26 AUGUST 2019|COMPUTER SHOPPER|ISSUE 378
FORAWHILE,it looked as if the Lenovo
Yoga Book (Shopper348) wasn’t coming back.
The ultra-thin 2-in-1 was out of stock for
months at atime and there was no sign of a
replacement model. Now,however,it’s been
unexpectedly revived –and revamped –with
the release of the Yoga Book C930.
We gave the last Lenovo Yoga Book top
marks forversatility and innovation but
weren’t so keen on its sluggish performance
and virtual HALO keyboard. The Yoga Book
C930 is asignificant step forward, with a
higher displayresolution and E-Ink secondary
displaythat switches between keyboard,
drawing and e-reader modes. The price has
doubled since the last time,however,and
even after testing we’re struggling to
understand why.
TWOFOR ONE
Like all of Lenovo’s Yoga devices,
the Yoga Book C930 is a2-in-1
touchscreen laptop with a360° hinge.
It’s more compact than any other
Yoga, however,weighing adainty
0.75kg and measuring only 9.9mm
thick when closed due to the
absence of aphysical keyboard.
The primary touch displayand
E-Ink displayare both the same size,
at 10.8in, but the former uses a
higher-resolution, full-colour backlit
2,560x1,600 IPS panel. Inside our review model
was adual-core 1.2GHz Intel Core i5-7Y54,
helped along by 4GB RAM. There’s a256GB
SSD,which can be topped up with amicroSD
card up to atotal of 512GB. The old Yoga Book
was sold with the option of either an Android
or Windows operating system, but Lenovo has
killed Android off forthe C930, which runs on
Windows 10 Home exclusively.
To open it, you rap twice on the lid with
your knuckle.This causes the lid to pop
open acrack, and from there the screen can
easily be lifted intoposition. Besides looking
cool, this knock-to-open function is cleverly
designed, using two opposing magnets
which are forced apart by successive taps.
To open the laptop in less dramatic fashion,
you can simply hold down the volume
button on the right-hand edge.
Once it’s open, you’re presented with
the two screens. Above is the 10.8 IPS
display, boxed in
on all sides by
LENOVO
YogaBookC930
★★★★★
£1,300•From http://www.lenovo.com
WINDOWS 10 CONVERTIBLE
bezels that are conspicuously large fora
laptop that was first revealed latein2018.
The webcam also lives above the screen, but
there’s no camera privacy shutter as there is
on the similarly named Lenovo Yoga C930
(Shopper377). There’s also no secondary IR
camera forface unlocking, even though the
first generation Yoga Book had one.
E-INK SPOTS
The E-Ink displayresides where akeyboard
would normally be,and fittingly uses a
tweaked version of the
e-reader screen
tech so that
touch-based
keyboard and
drawing functions
are enabled. A
fingerprint reader
also sits above this
surface,but this
smudges tooeasily,and
doesn’t always work.
Those who are used to traditional laptops
will have atough time adjusting to the Yoga
Book C930’s lack of ports. In addition to adual
microSD and SIM slot on the leftedge,there
are two USB Type-C slots –one on either side
–but one of those will usually be occupied by
the power supply.That leaves you with a
single connector to plug in aperipheral device.
Lenovo hasn’t even provided a3.5mm audio
jack forheadphones, meaning you’ll need to
use an adaptor (not provided) or Bluetooth
headphones to listen to audio privately.
And headphones are recommended,
whether you’re in public or not, because
the audio output of the Yoga C930’s dual
side-mounted speakers could be better.
Although not abysmal, it’s not as loud or
as crisp asound as you’d expect from a
laptop costing over £1,000.
As you’re spending so much, it’s also
disappointing that the Precision Penstylus
isn’t included; instead, it’s a£90 extra. This is
abattery-powered metallic stylus, slightly
longer and thicker than aBic Biro pen, has
VERDICT
Alaptop,tabletande-reader,theYogaBook
C930isa3-in-1–butmasterofnone
