Lenovo IdeaPad Gaming 3i Impressions | An impressive yet low-profile gaming laptop

Last year’s IdeaPad Gaming L340 from Lenovo proved to be a wallet-friendly option for gamers looking for a notebook that has plenty of power without the loud “gamer” aesthetic of other laptops. Now, Lenovo is releasing its follow-up to the L340–the IdeaPad Gaming 3i. This latest IdeaPad Gaming notebook promises great gaming performance for most of today’s popular PC titles, all in a sleek and low-profile form factor and with a price tag that won’t break the bank.

Releasing in stores soon, Lenovo lent us an IdeaPad Gaming 3i unit so we can give it a spin. While I’m still in the process of reviewing Lenovo’s latest gaming laptop, here are my initial thoughts on the IdeaPad Gaming 3i.

Starting off with the laptop’s design, it’s fair to say that the IdeaPad Gaming 3i is the most low-profile gaming laptop I’ve tried to date. Similar to last year’s L340, the 3i only has a tiny Lenovo logo on the upper left of the cover; the 3i’s grey logo is even subtler though compared to the L340’s brighter blue Lenovo branding.

While it may look unassuming, I wouldn’t call the IdeaPad Gaming 3i boring-looking as the slanted corners and the slightly shiny finish on the cover add a bit of character. Best of all, the bare lid of the 3i means it’s perfect for users who love putting stickers on his/her laptop to add a more personal touch.

Now, let’s check out the IdeaPad Gaming 3i’s 15.6-inch FHD display. While it may seem the same as the L340’s screen, the 3i’s display is definitely the better of the two as it has a 120Hz refresh rate. With this fast refresh rate, the 3i should be a great match for esports titles (such as Dota 2 or CS:GO).

As for its keyboard, the IdeaPad Gaming 3i has a full-size keyboard; quite impressive given its fairly slim form-factor. Even though it has a dedicated number pad, the 3i’s keyboard still has decent-sized keys which are quite comfortable to game and to type on. Of course, I still have to test out if the keyboard holds up for longer gaming or typing sessions.

Moving on to internals, the IdeaPad Gaming 3i packs a 10th-gen Intel Core i7 processor, an NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 Ti GPU, 8GB of RAM, and a 512GB SSD. With this configuration, the new Lenovo IdeaPad gaming laptop should have enough power to run esports games at higher settings, as well as most triple A titles. The laptop’s hardware should also have plenty of power for productivity, be it for working professionals or for students.

I’ll still have to test out its actual gaming performance before I give a verdict though, especially considering the laptop only has 8GB of RAM.

For I/O, the IdeaPad Gaming 3i has a comprehensive list of connectivity options. The laptop’s ports include two USB Type-A, one USB Type-C, one HDMI 2.0, one 3.5mm headphone/microphone combo jack, and one RJ-45 (Ethernet) jack. While an extra USB Type-A port would’ve been nice, this is still a nice selection of ports that should fit the needs of most users.

With its price tag of PHP 59,990, the IdeaPad Gaming 3i is PHP 10k more expensive than last year’s L340 that we reviewed; though it does come with lots of improvements including a better display, improved design, and more powerful internals. At first glance, the IdeaPad Gaming 3i is a great option for gamers who need a capable laptop, both for gaming and for productivity-related tasks.

Will it deliver in actual use though? Find out in our full review of the IdeaPad Gaming 3i that’s coming out real soon!

Lenovo IdeaPad Gaming 3i Specs

• Processor: Intel Core i7-10750H
• Installed Memory: 8GB DDR4
• Operating System: Windows 10 Home
• GPU: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 Ti 4GB GDDR6
• Storage: 512GB SSD
• Display: 15.6” FHD IPS, 120Hz
• Ports:
  • 1 x USB Type-C
  • 2 x USB Type-A
  • 1 x HDMI 2.0
  • 1 x 3.5mm headphone and microphone combo jack
  • 1 x Kensington lock
  • 1 x RJ-45 (Ethernet) jack
• Price: PHP 59,995