Lenovo IdeaPad 5i Chromebook Review

Verdict

The Lenovo IdeaPad 5i Chromebook is a strong all-round Chromebook with attractiveness, a sturdy chassis and an incredible efficiency for the worth. Simply be careful for its meagre port choice and the truth that it’s fairly heavy.

Introduction

Lenovo’s long-standing IdeaPad lineup of laptops has oftentimes made some wonderful reasonably priced candidates, and hopefully, that may lengthen into their lineup of Chromebooks with their newest fusion – the aptly-named Lenovo IdeaPad 5i Chromebook.

At £550/$550, it sits nicely among the many sea of Chromebooks obtainable at this value, however as an alternative of providing intelligent options comparable to 2-in-1 performance of the HP Chromebook x2 11, or a flip display like that of the Acer Chromebook Spin 514, Lenovo’s alternative is extra typical.

Whether or not that all-rounder strategy can assist the IdeaPad 5i Chromebook together with being among the finest Chromebooks we’ve examined stays to be seen, although. I’ve been performing some testing to seek out out.

Design and Keyboard

• Attractiveness
• Wonderful keyboard, and a big trackpad
• Heavy chassis

The Lenovo IdeaPad 5i Chromebook, at first look, carries the identical look because the non-ChromeOS variant of this laptop computer, with a handsome gray chassis. It’s a two-tone gray, with a definite line on the laptop computer’s lid additionally providing a thinly-striped end, which supplies it slightly little bit of pizzazz in comparison with the ocean of strong black and gray at this value. For a business-looking laptop computer, it’s good to have one thing a bit extra funky.

A weight of 1.85kg makes this fairly a heavy laptop computer for its dimension although, making it slightly bit extra of a ache to hold round. Equally-priced opponents can lose an inch or two in display dimension, but in addition lose something from 300 to 500 grams of mass, making them a better option for these on the go. As a lot as that additional weight could make it a tad cumbersome to hold, it’s reflective of how nicely constructed the IdeaPad 5i Chromebook is. The chassis feels strong and isn’t hole.

The 16-inch display on provide makes this one of many bigger Chromebooks on the market, however it’s a display whose bezels are comparatively skinny on the perimeters and across the prime. The highest additionally homes a 1080p webcam, which is a pleasant contact, as some Chromebooks and Home windows laptops are nonetheless lumbered with a 720p one, even these days.

In comparison with different big-screen Chromebooks, the port choice on the IdeaPad 5i Chromebook is meagre. It ships with a pair of USB-C 3.2 Gen ports, one in every of which is used for charging, in addition to two USB-A 3.2 Gen 1 ports, a headphone/mic combo jack and a Micro SD card reader. That is okay for contemporary workflows, though it will have been good to see a devoted show output comparable to an HDMI port, which is current on most different similarly-priced models I’ve examined.

The benefit of this being a Chromebook with a bigger chassis is that it comes with a just about full-size keyboard structure, a devoted quantity pad and all. It’s a comparatively snug keyboard to kind on, with wonderful tactility and a quick journey throughout all keys. The actual fact it isn’t backlit is a disgrace, although, as this Chromebook gained’t be too appropriate for after-dark working.

There’s a big trackpad as well, too. It offers loads of actual property in your fingers and the buttons on provide present good tactility. Apart from this, there isn’t a lot to report on – there isn’t a fingerprint sensor, for example. The one actual flourish is the Lenovo emblem plate current within the backside proper nook.

Show and Sound

• Good element and screen-size
• Colors can look washed out
• Okay audio system

With a Chromebook at this value, the show is normally the place issues get skimped on. For the Lenovo IdeaPad 5i Chromebook, that is partially the case. Lenovo has bundled in an ample panel for the worth, however with one notable quick fall.

As a 16-inch display with a 1920×1200 decision, it offers you plenty of area for day-to-day working and offers strong element on displayed photos, too. It’s additionally an IPS panel, which supplied some good viewing angles in testing whereas watching the newest Grand Tour particular, whereas its 300 nits of brightness meets our goal for ample vibrancy.

The issue right here is its 45% rated protection of the NTSC gamut, which left colors feeling fairly washed out and never essentially as punchy as different shows I’ve seen on Chromebooks. For probably the most half, it’s first rate sufficient, however not the best choice if watching video is a precedence.

The highest-firing audio system have been first rate in testing with good quantity, and little in the way in which of distortion. They carry with them a good quantity of mids, and never a lot in the way in which of low-end, however are nonetheless first rate sufficient for day-to-day work and enjoyable with content material on Disney+ or Prime Video after you’re completed. The actual fact they’re additionally top-firing can also be helpful should you use your laptop computer on a tender floor comparable to a mattress, the place downwards-firing models could be muffled.

Efficiency

• Snappy processor for mild computing duties
• Extra beneficiant storage, and strong headroom
• ChromeOS remains to be fairly restricted

In day-to-day duties and in a collection of artificial benchmarks, the Lenovo IdeaPad 5i Chromebook proved to be a nippy performer. That is due to the mixture of a light-weight OS in ChromeOS and its snappy Intel Core i3-1215U chip. This offers a complete of six cores, break up between two P-cores and 4 E-cores, serving to to present the IdeaPad 5i Chromebook a wonderful all-round efficiency.

For the sunshine computing duties it’s designed for, it felt unbelievable to make use of, with the full of six cores permitting the IdeaPad 5i Chromebook to energy forward within the benchmark assessments, particularly for multi-core efficiency. It’s right here the place Lenovo’s providing shines the brightest in opposition to the competitors.

The 8GB of RAM on provide offers sufficient headroom for common computing, and even opening a load of Chrome tabs didn’t make the IdeaPad 5i Chromebook falter. Mixed with this, the 256GB SSD is extra beneficiant than plenty of different Chromebooks, the place some will nonetheless function both 32GB or 64GB of eMMC storage.

The one challenge right here is arguably the working system itself. ChromeOS nonetheless doesn’t assist sure apps that Home windows does, or provide as large performance, that means you’re restricted on what you are able to do. It’s superb for mild computing, however not for something greater than this.

Battery Life

• Lasted 13 hours and 33 minutes within the battery check
• Able to lasting between one and two working days

The Lenovo IdeaPad 5i Chromebook additionally packs in some severe endurance, with it lasting for simply over 13 and a half hours in our battery check after dialling the brightness all the way down to half and working a video loop.

This is among the greatest outcomes I’ve seen from any laptop computer, not to mention a mid-range Chromebook, and means you’ll be capable to get between one and two working days out of the IdeaPad 5i Chromebook earlier than you want to plug it in.

In fact, whacking the brightness up goes to empty the battery faster, however that’s a trade-off that’s wider than with simply this laptop computer.

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