Introduction
The 2023 iterations of laptop face a world that is still equipped with their lockdown laptops and that proves to be challenge for harwdare makers to overcome. That said, it is evident with many of the releases for 2023 to be straightforward sidegrades of the previous year. That said, there is still the matter of increases in performance that specs offer but unfortunately, this doesn’t apply to some SKUs including the Intel Core i7-13700H which is a 100% expy of its Alder Lake counterpart, the Core i7-12700H but with a more mature process to back it up, there is the bonus of potential power savings or higher clock speeds.
With a new generation of GPUs arriving as well, this may mean much more for this laptop generation and with NVIDIA’s RTX 40-series bringing with DLSS3 Frame Generation, even an entry-level GPU may even kick it for a 1600p screen. Today, we’re going to find out as we have Lenovo’s 2023 Gen8 iteration of the Legion 5, specifically the Legion 5i Slim featuring an Intel Core i7-13700H and an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4050.
Its a weird mix, I know, but Lenovo does offer the Legion 5i Slim 2023 in configurations with up to an RTX 4070 for laptops. In this review, we’ll take a look at the performance of this unit and see how it performs in games and multimedia. Read on to find out more!
Specification
PERFORMANCE | |
Processor |
Intel® Core™ i7-13700H, 14C (6P + 8E) / 20T, P-core 2.4 / 5.0GHz, E-core 1.8 / 3.7GHz, 24MB
|
Graphics |
NVIDIA® GeForce RTX™ 4050 6GB GDDR6, Boost Clock 2370MHz, TGP 100W
|
Chipset |
Intel® SoC Platform
|
Memory |
2x 8GB SO-DIMM DDR5-5200
|
Memory Slots |
Two DDR5 SO-DIMM slots, dual-channel capable
|
Max Memory |
Up to 32GB DDR5-5200 offering
|
Storage |
512GB SSD M.2 2280 PCIe® 4.0×4 NVMe®
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Storage Support |
Up to two drives, 2x M.2 SSD • M.2 2280 SSD up to 1TB
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Storage Slot |
Two M.2 2280 PCIe® 4.0 x4 slots
|
Card Reader |
4-in-1 Card Reader
|
Optical |
None
|
Audio Chip |
High Definition (HD) Audio, Realtek® ALC3287 codec
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Speakers |
Stereo speakers, 2W x2, optimized with Nahimic Audio
|
Camera |
FHD 1080p with E-shutter
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Microphone |
2x, Array
|
Battery |
Integrated 80Wh
|
Power Adapter |
170W Slim Tip (3-pin)
|
Special Features |
|
DESIGN | |
Display |
16″ WQXGA (2560×1600) IPS 300nits Anti-glare, 100% sRGB, 165Hz, G-SYNC®, Low Blue Light
|
Touchscreen |
None
|
Color Calibration |
Factory Color Calibration
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Keyboard |
4-Zone RGB Backlit, English
|
Case Color |
Storm Grey
|
Surface Treatment |
Anodizing
|
Case Material |
Aluminium (Top), PC-ABS (Bottom)
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Dimensions (WxDxH) |
359.7 x 260.3 x 19.9-21.9mm (14.16 x 10.25 x 0.78-0.86 inches)
|
Weight |
Less than 2.4 kg (5.29 lbs)
|
SOFTWARE | |
Operating System |
Windows® 11 Home Single Language, English
|
Bundled Software |
Office Home & Student 2021
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CONNECTIVITY | |
Ethernet |
100/1000M (RJ-45)
|
WLAN + Bluetooth |
Wi-Fi® 6E, 11ax 2×2 + BT5.1
|
Standard Ports |
|
Security Chip |
Firmware TPM 2.0 Enabled
|
Fingerprint Reader |
None
|
Other Security |
E-shutter
|
SERVICE | |
Base Warranty |
1-year, Courier or Carry-in
|
Included Upgrade |
3Y ADP -IPMAIN(ESS), 3Y Legion Ultimate Support -IPMAIN (ESS)
|
ACCESSORIES | |
Bundled Accessories |
Lenovo® Legion™ M300 RGB Gaming Mouse
|
CERTIFICATIONS | |
Green Certifications |
|
Other Certifications |
TÜV Rheinland® Low Blue Light (Hardware Solution)
|
Product Specification Reference | Product page
Design and Layout – Lenovo Legion Slim 5i (2023)
Lenovo’s design for the Legion 5i Slim 2023 largely remains the same from the previous year which is pronounced change from the 2021 releases. Still, design language remains the same with the elegant, sleek body which now features slight curves on the edges rather than the sharp corners on the lid.
The business-like aesthetic is still there and the Legion brand has stayed away from completely going “gaming” for this release unlike the Legion Pro lines.
IO options are lined on the back edge and left-hand side of the laptop. All USB-C ports are on the left with both ports running at 10Gbps with the one marked with Power Delivery capable of 140W Power Delivery charging besides DisplayPort over USB-C and 10Gbps of transfer. Much like the Type-C ports, both USB-A ports on the back mirror their capabilities, both being 10gbps ports with the other one an Always-On charging port for your devices. We get a single Ethernet jack and HDMI port on the back as well together with proprietary Lenovo power connector.
The right hand side features a SD card slot and a physical toggle for the camera privacy shutter on the Legion 5i Slim 2023. Back again on the right hand-edge, there is a 3.5mm combo audio jack.
Display and Peripherals – Lenovo Legion Slim 5i (2023)
Screen configurations for the Legion 5i Slim 2023 are available in either 1920×1200 or 2560×1600 with our sample being the 1600p model with 165hz refresh. Rated for 300nits, we clocked in the screen at 300+nits confirming the rating. Colors are also decent with good coverage out of the box. Viewing angle is good on the IUPS screen and the 16:10 ratio puts that screen real-estate to good use.
As always, you’ll hear nothing but praise for Lenovo’s keyboard. Their TrueStrike keys are the best I have used on any laptop and the experience remains the same on this model.
Battery Life
We start all test off with a battery life test to see how long the battery will last under office usage. We use PCMark 10 Battery Test which loops word processing, email, spreadsheet, and other office applications as well as browsing and teleconferencing over and over again until the laptop cuts off. Depending on your laptop and when power saving kicks in, there may be some battery left once the test cuts off which is anywhere from 10% to 2%.
Performance – Office and Productivity
Photo and Video
PugetSystems is a US-based system builder that provides high-performance computers built for workstation solutions. They developed an in-house benchmarking tool for various apps including Adobe Photoshop, Premiere Pro, After Effects, Davinci Resolve and a few others. These benchmarks put a professional-level workload on systems and are scored based on a reference system. The current version PugetBenchmark for Photoshop is scored against a Core i9-9900K system while the Premiere Pro benchmark is scored against a Ryzen 9 5900X. PugetBench is a plugin to the software it is named after and requires actual Adobe software to function. For a detailed description of the benchmark, see here (Ps) and here (Pr).
Office
Potentially the most used desktop software next to Windows OS is Microsoft Office. . This tests the responsiveness and system performance of the system when doing common office-users tasks, such as copying, pasting, cutting, adding images, resizing, saving, etc..
Gaming Performance Summary
For a full-hardware workout, visit https://benchmarks.ul.com for our system warm-up and stress test of choice.
For benchmarking methodology please see our game benchmark method guide.
Test results are gathered and produced on CapFrameX. This makes it easier for use to get both line graph comparison and raw averages without extra tools. Simply the easiest tool for benchmarking and its available for everyone to use, free of charge. Check it out at capframex.com.
Value & Conclusion
In our test benchmark, we highligted the other Intel 13th-gen laptops we’ve tested and you may notice that despite bearing similar CPUs, the Legion 5i Slim 2023 does pull off some wins versus its competitors and that’s primarily due to the slight uplift that the faster DDR5-5200 memory gives in some instances, particularly productivity. In terms of gaming, the lighter games on our test show very good results but we do see it show being GPU-limited in games like Requiem. In general though, the games do perform well and for those games that do support Frame Generation and hits 60FPS, there should be a significant bump in performance. We couldn’t test this on time due to time constraints and curiously, Lenovo primarily carries the RTX 4070 model here rather than the RTX 4050.
While the configuration is offered in the Lenovo’s website, for just under PHP90K, most dealers carry the RTX 4070 configuration of the Legion 5i Slim 2023 for around PHP129,xxx. It is a bit of a bump in pricing but that’s what GPU pricing can do for ya. It does entail that performance will be incredible amplified not just from raw raster render but with neural rendering thru DLSS3. Intel takes a backseat in this release although those who are upgrading from Intel 10th-gen or Ryzen 5000 mobile units will certainly feel the performance jump as shown in our benchmarks.
That said, just like its predecessor, the Lenovo Legion Slim 5i 2023 benefits from Intel’s hybrid core architecture and NVIDIA’s RTX platform gives it an advantage for both work and play. While the CPU largely remains the same, the GPU is certainly a major point of consideration especially for those who are professionally reliant on such hardware. If you’re on an RTX 3060 + Alder Lake unit, you definitely can still enjoy your unit but people like me who may still be cruising on an Ryzen 7 + GTX 1650 laptop setup will definitely feel the upgrade. As new purchase, the Lenovo Legion Slim 5i is a decent performer and if you prefer a lighter package than the standard Legion 5, then the Slim variant is worth checking out but the slight differences is something we’re currently not capable of showing as we do not have the Legion 5 2023 on hand to compare. Still, if you have the chance do try it out at a local concept store with a display unit to see the difference.
All in all, besides annual upgraders, the Legion 5 is perennial mainstay in my recommended list of laptops and this year’s release remains in that spot.
1 Comment
Great Review! I’m going to get one soon. =)