Lenovo LOQ - The Best Budget Gaming Laptop?

Summary

This video provides an in-depth review of the Lenovo Lock, a budget-friendly gaming laptop priced at $699. The reviewer highlights the laptop's solid design, comparable to the Legion 5 Pro, with decent build quality and port options. While the display and keyboard are praised for their quality, concerns are raised about the older CPU and the inconsistent performance of the Intel Arc GPU, especially compared to the RTX 4050. Battery life is also seen as a drawback. Overall, the reviewer suggests opting for a model with an Nvidia RTX 4050 for better value and performance.

Takeaways

• 💻 Lenovo Lock is a great budget gaming laptop, but choosing the right specs is crucial for a good experience.
• 🖥️ The laptop resembles the Lenovo Legion 5 Pro but has a plastic chassis instead of aluminum, maintaining a durable feel despite some fingerprint issues.
• ⚖️ Weighing 5.25 lbs, it's not the lightest laptop, but it's still easy to move around.
• 🔌 The ports are positioned at the back for convenience, similar to more expensive models, with a 170W charging brick, USB-A ports, RJ45, HDMI, and USB-C (not Thunderbolt).
• 🔑 The keyboard is identical to the Legion 5 Pro, but the right-side control key is replaced with a co-pilot key for AI access.
• 🎨 The 16:9, 1080p display offers good color accuracy and 313 nits of brightness, making it a decent screen for the price.
• 🎧 The 720p webcam and bottom speakers are subpar, with the webcam blowing out lighting and the speakers being hollow and quiet.
• 🎮 The Intel Arc GPU is inconsistent, struggling with certain games like Dirt 5, but performing decently with others, sometimes matching the RTX 4050.
• 🛠️ Internal components are well laid out, with upgradeable RAM and storage slots, but the 60Wh battery only lasts around 4 hours.
• ⚠️ For the same price ($699), you can get a Lenovo Lock with an Nvidia RTX 4050 and AMD Ryzen 7000, which would offer better performance and battery life, making it the preferable choice.

Q & A

What is the primary selling point of the Lenovo Lock laptop mentioned in the script?

The primary selling point of the Lenovo Lock laptop is its affordable price of $699, making it a budget-friendly option with decent gaming and productivity features.

What are the key design features of the Lenovo Lock laptop?

The Lenovo Lock laptop has a durable plastic build that looks similar to the Lenovo Legion 5 Pro. It weighs 5.25 lbs, has a clean design with most ports located at the back, and includes an outward-facing webcam.

What type of display does the Lenovo Lock offer?

The Lenovo Lock comes with a 16:9 display with a 1920x1080 resolution. It offers good color accuracy and brightness (313 nits), making it a respectable panel for its price range.

What are the limitations of the Lenovo Lock's display?

The display has a slightly wobbly hinge, which could have been tighter. It's also not 16:10 like other higher-end models, but still performs well for a 1080p screen.

How does the Lenovo Lock keyboard compare to higher-end models?

The keyboard on the Lenovo Lock is almost identical to the Legion 5 Pro. It has the same key feel and travel distance, but lacks customizable RGB lighting, offering only a white backlight.

What is the performance of the Lenovo Lock in terms of its CPU and GPU?

The Lenovo Lock uses a 12th gen Intel i5 HX CPU and an Intel Arc A370M dedicated GPU. While the CPU handles basic tasks well, the GPU's performance is inconsistent, struggling with some games and tasks compared to Nvidia’s RTX 4050.

How does the Lenovo Lock handle gaming performance?

Gaming performance on the Lenovo Lock is inconsistent due to the Intel Arc GPU. Some games perform decently, while others like Dirt 5 failed to run. The GPU doesn't compete well with Nvidia's RTX 4050, making the $699 price harder to justify.

What are the drawbacks of the Lenovo Lock's battery life?

The Lenovo Lock's 60W-hour battery is a disappointment, offering only around 4 hours of battery life. There is room for a larger battery, but it was not included.

What are the upgrade options available for the Lenovo Lock?

The Lenovo Lock offers upgradeable RAM and storage. It comes with a 12GB DIMM, which can be upgraded to 24GB by adding another DIMM. There is also a second slot for expanding storage.

Why might someone choose an Nvidia RTX 4050 version of this laptop instead of the Intel Arc version?

The Nvidia RTX 4050 version, paired with an AMD Ryzen 7000 CPU, offers more consistent and faster performance, better efficiency, and longer battery life for the same $699 price, making it a better overall option than the Intel Arc version.

Outlines

00:00

💻 Budget-Friendly Gaming Laptop: Lenovo Lock Review

This paragraph introduces the Lenovo Lock laptop, a budget option priced at $699, which is compared to the more premium Legion 5 Pro. It highlights its design, including a durable plastic chassis, similar to higher-end models, and its port setup featuring a mix of USB, HDMI, and audio jacks, positioned for convenience. The display can lay flat at 180°, though it has a slight wobble. The keyboard is nearly identical to the Legion 5 Pro's, and the touchpad, while functional, is unsymmetrical. The paragraph warns about choosing the wrong spec for the $699 model, emphasizing that the performance may not feel like money well spent.

05:01

🎮 Performance and Gaming Limitations of Lenovo Lock

This section focuses on the laptop's performance, powered by a 12th-gen i5 CPU and an Intel Arc GPU. The processor's single-core and multi-core speeds are discussed, with the latter keeping pace with newer processors despite the CPU's age. The main issue lies in the inconsistency of the Intel Arc GPU, which struggles with some games and fails to compete with Nvidia RTX 4050, making it unreliable for gaming. The speaker performance is also criticized for being hollow and quiet, and while the laptop handles basic tasks like Photoshop and light productivity, it isn't ideal for CPU-heavy tasks like Premiere Pro.

Keywords

💡Lenovo Lock

Lenovo Lock is the featured budget gaming laptop in the video. It is praised for offering good features for its price point, but the narrator cautions viewers to choose the right specifications for the best value. The video emphasizes the balance between price and performance in selecting the correct model.

💡Budget gaming laptop

A budget gaming laptop is a laptop designed to handle gaming tasks at a lower price point. In the video, the Lenovo Lock is positioned as a budget option, priced at $699. The narrator warns that while the laptop is affordable, choosing the right components is crucial to getting good performance.

💡Intel Arc GPU

The Intel Arc GPU is a dedicated graphics processor used in the reviewed Lenovo Lock model. The video highlights the inconsistency of this GPU, noting that while it performs well in some games, it falls behind in others, especially when compared to Nvidia RTX GPUs. This inconsistency makes it a less reliable choice for gaming performance.

💡Nvidia RTX 4050

The Nvidia RTX 4050 is another GPU option available in similarly priced Lenovo Lock models. The video explains that the RTX 4050 provides better and more consistent gaming performance compared to the Intel Arc GPU, making it the better choice for users at the same $699 price point.

💡12th Gen i5 CPU

The 12th Gen i5 CPU refers to the processor in the reviewed Lenovo Lock laptop. The video mentions that while the CPU is slightly outdated, its performance is sufficient for basic tasks like Photoshop and light productivity. However, it struggles with more demanding applications like video editing in Premiere Pro.

💡16:9 display

The 16:9 display is the screen aspect ratio of the Lenovo Lock laptop. The video notes that the laptop features a traditional 16:9 aspect ratio, unlike newer gaming laptops with 16:10 displays. The 1920x1080 resolution is acceptable for the price, with decent color accuracy and brightness for a mid-range laptop.

💡RGB lighting

RGB lighting refers to the customizable colored lighting on the laptop's keyboard. In the video, it is noted that the base model of the Lenovo Lock does not have customizable RGB lighting; it only has a single color, white, with three different brightness levels. This limitation is part of the laptop's budget design.

💡Battery life

Battery life is a critical consideration in portable devices like laptops. The Lenovo Lock's battery life is mentioned as a drawback, lasting only about four hours on a charge due to its 60Wh battery. The video points out that this is one of the sacrifices made to keep the laptop affordable.

💡Cooling system

The cooling system in the Lenovo Lock consists of heat pipes and fans designed to keep the laptop cool during gaming sessions. The video praises the cooling system for being adequate, with reasonable fan noise, even though the laptop gets louder in performance mode. The setup ensures stable temperatures during high-performance tasks.

💡Upgradability

Upgradability refers to the ability to enhance the laptop’s components, such as RAM and storage. In the video, the Lenovo Lock is commended for its upgradability options, like adding more RAM or storage through available slots. This feature allows users to extend the laptop's usefulness as their needs grow.

Highlights

The Lenovo laptop looks similar to the Legion 5 Pro, though it has a plastic chassis instead of aluminum.

It weighs about 5.25 lbs, making it portable enough for regular use.

The laptop features multiple ports, including a 170-watt power connector, USB-A ports, HDMI, RJ45, and USB-C (non-Thunderbolt).

The keyboard design is identical to the Legion 5 Pro, including a numeric keypad and three levels of brightness adjustment.

It has a 1920x1080p 16:9 display with good color accuracy and 313 nits brightness, making it comparable to more expensive laptops.

The laptop uses a 12th-gen Intel i5 CPU paired with an Intel A530M GPU, 12GB DDR4 memory, and 512GB storage.

The GPU's inconsistent performance is a downside, struggling with certain games like Dirt 5, and lagging behind competitors like the RTX 4050.

Despite an older CPU, the laptop is acceptable for basic productivity tasks like Photoshop but struggles with video editing on Premiere Pro.

Cooling is managed well, with decent fan noise, good airflow, and copper heat pipes.

The 60Wh battery is underwhelming, providing around four hours of battery life.

The webcam is 720p and results in an overexposed image, making it only moderately usable for video calls.

The speakers are described as hollow and not very loud, making them one of the weakest features.

It offers expandable storage with a second NVMe slot and upgradeable RAM, which can be increased to 24GB.

The laptop is a decent option for $699 but pales in comparison to similarly priced models with better GPUs, such as the Lenovo model with an Nvidia RTX 4050.

The overall verdict suggests opting for a Lenovo model with an Nvidia RTX 4050 and an AMD Ryzen 7000 CPU for more consistent and efficient performance at the same price point.

Transcripts

so you can't afford a more expensive

gaming laptop your budget is $6.99

Lenovo lock is now on your short list

which it should be because there's a lot

to like about this laptop but you got to

be careful which spec you choose if you

choose the wrong one that

$699 might not feel like good money

spent and look like this is a beautiful

product like you look at this laptop it

looks a lot like the legion 5 Pro

doesn't have an aluminum chassis like

the legion 5 Pro but it looks like it

it's plastic but it's still feels very

durable you do get a little bit of

fingerprints but harder to see because

this is obviously gray it does weigh

about 5.25 lbs so not the lightest

gaming laptop but I still feel like it's

light enough that it's easy to move

around you do have the lock logo on the

corner over here in the exact same

position that you'd have Legion on the

more premium devices and I love the fact

that they stuck all the cables on the

back like they're more expensive models

or at least the ports not the cables but

look you have your power connector which

is 170 wat charging brick you have usba

Port RJ45 HDMI another usba and then on

the right hand side you have another

usba a port combo audio jack camera

switch and then a USB type-c port this

type-c port is not Thunderbolt it does

have the outward facing webcam so it's

super easy to open up with one hand and

then you can obviously lie the display

180° the one thing that I don't like

about this display is it's a tiny bit

bit wobbly I would have loved a slightly

tighter hinge it's not the most wobbly

display I've used but it's a little bit

too much considering that this is an

easy fix now the one thing you'll notice

right away is that this keyboard is

literally identical to the keyboard on

the legion 5 Pro like there's no

difference you have the same feeling

Keys the exact same travel distance you

have the numeric keypad everything is

exactly where it should be the biggest

difference this year is that they got

rid of the control key on the right hand

side and it's now a co-pilot key so you

can quickly access AI now there's bunch

of different options like this is the

base model you can't really change the

RGB it's just basically one color which

is white but it does have three

different levels if you want to reduce

or increase the brightness power button

is over here and this lights up

different colors depending on which

profile you have it on between balanced

and performance performance only works

if you have it plugged in and you have a

touchpad that is not symmetrical with

the rest of the laptop feels okay but it

is obviously plastic sticker placement

is crazy it's like they played pin the

sticker on the laptop and they just you

know put it anywhere they wanted it's

definitely a little on the Crooked side

but the display is not 16 by10 like this

is a traditional

16x9 gaming display and you know what

for $66.99 it's actually not bad like

look it's 1920 x 1080 but the color

gamut is Good Very comparable to other

mid-range laptops even the brightness is

pretty average like 313 nits of

brightness which is actually better than

the assus tough F16 which I reviewed

which is double the price of this laptop

the color accuracy is good like I'd

still be okay doing any sort of design

work on this overall it's a very

respectable panel as for the webcam it

is 720p and this is exactly what it

looks like I'm sure the microphone's

fine but I mean like you know it's just

completely blowing out my forehead so

not the best webcam but it's obviously

usable now my review unit is using an i5

12th gen HX CPU paired with an Intel a

53m dedicated GPU it has 12 GB of ddr4

memory a full HD display and 512 GB of

storage now look they had to make some

sacrifices I'd rather them do it on the

CPU because over the last few years CPU

performance is not that drastic but the

Intel Arc dedicated

GPU is not consistent you know like okay

look let's just get the CPU out of way

single core clock speeds are obviously

slower than what's out today multi-core

speeds does keep up with more newer

processors but it's obviously not the

fastest processor on the market this is

a three-year-old CPU if you're buying

this for any sort of application or

productivity work it'll handle the basic

things just fine Photoshop it does okay

okay Premier Pro not the best since it's

so CPU focused but the interesting thing

comes down to gaming this Intel Arc GPU

is just not consistent I could even run

dirt 5 like it just wouldn't work with

this GPU other games the performance was

decent some games it was tying the RTX

4050 and other games it was just well

behind and I think that's the problem

about this dedicated GPU it has use

cases and it's fine but like it just

doesn't compete with a proper RTX 4050

and like everything else is there like

they did a good job of keeping the

internals fairly cool with decent fan

noise like this thing gets loud if you

obviously have it on performance mode

but you can obviously drop down the fan

noise if you want to keep it quieter if

you're bringing this thing to class even

the tgp is decent like 70 Watts you know

like it's fine but it's still not as

consistent and as fast as a proper

Nvidia rtx450

and I feel like that's what's going to

make this kind of $6.99 price point very

tough to swallow as for the speakers

they're on the bottom and I really don't

want to talk about them because they're

just not that great they don't get very

loud and they're very Hollow now

internally everything is set up

adequately for this type of CPU and GPU

pairing like you have a good amount of

thick copper heat Pipes big fans lots of

space for air flow you do have a

swappable Wi-Fi e card you do have a 512

GB mvmd decent reading rate speeds but

not as fast as today's standards second

slot available over here if you want to

upgrade to a second drive or have more

storage Ram is upgradeable and this is

probably one area you can improve this

laptop immediately like this is a 12 GB

dim I didn't even know they make 12 GB

dims but apparently you can buy a second

one and then increase this to 24 the

battery is kind of disappointing like

this is only a 60w hour battery and the

battery life was pretty poor like only

over 4 hours before needing to charge I

feel like there's a bit more space and

they could have put a bigger battery

inside so here's the thing I think

Lenovo nailed the basics for a good

budget laptop they did not sacrifice the

display usually that's the one thing

other manufacturers do like this is a

good 1080p panel for the price point I'm

okay with him using an older CPU at

$6.99 but I'm not okay with the Intel

Arc GPU it has the bones it has the

skeletal system it's just not the right

spec because for the exact same price of

$6.99 you can buy a Lenova lock with an

Nvidia RTX 450 and an AMD ryzen 7000 CPU

from last year not only is that

processor going to be more efficient and

give you better battery life that Nvidia

rtx450 is going to give you more

consistent performance faster

performance for the exact same price I

don't think this skew should exist

everyone should buy the Nvidia one

instead and you'll be a lot happier for

this price point if you have any

questions let let me know in the comment

section down below like the video if you

liked it subscribe if you haven't

already and I'll see you guys in the

next one