The dual display Yoga Book C930 is Lenovo’s slimmest, lightest laptop to date. The Chinese manufacturer has also taken its E Ink touchscreen-keyboard technology up a level too – possibly with a view to eliminate the physical keyboard altogether.
Unlike the two most recent Yoga Books we reviewed, one with Android and one which ran on Windows 10, the new Yoga Book C930 will only be available with Windows 10 Home OS. We were highly impressed with the multi-purpose package the last Windows-based Yoga Book delivered, so there are high hopes riding on this update.
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Lenovo Yoga Book C930 (2018) review: Key specifications, price and release date
- Main display: 10.8in QHD 2,560 x 1,600 LCD display (capacitive touchscreen)
- E Ink display: 10.8in FHD 1,920 x 1,080 (capacitive touchscreen)
- Intel Core i5 or Intel Core m3 and Intel HD Graphics 615
- 4GB RAM and up to 256GB storage (microSD up to 512GB)
- 4,650mAH battery
- 2MP front camera
- 179mm x 260mm x 9.9mm
- 775g
- Dolby Atmos speakers
- Windows 10 Home
- UK price: TBC
- UK release date: TBC
Lenovo Yoga Book C930 (2018) review: Design, key features and first impressions
Lenovo threw every laptop they had at IFA 2018 this year, including a new Yoga, Chromebook, and ThinkPad, but the Yoga Book C930 is the most exciting upgrade. The last Windows Yoga Book was a lean, mean, note-taking machine, and this year’s is lighter and faster still. The Intel Atom processor from the old model Yoga Book has been upgraded to either an Intel Core i5 or m3 processor, depending on what price bracket you go for, and the main display has seen a significant overhaul, now boasting a resolution of 2,560 x 1,600.
The flashiest new function of the new Yoga Book is the ability to double-tap to open. Give the closed Yoga Book’s lid two quick knocks with your knuckle and watch it pop open like a flower on the first day of Spring. A very metallic, oddly-shaped flower. Whether or not it saves any time is debatable, but it certainly feels cool to do it.
Lenovo has been working with audio purveyors Dolby for a while now, and this year the manufacturers have collaborated to incorporate Dolby Atmos soundbars into the 2018 Yoga and Yoga Book laptops. I won’t be able to give a final verdict on the power of the Atmos speakers until I get my hands on a model for full review, but it did sound solid for such a small device. However, the soundbar on the much larger Yoga, which is incorporated directly into the hinge, made more of an impression during the hands on session I attended.
Time to talk about the E Ink display. This is the Yoga Book C930’s secondary touchscreen, of equal size although with a lower resolution display, and it doubles up as a flat “virtual” keyboard. For drawing and note-taking on-the-go, the E Ink apps are revelatory. Although I can’t see a day in the near future when we’ll never need a pen and paper, it definitely comes in handy to have a digital notepad that stores all of your work in one place and makes it easy to scan or share with others. Students and professionals who prefer taking handwritten notes will enjoy the way the included Precision Pen glides across the screen, and of course it’s absolutely ideal for artists and designers.
The flat touchscreen keyboard was one of our only criticisms of the previous Yoga Book, and it does not seem as though Lenovo has made it any more responsive since last time. It remains fiddly, lagging noticeably behind my typing speed, and it is totally unsatisfying compared to a real, physical QWERTY setup.
The E Note app may be okay for a few sentences, and the E Reader app makes annotation of articles and digital textbooks incredibly simple, but if I needed to type any more than a paragraph of text then the E Ink Keyboard would simply not do the job. Anyone who wants the Yoga Book to function as their social media and email hub, or to do any serious writing, will need to get a proper keyboard attachment.
Lenovo Yoga Book C930 (2018) review: Early verdict
As a multi-purpose 2-in-1 laptop tailored primarily to creative professionals, the newest Lenovo Yoga Book C930 looks right on the money. It’s faster than its predecessor, with better sound quality and a vastly superior main display. Sketching and note taking couldn’t be easier with the responsive E Ink apps and remarkably sensitive Precision Pen, but the E Ink Keyboard still leaves a lot to be desired.
Lenovo hasn’t set a release date for the Yoga Book C930, but it’s certainly not imminent. Price-wise there’s been no word so far, but since the last Yoga Book C930 launched at £450, you can probably expect to pay about the same. There will be two versions of the Lenovo Yoga Book C930; a more affordable version with an Intel m3 processor and less storage space, and a premium option with an 8th generation Intel Core i5 processor and 256GB storage.
This article will be updated with a full in-depth review when the Lenovo Yoga Book C360 becomes available in the UK, but for now you can always have a read of our 5-star review of the previous Yoga Book.
