Introduction and design
In a world of tablets, light ultraportables and the thin as heck MacBook Pro 15-inch with Retina display, big laptops have to do more than simply sport bigger screens. There are fewer reasons than ever to buy a big, blocky laptop when smaller machines have gone high resolution. With tinier notebooks housing blazing fast CPUs and enough graphics power to handle light gaming, big clamshells need something extra special.
Billed as the second take on Lenovo's budget home laptop line, the 15.6-inch Lenovo Flex 2 15 surprisingly misses that mark. Users will find neither a top-of-the-line AMD chip like that in the Toshiba Satellite C50D, nor a dedicated GPU like inside the Acer Aspire E1, but the Flex 2 is a thin and light machine for its size.
What's most unique about the Flex 2 15 is that you can flip its touchscreen back 300 degrees. It's a neat feature that turns the laptop into an oversized, Windows 8.1 media screen, but is that reason enough to go for this big lug?
Design
Compared to the Lenovo Flex 15, the sequel shares a very similar design, while at the same time looking like a downgrade in many respects. The original Lenovo Flex's orange siding, which ran around the circumference of the laptop, has been replaced with a decidedly sleeker, black look.
The rubberized finish on the display's back and laptop's bottom panel have been swapped out for plain old plastic. Lastly the unit's interior panel, including the keyboard deck and palm rests, was once aluminum but now has been swapped out with brushed plastic.
One would think these changes were made in service to make the laptop lighter but somehow both models still share the same 5.1 pounds. It isn't bad news all around though: a few refinements have been made, such as doubling up the number of vents on the laptop's left side. Lenovo has also cleaned up the display bezel into one simpler, albeit thicker, glossy strip.
The original Flex design helped make this 15.6-incher look smaller than it actually was, and much of that carried over to the new revision. The dark paint job, coupled with the laptop's tapered design, is as if Lenovo draped the Flex 2 15 in a slinky black dress.
Despite the thin profile, Lenovo managed to fit a host of connections, including a collapsible Ethernet port and a slim optical drive. You'll even find a tasteful power button integrated into the narrow strip along the side of the base.
Getting back to the Lenovo Flex 2 15's marquee feature, you can flip the screen back so that the system sits keyboard down. It's a neat mode that turns the laptop into a dedicated media player or optimizes it for touch-heavy applications.
The only knock I have against this mode is that it's only any good for a stand mode. The Flex 2 15 doesn't have any motion sensors either, to detect when it's been propped up vertically or placed into tent mode, as the Lenovo Yoga 2 11 does.
Wobby inputs
If I were asked to describe the Flex 2 15 in one word, I would say "squishy". Users will encounter a noticeable amount of keyboard flex with every keystroke. This issue isn't limited to the center of the keyboard deck, either. Every key from Escape to the number pad shows the slightest bit of give under every press.
The clickpad is even worse. Clicking either side requires so much pressure that the bottom lip of the surface bends and dips 2 millimeters beneath the palm rest. Even more unsightly is that the trackpad does not sit flush with the rest of the base.
Instead, the lower right tip juts out just above the rest of the keyboard deck. This trackpad was also extremely prone to reading gestures from my wrist. Accidentally pulling out the charms tray became so frequent (and annoying) that I installed TouchFreeze to disable the touch surface while typing.
Specifications and performance
So far, the Flex 2 15 has already proved quite a disappointment. Still, its one of the thinnest and lightest 15-inch models around. While this laptop is just over an inch thick, its unique hinge gives it slightly more depth at 15.04 x 10.87 x 1.06 inches. It's also a smidge wider compared to most 15.6-inch laptops, so it may be a tight squeeze into bags even designed for laptops of this screen size.
By comparison, the AMD-powered Toshiba Satellite C50D is a slightly heftier 5.3-pound system, measuring 14.96 x 9.52 x 1.21 inches. The 4.63 pound Acer Aspire E1 wins this competition, thanks in so small part to its 14-inch panel. Coming under the measuring tape at 13.5 x 9.6 x 1 inches, Acer's is also the easiest to slip into a bag.
Here is the Lenovo Flex 2 15 configuration sent to TechRadar for review:
Spec sheet
CPU: 1.7GHz Intel Core i5-4210U (dual-core, 3MB Cache, up to 2.70 GHz with Turbo Boost)
Graphics: Intel HD 4400
RAM: 6GB (2x 3GB at 1600MHz)
Screen: 15.6-inch, 1920 x 1080, 10 point multitouch touchscreen
Storage: 500GB (with 8GB SSD cache)
Optical drive: 3x DVD burner
Ports: 2x USB 2.0, 1x USB 3.0, 2-in-1 card-reader (SD / MMC), LAN port, HDMI-out, mic/headphone combo jack
Connectivity: Intel Dual Band Wireless-AC 3160 (802.11ac Wi-Fi), Bluetooth 4.0
Camera: Integrated 720p webcam
Weight: 5.1 pounds
Size: 15.04 x 10.87 x 1.06 inches (W x D x H)
To make up for the lack of dedicated graphics, our particular unit was outfitted with a strong Intel Core i7 part, a healthy slathering of RAM and a 500GB HDD turbocharged with an 8GB flash cache. One of the most important upgrades to note here is the Lenovo Flex 2 15 has a full HD 1920 x 1080 resolution screen, whereas the original system was limited to a lackluster 1366 x 768 – a chief complaint we also had with the 14-inch model.
Building this unit to almost the same exact configuration – save for swapping out the review unit's 6GB of RAM for eight – will run users $749 (about £441, AU$796). There's an even better bargain in the Aspire E1 at $599 (about £350, AU$640). That is, if you're willing to sacrifice a bit of screen real estate, as well as FHD resolution, for a dedicated GPU.
Alternatively, for roughly the same £400 (about US$672, AU$722), you could score the Satellite C50, sporting an AMD chip with more cores at a faster clock speed. The Toshiba laptop also has more storage with a 1TB drive. But again, the screen is limited to a barely HD 1366 x 768 pixels.
Benchmarks
3DMark: Ice Storm: 39,141; Cloud Gate: 4264; Fire Strike: 539
Cinebench Graphics : 25.32 fps, CPU : 230 pts
PCMark 8 Home: 2,254 points
PCMark 8 Battery Life: 2 hours, 52 minutes
As expected, the high-end Intel Core i7 helped the Flex 2 15 put up some admirable marks, with a PCMark 8 score of 2,254 points. In terms of real world performance, the processor is more than adequate for multitasking between several applications.
Without a dedicated graphics card, the Flex 2 only managed to scrape by 3DMark's most intensive Fire Strike test with 539 points. Users looking for a light gaming machine would be better served by the Nvidia GeForce GT 820M within the Aspire E1, which completed the same test with 716 points. Surprisingly, the Lenovo's machine fared better on the graphics front than Toshiba's Satellite C50 sporting AMD's Kabini chip, which utilizes the same underlying architecture powering the Xbox One and PS4.
Gaming with a system solely powered by integrated graphics is never a good idea, but as the Cinebench test revealed, there's enough power here to play light 3D games. This is mostly limited to less intense games, like Transistor and Telltale's The Walking Dead series. Blizzard fans won't have any issues running Heartstone at its highest settings or World of Warcraft around 90 fps, with some fine tuning.
Your mobile media hub
Lenovo set out to improve the screen with its sequel to the Lenovo Flex 15 and thankfully made good on that goal. Not only is the screen a glorious full HD panel, it also renders an excellent dynamic range between the deepest blacks to the display's brightest spots.
Details are crisp and colors are perfectly toned. It's the perfect screen for watching everything from every episode of the Simpsons in existence to the dark, gritty scenes of Homeland.
However, there are two annoyances with this display. The first, horizontal viewing angles stop short about 40-degrees from staring at the screen dead on. So, expect to get real cozy with college dorm mates or family members watching next to you.
Secondly, the screen's glossy finish reflects light like a mirror. Even with the brightness set to max, expect to see your own reflection when using this laptop outdoors or near a bare window.
The Lenovo Flex 2 15 also houses some awesome speakers with Dolby Advanced audio. The bass isn't very strong on this set, but it packs enough of a punch to convey the full impact of Gipsy Danger's elbow rocket in Pacific Rim.
An unsurprisingly unsatisfactory battery
Battery life is rarely particularly long with 15.6-inch laptops, and in similar fashion, the Flex 2 15 clocked out after an average 2 hours and 52 minutes in the PCMark 8 battery test. Similarly, the Satellite C50D only lasted for a tiny bit longer at 3 hours and 6 minutes, while the Aspire E1 tapped out after just 2 hours and 40 minutes.
With regular use – including watching an episode of Homeland, playing a quick scene in The Walking Dead Season 2, falling into a deep Guardians of the Galaxy wiki hole and writing the majority of this review – the Lenovo convertible kept going for 3 hours and 26 minutes. It's not impressive, but there's enough in the can get you through a longer class or meeting before plugging in.
Bundled software
There's a lot of bloatware to sort through on the Flex 2 15. The most important items (meaning things users will ever launch) are Lenovo updates to keep their system current with software patches, the OneKey Recovery software, an included copy of PowerDVD 10 and that's about it.
Otherwise, many of the apps are either gimmicky or too limited in functionality to justify their space on the hard drive. Veriface might be a useful utility to automatically lock up the computer, but you can do that in a few clicks. The Point Grab-powered Motion Control adds a bit of gesture recognition as seen on some Samsung SmartTVs, but it's limited to only photos, videos and slideshows.
Verdict
It's clear Lenovo has put its money into the screen for this budget machine. While the Chinese electronics firm has improved the Flex 2 15's screen's since the system's outing last year, it's been done at the cost of making the laptop worse in almost every other way.
This Lenovo transformer ends up offering a great multimedia experience backed by serviceable internals, but is ultimately hampered by inputs that will agonize users until they connect their own keyboard and mouse. At that point the Flex 2 ceases to be a laptop and becomes an all-in-one you can fold up and tote around.
We liked
For the price, the Flex 2 15 offers up a full HD display, and a nice one at that. It's perfect for watching your favorite shows, editing photos or anything else that demands a contrasty display with accurate colors.
Lenovo's 15.6-inch budget machine is a bit more expensive than the Acer Aspire E1 and Toshiba Satellite C50D, but the extra cost gives users a faster and more capable Intel Core i7 processor. The Lenovo is also the only option here that can be outfitted with an SSD cache. While it won't provide true flash memory speeds, the extra oomph should get your system moving faster than a purely mechanical drive.
We disliked
Judged on its own merits, the Flex 2 15 has a thoroughly cheap feel to it even for an all-plastic system. Some of you may want to avoid this laptop even more knowing that Lenovo docked some of the higher quality materials from the Flex's inaugural outing.
But what's worst about the clamshell is the shoddy quality of trackpad. Turning on tapping options is an easy way to avoid the track pad's flimsy buttons, but I can't overlook the way it sticks rises above the rest the palmrest. Similarly, I can take the keyboard flex in stride, but ultimately these are small annoyances that will add up over time, making you hate the Flex 2 15 even more.
Final verdict
As a budget machine, the Lenovo Flex 2 15 offers some very big pluses where many others falter. Users won't find many other $700 transforming notebook options, let alone ones with a 1080p screen. The Acer Aspire R7 comes closest with it's head turning design.
If you can find the room in your budget and still want a transforming notebook, I highly suggest getting a Lenovo Yoga 2 Pro instead. The build quality is leagues better, and while the 13-inch screen is smaller, it sports a much higher 3,200 x 1,800 resolution.
Alternatively, the Microsoft Surface Pro 3 is a good $799 (around £475, AU$863) option that comes with Intel Core i3 chip, 64GB of SSD storage and a 12-inch 2160 x 1440 multi-touch display – plus its two-millimeter thick type cover is actually sturdier than the Flex 2 15's actual keyboard.
Lastly users still craving a 15.6-inch laptop with a full HD display could spend a little bit more for the Dell Inspiron 15 7000. The bottom line here is that – unless you absolutely love the form factor and Lenovo brand – you should look elsewhere for a wallet-friendly, 15-inch laptop.
