Lenovo IdeaPad 3i Chromebook 15, Celeron N4500, 8GB, 64GB eMMC, Abyss Blue

A big screen and 8GB of RAM can't save a Chromebook with a dead-last CPU and a washed-out TN panel. Spend a little more and get something you won't hate using.

The Celeron N4500 is a 2-core chip running at 1.1GHz, and it lands in the 1st percentile for CPU performance. That's dead last, basically. The 8GB of RAM is actually decent for a Chromebook at this price, but it's wasted on a processor this weak. The 64GB eMMC storage is also bottom-of-the-barrel, sitting in the 4th percentile. ChromeOS is lightweight, so it'll boot and open tabs okay, but throw more than a handful of tabs at it and you'll feel the lag. The 15.6-inch 1080p TN panel is the real disappointment though, it's in the 9th percentile for screen quality. TN panels mean washed-out colors and terrible viewing angles.

The IdeaPad 3i Chromebook 15 doesn't really compete with the MacBook Pro M1 Pro or the HP OmniBook X Flip, those are in a completely different league. But even among budget Chromebooks, this one struggles. The ASUS Vivobook TP3407SA and Samsung Galaxy Book4 Edge both offer dramatically better screens and performance, though they cost more. If you're comparing this to anything with an IPS panel and a Core i3 or better, the Lenovo loses every time. The only reason to pick this is if you absolutely need the largest possible screen for the lowest possible price.

At 285-300 CAD, this is cheap, but cheap doesn't mean good value. The affordability score is literally 0th percentile, which tells you everything. You can find better Chromebooks with faster processors and IPS displays for not much more money. This feels like a machine built to hit a price point, not to be pleasant to use.

The Lenovo IdeaPad 3i Chromebook 15 is a budget Chromebook that feels every bit of its price tag. The one thing to know? You're getting a big 15.6-inch screen and 8GB of RAM for under 300 CAD, but the Celeron N4500 inside is one of the slowest CPUs we've ever tested in this category. It's fine for basic web browsing and Google Docs, but don't expect much more.

If you're looking for a laptop that can handle more than basic web browsing, this isn't it. Go get a Chromebook with an IPS display and a faster processor instead. And if you need to run Windows apps or do any kind of gaming, this thing scores 3.3 out of 100 for gaming, so just walk away.

Skip it. The Lenovo IdeaPad 3i Chromebook 15 is a classic case of a manufacturer cutting every corner to hit a low price. The 8GB of RAM is nice, but it's paired with a CPU that's slower than almost everything else on the market and a TN screen that'll make you squint. Unless you're on an extremely tight budget and only need a basic web machine, there are better options out there.