Lenovo Slim 3i Chromebook Plus Review: my favorite of the bunch [VIDEO]

We’re back for – you guessed it – another Chromebook Plus review. It’s a lot, I know, and you’d be forgiven for just taking the whole idea of Chromebook Plus at face value and realizing by now that all of these new devices that were launched last fall do all the main Chromebook stuff pretty well. The sales pitch is the same each time: get a Chromebook Plus, get a great overall experience. That’s 100% true, but if you’ll hang with me for a few minutes, I’d love to take a little of your time to explain why this particular Chromebook Plus is may favorite of the bunch.

Of course, we’re talking today about the Lenovo Slim 3i Chromebook Plus and looking at it on a desk or seeing it in photos does this Chromebook absolutely zero justice. It’s looks, aesthetic, and lack of flare are not the primary selling points, and after you use it a bit, you just start to get it. The Slim 3i is an understated masterpiece, highlighting what I feel is the best of Chromebook Plus in all the right ways.

It all starts with the chassis. The unassuming gray shell is mostly plastic and something you’d easily pass by on a store shelf; but pick it up and you’ll immediately notice something a bit different about this one. Though the bottom half is plastic, it is incredibly rigid and right off the bat you know there’s something a bit higher-quality happening with this device. Though not the thinnest or lightest 14-inch Chromebook coming in at 19mm thick and 3.3 pounds, it isn’t too thick or too heavy to make me care about either of those things, and the confidence you get when holding it opened or closed is second to none. I’ll say it again: plastic doesn’t have to feel cheap, and Lenovo nailed this part.

And that understated, solid frame holds all the things you need for a superior Chromebook experience. It starts with a 1080p camera up top that gets all the bells and whistles Chromebook Plus offers – like temporal noise reduction, background blurring, and lighting enhancements. Under that camera is a standard 16:9 full-HD IPS touchscreen that is one of my absolute favorites. It’s punchy, looks great in any lighting situation, and generally excels at the stuff you want in a sharp, bright (300+ nits) screen.

Then there’s the excellent, backlit keyboard. The travel is fantastic, click feedback is what I love to see on a Chromebook, and it makes for one of my favorite typing experiences, period. The trackpad underneath isn’t glass, but it is well seated, isn’t floppy, and stays smooth. I don’t care if manufacturers skip out on the glass as long as the surface stays smooth and the click is solid, and both are true of this trackpad.

And inside, you have the Intel Core i3-N305, 8GB of RAM and 128GB of storage: the standard for Chromebook Plus. And like all the others, this Chromebook is fast and smooth for anything I put it through. And with the N305 processor, I’m seeing plenty of battery life as well with an easy 8-10 hours on a charge.

So you can see pretty quickly why this device is so likeable. It does nothing to get in its own way. I love the chassis, build quality, screen and keyboard. The trackpad is good (not great), the internals are all I really need, and even the speakers are pretty good. Unless you need a convertible or would rather get a 16:10 screen, there’s nothing this Chromebook misses on. And you feel that each time you pick it up.

We made a video before Chromebook Plus was launched and wondered if the non-Chromebook Plus-branded version of this device was a sign of things to come. Of course, we were right in saying this model would get a branded Chromebook Plus sibling, but I didn’t realize at the time just how right the Slim 3i got the whole Chromebook Plus equation. If you are looking for a Plus model that isn’t just good, but seriously great, this is the one you want.