PC gaming handhelds have become quite the big thing over the past couple of years, and there are a lot of these portables on the market these days. You might be thinking of buying a handheld as a Christmas gift for a family member – or maybe you want to treat yourself this holiday season – but the sheer array of choice out there can seem bewildering.
You may be aware that Lenovo makes a PC handheld, but you might not know that a sequel to the original Legion Go device has just arrived – with some major improvements that make it a compelling choice. This article will look at those enhancements and the reasons why the Lenovo Legion Go 2 is a true powerhouse of a portable, and an ideal Christmas gift for the gamer in your life (even if that happens to be you).
Powerful hardware for a portable
The Legion Go 2 packs either an AMD Ryzen Z2 or Z2 Extreme, but either way you're getting a chip with a fast processor and graphics – one that majors in efficiency which is vital for battery life. Backing that up is a beefy 32GB of LPDDR5X memory (which is a larger quantity of RAM than many full gaming PCs out there).
That allows this Lenovo portable to handle your PC games and indeed multi-tasking needs without breaking a sweat. The Legion Go 2 also offers storage options of 512GB, 1TB or 2TB (and for extra space, should you need any more, there's a microSD slot to add another 2TB).
Gorgeous new OLED display
One of the big upgrades for the Legion Go 2 compared to the original device is a new OLED screen and it makes a lot of difference to the portable gaming experience here. It's an 8.8-inch display with a 144Hz refresh rate (and VRR or variable refresh rate), meaning that your games can be pushed to high frame rates where they run very smoothly.
The PureSight OLED screen is bright (500 nits) and bold, offering vivid colors and deep blacks (with 100% DCI-P3 colour coverage, and HDR TrueBlack 1000 certification). If you put the Legion Go 2 next to another gaming handheld, perhaps a friend's, you're going to notice the difference with this OLED – it'll blow you (and the owner of the other device) away.
It's also worth noting that on the audio front, Lenovo has improved the sound with the sequel to the original Legion Go.
A seriously flexible gaming device thanks to Truestrike controllers
The Lenovo Legion Go 2 has an ace up its sleeve – well, a pair of aces, actually – in the form of its Truestrike controllers. There are two of these, one on each side of the screen, and they can be detached from the display unit if you wish, giving a lot of flexibility therein, and different modes of use for the device.
This means you can use the Legion Go 2 as a traditional handheld, of course, with the controllers attached (this is called 'handheld mode' unsurprisingly). Or you can detach both controllers, prop up the display unit on a desk in front of you using the built-in kickstand, and place one controller in a puck (little circular dock) so you can use it as a mouse (a vertical mouse, if you've seen one of those before – it basically looks like a joystick). This is known as 'FPS mode' because it's ideal for shooters (first-person or otherwise), using the other controller for movement commands in conjunction with the controller doing mouse duties for aiming and shooting.
There's also a 'docked mode' where you can attach the handheld to an external monitor, keyboard and mouse, essentially using it as a PC (and it's even possible to hook up an external GPU in this setup).
Then there's 'tabletop mode' which refers to having the Legion Go 2 on a table with its kickstand, and both controllers detached, with you and a friend using one controller each in a multiplayer game, perhaps – or you might watch a video in this mode. It's also possible to use both controllers snapped together in the charging connector to make a standalone gamepad that you can use with the display unit on a table, or your living room TV if the unit is docked ('console mode').
In short, Lenovo has provided a good deal of versatility here, and that's not the only strength in that respect for the Legion Go 2.
Customisation and design strengths aplenty
As well as customisation in terms of the various modes of use that the Legion Go 2 offers as discussed above, it's also possible to choose what the rear buttons do, and to use the Legion Space software to knock up your own custom macros. That software also allows you to switch between different power usage profiles, depending on whether you want better performance or longer battery life. Legion Space also lets you tweak the controllers to better suit your exact requirements, getting the feel you want, which can be a very subjective thing.
Speaking of the controls, it's worth noting that the Legion Go 2 has 'hall effect' joysticks, meaning the sticks use magnets to register directional presses, giving a better overall feel, drift-free accuracy, and more durability. They're accompanied by a large pivot D-pad to give the likes of Street Fighter or other beat-'em-ups a classic arcade feel. On top of all that, linear motors and haptics are designed to let you feel all those punches, explosions, and so forth.
Lenovo has also tweaked the chassis and grip of the Legion Go 2 for better ergonomics, so it's easier and more comfortable to hold the device for longer gaming sessions. Another neat design tweak is the addition of a fingerprint reader which is built right into the power button – you just touch it to unlock the device and start gaming.
Finally, the Legion Go 2 takes another step forward with the design of its cooling system compared to the original, with Legion Coldfront tech and dual heat pipes facilitating 45% more airflow than the first device managed, according to Lenovo.
All in all, there's a lot to like about the design of this handheld, and the overall level of customisation in terms of tailoring it to your needs.
Battery life in spades
The Legion Go 2 has a 74Whr battery which is 50% more capacity than the original handheld, and as you might guess, that means a lot more gaming time when you're out and about. You also get Super Rapid Charge tech for a fast recharge, so you can hook up the device to the mains for half an hour and get enough juice for plenty of gaming (70% of a full battery). And as already mentioned, you can adjust power preferences with Lenovo's Legion Space software to make the battery last longer, too.
A powerful handheld from Lenovo and Currys
Overall, the Lenovo Legion Go 2 sports a thoughtful design, a great deal of versatility, a beefy battery, an excellent new OLED screen, and a powerful AMD Ryzen processor to drive your gaming experience – and software to back that up and let you tweak a whole lot of settings to your exact preferences.
For all those reasons, the Legion Go 2 advanced by AMD Ryzen processors makes a great Christmas gift for any gamer, and there are further good reasons to buy the handheld from Currys. At Currys, you can purchase the Legion Go 2 with 512GB of storage or the Legion Go 2 with 1TB, while getting the benefit of competitive pricing, with frequent promotions or discounts.
There's also the ability to spread your payments on the device. Currys flexpay allows you to buy now and pay later – as much, or as little, as you like over the subsequent 12 months, with no interest charged if you clear the payment inside the year. Or there are also finance options for traditional monthly payments (with interest), too.