Lenovo IdeaPad 5i Chromebook 14inch FHD Laptop (Intel Core i5, 8 GB RAM, 256GB SSD, Intel Iris Xe Graphics, Chrome OS) – Storm Grey

Product Information

Chrome OS continues to be a mixed bag, and your experience will vary based on your individual use case. Gen 1 Type-C ports that are made for faster data transfers, multimedia streaming and battery charging. Another foible I arrived at regularly was that many external devices, such as keyboard fobs, external Bluetooth controllers, and so forth, either do not work at all, or only work after a significant amount of setup, which takes significantly away from the plug and play appeal that one might expect to find. From my earliest days as a technology user, and in particular since I began reviewing products over a decade ago, I have taken joy in experiencing various different versions of the modern computing concept, whether that means different types of hardware, different operating systems, different interaction concepts such as touch screens, and so forth. From the photo it looks like maybe there’s a different material/finish on the right and left side, with the left maybe prone to fingerprints?

A 256GB Solid State Drive provides useful storage space and ensures a quick boot-up time every time you lift the lid. While Lenovo’s hardware design, as always, represents a beautiful and functional piece of modern computing, unfortunately, the limited specs and the severe limitations of Chrome OS prevent it from being something I can, in good conscience, recommend for most types of use. Those concerned about privacy will be happy to see the inclusion of a physical privacy shutter that can completely block the camera. The Lenovo IdeaPad 5i Chromebook, at first glance, carries the same appearance as the non-ChromeOS variant of this laptop, with a good-looking grey chassis. It's powered by an Intel® Core™ i5 processor that comes with Iris® Xe graphics, so it's got plenty of horsepower.

All tests were run on the latest Chrome OS 92 Stable Channel, with hyper-threading enabled, and in Guest Mode on a freshly booted machine. RAM: 8 GB / Storage: 256 GB SSD, Full HD screen, Bluetooth, Built-in Webcam, Widescreen Display, USB Type-C x 2 - USB 3. The latest aspect in this journey brought be from the land of souped up personal laptops to the humble ChromeBook – in this case Lenovo’s IdeaPad 5i ChromeBook – here are my thoughts.

Even after two weeks of using the Lenovo IdeaPad 5i Chromebook, this little laptop continues to surprise me. With 256GB SSD storage, the IdeaPad 5i Chromebook 14 cuts through the heaviest tasks like smooth butter as it powers you through 10 hours of battery life. As my typical use case is running Chrome and a few web apps, my battery results are probably on the higher end of what to expect. While I am well aware that ChromeBooks quickly became a trend and saturated the market, some of which caught keen glances from the tech community (Google Pixel, I’m looking at you), I unfortunately can’t see enough merit in the platform for most types of use to make it worth the cuts you take compared to an Apple or a Windows notebook.It’s a relatively comfortable keyboard to type on, with excellent tactility and a snappy travel across all keys. The IdeaPad 5 Gaming Chromebook can stream a cloud gaming service at up to 2,560 x 1,600 resolution and 120Hz. Make it snappy With a fast and responsive up to 11th Gen Intel Core i5 processor and up to 256GB SSD storage, the IdeaPad 5i Chromebook Gen 6 (14" Intel) easily handles the heaviest tasks as it powers you through 10 hours* of battery life. Lenovo’s long-standing IdeaPad lineup of laptops has oftentimes made some excellent affordable candidates, and hopefully, that can extend into their lineup of Chromebooks with their latest fusion – the aptly-named Lenovo IdeaPad 5i Chromebook.

It has extremely slim display bezels that keep the laptop’s footprint restrained despite its 16-inch, 16:10 aspect ratio display. Every laptop we review goes through a series of uniform checks designed to gauge key things including build quality, performance, screen quality and battery life. All things light and easy: Every detail in this classic dual-tone textured case of the IdeaPad 5i Chromebook 14" is designed to optimize usability.This suggests that gaming Chromebooks are dead in the water, but Lenovo’s IdeaPad 5 Gaming Chromebook proves the idea still has merit. It’s also a huge leap over Windows gaming laptops, which often struggle to hit five hours of battery life on a charge. Of course, whacking the brightness up is going to drain the battery quicker, but that’s a trade-off that’s wider than with just this laptop. I was equally surprised by how solid the IdeaPad 5 Gaming Chromebook’s Wi-Fi adapter performed in this situation.