Lenovo Legion 7 hands-on: New i9 chips, with greater batteries to match | Engadget

Now that the newest elements from AMD, Intel and Nvidia can be found, Lenovo is updating its 16-inch flagship gaming laptop computer with extra lights, higher efficiency and larger batteries. And after getting an opportunity to go hands-on with the brand new Legion 7, I actually recognize that Lenovo made two barely totally different variations to swimsuit individuals’s wants.

First up is the usual Legion 7, which is extra of a desktop replacement-style gaming pocket book designed to deal with essentially the most highly effective CPUs and GPUs you may put in a laptop computer proper now. It’s accessible in both Intel/NVIDIA (beginning at $2,449) or all-AMD configurations (beginning at $2,059), with Lenovo supporting as much as a Twelfth-gen Intel i9 chip and RTX 3080 Ti or Ryzen 9 6900HX and Radeon RX 6850M XT.

Now these are some beefy specs, however crucial improve is likely to be the addition of a brand new 99.9 WHr battery. That’s the largest energy pack you may put in a laptop computer while still being able to carry it on a plane. On prime of that, whereas Lenovo’s included energy adapter is a cumbersome 300-watt affair, the Legion 7 additionally helps USB-C energy supply. That means if you wish to journey mild, you may pack a smaller USB-PD adapter (as much as 135 watts). However, it is vital to keep in mind that should you achieve this, the laptop computer will not cost as quick or get full efficiency when plugged into the wall.

That stated, essentially the most eye-catching a part of the system is undoubtedly all of the RGB lighting scattered throughout its chassis. You get a light-up brand on its lid, a backlit keyboard with optionally available per-key adjustability, a giant mild bar in entrance and a ton of LEDs in its vents. Now I do not know if anybody retains observe of stats like this, however the Legion 7 could have essentially the most RGB lighting of any gaming pocket book.

While it wasn’t prepared in time for my hands-on session, Lenovo says it is also planning to launch its new Spectrum app that is designed to present customers extra management over lighting results, together with the power to sync issues with no matter music or movies they’re enjoying.

I’m unsure I really like the system’s brushed steel edges, however I’ve to present some props to Lenovo for together with three USB-C ports on the laptop computer’s left and proper sides. This makes it simple to plug in issues like thumb drives, whereas in again, there’s extra connectivity for stuff you need not fiddle with as typically similar to energy, Ethernet, HDMI and extra. And alongside a brand new 1080p webcam (up from 720p), you additionally get a devoted digital shutter slider on the proper for elevated privateness.

In basic, the Legion 7’s construct high quality felt good too. There wasn’t little or no flex on its lid or deck, and whereas touchpads are sometimes an afterthought on gaming laptops, this one is each giant and responsive. Unfortunately, there weren’t any video games put in, so I wasn’t in a position to get a way of its thermals or fan noise. But I do just like the laptop computer’s up to date energy button, which now has a built-in fingerprint reader.

That stated, whereas I respect a giant, high-spec gaming laptop computer (and anybody who needs to hold one round), weighing in at 5.5 kilos, the Legion 7 is not a terrific choose for frequent vacationers. But that is the place the Legion 7 Slim is available in. That’s as a result of whilst you nonetheless get a 16-inch show, help for a 99.9 Whr battery and a really related design, Lenovo elevated the Slim’s portability by decreasing its max specs a contact, deleting loads of RGB lighting and trimming down the scale of its chassis. The result’s a thinner and lighter 4.5-pound laptop computer with a smaller hinge that is simpler to toss in a bag.

Aside from its measurement, the largest distinction between the usual Legion 7 and the Legion 7 Slim is that the latter tops out with both an NVIDIA RTX 3070 or an AMD RX 6800S GPU. And in contrast to its greater sibling, the Slim’s refresh charge peaks at 165Hz as a substitute of 240Hz. The upside is that with the Intel/NVIDIA model of the Slim beginning at $1,589 for a Core i5 chip with an RTX 3050 Ti or simply $1,519 for the AMD Advantage mannequin that includes a Ryzen 5 6600H and RX6600S GPU, Lenovo’s barely smaller system is much more reasonably priced.

So no matter what sort of gamer you might be, Lenovo is trying to offer you just a few extra decisions amongst 16-inch gaming notebooks. And whereas I’m curious to see how these large batteries fare in actual life (particularly when paired with a power-hungry Twelfth-gen Intel CPU), I actually like what I’ve seen up to now.

The Intel/NVIDIA variations of the Legion 7 and Legion 7 Slim will go on sale first someday later this month, with the AMD Advantage fashions arriving barely later in June.