Whether you're a creative, engineer, architect, graphic or web designer, video editor, or even an occasional gamer, having a laptop on hand is essential these days.
When it comes to top-notch laptops that meet these diverse needs, look no further than Lenovo's 8th Gen Yoga Pro 7i and the Legion Slim 7i.
These laptops stand out as remarkable feats of engineering from Lenovo, offering robust performance within sleek, minimalist designs that are both thin and light. They represent the epitome of premium Windows computing, akin to the MacBook experience for Windows users.
You can find both of these impressive laptops at Global Brand Pvt Ltd, the official distributor of Lenovo products in Bangladesh, complete with a two-year limited warranty.
In this review, we'll delve into what makes them stand out and why they're the most cost-effective choices in the Bangladeshi market.
Display
Both laptops feature a dazzling IPS anti-glare display with narrow bezels and 16:10 aspect ratios but differ in size and resolution.
With a 14.5-inch non-touch display, the Yoga Pro 7i offers a stunning 2.5K resolution of 2560x1600 and a pixel density of 188 ppi. It can display up to 16.7M colours, has a peak brightness of 350 nits, and a variable refresh rate of 90Hz. It covers 100% sRGB colour space and supports HDR10 content, Dolby Vision, and Eyesafe technology. This ensures precise and vibrant visuals while protecting your eyes from harmful blue light.
The Legion Slim 7i, on the other hand, has a larger 16-inch non-touch display with a gorgeous 3.2K resolution of 3200x2000 and the same pixel density of 188 ppi. It can also show up to 16.7M colours but has a higher peak brightness of 430 nits and a variable refresh rate of 165Hz. It covers a wider colour gamut of 100% DCI-P3. It supports HDR10 content, Dolby Vision, G-SYNC, Low Blue Light, and Factory Color Calibration to ensure you get the best fluid and vivid visual experience possible.
Performance
Regarding performance, Lenovo has managed to cram a lot of computational power despite both laptops' thin and light designs.
Inside, they both feature the powerful 13th Gen Intel Core i7-13700H processor, which utilizes 6P cores that can reach up to 5.0GHz, 8E cores that can reach up to 3.7GHz, and 20 threads with 24MB L3 Cache memory. The processor has a TDP of 115W, which means it can deliver fast and smooth performance without overheating.
The Yoga Pro 7i has Intel Iris Xe Graphics with shared memory and a Max Dynamic Frequency of 1536MHz, which can handle everyday tasks and some light gaming. The Legion Slim 7i has the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 with 8GB of GDDR6 memory, a boost clock speed of 2370MHz, and a TGP of 135W, which can run the latest games and creative software with stunning visuals and high frame rates.
Both laptops come with 16GB of super-fast and energy-efficient LPDDR5-5200 memory. But you can only boost the Legion Slim 7i's memory up to 32GB in its extra SO-DIMM slot.
The Yoga Pro 7i has a nimble 512GB M.2 2280 PCIe Gen 4.0 TLC SSD storage, which can only be replaced with a 1TB one. The Legion Slim 7i has a capacious 1TB SSD storage, which can be expanded with another 1TB SSD in its extra slot.
Keyboard and trackpad
Lenovo's keyboards are highly regarded for their comfortable and responsive design, and the Yoga Pro 7i and the Legion Slim 7i are no exception.
The Yoga Pro 7i features LED white backlighting, a compact design without a number pad, and a raised camera notch for easy opening with one hand. The Legion Slim 7i has a full-size layout, per-key RGB lighting, swappable keycaps and a 1.5mm travel distance for smooth typing and gaming.
Both laptops have a large glass touchpad that is precise and smooth. The touchpad on the Yoga Pro 7i is 25% larger than the previous model and supports multi-touch gestures.
Portability
Both laptops feature a robust and stunning complete aluminium build and are highly portable, making them easy to carry around in your backpack.
The Yoga Pro 7i comes in a Tidal Teal colour. It is a sleek, lightweight laptop that weighs only 1.49 kg. It measures 12.81 x 8.92 x 0.61 inches and has an 80.4% screen-to-body ratio.
The Legion Slim 7i comes in Storm Grey colour. It is slightly heavier at around 2 kg but still the lightest laptop in its class. It measures 14.08 x 10.21 x 0.69-0.78 inches and has an 80% screen-to-body ratio.
Audio and webcam
Both laptops have a full HD webcam with an E-shutter for privacy. The Yoga Pro 7i also has a ToF sensor, while the Legion Slim 7i features Tobii Horizon eye-tracking technology.
They both deliver high-definition audio with Realtek ALC3306 codec.
The Yoga Pro 7i has four 2W stereo speakers, enhanced by Dolby Atmos and Amplifier, and a four-microphone array. The Legion Slim 7i has two 2W stereo speakers, enhanced by Harman and Smart Amplifier, and optimized with Nahimic Audio. It has a two-microphone array.
Connectivity
Both laptops have different port configurations.
The Yoga Pro 7i has an HDMI 2.1 port on the left side that supports up to 4K/60Hz, along with a Thunderbolt 4/USB4 40Gbps port and a USB-C 3.2 Gen 2 port that both support data transfer, Power Delivery 3.0 and DisplayPort 1.4. On the right side, it has a USB-A 3.2 Gen 1 port (Always On), a 3.5mm headphone/mic combo jack, a power button and an E-shutter button.
The Legion Slim 7i has a Thunderbolt 4/USB4 40Gbps port and a USB-C 3.2 Gen 2 port on the left side that both support data transfer, Power Delivery 100W and DisplayPort 1.4, as well as a 3.5mm headphone/mic combo jack. It has a 4-in-1 SD card reader and an E-Shutter button on the right side. At the rear, a USB-A 3.2 Gen 2 port (Always On), two USB-A 3.2 Gen 2 ports, and an HDMI 2.1 port that supports up to 8K/60Hz.
Both laptops have Wi-Fi 6E and Bluetooth version 5.1 inside.
Special features
The Yoga Pro 7i offers an exceptional user experience with enhanced security features, like the Intel Evo Platform, Eyesafe Certified 2.0, and TÜV Rheinland Low Blue Light (Hardware Solution). It also passed 21 test items of the MIL-STD-810H military test.
The Legion Slim 7i features the cutting-edge Legion Coldfront 5.0 cooling system, backed by an AI Chip, LA2-Q, for optimal thermal performance.
Battery and adapter
Both laptops have distinct battery and adapter features that enable fast charging and smooth performance.
The Yoga Pro 7i has a 4-cell Li-Polymer 73Wh battery. It also has a slim 100W USB-C adapter that can charge the laptop up to 80% in an hour.
The Legion Slim 7i has a colossal 4-cell Li-Polymer 99.9Wh battery. It also has a powerful 230W Slim Tip adapter that supports Super Rapid Charge, which can charge the laptop up to 50% in 30 minutes.
Security and OS
Both laptops run on the latest Microsoft Windows 11 Home Edition OS.
They also offer multiple security features to protect your data and privacy, such as an IR camera for Windows Hello, an E-shutter, a fingerprint sensor integrated into the power button and Firmware TPM 2.0.
Which one should you pick?
These laptops are a perfect deal because of their price-to-performance ratio in their respective price bracket. You won't find any other laptop without compromising at multiple points that offer such a striking balance of features, like processor, RAM, storage, display, battery and weight. The best bang-for-buck combination is so tricky that getting a laptop with your desired configuration is almost impossible. But from my experience, these two laptops are compelling choices in their respective class. Your choice should depend on what arena you wish to conquer.
The Yoga Pro 7i is the perfect on-the-go companion for a CPU-intensive workload. With the Intel Evo badge, you are guaranteed that this laptop meets 75+ Intel’s premium standards like high performance, fast charging, long-lasting battery, instant wake, best-in-class connectivity, and ideal size & weight without compromise, and it works flawlessly with Windows 11.
If you have a GPU-intense workload, basically, if you need both CPU and GPU muscle on the fly; you also like to AAA play games here and there; you need a lightweight laptop that you can carry around without having shoulder or back pain; a laptop that can last long on a single charge and finally, you need a premium yet minimalist laptop, go for the Legion Slim 7i. Lenovo just put a gaming laptop into a sleek, slim, high-end productivity laptop.
You can't go wrong with any of them.
Md Zahurul Al Mamun is a writer and tech enthusiast
