The Lenovo IdeaPad 3 15" has no clear advantages over the ASUS Vivobook 15.
Key differences
Screen Quality
6.3/10
5.2/10
15.6in
SIZE
15.6in
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1366 x 768
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
TN
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
60Hz
250.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
220.0 nits
The ASUS Vivobook 15 has a better screen than the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 15" for general use, gaming and AI, and engineering and design.
The ASUS Vivobook 15 has a better balance of resolution and brightness suitable for daily tasks and some engineering applications but falls short for gaming and 3D due to its standard refresh rate. The Lenovo IdeaPad 3, with lower resolution and brightness, might make for a less vibrant and sharp display, reducing its effectiveness for both everyday and professional tasks like engineering. For tasks where fast-paced visuals are key, neither laptop is ideal, as both lack high refresh rates; the ASUS is closer to meeting the minimal requirements for engineering and design due to slightly better color representation.
The ASUS Vivobook 15 and Lenovo IdeaPad 3 15" are both only fair for general use.
The ASUS Vivobook 15 offers a sharper full-HD screen and potentially smoother multitasking performance due to a newer CPU, but its battery life and screen brightness are modest; portability is good for a 15.6" model but expect to carry the power adapter for longer days.
Gaming and AI
5.9/10
5.8/10
3.6/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
3.6/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1366 x 768
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
60Hz
No
SUPPORTS DLSS
No
No
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
No
7.5/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
9.5/10
The ASUS Vivobook 15 and Lenovo IdeaPad 3 15" are both poor for gaming and AI.
The ASUS Vivobook 15 offers slightly better gaming and 3D performance due to its more capable integrated graphics chip; however, neither the ASUS nor the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 boast dedicated gaming GPUs or high screen refresh rates, both very important for modern gaming. The Lenovo has a lower resolution and lower quality TN panel, which further impacts gaming and 3D applications that benefit from better screen quality and resolution, which are somewhat important.
Engineering and Design
6.1/10
5.8/10
5.8/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
4.2/10
3.6/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
3.6/10
8.0 GB
RAM
8.0 GB
Although they have very similar scores, PerfectRec considers ASUS Vivobook 15 to be only fair for engineering and design, while the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 15" is poor.
The ASUS Vivobook 15, with a superior screen resolution and IPS panel, offers better screen quality crucial for engineering and design work than Lenovo IdeaPad 3 15", which comes with a lower resolution TN panel; this affects the precision and detail one can see. Additionally, the Vivobook's more recent CPU architecture provides an edge over IdeaPad's older CPU, impacting performance during demanding tasks common in engineering software applications.
Content Creation
6.4/10
6.3/10
5.8/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
4.2/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1366 x 768
8.0 GB
RAM
8.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
TN
The ASUS Vivobook 15 and Lenovo IdeaPad 3 15" are both only fair for content creation.
PerfectRec’s Content Creation Score takes into account the many different features of the laptop that make it more or less suitable for photo editing, video editing and other content creation tasks.
Software Development
6.5/10
6.3/10
5.8/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
4.2/10
8.0 GB
RAM
8.0 GB
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1366 x 768
6.7/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
6.5/10
The ASUS Vivobook 15 and Lenovo IdeaPad 3 15" are both only fair for software development.
PerfectRec’s Software Development Score takes into account the many different features of the laptop that make it more or less suitable for software developers.
Battery
6.0 Hours
5.0 Hours
The ASUS Vivobook 15 has 6 hours of battery life. The Lenovo IdeaPad 3 15" has 5 hours of battery life.
Battery life estimate is based on a mix of common use patterns. More portable and higher performing laptops tend to have less battery life.
Portability
Good
Good
15.6in
SIZE
15.6in
3.7 lbs
WEIGHT
3.7 lbs
0.7in
THICKNESS
0.7in
The ASUS Vivobook 15 and Lenovo IdeaPad 3 15" both have good portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Build Quality
7.0/10
6.5/10
Although they have very similar scores, PerfectRec considers ASUS Vivobook 15 to have good build quality, while the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 15" has only fair build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$339
$360
$100
$200
$300
$400
$500
$600
The ASUS Vivobook 15 has a price of $339 and the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 15" costs $360.
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How the ASUS Vivobook 15 and the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 15" compare to other laptops
"The Asus VivoBook 15 is a quiet office notebook with a strong screen. However, the VivoBook 15 still has room for improvement. Office and internet applications as well as simple games do not pose any major challenges for the VivoBook - this is ensured by the built-in combination of Ryzen 7 5700U APU and 16 GB of RAM. Heat and noise emissions are acceptable. But, the laptop has weaknesses that should not be present at this level: lack of keyboard lighting, a slow memory card reader, no fast USB-C port (USB 3.2 Gen 2 or Thunderbolt 4) with Power Delivery and DisplayPort. Battery runtimes can only be described as average."
"The Lenovo IdeaPad 3 is an enduring office notebook with a powerful Ryzen APU. Lenovo's office all-rounder easily handles office and internet applications as well as modest games - the Ryzen 5 5625U APU and 16 GB of RAM make this possible. The CPU and GPU can work at consistently high clock rates. The emission values are okay, but the noise emissions should be lower under medium to full load. The relatively light notebook (approx. 1.6 kg) achieves practical battery runtimes of about 10 to 11 hours."
Get a great deal on the ASUS Vivobook 15 or the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 15"
About ASUS
ASUS, a Taiwanese electronics brand, is one of the largest personal computer vendor by market share. The majority of their laptops are targeted towards personal use or gaming. Their most popular product lines include the budget-friendly VivoBook, more premium ZenBook, and their TUF and ROG gaming laptops, the latter of which has a reputation for excellent gaming performance.
About Lenovo
Lenovo is a Chinese technology company, and one of the largest personal computer vendor. They are well known for a variety of technology products, including laptops. Their consumer series include their entry level IdeaPad and LOQ series and mid-to-high-end Yoga and Legion series. On the business-oriented side, their series include their entry-level ThinkBook series and mid-to-high-end ThinkPad series. Lenovo laptops offer strong performance for reasonable prices, and are often on sale.
This information was produced and vetted by the PerfectRec laptops team. We are a product research and recommendation organization that meticulously reviews and evaluates the latest laptop information and makes it digestible for you.
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About the laptop team
Joe Golden, Ph.D
CEO and Laptops Editor
Joe is an entrepreneur and lifelong electronics enthusiast with a Ph.D in Economics from the University of Michigan.
Jason Lew
Staff Expert & Software Engineer
Jason is a staff expert and software engineer that has been making laptop recommendations for 7 years and moderates one of the largest laptop subreddits.
Chandradeep Chowdhury
Staff Expert & Software Engineer
Chandradeep is a staff expert and software engineer and expert in televisions and monitors. He’s been making monitor recommendations for ten years.
Craig Russell
Laptops Expert
Craig is a UK-based laptops expert. Craig works in IT, where he recommends and supports laptops and PCs for clients and has been recommending laptops on Reddit for five years.