Lenovo - Yoga Pro 9i 16" 3.2K Mini LED Touchscreen Laptop - Intel Core Ultra 9 - 32GB Memory - NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 - 1TB SSD - Luna Grey

This is the Goldilocks Laptop! I have been on a quest for a relatively affordable laptop ($1600 or less - which I got this one open box for about $1400) that can handle the few games I play, not necessarily maxed out, but competently compared to the price. I have tried the 2024 Asus G14 and G16 with 4070s, 4080s, and even the 4090 (those latter two were definitely beyond my budget). I most recently had a Razer Blade 16 with the UHD/FHD MiniLED and a 4090 (also beyond my budget, but it was an open box). I also tried an Alienware M16 R2. Each of those machines had their merits, but also had shortcomings that ultimately left me feeling like it wasn't quite right for the money or what I was going for. Then I stumbled upon the Yoga Pro 9i. First off, this screen is absolutely gorgeous and is what I'd consider the perfect resolution for this size screen. Colors pop, contrast is incredible, and I don't have to deal with the minor anxiety that comes with OLED screens. Second, the speakers on this are incredibly good. I would say these are just as good, if not better than the 2024 ASUS G14 or G16 speakers. These speakers also do a fantastic job of drowning out what little fan noise there is while gaming. I haven't tried out the different modes, but whatever the default one is keeps the machine nice and cool and also very quiet. When web browsing it's basically silent! On the gaming front, it holds its own, even with a 4060. Am I going to get max FPS in every AAA title out there? No, but I have been averaging about 80-90fps on Forza Horizon 5. The other game I spend a lot of time on is AoE 4, which obviously isn't super demanding, but it looks and plays fantastically. I also have been pleasantly surprised with the software/user experience of Lenovo. There was a bit of bloatware to start, but all was easily removed. The Lenovo Vantage software is actually useful and doesn't hog too much memory. I haven't run into any driver issues or funky software glitches (I had quite a few gremlins with the Razer Blade 16). Compared to ASUS Armory Crate or Razer Synapse, the Lenovo Vantage software is a dream. This last bit is subjective, but I personally love that I don't have to deal with all the RGB rubbish. The keys on this are well backlit in a pleasant white color and nothing about this laptop says "gamer". It's a thin, fairly light, and powerful enough laptop to completely fit the needs I have. You'll be hard pressed to find a laptop at this price that has this good of a screen, speakers, professional appearance, and overall user experience that is better than this.