Lenovo Yoga E-book 9i assessment: A sick dual-screen laptop computer with life-changing productiveness

The Lenovo Yoga E-book 9i is a dual-display murals. With the included folio stand, the laptop computer might be propped up in panorama mode to create the most effective transportable workstation I’ve ever had. With such straightforward app-juggling, my productiveness ranges have been out of this world. 

It is like a two-monitor desktop setup you’ll be able to carry in your hand. I typically had Spotify and my Pomodoro timer open on the underside half whereas I used to be working in Google Docs on the highest half. And if I had articles to learn, I’d flip the laptop computer to ebook mode.

There’s a digital keyboard and trackpad you should use, too. However to maintain your screens smudge free, the Yoga E-book 9i ships with a removable keyboard, a mouse, and a Gen-3 Digital Pen. With these surprisingly premium equipment, I didn’t miss the normal laptop computer expertise in any respect. 

The truth is, this was nearly an elevated laptop computer expertise for me. There are definitely a number of issues the Yoga E-book 9i may stand to enhance. It might not land on our greatest laptops web page, however I’m loving this dual-display laptop computer period we’re in proper now.

Lenovo Yoga E-book 9i worth and specs 

The Lenovo Yoga E-book 9i isn’t low-cost, nevertheless it’s surprisingly reasonably priced for a dual-screen laptop computer. Our assessment unit prices $2,010 on Lenovo’s web site and comes with the next specs: 

• Intel Core Extremely 7 155U CPU

• Built-in Intel Iris Xe graphics

• 16GB of RAM

• 1TB SSD

• Twin, 13-inch, 2880 x 1800-pixel, 60Hz OLED shows

• Rotating 360-degree Bowers & Wilkins soundbar 

For that worth, you’ll additionally get a Lenovo Digital Pen (Gen 3), a Bluetooth mouse and keyboard, and a folio that matches the keyboard and acts as a stand for the Yoga E-book 9i. In order for you extra RAM for smoother efficiency, you’ll be able to spend an additional $57 to bump it as much as 32GB.

What I like in regards to the Lenovo Yoga E-book 9i

The Yoga E-book 9i is filled with wonderful options, together with its two stunning OLED shows and an distinctive rotating Bowers & Wilkins soundbar.

Beautiful high-res OLED shows

The Yoga E-book 9i affords two engaging 2880 x 1800-pixel OLED panels with a 3:2 side ratio, offering extra vertical actual property. The 13-inch show measurement may sound small on paper, however with two shows, there’s greater than sufficient room to work.

To check the show high quality, I watched YouTube trailers for “Fall Man” and “Arthur the King.” A powerful stage of element comes by, from the giggle traces round Ryan Gosling’s eyes to the person strands of canine hair on Arthur. The colours are vibrant, too, whether or not you’re lush landscapes, explosions, or bustling cities.

One notch under max brightness allowed me to see the shows completely whereas working outdoors on my patio — even when the solar was shining down on me in the course of the day. With the show at nearly max brightness, nonetheless, the battery drained fairly quick.

Twin-display effectivity is unmatched 

My desktop PC setup at residence has two screens, and having two screens is among the solely issues that I miss once I use my laptop computer to work from a espresso store or a library. Certain, I may purchase a transportable monitor to resolve this concern, however that’s simply further weight, setup, and cash spent.

Utilizing Lenovo’s Yoga E-book 9i over the previous few weeks has made me notice I desire a laptop computer with two shows. It’s really easy to set every part up — and I typically convey a wi-fi mechanical keyboard to kind on anyway, so not having a built-in keyboard isn’t that huge of a deal. 

Having two shows permits me to tug up Spotify and my Gmail on the underside whereas engaged on Google Docs and different apps on high. Or, I can watch a YouTube video whereas writing if I want somewhat further leisure. A lot room for actions! 

Plus, utilizing the Yoga E-book 9i in dual-display panorama mode places the highest display screen at a extra ergonomic peak, which implies I don’t have to convey alongside a laptop computer stand whereas working remotely.

A number of modes to play with

Though I defaulted to utilizing the identical mode — dual-display panorama mode propped up on the stand with the Bluetooth keyboard and mouse close by — I actually recognize what number of completely different modes there are to experiment with. 

Utilizing the stand, you’ll be able to prop up the laptop computer in ebook mode for 2 portrait shows. This mode was useful for studying or writing prolonged articles. 

You should use the Yoga E-book 9i like a standard laptop computer, both by using the digital keyboard or by magnetically attaching the Bluetooth keyboard to the higher portion of the decrease show

Or, fold one show barely backwards to prop up the laptop computer in tent mode, good for watching films. For those who fold one show utterly backwards, you should use the Yoga E-book 9i as a pill.

Wonderful sound high quality

Music aficionados: these are the laptop computer audio system for you. The Yoga E-book 9i has a rotating Bowers & Wilkins soundbar that gave each tune I listened to a full-body, atmospheric high quality that I’ve by no means heard from laptop computer audio system earlier than — not even from my very own Yoga 9i’s Bowers & Wilkins soundbar.

Whereas listening to Bo Burnham’s “All Eyes on Me (The Outtakes Model),” the moody, low sounds layered within the tune got here by flawlessly and weren’t drowned out when he began singing. I additionally performed Unprocessed’s “Actual ft. Polyphia’s Tim Henson & Clay Gober,” and its nuanced lows, mids, and highs sounded well-balanced and crisp.

I discovered the amount candy spot to be between 20 to 30 p.c, however you’ll be able to simply bump it as much as max quantity for room-filling sound that’s not distorted in any respect.

A skinny, satisfying keyboard

I used to be shocked that I truly loved typing on the indifferent Bluetooth keyboard that comes with the Yoga E-book 9i. It’s an ultra-thin chiclet keyboard, and I by no means thought I’d be utilizing the phrases “snug” and “intuitive” to explain it, however right here we’re.

When evaluating the typing expertise between this transportable keyboard and my day by day driver laptop computer’s built-in keyboard, there’s no distinction in productiveness. All of the keys are the place I’d count on them to be and I by no means discovered myself needing to mash the Backspace key whereas working to right errors. 

Attractive ‘Tidal Teal’ colorway

In a market filled with silver, grey, and black laptops, it was extremely refreshing to see the Yoga E-book 9i’s stunning Tidal Teal colorway.

 

This deep teal adorns the Yoga E-book 9i’s complete chassis, together with the rotating soundbar, in addition to the removable Bluetooth keyboard, the Digital Pen, the Bluetooth Yoga mouse, and the protecting folio.

What’s ‘eh’ in regards to the Lenovo Yoga E-book 9i

A few of the Yoga E-book 9i’s options stood out to me instantly as implausible or disappointing, however different options floated in the course of every excessive. 

Center-of-the-road efficiency

For a $2,000 laptop computer, I anticipated the Yoga E-book 9i to ship higher efficiency.

It’s geared up with one in all Intel’s new chips — the Intel Core Extremely 7 155U — and but, its Geekbench 6 rating matched that of the HP Envy Transfer with an older Intel Core i5-1335U CPU. 

In follow, utilizing the Yoga E-book 9i felt comparatively zippy, however there have been fairly a number of stuttery moments sprinkled in. 

As I’m typing this in Google Docs, I’ve the next open: 40 Google Chrome tabs (which is utilizing up completely all of my 16GB of RAM), the Spotify app that is actively taking part in music, and the Clock app for monitoring my time. 

I’ve been in a position to kind easily with none interruptions, but when I have to open a brand new tab or drag a window to the opposite show, there’s particular lag. Most individuals won’t have these many tabs open directly, however for a dual-display laptop computer that encourages multitasking, it looks like one thing the Yoga E-book 9i ought to be capable to deal with flawlessly. 

When switching between panorama and ebook modes, it took longer than I’d like for my home windows to determine the place they have been presupposed to be and snap into place. Plus, my Spotify and Clock apps wouldn’t be totally expanded for some motive, leaving an odd hole between the apps and my taskbar.

A satisfactory digital keyboard and trackpad

With eight fingers, you’ll be able to convey up the Yoga E-book 9i’s digital keyboard and trackpad. It’s a completely geared up keyboard that appears similar to the included bodily keyboard — minus the Copilot button. 

This keyboard is nice in a pinch in the event you forgot to convey alongside the bodily keyboard or simply have to kind a number of issues, however it could by no means be my first alternative. The haptic and visible suggestions when typing is useful, however my typical typing pace was slashed in half whereas utilizing the digital keyboard — and I made much more errors.

When utilizing the digital trackpad, the cursor can soar sometimes in the event you transfer your finger down too far and contact the digital left- or right-click buttons. 

In case you have the bodily keyboard on the highest half and the digital touchpad on the underside half, it’s additionally potential to lose the cursor behind the keyboard — nonetheless, this is a matter that may occur when utilizing the Bluetooth mouse, too.

Common cleansing is important

For those who’re utilizing the digital keyboard and trackpad, you’ll continually should be cleansing fingerprint smudges off the show. These smudges can clearly be prevented through the use of the Bluetooth mouse and keyboard, however the chassis is barely fingerprint-attracting as nicely. 

After only some weeks of utilizing the Yoga E-book 9i, its stunning Tidal Teal chassis has the identical quantity of fingerprints that my day by day driver laptop computer amassed over months.

Conveniently transportable setup

There are lots of elements included with the acquisition of a Yoga E-book 9i, like a Bluetooth mouse and keyboard, a Gen-3 Digital Pen, a folio, and naturally, the laptop computer itself. 

At first, it appeared like so much to maintain up with, particularly as somebody who flits backwards and forwards between residence and distant areas all through the workday. However in follow, it was straightforward to pack up all of the elements, and it was all comparatively mild. 

By itself, the Yoga E-book 9i is slightly below 3 kilos. For those who convey alongside all the opposite elements, you’ll be including about 4.1 kilos to your bag. 

It’d be nice if every part was lighter, nevertheless it didn’t really feel like a lot further weight in my backpack in comparison with my day by day driver laptop computer. That stated, an included journey bag to maintain every part collectively in your backpack could be a pleasant addition.

What I dislike in regards to the Lenovo Yoga E-book 9i

Clearly, there’s so much I really like in regards to the Yoga E-book 9i — however there have been a number of issues that made me shake my head at this laptop computer. 

The place are all of the ports?

The Yoga E-book 9i is missing within the ports division, providing solely USB-C ports. Sure, it’s a dual-display laptop computer, however the Asus Zenbook Duo proved that it’s potential to deck out a dual-display laptop computer with a plethora of useful ports.

On the left aspect, you’ll discover one USB-C (Thunderbolt) port and a Lenovo Reset Restoration swap that may be triggered utilizing a smartphone’s tiny SIM eject instrument.

Flipping to the appropriate aspect, there’s the facility button, a webcam killswitch, and two USB-C (Thunderbolt) ports, one in all which has AOU BC 1.2 help for quicker cellular charging.

Brief battery life (and a brief charging cable besides)

I didn’t count on a laptop computer with two 2880 x 1800-pixel OLED shows to final an extremely very long time, however I actually hoped it could not less than final a full workday with its new “extra environment friendly” Intel chip. 

To make issues worse, it has a brief charging cable, similar to Lenovo’s Slim 7 14 I lately examined. The one slight saving grace right here is that the Yoga E-book 9i has a USB-C port on each side for extra handy charging.

Lenovo Yoga E-book 9i Geekbench 6 rating

The Lenovo Yoga E-book 9 earned a multi-core rating of 8,642 on the Geekbench 6 efficiency benchmark. This isn’t a horrible rating, nevertheless it’s not nice both.

For comparability, the Asus Zenbook Duo — one other dual-screen laptop computer — earned a multi-core rating of 10,344. Granted, the Zenbook Duo is provided with a barely extra highly effective Meteor Lake chip, nevertheless it additionally prices lower than the Yoga E-book 9.

Lenovo Yoga E-book 9i battery life 

To check the Lenovo Yoga E-book 9i’s battery life, we looped Tears of Metal in 1080p at 50% brightness till it died. It lasted a mere 7 hours and 5 minutes with the digital keyboard and trackpad pulled up, so in the event you’re actively utilizing each shows, count on the battery life to be even much less.

The Asus Zenbook Duo — which has a barely extra highly effective processor and two lower-res OLED shows — lasted 8 hours and 42 minutes with the PCMark10 battery benchmark.

Lenovo Yoga E-book 9i webcam and microphone

In a world filled with blurry laptop computer webcams, the Yoga E-book 9i’s 5MP webcam is a breath of recent air. Colours rendered precisely, from my flushed cheeks to my inexperienced eyes and darkish blue jacket — and I may spot particular person strands of hair, pretty crisp traces round my face, and sadly, the blemishes on my chin. 

The microphone can also be increased high quality than what you’ll discover on most laptops. I hopped on a name with a good friend to check the microphone high quality of the Yoga E-book 9i, my day by day driver Yoga 9i, and my Samsung Galaxy S21 Extremely — and the Yoga E-book 9i got here out on high because the clear winner.

Is the Lenovo Yoga E-book 9i value it?

The Lenovo Yoga E-book 9i is completely value it. It’s a comparatively expensive $2,000 laptop computer, however for that worth, you’ll get two beautiful OLED shows, distinctive sound high quality, and a slew of premium equipment that flip this laptop computer right into a workstation. 

And so long as you’re close to an outlet, you received’t have to fret in regards to the Yoga E-book 9i’s brief battery life.

If stronger efficiency, a greater battery life, or port availability are extra essential to you than high-res shows, premium sound, and workstation equipment, the Asus Zenbook Duo may be extra up your alley.