Lenovo Legion Go release date, price, features announced

Lenovo launched its first handheld gaming computer to take on the Steam Deck, the Asus ROG Ally. The Windows 11-powered Legion Go launches in October for $699, and it’ll be available from Lenovo’s site as well as Best Buy and Micro Center.

Legion Go may have similar specs to other competitors, but the high-end display and powerful detachable controls are unmatched. It has an 8.8″ touchscreen with a 1600p display and 144Hz refresh rate. The screen can be scaled down to 800p or 60Hz in order to maximize battery life. Don’t expect the device’s 49.2 Wh battery to hold a charge for long while pushing 1600p resolution (though Lenovo claims it can recharge back to 70% in 30 minutes when you use the included 65 W charger).

The Legion Go’s attempts to stand out in the handheld PC space rely on tricks that the Nintendo Switch popularized (but hardly perfected). The kickstand allows it to be reclined without needing any additional accessories. The Legion Go’s signature feature is detachable controllers, which look like high-tech Joy-Cons. They include accurate Hall effect joysticks, and based on my experience, those aren’t prone to drifting after extended use — unlike the potentiometers built into the analog sticks in most controllers these days. The standard buttons as well as a number of other features are included, including a customizable thumb trackpad and a mouse wheel.

The right controller can nest in the magnetic dock to make it easier to play first-person shooting games. Once it’s set in FPS mode with a toggle switch, an optical sensor on the bottom kicks on, letting you move it around like a mouse for more accurate aiming. It’s a cool idea, and I’m curious to see if it works well in practice.

The Legion Go, like the ROG ally or the Steam Deck can dock to either a television monitor, while controllers can be connected via Bluetooth. This device can be used to run both games from a MicroSD card and an M.2 2242 PCIe-NVMe SSD. (Like the Lenovo ThinkPad laptops that use this type of SSD). The starting model includes a 256 GB SSD, but Lenovo will offer 512 GB and 1 TB configurations as well, although the company didn’t announce price points for those versions.

Image: Lenovo

Image: Lenovo

If you enjoy a life of luxury, the Legion Go can be viewed from your very own private, virtual screen with Lenovo’s new wired Legion Glasses, which the company also announced Friday. The glasses provide a large screen experience on a mobile device, thanks to a micro OLED display with 60Hz refresh rates and 1080p.

They also deliver what Lenovo claims is “high-fidelity” audio with the device’s built-in speakers. Better yet, they’ll work with more than just the Legion Go. The glasses should work with any device that has USB-C Video output via DisplayPort Alt Mode, which includes Windows and macOS Computers, Android Phones, and other portable gaming Hardware. Like the Legion Go, the Legion Glasses are coming in October; they’ll cost $329.