice. It's not that fast, but it has a sleeker look, a slightly better OLED display (unless you're watching Netflix in HDR), and the flexibility of a 2-in-1 device. The Specter is also several hundred dollars cheaper, though it isn't as powerfully configurable as the ThinkPad X1 Extreme Gen 3.

Finally, you might consider the HP Envy 15, a 15-inch laptop that offers lots of power for little money. It can't quite compete with the ThinkPad, but it has a great OLED display of its own and costs hundreds of dollars less.

How long it will take?

The ThinkPad X1 Extreme Gen 3 is extremely durable, well configured and will provide many years of productive service. We'd like more than a year of warranty at these prices, but Lenovo offers a variety of warranty upgrade options.

Should you buy it?

Yes. Not only is the ThinkPad X1 Extreme Gen 3 the most powerful ThinkPad you can buy, it's also one of the most powerful 15-inch consumer laptops out there.

Editor's recommendations




15 Oct
Blog

Lenovo Smart Clock Essential Review: Tech meets nostalgia

Lenovo Smart Clock Essential Rating 2 out of 9

Lenovo Smart Clock Essential

"The Lenovo Smart Clock Essential will wake you up, but it's a snoozer that knows what else is out there."

  • Compact design

  • Shows the time clearly

  • Affordable price

  • USB port for charging devices

  • No way to set an alarm through the Google Home app

  • A firm tip is required to snooze

  • Not good for music playback

More than any other company besides Google itself, Lenovo has designed Smart Assistant devices with the Google Assistant. From smart displays to hybrid tablets, Lenovo has one of the more robust portfolios. While this isn't the first time the company has delved into the world of alarm clocks, the latest addition is the Lenovo Smart Clock Essential, giving consumers even more choices about what to impress these prime properties about their beds. The sticker price of $ 50 seems like a home run, but it needs to stand out from others to make a better buy than the competition.

Bring back alarm clock

Today's smart home devices can be overwhelming at times, especially as Google's smart home ecosystem continues to evolve. What is evident here is Lenovo's intention to simplify the design of its smart alarm clock. Unlike its earlier efforts, this one doesn't have a touchscreen, but rather the LED design of traditional alarm clocks. With that in mind, the Smart Clock Essential has a bit of nostalgia.

The Lenovo Smart Clock Essential takes up roughly the same space as the Google Nest Mini and is a suitable addition to any bedside table. Thanks to the large LEDs on the front, I can quickly see the time – and without straining my eyes if I suddenly wake up in the middle of the night. It's also great that the temperature and weather conditions are shown through icons. Around the top lip of the device are physical controls for volume and pause / play, as well as a button for manually setting alarms. If you're like me and have a charger nearby for your smartphone, you'll appreciate the fact that there is a full-size USB stick just for that purpose.

One could argue that its design is nothing more than a shrunken version of its sibling, the Smart Alarm Clock, but the Essential's use of LEDs instead of a touchscreen display makes it less distracting. It's simple, looks clean, and saves space.

All Google Assistant smarts

Interaction with Lenovo Smart Clock Essential is done through voice actions and commands through the Google Assistant. In this regard, it works like any other smart speaker or display. Compared to the Google Nest Mini, the Essential is definitely a better option when you consider the visual element it provides for showing the time, day of the week, temperature, and weather conditions. It's just more convenient than asking the Google Assistant for all of these details, for example.

The Lenovo Smart Clock Essential is a suitable addition to any bedside table.

There are two ways to set an alarm: you can tell the Google Assistant to set an alarm, or you can set an alarm manually in Essential. At a time when voice actions are faster, this method may seem archaic, but those who grew up with a real alarm clock will appreciate that bit of nostalgia. On a more modern note, I find it convenient that I can just respond with "stop" to turn off the alarm when it goes off.

But what if you need a little extra time to wake up? Then you can just say, "Hey Google, sleep for six minutes." You can also turn off an alarm by pressing any of the physical buttons other than the alarm button. You can also tap the top of the Essential to turn it off.

I really would have liked more controls in the Google Home app, such as the ability to set alarms. On the one hand, I understand that voice commands have become the preferred method for setting alarms, but it wouldn't hurt to give users the option to set one through the Google Home app.

Some minor quirks

Don't expect the sound quality to blow your mind, which is to be expected given the size. It is what you hear about the Google Nest Mini. For responses from the Google Assistant, the 3-watt speaker is enough to recognize it, but it lacks the robust tones and punch of other audio-centric smart speakers – like Google Nest Audio or Google Home.

I found some minor quirks with the Lenovo Smart Clock Essential that hopefully will be fixed with future software updates. For some reason, it can't compete with other Google Assistant speakers or displays in the same room. Whenever I ask him to turn the night light on or off, my Google Nest Hub responds with an error. However, if I mute the Nest Hub and say the command again, it works like a charm. Also, the snooze function doesn't work when I tap the top of the device.

Our opinion

The Lenovo Smart Clock Essential is a tough call. It's a touch of nostalgia, but it doesn't bring anything new to the (night) table.

How long it will take?

Since it will remain stationary, it is unlikely to break. It's sturdy and well built so I'm confident it will withstand a fall. There is a 1 year limited warranty that covers defects.

Is there a better alternative?

There are some products in Lenovo's own portfolio that are better alternatives. The logical suggestion is the $ 80 Lenovo Smart Alarm Clock, which has a touchscreen display that offers some “light” smart display features, such as: E.g. access to smart home controls (e.g. turning on lights) and live feeds from surveillance cameras. The Lenovo Smart Display 7 offers the best solution as it is a full featured smart display with a camera that costs $ 100.

Should you buy it?

Yes, mainly for cost reasons, when you don't need the added functionality of the other alternatives above.

Editor's recommendations




09 Oct
Blog

Lenovo G27c-10 Review: 165 Hz curved gaming monitor For $200

lenovo g27c 10 review dsc01909

"The Lenovo G27c-10 is a great entry-level option to get into the fluidity of high FPS games."

  • Affordable

  • 165 Hz: Smooth playing

  • Remarkably accurate colors

  • Immersive size and curve

  • Bare minimal I / O

  • Low-maximum brightness

  • Limited color gamut

  • No DisplayPort cable included

If you are buying a fast gaming monitor on a budget, there is a good chance that you will or will come across the Lenovo G27c-10 in your efforts. It is a 27-inch full HD gaming monitor with a VA panel and a refresh rate of 165 Hz. This is a promising start to a great gaming experience.

The display's biggest selling point, of course, is its price, which comes in at $ 219 MSRP but often drops below $ 200, which is absolutely outstanding value for a 165Hz monitor.

How does it work in practice? Can the panel keep up with the refresh rate of 165 Hz? Is the picture quality good? And will it end up on our list of the best monitors? Let's find out.

design

When you unpack the G27c-10, you will find that it is an extremely simple monitor. The stand plugs into the bottom with a hand-turned screw and the monitor simply falls onto it. The locking mechanism takes care of the rest. The stand comes with height and tilt adjustments – and that's it – but you probably didn't intend to use this in portrait orientation. A cutout to pass cables through would have been nice, but no big deal.

Then there is the curve. Lenovo doesn't provide a curve radius, but we estimate it's in the range of around 1500R. It's certainly not as aggressive as the 1000R curve on Samsung's G7 monitors, nor as subtle as LG's curved displays either. Overall, it offers a good balance for its panel size and should please most gamers. The bezels are slim, which is very much appreciated at this price point, although we would have preferred not to see the pointer and performance graphics for the on-screen display (OSD) on the lower bezel as it adds no value and is a nuisance otherwise causes a clean design.

Other than that, the G27c-10's design doesn't offer much to comment on – it's about as clean as possible.

Connections and controls

Like the general design of the monitor, Lenovo didn't go to great lengths to give you extensive connectivity. The G27c-10 has an HDMI port and a DisplayPort port (which you need to use if you want G-Sync on an Nvidia GPU) and an audio-out jack in case you decide to run your headphones over your monitor.

The G27c-10's OSD is simple but has everything you need for a budget gaming monitor. Operation is via a direction switch at the lower right end of the monitor and is divided into four main sections: image settings, color settings, inputs and system settings. Inside you will find basic color controls, color temperature adjustments, brightness and contrast, FreeSync on / off, overdrive settings, game mode and a dark gain setting to brighten dark areas and gain a competitive edge in gaming.

picture quality

For the G27c-10, Lenovo opted for a VA panel with a resolution of 1920 x 1080 pixels, which is not particularly high for a 27-inch panel. This means that you will not get a sharp picture that is good for photo editing, although it will be enough for everyday use. Also in the game you are more interested in the high refresh rate of 165 Hz (keep in mind that most "normal" monitors are updated at 60 Hz), and the lower resolution means your GPU can pump out more frames and actually produce more frames using that high one Refresh rate.

We released our Spyder X Elite colorimeter on the G27c-10 and it was reported that the panel covered 96 percent of the sRGB space and 75 percent of the AdobeRGB. This isn't impressive and certainly won't please the photo editors, but it is enough. If you're buying a $ 200 gaming monitor, you probably won't mind that this isn't a wide range. If you're looking for a large color space, then you should check out something like the Acer ConceptD CM2.

The G27c-10 is remarkably color accurate with a Delta E of just 1.32.

However, when we tested the panel for color accuracy, the G27c-10 achieved a surprising Delta E (difference to the real) of 1.32. Any Delta E below 2 is considered good enough for image editing programs. Although the G27c-10 does not cover a large color space, the colors displayed look accurate.

The G27c-10 doesn't offer retinal-scorching brightness, which can be a problem depending on usage. We recorded a maximum of 328 nits, which is below the 350 nits stated by Lenovo, and subjectively the display wasn't very bright. For a good experience, make sure you're in a relatively dark room with maximum brightness play. For example, we don't want to use this monitor directly across from a window.

VA panels are known for their impressive ability to darken dark colors and create ink blacks rather than the dark gray that IPS panels create. Unfortunately, the G27C-10's best contrast ratio was 2350: 1, which is below the expected 3000: 1 value. Even so, most VA panels don't even come close to the 3000: 1 specification. In that regard, 2350: 1 is a reasonable achievement and for the most part leads you towards black and white. It's also better than you'd expect from a TN or IPS panel, especially at this price point.

The calibration of the G27c-10 had little to offer – it is as good as ex-factory.

We calibrated the display with the Spyder X Elite, but only lost more contrast, failed to achieve any color gamut and actually deteriorated the color accuracy. So it's safe to say that calibrating the G27c-10 is challenging. However, the out-of-the-box color accuracy is solid so this is less of a concern.

Gaming performance

As you'd expect from a 165Hz monitor, games look silky smooth when you have a GPU powerful enough to handle high frame rates. You want to dive into Windows settings and configure the panel to run at 165 Hz (Windows is 60 Hz by default on new monitors). Once you've done this and checked in the monitor's OSD and Nvidia's GeForce Control Panel (or AMD's Radeon Control Center) that G-Sync or FreeSync are running properly, your games will run smoothly with no stuttering or tearing . Note that to use G-Sync on an Nvidia card you need a DisplayPort cable, which is not included in the scope of delivery.

Since this is a VA panel, it can easily lag when bright objects move across a dark screen (like a mouse on a black background image). However, for the price of the display, the blurring is quite acceptable. If you want close to zero VA pollution levels on a gaming monitor, you'll have to increase your budget significantly for something like Samsung's 27-inch G7, but that monitor costs a whopping $ 650, which is just not worth it at that most buyers.

It's also worth noting that the display doesn't support HDR, which together with the relatively low brightness and limited color space means it won't blow you away with its image quality.

Once you stop pecking, the G27c-10 provides an extremely enjoyable gaming experience

Once you stop looking over the little flaws, the Lenovo G27c-10 is a good monitor. The curve is great for immersion and at 27 inches, it's the right size for most desks.

A great GPU to pair with this monitor would be Nvidia's GTX 1650 Super or AMD's RX 5500XT, which while not flagships, will get most of the games on this monitor into high frame rate areas without breaking the bank. You don't need the latest Nvidia RTX 3000 series card for this monitor unless you want to play a game like Metro Exodus with maximum ray tracing capabilities.

Our opinion

The Lenovo G27c-10 is by no means a perfect monitor, but it only costs $ 220. Prices often drop below the $ 200 mark, which is an incredible price for a 165Hz curved gaming display. It's not small either, measuring 27 inches diagonally, and it will work wonders for entry-level, high-FPS (frames per second) gaming setups.

The shortcomings are limited I / O connections, a modest color gamut, a little VA smear on the move, and a less sharp picture. However, these issues are easily excused by the monitor's very affordable price.

Are there alternatives?

Absolutely, but you will have to spend a little more to get them. Gigabyte's G27FC has similar specs but costs $ 50 more. Same goes for the MSI Optix MAG271VCR, which costs $ 260 but gives you a wider gamut of color and some luxury RGB items. The Lenovo is priced very competitively with other budget gaming monitors.

How long it will take?

Lenovo's G27c-10 should last as long as any monitor today: At least 5 years. Lenovo offers a one year warranty. However, aside from its fast refresh rate, it doesn't impress with its technology. So don't be surprised if you're looking for an upgrade about three years later.

Should I buy it?

Yes. If you're just looking for a fast gaming monitor on a budget with no needs other than gaming, the G27c-10 won't disappoint.

Editor's recommendations




25 Sep
Blog

Lenovo Legion Y27q-20 Review: 1440p Gaming Done Right

Lenovo Legion y27q 20 review y20q 10

"The Lenovo Legion Y27q-20 offers fluid, ultra-fast gaming in an elegant design."

  • Simple, lightweight design

  • 165Hz refresh rate

  • Excellent ergonomics

  • Decent value for 1440p

  • 1 ms response time

  • No speakers

  • Bad contrast

  • Frustrating controls

It's an ideal time to upgrade to higher resolution games, but you will likely need a new game monitor. That doubles when you've updated your PC's graphics card, whether it's a lower-priced RTX 20 series or one of the new 30 series cards.

The Lenovo Legion Y27q-20 offers a resolution of 1440p and a refresh rate of 165 Hz and is in every way an upgrade of your old 1080p monitor. It is quickly becoming a crowded space, however, and $ 430 isn't the cheapest price out there. Does the Legion Y27q-20 have the picture quality and gaming performance to secure it?

design

While nothing special, the Legion Y27q-20 is not devoid of embellishments, including Lenovo's signature circular cheese grater design on the back of the case. Oddly enough, it's not dissimilar to Apple's Mac Pro or Pro Display XDR. For a gaming peripheral, it's rather sleek and not as bulky as some Acer Predator or Asus ROG monitors.

But don't get too excited. Like most gaming monitors, the Legion Y27q is mostly made of plastic and has a large lower bezel. The HP Omen 27 gaming monitor has more class in my book, but the Legion undercuts the price of this monitor considerably. Fortunately, the stand is made of metal, which offers a lot of stability.

The Legion Y27q's screen, base, and stand are individually wrapped, but I got them assembled in seconds thanks to the monitor's simple VESA mount. The entire package weighs just 14.7 pounds, which makes it even easier to set up. The Acer Nitro XZ272U is lighter at just 11 pounds, but the Y27q isn't far away.

After setting it up, I was delighted to discover how adjustable the Legion Y27q is. With tilt, turn, height and swivel adjustment, you are sure to find something that meets your needs. Switching from landscape to portrait is a notable addition that gaming monitors like the Predator XB273U and Dell S-Series monitors lack.

Ports

The connections are on the back and face down. You won't find any surprises here – just a DisplayPort 1.2 and HDMI 1.4. These are older port standards, but for a 1440p gaming monitor, they're all you need.

The Legion Y27q-20 even has additional USB connectivity to sweeten business. On the back, you'll find a USB-B 3.1 upstream port and a USB-A port, while two USB-A ports flank the side. You will also find a headphone / microphone jack here. These are nice additions to an otherwise fairly simple gaming monitor that turns into a USB hub.

The monitor is supplied with power via the rectangular “Trim Yellow” power connector from Lenovo next to a relatively small external power supply module.

Unfortunately, Lenovo didn't think the Legion Y27q-20 needed speakers. Lenovo sells a separate model with a cone-shaped speaker in the base, but it's missing here. That's a shame. I still think most monitors should include speakers, even if they're not the largest in the world. Yes, most people use headphones or external speakers, but for the rare occasional time you want them, they're missing.

Buttons and Menus

The on-screen menu is accessed using the six buttons just below the control panel. There are no fancy joysticks or buttons behind the screen.

Once you are in the menu, you can adjust settings like brightness and contrast as well as switch between different game settings and color profiles. Lenovo offers genre-specific profiles for first-person shooters, strategy games, and more. You can also switch to "Extreme" mode, which takes you from three milliseconds to one.

Navigating the menu with the buttons is a frustrating experience.

The problem? Navigating the menu with the buttons is a frustrating experience.

For starters, the button furthest to the right is the power button, but it feels identical to the other buttons. Accidentally turning off your monitor during a game is no fun. This can happen if you reach for brightness controls while gaming in a darker environment, especially because the monitor lacks adaptive brightness.

The symbiology used on the buttons and in the menu is also confusing. What looks like a back button is actually a select button that is disoriented while navigating the menu. It would have been a good idea to do some additional user testing on these.

Game performance

The Legion Y27q-20 uses a 27-inch panel with a 2560 x 1440 resolution. Playing games at 1440p is great. It's not quite 4K, but it's also not nearly as demanding when you have more of a mid-range system. The RTX 2070 Super I tested it with push games like Battlefield V and Fortnite well over 100 frames per second, even at maximum settings.

Thanks to the refresh rate of 165 Hz, the gameplay feels incredibly smooth. Sure, there are 240Hz, 300Hz, or even 360Hz monitors out there – but unless you want to be a professional gamer (and maybe even then) 165Hz should work fine. This is especially true if you are playing in 1440p.

This is not true G-Sync.

Nvidia G-Sync stickers are placed all over the Legion Y27q-20, but it's not a real implementation. Instead of a physical G-Sync module, it is certified by a solution that Nvidia calls "G-Sync Compatible". Essentially, this means it's a Variable Refresh Rate (VRR) monitor that Nvidia checked for flickering, ghosting, and tearing. This is not true G-Sync.

And yet the gaming experience on the Legion Y27q-20 is super fluid. As soon as you jump into the Nvidia control panel and change the refresh rate to 165 Hz, you'll immediately notice the smooth animations, even of your cursor, as you move it across the screen. Next, you want to enable the Extreme setting to achieve the specified response time of one millisecond.

Response time is about how quickly the pixels on your monitor can change color. There is no agreed measure of response time, so the difference between 1 ms and 3 ms can be inconsistent depending on the monitor. However, with the Legion Y27q-20, you can tell the subtle difference in responsiveness when you switch between the two settings.

picture quality

Thanks to the IPS display (In-Plane Switching), the Legion Y27q-20 can also be used for activities outside of the game. It's pretty bright with a maximum of 415 nits, and the color saturation isn't bad either. With 99% of sRGB and 77% of AdobeRGB, the Legion Y27q is as colorful as you can expect from a gaming monitor.

Many inexpensive or medium-sized gaming monitors opt for VA panels (vertical orientation) or TN panels (twisted nematic). These screens tend to have worse viewing angles, so I am pleased that Lenovo has chosen IPS.

However, it wasn't perfect. The contrast was low at only 650: 1, which was affected by the flat black values. The images look a bit washed out next to other displays. For comparison: the Acer Nitro XZ27 has a size of 1,060: 1, which leads to much richer images and colors.

The Legion Y27q is a hit or miss in terms of image quality.

The second problem was color accuracy. With an average Delta-E of 3.07, the color accuracy is surprisingly poor for 202o. The Nitro XZ272U, for example, has an average of 1.23. Again, this isn't the biggest issue for gamers, but there's no reason a $ 430 monitor should be so poorly calibrated.

I tried calibrating the screen myself to see if I could improve some of these numbers with my Spyder5Elite. The gamma has been corrected from 2.1 to 2.2 and the color accuracy has been reduced to 1.85. Both are positive improvements in image quality, which shows that this panel could have used an additional factory calibration. However, contrast and black levels were not helped.

The Legion Y27q is a hit or miss in terms of image quality. It's not a screen that you want to perform precise color grading or watch movies all the time.

Our opinion

With RTX 30 series graphics just around the corner, gaming monitors like the Lenovo Legion Y27q-20 will soon become important. There are some cheaper options that result in higher resolutions and refresh rates, but the Legion Y27q-20's looks and responsiveness make it a solid option for a monitor upgrade.

Are there alternatives?

The Acer Nitro XZ272U is only $ 330, though it's also a 27-inch 165Hz gaming monitor. It uses a VA panel and has a response time of 4 ms instead of 1 ms. It even has a curved screen.

Another option is the Asus TUF VG27 gaming monitor, which is available for $ 479. Finally, the $ 400 Dell S2719DGF is another great option. It has a 1ms response time and 155Hz refresh rate, but uses a cheaper TP panel.

How long it will take?

The Lenovo Legion Y27q-20 should last around five years. The standard warranty is three years, but with the refresh rate of 165 Hz and the resolution of 1440p you are equipped for PC games longer.

Should you buy it?

Yes. The Legion Y27q-20 combines features, design and performance in one affordable package.

Editor's recommendations




01 Sep
Blog

Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 7 Review: The AMD Ryzen 4000 Flagship

Lenovo Ideapad Slim 7 review 01

"The Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 7 is a genre-bending laptop that does anything hard to beat for its price."

  • Incredible performance

  • Tiny footprint

  • Record battery life

  • Can handle light games

  • The screen is a little dark

  • Small palm rests

Disorder. It's not a word I idly use, but what AMD's Ryzen 4000 processors have been doing over the past eight months fits the definition. These chips offer the performance you previously paid dearly for, both in size and price.

So far, however, few laptops have been designed from the ground up to use these chips.

The Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 7 should always be an example of how disruptive Ryzen 4000 can be. After many months of delay, the time has finally come to attempt a seemingly insurmountable task – being a laptop that can be ultra-slim, extremely powerful, and extremely affordable at the same time.

Have AMD and Lenovo just done the impossible?

design

The IdeaPad Slim 7 revolution is not broadcast high. It's not ugly, but it's also not attention grabbing. It's not far from Lenovo's current crop of conservative, dark gray laptops with rounded edges and an all-metal chassis. The design alone makes it difficult for you to pick this out of the wide range of similar looking laptops from Lenovo. It's reportedly offered in a possibly more eye-catching "Orchid" color option, but I haven't set my eyes on it yet.

In a sense, that's a shame. The Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 7 surpasses our traditional laptop categories in many ways. This is a tiny laptop. It's only 0.58 inches thick, thinner, and slimmer than the MacBook Air. It weighs only 3.1 pounds and fits the 13-inch MacBook Pro – and yet has an 8-core processor like the gigantic MacBook Pro 16 -Inch. That is the unique offering of this fascinating laptop.

The 13-inch MacBook Pro is possibly the best size comparison. The IdeaPad Slim 7 is a little smaller in almost every dimension, if not by much, and even has the larger 14-inch screen. More importantly, these two laptops share a 25-watt processor. That's 10 watts more power than your standard 13-inch laptop, which contributes to the unique performance of these laptops.

You'll find a healthy selection of ports on the sides of the laptop. On the left side, the IdeaPad Slim 7 has two USB-C ports, HDMI and a 3.5 mm headphone jack. On the right side, the IdeaPad Slim 7 offers two USB-A 3.2 Gen 1 ports, the power switch and a micro SD card slot.

Since this is an AMD laptop, you won't get Thunderbolt 3, a proprietary Intel technology. However, USB-C is still a versatile port. Each USB-C port can be used for charging, connecting to a monitor, transferring files, and connecting peripherals. You can't power an external graphics card, but these ports are very powerful for this laptop.

My only real complaint is that you can't charge the laptop from the right as both USB-C ports are on the left. It defeats the point of USB-C's versatility.

performance

A 25-watt, 8-core processor in a small laptop is a fascinating requirement, but only if it can actually deliver significantly better performance. I started my tests with Geekbench 5 and Cinebench R20, two benchmarks that can give a comprehensive picture of the CPU's performance. The IdeaPad Slim 7 particularly impressed with its multi-core performance. Amazingly, Geekbench 5 Multi-Core was only 9% behind the much larger Dell XPS 15 with its 45-watt eight-core processor. In the meantime, it was 23% ahead of the 13-inch MacBook Pro (with a 10th generation Core i5) and 16% ahead of the Acer Swift 3 (with the Ryzen 7 4700U). No laptop in this size class has the cores and threads that fit the IdeaPad Slim 7.

For a more realistic test, I encoded a 4K video in Handbrake, with performance limited to the CPU. Here, too, the IdeaPad Slim 7 and its Ryzen processor with eight cores knocked out the competition. It even beat some 45 watt six-core laptops like the HP Envy 15 or the Asus ROG Strix G15.

(pullqutoe) For a laptop of this size, the IdeaPad Slim 7 belongs to its own performance category. (/ pullquote)

The only place the IdeaPad Slim 7 can't really compete with these larger laptops is in video editing. Normally I wouldn't try Premiere Pro on a laptop this small, but I had to try the IdeaPad Slim 7. It took an hour and 18 minutes to export a two minute 4K project to ProRes 422. The higher clock speeds and discrete graphics of larger laptops like the Dell XPS 15 or MacBook Pro 16-inch help them finish the same test in well under 10 minutes.

This does not mean that the IdeaPad Slim 7 cannot be used for content creation workflows at all. If you are working with lower resolutions, less demanding codecs, or lighter applications, the IdeaPad Slim 7 should work just fine. It's just not a real replacement for one of those larger laptops. If portability isn't important, even a cheap gaming laptop like the Dell G5 SE can handle video editing far better than the IdeaPad Slim 7 for roughly the same price. For a laptop of this size, however, the IdeaPad Slim 7 belongs to its own performance category.

Interestingly, Lenovo also sells an Intel version of the IdeaPad Slim 7. But here's what you get: It's $ 150 more expensive, has half the memory, and only has a quad-core CPU. The only thing the Intel model has on its side is the Nvidia MX350 discrete graphics card, but AMD's built-in Radeon graphics outperform it. There's no reason to buy it through the AMD model.

Apart from the Intel variant, Lenovo does not offer any configurations. That could change in the future, but for now, this model with 8GB of RAM and 512GB SSD is the only option. I really wish a 16GB model was offered to pair it better with the high-core processor.

Game performance

You can play games on this laptop! Yes it's true and it's kind of a miracle. The Ryzen 7 4800U comes with eight Radeon graphics cores. This is easily the best discrete graphic I've ever seen on a laptop. It holds great promise for the future of AMD's Radeon graphics.

In the 3DMark Time Spy benchmark, it is 29% faster than the Dell XPS 13 with its integrated Intel Iris Plus graphics. It even outperforms discrete entry-level graphics such as the Nvidia MX350 in the Asus ZenBook Duo. The result is decent low-end performance in modern games.

These are easily the best discrete graphics I've ever seen on a laptop.

Take Fortnite, for example. As long as you keep the graphics settings at medium or below, the games play pretty smoothly. You'll find it hard to get up to 60 frames per second (fps) without tweaking the 3D resolution slider a bit. For the first time, however, Fortnite can be played without any problems with built-in graphics.

A less GPU-dependent game like Civilization VI will perform even better. The IdeaPad Slim 7 struggled to keep up with the Ultra settings, but averaged 45 fps on Medium. That's still a long way from what 15-inch laptops with discrete graphics can do, but again, you can play Civilization VI without having to resort to low graphics settings. This is really impressive for a laptop with no games.

The only real competition the IdeaPad Slim 7 has in this form factor is the GTX 1650 version of the Razer Blade Stealth. While you can get better frame rates on this computer, it's also far more expensive.

Keyboard and touchpad

This keyboard is not my favorite. The trip feels very short and the buttons have a muddy bottom effect. I prefer the Dell XPS 13, MacBook Air, or HP Specter x360. It didn't take me long to get used to it, however, and I like the curved shape of the keycaps.

The keyboard backlight doesn't have its own key, but Fn + Space is a solid replacement. The backlight is very bright – to the point where I would like a lower brightness setting.

My main problem with the keyboard is its location. The keyboard is farther from the screen than most laptops to make room for the speakers and ports. The result is less space for the touchpad and palm rests underneath. If you have small hands you're fine, but those palm rests were too small for me so I had to dig the edges of the chassis into my palms. It's not a comfortable position to type in for a long time. Laptops like the Samsung Galaxy Book Flex also suffer from this problem.

The touchpad performs better and offers a smooth tracking surface and enough space for swipes and gestures with two fingers. The click feels solid, although it's a little louder than I'd like it to be.

Battery life

When comparing AMD with Intel, there was no clear winner in terms of battery life. Until now. I don't know if it's the big 60 watt battery or the efficient 7 nm processor, but the Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 7 is an absolute champion when it comes to battery life. This can disappear from the wall all day – and a few more.

In our lightest test of repeating a local video file until it died, the IdeaPad Slim 7 lasted over 18.5 hours. This is one of the best times I've seen on a laptop that isn't a Chromebook or ARM-based laptop.

The real record was set in our web browsing test. The IdeaPad Slim 7 lasted over 16 hours here, which was only surpassed by the Qualcomm-powered Lenovo Flex 5G. That's an insane lifespan for a load.

As my daily driver, I found that the IdeaPad Slim 7 could easily survive a whole working day despite my heavy multitasking, music streaming and countless open apps.

Display and speaker

If the IdeaPad Slim 7 has one notable flaw, it is the screen. It uses a 14-inch 1080p panel that does the job, but not with a lot of grace. The screen is a bit dark and only reaches 247 nits. This is both the 300 nit threshold that I like to see in laptops and the result of strong glare. When watching a movie with dark scenes, the first thing to do is to turn off any light in the room. The contrast is the only bright spot at 1,370: 1.

The display is also a slight shade of green, although it is adequate in terms of gamut and color accuracy. Unfortunately, a 4K 100% AdobeRGB model for professionals is not offered.

I was pleasantly surprised by the speakers. You're right on the keyboard deck, pointing at your ears – which does wonders for the clarity of the audio. These still don't replace a decent bluetooth speaker, but for the occasional music or video watching, they get the job done.

Our opinion

The Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 7 may not be the true flagship AMD wants. Its screen is lackluster and the design is far from remarkable. Thanks to its fantastic performance, long battery life and impressive integrated graphics, the IdeaPad Slim 7 surpasses the possibilities of small laptops.

Are there alternatives?

There are many Ryzen 4000 laptops out there that aren't as powerful as the IdeaPad Slim 7 but are available at a cheaper price. The most obvious option is the Lenovo IdeaPad Flex 5 14, which is not as powerful but is a lot cheaper. The HP Envy x360 13 is another good example of a cheaper AMD laptop with a little less performance.

If you're willing to pay a few hundred more dollars, the Dell XPS 13 is a better designed laptop. Performance and battery life can't quite keep up with the IdeaPad Slim 7, but the small form factor and better display make it worth the additional cost.

How long it will take?

The IdeaPad Slim 7 should last at least three or four years, which is normal for laptops. Due to the limited configuration options, you may want to upgrade the memory or memory yourself in the future, but everything is soldered up.

Lenovo offers a standard one-year warranty. You are on your own past.

Should you buy it?

Yes. It's the best laptop you can buy under $ 1,000.

Editor's recommendations




30 Aug
Blog

Lenovo ThinkPad X13 Yoga Review: Falling Behind Rivals

Lenovo Thinkpad X13 Yoga review 06

"Lenovo ThinkPad X13 Yoga"

"The ThinkPad X13 isn't small, fast or durable enough to keep up with its toughest competitors."

  • Solid build quality

  • Great keyboard and touchpad

  • Good corporate support

  • Short battery life

  • Not as small as many rivals

  • Expensive

The traditional ThinkPad uses a 14-inch screen. However, with the trend towards thinner bezels and smaller laptops, Lenovo has started to downsize the old ThinkPad design a bit.

That was exactly the goal of the ThinkPad X390 Yoga, and now Lenovo has introduced its replacement, the ThinkPad X13 Yoga. The basic form factor of this laptop is kept while the internals are updated.

I got a configuration for $ 1,275 (on sale from $ 2,126) with a Core i5-10310U vPro CPU, 16 GB of RAM, a 256 GB solid-state drive (SSD), and a Full HD IPS Display viewed. Is the X13 keeping up with the rapidly evolving competition, or has this design fallen behind?

design

The ThinkPad X13 looks identical to its predecessor, the ThinkPad X390 Yoga, but there is one big difference: The materials used in the case. The X390 uses a carbon fiber hybrid material for the lid and magnesium for the lower part. The ThinkPad X13, on the other hand, is made entirely of a mixture of carbon fiber, nylon fiber and glass fiber, which is said to be both light and durable.

However, this change of material has a disadvantage in terms of processing quality. I found the lid to flex a little too much. There is a certain amount of keyboard flex and even the bottom of the case is under pressure. It's not the toughest ThinkPad I've ever used. It has always been a hallmark of the brand.

If you're a fan of the ThinkPad look, you're a lucky camper.

Lenovo says it put the X13 through its usual extreme ritual of military certifications and torture tests, and assures us that it is "one of the toughest in its class." With 13-inch laptops, both the HP Specter x360 13 and Dell XPS 13 feel more solid. When considering other business-class laptops like the Dell Lattitude 7400 2-in-1, I'm not sure the X13 lives up to Lenovo's expectations. However, the keyboard is splash-proof, which is a plus and isn't very common.

Otherwise, X390 and X13 are roughly identical. They are the same size, 0.63 inches thick and 2.76 pounds in weight. That's better than the Specter x360 13, which is 0.67 inches thick and weighs 2.88 pounds, but it's slightly thicker and heavier than the 0.58-inch XPS 13, which weighs 2.65 pounds. In terms of width and depth, however, the X13 is quite large compared to some of the other current 13-inch clamshells and 2-in-1 models.

Take another look at the Specter x360 13 and the XPS 13 – both are tiny compared to the X13 as the bezels are much smaller and are almost an inch smaller in each dimension. The X13 is the smallest ThinkPad, but it has relatively large bezels at the top and bottom, which give it a little more size than the new normal.

Aesthetically, the X13 is a ThinkPad through and through. It is completely black, has the usual ThinkPad logo in the corner of the lid with the red LED battery indicator above the “i”, the obligatory red TrackPoint nubbin in the middle of the keyboard and red accents on the TrackPoint keys. That's it for Bling, and it remains a good look that is both attractive on its own and holds almost the entire ThinkPad line together. If you're a fan of the look, you're a lucky camper.

Connectivity is excellent for such a thin and light laptop. You get two USB-C 3.1 ports (one with Thunderbolt 3 support), two USB-A 3.1 ports, a full-size HDMI 1.4 port, an Ethernet expansion port (which of course requires a dongle), and a microSD Card reader. Wireless connectivity is cutting edge with Wi-Fi 6 and Bluetooth 5.0.

performance

In reference to its business customers, Lenovo equips the ThinkPad X13 with Intel vPro processors, which enable connection to company systems to improve security, manageability and stability. My test device was equipped with the 10th generation quad-core Core i5-10310U vPro, which turned out to be a competent but unspectacular performer.

In Geekbench 5, for example, the X13 achieved 1,041 points in the single-core test and 2,781 points in the multi-core test. This is a bit behind other laptops with Core i5 CPUs, such as the Acer Aspire 5 with its Core i5-1035G1 (1,129 and 2,899) and the Dell Inspiron 14 5000 with the same processor (1,169 and 3,197). When I searched our rating database, I didn't find a single 10th generation Core i5 that the X13 beat in this benchmark.

In our handbrake test, which converts a 420MB video to H.265, the X13 took almost five and a half minutes to complete. The Aspire 5 was 15 seconds faster and the X13 40 seconds slower than the Inspiron 14 5000. The Acer Spin 3 with the same Core i5 was over a minute faster. Once again, the X13 was at the bottom of the pile of similarly equipped laptops.

That doesn't mean the X13 is a slow laptop. It's not – it's more than fast enough for productivity tasks and media consumption. It's not as fast as the non-vPro competition, however, which means you'll pay more for extended enterprise support than you would for extra performance.

The X13 also has the basic Intel UHD graphics, which means it is not a slot machine. You'll want to stick to older titles with lower resolutions and graphical detail if you want to gamble at all or play the occasional Windows 10 games.

display

My test device was equipped with a 300 nit Full HD IPS display (1,920 x. 080). According to my colorimeter, it's almost the average for premium displays today. As I mentioned earlier, this is a good thing as today's average display is exceptional for productivity work and multimedia consumption. Only creatives who need extremely wide and precise colors will be disappointed with most premium displays.

The brightness was a bit low at 274 nits (we want to see premium displays with 300 nits or more) and the contrast was 860: 1 (1,000: 1 or more marks a higher quality display). There aren't any terrible results either, but they're a little below average. You have a little trouble in bright environments and black text on a white background doesn't show up as often, which is important to me as a writer.

Note that we did not test the Full HD displays on the HP Specter x360 13. Instead, we tested the HP with an AMOLED display, which was very bright and with incredible contrast. However, our Dell test unit was Full HD, albeit in a 16:10 aspect ratio, and it was also very bright and had much higher contrast.

The colors of the X13 display were average at 96% sRGB and 72% AdobeRGB. Again, both HP and Dell exceeded those numbers, with the Specter x360 13 reaching 100% and 98% and the Dell 97% and 77%. Most premium laptops fall in the same range as the X13, however. The X13's color accuracy was 1.45, close to 1.0, which is considered excellent. This is better than the Dell 1.53, but not as good as the HP 1.29. You'll find plenty of premium laptops that are over 2.0, which makes the X13 a reasonably accurate display.

I didn't have any issues using the laptop screen during my review. This usually involves writing most of the copy on the verification device. I also watched Netflix and found the experience pleasant enough. This is a good display, but not a great one, although Lenovo does offer some other, brighter displays as upgrades that may offer better overall performance. The high-end display offers the privacy guard function from Lenovo, with which the display can be made illegible from the sides.

The display features Lenovo's ThinkShutter that moves to physically block the webcam. However, this is no longer a unique feature. For example, the Specter x360 13 has an electronic version that removes the webcam from the system.

The sound was surprisingly good, with enough volume and no distortion at full force. There's little bass, which is normal on all Apple MacBooks, but the mids and highs were crisp and bright. The two downward-facing, Dolby-tuned speakers are good enough for watching Netflix alone. However, for the best audio quality, you will need good headphones or a solid bluetooth speaker.

Keyboard and touchpad

The ThinkPad keyboard is another icon of the line and has long been one of the best on the market. The X13 has the standard version and offers the usual large buttons, generous spacing and a consistent and controlled mechanism that is very precise. It does have a bit of strength, however, and requires a little more pressure to activate a keystroke than some other keyboards.

I like a lighter feel, so I prefer the latest MacBook Magic Keyboard, as well as HP's Specter keyboard (and recently Envy) on the Windows 10 side. However, if you like a bit of pressure, or are just a fan of the ThinkPad keyboard in general, you will love the X13.

The touchpad is a bit smaller than it could be due to the buttons on top that operate the TrackPoint nubbin. Microsoft's Precision touchpad drivers are available, making the touchpad responsive and providing excellent support for Windows 10 multi-touch gestures. The TrackPoint is there for those who prefer it too, and it works as smoothly as ever.

The display is touch sensitive and precise. No complaints there. And it supports the Lenovo ThinkPad Pen Pro with 2,048 levels of pressure sensitivity (other laptops like Microsoft's Surface line and the Specter x360 support 4,096 levels). The Pen Pro slides into a port on the side of the X13, which not only provides convenient storage, but also doubles as a charger. The main disadvantage of the Pen Pro is its size – it's smaller than a "real" pen and doesn't feel as natural when you write and draw. Without the spring mechanism, the pin cannot be removed from the slot even on a flat surface.

Windows 10 Hello login support without a password is provided on my test device by a fast and responsive fingerprint reader that offers the additional security of storing all fingerprint information on a chip. The other display options add an infrared camera for facial recognition.

Battery life

The X13 has 50 watt hours of battery life, which is not as much as some others (the Specter x360 13, for example, has 60 watt hours) but isn't terrible for a 13-inch laptop with a Full HD display. I would expect decent, if not very good, battery life.

I didn't get that. In fact, the battery life was downright disappointing.

Starting with our most demanding Basemark web benchmark test, which put a strain on the CPU and GPU, the X13 lasted a little over three hours. That is way below average, but not a terrible score. The Dell XPS 13 lasted almost five hours, while the Specter x360 13 with its power-hungry AMOLED display lasted almost four hours.

The battery life was downright disappointing.

In our web browser test, which best mimics the longevity of productivity, the X13 failed in just under six hours. That's a bad score. The XPS 13 ran for almost 12 hours, while the Specter x360 13 was almost the same as the X13 despite its display. In our video test, in which a local Full HD Avengers trailer is looped, the X13 didn't quite make it to eight hours. The XPS 13 lasted 14.5 hours and the Specter x360 lasted about 10 hours.

In short, the X13's battery life is hard to figure out. It should take longer, but it doesn't. You might spend an entire day doing very light productivity tasks, but you will likely need to carry your charger with you.

Our opinion

The ThinkPad X13 is the smallest ThinkPad you can buy, and that's all it has to offer. If you're looking for a ThinkPad that won't weigh you down or take up a lot of space in your backpack, this is the best option. But its performance, build quality, battery life, and display lag behind the competition. It's also relatively expensive at $ 1,275, and starts at a retail price of $ 2,126.

Is there a better alternative?

The HP Specter x360 13 is a great choice if you are sold with a 2-in-1 device. It looks better, is just as solidly built, if not more, and offers a spectacular display option. When you choose a low-power display, you get incredible battery life that dwarfs the X13. It's also $ 1,200 with a Core i7 CPU and 512GB SSD, which also makes it a cheaper choice.

If you're not sold with a 2-in-1, the Dell XPS 13 is a great alternative. It looks better too, is solidly built, has better performance, and has much better battery life. With the same configuration as the X13, you save about $ 175.

When you need the added security and manageability features of vPro, the HP Elite Dragonfly is a more modern and feature-rich commercial laptop.

How long it will take?

The ThinkPad X13 is designed to last as long as you possibly need the laptop. The components – especially Thunderbolt 3 and Wi-Fi 6 – are up to date and will keep you connected for years. The one-year warranty is disappointing, especially for a business-class machine.

Should you buy it?

No. The ThinkPad X13 doesn't have much going for it unless you're a die-hard ThinkPad fanatic.

Editor's recommendations




27 Aug
Blog

Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Yoga Gen 5 Review: The Legacy Continues

Lenovo Ideapad Slim 7 review Thinkpad X1 Yoga Gen5 01

Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Yoga Gen 5

"The ThinkPad X1 Yoga Gen 5 continues the old ThinkPad legacy without missing out on modern features."

  • Excellent workmanship

  • Tactile keyboard

  • Additional security functions

  • The pen is included

  • Convenient port selection

  • Thick bezels and outdated design

  • Too expensive

  • Uses Comet Lake processors

ThinkPads don't change. The decades-old design is part of its enduring legacy, and its looks have become iconic over the years.

The ThinkPad X1 Yoga, however, has always been a deviation from the norm. With an aluminum case, touchscreen, and included stylus, it's not your father's ThinkPad – that's the saying.

Now in its fifth generation, the ThinkPad X1 Yoga has been updated with the latest internals, and sky-high prices remain. My test unit was $ 2,303, and even the base model is a whopping $ 1,439. Does the ThinkPad X1 Yoga Gen 5 live up to the venerable ThinkPad legacy? Let's find out.

design

The aluminum case is the standout feature of this laptop, which is strange to say. Since the days of the early MacBook Air, the silver color scheme has been brought to death. Of course, not every silver laptop is created equal, and the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Yoga Gen 5 gets it right. It's a discreet dark gray – dare I say "Space Gray" in tone.

The aluminum material makes it even more robust than your average ThinkPad. This builds on the brand's pedigree for great build quality, and it's even more important for a convertible laptop with a 360-degree hinge. The X1 Yoga should be used as a laptop, but it should also be rotated in "media" mode or even turned upside down in "tent" mode. It's a device that you should touch, and that's what durability is important for. The aluminum also helps in reducing fingerprints for which the ThinkPad X1 Carbon is known.

Whether it's the distinctive keyboard or the TrackPoint node, you won't confuse this with a MacBook.

The hinge is constructed tightly – maybe even a little too tight. Like most laptops, it cannot be opened with one finger and requires a two-handed grip to pull it apart. However, the aluminum adds to the weight of the device. It comes in at just under three pounds, which is over half a pound heavier than the X1 Carbon.

Outside of the aluminum, the X1 Yoga is a ThinkPad through and through. Whether it's the distinctive keyboard or the TrackPoint node, you won't confuse this with a MacBook or anything else.

Thick bezels are also part of this specialty. On all sides, they're not as slim as I would expect from a laptop released in 2020, even when compared to some other 14-inch laptops from Lenovo. The lower chin is a particularly notable culprit. Other 2-in-1 laptops like the Dell XPS 13 2-in-1 or the HP Specter x360 can maximize screen space better.

Ports

ThinkPads have always offered a wide variety of ports, and the ThinkPad X1 Yoga Gen 5 is no exception. On the left side there are two Thunderbolt 3 ports, a USB-A port, HDMI and a 3.5 mm headphone jack. Lenovo's proprietary mechanical docking connection is connected to one of the Thunderbolt 3 ports and can be helpful when setting up a new home office. However, the dock itself is sold separately.

On the right side you will find another USB-A port, the power switch, a Kensington lock and the pen slot. The included pen, the ThinkPad Pen Pro, is a great addition. Many manufacturers such as HP and Dell charge a surcharge for a pen and do not offer a housing for the device. Unfortunately, the ThinkPad Pen Pro cannot be pulled out when the laptop is flat on the table. Other pen slots, such as those used by Samsung, have a spring mechanism that allows them to pop out.

The pen itself is light and simple, precise enough to take notes and scroll through web pages. For a pen that's better for illustrating, consider using either an Apple Pencil or a Surface Pen.

The ports on the right have been moved towards you to make room for a sizeable exhaust vent. The location of the vent also means that if you're right-handed and want to use an external mouse, a wave of hot air will be pushed towards you. Plus, the single USB-A port is in an awkward spot where cables can dangle.

Although the device has two Thunderbolt 3 ports, both of which can be charged, I would have preferred if Lenovo split them up. Charging from both sides of the laptop can definitely come in handy.

Keyboard and touchpad

ThinkPads are known for their keyboards. I understand why – that extra travel in the keys is a rare feature these days. After a few days of typing, I began to appreciate the luxury of this long trip. The slight concavity of the keys is comfortable, and the additional force exerted on the key presses ensures tactile precision.

But I have to admit, I have problems with the layout of this keyboard. In line with ThinkPad tradition, the X1 Yoga still swaps the fn and ctrl keys on the left. The different layout bothers me every time I type on a ThinkPad computer and it never stops being frustrating. It took me several days to type Ctrl + T and Ctrl + Z incorrectly to unlearn the layout.

But there is more. ThinkPads use the standard half-size arrow keys that are just below the rest of the keys. That alone can cause me to trip a bit, but placing PgUp and PgDn keys right next to them is additionally problematic. As a touch typist, I can't tell you the number of times I accidentally jumped to the page because of small errors.

Touch typists have to unlearn some keyboard commands.

My final layout complaint is about the keyboard backlight. While the ThinkPad X1 Yoga has a backlight, you will have to rely on the Fn + Space keyboard command to turn it on. Neither of these layout problems is new to ThinkPad users, but they are an issue for those who came from other laptops or keyboards.

As always, the touchpad hardware buttons are located above the touchpad for easy access while using the TrackPoint. The red nub in the middle of the keyboard is an icon and a unique feature. However, if you want to rely mainly on the touchpad, the buttons take up valuable space where a larger touchpad surface could have been. My fingers often ran against it while wiping with two fingers or gesturing with three fingers. The glass touchpad itself feels precise and smooth, and the click is quieter than other laptops.

The fingerprint scanner is unfortunately to the right of the touchpad. I would prefer something built into the keyboard itself, but the reader that comes with it is good. Above the screen, you also get an IR camera for Windows Hello face recognition and a 720p webcam.

Display and speaker

The Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Yoga Gen 5 has a 14-inch 4K display. However, you can also go for a 1080p model that will save you a few hundred dollars. However, the 4K display is brighter, sharper and more colorful. The maximum is just under 500 nits, which is bright enough to overcome glare even in brightly lit rooms. Although the X1 Yoga Gen 5 is not like the ThinkPad X1 Extreme OLED, in contrast it does well at 1,020: 1.

The colors are a bit mixed up though. For a 4K display, I expect the broadest possible color range and precise color accuracy. The ThinkPad X1 Yoga Gen 5 is a bit behind some of the leading companies in this area, such as the Dell XPS 13 or the HP Specter x360. While 86% of Adobe RGB is better than the average laptop, the color accuracy isn't quite up to par. Professional photo editing or graphic design are not the type of work the X1 Yoga Gen 5 is good for.

The 1080p screen is a better choice for most potential buyers as it translates into longer battery life.

The speakers face down and are located under the edges of the case. Unsurprisingly, the audio quality is a bit squishy. The speakers don't have the quiet highs of many laptops, but they won't impress you either.

performance

Despite the desire of the X1 Yoga to be more attractive, all ThinkPads are business computers at heart. The ThinkPad X1 Yoga Gen 5 pays tribute to that legacy with the latest 10th generation vPro Core i7 processors. These are business-specific chips from Intel that provide additional security and manageability features that your IT department will appreciate.

The decision for vPro over a normal processor of the 10th generation has one disadvantage: pure speed and graphics performance. The Intel Core i7-10610U vPro is a quad-core processor, but it belongs to the older 14nm Comet Lake variant. The newer Ice Lake processors, like those of the Dell XPS 13 2-in-1 or the HP Specter x360, are said to be faster. This was true for Cinebench R20, where the XPS 13 was 10% faster than the X1 Yoga Gen 5 in both single-core and multi-core tests.

The business class processor results in a slight performance penalty.

The X1 Yoga Gen 5 wasn't the fastest in real world performance either, such as when it came to video encoding in Handbrake. Laptops like the XPS 13 and the 13-inch MacBook Pro blow it out of the water thanks to their improved multi-core performance. The new generation of AMD laptops extends this lead even further. Unfortunately, choosing a business processor with additional security features still results in a slight performance penalty.

I'm not saying the X1 Yoga is a slow computer for everyday tasks. Creating multiple 4K monitors, extensive multitasking, and even light content is no problem.

Graphics are the only performance area where the difference is most evident. Comet Lake processors use Intel's terrible built-in UHD graphics, while laptops like the XPS 13 2-in-1 or the Specter x360 have the option for Intel's improved Iris Plus graphics. Neither of these will turn your laptop into a hardcore slot machine, but Iris Plus is at least enough to get past lighter games on low settings.

Battery life

All 4K laptops have battery life issues. More pixels mean more power to power them, and the ThinkPad X1 Yoga Gen 5 is no different. It took me about five hours in my daily use which consists of lots of multitasking and browsing tabs but not lots of heavy applications. That's not bad, but you can't safely stay away from an electrical outlet for an entire day at work.

In our lightest test, the ThinkPad X1 Yoga lasted 7 hours and 49 minutes while looping a local 1080p video file. The HP Specter x360 lasted almost two hours longer in the same test, despite a 4K OLED panel. The ThinkPad X1 Yoga matched the battery performance of the ThinkPad X1 Carbon.

Our heaviest test is the Basemark web benchmark, which simulates the battery life in a heavy application. The ThinkPad X1 Yoga ran out of juice after just two hours, which is not uncommon for a 4K laptop.

Our opinion

The ThinkPad X1 Yoga Gen 5 is a modern business laptop, but it still has a commercial heart. This is no excuse for some of his cumbersome design choices, especially the beefy bezels. The ThinkPad X1 brand still has its advantages, especially when it comes to the keyboard, TrackPoint, and world-famous build quality. The included pen is also a unique feature that is unique to the Samsung Galaxy Book Flex.

Is there a better alternative?

There are two ThinkPad X1 alternatives to Yoga: the X1 Carbon and the X1 Extreme. The X1 Carbon is lighter and the X1 Extreme is bigger and far more powerful. Neither the aluminum housing nor the 2-in-1 functions.

Both the Dell XPS 13 2-in-1 and the HP Specter x360 13 are better 2-in-1 laptops for the average person, with better performance and a more modern design. Both are cheaper than the X1 Yoga, but neither are business-class laptops.

If the business pedigree is a must, both the HP Elite Dragonfly and Dell Latitude 7400 2-in-1 are worthy rivals of the X1 Yoga.

How long it will take?

The ThinkPad brand is known for durability and the X1 Yoga Gen 5 is no different. It should take up to five years, although the standard warranty is only one year.

Should you buy it?

Yes. The X1 Yoga won't win conversions in its fifth generation, but it's a good choice if you're upgrading from an older ThinkPad.

Editor's recommendations




29 Jul
Blog

Lenovo Flex 5G Review: Previewing the Future of Laptops

Lenovo Flex 5g review 5 g lead

"The Lenovo Flex 5G is impacted by limited 5G connectivity and mediocre performance."

  • The best battery life we've ever seen

  • Solid build quality

  • Good keyboard and touchpad

  • Integrated 5G connectivity

  • The performance is mediocre

  • App and driver incompatibilities are a pain

  • 5G is still hard to find

Two massive PC revolutions are waiting for you: 5G connectivity and ARM-based processors. The new Lenovo Flex 5G is a device that should lead us into a future that encompasses both technologies.

The new Snapdragon 8cx chip from Qualcomm is the key. It offers both integrated 5G connectivity and enough power to fight Intel Core processors. This makes the Flex 5G a Windows avant-garde against Apple's own transition to ARM-based Macs.

But don't be too excited. The introduction of 5G was slow, as was the support for ARM processors by Windows. If you throw in a high starting price of $ 1,500, the Lenovo Flex 5G has to fight a tough battle. Is the world ready for Lenovo's vision of the future?

5G connectivity

What's the big deal with 5G? Simply put, it's the next generation of mobile broadband, replacing today's fastest standard, 4G LTE. It promises to provide internet speeds that compete with or even exceed the connections that most people have at home and at work. The nationwide rollout was slow.

You won't find it just outside of the major cities. I had to take a trip to Venice Beach (never a bad thing) to test the connectivity of the Flex 5G as there are only a few areas in Verizon where Verizon has coverage and none near my house in Los Angeles. However, the coverage is ultra wideband, which should theoretically deliver the best possible performance.

I say theoretically because, at least in Venice Beach, I couldn't get connectivity that was close to the two gigabits per second (Gbit / s) that ultra-wideband 5G promised. The best download speed I've seen (via Speedtest.net) was 465 megabits per second (Mbit / s), and the fastest upload speed I've seen was 51 Mbit / s. Verizon's coverage is incomplete: Los Angeles, for example, has very few locations with very limited coverage, and the number of cities covered by Verizon's 5G network is quite small.

I could go 10 feet in one direction or another and fall to an LTE connection. This is not just Verizon's problem. For example, T-Mobile covers more areas with its 5G coverage, but uses a bandwidth below 6 GHz that offers speeds that are more comparable to 4G.

It's a lot faster than 4G LTE, but far from what 5G promises.

To see how this translates to real life, I downloaded a 1.7 GB file from OneDrive and achieved a download speed of 44 megabytes per second (MBps). This is much better than 4G LTE, but again, it is nowhere near what 5G promises.

I have to say that Verizon's 5G is not quite up to date, at least in Venice (and I was looking for better places). Maybe it's faster elsewhere, or maybe the Flex 5G's modem drivers need to be adjusted. In any case, the Flex 5G lets you work quickly wherever 5G connectivity is available, but not nearly as fast as one day.

If it is not obvious, 5G, once it has made its move, will be a critical factor in data processing. If you want a fast internet connection today, measured in gigabits per second and not just in megabits, you have to use Wi-Fi or a wired ethernet connection. This binds you to specific locations and keeps you looking for a secure connection when you're on the go. With a fast 5G connection, however, you will accelerate wherever there is coverage – imagine driving down the street and working with a fast internet connection – which will ultimately be just like 4G LTE today. It will be everywhere, which means that you will finally be freed from the Wi-Fi cable.

performance

Qualcomm's Snapdragon 8cx is the company's latest ARM processor and the first to be explicitly designed for PCs and not based on smartphone designs. Not only does it have to compete with Intel and AMD, the Snapdragon 8cx also faces the challenge of running Windows on ARM.

In the past, it wasn't the most impressive platform when it came to pure speed. This is because most older Windows applications were not built natively to run on ARM, but have to be run in emulation. Performance is therefore the second most important factor behind connectivity to determine if the Flex 5G is a viable platform for mobile workers.

Many applications are not only slow, but do not run at all under Windows under ARM. This includes many of the benchmarking applications that I usually use to test performance. This is a good example of the big problem with app compatibility. It works with Microsoft's Office suite and Windows 10 apps (if you use them). And thanks to drivers that were not written to support the platform, this is a hit or miss with peripheral devices.

For example, our real handbrake test video coding cannot be performed on the Flex 5G. This is a shit because this test gives the best idea of ​​how well a processor works on demanding tasks.

Many applications are not only slow, but do not run at all under Windows under ARM.

I was limited to Geekbench 4 and 5 among our performance benchmarks to get an idea of ​​how much faster the Snapdragon 8cx really is. After these two tests, the new Snapdragon chip is definitely an upgrade from the previous Snapdragon 850. However, this in no way makes it a fast laptop.

In Geekbench 4, the Flex 5G managed 3,322 in the single-core test and 11,348 in the multi-core test. This is a big improvement over the Lenovo Yoga C630 (which uses the Snapdragon 850), which scored 2,292 in the single-core test and 6,710 points in the multi-core test. The Snapdragon 8cx is clearly much faster. In the multi-core test, which scored 4,670 and 8,750 points, it even beat the 10th generation dual-core Intel Core i3-1011U in the Lenovo Yoga C640.

In Geekbench 5, the Flex 5G achieved 700 points in the single-core test and 2,802 points in the multi-core test. That beat the 486 and 2,155 of the Yoga C640 and even competed with the Core i5-1030NG7 of the MacBook Air 2020, which scored 1,140 and 2,770 points.

Does that make the Flex 5G a fast laptop? Of course not. It ran exactly in line with these synthetic benchmark numbers and similar to the comparison laptops. It was fine for productivity tasks, surfing the Internet, watching videos, and other purposes where the processor didn't ask too much. If you use your laptop for this, you are satisfied with the performance. However, if you need it to boot up as needed, you will be disappointed.

Battery life

Longevity should be a strength of the Flex 5G thanks to the efficiency of the ARM processors in general and the Snapdragon 8cx in particular. I was expecting good things and was not disappointed.

In fact, I was blown away. The Flex 5G showed the best battery life we've seen on a laptop – it literally outperformed any other machine we've tested.

I start with the most impressive result, namely the video test, in which a local Full HD Avengers trailer is repeated until the battery is empty. Simply put, the Flex 5G was spectacular and basically took 28 hours to repeat the video (it took three minutes). This is the longest time we've recorded at almost five hours, and surpasses the best Lenovo Yoga C640 to date, which lasted about 23 hours. The Dell Latitude 7400 2-in-1 is the other notebook that lasted more than 20 hours and almost 22 hours.

This is a laptop that lasts for several days.

The Flex 5G was just as impressive in the web test. It lasted 17.25 hours and was again the best of all the laptops we tested. The only other machine that got any closer was the Microsoft Surface Book 2 after 15.5 hours, and the Surface Book 3 was nowhere near as good.

In our demanding Basemark web benchmark test, the Flex 5G – you guessed it – outperformed all other machines. It took a whopping 10.5 hours, which – you guessed it again – is another record among the laptops we tested. Admittedly, the Flex 5G didn't break any speed records, but as fast as the laptop runs, it runs as long.

Note that these results surpassed the Yoga C630, which took 17 hours to video test and 11 hours to surf the web. Qualcomm's claims to improve the efficiency of the Snapdragon 8cx are valid.

This is clearly a laptop that will last you days with typical productivity tasks, surfing the internet, watching videos and the like. Even if you press the CPU – which of course doesn't say much about overall performance – you get a whole day of work and a few more.

design

The Flex 5G is a match for the Yoga C630, with just a few changes to account for differences in connections. And although this results in a very conservative laptop – in line with Lenovo's recent aesthetics – in its dark gray color, which is darker but not entirely black, it's not a bad thing. Yes, there is no bling and the laptop will not stand out in a crowd, but some people like it. For example, it is nowhere near the HP Specter x360 13, which may be the epitome of a chiseled gem-cut design that cries for attention.

Better still, the Flex 5G is pretty well built. It is an aluminum case that has little flexibility on the keyboard deck, but nowhere else. It feels solid and extends to the 360-degree hinge that holds the laptop in its four modes – clamshell, tent, media, and tablet. It's fairly thin at 0.58 inches and light at 2.97 pounds. Compare that to the Specter x360 at 0.67 inches and 2.88 pounds and the Dell XPS 13 at 0.58 inches and 2.65 pounds. The Flex 5G has made a small leap in size compared to the Yoga C630, but that should be responsible for the increased battery capacity – always a good thing in my book.

Most importantly, the Flex 5G is worth its $ 1,500 investment. This is especially important as you won't get the best configuration at this price. You won't feel like you've spent that much money on a laptop that just isn't built well enough.

Connectivity is relatively limited with just two USB-C 3.2 ports on the left and a 3.5mm audio jack on the right. There is also a nano SIM card slot and a switch to physically turn on airplane mode. For such a futuristic device, we were disappointed to see Wi-Fi 5 and not Wi-Fi 6 for Bluetooth 5.0.

Keyboard and touchpad

The Flex 5G has the same keyboard as pretty much every Yoga and Flex laptop. It has wide key caps with a lot of space and a snappy mechanism with a soft bottom. It may be my imagination, but the version of the Flex 5G seemed a bit flatter than some I've tried, and that's not my favorite quality. I like traveling a bit in my keyboards. Overall, however, I doubt that a lot of people will complain, and I typed very quickly at pretty full speed. Compared to some other great keyboards, the Flex 5G falls behind the excellent examples of the HP Specter x360 13 and Dell XPS 13, not to mention the fantastic Magic keyboard of the latest MacBooks.

The touchpad has average dimensions for this size of a laptop and supports the Precision Touchpad protocol from Microsoft. Multi-touch gestures and general cursor control were excellent, and I had no complaints. The touch display also responded, although I'm sure some people will be very disappointed that there is no active pen support. This is pretty much a given for modern 2-in-1 players and is missing here.

Windows 10 Hello support without a password is provided in two ways. First, there is an infrared camera for facial recognition that works just as well as any other device with similar features. Second, there is a fingerprint reader on the keyboard deck, which was also quick and responsive. It's nice to have the option.

display

My colorimeter does not work with the Flex 5G due to a lack of drivers, so I could not operate the display with the usual test battery. I have trained the display well and can make some subjective observations.

First, the display is bright and is likely to approach Lenovo's 400 nits rating. I wouldn't say it competes with direct sunlight, but it's bright enough to be used in most other ambient lights.

Second, the colors were bright and natural, and the display showed a lot of contrast. Black text on a white background – my bread and butter – appeared, and I never thought the text looked washed out.

Finally, I enjoyed seeing Netflix on the display, and I suspect the gamma is just right. I cannot confirm how accurate the colors are and whether it is a good display for creative people, but the typical productivity worker and home user should find the display a pleasure.

The audio quality was mixed. The volume was low despite the two upward-facing speakers next to the keyboard, but there was no distortion. Not surprisingly, the bass was missing, but mids and highs were right where they should be. Again, it's a good laptop to watch Netflix on, though headphones wouldn't be a terrible idea.

Our opinion

The Lenovo Flex 5G isn't the game changer it wants to be, but it's not entirely to blame. 5G speeds and coverage make it difficult to justify a purchase based on connectivity alone. In the meantime, Windows support for ARM is an ongoing project that Microsoft is still involved in.

These two technologies are likely to play a major role in the future of laptops. The Flex 5G's incredible battery life is proof enough. However, Qualcomm, Microsoft and Verizon each need to build a lot of infrastructure before a laptop like the Lenovo Flex 5G can be truly successful on its own.

Are there alternatives?

There are no other 5G laptops on the market right now, but they are coming. And if they support more than Verizon's relatively limited 5G coverage, they may be better options from that perspective alone. So this is something to watch out for.

If you don't need a 5G, you can consider the HP Specter x360 13 with 4G LTE. You'll spend around $ 150 less and get a much faster laptop, but you won't get anywhere near enjoying the battery life. Think in half here.

How long it will take?

The Lenovo Flex 5G is a well-built laptop that should last for years, but the performance is slow. In the meantime, 5G and Windows with ARM technology could see a much wider adoption in the coming years, and the Flex 5G should last long enough to see the benefits.

The one-year warranty is typical and disappointing.

Should you buy it

No – at least not yet. While battery life is excellent, performance is mediocre and can barely keep up with basic productivity and media usage tasks. This always-connected lifestyle will be practical – but only once does 5G see a more impressive introduction.

Editor's recommendations




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