Gaming laptops used to require a handful of compromises in order to achieve a fraction of what a less expensive desktop PC was capable of, but the Lenovo Legion 5i is a shining example of how far lightweight portable gaming devices have come. CGMagazine has reviewed previous versions of Lenovo’s Legion series, and thankfully, their latest entry-level model was more than enough to handle today’s brightest and most demanding games on high settings.
The first thing that struck me the first time I booted up the Lenovo Legion 5i Gaming Laptop was how vibrant and clear its unassuming 15.3’ display was. Its lightweight build and small frame lowered my guard, letting me be absolutely assaulted by the lush colours and crystal-clear imagery of the company’s generic wallpapers. I am happy to report that the OLED screen continued to produce levels of awe with some of the best-looking games of today that I tested on the laptop.
With 0.79 x 13.54 x 9.63 in dimensions and a weight of only 4.12 lb, the laptop is a far cry from the thick and heavy gaming laptops of the past that could double as a space heater. For such a tiny machine, the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060 graphics card turns the extremely portable computer into a machine capable of reaching mid-to-high-range desktop performance without much hassle.
One of the most convenient features of the Lenovo Legion 5i allowed me to switch the device’s performance settings between three separate modes by simply pressing the “Fn” + “Q” keys. It can alternate between a “Quiet” resource-saving mode, “Auto” that adjusts to whatever tasks are being requested, and the “Overclock” mode, which puts all of the laptop’s resources into performance.
“The first thing that struck me the first time I booted up the Lenovo Legion 5i Gaming Laptop was how vibrant and clear its unassuming 15.3’ display was.”
Thanks to the NVIDIA RTX 5060, Intel Core Ultra 7 HX, and the 16GB of DDR5 RAM, while testing games like Cyberpunk 2077, Control Resonant, and Borderlands 4, even the Quiet mode was able to handle those games on high graphical settings. And while the Overclock mode was noticeably louder (and taxing the laptop’s 16GB of RAM to the max), it was able to play those beautiful games at the machine’s highest resolution (2560 x 1600) at more than 120fps.
With that type of power, the small and lightweight Lenovo Legion 5i Gaming Laptop will be more than capable of playing the newest games to be released over the next few years with ease. Video editing and other resource-heavy programs are also a breeze to run with the Legion 5i, as well as handling any type of homework or project a college student may need to accomplish between gaming sessions.
Another aspect of the Lenovo Legion 5i I was not expecting to be blown away by was the quality of its external speakers. The Nahimic Audio by SteelSeries is somehow able to create a 3D audio effect that wraps around the user, simulating a surround sound effect that sounded incredible when playing immersive games like Battlefield 6 or intense atmospheric games like Housemarque’s Returnal. The Bluetooth connections worked great on every device I tried, but the performance of the external speakers is so impressive that I’d recommend using them rather than most cheap sets of Bluetooth headphones.
Speaking of connecting other devices, most of the Lenovo laptop’s ports, such as the external HDMI, USB-A ports, and power port, are located on the back of the device. This choice greatly helps reduce the visual and physical clutter that cords normally create by sticking out of the sides of the portable personal computer. The sides of the device also include USB, Ethernet, and audio ports, but thanks to the clever design choices, they are each spread out in a way that helps the Legion 5i look elegant, even if several things are hooked up to it.
If I had to give an unfortunate award to the least impressive thing about the Legion 5i laptop, it would be its serviceable but unimpressive trackpad. It absolutely works and gets the job done, but its performance and design feel like the same trackpad that laptops have been using for almost two decades, to the point that it’s still much easier and preferred to use an external mouse if one is available.
Battery life for the Lenovo Legion 5i Gaming Laptop was another serviceable but otherwise unremarkable feature of the laptop. It provided around five to six hours of power while performing a medium level of multitasking activities, such as listening to music while typing while half a dozen browser tabs filled with resource-heavy sites (thank you current generation internet ads) ran. Gaming on only battery power was unsurprisingly far more draining, but it was able to handle two to three hours of entertainment, time varying on how resource-hungry a game may be.
And last but not least is the laptop’s internal keyboard, which itself doesn’t feel like anything special; but its keys have a 1.6mm travel response rate, which is more than enough for typing and casual gaming. The LED and multicoloured backlighting on the keyboard provide an extra touch of vibrance to the laptop’s overall stunning visuals. Perfect for nighttime gaming or nights of work for those of us who have not remembered where every single key on the keyboard is.
Overall, I can barely think of any way I’d want to improve on the Lenovo Legion 5i Gaming Laptop. It’s an entry-level model of their latest series that is more than capable of playing today’s best-looking games at high settings, and its brilliant screen and lightweight design make it a machine that I highly recommend to anyone looking for a gaming laptop. The Lenovo Legion 5i will likely be more than capable of playing any of today’s modern games to satisfaction, meaning you don’t need to spend $3000 – $4000, but this will likely be enough power to get the job done.
- EXPLORE YOUR PASSION, ELEVATE YOUR GAME – The Lenovo Legion 5i empowers university gamers to explore their latest passions. With a thinner, lighter design and a Lenovo PureSight OLED display, it excels in gaming, streaming, and coursework on the go.
- GAME WITHOUT COMPROMISE – The Intel Core i7-14700HX processor features newly optimized hybrid architecture and industry leading technology that enables you to go beyond gaming and creation. With Intel, you can do it all.
