Chromebooks are becoming more and more popular. With a variety of different models, sizes, prices, and features available it can be difficult to find the perfect one for you.

With its sleek design, long battery life, and 360˚ display, the Lenovo Chromebook Flex 3 (82HG0006US) is a great choice for anyone looking for an affordable Chromebook with a lot of features at a killer price. But, is this the Chromebook for you? That's what we're going to find out in this review of the Lenovo Chromebook Flex 3!

Who's it best suited for?

=> Students and Teachers: The Lenovo Flex 3's 360˚ display lets you use it in a variety of different modes. Whether that's as a tablet for taking notes, or the laptop mode for typing papers before an exam. Its affordable price also makes it perfect for students who want to have more than one computer to complete school work on.

=> Casual/ light users: Casual users, students, and those who use computers occasionally will find the Lenovo Flex 3 to be a great choice. Its long battery life and virus protection make it a great option for people who want to use a computer occasionally but don't want to pay a lot of money for one.

=> Writers: Writers, bloggers, and anyone else who writes a lot will love the Lenovo Flex 3. Its combination of ultraportable design, long-lasting battery life, and comfortable keyboard make it the perfect option for writers.

Who's it not for?

=> Gamers: The Lenovo Flex 3 is not a good choice for gamers. The graphics card included in the device is not very powerful, making it difficult to play some games on it.

=> Designers: Although its 11.5-inch display and 360˚ design make it great for watching videos and multitasking, they also make it difficult to work with. Also, the processor, memory, and graphics card would definitely fall short of any serious use in that regard.

=> Programmers: If you're a programmer, especially one who works with more than just basic coding, this isn't really the Chromebook for you. A lot of programming applications are dependent on having a powerful processor and graphics card to be used effectively. Also, as a programmer, you'd definitely be better off with a laptop that uses either Windows or Mac OS.

=> Business/ Serious users: If you plan on using your Chromebook in an office or other business setting, go with something else. You'll need something with a bit more power to better handle the workloads of business users.

Design on the Lenovo Flex 3 Chromebook

Lenovo's entry-level Chromebook is a lightweight and sleek device - weighing only 2.64 pounds - which makes it easy to carry around while also being stylish.

Its 360˚ design can be used in different modes, making it perfect for multitasking. Whilst the 10-point 11.6-inch touchscreen IPS display allows for easy use of the laptop without having to squint at the screen.

It doesn't look like a premium Chromebook, like the recently reviewed ASUS C433TA-AS384T, but it does offer a practical overall design with a nice matte white finish on the chassis.

Display

Perhaps its main disadvantage, when compared to other Chromebooks in the market, is the screen. Specifically, the display at hand features an HD resolution (1366 x 768 pixels) instead of your standard Full HD (1920 by 1080 pixels) resolution.

Having said that, we should also consider that being an 11.6-inch laptop instead of your average 14/15-inch notebook also means that the pixels per inch aren't all that different between the different sized screens. 

In any case, pictures look good, just not as good as they'd be on a screen with a higher resolution. It's hardly a deal-breaker but it's worth taking note of. 

As far as the touchscreen is concerned, it's very responsive, and swapping from laptop to tablet mode is as easy as flipping the screen over which is a really comfortable feature for when you feel like using it in tablet mode rather than laptop mode, such as when you want to curl up to a good book or watch a movie in bed. 

Keyboard and Trackpad

The keyboard is quite decent, making for a comfortable typing experience overall - ergo why we recommend this model to writers and bloggers -. As a drawback, it's not backlit so you can't really use this keyboard in low lighting conditions.

As for the trackpad, performance is decent and pretty much on par with what we've come to expect in this price range. As in, it's a plastic trackpad that gets the job done but lacks the premium quality feel that you can see on more high-end Chromebooks.

Performance

In terms of performance, you should know that this is an entry-level convertible; with a MediaTek processor powering it (as opposed to the more powerful Intel Core series).

Couple that processor with 4 GB of RAM and 64 GB of eMMC storage and you've got yourself a pretty decent set of specs for a laptop running Chrome OS - ie: a Chromebook -.

It's mostly OK for tasks such as web browsing, editing documents, and checking your emails or social media platforms. It can also handle streaming videos from YouTube or Netflix without a problem, or even having Zoom calls and streaming your favorite music on Spotify and the likes.

However, if you're an advanced user, you should know from the get-go that this laptop is not going to be able to meet your demands. It simply doesn't have what it takes for power users.

In addition to that, don't expect a whole lot of multitasking either as the 4 GB of RAM really limits your ability to run several apps at once.

Can I upgrade the storage?

You can't upgrade the storage on the Lenovo 82HG0006US in the traditional sense of swapping out the internal unit. However, what you can do is make use of the SD card reader and use it as a way to expand internal storage.

64 GB fills up pretty quick if your prone to downloading software and having your media library on hand. We definitely recommend at the very least purchasing a 128 GB SD card.

What about Battery Life?

Well, we're pretty satisfied with the battery life this laptop is able to offer. It's definitely one of its best features. Granted, there are Chromebooks out there that can last longer on a single charge like the HP Chromebook x360 14a (just over 14 hours), but for most people, 9+ hours of use should be enough to get you through the day.

Also, unlike most manufacturers that rather exaggerate their numbers on battery life, Lenovo's 10-hour claim seems to be backed up by a considerable number of reviews so you can pretty much count on at least a solid 8 hours regardless of your battery usage.

Connectivity Options

Finally, in terms of connectivity, the Chromebook Flex 3 delivers pretty much what we've come to expect off an 11-inch laptop. On that front, we've got a single USB type C port, a standalone USB Type-A port, an HDMI port, the aforementioned SD card reader, and a microphone jack.

As far as wireless communications are concerned, we've got WiFi 5 connectivity and Bluetooth, as well as a decent HD webcam which won't perform miracles but at least is present on the device.

When should I get a Chromebook Instead of a Windows Laptop?

If you're wondering whether or not a Chromebook is a good fit for your daily computing needs, the question you should be asking yourself is: "do I mainly perform web-based tasks?"

If that's the case, then there really isn't any reason why you shouldn't consider going with one of these. The fact that you can enjoy having a device that doesn't come with the usual deluge of bloatware and the fact that you don't have to pay for anti-virus software makes it ideal for use as either your main laptop or a secondary laptop.

If, on the other hand, you spend most of your time using software that's not available for (or well-supported on) Chrome OS, then you're better off going with a Windows 10 laptop.

Conclusion

The Lenovo Chromebook Flex 3 (82HG0006US) is one of the best options for people who want an affordable laptop that's easy to use.

It features a nice 11.6” IPS screen - albeit with a lower resolution than we'd like -, enough RAM and processing power for your everyday tasks and powerful Wi-Fi with Bluetooth 4.1 connectivity which allows you to connect up to two devices at the same time!

Couple that with a super competitive price, 64 GB eMMC storage - that you can upgrade via an SD card - and 9+ hours battery life on this machine, and we're pretty satisfied with what this Chromebook offers.