Lenovo’s Yoga laptops are the forefront of the Beijing giant’s product lineup, offering PC users a wide range of convertibles with high-end design and features. While Yoga is its own dedicated brand with plenty of options for different budgets, it has also bled over into other lineups like ThinkPad and ThinkBook. If you’re in the market for a new laptop and would like something versatile and modern, this guide can help you decipher the Yoga lineup to ensure you get the right PC.
Why buy the Yoga 9i?
The Yoga 9i, now in its seventh generation, is Lenovo’s flagship convertible laptop. It’s currently readily available in a 14-inch size, with the 15.6-inch model temporarily unavailable at Lenovo’s storefront. Why? It’s unlikely that Lenovo has made a permanent move to phase out the larger Yoga 9i, but it could be changing to a larger 16-inch size with a taller aspect ratio for the display. This has been a current trend at Lenovo lately, with the Yoga 7i recently getting a 16-inch model.
Focusing on the Yoga 9i 14 (Gen 7) for 2022, it’s our current pick for best Windows laptop, coming in above the likes of the HP Spectre x360 14 and the Dell XPS 13 Plus. In his Yoga 9i 14 (Gen 7) review, Executive Editor Daniel Rubino says “of all the laptops I’ve used recently, […] the Yoga 9i is the best of the bunch (assuming you’re not a gamer or need a mobile workstation).”
The Yoga 9i 14 (Gen 7) is the Yoga laptop to buy if you want the best. Its slim aluminum chassis — now with rounded edges for a more comfortable hold, especially in tablet mode — weighs in at just 3 pounds (1.4kg) for OLED models, with an overall footprint that’s closer to a 12-inch laptop. That’s partly thanks to the slim bezel around the touch display with a taller 16:10 aspect ratio. Lenovo makes good use of the space around the keyboard, especially for this latest generational refresh, enlarging the touchpad by 45% and stretching out the keys for more typing area.
Ports aren’t exactly plentiful, but they’re nowhere near as spartan as something like the Dell XPS 13 Plus. You get two Thunderbolt 4, USB-C 3.2 (Gen 2), USB-A 3.2 (Gen 2), and a 3.5mm audio jack.
The 360-degree hinge that holds the lid and main body together is still a Bowers & Wilkins soundbar packed with four speakers and Dolby Atmos tuning. It rotates with the laptop, giving you unmuffled, loud audio no matter how you’re using the PC. This is one of the Yoga’s main attractions, making it easy to both conference with colleagues and enjoy some movies or TV.
Lenovo offers three high-end touch displays to match the overall premium design and features. The baseline display has a 1920×1200 (FHD+) resolution with 400 nits brightness, glossy finish, 100% sRGB color, and 60Hz refresh rate. Moving up, there are two OLED displays for those who want the best color and contrast possible. One has a 2880×1800 (2.8K) resolution with 400 nits brightness, 100% DCI-P3 color, maximum 90Hz refresh rate, and VESA DisplayHDR 500. The other has a more traditional UHD+ resolution and the same specs save for a maximum 60Hz refresh rate. All offer Dolby Vision to make supported content look even better.
There’s no longer a siloed active pen built into the laptop, but Lenovo does include a Precision Pen 2 with 4,096 levels of pressure sensitivity and tilt detection. Above the display, the camera has been upgraded to 1080p for a clearer picture. It can be covered with a built-in shutter, and there’s a fingerprint reader or an IR camera for facial recognition through Windows Hello.
The laptop looks, sounds, and feels great, but how does it perform? Thanks to Intel’s latest 12th Gen Core P-series CPUs, you get a massive jump in power from the last generation. These 28W CPUs beat out Intel’s last-gen 45W chips, even coming out well ahead of Apple’s M1 chip in the MacBook Pro. Combined with new DDR5 RAM and PCIe 4.0 SSD storage, you’re getting a laptop that can handle a heavy workload. Battery life is also quite good. With the 2.8K OLED display and a Core i7-1260P CPU, it lasted almost 9 hours in our testing. Going with a non-OLED display will boost that number.
Bottom line? If you want the best from Lenovo’s Yoga series, the 9i 14 (Gen 7) is the one to get. You will pay more for it compared to some of its siblings, but it’s practically perfect and is undoubtedly one of the best Lenovo laptops ever made.
Lenovo Yoga 9i 14 (Gen 7)
Lenovo’s Yoga 9i 14 (Gen 7), refreshed for 2022, is where you want to turn if the best is what you’re looking for.
Why buy the Yoga 7i?
The Yoga 7i lineup is a step down from Yoga 9i in terms of price and some features, but that doesn’t mean it’s not a truly competent convertible in its own right. Lenovo currently has the seventh-gen Yoga 7i 16 for sale, as well as older fifth-gen Yoga 7i 14 and Yoga 7i 15 models. A seventh-gen Yoga 7i 14 was announced alongside the new 16-inch version, but it hasn’t yet hit stores. It’s expected to launch at any time.
Focusing on the newest release, the Yoga 7i 16 (Gen 7) — which seems to have replaced the 15.6-inch version — comes with a similar aluminum convertible design with rounded edges for added comfort in tent, stand, and tablet modes. It’s built to a high standard and looks a lot like the Yoga 9i, but it doesn’t have the same soundbar hinge connecting the lid and body. Instead, it has dual 2W tweeters and dual 3W woofers with Dolby Atmos in a more traditional setup just above the keyboard.
Ports are fairly plentiful, with dual Thunderbolt 4, HDMI 2.0, two USB-A 3.2 (Gen 1), 3.5mm audio, and an SD card reader. That’s a better selection than on the Yoga 9i, and it might make more sense if you don’t want to connect to a useful Thunderbolt 4 dock.
Lenovo offers an impressive 16-inch touch display with 16:10 aspect ratio. It has a 2560×1600 (2.5K) resolution, 400 nits brightness, 100% sRGB color, 60Hz refresh rate, Dolby Vision, and low blue light. No OLED option here so far, but this is still a killer screen. Unlike the Yoga 9i you don’t get the active pen included, but you can pay a bit more and get the same Lenovo Precision Pen 2. Above the display is an FHD webcam with IR camera and privacy shutter. A fingerprint reader rounds out the security features.
Performance is excellent thanks to Intel’s 12th Gen Core P-series CPUs, available in both the new 16- and 14-inch Yoga 7i models. It looks like the larger laptop may get an options for Intel’s H-Series CPUs and Arc discrete GPU, but for now it’s P-Series chips and their integrated graphics. The new seventh-gen Yoga 7i models also come with faster LPDDR5 RAM and speedy M.2 PCIe 4.0 storage.
If you don’t mind the lack of a soundbar hinge and OLED displays, the Yoga 7i is a close second behind the Yoga 9i. Its design isn’t quite as flashy, but it’s still a premium laptop with plenty of high-end features. Considering prices start lower than the Yoga 9i, this is a great way to go if you’re working with less of a budget.
Lenovo Yoga 7i 16 (Gen 7)
The Yoga 7i (Gen 7), currently available in a 16-inch model with a 14-inch version coming soon, is a cheaper alternative to the Yoga 9i that retains a ton of high-end features.
Why buy the Yoga 6?
The 13.3-inch Lenovo Yoga 6, announced at CES 2022 is the smallest sibling of the main Yoga family. It’s also currently the only way to get a Yoga laptop with AMD hardware inside. You can configure it with an AMD Ryzen 5 5500U or Ryzen 7 5700U, as well as up to a 1TB M.2 PCIe 3.0 SSD and up to 16GB of LPDDR5 RAM. As expected with AMD devices, you can save even a bit more money here with models starting at $860.
That’s especially impressive considering the 13.3-inch touch display has a 1920×1200 (FHD+) resolution with 16:10 aspect ratio, 300 nits brightness, 100% sRGB color, low blue light certification, and Dolby Vision. An active pen isn’t included in the price, but you can grab the Lenovo Precision Pen 2 for a great inking experience.
Dual 2W speakers with Dolby Atmos flank the keyboard, and there’s a sizable Precision touchpad below. Above the display is an FHD webcam with IR sensor and privacy shutter. There’s also an integrated fingerprint reader if you’d rather not use facial recognition.
There’s no Thunderbolt due to the AMD platform, but the laptop comes with two USB-C 3.2 (Gen 1), two USB-A 3.2 (Gen 1), HDMI 2.0, a microSD card reader, and a 3.5mm audio jack. The Yoga 6 is available with a standard all-metal build, plus there’s an optional fabric top for the lid.
If you’re looking to get into the convertible Yoga lineup and love using AMD processors, the Yoga 6 should be your first choice. It also happens to be the most affordable Yoga on the market. It lacks some of the higher-end features from the Yoga 9i and Yoga 7i, but you still get that FHD webcam, top-firing speakers with Dolby Atmos, and a beautiful touch display with Dolby Atmos.
Lenovo Yoga 6 13 (Gen 7)
The 13.3-inch Lenovo Yoga 6 (Gen 7) with AMD hardware is the most affordable option available, and it still comes with plenty of high-end features.
What about Yoga laptops in other Lenovo lineups?
Lenovo’s Yoga laptops have also bled over into other PC lineups, including ThinkPad and ThinkBook. For example, the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Yoga (Gen 6) was one of the best laptops I reviewed last year, and the new seventh-gen model is already here. Seeing the Yoga name elsewhere generally means you’re getting a convertible version of whatever laptop the name is attached to. I’ll go into a much deeper explanation in dedicated articles like this but for the other Lenovo laptop lineups.
