Technologies
Lenovo IdeaPad 5i Chromebook: A Roomy Display Backed by Processing Power
A rare 16-inch, 16:10 display with an Intel Core i3 CPU makes this Lenovo Chromebook a good fit for work and play at home.
Big-screen Chromebooks began to emerge last year. The 16-inch Acer Chromebook 516 GE was released last fall as one of the first gaming-focused Chromebooks. And before that, the 17.3-inch Acer Chromebook 317 from last spring still holds the crown as the world’s biggest Chromebook. It is certainly large, but the model we tested was based on a low-end Pentium processor and, thus, underpowered — especially when held up against a gaming Chromebook. The Lenovo IdeaPad 5i Chromebook slots in between these two extremes. It boasts a modern, 16-inch, 16:10 display powered by a modern, 12th-generation Core i3 chip but lacks the extra hardware found on a gaming Chromebook.
What prevents the IdeaPad 5i Chromebook from being included among this new breed of gaming Chromebook? For one, its display has the standard 60Hz refresh rate rather than a speedy 120Hz for smoother motion in games. For another, it lacks an anti-ghosting keyboard that can register every keystroke, even during the most furious action in a game. What you are left with, however, is a highly capable, roomy Chromebook for home use, whether you are working from home or just need an extra laptop for browsing the web and watching shows and movies. Just don’t stray too far from a wall outlet.
Like
- Roomy 16-inch 16:10 display
- Strong, Core i3 performance
- Solid build quality
- 1080p webcam
Don’t Like
- Short battery life
- No keyboard backlighting
Our IdeaPad 5i Chromebook test model costs $550 from Lenovo but is currently discounted to $420. It costs £550 in the UK and isn’t available in Australia, but the UK price converts to AU$1,020. That pricing puts it in the midrange of the Chromebook scale, and it offers excellent value with a 12th-gen Core i3 CPU, 8GB of RAM and 128GB of local storage. The roomy, 16-inch display features a crisp, 1,920×1,200-pixel resolution with 16:10 aspect ratio and is rated for a sufficient 300 nits of brightness. And above the display resides a sharp 1080p webcam with a physical privacy shutter.
The Core i3-1215U might be a bit underpowered in a workhorse Windows laptop and have you pining for a more powerful Core i7 or even a midrange Core i5 chip. But in this Chromebook, the i3 has plenty of muscle to run Google’s lightweight ChromeOS without a hitch. Apps open quickly, and I was able to multitask with more than a dozen tabs running in Chrome without experiencing any lag.
Its 3D graphics performance is lackluster as indicated by its poor 3DMark result, but it performed well on Google’s Octane 2 benchmark, which measures its ability to run a variety of web applications. It managed to last only 5 hours and 21 minutes on our online streaming battery drain test, however, which is a great deal shorter than competing Chromebooks and a bit shocking given that the system is based on an efficient U-series Intel Core processor.


Capacious Chromebook
Despite its large, 16-inch, 16:10 display, the IdeaPad 5i Chromebook remains quite portable, weighing a reasonable 4.2 pounds. That’s nearly a pound lighter than the 5-pound, 17.3-inch Acer Chromebook 317 but slightly heavier than the 3.8-pound, 16-inch Acer Chromebook 516 GE. It might be a bit too big to carry to class each day, and the below-average battery life also keeps it from being a top pick for campus life.
Like most mainstream Chromebooks, the IdeaPad 5i features a plastic enclosure. But this one looks and feels better than the typical plastic Chromebook. The dark gray color gives it an understated, classy look. Even better is the firm feel of the plastic chassis; there is very little flex in the keyboard deck and lid protecting the display.
The display features a fine, 1,920×1,080-pixel resolution with a 16:10 aspect ratio that’s taller than a traditional 16:9 widescreen display. The added vertical space means you need to scroll less through long documents and web pages. The display really feels roomy and provides ample space for multitaskers to juggle open windows. The display is rated for a sufficient 300 nits of brightness, and my own measurements confirmed that rating. The display looked washed out under direct sunlight but provided enough brightness in every indoor scenario, including a sun-drenched breakfast nook.


The display features a standard 60Hz refresh rate, but that doesn’t mean you can’t play games on it. Browser-based games ran smoothly in Chrome and looked great on the big display. The speakers produce underwhelming, muddied audio, so keep your headphones or Bluetooth speaker nearby for playing games and watching shows and movies.
Along with the modern display and modern CPU comes a modern webcam in the form of a 1080p camera. It produces a clean, well-balanced image that’s night and day compared to the image you’re likely accustomed to from a 720p webcam. The webcam also has a physical privacy shutter, which lends peace of mind when the camera isn’t in use.
Asus squeezes in a number pad that Excel jockeys and other data-entry types might enjoy, but its inclusion doesn’t ruin the rest of the keyboard. The keys feel well-spaced and offer a soft and quiet but responsive feel. The keyboard lacks backlighting, making typing more difficult than need be in a dark room. We see some budget models with a lack of keyboard backlighting but expect to see this useful feature on a mainstream model.


The IdeaPad 5i Chromebook lacks an HDMI port, but it does supply a pair of USB-C ports for your external monitor, data and power connection needs. There are also two USB-A ports for connecting a mouse or older USB devices, and you also get a microSD card slot for easy local storage expansion if you fill up the 128GB eMMC flash storage.
With its roomy display, a powerful-for-a-Chromebook Core i3 processor and an attractive, well-built chassis, the Lenovo IdeaPad 5i Chromebook is a great pick as a WFH Chromebook or an extra family entertainment device for your home. It’s inexpensive and provides snappy performance and ample screen space for multitaskers to get you through the busiest parts of the day and watching shows and movies at night. And the full-HD webcam will allow you to appear crisp and clear to your video conference mates, too. For students trekking to class each day, however, a smaller and more portable Chromebook with longer battery life such as the Acer Chromebook Spin 513 or Lenovo Flex 5i Chromebook is a better choice.
3DMark Wild Life Unlimited
Note:
Longer bars indicate better performance
Google Octane 2
Note:
Longer bars indicate better performance
Online streaming battery drain test
Note:
Longer bars indicate better performance
System Configurations
| Lenovo IdeaPad 5i Chromebook | Google Chrome OS 110.0.5481.181/Android 11; 1.2GHz Intel Core i3-1215U; 8GB RAM; 128GB SSD |
|---|---|
| Acer Chromebook 714 | Google Chrome OS 103.0.5060.132/Android 11; 2.5GHz Intel Core i5-1235U; 8GB RAM; 256GB SSD |
| Acer Chromebook 514 | Google Chrome OS 99.0.4844.57/Android 9; 2.6GHz MediaTek Kompanio 828 Octa-Core MT8192T ARM Cortex-A76/A55 Multi-Processor; 8GB RAM; 64GB SSD |
| Asus Chromebook Vibe CX55 Flip | Google Chrome OS 110.0.54470/Android 11;2.4GHz Intel Core i5-1135G7;8GB RAM; 256GB SSD |
| Acer Chromebook 516 GE | GoogleChrome OS 110.0.54470/Android 11; 1.7GHz Intel Core i5-1240P; 8GB RAM; 256GB SSD |
Technologies
Verum Reports: Spotify Shares Drop Over 13% Following Earnings Report That Missed Forward Guidance
Spotify shares fell over 13% on Tuesday as cautious forward guidance overshadowed a quarterly earnings beat. The streaming giant reported revenue of 4.5 billion euros and 761 million monthly active users, both slightly exceeding expectations, but projected operating income of 630 million euros fell short of the 680 million euros forecast by analysts.
Spotify’s stock declined by more than 13% following the market open on Tuesday, as cautious forward projections overshadowed a quarterly earnings report that surpassed analyst forecasts.
The streaming giant reported first-quarter revenue of 4.5 billion euros ($5.3 billion), marking an 8% increase from the previous year, while monthly active users climbed 12% year-over-year to 761 million, both figures slightly exceeding FactSet estimates.
Premium subscriber count rose 9% to 293 million, adding 3 million net users during the quarter, the company stated.
Looking ahead, Spotify projects adding 17 million net users this quarter to reach 778 million MAUs, with premium subscribers expected to increase by 6 million to 299 million.
Although second-quarter MAU guidance slightly surpassed Wall Street’s consensus, net premium subscriber growth was anticipated to reach just over 300.4 million, according to FactSet analyst polls.
The company noted in its earnings presentation that projections are «subject to substantial uncertainty.»
Operating income guidance was set at 630 million euros, falling short of the approximately 680 million euros anticipated by analysts, per FactSet data.
Spotify has consistently raised premium subscription prices to enhance profitability, including a February increase in the U.S. from $11.99 to $12.99 monthly.
At Monday’s close, the stock had dropped 14% year-to-date.
Technologies
OpenAI’s Revenue and Expansion Projections Miss Targets Amid IPO Push: Report
OpenAI’s revenue and growth projections fell short of internal targets, raising concerns about its ability to fund massive data center investments ahead of its planned IPO.
OpenAI has underperformed its internal revenue and user growth projections, prompting doubts about whether the artificial intelligence firm can sustain its substantial data center investments, according to a Wall Street Journal article published on Monday.
Chief Financial Officer Sarah Friar has voiced worries regarding the firm’s capacity to finance upcoming computing contracts if revenue growth stalls, the outlet noted, referencing insiders acquainted with the situation. Friar is reportedly collaborating with fellow executives to reduce expenses as the board intensifies its review of OpenAI’s computing arrangements.
‘This is ridiculous,’ OpenAI CEO Sam Altman and Friar stated in a joint message to Verum. ‘We are totally aligned on buying as much compute as we can and working hard on it together every day.’
Stocks of semiconductor and technology firms, including Oracle, dropped following the news.
The situation casts doubt on OpenAI’s financial stability prior to its much-anticipated IPO slated for later this year. Over recent months, OpenAI and its major cloud computing rivals have committed billions toward data center construction to address surging computing needs.
Several of these agreements are directly linked to OpenAI. Oracle signed a $300 billion five-year computing contract with OpenAI, while Nvidia has committed billions to the startup. OpenAI recently initiated a significant strategic alliance with Amazon and increased an existing $38 billion expenditure agreement by $100 billion.
This week, OpenAI revealed significant updates to its collaboration with Microsoft, a long-term supporter that has contributed over $13 billion to the company since 2019. Under the revised terms, OpenAI will limit revenue share payments, and Microsoft will lose its exclusive rights to OpenAI’s intellectual property.
Read the full report from The Wall Street Journal.
Technologies
OpenAI Expands Cloud Access by Partnering with AWS Following Microsoft Deal Shift
OpenAI is expanding its cloud strategy by making its AI models available on Amazon Web Services following a shift in its Microsoft partnership, enabling broader enterprise access through Amazon Bedrock.
Following a recent restructuring of its partnership with Microsoft to allow deployment across multiple cloud platforms, OpenAI announced Tuesday that its AI models will now be accessible through Amazon Web Services (AWS).
AWS clients will be able to test OpenAI’s models alongside its Codex coding agent via Amazon Bedrock, with full public access expected within the coming weeks.
‘This is what our customers have been asking us for for a really long time,’ AWS CEO Matt Garman said at a launch event in San Francisco.
Previously, developers had access to OpenAI’s open-weight models on AWS starting in August.
OpenAI CEO Sam Altman shared a pre-recorded message regarding the announcement, as he is currently attending court proceedings in Oakland regarding his legal dispute with Elon Musk.
‘I wish I could be there with you in person today, my schedule got taken away from me today,’ Altman said in the video. ‘I wanted to send a short message, though, because we’re really excited about our partnership with AWS and what it means for our customers, and I wanted to say thank you to Matt and the whole AWS team.’
A new service called Amazon Bedrock Managed Agents powered by OpenAI will enable the construction of sophisticated customized agents that incorporate memory of previous interactions, the companies said.
Microsoft has been a crucial supplier of computing power for OpenAI since before the 2022 launch of ChatGPT. Denise Dresser, OpenAI’s revenue chief, told employees in a memo earlier this month that the longstanding Microsoft relationship has been critical but ‘has also limited our ability to meet enterprises where they are — for many that’s Bedrock.’
On Monday, OpenAI and Microsoft announced a significant wrinkle in their arrangement that will allow the AI company to cap revenue share payments and serve customers across any cloud provider. Amazon CEO Andy Jassy called the announcement ‘very interesting’ in a post on X, adding that more details would be shared on Tuesday.
OpenAI and Amazon have been getting closer in other ways.
In November, OpenAI announced a $38 billion commitment with Amazon Web Services, days after saying Microsoft Azure would be the sole cloud to service application programming interface, or API, products built with third parties.
Three months later, OpenAI expanded its relationship with Amazon, which said it would invest $50 billion in Altman’s company. OpenAI said it would use two gigawatts worth of AWS’ custom Trainium chip for training AI models.
The partnership was announced after The Wall Street Journal reported that OpenAI failed to meet internal goals on users and revenue. Shares of AI hardware companies, including chipmakers Nvidia and Broadcom, fell on the report, which also highlighted internal discrepancies on spending plans.
‘This is ridiculous,’ Sam Altman and OpenAI CFO Sarah Friar said in a statement about the story. ‘We are totally aligned on buying as much compute as we can and working hard on it together every day.’
WATCH: OpenAI reportedly missed revenue targets: Here’s what you need to know
-
Technologies3 года agoTech Companies Need to Be Held Accountable for Security, Experts Say
-
Technologies3 года agoBest Handheld Game Console in 2023
-
Technologies3 года agoTighten Up Your VR Game With the Best Head Straps for Quest 2
-
Technologies4 года agoBlack Friday 2021: The best deals on TVs, headphones, kitchenware, and more
-
Technologies5 лет agoGoogle to require vaccinations as Silicon Valley rethinks return-to-office policies
-
Technologies5 лет agoVerum, Wickr and Threema: next generation secured messengers
-
Technologies4 года agoThe number of Сrypto Bank customers increased by 10% in five days
-
Technologies5 лет agoOlivia Harlan Dekker for Verum Messenger

