Lenovo Legion 7 Review: The Indomitable King!

On this world of silicon scarcity and scalping of CPUs and GPUs, many are trying on the laptop computer house to offer them with desktop PC alternative gadgets. The Lenovo Legion 7 goals to be one such machine, packing the quickest AMD Ryzen Cellular CPU and NVIDIA GeForce RTX GPU available on the market at the moment. This laptop computer being quick ought to come as no shock to anybody, however can it really be a desktop alternative? And extra importantly, is it well worth the asking value of Rs. 2,39,990? Effectively, I’m going to search out that out and extra on this deep dive assessment and provide the full image concerning the Legion 7.

So with out additional delay let’s get into the assessment.

Lenovo Legion 7 (2021) Overview

Beneath you can find what I assumed concerning the Legion 7 intimately. If you wish to soar to any explicit part you should utilize the desk beneath to succeed in it shortly.

Lenovo Legion 7 Specs

Design

Lenovo opts for an aluminum chassis for the development of the Legion 7. The corporate calls the colour of the machine ‘Strom Grey’. The chassis has a clean matte end, with facet and underside vents for cooling. Construct high quality feels very premium with negligible flex. There are additionally no sharp edges on my check machine. Lengthy-term Lenovo customers will really feel proper at dwelling with acquainted construct philosophy in comparison with final 12 months’s mannequin.

Legion 7 has a dimension of 14.01″ x 10.27″ x 0.93″, which is pretty customary for a tool with a 16-inch display. The burden of the machine is on the heavier facet, at 2.5Kgs. Furthermore, the laptop computer additionally comes with a beefy 300-watt energy brick. At 870g the facility brick is on the heavier facet and the complete bundle stands at round 3.4Kgs. Nonetheless, the burden distribution is strong and you’ll open it one-handed with ease. Additionally, the hinges of the show are agency and it may tilt to a most of 175 levels.

The design is discreet sufficient to move it off as a piece laptop computer, however it packs the RGB punch in case you are into that kind of stuff. Synced RGB is current on the keyboard, the facet vents, and the underside edges. The inbuilt firmware or Corsair iCUE controls all issues RGB on this machine. The ‘Y’ contained in the ‘LEGION’ emblem on the show can be managed by means of the firmware or iCUE.

Many of the I/O is positioned behind the display and is backlit. I like this design facet because it makes it simpler to plug issues into the laptop computer if you end up in entrance of the machine and utilizing it. The facility button is surrounded by perforations that act as intakes for the system. The cooler is a vapor chamber (extra on that later) and liquid metallic is used because the thermal compound.

The internals of the laptop computer may be accessed by eradicating all 10 screws on the underside. The duvet must be eliminated with a assist of a flat spatula. There’s a free SSD slot that’s PCIe Gen 3 succesful. You may improve the RAM if you wish to, however since each the slots are populated you will have to exchange each sticks.

Show

The Lenovo Legion 7 packs one of many higher screens I’ve seen in a gaming machine. It has a 16 inch 2560×1600 WQXGA display working at 165 Hz. Being IPS in nature the display has good viewing angles and the matte end makes it good for out of doors environments as nicely. The display feels quick whereas gaming and the marketed 3ms response instances look like true. There was no ghosting throughout gaming and the Blur Busters UFO Take a look at additionally confirmed this truth.

Lenovo claims that the display helps 100% sRGB and for essentially the most half it seems to be true. The movies and films I streamed on the display seemed pure and there was no blue hue that many ‘gaming’ screens undergo from. Nonetheless, there’s a slight backlight bleeding current, with the ‘LEGION’ textual content of the wallpaper being current on the display even after sleeping the machine or shutting it down.

One of many huge positives of this machine is the actual fact it helps FreeSync and G-SYNC each. So whether or not you’re on the iGPU in hybrid mode or utilizing the RTX 3080 in discrete mode, you will have Variable Charge Refresh (VRR) obtainable to you. The Show can be VESA DisplayHDR 400 licensed and has a peak brightness of 500 nits, that means you should utilize it for primary HDR media consumption.

Efficiency

The Lenovo Legion 7 packs the highest-end parts one can think about in a gaming laptop computer. My check machine packs the AMD Ryzen 9 5900 HX which has 8 cores and 16 threads with a base clock of three.3 GHz and a max enhance of 4.6 GHz. It additionally options the total energy NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3080 Laptop computer that includes 6144 CUDA Cores, 48 RT cores, and 192 Tensor cores. It additionally options 16 GB of 14Gbps GDDR6 reminiscence on a 256-bit huge reminiscence bus. As such I had very excessive hopes for the efficiency of this method and for essentially the most half, it does ship.

There’s a Vega 8 iGPU within the system which may be disabled utilizing the Legion Vantage software program. The laptop computer has additionally been examined on the ‘Efficiency Mode’ with the charger plugged in. For comparability, I’ve used an MSI GP66 Leopard with an i7 11800H + RTX 3070(140 watts) and an Asus G15 Benefit Version that includes the Ryzen 9 5900HX + RX 6800M (145 watts). The Asus G15 knowledge has been taken from Jarrod’sTech YouTube channel.

As for the exams, I ran plenty of them to push the GPU and CPU of this machine. For testing the CPU I ran Cinebench R23, Blender, 3D Mark Firestrike, and 3D Mark Timespy. The rasterization efficiency of the machine was examined utilizing Counter World Offensive, Rainbow Six Siege, Assassins’s Creed Valhalla, The Witcher 3, and Purple Lifeless Redemption 2. Ray Tracing and DLSS had been examined utilizing Cyberpunk 2077 and Metro Exodus Enhanced Version. Since each the competing gadgets had 16:9 screens, I ran all of the gaming benchmarks at 1080p as a substitute of 1600p.

Cinebench R23 Multithread

First up is Maxon’s Cinebench R23. It’s a fairly intensive CPU check that pushes all 3 programs fairly onerous. The Intel 11800H is quicker however the Ryzen 9 will not be far behind. Apparently the Ryzen 9 within the Asus G15 finally ends up being the quickest.

UL 3D Mark Firestrike

3D Mark Firestrike is a comparatively previous DX 11 primarily based benchmark. The RTX 3080 Legion 7 took the lead over the GP66 however for some purpose, it’s nonetheless behind the Asus G15 Benefit version.

UL 3D Mark TimeSpy

The newer 3D Mark Time Spy reveals an anticipated end result, the Legion 7 leads the pack with none challenge.

Counter-Strike World Offensive

Valve’s 2012 shooter continues to be extremely popular and calls for excessive fps for a aggressive edge. The Legion 7 has no challenge powering this recreation, delivering nicely over 400 FPS with each setting cranked to the max.

Murderer’s Creed Valhalla

Ubisoft’s 2020 entry into the Murderer’s Creed franchise is a really taxing recreation. I examined it on the Extremely Excessive settings. The Legion 7 performs nicely however is somewhat underwhelming on this check. I believe the restricted PCIe lanes that Ryzen Cellular CPUs present with the upper overhead of the NVIDIA DX 12 driver path limits the efficiency of this method.

Cyberpunk 2077

CDPR’s 2020 RPG is an ideal showcase for RTX and is the primary recreation on this listing to characteristic the brand new know-how. The primary check is a pure rasterization check, with no RTX or DLSS. The Legion trails the G15 by a slim margin however is thrashing the GP66 with ease.

Within the RT check, we see the facility of Ampere come to life. The Legion 7 beats everybody and decimates the 6800M within the G15. The DLSS check pushes the 3080 to even larger heights, which the 6800M cant match because it has no assist for DLSS and this recreation doesn’t assist AMD FSR.

Rainbow Six Siege

This 2015 Ubisoft shooter is likely one of the hottest esports proper now. I used the max settings and the Vulkan render path to check the efficiency and the Legion 7 had no downside maxing the refresh price of the panel it ships with.

Purple Lifeless Redemption 2

Rockstar’s 2019 masterpiece is up subsequent. RDR2 is understood to brutalize programs, however the Legion 7 had no points. Examined at 1080p with all the pieces set to the best and the tremendous taxing ‘Full Decision Ambient Occlusion’ turned to ON.

Metro Exodus Enhanced Version

Metro Exodus was one of many first RTX ON titles NVIDIA showcased again in 2018. In 2020 4A Video games launched the Enhanced Version of the sport. Subsequently, I examined it at Extremely Settings and Extremely Settings+DLSS ON, and in each cases, the Legion 7 blew away all the pieces else.

The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt

2015 Recreation of The 12 months, The Witcher 3 continues to be an exquisite recreation to take a look at and might tax your system fairly nicely. At Extremely Settings @ 1080p, the Legion 7’s restricted PCIe bandwidth once more limits its efficiency. It Falls behind the GP66 and G15 and turns its weakest end in my testing.

Apart from the above exams I additionally ran the PudgetSystem’s Adobe Premiere Professional check and the Adobe Photoshop check. The Premiere Professional check turned in a rating of 715 and the Photoshop check was at 990. Blender BMW was additionally tremendous quick on the laptop computer with simply over 3 minutes to finish the render.

The included SSD is not any SN 850 however it held its personal. The speeds it achieved had been greater than sufficient for a quick boot and app startup expertise.

Total I can’t complain concerning the efficiency of the machine. My day-to-day utilization included workplace work (together with this assessment), having tons of chrome tabs open, enjoying video games reminiscent of Murderer’s Creed Valhalla, Cyberpunk 2077, Counter-Strike World Offensive, and The Witcher 3 in my off time together with video streaming on Disney+, Netflix, and YouTube. My gaming periods lasted for about 4 hrs minimal and the laptop computer didn’t decelerate or have thermal throttling points throughout these periods.

Thermals

Coming to the thermals, the Ryzen 9 5900HX and the RTX 3080 are the 2 strongest chips current on the planet proper now and as such require a strong cooling resolution to maintain them beneath management. Lenovo has deployed what they name Coldfront 3.0 to chill this beast. It’s a vapor chamber cooler with liquid metallic because the thermal compound. For essentially the most half, it does work. The temperature of the inner parts was recorded utilizing MSI Afterburner and the chassis temps had been examined utilizing a Fluke 59 MAX IR thermometer.

The GPU sits round 75 °C beneath full load, be it whereas gaming or rendering. It is a excellent end result because it means the GPU can hit its enhance clocks and keep it with ease. The CPU although does get sizzling to alarming ranges. I measured 90 °C on many events be it Cinebench or whereas gaming. Ryzen Cellular CPUs can’t be undervolted and the laptop computer affords no guide fan management apart from the three modes managed by the firmware. These limitations imply that apart from disabling the enhance clocks there may be just about no resolution to this downside.

Additional, I additionally examined the laptop computer on a Cosmic Byte Meteoroid cooling pad. It did drop the GPU temps to 71 °C however the CPU was nonetheless across the 88 °C mark. I’ve to level out in both configuration the CPU did keep core clocks of round 4300 MHz whereas gaming and 3900 Mhz in CPU-only stress exams, so it was not thermal throttling.

As for the chassis, the facet vents had been reporting temps of round 62 °C with the IR thermometer. You additionally really feel the warmth whereas utilizing the keyboard throughout gaming. The keyboard space was reporting temps of round 45 °C and the facility button bay with the highest dealing with consumption vents reported temps of 51 °C. Total it did get a bit uncomfortable utilizing the keyboard, particularly the ‘W’ and ‘R’ keys.

Keyboard and Trackpad

Coming to Keyboard the Legion 7 has what Lenovo calls a Trustrike Keyboard. It has delicate touchdown keys and is primarily targeted on gaming. Typing on it was good, and just about prime of the road for gaming gadgets. Because of the strong development of the chassis, there may be 0 flex within the keyboard bay. I’m nevertheless not a fan of the quantity pad, as but once more I saved on hitting the ‘Num Lock’ or ‘/’ whereas attempting to sort. The keyboard is RGB enabled and requires iCUE software program from Corsair to manage it with granularity. I’m additionally not a fan of this software program because it has a really excessive affect on battery life (extra on that later) but when RGB is your factor you’ll find it irresistible.

The Trackpad is a 16:10 glass trackpad. It’s adequate for day-to-day operation however will not be appropriate for gaming. Its placement is a bit odd, as a result of Numpad. That is one facet I didn’t like concerning the design. The trackpad additionally helps home windows gestures and has no metallic cling to it, a giant downside I discovered with the MSI GP66 I take advantage of every day.

Software program

The Legion 7 comes with a truthful quantity of software program pre-installed. A few of them are fairly ineffective and simply decelerate the entire expertise. McAfee Whole Safety is included with the laptop computer. It was one of many first apps I uninstalled. It additionally comes with the Legion Vantage management middle which is required to disable the iGPU of the laptop computer and in addition to vary the efficiency profile.

Subsequent up we additionally get iCUE from Corsair, that is wanted to manage all of the RGB the laptop computer packs. I ended the app and did my testing however if you’d like the RGB and don’t thoughts dropping 5% of body charges maintain it open. In any case, it shouldn’t be uninstalled.

We additionally get Tobii expertise pre-installed which is important if you’d like the eye-tracking options of the laptop computer.

Final however not the least, for Audio we’ve got the pre-installed Nahimic Audio Go well with. It supplies numerous modes, nevertheless, none of them do a lot of something and it’s best to make use of a headphone with this machine.

Total it’s not essentially the most bloated laptop computer on the market however I’d very a lot respect it in the event that they stopped bundling in McAfee and Norton with each laptop computer I open up.

Audio and Webcam

Audio of this machine is dealt with by 2 down-firing 2W Harman audio system. The audio system are okay for essentially the most half and have rather less bass in comparison with what I used to be anticipating. It’s completely nice for video streaming and music. Nonetheless, you’d desire a pair of headphones in case you are planning on working heavy video games. The followers within the Legion 7 spin very excessive whereas gaming and have a really noticeable buzzing sound. This overwhelms the audio coming from the audio system and truthfully is a bit distracting as nicely. The audio driver half is dealt with by Nahimic.

LatencyMon exams present the machine will not be very appropriate for video audio manufacturing when the followers are engaged. That is no shock because the followers are fairly audible beneath load.

The Webcam is a 720p one. It’s okay in correct lighting with a number of noise throughout low-light settings. That is to be anticipated and I used to be form of hoping, the Legion 7 would pack a 1080p standalone Webcam because the G15 Benefit Version does. I do just like the E shutter that Lenovo packs for added safety. It’s a good contact for my part and ought to be current in all laptops from my perspective.

Ports

The Legion 7 has most of all of the ports one can ask for. The left facet of the machine packs a USB Kind C Gen 2 with Show Port 1.4 capabilities and a headphone microphone combo jack. The correct facet accommodates a USB Kind C Gen 1 and the E Shutter button. The rear accommodates all the foremost ports. There are 3 5 volts always-on USB 3 Kind-A, 1 USB Kind C Gen 2 with Energy Supply and Show Port,1 HDMI 2.1, 1 RJ45, and the DC energy in.

Total the port choice is a lot within the Legion 7. Thunderbolt clearly is not going to be current as this isn’t an Intel machine. Creators trying to make use of this machine would additionally really feel a bit upset by the lack of an SD Card reader however with so many USB 3 Kind-A ports obtainable, a dongle will not be a foul resolution.

The built-in WiFi is nice, as I didn’t expertise any drops throughout gaming or video streaming on a modest 40 Mbps line. the 5.1 Bluetooth additionally labored seamlessly with my Ambrane Dots Slay. Total good efficiency on the wi-fi entrance.

Battery and Charging

The battery is a good one within the Lenovo Legion 7. It’s a 4 cell, 80 WHr battery. The specs are fairly typical for a gaming laptop computer and greater than the one discovered within the MSI GP66 Leopard. There are 2 charging modes, the traditional charging mode takes 1hr and 50 minutes to cost the machine whereas the quick charging reduces it to 1 hrs and 20 minutes.

Shifting onto the battery life, we discover that like most gaming laptops, it’s mediocre and can solely final you about 3 Hrs with gentle use. The media consumption check with ‘Tears of Metal’ working in a loop and 5 chrome tabs open with ‘Prioritize Battery Life’ settings on yielded a results of 2 hrs and 40 minutes. Nonetheless like talked about earlier than, having iCUE on has a drastic impact on battery life, the RGB lighting consumes the battery like a carnivore and leaves the utilization time to 1hr 10 minutes. iCUE additionally cuts into framerate whereas gaming by round 5% so it’s finest to show it off for efficiency and battery.

Lenovo Legion 7: The Backside Line!

The Legion 7 has actually impressed me lots. It has a few of the most spectacular specs crammed in a laptop computer kind issue. From my testing, this 16-inch laptop computer performs practically the identical as an RTX 2080Ti PC. That may be very spectacular for my part and speaks volumes concerning the scalability of each AMD Ryzen and NVIDIA RTX 3000 that energy it. It actually works as a desktop alternative machine and gained’t make you are feeling like you’re enjoying on a transportable machine (considerably) in case you hook it as much as a monitor.

Priced at 2,39,990, the Legion 7 is an expensive product for folks in search of top-of-the-line efficiency with no compromises. To be truthful not one of the RTX 3080 laptops are value to efficiency champions. It’s a truth of electronics, the upper you go the much less return you’ll get out of your rupee. However that doesn’t imply this machine will not be price shopping for? Effectively, that is the top of laptop computer efficiency, and to get it you must pay a premium.

In case you are somebody who’s in search of a tool with an identical construct however with a greater value to efficiency ratio, the Legion 5 Professional is for you. It’s priced at 1,69,900 and packs the identical display in the identical kind issue. It has a standard warmth pipe setup for cooling and packs 16 GB of RAM as a substitute of 32 GB. The 140 Watt RTX 3070 can be very succesful by itself and will solely be marginally behind its greater brother.

AMD followers even have an excellent machine to contemplate with the ASUS ROG Strix G15 Benefit Version. Priced at Rs. 1,54,500 this machine will get very near the Legion 7 in efficiency (as proven above). It packs a smaller 15.6-inch display with 16GB of RAM. The laptop computer additionally has liquid metallic and vapor chamber cooling. The environment friendly 7nm Radeon GPU yields higher battery life than the Legion 7 as nicely. The one negatives appear to be some driver optimization points and the shortage of a MUX Swap to allow discrete GPU operations.

And with that, we come to the tip of the assessment of the Lenovo Legion 7. I like this machine and might wholeheartedly endorse it to individuals who have the finances for it. Pontificate within the feedback beneath about your ideas on this machine and whether or not you’d think about shopping for this over the RTX 3070/ RX 6800M choices.