Since Corona at the latest, the fight for the next generation of students has flared up. Pupils and students are increasingly having to learn online at home, and not every household has the wherewithal for a high-end computer for every child. Tablets that become a 2-in-1 notebook with a dockable keyboard are ideal. A kind of further development of early netbooks. Lenovo enters the race here with the IdeaPad Duet Chromebook.
This is a tablet with the Chrome OS operating system and a docking keyboard. Lenovo doesn't want to leave the field to the industry heavyweights Apple (with the iPad 8th gen.) and Samsung with the Galaxy Tab A 10.1.
This is where the IdeaPad Duet Chromebook collects plus points
And that's the first plus point for the Lenovo IdeaPad Duet Chromebook: a rear cover with a fashionable jeans look and a kickstand and a docking keyboard are included in the scope of delivery. What's more, the keyboard is directly connected to the tablet without any further action, so you can use it right away during setup.
And that makes the first impression almost perfect: The Lenovo IdeaPad Duet Chromebook is already inserted in the practical case and keyboard. The setup begins immediately, which is already done after a few steps and logging in with an existing Google account.
Great keyboard, easiest setup
In the further course of our test, the good impression of the docking keyboard is largely retained. A great key drop and a good typing feel. The free-standing arrow keys, a two-row Enter key, the easy-to-use (and possibly too easily responsive) touchpad and the keyboard ergonomics make a good impression. The base is pleasantly hard and only gives a little, so that you can type on your lap quite decently. Our only criticisms of the keyboard are the missing key illumination and the slightly thinner umlaut keys. That's why you hit the wrong key here.
If you have used Chrome OS before, the system will take you back to the last save point when you log in again. The Lenovo IdeaPad Duet Chromebook greets us with the same wallpaper we used on the last Chromebook we used (the Asus Chromebook C436). One of the last tabs that we used there a few months ago even opens in the browser. After a few moments everything is ready. Next, the device imports an update, which is installed a few minutes later.
You can set up the stand (kickstand) of the supplied cover at any angle and almost lay the tablet down. The denim fabric on the back contributes to the decorative look.
The Lenovo IdeaPad Duet Chromebook as a notebook
The actual device of our test, the tablet unit of the IdeaPad Duet Chromebook, looks attractive. It is pleasantly slim, light and very fashionable with a black and blue look. The display edges measure about 1cm on all sides and are not disturbingly large, but frame the display visually pleasantly.
The display is slightly reflective, but otherwise pleasant to use. The maximum brightness of 400 nits is enough for a clear view even on a sunny day.
Unlike on Android tablets, you lack physical control buttons (like a home or back button). To do this, you control the device like a Windows or Mac notebook, if desired with the mouse, the touchpad or with gestures on the touchscreen.
The IdeaPad Duet Chromebook is always fast enough for simple office work such as checking e-mails, installing apps, listening to music or editing texts. Apps take a few seconds to launch, but not so long that it bothers us. Only sometimes is the text input in the browser window delayed.
Offline although connected
Strangely enough, the WLAN connection kept dropping in our test. After waking up from standby, the device always has to connect first. But even after that, when browsing with Chrome, we often experience that the connection is lost several times, even in the middle of a session, although the tablet reports that it is still connected.
We cannot completely rule out that our test router is partly to blame here; other networks may not have such problems. Nevertheless, we feel it necessary to mention our difficulties here.
Ports on the IdeaPad Duet Chromebook
This menu item can be closed quickly: Lenovo only installs one physical connection in the IdeaPad Duet Chromebook. The USB connector applies equally to the power supply and to the connection of external devices. So we can easily connect a USB stick to this.
For newcomers to Chrome OS, it should be mentioned again: Google's operating system has long had its own file system with a preview and simple tools, for example for image editing. Of course, most apps also run offline. That was only different in the early years of the now more than 10-year-old system.
Lenovo has limited the wireless connection options to somewhat older technologies such as WiFi 5 and Bluetooth 4.2. Here's a look at the technology:
Lenovo IdeaPad Duet Chromebook: Specifications
10.1 inch full HD touch display (1920 x 1200 px) with 400 nits
MediaTek processor P60T (8 cores)
64 or 128 GB storage, 4 GB RAM
Main camera with 8 megapixels, front camera with 2 MP
Battery: 7,000mAh
Connectivity: WiFi 5 (802.11 a/b/g/n/ac 2x2), Bluetooth 4.2, 1x USB Type-C
Operating system: Chrome OS
Lenovo drops points here
Let's come to a few minor points of criticism. The built-in 7,000 mAh battery proves to be really long-lasting. In standby mode, it has enough juice for days, and we can easily get through a working day on one charge. Lenovo specifies the runtime as 10 hours, in reality it's more like 7 to 8 hours.
It then takes a whopping 4 hours with the included charger until the battery is fully charged again. The fact that the charging cable is only 1 meter long does not necessarily mean that we were able to use the device well while charging. Especially since you cannot connect any other devices to it in the meantime due to only one USB interface.
Camera without app
We already wrote about the disconnections above. It is also strange that Lenovo has given the IdeaPad Duet Chromebook a main camera and a not-so-bad front camera, but has not pre-installed a camera app on the device. As a user, you have to take care of it yourself.
We took our test shots with the Pixlr app (alternatives would be HD Camera, Google Camera or Open Camera). And while the main rear camera didn't particularly impress us with a high-contrast image and a rather sluggish focus, the front camera with an HD+ resolution (1,200 x 1,600px) and not so much noise is a small bright spot even indoors on a cloudy day.
Overall, we liked the sound of the built-in stereo speakers. Pleasant basses, no clinking, but the sound is a bit dull overall. The speakers easily passed our standard endurance test song "Nightcall" by London Grammar. At best, the maximum volume could have been a little higher. The speakers aren't powerful enough for a party sound system in a 20 square meter room.
Chrome OS: Better than Android on tablets?
The big question Lenovo raises with the IdeaPad Duet Chromebook is: can Chrome OS even be the better tablet operating system over Android?
At least working with the docking tablet speaks a clear language. As a user, you get a real desktop here, even if only on a 10.1-inch screen. By default, the Chrome browser is available in the desktop version and lets you work with it like you would on a laptop.
The tray below corresponds to a taskbar like in Windows and lets you pin frequently used apps. Unlike Android, there is no start screen with apps. On the right you have another pop-in menu with notifications and a quick start menu, similar to Android, but much less dominantly integrated into the system.
Apps on Chrome OS
But that's where the desktop benefits of Chrome OS end. Because what you get as an app is very often a coincidence. Sometimes you're lucky and the developers have also optimized the respective application for tablets and desktops, sometimes you get well scalable universal apps, sometimes accordion apps.
If you're unlucky, you'll only have smartphone apps available in vertical mode, and if things go really badly, the developers didn't approve the Android app for Chrome OS at all. This is the case, for example, with the music learning app Yousician.
Everyday apps tested
We tried the following apps on the IdeaPad Duet Chromebook:
Firefox -> browser optimized for mobile without tabs, presents itself as significantly slower than Chrome
Spotify -> Scales well on the tablet display and is quite responsive.
Netflix -> ditto
YouTube -> Ditto. Well-adapted app for Chrome OS
Feedly -> Scales well but seems to keep throwing disconnects
Pixlr -> scales properly and can serve as a backup camera. Handling but a bit cumbersome
Adobe Photoshop Express -> Image processing optimized for touch, somewhat awkward to use
Adobe Lightroom -> ditto
DuoLingo -> App optimized for smartphones in vertical mode, but it works well.
Google Docs/Spreadsheets -> Launch as browser tabs
Microsoft Word -> responds a little sluggishly, only works after logging in and with a Microsoft 365 account
Microsoft Excel -> ditto
Telegram -> Works well on the tablet
Plants vs. Zombies -> Rather undemanding casual game, takes a long time to start, reacts sluggishly, but works
Asphalt 9 Legends -> Takes almost 1 minute to start, the graphics are fuzzy at the edges. Otherwise, the racing game works surprisingly well with little stuttering.
So our interim conclusion: As a desktop system, Chrome OS is better than Android, for tablets we would rather stick with Android. There, the system looks a bit smoother with the right settings and more intuitive integrated notifications.
Linux on Lenovo IdeaPad Duet Chromebook: Running, slow
We are testing Linux on the IdeaPad Duet Chromebook in October 2020 under Chrome OS version 85. Here, too, it remains the same: Linux runs here as a virtual machine. It takes a moment for the system to turn them on. Then a command line greets you, not a graphical user interface. So you have to be familiar with Linux and know what you are entering here.
A little tip: With the apt-get command for the Advanced Packaging Tool, you can easily install some well-known programs or try them out here to see if the package manager knows them too. This is how we install gThumb image processing, which then integrates reasonably well into the system. Just replace gThumb with the names of other Linux programs you know, like Krita.
sudo apt-get install gThumb
Conclusion
The Lenovo IdeaPad Duet Chromebook is a good entry-level tablet and mini-notebook that rarely complains and is ideal for simple office applications. Because Lenovo includes a cover with a kickstand and a docking keyboard, the device is a real price-performance hammer with a designated retail price of 329 euros (349 euros with 128 GB). A comparably equipped iPad 8 with a suitable keyboard would cost you significantly more (about 600 euros).
The Chrome OS operating system, however, cannot quite compete with Android as a tablet OS, and as a desktop system only to a limited extent with Windows, MacOS or iPadOS due to an unsatisfactory app selection.
If you spend most of your time in the browser and are not restricted to special apps, if you are satisfied with mediocre performance, or if you simply need an inexpensive yet versatile emergency computer, then the Lenovo IdeaPad Duet Chromebook could be the ideal device be for you.
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