Qualcomm introduced Snapdragon X to be the new budget tier of laptops. So far, we’ve had the Asus Zenbook A14, which hasn’t necessarily delivered on this. But the Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 3x isn’t just a great cheap system — it could be one of the best laptops, period.
For $649 (launching this month), you’re getting a sleek system with plenty of ports, a chip that’s capable of keeping up with your day-to-day productivity, a decent battery capacity (to be tested fully), and a generously spacious keyboard and touchpad.
The display is a little dim in the Barcelona sunlight at MWC 2025, but that didn’t stop me from immediately falling for this system. And at this price, it could be a shout for one of the best budget laptops you can buy.
Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 3x: Specs
Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 3x: What we like
So let’s kick off with three key reasons why I fell in love with the IdeaPad Slim 3x during my time with it.
Slim, sleek and properly useful
Cheap laptops always come with what I call an assumed chunk — namely a bit of heft to the width, usually afforded to it by the use of cheap materials. However, Lenovo has just flipped the script with this rather sleek system with just a 0.7-inch thickness.
Don’t get me wrong, it’s not MacBook Air levels of thin, but this paired with the utilitarian aesthetic really add to this being a nice-looking laptop that you’d be happy to pull out in public without being roasted.
On top of that, Lenovo hasn’t forgotten about the important laptop things. The keyboard feels great to type on, and in a middle-finger salute to anyone else who makes cheap laptops, the touchpad has a nice tactile click and smooth surface.
Plus, the port array (including a full-size SD card slot) is vast and the inclusion of Wi-Fi 7 is huge for a sub-$700 laptop.
Snapdragon X performance
So I was told explicitly that I could not run a benchmark on this new laptop. But that doesn’t mean I can compare it to one that has those numbers, the Asus Zenbook A14.
Did I just throw a whole lot of numbers at you? Yes, but let’s get into what they mean. Numbers like these are middle of the road — exactly as you’d expect from a budget laptop. These equate to strong performance in your day-to-day performance.
Plus, there’s that NPU for all the AI-driven tasks like webcam sharpening and whatnot. Oh, and did I mention the battery efficiency of Qualcomm’s chip? I don’t want to make any presumptions based on the 60 Whr cell, but given how long the A14 lasts, I’m quietly confident these will have a worry-free battery life.
Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 3x: What we don’t like
There is only one thing that is a cause for concern here, and it affects people who have a serious amount of care about display brightness.
Display is on the dim side
I know the above specs mentioned that you could get up to an OLED display kicking out 600Hz of brightness. But for the dirt cheap base price, you’re getting an LCD, and this is a rather dim display.
While taking photos out on the balcony I was on, the max brightness was quickly overwhelmed by the sunlight. Indoors, the screen is crispy and colorful, but just watch out for this if you’re out and about.
Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 3x: Outlook
And that is the early story of the Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 3x — a laptop that’s doing everything right to become one of the best budget laptops you can get.
Of course, I don’t want to say anything for certain until we’ve had this laptop in the lab for our significant amount of testing time. That said, early impressions are good!
Dim display aside, this could be a great low-cost option at a time when we’re all looking for value for money.
