A comparison between Asus Transformer Book Chi T300 and Lenovo Flex 3 outlines some interesting differences between them starting from the design concept. Transformer Book Chi T300 is a detachable laptop introduced by Asus, which when the keyboard dock, that is attached, is a generic laptop and when the keyboard is removed it becomes a tablet. On the other hand, Lenovo Flex 3 is a convertible laptop where the display can be rotated by 360 degrees. Here, the keyboard cannot be detached. Both devices were unveiled at the CES 2015, and both have the latest 5th-generation processors with RAM capacity up to 8 GB. Another major difference is the storage where Transformer Book has pure SSD drives selectable from 64 GB and 128 GB while Lenovo Flex 3 has a hybrid drive made up of 64 GB SSD and 1 TB mechanical drive. When the weight and slimness are considered, Transformer Book Chi T300 is a bit ahead, and the edition of Transformer Book with WQHD display has a comparatively higher resolution. But, on the other hand,Transformer Book Chi T300 is limited to 12.5 inch screen but Lenovo Flex 3 has three screen sizes as 11 inches, 14 inches, and 15 inches.
Asus Transformer Book Chi T300 Review – Features of Asus Transformer Book Chi T300
The latest Transformer Book Chi T300 was unveiled by Asus in CES 2015 where they call it the “World’s Thinnest Detachable Laptop”. This detachability is a very interesting feature. Initially, the device is a laptop, but the keyboard can be detached to convert it to a tablet. This removes the necessity to carry two devices namely a laptop and a tablet separately with you. The device is furnished with Intel 5th Generation processors of the Core M series. Customer has a choice where they can select the processor from Core M 5Y71 or Core M 5T10. Windows 8.1 is pre-installed in the system. RAM capacity can be selected from 4 GB and 8 GB. The storage is facilitated by a SSD of capacity 64 GB or 128 GB. The display is a multi-touch 12.5 inch panel where there are two choices. One is the FHD display with 1920 x 1080 pixels resolution. The other is the superb WQHD display with 2560 x 1440 pixels resolution. Asus claims that the battery can sustain 1080p video playback for 8 hours of time. When the device is detached to turn to the tablet mode, its dimensions are 317.8mm x 191.6mm x 7.6mm and the weight is 720g. When the keyboard is fixed to turn it to a laptop mode, the thickness increases up to 16.5mm, and the weight becomes 1445g.
Lenovo Flex 3 Review – Features of Lenovo Flex 3
In CES 2015, Lenovo unveiled their Flex 3 convertible laptop that features a 360-degree hinge. Lenovo Flex 3 comes as the successor of its previous version Flex 2 and has many improvements and new features. The screen is not detachable, but it is possible to rotate by 360 degrees where the keyboard comes to the back of the screen so that the device is like a tablet. Three sizes are available for the customers namely 11”, 14” and 15”. The screen is a touch screen, but the 11 inch edition has a resolution of only 1, 366 x 768 pixels. The 14 inch and 15 inch editions have HD resolution of 1920 × 1080 pixels. The device is shipped with Windows 8.1. The processor for the 11″ inch edition is not much powerful as it is an Intel Atom processor. However, for 14″ and 15″ inch editions powerful Intel 5th Generation core i series processors can be selected. The RAM capacity is 8 GB, and the storage is a hybrid hard drive which compose of 1 TB of mechanical storage and 64 GB of SSD. For larger laptops,even an edition with Nvidia Graphics is available. The 11 inch edition is 1.4 kg. 14 inch edition has a weight of 1.95 kg.
What is the difference between Asus Transformer Book Chi T300 and Lenovo Flex 3?
• Asus Transformer Book Chi T300 is a detachable Ultrabook where once the keyboard dock is attached it is a laptop and when it is detached it is a tablet. On the other hand, Lenovo Flex 3 is a convertible where the screen can be rotated 360 degrees. So Lenovo Flex 3 when fully rotated the keyboard is at the back of the screen.
• Asus Transformer Book Chi T300 has a screen size of 12.5 inches. Lenovo Flex 3 has three screen sizes as 11 inches, 14 inches, and 15 inches.
• Asus Transformer Book Chi T300 has Intel 5th Generation Core M series processors. 11 inch edition of Lenovo Flex 3 has an Intel Atom processor, but 14 inches and 15 inches editions optionally can have Intel 5th Generation Core i series processors.
• When in the tablet mode, the Asus Transformer Book Chi T300 is just 720g but, when it is in a laptop mode, its weight is 1.445 kg. The weight of Lenovo Flex 3 is comparatively higher where the 11 inch edition is 1.4 kg, and the 14 inch edition is 1.95 kg.
• The Asus Transformer Book Chi T300 is having a thickness of 7.66 mm while it is in tablet mode, and it is 16.5 mm when in the laptop mode. But the thickness of Lenovo Flex 3 is a bit higher, which is around 20 mm.
• Asus Transformer Book Chi T300 has two types of displays where one is a FHD display with a resolution of 1920 x 1080 pixels while the other is WQHD with a resolution of only 2560 x 1440 pixels. But the resolution of Lenovo Flex 3 is much lower than that where the 11 inch edition has a resolution of only 1, 366 x 768 pixels. The 14 inch and 15 inch editions have resolution of 1920 × 1080 pixels.
• Asus Transformer Book Chi T300 has a SSD storage where the capacity can be selected from 64 GB and 128 GB. But the advantage of Lenovo Flex 3 is that it has a hybrid drive where there is 1 TB of mechanical storage and 64 GB of SSD storage. This will give a larger storage for your files while the performance is still close to that of a SSD.
Summary:
Asus Transformer Book Chi T300 vs Lenovo Flex 3
The most important difference is in the design where Asus Transformer Book Chi T300 is an Ultrabook with a detachable keyboard dock while the Lenovo Flex 3 is a convertible where the display can be rotated up to 360 degrees. When the display quality, slimness, and the lightness are considered, Asus Transformer Book Chi T300 wins. However, the lack of storage capacity for larger files is a drawback. Transformer Book Chi T300 has a maximum of 128 GB SSD while Lenovo Flex 3 has a hybrid drive of 64 GB of SSD + 1 TB of mechanical drive providing space for your files giving similar performance to a pure SSD. Asus Transformer Book Chi T300 has only one screen size, which is 12.5 inches, but Lenovo Flex 3 gives customers a choice from 11 inches, 14 inches, and 15 inches.
Lenovo Flex 3 |
Asus Transformer Book Chi T300 |
|
Design | Convertible laptop – display can be rotated by 360° | Ultrabook with a detachable keyboard |
Screen Size | 11″/14″/15″ (diagonally) | 12.5″ (diagonally) |
Weight | 11″ model – 1.4 kg14″ model – 1.95 kg | Tablet mode – 720 gLaptop mode – 1.445 kg |
Processor | 11″ model – Intel Atom14″ & 15″ model – Intel i3/i5/i7 | Intel M 5Y71/M 5T10 |
RAM | 8GB | 4 GB/ 8 GB |
OS | Windows 8.1 | Windows 8.1 |
Storage | hybrid – 64 GB SSD + 1TB Mechanical drive | 64 GB/ 128 GB |
Resolution | 11″ model – 1366 x 76814″ & 15″ model – 1920 × 1080 | FHD 1920 x 1080WQHD 2560 x 1440 |
Images Courtesy:
- Asus transformer book chi t300 via Asus website
- Lenovo flex 3 via Cnet