Lenovo appears to be readying a replacement for its Chromebook S340, dubbed the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 Chromebook 14. That’s based on a new report from Chrome Unboxed, which recently spotted several region-specific SKUs tucked away on the company’s website. The full details of availability and pricing aren’t available there just yet. But each device looks to be a solid entry in the budget Chromebook market.
The biggest changes from that previous Chrome OS laptop and the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 Chromebook 14 is its processor. It will also ship in two brand new colors, albeit in an almost identical design to the above-mentioned budget Chromebook. Those are said to include Abyss Blue and a Platinum Grey.
Under the hood, the big change is a bump from Intel’s N4000 processor in that previous Chromebook to a new Gemini Lake-R CPU. Specifically, that’s Intel’s dual-core N4020 dual-core processor. At the surface, that’s a slight refresh which only offers a moderate boost from a maximum boost clock of 2.6GHz to 2.8GHz. But the chip should be more efficient overall since its significantly newer — by just shy of two years.
So what are those other IdeaPad 3 Chromebook 14 specs
Taking a deeper look at this 14-inch class Chromebook reveals specs that are almost guaranteed to keep pricing low. To begin with, Lenovo isn’t including an FHD resolution on this clamshell-style, touch-optional Chromebook with a lay-flat hinge. Instead, the latter design feature will be optional and things start with an HD-rated 1366×768 screen.
From there, buyers will be able to get up to an FHD 1920×1080 display. Brightness will vary between 220 nits and 250 nits, depending on the model chosen.
Backing up the abovementioned Gemini Lake-R processor, Lenovo is including 4GB of RAM in the US. Elsewhere, up to 8GB of memory will be available and that will be further backed by either 32GB or 64GB storage. Consumers are getting plenty of ports, just in case that isn’t enough. Those not only include two USB 3.1 ports and two further USB Type-C ports. There’s a MicroSD card reader too, offset by a 3.5mm audio combo jack.
For connectivity, users have Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 4.2.
The keyboard design here will be familiar too. That’s a spill-resistant piece of hardware, likely featuring a spill-through design. Below that, on the underside, there will be two 2-watt stereo speakers. Set above and embedded in the screen’s bezel, Lenovo is including a fairly standard 720p webcam.
An end of life date has already been determined here
Now, there aren’t presently any price details or specific launch information to be found just yet. But this device should — based on its end-of-life date — arrive sooner than later. Lenovo lists its end-of-life for updates as being set in May 2026. That’s when Google will stop providing automatic updates to this Chrome gadget’s firmware.
The internal details, conversely, and the apparent recycling of this device’s design, could give some indication of intended pricing. The expectation is that this Chromebook will certainly arrive at below the $400 mark. But a price below $350 for the top model isn’t out of the question.
