Lenovo IdeaPad Flex 5i Chromebook Plus Review

The Lenovo IdeaPad Flex 5i Chromebook Plus is a long-winded name, but it’s a pretty great Chromebook device if you’re looking for one. Chromebooks are a funny thing; they’re not for everyone, and they do lack the robust options that a proper full operating system provides. But not everyone needs the options and software compatibility of a full operating system. So Chromebooks are an excellent option for that part of the population. These laptops are great for seniors and students that need basic functionality and internet access.

Estimated reading time: 14 minutes

So, it’s important to know that something like the Lenovo IdeaPad Flex 5i Chromebook Plus isn’t a one-for-one trade compared to a MacBook or Windows PC. But it does fill a need, and the affordability is what makes Chromebooks attractive. One important note about this model. This spec I have here is only available at Costco. The ones at Amazon and Best Buy are not available with the i5 processor or 256GB SSD. Let’s get into the full review.

The Quick Take

The Lenovo IdeaPad Flex 5i Chromebook Plus isn’t the best Chromebook on the market, but it’s also not awful. This Chromebook has a lot going for it, especially this SKU. This one has the better Intel i5 and a better and larger SSD. Of course, since this is a 2-in-1, you get a laptop and tablet in one. This is a decent Chromebook. I would have liked a brighter display and better battery life, but for the asking price, it’s a decent buy.

Score and Bottom Line

The Lenovo IdeaPad Flex 5i Chromebook Plus is a decent-looking laptop. The design is modern enough and not as chunky and bulky as Chromebooks tend to be. There are numerous port options, which is pretty outstanding. ChromeOS is simple and easy to use, and if you have a Google account, you’re ready to go.

This Costco SKU has the Intel i5 with a 256 GB SSD. The options from Amazon and Best Buy only have the Intel i3 and a 128 GB eMMC drive. Now, the Costco website isn’t clear if this is an NVMe SSD or if it’s also an eMMC. Either way, the Costco version is larger in storage space.

The keyboard and touchpad are surprisingly nice to use. The webcam is fine; it could be better, as is the same with the speakers. These speakers are just not very loud, but they sound fine. The display looks really nice, but I wanted more brightness. Overall, this is a nice Chromebook. Could it be better? Yes. But for the price and the price when on sale, it’s really not a bad buy. If you want a Chromebook.

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Lenovo IdeaPad Flex 5i Chromebook Plus Specifications

• Performance
  • Processor: 13^th Generation Intel^® Core™ i5-1334U Processor (E-Core Max 3.40 GHz, P-Core Max 4.60 GHz with Turbo Boost, 8 Cores, 12 Threads, 12 MB Intel Smart-Cache)
  • Operating System: Chrome OS
  • Memory: 8GB 4266MHz LPDDR4x (Soldered)
  • Storage: 256GB SSD
  • Graphics: Intel^® UHD graphics
  • Battery: Up to 10 hours
  • Audio: 2 x 2W stereo speakers by MaxxAudio^® 
  • Camera: 1080p FHD webcam
• Ports/Slots:
  • MicroSD card slot (SD 3.0)
  • 2 x USB-C 3.2 Gen 2 (support data transfer, Power Delivery 3.0, and DisplayPort™ 1.4) 
  • USB-A 3.2 Gen 1
  • Headphone-mic combo
  • Kensington Nano Security Slot
• Wireless:
  • Wi-Fi 6E* 802.11AX (2 x 2)
  • Bluetooth^® 5.1
• Display: 14.0″ WUXGA (1920 x 1200) IPS, touchscreen, glossy, 16:10, 300 nits, 45% NTSC
• Dimensions (H x W x D): 19.7 mm x 315.5 mm x 229 mm / 0.8″ x 12.4″ x 9.0″
• Weight: Starting at 1.62 kg / 3.57 lbs
• Pen: Optional Lenovo USI pen
• Color: Storm Grey
• Preloaded Software
  • Google Assistant
  • Google Play Store
  • Android™ Studio

What’s In The Box

• IdeaPad Flex 5i Chromebook Plus Gen 7 (14″ Intel)
• 45W AC adapter
• Internal Battery
• Quick Start Guide

Design

The design and build quality of the Lenovo IdeaPad Flex 5i Chromebook Plus is actually excellent. Chromebooks used to be an afterthought for most brands. These laptops were often built with the cheapest materials and had some of the worst designs.

The Lenovo IdeaPad Flex 5i Chromebook Plus looks and feels like a Windows laptop. Yes, there is still more plastic on these laptops than on the Windows versions, but the quality is far better. The top of the laptop has a two-tone finish that is very subtle. The Chromebook Plus branding is here, as is the Lenovo branding. It’s very nicely done and minimal.

Turning the laptop over, you get two long rubber feet for stability and for allowing air to flow under to the venting that is also on the bottom. The rear of the laptop has venting ports, and the flex hinges are here as well. The front edge has a lip to help open the laptop, and this does not open with one finger. The flex hinges are fairly tight and prevent this. Not a deal breaker because we want these hinges to be sturdy to handle any movement from laptop and tablet modes.

Along the left edge are the power button and volume rocker. These feel a bit cheap, one of the few spots on this laptop where I feel they went cheap. They also stick out, and you might find yourself hitting the power button when adjusting the laptop to another mode. I would have liked these to be recessed. There is also a nano lock slot and a USB-C 3.2 Gen 2 port here.

Along the left side, you get an HDMI port, headphone jack, microSD slot, and another USB-C 3.2 Gen 2 port. Both of the USB-C ports will charge the laptop. The port selection here is actually fantastic. There are some Windows laptops that don’t have HDMI or a headphone jack. I would have liked to see a USB-A port here too.

Opening the Lenovo IdeaPad Flex 5i Chromebook Plus, you’re greeted with the display, which has decent bezels. They’re not super slim, but they are not chunky like Chromebooks of the past. The webcam is at the top, and there is a privacy shutter you can slide to block the camera. There is also a rubber gasket around the display that keeps it from touching the keyboard when closed.

Moving down to the deck, there is a lot of flex here, but I expected this. The keyboard is actually very comfortable, and I did not mind the touchpad. The top-firing speakers were a nice surprise; even some expensive Windows laptops don’t have top-firing speakers. There is Lenovo branding and Intel branding on the deck as well.

The entire laptop is a gray color, and the finish does pick up fingerprints, but not as badly as some other colors. Overall, I like the look, design, and build of the Lenovo IdeaPad Flex 5i Chromebook Plus. Chromebooks have really come a long way in this area. Yes, there are still some cheap build choices here, but at this price point, I get it.

Display

The 14″ WUXGA display has 300 nits of brightness and is just okay. I think this is one of the weaker points of this laptop. This brightness level isn’t good outdoors on a bright day. There is a lot of glare, and the low brightness doesn’t help.

That’s really my main problem with this display. Otherwise, the colors look good, and the black levels are acceptable, as are the whites. It’s plenty crisp and easy to read text. All of this is excellent when you’re indoors and in normal room lighting. But going outside in sunlight or very bright conditions, you will have to deal with glare and a washed-out display.

The touch responsiveness is excellent, and all gestures work well. The flex mode is what it is: tent mode, laptop mode, and presentation mode. You can fold this in many ways, and that’s a plus. Overall, this display would really benefit from a better brightness output. If the brightness were at least 400 nits, it would have gotten a higher score. 500 nits is really where I want to see a display, and this one just falls short. That said, if you’re inside most of the time, then you should be fine.

Software

The Lenovo IdeaPad Flex 5i Chromebook Plus runs ChromeOS, and not a lot has changed since my last run with ChromeOS. I know why ChromeOS exists, and it makes sense, but I am not much of a fan of ChromeOS. That said, I know that if you’re reading this, you are okay with this OS.

The issue with ChromeOS is that it’s had a hell of a time digging itself out of the hole it’s been thrown in. The operating system has never been fully taken seriously as a power user’s OS. Like Apple’s iPad is still not fully embraced as a laptop replacement, Chromebooks have not been adopted as a PC or Mac replacement.

There is still some truth to this. ChromeOS still lacks the ability to use some software that PCs and Macs can, so this is still a no-go for many users. But there is good news for some: ChromeOS has made improvements, and better apps are available.

Before we proceed, it’s essential to understand that Chromebooks generally lock you into the Google ecosystem. There are ways to use other browsers and apps by unlocking some of the system’s Linux features, but we won’t go into all that. We are keeping this simple, as most users will open the box, sign in, and use what is here.

ChromeOS still has issues with Android apps, or a better way to put this is a lot of Android apps are not optimized for ChromeOS. That said, you can force apps to size the display. My preferred email client is not optimized for ChromeOS, and the system warned me it was only a mobile or tablet app. But I could force it to resize to the display, and it worked fine.

But at least you get all of Google’s software here, along with Gemini and other new features. Overall, ChromeOS isn’t my first choice, but if you’re looking at this laptop. Then you’ll be happy with it and the operating system and software.

Performance

This Costco unit runs on the Intel Core Ultra i5-1334U paired with 8 GB of RAM and a 256 GB SSD. This combo was excellent for me. At least for the basics and some light photo editing. Most users looking at this laptop will be basic users and students who aren’t running anything massively intensive.

Overall, this unit performed as expected for this configuration and in basic tasks like docs, streaming, web browsing, email, and other light app usage. Nothing unexpected here, but I do think the Costco version is a better choice than the i3 version sold on Amazon and Best Buy.

Speakers/Sound

The speakers on the Lenovo IdeaPad Flex 5i Chromebook Plus could use some improving. They’re just not very loud. Even at max volumes, I felt that these speakers just never pushed over the top. I will give them credit for not cracking or breaking up at their highest volume setting, but a bit more gain would have been nice. They are also thin, like most laptop speakers. They don’t hold the bottom end of things up, but this is expected for this price point. These speakers work fine for video conferencing, podcasts, and YouTube videos. Certainly not good if you want immersive theater sound. But for this price and intended demographic, it’s what we get. On a positive note, they are top-mounted, and that helps.

Camera

The 1080p webcam on the Lenovo IdeaPad Flex 5i Chromebook Plus is fine. It is certainly usable, but it’s mostly just average. These Chromebooks are generally aimed at students and basic users, and I think most of that demographic will be fine with this camera.

Battery Life

Battery life is an interesting thing these days. With Intel, AMD, and Qualcomm all making new chips for Windows PCs, battery life has gotten pretty spectacular on Windows PCs. Chromebooks used to be a highly recommended option for users who needed something simple with great battery life. But now that Windows PCs have better CPU/GPU/NPU combos, this isn’t the case anymore.

As a matter of fact, the Lenovo IdeaPad Flex 5i Chromebook Plus does worse than some Windows PCs when it comes to battery life. Shocking, I know. It’s not that the battery life is horrible either. I was able to squeeze out almost 8 hours with normal usage. This includes web browsing, documents, email, streaming music, streaming videos, and basic normal computing.

Of course, as always, battery life is highly dependent on how you use your device and what settings you use. Overall, the Lenovo IdeaPad Flex 5i Chromebook Plus does a good job in the battery life department, but watch out for Windows. There are options out there with better battery life.

Price/Value

This Costco Lenovo IdeaPad Flex 5i Chromebook Plus is priced at USD 599, and you can usually find it for less than that. I think this is a good value at the sale prices. Yes, this laptop does have its issues, but overall, it is a good deal. This unit also comes with an Intel i3 from Amazon and Best Buy. While those are probably good units as well, I can’t compare since I don’t have them. The Costco would be my pick.

Wrap-Up

The Lenovo IdeaPad Flex 5i Chromebook Plus is a decent-looking laptop. The design is modern enough and not as chunky and bulky as Chromebooks tend to be. There are numerous port options, which is pretty outstanding. ChromeOS is simple and easy to use, and if you have a Google account, you’re ready to go.

This Costco SKU has the Intel i5 with a 256 GB SSD. The options from Amazon and Best Buy only have the Intel i3 and a 128 GB eMMC drive. Now, the Costco website isn’t clear if this is an NVMe SSD or if it’s also an eMMC. Either way, the Costco version is larger in storage space.

The keyboard and touchpad are surprisingly nice to use. The webcam is fine; it could be better, as is the same with the speakers. These speakers are just not very loud, but they sound fine. The display looks really nice, but I wanted more brightness. Overall, this is a nice Chromebook. Could it be better? Yes. But for the price and the price when on sale, it’s really not a bad buy. If you want a Chromebook.

The Lenovo IdeaPad Flex 5i Chromebook Plus isn’t the best Chromebook on the market, but it’s also not awful. This Chromebook has a lot going for it, especially this SKU. This one has the better Intel i5 and a better and larger SSD. Of course, since this is a 2-in-1, you get a laptop and tablet in one. This is a decent Chromebook. I would have liked a brighter display and better battery life, but for the asking price, it’s a decent buy.