The new Legion Go handheld PC from Lenovo hopes to compete with the likes of the Steam Deck or the Asus Rog Ally.
An exclusive article from WindowsCentral has introduced us to the new potential offering by Lenovo in the handheld PC space.
Some of you may remember that Lenovo already had a Legion handheld that leaked back in 2021. And things did not end well with that particular console.
So can Lenovo deliver what is potentially the next best handheld gaming PC? I’d say they’ve got a tough uphill battle to reach that peak.
Lenovo Legion Play
The Legion Go is not the first handheld game console that Lenovo had designed and attempted to release.
The cancelled Lenovo Legion Play faced some controversy back in 2022. Especially after a bunch of the discarded units were sold in China.
It’s tough to make good assessments based on unfinished hardware and software.
But the cancelled Android-based Legion Play handhelds did not seem to be going anywhere good or anywhere new.
So the decision by Lenovo to just cancel its production was probably the right move to make.
But if we compare what we saw in the Legion Play against the new Legion Go, are Lenovo really doing anything much better?
Lenovo Legion Go
The Legion Go is a second the attempt by Lenovo to enter into the handheld gaming market. It feels like it is basically the Legion Play Beta 2.
The Legion Play was an Android-based device that shared a lot of ideas with the Logitech G Cloud.
We do not yet know if this new Legion Go would also use Android, or if they plan on going with a Windows device like the ASUS ROG Ally.
The hardware is rumored to include an AMD Phoenix series chip and an 8-inch display. [via WindowsCentral]
That makes us believe it will be a Windows-based handheld and it should place the performance close to the ASUS ROG Ally.
Time will tell if Lenovo offers something that stands strong next to the ASUS, which is obviously the main competition and inspiration at this point.
Early Thoughts
I don’t find anything particularly desirable or redeeming about the new Lenovo Legion Go even hough you’ll be able to play your favourite free Steam games and beyond with it.
Even if they were to be able to create something similar to the ASUS ROG Ally, but at a better price point, would we want it?
The design of the Legion Go is not particularly exciting, and has a bit of a cheap “gamer-y” vibe to it. But that is also what people said about the ASUS handheld PC.
I do not think these two devices even stand in the same room when it comes to design. To me, the ASUS looks edgy and cool, the Lenovo does not.
So the only factors we could look to for redemption are price and performance. Again, the rumored specs do suggest they hope to offer something powerful.
But until anything is official from Lenovo, we are simply speculating on something that may or may not exist. And we are making judgements on something that will hopefully see many improvements before going into production.
So maybe let’s all give Lenovo a shot and see what they offer when that time comes. Then we can decide if we love it or hate it then.
