When Lenovo dropped the announcement of a new Lenovo Slim 7i, I had to scrape my jaw off the floor from its incredible lightweight frame, and what Lenovo was able to pack under the hood. Once CoPilot+ PC functionality was expanded outside the Snapdragon SoC, it feels like every Windows laptop PC and CoPilot+ are mutually exclusive. PCs come equipped with CoPilot+ for better or worse. The new and improved Lenovo Slim 7i Aura Edition slots into that category, an impressive PC with CoPilot+ functionality on it that will carry the user through a lot of its tasks, but ironically doesn’t encumber the user carrying it.
First off, we have to drag the CoPilot+ elephant to the centre of the room and take a look at what’s under the hood. PC fluent users will notice the Lenovo Slim 7i’s Intel SoC Platform. In June last year, CoPilot+ was certified exclusively to ARM-based System on a Chip (SoC), and today, even Intel can get in on backseat driving. Unlike the first-to-market CoPilot+ certified PCs like the ASUS Vivobook S 15, the Lenovo Slim 7i sports a smaller frame, a lower weight, but faster functionality and a smoother operating system. Now, PCs equipped with x86 architecture are invited to the AI party.
In comparison, the Lenovo Slim 7i pedals an integrated Intel AI Boost, reaching up to 47 TOPS (refers to ’47 trillion operations per second’). This speed can give the user AI solutions faster than most of the SnapDragon Elite SoC platforms, which is common for second-to-market functionality in any tech sector. What this means is it can solve problems using AI and CoPilot+ faster than most ARM-based SoC, ARM-based SoC typically run at a speed of 45 TOPS. After testing the ASUS Vivobook S15, it’s apparent that the Lenovo Slim 7i Aura Edition has faster performance when used.
“The Lenovo Slim 7i Aura Edition is a beautiful machine, sporting the signature Luna Grey Lenovo colourway wrapped in an aluminum chassis that doesn’t streak easily.”
The Lenovo Slim 7i Aura Edition is a sight to behold. Before unboxing the PC, I almost had to make sure the device was inside, given how lightweight the box felt, but thankfully, the PC arrived with the box. For the non-technical users who want a portable OLED-equipped, stunning laptop, you can look no further. The Lenovo Slim 7i Aura Edition is a beautiful machine, sporting the signature Luna Grey Lenovo colourway wrapped in an aluminum chassis that doesn’t streak easily. The laptop weighs an impossible 2.82 lbs (which is similar to the ASUS Zenbook S14), and measures at a cardboard-thin 1.3cm.
Lenovo also deployed a port for any storm. The Slim 7i comes as an upgrade with a microSD reader, a USB-A (USB 3.2 Gen 1), Always On 2x USB-C Thunderbolt 4, a DisplayPort 2.1, an HDMI slot, and one 3.5mm jack for users to pass the AUX when asked. The number of ports on the Lenovo Slim 7i is staggering. The real star of the show is the stunning (1920×1200) OLED panel.
Upon first use, touchscreen functionality slipped my mind, and I tried increasing the size of an image by reverse pinching (as I would normally with a touchscreen), and when it worked, I almost fell out of my chair. The OLED on the Lenovo Slim 7i is a touchscreen, and it’s as hard to streak (or fingerprint) as the outside chassis. The colour saturation can’t be understated, and when watching an episode of Netflix’s Arcane in a room with ample sunlight, the colour of characters’ hair shone through.
Although glare stubbornly persists, increasing the backlight on the display panel can nearly mitigate glare, making this an ideal PC to take to the park. Where the display falls a tad short is the refresh rate. Other like-minded PCs come equipped with a super-fast 120Hz, but the Lenovo Slim 7i Aura Edition comes with a maximum of 60Hz, making this less of an ideal PC than the ASUS Zenbook S14 or even the Lenovo Yoga Slim 9i when it comes to doom scrolling or gaming.
That being said, the onboard Intel Core Ultra 7 258V processor can march through multitasking with a flourish. Running The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion Remastered works as an Xbox Series X would, but in load-heavy sections, when many scamps and daedroth are on screen, trying to murder you, the Lenovo struggles a bit. But if players are exploring Tamriel for the sights, the Lenovo Slim 7i punches a user’s retinas with beautiful visuals.
For the users who like upgrading their PC, you’re going to have a bad time. The onboard memory is soldered to the system board (which has become the norm), so 32GB is the maximum memory available. A microSD could mitigate this problem, and with the slew of ports available to park in on the Lenovo Slim 7i Aura Edition, an external SSD can be easily attached. Storage is a non-issue, with the slim PC boasting a thick memory of 1TB SSD. With video game software reaching install sizes of > 100GB and editing software consuming ample space, this is almost a must for content creators and gamers.
“The stock sound system on the Lenovo Slim 7i is incredible.”
The stock sound system on the Lenovo Slim 7i is incredible. Considering the rhythm title Metal Hellsinger has yet to drop an official soundtrack on anything but YouTube, I’ve had this laptop open blasting music from the title for hours. Dolby Atmos functionality is included (for audiophiles), but the 4-speaker setup sounds fantastic in its own right (and without the extra cost).
My main gripe with the Lenovo Slim 7i Aura Edition is the keyboard. While Lenovo includes a solid backlight behind the keys, the rest of the configuration is confusing. Instead of page up and page down keys, users are forced to hold the fn key and hit the up and down arrow keys, the worst tag team ever deployed.
This is made even worse by the half-key up and down arrows taking up a single key space instead of having two to themselves. These two half-keys are stuffed between normal-sized left and right arrow keys, and without looking, I can almost guarantee a user will make a mistake. Despite the word “fun” including the letters fn, this is far from fun.
The Lenovo Slim 7i Aura Edition is a great laptop. It checks most of the boxes of a casual to professional PC user, integrating a great OLED panel atop a less than 3lb chassis. With great sound, great visuals, great battery life—charging to full in under an hour, days of casual use and hours of gaming—and a weight class that makes the Lenovo Slim 7i nearly an ultraportable, this machine can almost do it all.
However, a hostile and congested keyboard setup derails this laptop from slotting into the ‘excellent’ category, not to mention the 60Hz refresh rate, which is outclassed by other laptops in the same vein. The Lenovo Slim 7i Aura Edition is a dynamite device for a travelling user, and it looks good in any space it occupies.
