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MagyarLenovo N20 Chromebook Review Update
For the original German review, see here.
The Lenovo N20 Chromebook is already familiar to us. We tested the "Dual Mode" version, the Lenovo N20p, which allows the display to be opened wider and allows the touchscreen to be used in various ways. The Lenovo N20 is the "normal" version of the Chromebook without a touchscreen. Find out in our review the qualities of our test model.
The competition of the Lenovo Chromebook includes the Acer Chromebook 11 CB3-111 and the Asus C200MA-KX003.
The Lenovo N20 and the N20p are identical in build, and as such, we will not discuss the case, the connectivity, the input devices and the speakers. For more information about these, please take a look at the review of the Lenovo N20p.
Case & Connectivity
The N20 Chromebook and the N20p Chromebook are almost identical. The only differences are: the display cover of the N20p is thicker due to its touchscreen and it can be opened to a much wider angle than our test model.
Display
The Chromebook is equipped with a matte 11.6-inch panel, which has a resolution of 1366x768 pixels. It offers a brightness of 269.2 cd/m² - an average value. The display of a small device should offer high brightness as the user should be able to use it in various scenarios. The contrast (565:1) and black value (0.48 cd/m²) of the screen are decent.
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||
Brightness Distribution: 92 %
Center on Battery: 271 cd/m²
Contrast: 565:1 (Black: 0.48 cd/m²)
| Lenovo N20 Chromebook HD Graphics (Bay Trail), N2830, 16 GB eMMC Flash | Lenovo N20p-59426642 Chromebook HD Graphics (Bay Trail), N2830, 16 GB eMMC Flash | Acer CB3-111 HD Graphics (Bay Trail), N2840 | Asus C200MA-KX003 HD Graphics (Bay Trail), N2830, 32 GB eMMC Flash | Lenovo ThinkPad Yoga 11e HD Graphics (Bay Trail), N2930, 16 GB eMMC Flash | Acer Chromebook 13 CB5-311-T0B2 GeForce ULP K1 (Tegra K1 Kepler GPU), K1, 32 GB eMMC Flash | Samsung Chromebook XE303C12-A01US Mali-T604 MP4, 5250 Dual, 16 GB eMMC Flash | HP Chromebook 11 Mali-T604 MP4, 5250 Dual, 16 GB SSD | Acer C720-2800 Chromebook HD Graphics (Haswell), 2955U, 16 GB SSD | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Screen | -15% | -7% | 12% | 36% | -10% | -26% | 2% | -18% | |
| Brightness middle | 271 | 227.5 -16% | 208 -23% | 250 -8% | 289.8 7% | 252 -7% | 214.9 -21% | 321.1 18% | 233.8 -14% |
| Brightness | 269 | 218 -19% | 198 -26% | 243 -10% | 278 3% | 242 -10% | 213 -21% | 300 12% | 228 -15% |
| Brightness Distribution | 92 | 90 -2% | 87 -5% | 90 -2% | 88 -4% | 91 -1% | 87 -5% | 86 -7% | 95 3% |
| Black Level * | 0.48 | 0.538 -12% | 0.38 21% | 0.31 35% | 0.23 52% | 0.55 -15% | 0.668 -39% | 0.556 -16% | 0.624 -30% |
| Contrast | 565 | 423 -25% | 547 -3% | 806 43% | 1260 123% | 458 -19% | 322 -43% | 578 2% | 375 -34% |
| Colorchecker dE 2000 * | 9.3 | 5.46 | 9.48 | 6.15 | 9.97 | ||||
| Greyscale dE 2000 * | 10.18 | 5.73 | 9.31 | 6.26 | 10.66 | ||||
| Gamma | 2.37 93% | 2.4 92% | 2.26 97% | 2.41 91% | 2.34 94% | ||||
| CCT | 12578 52% | 7269 89% | 10638 61% | 6868 95% | 12855 51% |
* ... smaller is better
The Lenovo N20 uses a TN panel. As such, the panel offers limited viewing angles. Outdoors use is possible thanks to the matte panel and decent brightness.
Performance
The Lenovo N20 offers sufficient performance for office and Internet use. Our test model is available for 230 Euros (~$259). An alternative would be the N20p with a touchscreen. The price of that model is 270 Euros (~$304).
Processor
The Chromebook uses a dual-core Intel Celeron N2830 (Bay Trail). The processor runs at 2.16 GHz and can be boosted to 2.416 GHz using Turbo mode. The TDP value of the CPU is 7.5 W.
System Performance
The system starts fast and runs well. The results of our various browser benchmarks are appropriate for a Celeron CPU. A different Chromebook, like the Asus C200MA, which is equipped with the same processor, offers the same performance. This is true for Windows netbooks as well, like the Lenovo S20-30, when using the Chrome browser. However, the S20 falls behind the Chromebook competition in two tests. We believe this happened due to the Celeron processor not utilizing its Turbo boost.
| WebXPRT 2013 - Overall (sort by value) | |
| Lenovo N20 Chromebook | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad Yoga 11e | |
| Acer Chromebook 13 CB5-311-T0B2 | |
| Browsermark - 2.1 (sort by value) | |
| Lenovo N20 Chromebook | |
| Asus C200MA-KX003 | |
| Acer Chromebook 13 CB5-311-T0B2 | |
* ... smaller is better
Storage Device
The Lenovo N20 is equipped with an eMMC memory module, which has a capacity of 16 GB. Of the total 16 GB, 9 GB is free. The Chromebook is also equipped with an SD-card reader. This is not entirely suited for permanent storage, as the SD cards jut out almost halfway out of the case. External storage devices like USB hard drives and USB sticks can also be used with the Chromebook.
Other USB devices like printers or multi-function devices cannot be used. If you want to print, you can use Google "Cloud Print" to print via multiple printers. For further information, you can visit the Google homepage or Wikihow.
Graphics Card
The graphics chip of the Chromebook is from Intel: the HD Graphics IGP. This GPU supports DirectX 11 and operates at speeds up to 750 MHz. Apparently, the driver support of the core from Google is not optimal as the playback of YouTube videos in a Full HD resolution can cause stutters. This does not happen on a Windows device like the Lenovo S20-30.
Emissions & Energy Management
System Noise
The hardware of the N20 is passively cooled, which means the laptop runs silently.
Temperature
The Lenovo N20 barely heats up: the temperatures stay below 30 °C at all times. Even simultaneously running the Google Octane V2 benchmark (in a loop) and playing an FHD video cannot raise the temperatures past this mark.
(+) The maximum temperature on the upper side is 26.5 °C / 80 F, compared to the average of 33.1 °C / 92 F, ranging from 21.6 to 53.2 °C for the class Netbook.
(+) The bottom heats up to a maximum of 28 °C / 82 F, compared to the average of 36.6 °C / 98 F
(+) In idle usage, the average temperature for the upper side is 24 °C / 75 F, compared to the device average of 29.8 °C / 86 F.
(+) The palmrests and touchpad are cooler than skin temperature with a maximum of 23.6 °C / 74.5 F and are therefore cool to the touch.
(+) The average temperature of the palmrest area of similar devices was 29.3 °C / 84.7 F (+5.7 °C / 10.2 F).
| Lenovo N20 Chromebook HD Graphics (Bay Trail), N2830, 16 GB eMMC Flash | Lenovo N20p-59426642 Chromebook HD Graphics (Bay Trail), N2830, 16 GB eMMC Flash | Acer CB3-111 HD Graphics (Bay Trail), N2840 | Asus C200MA-KX003 HD Graphics (Bay Trail), N2830, 32 GB eMMC Flash | Lenovo ThinkPad Yoga 11e HD Graphics (Bay Trail), N2930, 16 GB eMMC Flash | Acer Chromebook 13 CB5-311-T0B2 GeForce ULP K1 (Tegra K1 Kepler GPU), K1, 32 GB eMMC Flash | Samsung Chromebook XE303C12-A01US Mali-T604 MP4, 5250 Dual, 16 GB eMMC Flash | HP Chromebook 11 Mali-T604 MP4, 5250 Dual, 16 GB SSD | Acer C720-2800 Chromebook HD Graphics (Haswell), 2955U, 16 GB SSD | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Heat | -57% | -15% | -18% | -32% | -13% | -24% | -61% | -35% | |
| Maximum Upper Side * | 26.5 | 43 -62% | 32.7 -23% | 36.1 -36% | 36.2 -37% | 31.5 -19% | 37.4 -41% | 45.6 -72% | 36.4 -37% |
| Maximum Bottom * | 28 | 42.6 -52% | 32.6 -16% | 34.3 -23% | 37 -32% | 35 -25% | 40 -43% | 48.8 -74% | 47 -68% |
| Idle Upper Side * | 25.3 | 28.5 -13% | 28.1 -11% | 33.4 -32% | 26 -3% | 26.6 -5% | 38 -50% | 29 -15% | |
| Idle Bottom * | 26.3 | 28.7 -9% | 26.2 -0% | 33.4 -27% | 27 -3% | 27.6 -5% | 38.4 -46% | 31.8 -21% |
* ... smaller is better
Power Consumption
While idle, the N20 is conservative. The power consumption is lower than 5 watts. At load, the power consumption rises slightly. We measure 7.6 W at load (simultaneously running Octane V2 and playing an FHD video).
| Off / Standby |   0.1 / 0.9 Watt |
| Idle |  1.3 / 4.1 / 4.4 Watt |
| Load |
6.6 / 7.6 Watt |
    
| |
| Lenovo N20 Chromebook HD Graphics (Bay Trail), N2830, 16 GB eMMC Flash | Acer CB3-111 HD Graphics (Bay Trail), N2840 | Asus C200MA-KX003 HD Graphics (Bay Trail), N2830, 32 GB eMMC Flash | Acer Chromebook 13 CB5-311-T0B2 GeForce ULP K1 (Tegra K1 Kepler GPU), K1, 32 GB eMMC Flash | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Power Consumption | -35% | -25% | 13% | |
| Idle Minimum * | 1.3 | 2.1 -62% | 2.2 -69% | 1 23% |
| Idle Average * | 4.1 | 4.3 -5% | 3.6 12% | 2.9 29% |
| Idle Maximum * | 4.4 | 6.8 -55% | 3.9 11% | |
| Load Average * | 6.6 | 8.6 -30% | 6.4 3% | |
| Load Maximum * | 7.6 | 9.4 -24% | 9 -18% | 7.6 -0% |
* ... smaller is better
Battery Life
In the practical WLAN test, our script, which loads a website every 40 seconds, was run with the power-saver mode on and brightness set to around 150 cd/m². The Lenovo N20 reaches a run time of 8:52 h which is very good. However, it places slightly behind its sister model, the N20p.
Verdict
The Lenovo N20 Chromebook is a simple laptop, suited for surfing and typing, thanks to its long battery life. It offers good input devices and decent workmanship. The matte display has good values (for its price), but more brightness and a higher contrast would have been appreciated. If you are interested in Chromebooks then the Lenovo N20 is a viable candidate.
