The best Lenovo gaming laptops can make every gaming session on the go that bit better, and, more often than not, won't break the bank with their price tags either.
From commanding spacecraft in far-off galaxies in Starfield to leading troops into epic battles or clicking heads, today's cutting-edge games offer unprecedented immersive experiences. That’s why you need a dependable gaming laptop by your side, and few produce the same performance as Lenovo, whether it’s the premium power of the Legion series or the budget-friendly and portable IdeaPad range.
The best gaming laptop is defined by a combination of factors, from the ability to produce exceptional graphics with high-speed processing power to advanced cooling mechanisms that keep the device in question from overheating. They also need a sleek screen to bring digital experiences to life, and be portable enough to pack in a bag and take on the go.
Not all gaming laptops are built equally, which is why we’ve highlighted our top three from Lenovo with a variety of designs to suit various requirements and budgets.
Best Lenovo gaming laptop
1. Lenovo Legion 5
Best Lenovo gaming laptop by popular demand
Lenovo's Legion series has become a household brand for gaming laptops and the Legion 5, the newest model in the family, is a great gaming laptop with top-notch performance and features at an affordable price. It has an Intel Core i7-12700H processor, which trims down the price due to being previous-gen tech, but still provides outstanding gaming performance and handles the most demanding games with 14 cores and 20 threads, making it ideal for multitasking.
The Legion 5's graphics card is one of its most notable characteristics. The laptop has an NVIDIA RTX 3070 Ti GPU, which performs well even in the most demanding games. Built using Ampere architecture, it has second-generation ray tracing features, which means you’ll get the most realistic lighting and shadows in supported games, and NVIDIA DLSS to boost your frame rate when the going gets tough.
With 16GB of DDR5 RAM, there’s more than enough memory for most activities, as it meets the system requirements of nearly every game out there in 2023. It clocks in with a speed of 3,200MHz, which means it’s quick and responsive enough not to leave you hanging around waiting for tasks to load. You can even expand the laptop’s memory to 32GB using the two RAM slots if you want a little more oomph.
The Lenovo Legion 5 also has a 512GB NVMe SSD, which provides quick startup and fast load times. Although most gamers will find that this capacity is more than adequate, if you still need more space, you can enhance the laptop's storage by adding SSD or HDD. Also, the laptop's 15.6-inch WQHD screen refreshes at 165Hz. The laptop is ideal for gaming due to its fast refresh rate, which offers a fluid gaming experience. Additionally, the display's 2,560 x 1,600 resolution provides crisp, clear graphics.
Legion 5 offers a stylish, excellent design that blends nicely with the natural environment. The laptop also features a backlit keyboard with good key travel. Additionally, the laptop has four exhausts and dual fans that each work to disperse heat from the device. The touchpad on the laptop is very accurate and responsive. The laptop is kept cool even during long gaming sessions thanks to a powerful cooling system. Best of all, Lenovo Legion 5 features an adaptive cooling mode that modifies the fan speed in response to the device's temperature.
It is impressive for a gaming laptop and boasts a respectable battery life of up to 8 hours. However, the amount of use may affect battery life, and prolonged gaming will quickly weaken the battery. Enjoy gorgeous visuals and incredibly high and consistent frame rates when you unleash the Legion 5 Pro's power on your Steam collection.
Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
Excellent gameplay performance | A bit large and heavy |
Robust design and build quality | Excessively loud fans |
Good battery life | A little bland |
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2. Lenovo IdeaPad Gaming 3
Best budget Lenovo gaming laptop
Lenovo has always been a brand that provides outstanding performance and dependability for gaming laptops, but finding one with the most value for money can be difficult if you’re on a tight budget. Here, the Lenovo IdeaPad Gaming 3 is one of the best budget gaming laptops, providing top-notch functionality and features for the price.
For one, it provides outstanding performance for its price with its AMD Ryzen 5 6600H processor and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 graphics card. The CPU is capable of handling most contemporary titles with no problems, including busy RTS games, with the option to overclock the speeds to 4.2GHz - pretty damn fast. On the GPU side of things, the RTX 3050 might be mid-range but it can push medium to high settings in most games and provides better power efficiency than models from earlier generations.
Another significant aspect of the Lenovo IdeaPad Gaming 3 is the display. It sports a 15.6-inch Full HD display with a 120Hz refresh rate. This ensures you get lag-free, fluid, and flawless gameplay, which is perfect for various esports games with smooth visuals. Also, the laptop is well-built and boasts good build quality, so it should last a good long while.
The Lenovo IdeaPad Gaming 3 also has 8GB of RAM, which meets the minimum system requirements of most games, but you might want to upgrade to 16GB of RAM to play the latest games. Storage starts with a 256GB SSD but, depending on your region (in this case a 512GB M.2 NVMe SSD), you might be able to choose something a little beefier so you’re not dependent on uninstalling and reinstalling your games.
The trackpad and keyboard handle pretty nicely, and both the webcam and microphone get the job done just fine - although they’re no match for a dedicated streaming camera or desktop microphone. The battery life is good, though it suffers from the same brevity as most gaming laptops, lasting five to six hours of moderate use without games.
Lenovo's IdeaPad is a wonderful option if you are searching for a budget gaming laptop. Every budget laptop has flaws, so you will have to put up with short battery life, medium graphics, and an all-plastic build, but it’s not a bad compromise.
Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
Fantastic overall performance | Limited storage |
High refresh rate display | The maximum RAM upgrade is 16GB |
Decent battery life | Average speakers |
Good build |
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3. Lenovo Legion 7i
Best high-end Lenovo gaming laptop
The Lenovo Legion 7i competes with the best in the business, powered by an Intel Core i9-13900HX CPU, one of the most powerful gaming laptop processors on the market. The processor can handle even the most demanding games and apps with its base clock speed of 3.3GHz and a turbo boost speed of up to 4.8 GHz. With 24 cores and 16 threads, it's ideal for multitasking and running numerous applications simultaneously.
One of a gaming laptop's most crucial parts is the graphics card, and the Lenovo Legion 7i packs an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 GPU. Based on Ada Lovelace architecture with 10,496 CUDA cores, 328 Tensor Cores, and 82 RT Cores, you’ll be able to switch ray tracing on and crank up the settings as high as they’ll go. Since this is an RTX 4000 series card, it also comes with DLSS 3, the latest version of the brand’s upscaling feature that regularly doubles frame rates in supported games. Paired with a G-Sync screen, screen tearing is pretty much a thing of the past.
The 16-inch IPS display on the Lenovo Legion 7i features a refresh rate of 240Hz, and it’ll have no issues making the most of it. You’ll be able to hit 240fps in most games you play on its 1920x1080 resolution screen. With a black aluminium chassis that feels solid and well-built, the laptop boasts a contemporary style that looks fantastic in any environment. The laptop also features a backlit keyboard with adequate key travel and a pleasant surface for typing. The touchpad on the laptop is very accurate and responsive.
The Legion 7 is not just the best that Lenovo has to offer, but also one of the top gaming laptops from any manufacturer. Its 32GB of RAM is more than enough for most gaming and multitasking requirements, including the demands of video editing and streaming. The laptop has two RAM slots, so you may increase the memory to 64GB if you need to.
It also includes a 1TB NVMe SSD, giving you plenty of storage for all your games and plenty of speed for fast startup and load times. Most gamers will find that this capacity is more than adequate. However, if you still need more space, you can enhance the laptop's storage by adding SSD or HDD.
Even during lengthy gaming sessions, the Lenovo Legion 7i's powerful cooling mechanism stops the laptop from overheating. Six exhausts and dual fans on the laptop work together to disperse heat from the device. It has a respectable battery life of up to 6 hours for a high-end gaming laptop, however, your mileage may vary depending on how you use it. Prolonged gaming will certainly drain the battery quicker. The Lenovo Legion 7i is unquestionably the best laptop to consider if you're searching for a high-end device that provides excellent value.
Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
Strong performance and fantastic graphics | More expensive than other gaming laptops |
Excellent content rendering | Loud fans operating under stress |
Good range of ports | The display is a little dimmer than we’d like |
Good touchpad and keyboard | |
G-Sync-compatible display with a high refresh rate | |
Good battery life | |
Respectable speakers |
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Frequently asked questions (FAQs)
Don't worry if you have any questions. We've answered some of the most commonly asked queries below.
What is Lenovo?
Lenovo is a multinational technology company founded in Beijing, China, in 1984. It designs, manufactures, and sells various electronics, including personal computers, smartphones, smart televisions, and data management systems, including the gaming laptops we showcase here.
Today, Lenovo is one of the largest computer vendors globally, well-known for its extensive lineup of innovative and high-quality products. Apart from its successful personal computer and laptop ranges, Lenovo has also made significant inroads into the server and smartphone markets.
Is Lenovo a good or bad brand?
In terms of reputation, Lenovo is generally considered a good brand. It has consistently been praised for its high-quality laptops, which are often recognized for their excellent balance of performance and price, making them appealing options for both casual users and dedicated tech enthusiasts. The company's customer service also receives positive reviews in many regions, further bolstering its reputation.
Can Lenovo be trusted?
Yes, Lenovo can certainly be trusted. It's a reputable brand with a global presence and a long history of delivering high-quality, reliable products. Lenovo's reputation for quality extends not only to its high-end products but also to its entry-level and mid-range offerings. In addition to the reliability of its products, Lenovo also prioritises security in its devices, ensuring that users can trust their personal data's safety when using Lenovo's laptops and other devices.
Its record isn’t spotless, however. The Superfish incident, which involved pre-installed adware and malware bundled in Lenovo laptops, made systems vulnerable in 2014. Lenovo removed Superfish from all new computers early in 2015 and advised customers to remove it from existing devices. As of 2023, no more security concerns of this magnitude have cropped up.
Is Lenovo banned in any country?
Lenovo isn't banned in any country. While some countries may have rules and regulations about the import and sale of certain technology products, Lenovo, being a global brand, typically meets or exceeds these requirements. Since it’s a Chinese brand, it has fallen under the same scrutiny as TikTok in the United States, and many Western countries avoid using them as government devices, but this is based on fear rather than available evidence.
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