Review of the Lenovo Legion Go S: Searching for Substance

In recent years, the handheld gaming PC sector has seen some exciting developments, primarily thanks to the Valve Steam Deck’s debut. Since then, we’ve witnessed some compelling competitors, including the Asus ROG Ally and Lenovo’s Legion Go. Capitalizing on AMD’s latest Z2 Go processor powered by Zen 3+ architecture, Lenovo has made a notable leap forward with the Legion Go S, departing from its predecessor’s design ethos.

When you first lay eyes on the Legion Go S, you’ll notice a significant design shift—gone are the detachable controllers that once mimicked the Nintendo Switch. Instead, the Legion Go S now embraces an all-in-one design, akin to the ROG Ally and Valve Steam Deck, while sporting a slightly smaller 8-inch display compared to the earlier 8.8 inches.

Despite shedding the detachable controllers, the Legion Go S remains a chunky device. It’s worth noting several step-backs compared to its elder sibling, which might make you think twice before picking the Legion Go S as your preferred handheld gaming PC.

Design and Comfort: Lenovo Legion Go S

While aiming for the same functionality, the Legion Go S diverges from its forerunner in several ways. The original Legion Go featured a blend of matte grey aluminum and plastic, whereas the Legion Go S is predominantly plastic. Its white plastic chassis, contrasted by black buttons and triggers, doesn’t quite exude the high-end vibe of its predecessor but still feels robust and well-crafted.

Comfort-wise, the Legion Go S wins with its rounded design, contrasting with the more angular feel of the older model. After hours of consecutive gaming sessions on both the Legion Go S and its predecessor, my hands were noticeably less fatigued with the new model.

One immediate change you’ll spot is the omission of a built-in kickstand. The first Legion Go had this feature, allowing you to prop up the device when using its controllers detached—a bit like how the Nintendo Switch works. But with controllers now integrated into its frame, Lenovo seems to have decided the kickstand was superfluous.

Another step back is the Legion Go S’s display. The older 8.8-inch 2560 x 1600 display now downsizes to an 8-inch 1920 x 1200 panel, which, in my opinion, is a manageable trade-off. Gaming at a high 2560 x 1600 resolution with the older Z1 Extreme, and the latest Z2 Go, might be stretching the usability envelope.

In terms of size and weight, the Legion Go S clocks in at 11.77 x 5.02 x 0.89 inches and 1.61 pounds, which makes it slightly lighter than the previous Legion Go model at 1.88 pounds. To draw a parallel, the Asus ROG Ally measures up at 11.04 x 4.38 x 0.84 inches, weighing 1.34 pounds, while the original Steam Deck weighs 1.47 pounds.

When it comes to controls, the Legion Go S adopts a layout reminiscent of an Xbox controller: ABXY buttons to the right and staggered joysticks. There’s a D-pad below the left joystick and a touchpad under the right one. Four programmable buttons align near the top of the display, split between quick settings, menu, Legion Space, and view functions.

On its top edge, you’ll find the usual LB/LT and RB/RT triggers, with two extra programmable buttons at the back (Y1 and Y2). You can adjust the trigger pressure using dials on the rear. The Legion Go S comes fitted with two USB 4 ports, a 3.5mm headphone jack, volume and power controls, and a microSD slot on the bottom.

Lenovo Legion Go S Specifications

Under the hood, the Legion Go S hosts an AMD Ryzen Z2 Go processor (Zen 3, 4 cores/8 threads, maxing out at 4.3 GHz) accompanied by AMD Radeon 680M graphics, 32GB of high-speed RAM, and a 1TB SSD. It sports an 8-inch 1920 x 1200 resolution IPS display with a 120 Hz refresh rate, running on Windows 11 Home, all packed into a design priced at $729.99.

Gaming and Graphics: What to Expect

At its core, the Legion Go S leverages AMD’s new Z2 Go processor, representing a performance drop compared to the Z1 Extreme found in the original Legion Go model. The Z2 Go uses the Zen 3+ framework, offering four cores and eight threads, while the prior Z1 Extreme possessed eight cores capable of 16 threads. Meanwhile, the integrated Radeon 680M GPU doesn’t quite match the firepower of the Z1 Extreme’s Radeon 780M GPU.

On the performance front, the Legion Go S includes four modes: Performance, Efficiency, Custom 1, and Custom 2. When unplugged, the Performance mode aligns with Windows 11’s performance settings. When plugged in, I adjusted the TDP to as much as 40 watts using the Custom 1 profile.

While running Shadow of the Tomb Raider (at Medium settings, DX12), the Legion Go S nudged ahead of the previous Legion Go by around 10 percent at 800p and 1200p while unplugged. However, once tethered to a power source and maxing out the 40-watt TDP, the Legion Go S lagged 25 percent behind its predecessor. Unplugged performance remained close to the Steam Deck.

In Cyberpunk 2077 under the Steam Deck preset, the unplugged Legion Go S holds its own. However, plugged in, it falls behind compared to its predecessor and the ROG Ally, both delivering 49 fps and 55 fps respectively, whereas the Legion Go S musters only 35 fps at 800p and 18 fps at 1200p, which is quite sluggish.

Windows 11 on the Legion Go S

Arriving with Windows 11 right out of the box, the Legion Go S has its display scaling set to 200 percent by default at 1920 x 1200 resolution. This makes the taskbar appear large, aiding touchscreen usability. However, the massive icons get in the way, pushing other running apps into a pop-up menu.

Users may encounter several issues, too. At times, the on-screen keyboard stubbornly refuses to appear when needed, especially in apps like Steam or the Epic Games Store. Even worse, the keyboard might flash on and off while attempting to type something within Steam.

While the device supports touch navigation effectively, the tiny touchpad below the right joystick for mouse input isn’t my favorite—it’s workable but challenging during gaming. A peculiar issue with the touchpad arises with its default vibrational feedback, which is both loud and irritating until turned off in the Lenovo Space app.

Battery Life Expectations

Battery performance in handheld PCs can be unpredictable, varying with your chosen resolution, refresh rate, and settings. Complicating matters further, adjusting power profiles can significantly shift your battery longevity.

During our tests, the PCMark 10 Gaming suite revealed that the Legion Go S held out for roughly an hour and 42 minutes, a tad less than the earlier Legion Go. Gaming tests with Burnout Paradise Remastered at 1280 x 800 at 60Hz, using the Performance mode, depleted the battery to 40 percent after 60 minutes, entirely draining it by the one-hour and 45-minute mark. Switching to the Power-saving mode prolonged gameplay just beyond two hours.