Efficiency is lackluster however on par with the Asus ProArt, the one different Snapdragon Plus machine I’ve examined so far. Compared to Snapdragon Elite programs, on common functions and internet work, count on a few 20 % efficiency drop and considerably extra on graphics-related duties, the place the IdeaPad runs at about half the framerate. Some Copilot+ PC options struggled, corresponding to translated Stay Captions, although the Cocreator AI picture creation system was fairly expedient.
I figured there can be a silver lining to the laptop computer’s sluggishness in that the IdeaPad will surely show to have excellent battery life, however that sadly wasn’t the case. Whereas the ProArt pulled down a near-record 19+ hours of operating time, the IdeaPad mustered barely over 9 hours in my full-screen YouTube check and underneath 12 hours on a second run-through. Which may be high-quality for entertaining the youngsters for the day, nevertheless it pales compared to most different Snapdragon machines.
One other concern: At 3.3 kilos and 22 mm thick, the IdeaPad 5x is slightly gargantuan for its display measurement. I needed to scroll again to 2016 in my testing information to seek out one thing with a 14-inch display that was heavier. (That stated, some 14.4-inch programs launched since have additionally been on the beefy facet.) The burden is noticeable, each on the lap and in case you’re making an attempt to make use of it as a pill—although on the plus facet, the system is lifeless quiet both approach. I couldn’t get the fan to register a lot as a hum, even underneath a stress-test load.
{Photograph}: Christopher Null
The worth nonetheless makes this laptop computer at the least vaguely interesting, and on a price-performance stage, the numbers don’t look all that unhealthy. Nevertheless, some base stage of efficiency continues to be a requirement given how power-hungry fashionable functions are typically, even on a finances machine, and at $850 the IdeaPad 5x isn’t so extremely low cost as to permit its drawbacks to be simply missed.
