Lenovo Slim Pro 9i 16 review: great power and style hamstrung by a middling battery

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Lenovo Slim Pro 9i 16: Two-minute review

The Lenovo Slim Pro 9i 16 is the latest effort to dethrone the MacBook Pro 16-inch arsenic the go-to laptop for scores of originative professionals looking for thing superior without looking corporate. I tin honestly accidental that this laptop tin and astir apt volition beryllium that laptop for galore radical retired there, but it could person been the top MacBook Pro alternate yet, were it not for a mates of missed opportunities down the stretch.

The Slim Pro 9i 16 is simply a caller exemplary enactment for Lenovo, on with the much mainstream Slim enactment that besides launched this year, and it's a fantastic absorption for the company, design-wise. 

The rounded corners, the overhanging webcam and microphone that breaks up the creaseless enactment of the laptop display's apical edge, and different subtler plan touches marque this 1 of the archetypal laptops of the twelvemonth that made maine straighten up and instrumentality announcement erstwhile I archetypal saw it astatine preview events earlier this year, and present that I've gotten my hands connected it, it lives up to its billing and is easy successful contention for a spot connected our best laptop list.

In a laptop marketplace that has agelong stumbled aft Apple to marque each their products look capable similar MacBooks to effort and fool customers into buying their laptop alternatively of the MacBook Air they really wanted, Lenovo's Slim Pro 16 is connected the starring borderline of a people of laptops that looks astatine the mostly unchanged-and-growing-stale MacBook plan we've had for implicit a decennary and has the courageousness to accidental "Nah, we tin bash amended than that." 

And it does, successful much ways than one, and truthful alternatively easy puts itself successful the presumption of the best Windows laptop to instrumentality connected the Apple MacBook Pro 16-inch, adjacent muscling retired the Dell XPS 15, which had agelong had that anti-MacBook spot mostly to itself.

The Lenovo Slim Pro 9i 16 doesn't travel alone, either. It's packing the latest Intel Core i9-13905H processor and a discrete GPU successful the signifier of either the Nvidia RTX 4050 oregon RTX 4060, giving this laptop much than capable powerfulness to chew done the kinds of workloads that marque the MacBook Pro the default instrumentality for creatives retired there.

Meanwhile, the Lenovo Slim Pro 9i 16 manages to outperform some the MacBook Pro 16-inch and the Dell XPS 15 from earlier this twelvemonth successful each the cardinal ways that matter, prevention one, and does truthful with a stunning mini-LED show that doesn't rather decision Apple's Liquid Retina XDR display, but gives it a superior challenge. It besides stands up good against the Dell XPS 15's 3.5K OLED display, each portion costing substantially little than either of its rivals.

It starts astatine $1,799.99 (about £1,370/AU$2,630) for the Nvidia RTX 4050 model, with the much almighty RTX 4060 mentation costing $2,199.99, though some of these models tin beryllium recovered discounted online to marque them adjacent cheaper. Is this capable to yet get MacBook Pro users to yet leap vessel to Windows? No, but thing could truly bash that. 

What it does do, however, is springiness non-MacBook-using professionals capable power, performance, and benignant that they tin yet halt being envious of their MacBook wielding colleagues—so agelong arsenic they ne'er stray excessively acold from an unfastened powerfulness outlet, that is.

Lenovo Slim Pro 9i 16: Price & availability

The Lenovo Slim Pro 9i 16 is disposable present successful the US, starting astatine $1,799.99 (about £1,370/AU$2,630). It isn't presently disposable successful the UK oregon Australia, unfortunately, and we've reached retired to Lenovo to find retired whether the Slim Pro 9i volition beryllium disposable successful those markets immoderate clip soon and for however much. We'll update this reappraisal if and erstwhile we perceive backmost from the institution with further pricing and availability.

In the US, the starting configuration sports an Intel Core i9-13905H processor with an Nvidia RTX 4050 GPU, 32GB LPDDR5X-6400Mhz RAM soldered to the motherboard (so you can't upgrade it unfortunately), a 1TB PCIe SSD, and a 16-inch 3.2K (3200x2000p) mini-LED interaction show moving astatine 165Hz.

For $2,199.99 (about £1,670/AU$3,215), you tin get this aforesaid configuration with a bump up to an RTX 4060 GPU.

Compared to a akin MacBook Pro with an Apple M2 Pro spot with a 12-core CPU and 19-core GPU, 32GB unified memory, and 1TB SSD storage, you'd wage $3,099/£3,299/AU$4,899, portion the likewise specc'ed Dell XPS 15 with an RTX 4050 GPU volition outgo you $2,449/£2,214.60/AU$3,399.

This puts the terms vantage powerfully with the Lenovo Slim Pro 9i, and that's decidedly not thing to scoff astatine fixed the sometimes outrageous prices charged for premium hardware similar this.

Lenovo Slim Pro 9i 16: Specs

Lenovo Slim Pro 9i 16: Design

As mentioned before, the Lenovo Slim Pro 9i 16 is simply a gorgeous laptop, apical to bottom.

The Storm Grey chassis is arsenic elegant arsenic it feels sturdy, and it's not arsenic bladed arsenic the best ultrabooks, but it doesn't bring with it the benignant of bulk you usually get with galore of the best mobile workstations. Considering the benignant of hardware you person packed into this thing, it's inactive comparatively bladed and light, but it's inactive a reasonably hefty device.

The full-size keyboard with tenkey is beauteous to benignant connected and the trackpad feels creaseless and responsive, though originative pros volition astir apt inactive privation to person the best drafting tablets oregon akin astatine the acceptable if they aren't connected the road.

This besides brings america to the larboard enactment connected the Slim Pro 9i 16. Given that this is simply a 16-inch laptop, determination are plentifulness of ports here, including 2 USB-A Gen 3.2, with 1 ever on; 1 Thunderbolt 4 with data, DisplayPort, and powerfulness delivery; an HDMI port; an SDCard reader; and a powerfulness connector and 3.5mm audio/mic jack.

The webcam gets a large upgrade acknowledgment to a 5MP sensor, on with a dual array microphone. Like each of the best Lenovo laptops, the webcam has a carnal privateness shutter that provides a captious furniture of information for users. 

The power is on the broadside of the laptop adjacent the powerfulness button, which isn't my prefered setup, but considering however galore laptop makers are inactive not including 1 of these successful their devices, it's a precise insignificant complaint.

In presumption of audio, on with the headphone output, determination is besides a six-speaker dependable strategy with Dolby Atmos, including top-firing tweeters, truthful it's much than capable to capable a country with immoderate fantabulous sound. That said, euphony pros volition evidently privation to usage thing a spot much blase similar 1 of the best headphones for nonrecreational audio work.

Finally, determination is the display, which is simply a 16-inch 3.2K (3200x2000p) mini-LED sheet with a 16:10 facet ratio, 165Hz refresh, and 100% of the sRGB, DCI-P3, and Adobe RGB colour gamuts, making it a fantastic show for ocular artists, whether that beryllium graphic design, photography, oregon video producers and editors.

It has a max brightness of 1200 nits and Dolby Vision and TÜV Low Blue Light Certification+ and Eyesafe Certification, truthful it's a overmuch easier surface to look astatine implicit the agelong haul than different competing displays.

Lenovo Slim Pro 9i 16: Performance

Performance is 1 country wherever this laptop truly stands retired arsenic a nonrecreational workstation, acknowledgment to almighty hardware similar the Intel Core i9-13905H processor and either an Nvidia RTX 4050 oregon RTX 4060 GPU.

This allows you to chew done beauteous overmuch immoderate large workload retired determination connected the go, and portion it won't beryllium arsenic almighty arsenic the champion workstations sitting connected apical of a desk, this is astir arsenic bully arsenic you're going to get for thing connected the spell and astatine an affordable price.

The evident points of examination present are the Apple MacBook Pro 16-inch (2023) and the Dell XPS 15 (2023), some of which are stalwart workstations for originative professionals implicit the years.  

There aren't a full batch of synthetic benchmark tests that tin beryllium tally connected some Windows and macOS, but of those that can, the Lenovo Slim Pro 9i 16 manages to outclass the M2 Pro (12-core CPU/19-core GPU) MacBook Pro 16-inch and the Dell XPS 15 (2023) packed with an Intel Core i7-13700H and an Nvidia RTX 4070 GPU.

The Lenovo Slim Pro 9i 16's Geekbench 6 show is astir adjacent to somewhat faster than the MacBook Pro 16-inch, and is simply a 12% to 19% faster than the Dell XPS 15. The MacBook Pro 16-inch can't tally 3DMark Time Spy oregon Fire Strike, but successful this test, the Slim Pro 9i 16 was astir 27% and 17% faster than the Dell XPS 15 successful Time Spy and Fire Strike, respectively. Not atrocious erstwhile you see that it has a weaker GPU, but the Core i9-13905H comes done connected physics and CPU segments of those benchmarks to enactment the Slim Pro 9i implicit the top.

In the cross-platform CrossMark benchmark, the Lenovo Slim Pro 9i 16 is astir 6.5% faster than the MacBook Pro 16-inch overall, and astir 1.7% faster than the XPS 15, overall. 

On originative workloads, the Lenovo Slim Pro 9i 16 is easy 1 of the best laptops for photograph editing and if you're looking into the best video editing laptops, it's worthy checking out. In our tests, we recovered it much than holds its ain against the MacBook Pro 16-inch and XPS 15. It's astir 6% faster than the MacBook Pro erstwhile encoding 4K to 1080p successful Handbrake 1.6, and astir 26% faster than the XPS 15.

It was lone truly successful HDXPRT 4's Music Editing benchmark that the Slim Pro 9i 16 fell down the XPS 15, scoring astir 20% little connected that test, though adjacent oregon noticeably supra the XPS successful photograph editing and video conversion, giving it astir a 5% amended wide score.

In presumption of Adobe Photoshop and Adobe Premiere Pro, according to PugetBench, this is the Slim Pro 9i 16's biggest show decision to the MacBook Pro 16-inch, scoring astir 4% little successful Photoshop, and a important 42% little successful Premiere Pro.

Finally, nary of these devices are what we'd telephone 1 of the best gaming laptops around, but the Lenovo Slim Pro 9i 16 does enactment up a bully showing present successful lawsuit you privation to stroke disconnected immoderate steam aft work. 

It runs Civilization VI: Gathering Storm astir 114% faster than a MacBook Pro 16-inch, and astir 80% faster than the XPS 15 astatine 1080p/1200p. Up Civ VI to the assorted autochthonal resolutions for the displays, and the Slim Pro 9i 16 gets astir 73% amended show implicit the MacBook Pro 16-inch and astir 38% amended show than the XPS 15.

If you privation thing a spot much action-packed, Shadow of the Tomb Raider runs astir 37% amended connected the Slim Pro 9i 16 astatine 1200p than it does connected the MacBook Pro 16-inch astatine the aforesaid resolution, and astir 16% amended than the XPS 15. And, portion nary laptop was truly capable to play Shadow of the Tomb Raider astatine autochthonal solution astatine a consistently playable framerate, the Slim Pro 9i 16's 31fps connected mean was astir 55% amended than the MacBook's 20fps and astir 29% amended than the XPS 15's 24fps.

At 1200p, turning DLSS 3 connected show tin get you astir 137fps connected mean successful Shadow of the Tomb Raider, with a minimum of 61fps, which is beauteous overmuch the golden modular for PC gaming. This isn't a gaming laptop, but that doesn't mean it doesn't person the chops for it (within reason, of course).

Lenovo Slim Pro 9i 16: Software & Features

As for software, determination isn't excessively overmuch egregious bloatware that I needed to uninstall from the laptop, but McAfee antivirus was decidedly 1 of them, particularly erstwhile it's alternatively obnoxious popups started to interruption into my crippled investigating and wide enactment day. McAfee isn't terrible, but it's acold from the best antivirus software connected the marketplace and it is alternatively outrageously priced for what you're getting, truthful erstwhile your escaped proceedings play is up (or adjacent before), you're amended disconnected getting a amended merchandise for cheaper. 

Other than that, the lone large bundle of enactment is Lenovo Vantage, which lets you tweak immoderate hardware controls among different strategy mounting options. 

All that's a bully happening (other than McAfee), since for a laptop astatine this price, you shouldn't person overmuch if immoderate bloatware. You're paying much than capable to screen the outgo of the machine, there's nary request to subsidize a little terms with crappy bundle contracts that you'll ne'er truly need.

Lenovo Slim Pro 9i 16: Battery life

And, the infinitesimal we've each been waiting for and that I've been hinting astatine this full time: artillery life.

Given the precise almighty hardware and mini-LED display, this laptop is going to chew done vigor beauteous quickly, and unfortunately, its 75WHr artillery conscionable isn't large capable to get you done a afloat workday considering however powerfulness inefficient its internals are compared to the ace businesslike Apple M2 Pro and M2 Max, which tin past substantially longer connected a 70WHr artillery (the XPS 15 uses a substantially larger 86WHr battery). 

In our proprietary web surfing test, the Slim Pro 9i 16 managed to lone eek retired six hours and 12 minutes of artillery life, compared to the XPS 15's astir 9 hours and the MacBook Pro 16-inch's astounding 17 hours and six minutes.

And the PCMark 10 Application artillery benchmark revealed a beauteous dreadful 4 hours and 36 minutes of artillery life. Needless to say, you'll request to support your powerfulness usage successful caput erstwhile you're distant from your table oregon don't person entree to a partition outlet to recharge midday.

This decidedly isn't great, particularly for a laptop that you volition beryllium spending astatine slightest $1,600/£1,600 on, adjacent if it's connected sale, but fixed that it's MSRP is astir fractional that of a likewise specced MacBook Pro 16-inch, and astir a 3rd little than a comparable Dell XPS 15 (much little an XPS 17), thing had to give. In this case, it's the battery, and lone you volition beryllium capable to accidental whether that's capable of a woody breaker for you to walk up what is an different bonzer laptop.

Should I bargain the Lenovo Slim Pro 9i 16?

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How I tested the Lenovo Slim Pro 9i 16

I utilized the Lenovo Slim Pro 9i 16 for astir a week and a fractional arsenic my each time enactment instrumentality arsenic good arsenic for wide browsing and video streaming. In summation to our modular suite of benchmarks, I utilized the laptop successful a fig of usage cases wherever a nonrecreational purchaser mightiness privation to usage it, specified arsenic doing originative contented enactment connected the bid successful to enactment oregon astatine a java shop.

I've been reviewing laptops for years now, successful summation to having an extended acquisition inheritance successful machine science, and I've tested countless laptop models crossed the spectrum of designs, quality, and performance. I cognize what the champion laptop astatine a fixed terms constituent should beryllium capable to do, arsenic good arsenic however overmuch immoderate fixed acceptable up should outgo you, truthful I'm good qualified to justice the merits of immoderate fixed laptop.

We pridefulness ourselves connected our independency and our rigorous review-testing process, offering up semipermanent attraction to the products we reappraisal and making definite our reviews are updated and maintained - careless of erstwhile a instrumentality was released, if you tin inactive bargain it, it's connected our radar.

Read much astir however we test

• First reviewed August 2023