Lenovo Legion Go 2 - The Heavyweight of Handheld Gaming

When it comes to mobile gaming, how far are you prepared to go to get the best experience possible?

Some people might be happy enough tapping and swiping away at their phone.

But you're not those people. You're a real gamer.

You have a console. Or perhaps a proper gaming PC souped up with extra RAM, lots of cooling and a high-end GPU.

So how are you going to replicate that when you're out and about?

The Lenovo Legion Go 2 takes all that and squashes it into a handheld that weighs in well under a kilo.

And I do mean all that.

Although it's small enough to fit into any backpack, briefcase and most handbags, the Legion Go 2 comes with its own padded, soft-shell case, with an internal pocket just big enough to accommodate the 65W USB-C fast charger.

Depending on how long you expect to be gaming on the move, you may not even need to take the charger with you; battery life should good enough to last at least a couple of hours or so, depending on how hard you run the device.

And you can run it pretty hard.

The Legion Go 2 is commanded by an AMD Ryzen Z2 or Z2 Extreme processor, comes with 32GB of RAM and up to 1TB of internal storage, with the option to add still more storage via microSD.

Packed with cooling measures to keep things running at their optimum, the updated Legion ColdFront thermal system utilises a combination of larger radiators, bigger fan blades and improved dual heat pipes.

So it's fast. And it's powerful.

It connects via Wi-Fi 6E - which I've found to be plenty quick enough to stream games like Call of Duty Black Ops 7 via Xbox Cloud Gaming and you can connect bluetooth accessories like mice, keyboards and external controllers using Bluetooth 5.3.

However, as we all know, serious gamers often prefer to connect via cables, and here's where the Legion Go 2 designers have let themselves down a bit.

I get that these days it's not super unusual for laptops and the like to be a bit miserly when it comes to the number of I/O ports they have. But with the Legion Go 2, Lenovo seems to have taken this to the extreme. You get just two USB-C ports, one of which you'll probably need to leave free for plugging in your charger and of those two ports, one's in a dumb place.

There's a USB-C on the top edge, with a power indicator LED next to it. You'll also find the power button up there which doubles as a fingerprint reader for quick, secure logins.

Bizarrely, the other USB-C slot is on the bottom edge - and so is the headphone jack.

Now, admittedly, if you're using this handheld as a handheld, putting those two plug-holes down there doesn't matter so much. But if you want to make use of the Legion Go 2's very sturdy, flip-out kickstand to play on a desk or table top - perhaps with a mouse and keyboard rather than the attached control paddles - plugging things like headphones and power supplies into the bottom edge makes no sense whatsoever. If they couldn't put all the ports on the top, how about the back? 

That niggly design flaw aside, not only can you use external, 3rd-party accessories to control the Legion Go 2, you also have the option of detaching the controllers and converting the right-hand one into a joystick mouse with the attachments included in the box.

Apparently, this is something FPS experts like to do - in effect, it enables you to hold the controller more like a gun, creating a more immersive First Person Shooter experience.

An experience enhanced even further by the 8.8-inch PureSight OLED gaming display - a screen far superior to most other mobile gaming devices. You're getting the pure black contrast only OLED can deliver along with vibrant colours that really do pop, at a 144Hz refresh rate. It's this premium display that really makes the Legion Go 2 feel like a desktop or console you can hold in your hands.

The only downside is it's quite reflective - so the 500 nits of brightness is somewhat cancelled out if you try to game in the sunshine.

But as a gamer, you're allergic to sunshine, so that shouldn't be an issue.

Aside from the usual dual joystick, D-Pad, A B X Y button configuration and even a small touch-pad, there are heaps of other controls placed just where you need them.

Although I never used one myself, I understand a major criticism of the original Legion Go was it was a bit boxy and uncomfortable to hold. The Gen-2 version has been rounded off a lot more and although it can start to feel a little heavy after a while, I haven't found myself cramping up trying to reach the top or rear buttons.

The pre-installed Legion Space app is essentially your one-stop-shop for tweaks and customisations. You can access this at any time with a single button press. Then you can adjust power settings, reassign certain controls and access your game library - regardless of what platform it's on; Xbox, Epic, Rockstar, whatever.

In fact, there's literally nothing you can't do on this device you can do on any other Windows 11 PC... Other than the fact some things look weirdly tiny on this form-factor. I mean, it's technically possible to check your emails and review spreadsheets but apart from anything else, where's the fun in that?

I recommend pairing a keyboard and mouse for your initial setup but the on-screen keyboard is usable enough for logins etc.

After that, you should have everything you need to play most games right there in your hands. There really is no limit - from triple-A new releases to retro favourites, the Legion Go 2 is the PC in your pocket you've been waiting for.

You'll need pretty deep pockets - it's larger than some portables and perhaps the most expensive - but if you want serious gaming in a mobile package, it 's probably a price well worth paying.

    

Click here for more information and pricing on the Lenovo Legion Go 2.