A Handheld Made For Massive, Meaty Claws

You purchase Lenovo’s new Legion Go 2 handheld for the display. The efficiency is secondary to how lovely latest 2D titles look on the 8.8-inch, 1200p OLED show. The Legion Go 2 is in any other case a giant, meaty handheld for players with big, meaty claws. You’ll wrestle to carry it above your head mendacity in mattress except you’re an expert energy lifter; the controls received’t be your favourite; it’s as wonky as its predecessor. And it’s exhausting to argue anyone ought to spend properly over $1,000 on a gaming handheld relatively than simply shopping for a full gaming laptop.

Regardless of all that, I can’t assist however benefit from the hell out of it. My preliminary hours spent rolling my eyes at every little thing Lenovo failed to repair from its first iteration slowly morphed into the form of appreciation that may solely happen when a tool begins to really feel private. It’s what occurred after I downloaded Hole Knight: Silksong and Hades II to the gadget and needed to maintain again a pant on a crowded aircraft for the way beautiful each video games seemed on Lenovo’s huge, costly, lovely show.

It’s the identical feeling I get from Valve’s $550 Steam Deck OLED, which makes use of the identical natural light-emitting diode display know-how to current deeper distinction and wealthy colours. Valve’s handheld maxes out at 800p on an older, customized AMD chipset. Even if you consider efficiency and show dimension, the Steam Deck OLED continues to be a a lot, a lot better deal. My evaluation unit model of the Legion Go 2 with the AMD Ryzen Z2 Extreme processor, 32GB of RAM, and 1TB of storage, prices $1,350. I may actually purchase two Steam Decks for this value (extra if I opted for the LCD mannequin). For Lenovo’s inflated value, I may run out and purchase three $450 Nintendo Switch 2 handhelds. You could possibly nab a version of the Legion Go 2 that begins at $1,100 for a model with a AMD Ryzen Z2, however judging by my exams that chip will land nearer in energy to handhelds which are three years outdated and price a lot much less.

It’s a ridiculous state of affairs that customers are taking the brunt of Donald Trump’s obsession with import taxes, aka tariffs. And in that manner, customers are screwed it doesn’t matter what. The upcoming Asus ROG Xbox Ally X, which is about to launch on Oct. 16 with the identical Ryzen Z2 Excessive chip, will set you again $1,000. The unique Legion Go requested for $700 in 2023. The Asus ROG Ally X demanded $800 at launch final 12 months. Each now retail at a better value, doubtless as a consequence of tariffs. I’d inform you to attend and purchase a brand new handheld, however there’s no method to inform if costs may improve in coming months.

Actually? You saved FPS mode?

What drives me mad utilizing the Legion Go 2 is how Lenovo held again from bettering over the 2023 handheld. The revised model is much extra ergonomic than the two-year-old gadget with its sharp corners. Each handhelds allow you to take away every controller and play with the display separated, just like the Nintendo Swap. The Swap 2 did away with rails and went for magnetic connections for each Joy-Con 2, which makes attaching and detaching the controllers a bit of simpler. Lenovo’s outdated and new system nonetheless use a collection of uncovered pins you jam right into a cavity on all sides of the display. You want two arms and a robust pitching arm to take away every controller with a down and out movement. Reattaching them may be simply as annoying.

See Lenovo Legion Go 2 at Best Buy

The controller makes use of Corridor impact sticks which are a lot better at surviving stick drift, although they nonetheless really feel a bit of too skinny on my fingers in comparison with different handhelds I’ve used. The Legion Go 2 has barely redesigned bumper buttons that make it simpler to press and the identical, giant triggers. The $650 Legion Go S had a swap to allow prompt triggers with much less journey—higher for first-person shooter video games, however due to the detachable controllers you’ll have to stay with the total vary of movement.

The Swap 2’s huge standout characteristic is its new mouse mode enabled simply by placing the controller down on a desk or your pant’s leg. Lenovo did it first on the Legion Go along with its FPS mode. So is it any higher now? No, completely not. You continue to have to take away the correct controller and flick the “FPS” swap to activate an optical mouse sensor. You then want to fit it right into a base to carry it like an old-school flight stick, the place the 2 facet buttons act because the left and proper mouse click on. The DPI continues to be low sufficient you’ll wrestle to get it engaged on something however a desk. Even if you do, utilizing a joystick and the FPS controller collectively necessitates altering the in-game controls. I attempted it in each Cyberpunk 2077 and Borderlands 4, and it prompted such havoc with each titles I used to be detest to make use of the FPS mode once more.

As for I/O, the Legion Go 2 has each a backside and high USB-4 port. In idea, this might let you hook it as much as an eGPU. Extra doubtless, it’s sole function is for charging or hooking as much as a dock for HDMI passthrough. As a lot as Lenovo implies you’ll create a full “battle station” out of your gadget for instantaneous PC, you don’t wish to hook it as much as something bigger than a 1440p monitor, and solely then for enjoying video games most programs can run anyway.

Surprisingly sufficient, among the best enhancements over the past era handheld is the Legion Go 2’s new mushy carrying case. The outdated case was very protecting, however it was additionally monumental. The brand new model is smaller and extra squat than the default Steam Deck case, which makes lugging across the 8.8-inch handheld onto planes surprisingly simple. There’s two little hidey-holes for the FPS mode stand, however because you’ll by no means use it, you’ll be able to stick the rest in there. Simply don’t inform me what.

The Legion Go 2 is so rattling fairly

All the brand new ergonomics make it simpler to carry, however not sufficient that it received’t really feel heavy in your arms. You’ll discover you’ll want a desk or lap to relaxation your elbows on, or else you’ll use the built-in kickstand to prop it up in your desk. Both manner you maintain it, you’ll find yourself having fun with this handheld largely for the show. As I stated earlier, the 8.8-inch OLED show is elegant. It doesn’t have any greater display decision than the Legion Go’s 1,920 x 1,200, however it’s sufficient to make video games pop.

For my arms, the Legion Go 2 is simply giant sufficient the place I can grip it and entry all of the controls. Different customers who’re smaller in stature is probably not so fortunate. Ignore all these 11-inch handhelds on the market. Close to-9-inch gadgets are greater than sufficient. The display additionally sports activities a 144Hz refresh fee with VRR, or variable refresh fee. All these video games that may hit above 100 fps (which, let’s be trustworthy, will largely be older or 2D titles), will look their peak on the Legion Go 2.

The display feels vivid sufficient indoors, however whereas Lenovo guarantees you’ll get 1,100 nits of HDR brightness, the display isn’t nice for utilizing open air. It’s blinded by direct daylight, and even sitting close to a window you’ll see most particulars disappear. The display can be very reflective. A matte coating would have dulled the show high quality, however it’s on the danger of catching a glimpse of your girlfriend strolling up behind you.

Ryzen Z2 Excessive isn’t an enormous leap

The AMD Ryzen Z2 Excessive APU is only iterative. In case you’ve been watching like a hawk, hoping to devour the most recent and quickest handheld chip, this isn’t it. The efficiency distinction era to era is minimal. In some video games, you can get 5 to 10 fps extra on the highest TDP, or thermal design energy, Individuals who focus too exhausting on benchmarks will come away dissatisfied. In case you care extra about whether or not the system can play the most recent AAA video games, know that you simply’ll be capable of obtain playable body charges on the max 1200p decision although solely by dropping any hope of ray tracing for more-realistic lighting results.

See Lenovo Legion Go 2 at Best Buy

I’m essentially a gamer who refuses to drop the decision of video games for the sake of efficiency. I’ll decrease graphics settings in a determined try and eek out the minimal 30 fps. The Legion Go 2 can handle to take some AAA video games into playable states on the max 35W of TDP (thermal design energy) as soon as the hand-held’s engines are firing on all cylinders. TDP determines how a lot energy is being despatched to the processor, which is able to dictate general efficiency. Borderlands 4 is a type of video games infamous for working poorly on PC and consoles alike (you won’t find the sport on Swap 2 within the coming days, both). I used to be in a position to get a steady sub-40 fps on the bottom potential graphics settings. I may obtain a bit of higher body charges in Indiana Jones and the Nice Circle. Even at decrease graphics settings, the sport nonetheless appears to be like and sounds nice on the small display.

Older video games fare higher. Management may common 40 to 49 fps at low settings with the hand-held plugged in. The Shadow of the Tomb Raider benchmark at 1200p and medium settings preset with AMD’s FSR upscaling noticed a mean of 44 fps, whereas at 1080p with the identical settings it may hit 48 fps. In Baldur’s Gate III, I may common above 60 fps within the open areas of Act 1 and get between 45 and 55 fps within the metropolis environments of Act III.

In 3DMark benchmarks, the Legion Go 2 hit a rating of three,305 and 24.48 common fps in Metal Nomad Lite exams. That’s 1,000 factors higher than the Legion Go S with its Ryzen Z2 Go chip working on Home windows, however it’s solely a bit of greater than 300 factors higher than the Z1 Excessive on the Asus ROG Ally X from 2024. The brand new gadget hit 3,897 factors in Time Spy exams, which once more is barely greater than 300 factors higher than an Ally X. It’s not a lot better than an MSI Claw 8 AI+, which makes use of a full Intel laptop computer chip. Merely put, the Legion Go 2 isn’t an enormous step over the earlier gen on the max wattage.

Nonetheless, the gadget’s secret sauce is in how properly it performs at decrease wattages. Assessments with a number of video games at wattages as little as 34 fps nonetheless enabled comparatively steady body charges in video games like Shadow of the Tomb Raider. Whereas in Cyberpunk 2077 at full decision and Steam Deck settings, the gadget will get 44 fps in benchmarks, at 15W it nonetheless managed to eek out practically 30 fps. I don’t count on anyone will run high-end video games on decrease energy. As an alternative, one of the best expertise comes from video games which are far much less intensive. I may web properly over 160 fps in Hades II on the “Balanced” efficiency setting. Hole Knight: Silksong looks as if it was constructed with the Legion Go 2 in thoughts with automated settings to remain round 144Hz. These video games play so gloriously on this handheld, I don’t wish to play them on the rest. It’s a disgrace you need to spend $350 greater than an Xbox Ally X jut for that fairly display and better refresh fee.

Home windows nonetheless sucks for handhelds, however it may get higher

On balanced energy settings, I may recreation for round 2 hours and 40 minutes earlier than the gadget was actually begging me to plug it in. In different exams the place I used to be gaming on the full decision and wattage taking part in Indiana Jones, it lasted nearer to 2 hours. The Legion Go 2 sports activities a 74Wh battery, which is barely worse than the ROG Ally X’s 80Wh. The bigger OLED show and better max decision will inevitably drag the battery life down.

At this level, gamers mustn’t count on a handheld that may final very lengthy. The ROG Ally X nonetheless has among the best battery life at full energy when it will get nearer to three hours of runtime. In actual life, the distinction is negligible. At this level in my life, having a max two hours of playtime is unusually useful. If I’m clearing room after room in Hades II late at night time, the battery timer is actually my alarm. If it’s near 12 a.m. and I’m about to expire of energy, it’s an indication I ought to get some relaxation.

Relying on the sport you’re taking part in, the gadget’s followers can get comparatively loud. Even at max pace I wouldn’t name them jet engine noise. It’s sufficient to remind you to be conscious when sitting subsequent to strangers on a aircraft. The gadget saved very cool in my time utilizing it. I by no means felt any warmth across the controls, and the realm across the followers additionally didn’t really feel steamy when taking part in a recreation at max wattage.

I can’t excuse the worth, however I had such a great time with the Legion Go 2 it felt like a private companion after touring for greater than every week and a half away from dwelling. However there’s an elephant within the room formed like a giant “X” we have to deal with. The Xbox Ally and Xbox Ally X are purported to launch with a brand new model of Home windows, dubbed the “Full Display screen Expertise” (FSE) constructed completely for gaming handhelds. Whereas this will likely repair the lingering usability problems with Home windows 11 on a 7- or 8-inch display, the improve must also eradicate background duties and—hopefully—enhance efficiency by 20%. The difficulty is that Microsoft has stated chances are you’ll want to attend till subsequent spring to get it on handhelds just like the Legion Go 2.

Home windows is horrible on handhelds. It will get in the way in which when attempting to place the gadget to sleep whereas nonetheless in-game. It bombards you with popups for OneDrive that it’s essential to use the touchscreen to excise. It saps energy and makes the gadget run worse than it might if it was working SteamOS, the identical Linux-based working system working on the Steam Deck. In our exams, the Legion Go S with SteamOS outperforms its Home windows counterpart by 20 to 30%. Until you’re lifeless set on protecting your Xbox Recreation Move video games helpful, I’d counsel wanting into putting in Valve’s software program on the Legion Go 2. I’ve not confirmed whether or not you’ll be able to set up SteamOS on the brand new handheld, although if its not suitable at launch, I assume an replace could also be across the nook. With out the FSE or SteamOS, this could’t be my handheld of alternative. With a brand new working system, the Legion Go 2 would change into the bell of the ball for contemporary PC handhelds.

See Lenovo Legion Go 2 at Best Buy