The battle for dominance in the handheld gaming market is intensifying, and word on the street is that Lenovo has a new contender set to join the fray. Rumors suggest that the tech company will soon unveil the Lenovo Legion Go S, a more budget-friendly handheld option. According to info from WinFuture, this device will likely be the first to feature AMD’s upcoming Z2G APUs, slated to hit the scene in 2025. It’s expected to tout a 120 Hz 1080p screen, a hefty 512GB SSD, and 16GB of RAM—all pretty solid for a handheld device.
Now, let’s talk a bit about AMD’s Ryzen Z2G—a.k.a. the Z2 Go. It’s said to be built on AMD’s Rembrandt architecture and is equipped with eight Zen 3+ CPU cores paired with an RDNA 2 iGPU, housing a respectable 12 Compute Units. Granted, this setup might not have all the shiny features of the top-tier Ryzen AI 300 (Strix Point) APUs or even the Phoenix models, but its production is more cost-effective. This efficiency should translate into more appealing price tags at retail. On the tech side of things, the Z2G is very similar to AMD’s Ryzen 7 6800U, showcasing an L3 cache of 16MB—right in line with AMD’s standard for octa-core APUs—and 4MB of L2 cache. The clock speed is anticipated to get a minor boost from the current 4.7 GHz, but don’t expect any earth-shattering jumps in performance.
Shifting to the hardware specifics, the Legion Go S is expected to sport 16GB of soldered LPDDR5 memory and will feature a PCIe 4.0 512GB SSD in the compact M.2 2242 form factor. For connectivity, the device won’t lag behind, supporting both Wi-Fi 6E and Bluetooth 5.3. The 8-inch 1080p IPS display will refresh at 120 Hz — a nice feature, although it does mean you’ll miss the deep blacks and vibrant colors that OLED screens offer. For comparison, the Steam Deck OLED starts at $549 but runs a slower APU, so it’s all about weighing the pros and cons.
The battery in the Legion Go S clocks in at 55.5Wh, an upgrade from its original counterpart. However, due to the older architecture, battery life might not quite reach peak performance. Fortunately, Lenovo offers the Vantage app, which lets users set a custom charging threshold, freeing you to run it entirely on AC power if you want to extend battery longevity.
There is a slight catch with the Legion Go S: it comes with built-in controllers, which unfortunately rules out any custom third-party options. Whether the joysticks and triggers use Hall Effect technology remains unclear, but this lack of interchangeable controllers might put off some enthusiasts. As for pricing, a few European retailers have pegged a starting price at about $650. Without including VAT, that puts it around $500—just a smidge $50 less than the regular Legion Go, which features a more powerful APU and a higher-quality display.
All eyes will be on the upcoming CES, where Lenovo is expected to showcase the Legion S. AMD fans have extra reason to tune in as well, as the event will likely feature the reveal of the Z2 lineup and other enticing tech. Keep in mind, though, that the retail price could still see adjustments before the official launch, potentially swinging further in favor of our wallets.
