The Lenovo IdeaPad 3 is a budget-friendly choice, less expensive with moderate performance suitable for everyday tasks, and offers a lighter, more portable design. In contrast, the Lenovo Legion Slim 7, pricier, provides superior performance for intensive tasks like 3D rendering, machine learning, and gaming; it also features a higher-quality display and larger screen size but is less portable due to a heavier build. Give Feedback
this description is based on the product variant with some specs and product variant with some specs. At the time of writing, the variant with some specs cost some dollars and the variant with some specs cost some dollars.
Advantages of the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14"
Very good portability
Very good battery life
Advantages of the Lenovo Legion Slim 7 16"
Very good for general use
Very good for engineering and design
Very good for gaming and AI
Very good for software development
Very good for content creation
Very good overall display quality
Good overall build quality
Very good speakers
Very good keyboard
Key differences
General Use
6.9/10
8.2/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
313.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
502.0 nits
10.0 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
7.0 Hours
6.5/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
8.5/10
8.2/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
7.5/10
The Lenovo Legion Slim 7 16" is very good for general use, while the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14" is only fair.
The Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14" fares as fair for general use primarily due to its modest CPU and RAM, which are sufficient for everyday tasks but may lack in more demanding situations, coupled with a standard screen quality and size. In contrast, the Lenovo Legion Slim 7 16" is rated very good for general use, with a stronger CPU, double the RAM, a larger and higher quality screen, better battery life, and superior handling of heat and noise, although it is less portable and has a shorter battery life compared to the IdeaPad due to its gaming-oriented design.
Gaming and AI
6.0/10
8.2/10
3.6/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
8.3/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
240Hz
No
SUPPORTS DLSS
Yes
No
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
Yes
9.5/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
7.5/10
The Lenovo Legion Slim 7 16" is very good for gaming and AI, while the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14" is only fair.
The Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14" has an integrated GPU and a standard screen refresh rate, making it less suitable for demanding gaming and 3D applications, while the Lenovo Legion Slim 7 16" includes a dedicated Nvidia GPU and a high refresh rate screen, granting it superior performance and fluidity for gaming and 3D tasks.
Engineering and Design
6.1/10
8.6/10
4.6/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.1/10
3.6/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
8.3/10
8.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
The Lenovo Legion Slim 7 16" is very good for engineering and design, while the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14" is only fair.
The Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14" has modest specifications with a mid-range CPU and integrated graphics, making it adequate for less demanding engineering and design tasks, alongside a standard screen resolution and quality that's sufficient for general use.
Content Creation
7.1/10
8.3/10
4.6/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.1/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
8.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The Lenovo Legion Slim 7 16" is very good for content creation, while the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14" is good.
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
7.1/10
8.0/10
4.6/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.1/10
8.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
6.5/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
8.5/10
The Lenovo Legion Slim 7 16" is very good for software development, while the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14" is good.
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.
Screen Quality
6.4/10
8.7/10
14.0in
SIZE
16.0in
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
240Hz
313.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
502.0 nits
The Lenovo Legion Slim 7 has a better screen than the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14" for general use, gaming and AI, engineering and design, content creation, and software development.
The Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14" offers a decent display for everyday tasks and some design work due to its resolution and brightness, which are sufficient for most non-specialist tasks, but it lacks the wide color gamut needed for precise color work. The Lenovo Legion Slim 7 16" boasts a higher-quality display with better resolution, brightness, and wider color gamut, making it excellent for engineers and designers who depend on color accuracy and detail. However, the Legion Slim 7's lower refresh rate falls short for 3D gaming, where smoother motion provided by a higher refresh rate is crucial for optimal gameplay experience.
Battery
10.0 Hours
7.0 Hours
The Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14" has 10 hours of battery life. The Lenovo Legion Slim 7 has 7 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
Very Good
Good
14.0in
SIZE
16.0in
3.1 lbs
WEIGHT
4.4 lbs
0.7in
THICKNESS
0.6in
The Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14" has very good portability, while the Lenovo Legion Slim 7 16" has good portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Build Quality
6.5/10
7.6/10
The Lenovo Legion Slim 7 16" has good build quality, while the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14" has only fair build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$490
$1,680
$0
$500
$1,000
$1,500
$2,000
$2,500
The Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14" has a price of $490 and the Lenovo Legion Slim 7 16" costs $1,680.
"The low-priced IdeaPad 3 14 delivers on core functionality. Lenovo's IdeaPad 3 14 meets all the basic requirements for an inexpensive office laptop. The matte IPS display is bright enough, the performance is high for the class, and the input devices are rock solid. In addition, the mostly quiet operation including the useful performance modes, cool surface temperatures, easy maintainability as well as expandable working and mass storage all contribute to the IdeaPad 3 14's value proposition."
"The Lenovo Legion Slim 7 is a slim Legion notebook that is just as excellent with Nvidia & Intel. However, the Legion Slim 7i slightly sullied by lacklustre battery life. You get a slim aluminium chassis, great input devices, decent port selection, fast high-quality WQXGA display and great performance. Supporting Thunderbolt 4 is one advantage of the Intel/Nvidia model tested in this review. Moreover, this variant has slightly higher CPU performance as well as better GPU performance in certain applications (e.g. CUDA-based apps). The Lenovo Legion S7i is thin, premium and performant – but less efficient than its AMD counterpart."
Get a great deal on the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14" or the Lenovo Legion Slim 7 16"
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.
By the numbers
380
Laptops evaluated
48,640
Laptops stats compiled
13
Proprietary Laptops ratings developed
100,995
Recommendations made
21,883
Consumer hours saved
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.