Lenovo Legion Go hands-on: A extra Swap-like handheld gaming PC

For followers of handheld gaming PCs, 2023 simply retains getting higher. Following the discharge of ASUS’ ROG Ally earlier this year, Lenovo is coming into the class with the Legion Go. And, after getting the possibility to go hands-on with it, I believe a few of Lenovo’s twists could find yourself making an enormous distinction.

Earlier than we get in too deep, it’s essential to say that the items I attempted are very a lot pre-production samples. You possibly can see proof of this on parts just like the shoulder buttons, the place one facet of the system options metallic paint (which is what you’ll get on retail units) whereas the opposite facet is apparent black plastic. Lenovo additionally says that alongside a inventory set up of Home windows 11, it’s planning to equip the Legion Go together with a customized app launcher just like ASUS’ Amoury Crate. However, that wasn’t current on the demo items I used. The Legion’s Go’s physique additionally felt a bit tough in locations, so in the event you spot labels or components of its shell that don’t look fairly proper, Lenovo is probably going trying to polish these up earlier than its official launch someday in October.

OK, now that we received that out the best way, let’s discuss a few of the Legion Go’s spotlight options, essentially the most notable of which is its display screen. It’s an 8.8-inch 2,560 x 1,600 IPS panel with a 144Hz refresh price and listed at 500 nits of brightness. So not solely is the Legion Go’s panel as quick as what you get from the ROG Ally, it’s additionally the largest display screen on just about any system on this class. On high of that, colours completely pop, which makes the system much more interesting than lots of its rivals.

The apparent draw back to that is that between that large show and a considerably boxy physique, the Legion Go is moderately cumbersome. Measuring 11.8 x 5.15 x 1.61 inches, the Legion Go is way nearer in measurement to the Steam Deck than sleeker rivals just like the ROG Ally. As for the remainder of its design, you get a well-known Xbox-style button structure in entrance, with an attention-grabbing asymmetrical rear paddle structure in again, with a complete of 4 rear buttons together with a scroll wheel, although I’m unsure what’s the supposed function for that final part. That mentioned, I’m not going to show my nostril up at extra enter strategies.

Apparently, Lenovo can also be drawing inspiration from the Nintendo Swap as evidenced by the folding kickstand in again and the power to detach the Legion Go’s controllers from its principal physique. Nevertheless, I did discover that eradicating the controllers isn’t fairly as clean or simple as it’s on a Swap. First, you must press the button within the again after which form of tilt and slide on the similar time. Granted, I principally received the grasp of it after a couple of minutes, nevertheless it positively takes some apply.

This kickstand does make it simple to prop the show up on a desk whereas utilizing the controllers remotely, although. And because of the 2 USB 4 ports, you possibly can even join peripherals like a mouse and keyboard if you wish to flip the Legion Go right into a tiny desktop. Alternatively, you should utilize the one touchpad on the correct management to mouse round in Home windows, which is a pleasant nod in direction of normal usability, as a result of in contrast to the ROG Ally, you possibly can’t use the Legion Go’s joysticks to maneuver your cursor.

One other intelligent function on the Legion Go is that on the underside of the correct controller, there’s what Lenovo is looking an FPS Swap. If you happen to toggle that after which drop the correct controller into an included cradle, abruptly you get what is basically a vertical mouse you could drag throughout a desk whereas taking part in shooters. That mentioned, I’m unsure I’ll ever favor this setup over a conventional horizontal mouse or perhaps a joystick.

Lastly, with specs together with an AMD Z1 Excessive chip, 16GB of RAM, as much as 1TB of storage and a 49.2 WHr battery, the Legion Go seems to be simply as highly effective because the ROG Ally. However what makes this so spectacular is that along with coming with an included case (which you don’t get from ASUS), Lenovo is being very aggressive with pricing, because the Legion Go will begin at $699. That’s the identical because the Ally, regardless of the Legion Go’s larger display screen, larger battery and extra refined controllers.

So whereas Lenovo nonetheless has some sharpening to do earlier than the Legion Go formally goes on sale someday in October, with one other large identify becoming a member of the battle, it’s clear the battle for handheld gaming PC supremacy is simply starting.