Pros
- 2-in-1 convertible design
- Intel Core i3 CPU (10th generation)
- Up to 10-hour battery life
- USB-C (x2) Connectivity
Cons
- No HDMI output
- Non-upgradable RAM
When searching for a laptop it's easy to get lost in the specs and think we need 32 GB of RAM and an i7 processor to watch a couple of videos and edit a couple of documents. However, more often than not, most users can actually get by simply with a Chromebook.
Of course, this doesn't apply to every user. However, if you're a "light user" who's looking for a laptop to surf the web, edit documents online, stream movies, chat with friends and listen to music then keep reading because you just might've found your next laptop in this review of the Lenovo Chromebook Flex 5 (82B80006UX).
Index
- Who's it for?
- Technical specifications
- Design and Panel
- Processor and RAM
- Storage and Graphics
- Battery Life and Connectivity
- Verdict
Who's it for?
The Lenovo Chromebook Flex 5 (82B80006UX) is the perfect convertible for those looking for a practical, versatile and easy-to-carry laptop to perform consumer-oriented tasks such as editing documents, surfing the web, streaming movies, and the likes.
Its 13.3-inch touchscreen and 360-degree hinge help this laptop double as a tablet, being what's commonly known as a convertible. Its compact form-factor coupled with its massive battery life and lightweight design make it the perfect laptop for students, writers, and casual users amongst others.
Finally, its key specs allow for decent multitasking for professionals while also being a great option for those who can pretty much manage their day-to-day with a tablet yet would rather have the OS and input methods of a laptop from time to time.
Technical specs
| Make model | Lenovo Chromebook Flex 5 (82B80006UX) |
| Dimensions | 12.2 x 8.43 x 0.67 inches |
| Weight | 2.97 pounds |
| Panel | IPS | Touch | 13.3 inch |
| Resolution | Full HD (1920 x 1080 pixels) |
| Processor | Intel Core i3-10110U (2 cores at 4.10 GHz) |
| RAM | 4GB (DDR4) |
| Graphic Controller | Intel UHD Graphics |
| Storage | 64GB (SSD) |
| Autonomy | Up to 10 hours |
| OS | Chrome OS |
| Connectivity | Wi-Fi 6 Bluetooth 5.0 USB-A USB-C (x2) Audio combo connector HD webcam (720p) Digital microphone microSD card reader |
Feels solid to use and carry
Your daily mobility at its best
Whether you use it for school or office tasks, this elegant convertible with a metallic graphite gray finish boasts a compact and lightweight design - under three pounds -, which you can transport in your backpack without worry.
Design-wise, we would venture to say it's just about one of the best Chromebooks in terms of build quality within its price range. Most "cheap Chromebooks" feature rather low-end materials that make them feel fragile.
Additionally, its double hinge system allows it to be used not only as a laptop but also as a tablet; while the built-in keyboard has ergonomic backlit island keys to facilitate text editing when lighting conditions are far from ideal.
Keeping up with the times, the 82B80006UX packs a 250-nit touchscreen display with narrow bezels, whose Full HD resolution and 13.3-inch diagonal allow you to view content in high definition, as well as write, click and drag files fluidly.
Additionally, its double hinge system allows it to be used not only as a laptop but also as a tablet; while the built-in keyboard has ergonomic backlit island keys to facilitate text editing when lighting conditions are far from ideal.
Enjoy attractive images, with hardly any distractions
Keeping up with the times, the 82B80006UX packs a 250-nit touchscreen display with narrow bezels, whose Full HD resolution and 13.3-inch diagonal allow you to view content in high definition, as well as write, click and drag files fluidly.
When it comes to viewing angles this particular Chromebook packs an IPS display, meaning there's a 180-degree viewing angle, far better than many of its cheaper counterparts which feature displays with narrow viewing angles.
Performance
If you're not all that familiar with processors. This model is good on Windows but it's simply excellent on Chrome OS.
We like to point this out because the processing power required for Chrome OS is considerably lower than the one required to operate Windows, meaning an i3 on Chrome OS would easily be the equivalent of an i7 on Windows if we were to compare side-by-side performance on everyday tasks.
The same applies memory-wise. On that note we've got a single 4GB DDR4 module (2666 MHz). 4 GB is frankly bad when you need to work with Windows since that's a pretty heavy OS to work with but Chrome OS does a far better job at managing memory as well as CPU power, being Linux-based and all that.
What tasks can the laptop carry out?
As many people have already confirmed, the performance of this laptop is much better than expected. Allowing you to smoothly complete routine tasks such as: office editing, Internet browsing, streaming multimedia content, social media management, and basic photo retouching, amongst others.
What's more, it's really fast thanks to its i3 CPU and SSD storage so everything you do will be done in the blink of an eye. No more waiting around for your computer to wake up and do what you've asked of it.
As is common-place with Chromebooks, the Flex 5 (82B80006UX) features a rather limited SSD storage capacity. Specifically, you've got 64 GB of storage.
Storage and Graphics
That's not much when you remove the storage occupied by the operating system but you need to remember that these laptops are not designed to store your multimedia library but rather to work with cloud services such as Google Drive and DropBox whilst doing some minimal storage on the actual device.
In any case, if storage is a deal-breaker for you then you can always opt to expand internal storage through the use of microSD cards and adjusting some settings.
As far as graphics are concerned we've got an integrated Intel UHD Graphics card. By now it should be clear that this isn't a gaming laptop by any stretch of the imagination yet it's a good enough GPU for the aforementioned tasks such as streaming videos, working on Canva, and editing the occasional pic here and there.
As you might know by now, battery life varies wildly depending on usage so no two users will get the same battery life on the same machine.
What about battery life on the 82B80006UX?
For example, zoom calls, Youtube, or Netflix drains the battery quite significantly whilst browsing the web, and editing documents can extend the battery substantially. And don't even get me started on brightness and connectivity settings.
That said, you can expect over 10 hours of battery life on light usage and roughly 7-8 hours of battery life on heavy usage. But don't take our word for it, it's one of the most commented features by its buyers so check out what they're saying about it as well.
To facilitate the connection of wired accessories, there's a single USB-A input and 2 USB-C type ports. There's also your standard 3.5mm audio / microphone output, an HD webcam, and a microSD slot - which you can use to expand internal storage -.
Connectivity features
The connectivity suite is updated with Wi-Fi 6 and Bluetooth 5.0 technologies , to ensure a stronger and faster wireless network connection, as well as a more stable peripheral pairing, respectively.To facilitate the connection of wired accessories, there's a single USB-A input and 2 USB-C type ports. There's also your standard 3.5mm audio / microphone output, an HD webcam, and a microSD slot - which you can use to expand internal storage -.
Verdict: Is it worth it?
Closing up this review we've got to say we're quite surprised with how many interesting specs Lenovo has managed to pack on the Lenovo Chromebook Flex 5 82B80006UX. This laptop is perfect for you if you already use mostly web-based services such as Google's suite, dropbox, or OpenOffice, just no name a few.Couple that with a massive battery, lightweight and compact design, and a very powerful processor -for the OS - and you can see why this Chromebook is leading the charts as one of the best-selling Chromebooks currently available. Ultimately, an excellent option for students, writers, casual users and everyone in between who can manage their day-to-day tasks with chrome and a few other cloud-based apps.