Lenovo Yoga Slim 7i Pro X (2023) Review: Is It A MacBook Replacement?

The Lenovo Yoga Slim 7i Pro X delivers a compact notebook experience without compromising on the specs. Lenovo’s Yoga series laptops have been one of the best offerings in the laptop market for quite some time now. Following this tradition, the Yoga Slim 7i Pro X has a lot to offer, with a high-end processor and RTX 3000 series GPU. In this review, we will examine the various aspects of the Lenovo Yoga Slim 7i Pro X to determine if it is worth the price.

The Lenovo Yoga Slim 7i Pro X crams a powerful 12th gen Intel Core i7-12700H processor and Nvidia’s RTX 3050 GPU in a compact 14-inch laptop. Compared to previous models, this generation’s Lenovo Yoga Slim 7i Pro X offers a more refined design, an updated 3K display, and better battery performance. On paper, there’s a lot to like about this machine. However, does it live up to its price range, which is comparable to Apple’s M2 Macbooks?

The laptop comes in different variants depending on the specs of the laptop. The higher-spec variant we will review comes with an Intel Core i7 CPU, 16GB of RAM, a 1TB SSD, and an Nvidia GeForce RTX 3050 GPU, priced at Rs. 1,61,990. Our version doesn’t have a touchscreen, but users have the option to opt for that on Lenovo’s official website.

Lenovo Yoga Slim 7 Pro X Specs

• Processor: 12th Generation Intel Core i7-12700H Processor (E-cores up to 3.50 GHz P-cores up to 4.70 GHz)
• GPU: NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 Laptop GPU 4GB GDDR6, Intel Iris XE 96 EUs
• RAM: 16GB or 32GB LPDDR5 6000MHz (Soldered)
• Display: 14.5 inches, 16:10, 3072×1920 resolution, 400 nits, 250 ppi, 120 Hz
• Storage: 512GB or 1TB PCIe NVMe M.2 2280 PCIe Gen 4 SSD
• Camera: FHD 1080p
• Battery: 70W 4-cell battery and 100W USB-C adapter
• Ports: 1x HDMI 2.0, 2x USB-C 3.2 with Thunderbolt 4, 1x USB-A 3.2 gen1, audio jack, and camera e-shutter.
• Speakers: 2x 2W Stereo Speakers by Harman
• Operating System: Windows 11 Home 64
• Weight: 1.45 kg
• Price: ₹1,61,990

Design

The build quality of the Lenovo Slim 7i Pro X is comparable to most premium laptops in this price range. I think the ultimate grey finish looks especially nice, and the smooth matte texture doesn’t attract fingerprints easily. The laptop weighs 1.45kg due to its aluminum body and powerful specs. Despite its weight, it is pretty slim, with 15.9mm of thickness, which is great for a notebook.

The color is also pretty nice when compared to the previous generation. Lenovo seems to have gone with a subtle dual-tone grey look which gives a very premium feel to the laptop. The screen is surrounded by slim bezels and a curved aluminum chassis for better durability.

There’s also a decent collection of ports on both sides of the laptop, starting with two Thunderbolt 4 ports (Type-C) for charging and video output. The right side also has a Type-A USB 3.2 (Gen 1) port, a headphone and microphone combo socket, a power button, and a toggle switch to disable the webcam. There’s also a touchscreen variant for those who can afford to spend more on the higher variant.

The laptop certainly has more ports when compared to a Macbook Air, which only features two Thunderbolt 4 ports (Type-C). However, creators will definitely miss the lack of a card reader or wired internet. The laptop also doesn’t have a fingerprint reader, but the 1080p webcam does support Windows Hello.

I also found the keyboard convenient to use due to the well-spaced keys that are fast, crisp, and have a soft base. They also have a white backlight but no number pad, which is normal for small laptops. The trackpad is also huge, with full gesture support, but users also have the option to plug in a mouse with a USB port.

Display & Sound

The Lenovo Yoga Slim 7i Pro X has a 14.5-inch IPS display with a 3072 x 1920 resolution. It follows the latest laptop trend and adopts a 16:10 aspect ratio for a better browser and work experience. The 120Hz refresh rate is quite useful if you plan to play some games using the onboard RTX 3050 GPU.

With 400 nits of brightness, the display can even be used in outdoor settings. Users can even turn on the ambient light sensor to adjust the display brightness based on the environmental lighting. However, the display panel is limited in Adobe RGB (65%) and DCI-P3 spaces (66.5%).

The laptop is good enough for light photo editing, gaming, and media, but it isn’t good enough if you plan to do high-end design work. On the other hand, the Macbook Pro and Air offer better brightness levels and P3 gamut support. As for the upward-firing speakers, they produce crisp high-end and mid-range sounds, but the bass is weak. The speakers also struggle with volume, which is expected with only 4W of audio power.

Lenovo Yoga Slim 7i Pro X: Performance

The Lenovo Yoga Slim 7i Pro X comes with one of the most popular processors around right now, the 12th gen Intel Core i7-12700H. It features six Hyper-Threaded P-cores with a peak speed of 4.7GHz. The other eight efficient E-cores tackle easier tasks at 3.5GHz. On the graphics side, you have Nvidia’s GeForce RTX 3050 with 4GB of dedicated memory.

There’s absolutely no shortage of computing power here, which is on par with the M2 chip in the latest MacBook models. In Cinebench R23’s single and multi-core tests, the Intel Core i7-12700H scored 1,714 and 11,769, respectively. These results put the multi-core test scores nearly two thousand points ahead of the Apple M2 chip.

Productivity Tests	Scores
Cinebench R23 (single core test)	1714
Cinebench R23 (multi core test)	11769
Geekbench (single core test)	1734
Geekbench (multi core test)	12365
3DMark Night Raid	28247
PCMark 10	6871

Lenovo Yoga Slim 7i Pro X: Gaming

The RTX 3050 GPU can also allow the laptop to run most mainstream games and esports titles, but it is more beneficial for content creation tools. Considering the GPU’s peak TDP of 50W is 30 W short of its factory setting, don’t expect the best performance from the RTX 30 series graphic card.

Esports games like Rainbow Six Siege performed exceptionally well, averaging 127 fps in medium settings. With ultra graphics settings, the Lenovo Yoga Slim 7i Pro X could still maintain 103 fps. Following this trend, users can enjoy games like Fortnite and Overwatch at 60 fps or more.

On the other hand, the laptop struggled a bit to run modern single-player games at 60 fps. Games like Horizon Zero Dawn managed an average of 30-40 fps, which could be raised to a stable 60 fps with the Extreme Performance mode. This mode also increased the GPU’s TPD to 50 W for maximum performance.

Games Tested	Medium Settings	High Settings	Extreme Performance mode
Far Cry New Dawn	51 fps	40 fps	68 fps
Assassin’s Creed Valhalla	73 fps	39 fps	44 fps
Borderlands 3	65 fps	36 fps	50 fps

Note: All games were tested in 1080p resolution with DLSS disabled.

Users can expect smooth 60 fps or beyond if they use Extreme Performance mode and low graphics settings in modern games. However, this also means lowering the resolution to 1080p rather than the Yoga Slim 7i Pro X’s 3072 x 1920 native resolution.

Battery & Thermals

Lenovo has done a decent job with thermal management on the Yoga Slim 7i Pro X. Despite the high-end specs and compact casing, the fan noise is not that much noticeable. Users can expect a bit of excess heat in the metal above the keyboard, but it isn’t an issue if you are not using the laptop on your lap.

On the other hand, there’s not to say about the 70Wh battery. The laptop’s battery life is average at best but serves its purpose quite well. Users can expect the laptop to last 6-8 hours during everyday work. The 100W AC adapter can also help charge the laptop up to 45% in under 30 minutes.

Lenovo Yoga Slim 7i Pro X Review