This premium Lenovo laptop is nearly checks all the boxes for me – including battery life

If there’s one thing you can expect from Lenovo, it is a solid work laptop that is sure to impress. Over the past couple of weeks, I had the opportunity to try out the company’s latest convertible device: the Yoga 9i 2-in-1 Aura Edition, one of Lenovo’s new lines of laptops that utilize artificial intelligence in interesting ways.

The term “Aura Edition” refers to a series of AI features that aim to enhance the user experience. For the sake of brevity, I won’t go into every single one in detail, but I will highlight the tools I enjoyed the most.

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Through the Smart Connect app, you can activate Aura Smart Share to connect a smartphone to the laptop and transfer files between them. I was able to move a picture from my phone to the computer in a matter of seconds. You will need to install Smart Connect on your mobile device for this process to work. Once done, the interaction between the two devices is seamless.

There is also a collection of optimization features called Smart Modes. According to Lenovo, these modes allow the laptop to deliver posture checks, eye wellness warnings, and strength device security from outside forces. 

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As a disclaimer, I was unfortunately unable to try out these features due to a software bug with my review unit. I informed Lenovo of this issue, and am set to receive another unit, where I will hopefully be able to experience the Smart Modes. Once I do, I’ll update this story with the new information.

Meanwhile, here’s why you should still care about the Yoga 9i 2-in-1 Aura Edition laptop.

Working in comfort

On the surface, the Yoga 9i Aura has a similar design to the 10th-gen Yoga Slim 9i. They’re both slim, lightweight laptops with rounded corners and a vibrant OLED touchscreen. The keyboard is equally as comfortable. Like before, the keys stretch from end to end, are evenly spaced out, and are covered in a soft matte material. The four buttons on the far side make a return, too. 

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You have Smart Power at the top for changing performance profiles on the file, Audio Profile to adjust audio profiles, and Eye Care Mode to tone down the amount of blue light sent out. And that’s pretty much where the similarities end. Notable differences between them make me like the newer Yoga model more.

You’ll notice the laptop is in a different color, sporting dark Cosmic Blue rather than Tidal Teal. I prefer the teal colorway, although the space-inspired hue is pretty nice. The back of the screen isn’t ultra-glossy either, so fingerprints don’t stand out as much.

I enjoyed the wider trackpad. It takes up about half of the wrist rest and is more comfortable to use. You’re given a wider range of motion, letting you move the cursor from one side of the screen to the other without lifting your finger.

What you get with this system

The Yoga Slim 9i was its CUD (camera under display) design, meaning the webcam was literally inside the screen. It was a bold move that didn’t pan out — the webcam is lackluster. For the Yoga 9 Aura Edition, however, Lenovo went back to a more traditional design by placing its webcam above the screen.

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As a result, video calls are way better on this laptop, even though it only has a 5MP lens. Visuals are a lot less grainy, and there isn’t a weird blue filter over everything. Colors are more accurate. 

The camera ridge isn’t as pronounced on this model, but it still passes the one-finger test. Contrary to its ultrathin form factor, the Yoga 9 Aura Edition houses more ports than its counterpart. You’ll find two Thunderbolt 4 inputs, a USB-C port, a USB-A input, and a headphone jack. 

A pair of speakers is on the bottom. Normally, I would complain about this placement since it would muffle the sound. Thankfully, Lenovo placed another speaker on the laptop’s hinge, so even if you push the display all the way back, audio will come through crystal clear. 

Paired with the powerful speaker is a vibrant 2.8K OLED touchscreen supported by multiple image-enhancing software. This includes, but is not limited to, an anti-glare coating, a refresh rate of 120Hz for smooth animations, and Display HDR True Black 1000 for dark shadows. In plain English, all this means that the screen is a visual marvel.

Lightweight performance

The Yoga 9i Aura Edition falls behind the 10th-gen Yoga Slim 9i in terms of performance. My review unit housed an Intel Core Ultra 7 258V processor, 32GB of RAM, and an Intel Arc graphics card. The other laptop had a similar configuration. Below is a table comparing the two devices across various benchmark tests.

These numbers show that the Yoga 9 Aura Edition isn’t as adept at processing heavy workloads or rendering images. That said, it is still a capable machine. I performed my usual 50-tab test, opening a bunch of web pages, Amazon listings, and YouTube live streams to see how well it could handle everything.

And I’m happy to say it did mostly great. I was able to hop between multiple 4K YouTube videos without much issue. However, once I got closer to 50 tabs, I did begin to experience some slowdown.

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The nice thing about this hardware is that it’s not too demanding on the battery. Under Best Power Efficiency, I managed to get the Yoga 9i to last almost 12 hours on a single charge before it died. Recharge times are pretty fast, too. A 30-minute charge brought the battery up to 43%.

ZDNET’s buying advice

Lenovo’s Yoga 9i 2-in-1 Aura Edition is currently on sale with prices starting at $1,512. On the company’s website, you have a few customization options. Instead of a 512GB SSD and a 2.8K OLED touchscreen, you can elect to have a 1TB SSD with a 4K OLED touchscreen. Be aware that doing so will increase the final price.

If you want a better-performing laptop and don’t mind a lesser-quality webcam, I highly suggest the aforementioned Yoga Slim 9i. It’s a bit more expensive, but worth it for the performance boost. If you’re looking for something outside of the Lenovo ecosystem, I recommend the HP EliteBook X G1a. It’s a fantastic ultrabook that boasts a slim design and a 3K OLED touchscreen.