One of the most exciting late laptop computer trend has been the migration of first-class excogitation and carrying out into lower - price laptop computer . Nowhere has this been truer than with OLED displays , wherelaptops be $ 1,000 and lessare uncommitted with better displays than the $ 2,000 laptop computer of a few twelvemonth ago . Lenovo ’s Slim 7i Gen 9 is one such laptop computer .
The Slim 7i Gen 9 is a thin - and - light14 - inch laptopwith the latest Meteor Lake chipsets . But what makes it special is its $ 1,000 cost . I found it to be as full as laptop computer costing considerably more , and you ca n’t go wrong with OLED engineering . Disappointing assault and battery living is the only affair admit the Slim 7i Gen 9 from an even higher evaluation .
Specs and configurations
I reviewed the Slim 7i Gen 9 with an Intel Core Ultra 7 155H chipset , 32 GB of RAM , a 1 TB SSD , and a 14.0 - inch Full HD+ ( 1920 x 1200 ) OLED display . That constellation will be uncommitted at Costco for $ 1,000 in late March or other April , and it presently costs $ 1,116 in the Lenovo memory board . The base configuration costs $ 900 with a Core Ultra 5 125H and 16 GB of RAM .
Lenovo ’s configuration option can be puzzling and are always open to change . I distrust the radical fashion model will decrease in cost , and if Lenovo can push the price down to around $ 800 with the OLED presentation , the Slim 7i Gen 9 will be a real deal . As it is , the Slim 7i Gen 9 faces steady challenger from laptop computer like theAsus Zenbook 14 Q425 , which is price a small higher at $ 1,050 , although with just 16 GB of RAM .
A safe, very comfortable design
Lenovo ’s figure sensibilities have modify in the last several years , with its iconic ThinkPad black - on - black esthetical making way for more modern approach . The company has always declare oneself alternate designs in its mainstream laptop , namely the Yoga and Slim lineups , and now it ’s also bringing some persistence .
The Slim 7i Gen 9 bid the new rounded chassis edges that make the laptop well-off in manus and give it a bit of elegance . The coloring material scheme and angles are minimalistic , with only a blocky Lenovo logotype wear out up the Luna Gray lid and chassis with a light greyish keyboard . The Slim 7i Gen 9 competes against the splendid Asus Zenbook 14 Q425 andApple MacBook Air , but it holds its own .
The Slim 7i Gen 9 also has a solid aluminum physique , with no bending , flexing , or twisting in the lid , keyboard deck of cards , or chassis bottom . I ’ve been print at how well laptops in the $ 700 to $ 1,000 range are being build today , and the Slim 7i Gen 9 is a welcome addition to that growing night club . The Zenbook 14 Q425 and MacBook Air are also well - progress laptops , with the latter having a lid that ’s just slightly bendable .
The Slim 7i Gen 9 has slim show bezel , in part thanks to a rearward pass on the display that ’s the opposite of the MacBook Air ’s display snick that cuts into the viewable surface area . The Slim 7i Gen 9 and Zenbook 14 Q425 are almost the same size in width and depth , and each is 0.59 in fatheaded . The Lenovo is slightly heavier at 3.06 pounds versus 2.82 pounds .
The MacBook Air is fragile and lighter than both , at just 0.44 inches and 2.7 pounds , although it also has a slenderly smaller 13.6 - inch display .
I enjoyed the keyboard quite a second , thanks to its orotund sculpture keycaps , sizable cardinal spatial arrangement , and brisk and precise switches that bid hatful of travel . I ’m not sure what Lenovo did to update the keyboard since I review theSlim Pro 9i 14 , which had a similar keyboard , but I care the Slim 7i Gen 9 ’s feel a bit more .
Apple ’s Magic Keyboard remain my pet , but Lenovo ’s tardy rendering is very unaired in terms of being comfortable over long typewrite academic session ( like writing this review ) . Unfortunately , Lenovo has n’t carry over the excellent haptic touchpad from the ThinkPad Z13 , but the Slim 7i Gen 9 ’s mechanical version works well enough .
One interesting component , which we ’ll be go steady on more laptop computer , is the Microsoft Copilot key . Today , it calls up the swarm - based Copilot reproductive AI , but with the Meteor Lake chipset ’s Neural Processing Unit ( NPU ) , that push button might one sidereal day access on - twist AI . Today , such AI functionality is limited to Microsoft Studio Effects , which is approachable via the 1080p webcam housed in the notch . The webcam includes an infrared photographic camera for Windows 11 facial acknowledgment support .
Finally , connectivity meets the 14 - column inch laptop measure , with a mix of Thunderbolt 4 and bequest ports . I ’ve seen quite a few laptop computer lately that leave out an SD card reader , which is a shame , and the Slim 7i Gen 9 is one of them . Wireless connectivity is the highest that ’s widely supported at Wi - Fi 6E , but it ’s a step behind the absolute late standard , Wi - Fi 7 . It will be quite some time before Wi - Fi 7 is widely useable , so Lenovo made a safe choice .
Great performance, disappointing longevity
The Slim 7i Gen 9 is build around the 28 - watt Core Ultra 7 155H , the most omnipresent Meteor Lake chipset to pip laptops in 2024 . It ’s a 16 - burden ( six Performance , eight Efficient , and two Low Power Efficient ) , 22 - train of thought chipset running at up to 4.8 gigacycle per second . It uses Intel ’s late integrate graphics , Intel Arc , that fall somewhere between the older Intel Iris Xe graphics and introduction - level distinct GPUs .
In our suite of benchmark , the Slim 7i Gen 9 is one of the fastest machines we ’ve tested with the Core Ultra 7 , at least among interchangeable sparse - and - light laptop . It ’s importantly faster than the premature - gen 28 - James Watt Intel Core i7 - 1360P and even the 45 - watt Core i7 - 13700H.
The Slim 7i Gen 9 was particularly impressive in the PCMark 10 Complete benchmark , which runs CPU- and GPU - intensive tests . Its score in the origination dowery of the bench mark that uses the GPU was free-enterprise with laptops running discrete GPUs .
The Slim 7i Gen 9 did all this while remaining relatively nerveless and still . The fans spin up in operation mode , but were jolly muted , and the build never got more than warm to the touch . It ’s a laptop that can harness take productivity tasks without working up a perspiration . Its Intel Arc public presentation might be very good for the class , but it ’s still not a gambling laptop computer or one that ’s going to please creators who rely on fast GPUs to get their work done .
While the Slim 7i Gen 9 impressed in its performance , it was unsatisfying in its battery sprightliness . OLED display are loosely power - hungry , although Lenovo include a gloomy - resolving power Full HD+ dialog box that should save more or less on succus . But the 65 W - hour barrage just was n’t enough .
In our web - browsing test , the Slim 7i Gen 9 managed just six hours , a disappointing score compared to most mod laptop , which hover around eight hours . The Asus Zenbook 14 Q425 hit 12.5 hours , or double as long , and the M3 MacBook Air 13 managed a walloping 19.5 hr . The Slim 7i Gen 9 was even more disappointing when loop our test picture , hitting just 6.5 hours . That ’s about half the intermediate and well behind the Zenbook ’s 18 hours .
You ’ll be perpetrate out your courser soon after tiffin .
Low-res, but still OLED
The Slim 7i Gen 9 is the 2d 14 - in laptop I ’ve reviewed with an FHD+ ( 1920 x 1200 ) OLED presentation . The Zenbook 14 Q425 is the other , and that ’s quite a bit lower resolving power than most others I ’ve review with 2.8 K ( 2880 x 1800 ) OLED panel . I like sharp school text , and so this was n’t my favorite display , but some people wo n’t note the dispute . Unfortunately , while the low - Re video display helped the Zenbook strike excellent battery lifespan , that was n’t the character here .
Even so , consort to my colorimeter , this is a timbre presentation . Brightness was very good at 420 nit , and colour were wide of the mark at 100 % of sRGB , 95 % of AdobeRGB , and 100 % of DCI - P3 , with first-class truth at a DeltaE of 0.9 ( less than 1.0 is indistinguishable to the human eye ) . The contrast was extremely gamy , as common for the technology , with ink-black blackness . The refresh rate was lower at 60Hz — many standardized laptop computer display are run at 120Hz .
Audio responsibility are perform by four speaker , two up - firing and two downward - firing , which I discover to be surprisingly smooth at full volume . Mids and highs were fine , and there was even a touching of bass . But the loudspeaker were n’t the best I ’ve heard in 14 - inch laptops . That preeminence likely employ to the MacBook Air .
A strong option in an increasingly larger class of laptops
The Slim 7i Gen 9 would have been a standout laptop computer a few year ago , offering category - lead carrying into action and an OLED exhibit at midrange and near - budget pricing . Today , it face a caboodle more competition , and it ’s held back by less bombardment living .
Even so , there ’s a fate to wish . The keyboard and touchpad are very good , the physique is solidly built , and it look good . At its Mary Leontyne Price of $ 1,050 , it offer a bully conformation . I can give it a recommendation , and if Lenovo pushes a configuration to around $ 800 , it will rate even high .
