Like a demanding parent, I've been a bit hard on the Lenovo Legion Go since its arrival. In true "I'm not mad, just disappointed" fashion, I wasn't quite convinced that its price tag and big specs resulted in a better gaming handheld experience overall, resulting in me mainly recommending rivals over the past 12 months. However, the portable PC just dropped to a price that helps mask its flaws, and I'm totally on board with that.
At Amazon right now, the Lenovo Legion Go is down to $499 from $699.99 thanks to a record-breaking 29% discount. Just last week, I found myself telling you all to consider other portables like the ROG Ally before the 8.8-inch portable, as it was going for $50 less and is my best gaming handheld pick out of the two. If you listened to my advice before the weekend, then you'll be either glad you didn't grab the Legion Go before it dropped another $100 or sitting pretty with Asus' device. Either way, waiting it out was the right move, particularly if you're hellbent on grabbing Lenovo's system for less.
I've been consistently keeping tabs on Lenovo Legion Go pricing for months now, and it normally only manages to drop to $599. That offer wasn't too shabby at first, but it quickly became more of a MSRP adjustment than a legitimate deal. So, seeing another $100 off is ideal and makes it a lot easier to recommend buying.
Should you buy the Lenovo Legion Go?
On paper, the Lenovo Legion Go has a lot going for it, including a large 8.8-inch 144Hz QHD and detachable TrueStrike gamepads. It's also packing an AMD Ryzen Z1 APU, meaning it can keep up with even the most powerful handhelds out there. But, if you've already read my review, you'll know that I think it's specs are a bit of a mismatch, and Lenovo ultimately failed to win me over with its clunkier design.
Compared to something like the Steam Deck OLED and Asus ROG Ally, the Legion Go sadly ended up feeling a bit unbalanced when I tested it. My main gripe was with the fact that its Z1E processor wasn't really up to the task of supplying its 144Hz 1600p screen with an appropriate frame rate in newer games, making the setup feel slightly redundant.
You could say the extra specs headroom is simply a nice to have, particularly if you want to run older adventures with elevated settings. However, the extra oomph was originally tied to a higher $799 MSRP, which left a sour taste in my mouth. The fact its novel removable gamepad also fell short in terms of controller quality worsened the experience for my portable pallet, which is ultimately why it failed to win me over last year.
Fast forward to 2024, and I do feel like the Legion Go is working hard to justify its existence. Dropping under $500 helps highlight the pros of picking up Lenovo's premium portable, like the fact it has a larger screen and will ultimately produce similar performance to even $800 options like the Asus ROG Ally X and Zotac Zone. The device's management software has also received continuous updates throughout the year, and while it still feels a bit half baked to me, some of the early quirks should be gone.
With most of its rivals sitting at full price right now, the Legion Go is also technically the best value handheld available at this second. Things change quickly, and I will be more inclined to recommend the ROG Ally when it returns to its lowest price. It's also worth adding that while I'm pretty impressed with Lenovo's current discount, it could be a double edged sword, as it's going to take even more to impress me when I'm shopping for Black Friday gaming deals. What can I say, I'm pretty high maintenance.
Looking for more portable savings? Swing by Black Friday Steam Deck deals and Black Friday gaming laptop deals for on the go machines. Alternatively, take a peek at Black Friday TV deals if you're revamping your at home setup.
