Lenovo LaVie Z 360 review

The Lenovo LaVie Z 360 is by far one of the daintiest laptops in the world, weighing in at only 2.04 pounds (0.93 kg). It's far lighter than the 3.26-pound HP Spectre x360 and even more so compared to the 3.31-pound Acer Aspire R13. Even the Lenovo Yoga 3 Pro and Asus Transformer Book T300 Chi outweigh the Lenovo hybrid – at 2.62 pounds and 3.14 pounds, respectively – despite both machines adopting thinner, fanless designs.

In terms of footprint size, the Z 360 is also fairly compact, measuring 12.56 x 8.35 x 0.67 inches or 319 x 212 x 17mm (W x D x H). It's narrower, but a bit thicker than the 12.79 x 8.6 x 0.63-inch (324 x 218 x 16mm) Spectre x360. The Acer Aspire R13 is by far the bulkiest out of this trio, with a 13.54 x 9.07 x 0.71-inch (344 x 230 x 180mm) frame.

Spec Sheet

Here is the Lenovo LaVie Z 360 configuration sent to TechRadar for review:

• CPU: 2.4GHz Intel Core i7-5500U (dual-core, 4MB cache, up to 3GHz with Turbo Boost)
• Graphics: Intel HD Graphics 5500
• RAM: 8GB LPDDR3 (1,600 MHz)
• Screen: 13.3-inch, WQHD 2,560 x 1,440 IPS multi-touch
• Storage: 256GB SSD m.2 SATA
• Ports: 2 x USB 3.0, HDMI-out, SD card reader, headphone/microphone combo jack
• Connectivity: Intel Wireless 7265 (2 x 2 dual band) AC
• Camera: 720p HD
• Weight: 2.04 pounds
• Size: 12.56 x 8.35 x 0.67 inches (W x D x H)

The Lenovo LaVie Z 360 only comes in one configuration, as listed above, and it comes priced at an extravagant $1,599 (about £1,026, AU$2,138). That's pretty dang expensive for any laptop, let alone a machine that feels too flimsy for its exorbitant premium and promises a scant six hours of battery life.

For $1,399 (or AU$2,399), you could pick up a top-end HP Spectre x360 rocking an upgraded 2,560 x 1,440 display, the same processor plus twice the amount of solid-state storage space. A slightly less impressive Spectre x360 outfitted with only an Intel Core i7-5600U processor and 256GB of flash storage is also available in the UK for £1,225.

With a $1,499 budget, you could pick up an Acer Aspire R13 with all the same bells and whistles as the Z 360, plus twice the amount of flash storage. Unfortunately, readers in the UK and Australia can only pick up this 2-in-1 laptop with a 1,920 x 1,080 display and 256GB SSD for £799 or AU$1,999.