Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14 Review: An All-round 14-inch Laptop

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Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14: At First Glance

Lenovo has been playing a lead role in the laptop industry for a while now. This is because the brand mostly releases well-priced laptops with adequate specifications and features.

One of these laptops is the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14, which is the main focus of this review article. This laptop offers impressive specs and multiple configuration options at an affordable price.

Speaking of price, the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14 had a starting price of $379.89 when I wrote this review in November 2022. However, Lenovo had to make some compromises to keep the price of this laptop as low as possible.

These compromises and other things about the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14 will be discussed in the remainder of this review. So, read on to find out!

Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14: Design, Display, Ports, and Connectivity

The Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14 comes with a cheap look, as with most inexpensive laptops out there. To give more details, the laptop features a plastic chassis that looks and feels fragile.

Therefore, the laptop isn’t particularly durable and won’t be able to handle rough handling. Hence, to prevent the laptop from getting damaged easily, it is advisable you handle it with care.

On a positive note, the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14 is available in various colors. These colors include platinum grey, abyss blue, cherry red, almond, and business black.

Each of these color options gives the laptop a pretty unique look. Besides, the laptop’s lid features a “Lenovo” inscription at the top left corner.

Moreover, this lid is connected to the laptop’s base by two fragile hinges. These hinges aren’t strong enough to prevent the lid from flexing and wobbling even when slightly nudged.

However, the hinges are flexible enough to allow users to open the lid with just one hand. By the way, when you open the lid, the first thing you will encounter is the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14’s 14-inch display screen.

This laptop’s display is available in two resolution options – HD (1366 x 768 pixels) or FHD (1920 x 1080 pixels). Although both resolution options are decent, the FHD resolution will allow the display to deliver sharper and clearer picture quality.

This is due to the fact that the FHD resolution offers a higher number of pixels compared to the HD resolution. Besides, with the FHD resolution option, this laptop’s display offers a maximum brightness of 250 nits.

Meanwhile, the display will only be able to reach a peak brightness of 200 nits with the HD resolution option. Therefore, the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14 with the FHD display is a better option for usage in well-lit environments or outdoors.

Nonetheless, with either resolution option, the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14’s 14-inch display features an anti-glare coating. This coating prevents sun glares and reduces the intensity of reflection on the display.

That aside, the bezels surrounding the laptop’s display are thin. You will find an HD 720p webcam with fixed focus and a dual array microphone at the center of the top bezel.

Impressively, this webcam features a privacy shutter that prevents webcam spying.

Moving on, the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14 comes with a full-size keyboard and a spacious palm rest for optimal wrist comfort on its base. This keyboard features smile-shaped keys that are well-spaced and offer satisfying feedback.

Also, the keyboard offers adequate key travel that makes typing comfortable. In case you are curious, key travel is the distance between a key at rest to when it hits rock bottom.

Below the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14’s keyboard, you will find a spacious touchpad with integrated click buttons. This touchpad features a sensitive and responsive surface, thereby making navigation smooth and seamless.

Sadly, the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14 comes with a limited amount of ports. Specifically, the left side of the laptop features one USB 2.0 port, two USB 3.1 ports, an HDMI 1.4b port, and a charging port.

Meanwhile, the laptop’s right side has one audio combo jack and an SD card slot. Hence, the laptop lacks an Ethernet port and Thunderbolt.

Nonetheless, the laptop offers two Wi-Fi options – 802.11ac (2 x 2) and 802.11ax (2 x 2). It also comes with Bluetooth 5.0.

In terms of dimension and weight, the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14 measures 327.1 x 241 x 19.9 mm (W x D x H) and weighs 1500 g. Comparatively, this laptop is heavier than the ASUS VivoBook S14, which weighs 1400 g.

However, it is lighter than the Dell Latitude D630, which weighs 2000 g – 2300 g.

All things considered, I will rate the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14 a seven out of ten in this design review section.

Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14: Processor (CPU) Performance

This Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14 offers three processor configuration options. These options include Intel Celeron 5205U, Intel Pentium Gold 6405U, and Intel Core i7-10510U.

The Intel Celeron 5205U processor option is a dual-core processor with a cache memory of 2 MB and a standard frequency of 1.90 GHz. The Intel Pentium Gold 6405U processor option is also a dual-core CPU and features a cache memory of 2 MB.

However, this Pentium processor has a faster standard frequency of 2.40 GHz. Lastly, the Intel Core i7-10510U processor option is a quad-core processor with an 8 MB cache memory.

Also, the processor features a base frequency of 1.80 GHz and a maximum frequency of 4.90 GHz. Considering their specs and speed, the Intel Core i7-10510U CPU is the strongest and fastest of all the processor options.

Gladly, this review is based on the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14 with the Intel Core i7-10510U processor. Hence, with this processor, the laptop should be able to perform most computing tasks without any problem.

Specifically, you should be able to multitask and run powerful applications like Adobe Photoshop on the laptop with this processor. Having said that, let us check out the laptop’s result on the Cinebench R15 benchmark test to assess its processing performance further.

This benchmark test measures a computer’s processing performance by putting its CPU cores through intensive workloads. As a result, the test comprises two tests – the single-core test and the multi-core test.

The single-core test evaluates the computer’s processing ability when one of its CPU cores is in use. Meanwhile, the multi-core test assesses its performance when all its CPU cores are being utilized.

Notably, a high score on the Cinebench R15 single-core and multi-core tests equates to good performance. According to the test results, the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14 scored 667 points on the multi-core test and 178.3 points on the single-core test.

Comparatively, this laptop has a better performance than the HP ProBook 450 G7 8WC04UT, which also uses an Intel Core i7-10510U processor. Specifically, this laptop was only able to deliver 482 points and 113 points on the Cinebench R15 multi-core and single-core tests, respectively.

Therefore, I will be rating the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14 a nine out of ten in this processor review section.

Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14: Memory (RAM) Performance

The Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14 offers two memory options. Hence, you can buy this laptop with a DDR4 2400 MHz RAM or DDR4 2666 MHz RAM.

Regardless, the laptop comes with two memory slots and a standard memory of 8 GB divided between both slots – 4 GB in each slot. However, one of these slots is onboard, meaning it is soldered directly on the laptop’s motherboard.

Thus, the 4 GB RAM on that particular slot cannot be removed. Nonetheless, with the aid of the second slot that isn’t onboard, you can upgrade the laptop’s memory to a max of 12 GB.

Having said that, this review focuses on the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14 with 8 GB DDR4 2666 MHz RAM. With this amount of memory, this laptop should be able to handle most computing tasks and multitask.

Talking about multitasking, you should be able to run about 12 Chrome tabs simultaneously without the laptop lagging. As a matter of fact, the laptop still won’t slow down or lag even when you constantly switch between the browser tabs.

To further prove the laptop’s ability, I will now share its PCMark 10 benchmark test result. Briefly, the PCMark 10 test measures a computer’s RAM performance by simulating real-world productivity tasks.

Furthermore, the higher the score on this benchmark test, the better the RAM performance of the computer. On that note, the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14 with 8 GB DDR4 2666 MHz RAM delivered a score of 5384 points.

Sadly, the laptop falls short of the category average of 5432 points. Also, the laptop was outperformed by the HP 14s-dq1431ng and Honor Magic Book 14, which scored 5483 points and 5931 points, respectively.

All in all, I will rate the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14 a seven out of ten in this memory review section. This is due to the fact that it was beaten by most of its rivals on a benchmark test.

Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14: Storage Options and Performance

The Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14 offers two storage options – 5400 RPM SATA HDD and M.2 PCIe NVMe SSD. Impressively, these storage options support a maximum storage capacity of 1 TB each, which I believe should be enough for most people.

As a matter of fact, this Lenovo laptop comes with a 4-in-1 card reader for storage expansion. That being said, it is important to mention that this review focuses on the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14 with 500 GB M.2 PCIe NVMe SSD.

To find out how well this laptop can perform with this storage option, let us discuss its result on the CrystalDiskMark test. This test is a benchmark test that evaluates a computer’s storage performance by measuring its storage drive’s read and write speed.

For your information, read speed is the time it takes a storage drive to open files. However, write speed is how fast it takes the storage drive to save files.

Besides, a high “MBps” value on the CrystalDiskMark test equates to fast read and write speed. So, according to the test result, the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14 has a read speed of 1278 MBps and a write speed of 1188 MBps.

Although those numbers are impressive, the laptop falls short of the Acer Aspire 5 A514-52, which also uses an SSD. Specifically, on the CrystalDiskMark test, this Acer laptop recorded a read and write speed of 1387 MBps and 1458 MBps, respectively.

Nonetheless, I believe the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14 deserves an eight out of ten rating in this storage review section.

Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14: Graphics Card Performance

The Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14 offers three graphics card options. To start with, you can purchase this Lenovo laptop with integrated Intel UHD Graphics.

This graphics card has a 300 MHz base frequency and a boost frequency of 1150 MHz. However, as an integrated graphics card, it lacks a dedicated VRAM and is embedded into the processor of the computer.

As a result, the GPU shares the system memory with the processor to perform graphics-related activities. Thus, with this graphics card, the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14 isn’t suitable for performing graphics-demanding tasks or running high-end games.

Gladly, that’s not the case for the other graphics card options. This is because the other graphics card options are dedicated graphics cards – NVIDIA GeForce MX130 and NVIDIA GeForce MX330.

In fact, the graphics cards offer the same amount of dedicated VRAM – 2 GB GDDR5. However, their speeds differ.

Specifically, the NVIDIA GeForce MX130 has a 1109 MHz base frequency and a boost frequency of 1189 MHz. Meanwhile, the NVIDIA GeForce MX330 offers a base frequency of 1531 MHz and a boost frequency of 1594 MHz.

Nonetheless, with either of the dedicated GPU options, the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14 should be able to handle graphics-demanding tasks like video editing seamlessly. Also, the laptop should be able to play most title AAA games.

For instance, with the NVIDIA GeForce MX330 GPU, the laptop should be able to run FIFA 21 at 79 fps. It should also be able to deliver around 60 fps while playing Star Wars Squadrons.

However, the laptop might struggle to run high-end games with intense graphics features like Assassin´s Creed Valhalla and Cyberpunk 2077. Having said that, let us talk about the laptop’s 3DMark 11 test result to evaluate its performance with the NVIDIA GeForce MX330 GPU further.

For your information, the 3DMark 11 benchmark is software that measures a computer’s 3D graphics handling capabilities. Precisely, the test tells you how well a computer can render 3D graphics – a higher score means good performance.

According to the test results, the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14 with the NVIDIA GeForce MX330 GPU scored 4787 points. In comparison, the Acer Aspire E 15 E5 575G 53VG with NVIDIA GeForce 940MX scored 3574 points.

As a result, I will rate the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14 an eight out of ten in this graphics card review section.

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Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14: Battery Life and Performance

You can purchase the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14 with either a 35 WHr or 45 WHr Li-Polymer battery. However, this review is based on the laptop with the 35 WHr Li-Polymer battery.

According to Lenovo, this battery can last for up to 11 hours after a full charge. To verify this claim, we will now talk about the laptop’s performance on a web-surfing battery rundown test.

As the name suggests, this test involves continuously surfing the web on the laptop over a Wi-Fi connection until its battery dies. At the end of the test, the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14 delivered a battery life of 6 hours.

Although this battery life is decent, it is miles off the 11 hours that Lenovo claimed. Nonetheless, the laptop has a longer battery life compared to some of its competitors.

For example, the HP 14s-dq1431ng lasted for 5 hours and 9 minutes on the same battery rundown test.

After thorough consideration, I will rate the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14 an eight out of ten in this section.

Frequently Asked Questions

Conclusion

Although not the best-looking laptop out there, the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14 offers powerful specs and multiple configuration options. To give more details, the laptop has a decent battery life and numerous processor options.

Also, the laptop offers multiple processors, resolutions, and storage options. Speaking of storage, the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14 has sufficient storage space and a 4-in-1 card reader for storage expansion.

However, the laptop features an insufficient amount of ports and lacks an Ethernet port. Nonetheless, for a starting price of just $379.89, the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14 is worth considering.

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