Lenovo IdeaPad Flex 5 14: Excellent Value

The Lenovo IdeaPad Flex 5 14 punches far above its weight.

- TOM BRANT

This $600 2-in-1 convertible laptop offers better computing performance than many competitors that cost more than twice as much. It’s also got decent physical connectivity options, a sturdy, well-designed chassis, and a comfortable keyboard. While the Flex 5’s 14-inch display could be brighter and it could stand to lose a few ounces, it’s nevertheless a screaming-good value and an excellent mainstream laptop.

MORE FLEXIBLE THAN A CLAMSHELL

The Flex 5’s 360-degree hinge makes it more flexible than a conventional clamshell laptop. By folding the hinge past 180 degrees, you can prop the notebook up like a tent, rest it on the keyboard portion like an easel, and even fold it completely flat and use it as a tablet.

This flexibility isn’t unique to the Flex 5: Lenovo pioneered the 2-in-1 convertible laptop concept, and it offers a handful of such laptop models at all price ranges. Because a 360-degree hinge needs to be sturdy, it often results in a bulkier chassis, which is generally true of the less expensive convertibles that Lenovo and many other laptop makers sell. The Flex 5 measures 0.82 by 12.7 by 8.6 inches (HWD) and weighs 3.3 pounds, which just barely qualifies it as an ultraportable.