Lenovo Slim 7i Professional X Evaluation

The brand new Lenovo Slim 7i Professional X is a wonderful addition to Lenovo’s skinny & mild shopper laptop computer line-up as a result of it packs an enormous punch, because of its Intel twelfth technology H-Sequence CPU paired with a discrete NVIDIA GPU. They makes the Slim 7i Professional X (i stands for Intel) a really enticing laptop computer for Artistic customers who search an ultra-compact laptop computer.

Any shopper who likes to have nice multimedia and gaming experiences in a excessive mobility kind also needs to take into account this laptop computer. As extra seemingly mundane duties similar to videoconferencing can profit from AI computing, discrete GPUs have a big benefit in additional domains outdoors gaming.

Lenovo Slim 7i Professional X Specs Highlights

Our particular evaluation unit has the next configuration: Intel Core i7-12700H (14 cores), 16GB RAM (2x8GB, soldered, 6000Mhz), 512GB SSD, NVIDIA RTX 3050 graphics processor. It’s attainable to have 32GB of RAM and a 1TB SSD.

On the time of publishing, the worth is estimated to be round $1,499. Lenovo.com typically has deep reductions and offers, so it’s price checking there when purchasing.

CPU choices

Intel Core i7-12700H (2.3 GHz, 14 Cores, 24M Cache)

Intel Core i7-12650H (2.3 GHz, 10 Cores, 24M Cache)

Intel Core i5-12500H (2.5 GHz, 12 Cores, 18M Cache)

GPU Choices

NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 4 GB GDDR6 VRAM

NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 4 GB GDDR6 VRAM

Intel Iris Xe

Industrial Design

The Slim 7i Professional X’s design is consumer-oriented and appears edgy because of a skinny profile with rounded corners paying homage to smartphones and tablets. That’s just like the Lenovo Slim 9i 14 we lately reviewed. The all-metal chassis is extraordinarily inflexible when closed, and the thin show minimally wobbles.

The matte floor is proof against fingerprints, and now we have not observed any blemishes after a couple of weeks, however we didn’t attempt to scratch it on goal both. Total, it’s clear and, extra importantly, stays clear. Our mannequin has a Silver end, but it surely’s additionally attainable to get a neat Darkish Gray.

The ability button is on the appropriate facet, and I admire the presence of a Energy LED mild and the truth that this button doesn’t sit flush with the chassis. Generally it’s onerous to search out the facility button at the hours of darkness (airplane with lights off, darkish keynote room, and many others.), so it’s a pleasant element. There’s additionally a webcam ON/OFF close to the Energy button for many who extremely worth privateness.

Its weight of 3.19 Lbs (1.45 kg) makes it skinny & mild, and it appears like a premium product with some heft when you’ve got it in your hand.

Keyboard and Trackpad

The Slim i7 Professional X has an unlimited trackpad for many who use probably the most complicated gestures or need excessive trackpad precision and superior ergonomics. It looks like it’s probably the most outsized Lenovo trackpad I’ve seen on their 14” laptops.

The keyboard is nearly unchanged from earlier Yoga laptops, and whereas there are all the time tiny variations, the general high quality and really feel stay an identical. The tactile suggestions and key journey depth are agreeable. The small UP/Down arrow keys are the one factor I’d foyer to vary as I’m a heavy typer and use them to navigate paperwork extensively.

Ports

For such a small laptop computer, the assortment of ports is excellent, with a full-size USB and HDMI 2.1 ports, that are workhorses for anybody. For ultra-connectivity, the 2 Thunderbolt 4 ports are incredible and allow high-speed docking that I’ve come to make use of each at residence and work. It’s simply too handy to plug your laptop computer right into a single USB-C port and use it with a desktop-like array of peripherals.

HDMI 2.1 (2.1 on NVIDIA GPU)

2x Thunderbolt 4 (TB4)

1x USB-A

3.5mm audio

Webcam privateness shutter slider

Sound

Due to the two x 2W Harman Audio system licensed for Dolby Atmos Audio, this laptop computer delivers an excellent sound high quality with excessive quantity, clear voices, and no distortion. It’s not the very best audio we’ve heard for a skinny and light-weight, but it surely’s clearly among the many finest choices you will get. It is going to be nice for leisure, shopper demos, or group convention calls.

Show

All three show choices characteristic a 14.5” 3K (3072 x 1920) 120Hz show, and I feel that’s an amazing alternative as 1080p is a bit low-PPI (OK for gaming), and 4K is overkill and battery-hungry. Earlier than you ask: sure, you’ll be able to open the show with one hand, and it opens to just about 180 levels to -almost- lay flat.

All of the choices characteristic the identical specs and efficiency: IPS LCD, 400 NITs brightness, Delta-E decrease than 1.0 (excellent colours), 100% sRGB shade gamut, NVIDIA G-SYNC, Dolby Imaginative and prescient licensed, and TUV low blue mild. These are excessive show specs, and there’s nothing to complain about, particularly at shopper costs.

The first distinction between the shows is that one is a touch-screen with a glass floor (shiny end). One other has a shiny end however no contact. Lastly, there’s one with out the glass floor, and I can solely assume it has a matte end, however I’ve not seen it in particular person.

The discrete GPU paired with the NVIDIA G-Sync 120Hz show makes this laptop computer very succesful for video games, particularly in the event you’re enjoying one thing that doesn’t use the most recent graphics (Raytracing and many others.) and will subsequently max out the FPS. NVIDIA’s DLSS will assist fairly a bit with that.

Webcam

Lenovo has included a 1080p FHD webcam with an IR (infrared) sensor and twin microphones. The IR sensor is nice for unlocking your PC with Home windows Hey as an alternative of typing an extended, very safe password. I haven’t seen a fingerprint reader, so facial recognition could be the best choice on this case.

Efficiency

A discrete graphics processor makes an enormous distinction within the graphics benchmarks. The Intel Core i7-12700H CPU presents superior efficiency over CPUs just like the Intel i7-1260P usually present in office-productivity laptops like one of many new Lenovo X1 Carbon Gen10 we beforehand examined.

The NVIDIA RTX 3050 cellular GPU assist this laptop computer ship a world-class Pace/Weight efficiency ratio. By the best way, that is an NVIDIA Studio-certified laptop computer.

As such, the Slim 7i Professional X might be thought-about a really compact, high-performance workstation for Artistic fans and professionals who want excessive mobility. That reality is bolstered by the superb show choices and 32GB which can be the appropriate alternative for imagery work.

Our analysis reveals that most individuals are all for evaluating the Intel-powered Slim 7i Professional X and the AMD-powered Slim 7 Professional X, so we embody these numbers right here, together with information from the ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen10 and the Lenovo Slim 9i 14.

We additionally see glorious outcomes when taking a look at efficiency by the lens of value and weight, which additional validate the ultra-mobility workstation route. Even the SSD disk velocity is on par with Enterprise merchandise slightly than similar to Client laptops.

All the outcomes are precisely what one would count on from the assorted configuration variations. The one factor that stunned us a bit was the divergence between the Cinebench R23 and Geekbench 5 CPU benchmarks between the Intel and AMD model of the Slim 7/7i Professional X laptops.

They recommend that the Intel CPU is usually glorious, however in case you are a heavy Cinebench consumer, you may need to take into account the AMD laptop computer as an alternative.

Regardless of its slim design, the chassis stayed cool throughout the assessments. The floor’s temperature hovers round 44C (111.3F), the temperature at which issues really feel sizzling to the pores and skin. Moreover, this laptop computer is just not almost as loud as Gaming laptops, and that’s a substantial benefit when displaying some work to a shopper, for instance.

Battery Life

The 70Wh battery capability is bigger than most skinny & mild of comparable dimension. Nonetheless, the additional capability can also be required to help a extra performant and power-hungry system. That’s why the laptop computer comes with a 100W PSU, which isn’t removed from the utmost supported by a USB-C connector.

It’s best to get about 6 to 7 hours of workplace work, represented by a benchmark like PCMark 10 Trendy Workplace. Nonetheless, if you wish to squeeze extra longevity, you’ll be able to scale back the show refresh charge from 120Hz all the way down to 60Hz and get 15%-20% extra.

Much less performant skinny & mild 14” laptops can get 11-14h of battery life, however bear in mind, they usually characteristic a lot slower CPUs and GPUs together with 1080p shows, so it’s not comparable.In actuality, few folks would spend that size of time on something aside from watching movies. Lenovo claims this laptop computer can play native (not streaming) movies for 12.5 hours.

Conclusion

Cleary designed for Creators who need ultra-mobility, the Lenovo Slim 7i Professional X (official web page) delivers spectacular configuration choices and efficiency. Even the pricing is enticing, particularly in the event you examine it with enterprise laptops with extra safety and IT options you may not need or want.

Some potential prospects might desire a 4K show, however I discover that choice to be a bit overkill for a 14.5” laptop computer, and I labored within the graphics business for 12 years. It’s a matter of preferences, I suppose.

In the long run, I’d even suggest the Slim 7i Professional X to individuals who is probably not Artistic professionals as a result of they may use apps that would profit from a robust GPU and never even comprehend it (Zoom + NVIDIA Broadcast, for instance).

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