Lenovo Yoga Book 9I: The Future of Dual-Display Computing Now Today! - In-Depth Tech Review on ZDNet

Discovering the Ultimate Flexibility: A Comprehensive Review of the Top Lenovo 2-in-1 for Professionals

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ZDNET’s key takeaways

The Lenovo ThinkBook 14 2-in-1 starts at $1,219 for the Intel Core Ultra 5, 8GB of RAM, and 256GB SSD configuration.
It brings a portable, 2-in-1 form factor to Lenovo’s ThinkBook line of professional workhorse laptops.
Battery life is variable, and the large selection of great 2-in-1 laptops makes this model a niche choice.

Lenovo offers one of the biggest lineups of 2-in-1 laptops on the market, spearheaded by the ambitiously experimental Yoga Book 9i , a dual-OLED foldable device that can be positioned in several configurations. Lenovo’s Yoga 7i 2-in-1 is a more traditional 16-inch laptop I recently reviewed that doubles as a tablet, with solid hardware under the hood and a more accessible price point.

Also: This $699 Lenovo laptop made me a believer in the 2-in-1 form factor

Somewhere in the middle is the device I’m reviewing here: the ThinkBook 14 2-in-1 . It’s the convertible version of the company’s popular business model, designed with all the flexibility of a 2-in-1 but in a package that enterprise-level professionals will appreciate.

ZDNET RECOMMENDS Lenovo ThinkBook 14 2-in-1 The ThinkBook 14 2-in-1 brings portability and the 2-in-1 form factor to one of the most reliable line of work laptops out there. View at Lenovo

The ThinkBook 14 2-in-1 exudes the professional form factor that is emblematic of the ThinkBook line. Its two-toned aluminum chassis is sleek, if rather corporate, but solid. This is a device designed for, what I like to call, the “office plus.” It’s a work laptop for a desk space but also portable enough to swap into tent mode to share designs in a meeting, tablet mode to take notes on the fly, or sign documents and forms with the Slim Pen (an optional add-on ).

Of all the 2-in-1 laptops I’ve reviewed this year, this one feels the most down-to-business. The onboard Intel Ultra Core 5 (or, in its upgraded configuration, an Ultra 7) makes for a snappy system capable of handling any suite of professional software with ease. Both of these processors are solid mid-tier chips from Intel’s Meteor Lake family, debuted in December of 2023, and are future-proofed with Intel’s AI Boost NPU.

Also: The best Lenovo laptops: Expert tested

There’s also a generous amount of I/O on this laptop, like all ThinkBooks, that reflects its adaptability for the office space. There’s an HDMI port, two USB-C ports, two USB-As, a headphone jack, microSD card slot, and a Kensington lock slot. IT teams looking for durable laptops with plenty of forward and backward compatibility will appreciate this laptop’s flexibility.

The display on the ThinkBook 14 2-in-1 is decent, just what you’d expect from a 14-inch laptop at this price point. The WUXGA multitouch display has a 1920 x 1200 native resolution with a 60Hz refresh rate and very thin surrounding bezels. It maxes out at 300 nits of brightness, which is fine for most professional laptops but might not be enough for highly visual work such as pro-level video editing or graphic design.

Kyle Kucharski/ZDNET

I used the ThinkBook 14 2-in-1 for over a week as my primary driver and it works well as a durable, no-nonsense work laptop that can fill multiple roles simultaneously. I like the ease of untethering from the desk and shifting into a meeting room to swap into tent mode for video conferencing, then snapping back into laptop mode to run multiple tabs with spreadsheets and documents with ease.

Also: One of the best productivity laptops I’ve tested is not made by Dell or Apple

Also, I forgot how much I appreciate 14-inch laptops. I took this laptop to my neighborhood coffee shop and it’s definitely easier to squeeze into a small space with this machine, particularly because of the flexible form factor. If you prefer a laptop that’s overall smaller – even if it’s slightly chunkier – to one that’s paper-thin and 17 inches, this is a great option.

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I couldn’t help but compare this laptop to another Lenovo 2-in-1 that I recently reviewed, the Yoga 7i 2-in-1 (2024) . Both of these devices ship with the same processors, the same memory and RAM configurations, but feel like very different machines (and have very different prices). The $899 Yoga 7i (on sale right now for $699) has the same 300-nit brightness screen, but in a larger, 16-inch size.

Kyle Kucharski/ZDNET

The Yoga 7i is more well-rounded, geared toward creators looking for an accessible 2-in-1 laptop with a large screen, whereas the ThinkBook is smaller, more durable, and better geared for the professional setting. For the average consumer seeking a solid 2-in-1, the Yoga 7i is the call. For businesses looking to outfit a team of employees, the ThinkBook 14 2-in-1 brings durability and reliability on a mass scale.

Also: This $749 Acer laptop is secretly one of the most innovative gadgets I’ve tested this year

Regarding the battery life on the ThinkBook 14 2-in-1, I found it to be acceptable, if a little less robust than I anticipated. The onboard NPU definitely contributes to its longevity, but extended periods of heavy load reduced the battery faster than I anticipated.

I can get a full day’s worth of work out of this laptop on one charge, but honestly, barely so. That being said, the fast charging capability does bring the laptop from nearly dead to 100% in less than an hour.

ZDNET’s buying advice

The Lenovo ThinkBook 14 2-in-1 is a reliable workhorse from one of the most trusted lines of professional laptops on the market. This lightweight, durable device is perfect for professionals who need performance but appreciate portability and the “office plus” work style. This laptop is both more portable and durable than the consumer-facing Yoga Book 7i 2-in-1 , but it’s also more expensive.

If you’re looking for a similarly-priced convertible with a better display, check out the HP Envy x360 2-in-1 , which features a brighter, 16-inch OLED screen.