The new Chromebook Flex 5
As a daily Chromebook user for the past six or seven years, I just had to try Lenovo’s new Chromebook Flex 5 I’ve heard a lot about it. Fortunately, the good folks at Lenovo loaned me a unit for a couple of weeks. I’ve been using it full time since then and I think it may be the best Chromebook on the market right now. Especially when you consider what you get for $ 410. It’s loaded, looks good, and is fast.
Features first: It’s a convertible 2-in-1 laptop-tablet that has a pair of hinges capable of 360-degree rotation. And the hinges are sturdy, so whether you put it in tablet, store, stand or laptop mode, or at any angle in between, it holds up well. Better yet, it feels like a high-quality machine instead of the many flimsy Chromebooks on the market. It is time for a company to finally target this pet of mine, for this price neighborhood. The 13.3-inch 1920 x 1080 touchscreen is bright, vibrant, and touch-sensitive. It is surrounded by a slim bezel, which enhances the elegance of its appearance. The 2.97-pound model I tested runs on the Intel Core i3 processor and comes with 64GB of SSD storage. Forget about specs – it’s consistently fast, no matter what you’re doing. Much faster than my current Chromebook but on the same WiFi network. The 51 Wh battery aims to provide 10 hours of use. I didn’t formally measure my usage, but getting almost as many hours per charge was a breeze, even with the screen on full brightness. Additionally, it has a webcam, headphone jack, standard USB-A slot, a MicroSD card slot, and two USB-C slots that can be used to power on the laptop and for other functions. The front stereo speakers sound pretty good – I used it to stream movies and was more than satisfied. The only problem, of course, with the front speakers is that when you put the laptop in store mode on a table to watch a video, as I usually do, the speakers are behind the screen and facing the other direction. The keyboard is backlit, which was especially helpful to me in the early morning hours when I wanted to keep the lights in the room off. This model also has a Google Security H1 chip. And it is compatible with a digital pen.
There is a less expensive version that uses a Celeron 5205U processor with a 1.9 GHz CPU. But honestly, I would only get the extra money for the 2.1 GHz i3 version.
During my tests, I did my best: web browsing, document creation and editing, streaming movies, playing music, photo editing, whatever. I have tried everything in the orientations of laptops and tablets, just to find their Kryptonite, and I was left empty. That’s pretty unusual for a Chromebook or any laptop in this price category. I found it to be fast, reliable and robust with a display that is pleasing to the eye. It is not surprising to see why it garnered so much praise from other reviewers and reviewers. When I am looking for a new model, which will be soon, this will be my choice.
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