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Last month, Lenovo unveiled its latest Chrome OS devices powered by Intel’s 11th Gen Tiger Lake CPUs. While we were surprised by the all-new 14″ Chromebook 5i, we knew that a refreshed version of the popular Chromebook Flex 5 would be in the mix. Just recently, the Pentium version of the new Flex 5i turned up at Best Buy but we have been anxiously awaiting the arrival of the Core i3 model that was tipped to be headed to shelves at Costco. This particular model has 8GB of RAM which we feel should be the standard for a “flagship” device. Apart from that, Lenovo kept the same 128GB of NVMe storage, 13.3″ FHD display, and backlit keyboard. Honestly, there really wasn’t a lot that needed to be improved on this device apart from perhaps a slightly brighter display.
Anyway, our good friend George E. emailed us this morning to let us know that the Lenovo Chromebook Flex 5i had officially arrived at Costco and you can order one today for the wallet-friendly price of $549.99. This is only a $50 price bump from last year’s model and the extra cash gets you a significantly more powerful device. As we saw with the ASUS Chromebook CX5, the new Tiger Lake CPUs absolutely destroy 10th Gen devices in every benchmark we could find. Here’s a quick look at what the new Chromebook Flex 5i has to offer.
Lenovo Chromebook Flex 5i
- Chrome OS
- 11th Gen Intel Core i3 CPU with Iris Xe G4 graphics
- 8GB LPDDR4x RAM
- 128GB NVMe SSD
- 13.3″ FHD IPS touch display @ 250 nits
- 2 x USB-C
- 1 x USB-A
- MicroSD/3.5mm audio jack
- 360-degree form-factor
- USI stylus support (pen sold separately)
- Android and Linux app support
- AUE date June 2029
For now, it appears that this model will once again be a Costco exclusive but you don’t have to be a member of the shopping club to purchase the Flex. You will, however, have to pay a 5% surcharge if you are a non-member. Hopefully, Lenovo will roll this Chromebook out to other retailers like Best Buy and maybe even the company’s own website. The 2020 model was a big seller thanks to its great price tag and formidable spec sheet and it still befuddled me as to why it wasn’t more widely available. Anyway, you can find the new Lenovo Chromebook Flex 5i at Costco via the link below.
Lenovo Chromebook Flex 5i at Costco
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