The Lenovo Yoga Pro 7i: A Powerful Ultrabook That Can Double as a Gaming Machine?
The world of thin and light laptops is flooded with options, but finding one that packs a dedicated GPU is a challenge. While some exceptions exist, like the HP Omen Transcend 14 or the Asus ROG Zephyrus G14, the field remains relatively limited. Enter the Lenovo Yoga Pro 7i, a newly updated model featuring Intel Core Ultra CPUs and Nvidia GeForce RTX 40-series GPUs. This laptop promises the sleek design of an ultrabook with the power to handle games and creative tasks with ease. But does it live up to the hype? Let’s dive into the details.
Lenovo Yoga Pro 7i: Price in India
The Lenovo Yoga Pro 7i arrives at a price point of approximately Rs. 1,50,000 for the configuration featuring an Intel Core Ultra 7 155H CPU, Nvidia GeForce RTX 4050 GPU, 16GB RAM, 1TB storage, and a 14.5-inch 2.8K resolution display with a 120Hz refresh rate. This is the specific model that Lenovo provided for review (model number 14IMH9), but with 32GB RAM. The company plans to release more variants soon.
The laptop boasts MIL-STD-810H military testing certification for durability.
The Lenovo India website also lists configurations with Intel Core Ultra 5 125H and Core Ultra 9 185H CPUs, with RAM options extending to 32GB. The laptop is available in two color options: Tidal Teal (the review unit) and Luna Grey. The packaging is minimal, with Lenovo focusing on sustainability by using recycled materials. The box includes a 140W USB Type-C charger and accompanying paperwork.
Lenovo Yoga Pro 7i Review: Design and Display
From a design perspective, the Yoga Pro 7i bears a strong resemblance to its predecessor. The curved edges contribute to its portability, and the laptop boasts a MIL-STD-810H certified aluminum chassis, assuring its resilience to minor drops and potential damage. Both the lid and bottom are crafted from aluminum, exhibiting minimal flex.
The lid sports subtle branding, while the bottom houses grilles for the intake, two speakers, and rubber feet. The laptop tips the scales at roughly 1.6 kg.
The laptop offers a variety of ports, but a card slot would have been a welcome addition.
The Yoga Pro 7i features a 180-degree hinge, permitting the laptop to lie flat on a surface. While the hinge feels sturdy, it doesn’t provide any lift. Opening the lid reveals a glossy 14.5-inch display with narrow side bezels and slightly thicker top and bottom bezels. An inverted notch at the top houses the web camera, IR sensor, and microphones.
Beneath the display lies the keyboard, bookended by two speakers, bringing the total speaker count to four. A generously sized trackpad sits below the keyboard, offering a smooth and responsive user experience.
The right edge of the laptop houses a USB Type-A port (3.2 Gen 1), a combo 3.5mm audio jack, a power button, and a toggle for the web camera e-shutter. The left edge features two USB Type-C (3.2 Gen 2) ports and an HDMI 2.1 port. Notably, there’s no card slot, a feature some users might miss.
Lenovo has equipped the Yoga Pro 7i with a remarkable display. It boasts a glossy panel that makes it unsuitable for outdoor use due to its reflectivity. However, it delivers exceptional performance indoors thanks to its excellent brightness levels. The review unit came equipped with a 14.5-inch OLED display offering 2.8K (2,880 x 1,800) resolution, a 120Hz refresh rate, and a 400 nits brightness rating.
The display supports Dolby Vision, HDR, True Black 500, and covers 100 percent of the DCI-P3 color gamut, resulting in vibrant colors and deep blacks. In dimly lit environments, the viewing experience is truly captivating.
Lenovo Yoga Pro 7i Review: Keyboard, Touchpad, Speakers, and Camera
The keyboard on the Yoga Pro 7i features well-spaced keys with ample travel, ensuring comfortable typing. However, there’s no dedicated number key. The keyboard offers backlit illumination with adjustable brightness control, either manually or through adaptive mode.
The large trackpad below the keyboard provides excellent responsiveness and a smooth touch experience thanks to its glass surface, complemented by multi-touch support. The click feedback is also commendable.
The onboard speakers are equipped with Dolby Atmos support for enhanced audio.
The Yoga Pro 7i boasts a quad-speaker setup, featuring two speakers flanking the keyboard and two additional speakers on the laptop’s bottom. Despite this impressive configuration, the sound output doesn’t reach truly impressive volumes. While the audio possesses some bass, these speakers don’t deliver a truly exceptional auditory experience. The laptop offers Dolby Atmos support, which enhances the audio quality when enjoying content.
The Yoga Pro 7i houses a 1080p full-HD web camera, a significant improvement over many Windows laptops. While the video output is satisfactory in well-lit conditions, it exhibits graininess in low-light scenarios. The web camera features an e-shutter and integrates with an IR and TOF sensor for Windows Hello biometric authentication, providing fast and seamless login experiences.
Lenovo Yoga Pro 7i Review: Specifications and Software
The Lenovo Yoga Pro 7i, by all accounts, qualifies as an Ultrabook. It delivers the necessary performance for most tasks, and the discrete GPU enhances its capabilities for light gaming. The laptop is powered by the latest Intel Core Ultra 7 155H processor, paired with the Nvidia GeForce RTX 4050 GPU, which boasts 6GB GDDR6 of video RAM.
The review model came with 32GB of RAM, which is soldered to the mainboard, meaning it’s not an upgradeable configuration. The laptop offers 1TB of M.2 storage.
Connectivity options include Wi-Fi 6E and Bluetooth 5.3. The laptop packs a 73Wh battery with fast charging support.
The laptop sports an Nvidia GeForce RTX 4050 GPU with 6GB DDR6 RAM.
The review unit came pre-installed with Windows 11 Pro, alongside Office Home and Student 2021. Lenovo has included its own software, along with McAfee anti-virus. The laptop incorporates AI enhancements through Lenovo AI Engine+, designed to boost performance and battery life based on the creative applications in use. The Creator Zone tool allows for the conversion of text into images.
Lenovo Yoga Pro 7i Review: Performance and Gaming
The Lenovo Yoga Pro 7i handles tasks like running Chrome, Adobe Lightroom, Slack, and more with ease. Generally, there’s little to no lag, though that changes when you engage in video editing and gaming. The laptop exhibited lag on occasion while editing a 4K video in Davinci Resolve. Despite the Nvidia GeForce RTX 4050 GPU, its TGP is not particularly high, leading to lag when playing demanding games at resolutions beyond 1080p and with maximum graphics settings.
The review unit was used to play Alan Wake 2 and Hogwarts Legacy, with the experience being less enjoyable at higher settings.
Being a thin and light laptop, the Yoga Pro 7i does experience some heating, especially during gaming sessions. During a half-hour session of Alan Wake 2, with fans at maximum speed, the laptop became quite hot. Nonetheless, less demanding games can be enjoyed without difficulty.
Lenovo Yoga Pro 7i Review: Battery Life
The Lenovo Yoga Pro 7i boasts impressive battery life. In Balanced mode, it delivered a full day (around 9 hours) of work, including some YouTube consumption. For streaming videos continuously or binge-watching a short Netflix series, the laptop will accompany you until the very end. These figures were obtained with the display set to 60Hz, a factor influencing battery life.
Fast charging capabilities make a quick recharge possible thanks to the 140W USB Type-C charger. The device took approximately 1 hour and 40 minutes to fully charge from 10 percent. Overall, the laptop offers excellent battery life for a system equipped with a dedicated graphics card.
Lenovo Yoga Pro 7i Review: Verdict
If you’re searching for a sleek and powerful ultrabook, the Lenovo Yoga Pro 7i should be on your radar. It boasts a stylish design, impressive display and keyboard, and integrates a dedicated graphics card with decent battery life. While AAA titles won’t be playable at their full potential, the laptop handles less demanding games without issues. It represents an excellent value for the price and is easily recommended.
