Metal and polycarbonate construction and solid hinges make this the sturdiest Chromebook I've ever handled. The Yoga multimode hinge is a revelation, giving the Chromebook tablet functionality with the same convertible design that has come to dominate Windows laptops. The thing is heavy, but it also feels substantial, thanks to MIL-SPEC-rated rugged construction. The hinges have been strengthened, and the entire device hardened against humidity, vibration, temperature, and dust. Around the edge of the glass-covered display is a rubber bumper that provides some protection to the display, and the display itself is covered with DragonTrail glass, which is both scratch- and crack-resistant.
The 11.6-inch screen has the same 
basic 1,366-by-768 resolution seen on most Chromebooks, but it benefits from an In-Plane Switching (IPS) panel, which makes for good color and viewing angles. The contrast also seems to be better than that of most competitors, resulting in very readable text, whether it's at arm's length (in Laptop mode) or held close (in Tablet mode). The display also has touch capability, with excellent accuracy in any mode.
basic 1,366-by-768 resolution seen on most Chromebooks, but it benefits from an In-Plane Switching (IPS) panel, which makes for good color and viewing angles. The contrast also seems to be better than that of most competitors, resulting in very readable text, whether it's at arm's length (in Laptop mode) or held close (in Tablet mode). The display also has touch capability, with excellent accuracy in any mode.
The keyboard is also one of the best I've used, whether on a Chromebook or standard laptop. Gone are the shallow keys that barely move when pressed and rattle loosely in their frames. These chiclet-style keys have real travel, and provide some resistance when pressed, creating a typing experience that feels far more substantial than other inexpensive systems can offer. It's one of Lenovo's best keyboards, complete with sculpted keycaps and automatic keyboard shut-off when in Tablet mode.
The Chrome keyboard layout has a couple of small changes from the standard Windows or Mac setup—the Caps Lock key is now a dedicated Search key, the function keys have different functions, and there's no Delete key, just Backspace—but the basic QWERTY layout is the same. Just below the spacebar is a multitouch clickpad, which supports Chrome gesture controls, like two-finger tapping and scrolling.
Features
On the left side of the system is a power connector, a USB 2.0 port (with sleep-and-charge capability), an SD card slot, and a headset jack. On the right is a Kensington lock slot, a full-size HDMI-out port, and a USB 3.0 port. The USB 3.0 port isn't the usual bright blue, but the same dark gray as the USB 2.0 port on the other side, so you'll need to remember which port is which if you want to take advantage of USB 3.0's faster data transfer speeds. There are also physical buttons on the right side of the laptop for Power and Volume.
On the left side of the system is a power connector, a USB 2.0 port (with sleep-and-charge capability), an SD card slot, and a headset jack. On the right is a Kensington lock slot, a full-size HDMI-out port, and a USB 3.0 port. The USB 3.0 port isn't the usual bright blue, but the same dark gray as the USB 2.0 port on the other side, so you'll need to remember which port is which if you want to take advantage of USB 3.0's faster data transfer speeds. There are also physical buttons on the right side of the laptop for Power and Volume.
The 16GB of onboard storage is identical to most Chromebooks like the Editors' Choice HP Chromebook 11 (Verizon LTE)$299.00 at Best Buy, though the Acer Chromebook C720P-2600 has 32GB. Google instead expects you to rely on cloud storage, such as Google Drive, for storing all your documents, photos, and media. To help you along, there's 100GB of free Google Drive storage for two years included. Chrome OS has links and shortcuts to Gmail, Google Drive, and other Google services like Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides, Play Music, Hangouts, and others. Sign in with your Google account, and it will automatically sync all of your bookmarks and extensions, and you can add further functionality with any of the thousands of apps and plugins Google offers for Chrome. Lenovo covers the system with a one-year warranty.
Performance and Pricing
The Yoga 11e may have one of the best designs and the highest build quality we've seen in a Chromebook, but the hardware inside isn't any different than competing Chrome-OS-based laptops. It's outfitted with a quad-core Intel Celeron N2930 processor and 4GB of memory. This combination offers relatively similar performance to the Acer C720P and the Lenovo N20p. For basic Web browsing, everything loads smoothly, and there's no juttering as you scroll or lag when you jump between multiple tabs. Bootup is quick, going from a cold start to the login prompt in roughly 7 seconds.
The Yoga 11e may have one of the best designs and the highest build quality we've seen in a Chromebook, but the hardware inside isn't any different than competing Chrome-OS-based laptops. It's outfitted with a quad-core Intel Celeron N2930 processor and 4GB of memory. This combination offers relatively similar performance to the Acer C720P and the Lenovo N20p. For basic Web browsing, everything loads smoothly, and there's no juttering as you scroll or lag when you jump between multiple tabs. Bootup is quick, going from a cold start to the login prompt in roughly 7 seconds.
Battery life is also good, but it's far from leading the pack. Lasting 6 hours 14 minutes on our battery rundown test, the Yoga 11e bested the LTE-equipped HP Chromebook 11 (5:27), and was nearly identical to the Lenovo N20p (6:13), but it fell behind the Acer C720p (7:20) and the Acer Chromebook 13 (8:12). Nothing has yet pose a real challenge to the battery life leader, the Asus C200 (11:14).
Without a doubt, the Lenovo ThinkPad Yoga 11e Chromebook is one of the best Chromebooks we've seen, with construction that rivals even the Google Chromebook Pixel (64GB, LTE) for the latter's sheer quality, a display and feature set that surpasses inexpensive competitors, and solid performance and battery life. If it weren't so expensive, it would have been a shoo-in as our Editors' Choice; but the issue of price is impossible to ignore in a category defined as much by its bargain pricing as it is for its innovative, Web-based approach to personal computing.
At $479, the Yoga 11e costs a lot more than its peers, which rarely rise above $300. The very few higher priced systems offer significant added value to offset the cost, like the Editors' Choice HP Chromebook 11 (Verizon LTE), where the higher cost of ownership is entirely due to the 4G LTE service, or the premium-priced Google Chromebook Pixel (64GB, LTE), which has a list price of $1,449, but comes with 1TB of Google Drive service free for three years, an $1,800 value. The Lenovo just doesn't have the same increase in value to justify the extra expense. If Lenovo can find a way to offer this sort of quality for even $100 less, it would still be pricey, but it could be enough to make this the must-have member of the Chromebook family. It's also only $20 cheaper than the full Windows version of the Lenovo Yoga 2 11, which can run Chrome (with all of the same apps and services Google has to offer), along with any of the software that the Chromebook won't support.
Conclusion
As it stands, the Lenovo ThinkPad Yoga 11e Chromebook is too expensive to recommend, except for schools that want to make the most of their budget—the combination of rugged durability and compatibility with Chrome's classroom management software make this a superb choice when deploying laptops by the dozens. Unfortunately, it's just too pricey for individual consumers. The HP Chromebook 11 (Verizon LTE) remains our Editors' Choice for Chromebooks thanks to its 4G LTE, but if you don't need always-on connectivity, the Acer Chromebook C720P-2600 is our top recommendation, with a lower price, touch capability, and similar performance.
As it stands, the Lenovo ThinkPad Yoga 11e Chromebook is too expensive to recommend, except for schools that want to make the most of their budget—the combination of rugged durability and compatibility with Chrome's classroom management software make this a superb choice when deploying laptops by the dozens. Unfortunately, it's just too pricey for individual consumers. The HP Chromebook 11 (Verizon LTE) remains our Editors' Choice for Chromebooks thanks to its 4G LTE, but if you don't need always-on connectivity, the Acer Chromebook C720P-2600 is our top recommendation, with a lower price, touch capability, and similar performance.
0 comments:
Post a Comment