Lenovo IdeaPad 5i 2-in-1 assessment: A convertible PC on a price range (generally)

Greatest Costs At present: Lenovo IdeaPad 5i 2-in-1

The Lenovo IdeaPad 5i 2-in-1 is a budget-focused 16-inch 2-in-1 PC — at the very least that’s the pitch. You get a touchscreen and a 360-degree hinge so you may watch Netflix in mattress, learn on it like a pill, and do different tablet-type duties. It prices round as a lot as a standard clamshell laptop computer, however provided that it’s at the moment on sale.

The pricing story is messy. This machine is okay on the $649 sale value I see it for proper now, however not on the $1,099 retail value Lenovo suggests. It does typically appear to be on sale, which is how the PC market goes: Retail costs typically really feel like they’re set excessive to offer the looks of additional worth when a laptop computer is regularly discounted.

At a sale value ($649 as I’m penning this), the IdeaPad 5i 2-in-1 delivers stable worth. At full value, it doesn’t.

Lenovo IdeaPad 5i 2-in-1: Specs

The Lenovo IdeaPad 5i 2-in-1’s CPU is its greatest {hardware} function. The Intel Core Extremely 7 255U CPU is quick for this class, and mixing it with 16 GB of LPDDR5x-8000 RAM is a brilliant transfer. That is extra CPU and quicker RAM than you’d usually see in a PC on this class.

The remainder of the {hardware} isn’t too spectacular. The Intel graphics listed here are sluggish — far behind Intel’s extra spectacular Lunar Lake {hardware} and the graphics you’d discover on a Qualcomm Snapdragon X-powered ARM PC. And the NPU right here is just too sluggish for Microsoft’s Copilot+ PC options, so all of the speak about it “unlocking the ability of AI” is usually advertising.

There’s additionally no Thunderbolt or USB4 right here, and the wi-fi {hardware} is restricted to Wi-Fi 6 and Bluetooth 5.2. 

• Mannequin quantity: Lenovo IdeaPad 5 2-in-1 16IAL10
• CPU: Intel Core Extremely 7 255U
• Reminiscence: 16 GB LPDDR5x-8000 RAM
• Graphics/GPU: Intel graphics
• NPU: Intel AI Increase (as much as 12 TOPS)
• Show: 16-inch 1920×1200 IPS show with contact display screen and 60Hz refresh fee
• Storage: 512 GB PCIe Gen4 SSD
• Webcam: 1080p webcam
• Connectivity: 2x USB Sort-C (1x USB 5Gbps, 1x USB 10Gbps), 2x USB Sort-A (USB 5Gbps), 1x HDMI 1.4b, 1x combo audio jack, 1x microSD card reader
• Networking: Wi-Fi 6, Bluetooth 5.2
• Biometrics: IR digicam for Home windows Whats up
• Battery capability: 57 Watt-hours
• Dimensions: 14.02 x 10.03 x 0.72 inches
• Weight: 4.41 kilos
• MSRP: $1,099 as examined

Lenovo IdeaPad 5i 2-in-1: Design and construct high quality

Foundry / Chris Hoffman

The 16-inch Lenovo IdeaPad 5i 2-in-1 has a plastic backside and an aluminum high cowl. Accessible in Luna Gray or Cosmic Blue, it’s a traditional laptop computer design.

The most important drawback is how heavy and chunky this machine is. With a weight of 4.41 kilos and a thickness of 0.72 inches, this isn’t the form of 2-in-1 machine you’d need to stroll round holding. If you happen to’re watching Netflix in mattress and have it resting in your lap, I can see it. If in case you have it mendacity flat in your desk, I get it. However it’s not a really transportable 2-in-1 expertise.

Except for that, the construct high quality feels fantastic however not “premium.” The hinge feels stable. Whereas there’s a little bit of flex to the keyboard deck should you press down on it (only a bit), that’s no shock because it’s plastic.

Lenovo IdeaPad 5i 2-in-1: Keyboard and trackpad

Foundry / Chris Hoffman

The Lenovo IdeaPad 5i 2-in-1 has a full-size keyboard full with a quantity pad and white backlighting. It’s serviceable, however key journey feels on the shallow aspect for a laptop computer with 0.72 inches of thickness. It jogs my memory of keyboards I’ve used on thinner laptops. I don’t know if I’d name it mushy, precisely, but it surely’s actually not snappy. If you happen to do a variety of typing and a crisp keyboard expertise is vital to you, this in all probability isn’t the laptop computer I’d suggest.

The trackpad feels a little bit on the small aspect for a 16-inch laptop computer with a keyboard deck this huge, but it surely’s not far off. It’s a reasonably common trackpad. It’s responsive sufficient once I transfer my finger over it, however the click-down motion is on the loud aspect — I believe most individuals would favor a quieter click on.

Lenovo IdeaPad 5i 2-in-1: Show and audio system

Foundry / Chris Hoffman

The Lenovo IdeaPad 5i 2-in-1 has a 16-inch IPS show with a 1920×1200 decision and a 60Hz refresh fee. For a 16-inch laptop computer that prices $649 on sale, that’s not too unhealthy.

Since it is a 2-in-1 machine, it has a touchscreen. It additionally helps pen enter, however this machine does not embody a pen. That’s offered individually.

The show could be very dim at as much as 300 nits of most brightness. That’s an issue for the reason that coating is shiny to allow that contact display screen. This show could be very prone to reflections, and it doesn’t have sufficient brightness to overpower them. In a vivid sunlit room (or, even worse, outdoor), the reflections will probably be an issue. For Netflix in a darkish room, it’s not an issue.

I don’t usually obsess about colour accuracy in shows, however artists typically think about 2-in-1 machines for drawing. It’s value noting that this isn’t the kind of high-end show with rigorously tuned colour accuracy that you simply’d need should you had been doing graphic design.

The audio system are loud sufficient, however there’s practically no bass right here. They don’t sound notably good. And that’s in clamshell mode! If you happen to put this 2-in-1 PC in tent mode, the audio system will probably be firing away from you. If you happen to put it in face-down mode, the audio system will probably be muffled. They’ll be firing into the floor underneath the PC. This machine seems like a clamshell laptop computer that Lenovo put a 360-degree hinge on. It wasn’t designed as a 2-in-1 for media.

Lenovo IdeaPad 5i 2-in-1: Webcam, microphone, biometrics

The Lenovo IdeaPad 5i 2-in-1 has a 1080p webcam, and it’s fantastic. It’s not a premium expertise. In my workplace, on a bright-but-cloudy day, even that pure lighting led to a loud image. The colours don’t look notably lifelike. It’s higher than the poor-quality 720p webcams I see on some price range laptops, nevertheless. It does have a bodily webcam shutter swap, which is nice to see.

The microphone setup right here is nothing to write down residence about, both. It really works, and it does a great job of canceling out background noise. However it didn’t decide up my voice with notably crisp audio high quality. These are serviceable for on-line conferences, however not spectacular.

This machine does have an IR digicam for Home windows Whats up, so you may register together with your face simply by opening the laptop computer. That’s nice to see.

Lenovo IdeaPad 5i 2-in-1: Connectivity

Foundry / Chris Hoffman

Connectivity-wise, the Lenovo IdeaPad 5i 2-in-1 seems like a price range laptop computer. This machine has a great quantity of ports, however they’ve lower-tier specs. You don’t get any Thunderbolt or USB4 ports, and the HDMI port right here is HDMI 1.4b fairly than HDMI 2.1.

On the left aspect, this machine has an HDMI port and two USB Sort-C ports together with a combo audio jack. On the correct aspect, it’s bought two USB Sort-A ports and a microSD card reader. Because the laptop computer fees by way of USB Sort-C, which means you’ll at all times be plugging the charging cable into the left aspect. A USB Sort-C port on both sides would’ve been nicer.

The Lenovo IdeaPad 5i 2-in-1 helps Wi-Fi 6 and Bluetooth 5.2, which feels a little bit dated. Qualcomm Snapdragon X laptops across the $1,099 value level (or much less) help Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 5.4, so it could be good to see Lenovo doing extra right here. I’ve observed extra laptops omitting Wi-Fi 6E help and going for Wi-Fi 6.

Lenovo IdeaPad 5i 2-in-1: Efficiency

The Lenovo IdeaPad 5i 2-in-1’s power is its CPU efficiency. It does really feel like Lenovo splurged on the CPU in comparison with every little thing else on this machine. Maybe they bought a great deal from Intel. In day-to-day desktop utilization, the IdeaPad delivers a quick expertise.

As at all times, we ran the Lenovo IdeaPad 5i 2-in-1 by means of our commonplace benchmarks to see the way it performs.

Foundry / Chris Hoffman

First, we run PCMark 10 to get an concept of general system efficiency. With an general rating of seven,058, the Lenovo IdeaPad 5i 2-in-1 machine delivered stable efficiency and didn’t carry out like a price range laptop computer. That’s stable for $649 and table-stakes for $1,099. The pricing sport makes this machine tough to guage.

Foundry / Chris Hoffman

Subsequent, we run Cinebench R20. It is a closely multithreaded benchmark that focuses on general CPU efficiency. It’s a fast benchmark, so cooling underneath prolonged workloads isn’t an element. However, because it’s closely multithreaded, CPUs with extra cores have an enormous benefit.

With a Cinebench R20 multi-threaded rating of 4,787, this machine beat Intel Lunar Lake-powered machines just like the Samsung Galaxy Book5 Professional 360 and the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 2-in-1. Lunar Lake programs are extra energy environment friendly, have a lot greater efficiency, they usually can truly run Home windows 11’s Copilot+ PC AI options. However they wrestle with multithreaded efficiency as a consequence of Lunar Lake’s decrease core rely.

Foundry / Chris Hoffman

We additionally run an encode with Handbrake. That is one other closely multithreaded benchmark, but it surely runs over an prolonged interval. This calls for the laptop computer’s cooling kick in, and lots of laptops will throttle and decelerate underneath load.

This machine accomplished the encode course of in 1,348 seconds, which is about 22 and a half minutes. It’s an affordable consequence, however this machine isn’t a velocity demon in comparison with high-end laptops, simply stable for its class.

Foundry / Chris Hoffman

Subsequent, we run a graphical benchmark. This isn’t a gaming laptop computer, but it surely’s nonetheless good to verify how the GPU performs. We run 3Dmark Time Spy, a graphical benchmark that focuses on GPU efficiency.

With a 3DMark Time Spy rating of two,439, the built-in Intel graphics right here didn’t impress. That’s a disgrace, as it could make this machine extra helpful for mild gaming. The spectacular Intel Arc graphics present in Lunar Lake machines haven’t made their solution to different Intel programs but.

General, the Lenovo IdeaPad 5i 2-in-1 delivered stable efficiency for a $649 laptop computer however not what you’d need to see on a $1,099 laptop computer. Whether or not you’ll be proud of it relies on how a lot you paid.

Lenovo IdeaPad 5i 2-in-1: Battery life

The Lenovo IdeaPad 5i 2-in-1 has a 57 Watt-hour battery, which is on the low aspect. Battery life is okay, however not notably spectacular for a laptop computer in 2025.

Foundry / Chris Hoffman

To benchmark the battery life, we play a 4K copy of Tears of Metal on repeat on Home windows 11 with airplane mode enabled till the laptop computer suspends itself. We set the display screen to 250 nits of brightness for our battery benchmarks, which meant cranking the brightness approach up. It is a best-case situation for any laptop computer since native video playback is so environment friendly, and actual battery life in day-to-day use is at all times going to be lower than this.

The Lenovo IdeaPad 5i 2-in-1 lasted for 619 minutes on common earlier than suspending itself. That’s a bit underneath 10 and a half hours. A bigger battery would give this machine extra endurance, however this machine is already so heavy, and a bigger battery would additionally make it heavier — that’s not best.

Many 2-in-1s are designed to be light-weight transportable machines with lengthy battery life to allow them to be used as tablets for drawing. This machine delivers affordable battery life, but it surely’s not going to maintain going and going like fashionable 2-in-1s with Intel Lunar Lake or Qualcomm Snapdragon X CPUs.

Lenovo IdeaPad 5i 2-in-1: Conclusion

The Lenovo IdeaPad 5i 2-in-1 is a laptop computer that solely is smart should you notice the $1,099 MSRP isn’t its actual value. That full value is foolish.

At $649, you’re getting a 16-inch 2-in-1 machine with a 360-degree hinge for not rather more than a standard 16-inch clamshell laptop computer. You’ll be able to have the 2-in-1 expertise and even take pleasure in pen enter should you purchase a pen individually.

However the show, weight, battery life, and lack of an included pen imply this isn’t a 2-in-1 expertise meant for artists who care about critical colour copy. It’s additionally not for employees who need a pen-friendly machine they’ll carry round all day.

It’s respectable as an informal 2-in-1 expertise. Nevertheless, the place of the audio system is an actual drawback. This machine could also be good for video streaming in convertible mode, however you’ll need headphones to listen to what you’re watching.