The original Lenovo Legion Go is $100 off at Best Buy and Amazon right now and I'm here to tell you why it's underappreciated

Lenovo Legion Go handheld gaming PC — (Image credit: Lenovo)

Ah, the original Lenovo Legion Go. This handheld, in my humble opinion, has received less attention and praise than it deserves, over the almost two years since it was released. And with it currently being on sale for $600 at Best Buy or the same at Amazon, I think it's certainly worth your consideration.

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And I'm not just talking about its better performance. Yes, the original rocks a better chip than the new one, this chip being the Ryzen Z1 Extreme that you'll also find in both the original Asus ROG Ally and the newer ROG Ally X. It does certainly perform admirably, even if not quite up to the same snuff as the likes of the MSI Claw 8 AI+ and other more expensive handhelds.

But performance aside, what the Legion Go offers is a kind of versatility that other handhelds just can't match. That's primarily because of (a) the screen size and (b) the detachable controllers. Oh, and the kickstand, but I'm classing that under (b) since it goes along with it, like May 2025 goes along with disappointing GPU launches.

The allure of the Legion Go S is the ability to detach from it: Put it on your coffee table, or even just your lap, sit back, and game in whatever strange and wonderful sitting position you choose.

The Lenovo Legion Go on a red background and playing Baldur's Gate 3. — (Image credit: Future)

Admittedly, you'll be wanting to do that quite often in part because this thing is big and heavy, but also because it's just comfortable in general. The big screen comes in clutch here, too, because it means you won't have to squint to see it if it's an extra foot or two away.

Plus—and prepare to have your mind blown, here, as mine was—thanks to its detachable controllers, it doubles as a makeshift tablet for browsing the web and reading articles. It's a little chunky and heavy compared to an actual reading tab, but as more of an unexpected additional use case, it's great.

I must, however, fess up to the fact that I do actually play more on the Legion Go S than the Legion Go, now, despite its worse performance. That's because it's just a more comfortable and satisfying handheld to use, thanks to some general design changes.

But if I had to pick one to keep, I'm not 100% sure what I'd go for. There are certainly games the Legion Go S would struggle to play that the Legion Go would have a better shot at. And I'd certainly miss the ability to use the Legion Go as a makeshift tablet and occasionally sit back on the sofa with the grips detached. And if those kinds of use cases sound like you, $100 off for the 512 GB version isn't a bad shout at all.

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Jacob got his hands on a gaming PC for the first time when he was about 12 years old. He swiftly realised the local PC repair store had ripped him off with his build and vowed never to let another soul build his rig again. With this vow, Jacob the hardware junkie was born. Since then, Jacob's led a double-life as part-hardware geek, part-philosophy nerd, first working as a Hardware Writer for PCGamesN in 2020, then working towards a PhD in Philosophy for a few years while freelancing on the side for sites such as TechRadar, Pocket-lint, and yours truly, PC Gamer. Eventually, he gave up the ruthless mercenary life to join the world's #1 PC Gaming site full-time. It's definitely not an ego thing, he assures us.

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