MWC 2022 | Lenovo IdeaPad Gaming 3 and 3i get redesigned chassis with Intel and AMD choices and optional Arc A370M starting from €999

The Lenovo IdeaPad Gaming series is traditionally aimed at first time or aspiring gamers and is priced accordingly as well. We had reviewed the IdeaPad Gaming 3i back in 2020 with a 10th gen Intel processor, and it came across as a good performer at a decent entry-level price. Now, at MWC 2022, Lenovo is introducing some much-needed updates to the IdeaPad Gaming lineup.

Lenovo is offering the IdeaPad Gaming and Gaming 3i in AMD and Intel offerings, respectively and in 15 and 16-inch screen sizes. The chassis design has undergone major changes this year with new hinges, blue accent thermal vents, and presence of a rear I/O. The IdeaPad Gaming 3 and 3i 15-inch will come in Onyx Grey and Glacier White color options while the 16-inch versions will only be available in the Onyx Grey flavor.

Under the hood, buyers can configure the IdeaPad Gaming laptops with up to Intel 12th gen Core i7 Alder Lake-H processors or AMD Ryzen 6000H-series processors. Both the IdeaPad Gaming 3 and IdeaPad Gaming 3i can be configured starting with the Nvidia GeForce RTX 3050 Laptop GPU and up to the RTX 3060 Laptop GPU (105 W). The IdeaPad Gaming 3i will also offer the option of an Arc A370M dGPU. 

The new IdeaPad Gaming range sports a quad-vent design. According to Lenovo, the IdeaPad Gaming series offers a 15% better cooling performance, 20% larger ventilation, and 10% better airflow along with keyboard air intakes. Speaking of the keyboard, we get to see a full-size keyboard with a numpad. The Glacial White options will get an ice blue backlight while the Onyx Grey versions get a white backlight. Buyers can optionally configure select models with a 4-zone RGB backlight keyboard.

The 15-inch IdeaPad Gaming 3 and 3i offer a WQHD 2560x1400 16:9 display with up to a 165 Hz refresh rate while the 16-inch versions come in a 16:10 aspect ratio with a resolution of WQHD+ 2560x1600, 165 Hz refresh rate, and a 500-nit brightness. The 16-inch versions are rated to cover 100% of the sRGB color gamut and also feature a 1080p FHD webcam with privacy shutter.

Most of the I/O is situated at the rear, but Lenovo still offers a USB Type-A port each on either side of the device for quick connectivity. Nahimic 3D Audio handles audio processing. 

The Lenovo IdeaPad Gaming 3i 16-inch will be available from June 2022 starting from €1,099 while the AMD-based IdeaPad Gaming 16-inch will be available from July 2022 also starting from €1,099.

The Lenovo IdeaPad Gaming 3i 15-inch will be available from May 2022 starting from €999 and the AMD version will retail beginning June 2022 also from €999.

Buy the Lenovo IdeaPad Gaming 3 with Ryzen 5 5600H and GTX 1650 on Amazon