The Lenovo Legion is here, featuring the flagship Intel Core i9-14900HX processor and NVIDIA RTX 4090 GPU with 16GB of VRAM. With this powerhouse, budget is not a concern. As the second flagship laptop of 2024, we’ve tested it extensively, including its 4K gaming capabilities. It comes with a robust 330W power adapter to support its immense performance.
The Lenovo Legion starts at ₹2,98,000 for the RTX 4080 variant, while the model we tested is priced at ₹3,58,000. On Lenovo’s official website, certain aspects of the laptop can be customized. While the processor is fixed, you can choose the GPU, add Microsoft Office, opt for either 16GB or 32GB of RAM, and select a 1TB SSD. Depending on the chosen configuration, the price ranges between ₹3,50,000 and ₹3,60,000.
Would anyone buy this? Let us know in the comments! Now, let’s dive into its design.
Design and Build Quality
The Lenovo Legion boasts premium branding on its lid. The lid and bottom are made of aluminum, while the keyboard area is constructed from durable polycarbonate, providing a solid and premium feel. The lid opens effortlessly with one hand and can go up to 180 degrees without any flex. The keyboard is sturdy, and the screen is stable with no noticeable wobble, ensuring excellent build quality overall.
Despite its flagship specifications, the laptop is relatively lightweight at just 2.6 kg. When you include the charger, the total weight increases to 3.66 kg, making it portable enough to carry in a backpack. Upon opening the lid, you’re greeted by a built-in FPS counter, a cool feature that enhances the gaming experience.
The keyboard features an RGB light bar along its front edge, divided into six customizable zones. Using Lenovo’s Vantage software, you can apply various lighting effects to create a captivating gaming atmosphere, especially in low-light conditions. It’s a delightful feature for gamers who seek immersive experiences.
Performance and Technology
The Lenovo Legion is powered by the Intel Core i9-14900HX processor, which boasts 24 cores and 32 threads, consisting of 8 Performance Cores (P-Cores) and 16 Efficiency Cores (E-Cores). This hybrid architecture delivers exceptional performance, with a maximum turbo frequency of up to 5.8GHz. Such powerful performance was once exclusive to desktops but is now available in this sleek and portable laptop.
The processor’s hybrid architecture uses Intel’s Thread Director technology, which intelligently manages tasks by assigning them to the most appropriate cores. This ensures optimal performance and efficiency for various workloads, from heavy gaming to multitasking.
While the laptop doesn’t include a dedicated Neural Processing Unit (NPU), it can efficiently handle AI-based tasks, thanks to its combination of a powerful CPU and GPU. Whether you’re working with generative fill in Photoshop, running Stable Diffusion, or using AI tools like Copilot, this laptop delivers outstanding results.
Graphics and Gaming Capabilities
The NVIDIA RTX 4090 GPU features a 175W Total Graphics Power (TGP) and 16GB of VRAM, making it capable of tackling any gaming challenge. It’s future-proof and ready for upcoming titles like GTA 6. The unit we tested comes equipped with 32GB of dual-channel RAM running at 5600MHz, which is upgradeable to 64GB, ensuring seamless multitasking and an unparalleled gaming experience.
The Lenovo Legion comes equipped with a 1TB SSD that offers maximum speeds for seamless performance. Additionally, it includes two SSD slots, allowing storage expansion of up to 2TB per slot, giving the laptop a total potential storage capacity of 4TB.
Connectivity Features
For connectivity, the laptop features Wi-Fi 6E and Bluetooth 5.3. While these are impressive, it would have been ideal to include Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 5.4, as these technologies are expected to become standard soon. It’s possible that an upgrade to Wi-Fi 7 might be available by the time of the laptop’s release, considering the imminent launch of this technology.
Additional Features
Microsoft Office is not pre-installed but can be added for an additional cost of ₹2,000. Buyers also receive a 3-month Xbox Game Pass subscription with every Lenovo laptop, offering access to a range of games right out of the box.
The laptop is equipped with the advanced LA2-Q AI chip, an upgrade from the previous LA1 model. This chip optimizes the laptop’s performance, cooling, and thermals based on your usage. It automatically adjusts these parameters to deliver optimal efficiency without requiring manual input. This intelligent feature ensures the laptop runs smoothly, whether you’re gaming, working, or multitasking.
Benchmarks and Performance
The Lenovo Legion demonstrates extraordinary performance in benchmarks, showcasing its power and efficiency:
- Cinebench R23: Approximately 27,000 (multi-core) and 2,100 (single-core).
- Cinebench 2024: Stellar results reflecting the laptop’s prowess.
- PCMark 10: Scored 7,600, emphasizing its productivity capabilities.
- Geekbench 6 (OpenCL): A remarkable score of 1,90,000, highlighting the GPU’s power.
- Geekbench 6 (CPU): Exceptional multi-core and single-core scores, underlining its processing performance.
Specialized Benchmarks
The laptop’s performance extends to AI tasks, creative workloads, and 3D modeling:
- Blender Benchmark: Recorded an impressive score of 7,340, demonstrating smooth handling of 3D modeling and game development tasks.
- BMW Render Test: Rendered in just 10 seconds using the GPU, compared to 1 minute and 30 seconds on the CPU.
- 3DMark Time Spy: Achieved a score of 21,000, showcasing excellent performance from both the CPU and GPU.
- VR Benchmark: Scored 15,000, making it an excellent choice for VR gaming.
Creative Productivity Benchmarks
For creative professionals, the Lenovo Legion excels in productivity tasks:
- Puget Benchmarks:
- Photoshop: Over 10,000
- Premiere Pro: 11,600+
- DaVinci Resolve: 8,600+
These scores demonstrate the laptop’s ability to handle demanding tasks such as video editing, photo manipulation, and color grading effortlessly.
Summary
The Lenovo Legion is a powerhouse designed for gaming, productivity, and creative tasks. With exceptional benchmark scores, cutting-edge hardware, and intelligent features, it delivers a top-tier experience for any user. Whether you’re a gamer, a professional, or a creator, this laptop offers unparalleled performance.
Close your eyes and dive into productivity tasks with this laptop—it feels as if the machine itself whispers, “I am with you for at least 10 years.” Truly, this is a future-proof device designed to stand the test of time.
Stability Testing
We conducted extensive stability tests to evaluate its thermal and performance limits:
- Prime95 CPU Stress Test:
- Maximum temperature: 98°C
- Average temperature: 75°C
- Peak clock speed: 5.1GHz
- Average clock speed: 2.7GHz (depending on temperature)
Despite reaching high temperatures, the system remained stable, showcasing its robust thermal management system.
- CPU Power Consumption:
- Peak wattage: 143W
- Average wattage: 112W
This level of power consumption rivals that of desktop CPUs, highlighting the raw performance capabilities of the laptop.
- FurMark GPU Stress Test:
- Maximum temperature: 84°C
- Average temperature: 69°C
- GPU Power Draw: Peaked at 232W with dynamic boost, averaging 144W
These results reflect the GPU’s exceptional cooling and stability under heavy loads.
Gaming Performance
During our gaming tests, the laptop ran fluidly and delivered outstanding performance. While the powerful hardware naturally results in higher thermal output, the system handled the heat effectively. Lenovo laptops are known for running hot, and this flagship is no exception.
- Valorant: Achieved an impressive 400-450 FPS, leveraging the processor’s immense power. Temperatures remained above 90°C due to the high wattage consumption.
- Counter-Strike 2 (CS2): Delivered a stable 200 FPS at very high settings.
- GTA V: Tested on ultra settings with all high-end tweaks enabled at the native 1600p resolution, delivering incredible FPS.
- Elden Ring: Maintained a stable 60 FPS, as expected for a locked-frame-rate game.
- Cyberpunk 2077:
- Ultra settings with DLSS frame generation: Delivered impressively high FPS with smooth gameplay.
- Ultra settings with ray tracing enabled: Raw performance was 40-45 FPS, which increased significantly with frame generation enabled.
While higher settings and frame generation pushed temperatures up, the system remained stable without any signs of throttling.
Conclusion
Even under extreme loads, the Lenovo Legion flagship demonstrated consistent clock speeds and exceptional stability. It managed high performance across productivity, gaming, and stress testing scenarios without throttling.
As a Legion user myself, I can confidently vouch for its outstanding reliability and power. This laptop is not only built to excel today but is also future-proof for the challenges of tomorrow.
There are no issues to report. I have been using different Legion models for the past three years, and they consistently deliver outstanding gaming performance without any FPS drops.
Game Testing Results
We tested Hogwarts Legacy on ultra settings, and the FPS was exceptional—both in raw performance and with frame generation enabled. Following that, The Last of Us ran beautifully on ultra settings, achieving impressive FPS at the native 1600p resolution. The RTX 4090 GPU, with its 175W power draw, operated at peak performance.
With 32GB of RAM and the GPU’s 16GB of VRAM, there were no bottlenecks during testing. Horizon Forbidden West delivered impressive FPS even with CPU temperatures ranging between 85-95°C—expected for a high-wattage Intel processor.
In Ghost of Tsushima, the CPU wattage and temperatures were slightly lower, yet gaming performance remained excellent. During testing, the battery occasionally dropped by 1-2% mid-game but recharged quickly. Despite the high power draw, the battery never dropped to critical levels, such as 80-90%, maintaining stable performance throughout.
In God of War, the FPS was exceptionally high, making story-driven games highly enjoyable with smooth gameplay at 100-130+ FPS. In Hellblade, raw performance delivered 55 FPS on high settings, while frame generation further boosted the FPS.
Next, we tested the cinematic Black Myth Wukong, achieving 50 FPS in raw performance and over 100 FPS with frame generation enabled. Even with ray tracing on very high settings, the FPS remained impressive.
Alan Wake 2 performed well on high settings, delivering good FPS in raw performance. When ray tracing was enabled on high settings, raw performance dropped to 25-30 FPS due to the game’s demanding nature. The GPU wattage reached 175-176W, and VRAM consumption exceeded 12GB, showcasing the intensity of the game. Nevertheless, it was still playable at the highest settings.
4K Gaming Performance
To push the laptop to its limits, we tested games at 4K resolution:
- Black Myth Wukong: At the highest settings, GPU wattage peaked at 180W. FPS in raw performance dropped to 35-40, but frame generation significantly improved it. With ray tracing enabled, performance remained steady, demonstrating the laptop’s ability to handle 4K gaming.
- Cyberpunk 2077: At 4K, raw performance was playable, and frame generation ensured smooth gameplay. Ultra ray tracing in 4K reduced raw FPS, but with frame generation, the game achieved 60+ FPS, offering an enjoyable experience even with demanding settings.
- Hellblade: Despite being GPU-intensive, the FPS at 4K was commendable.
- Ghost of Tsushima: Performed well at 4K, reinforcing the laptop’s capability for high-resolution gaming.
Conclusion
The Lenovo Legion flagship is a beast for gaming, capable of handling demanding titles at 1600p and even 4K resolutions with remarkable performance. With features like frame generation and robust hardware, it’s designed to deliver a smooth, immersive gaming experience. Whether it’s cinematic AAA titles or GPU-intensive games, this laptop proves its worth as a future-proof gaming powerhouse.
This is a highly optimized game, delivering an exceptional experience on very high settings at 4K resolution. Next, we tested Alan Wake 2 in 4K, and the results were equally impressive. With frame generation enabled, the performance improved significantly.
When ray tracing was tested on high settings, GPU memory consumption reached 14GB. While raw performance wasn’t playable, enabling frame generation ensured a smooth experience. This laptop effortlessly handles AAA titles in 4K, making it a true powerhouse for gaming.
Conclusion
In conclusion, this laptop is built for gaming excellence. At its native resolution, it delivers top-tier performance, making it future-proof for the next 5-10 years. Wondering if it’s ready for GTA 6? The answer is a resounding yes—you’ll be able to play GTA 6 seamlessly when it’s released for PC.
Battery and Power Efficiency
The laptop features a flagship 99.9Wh battery, just under the 100Wh limit for air travel. It provides robust battery backup, especially with the MUX switch. By disabling the dGPU and enabling the best power efficiency mode, you can easily achieve 6-7 hours of battery life for day-to-day tasks.
For multitasking and productivity, using the quiet mode in Lenovo Vantage helps optimize battery efficiency. Turning off the keyboard backlight and adjusting Windows power settings ensures the CPU operates at the lowest power, significantly extending battery life.
The MUX switch allows you to toggle between the iGPU and dGPU for performance and display output. Disabling the dGPU conserves battery life, while the 330W adapter ensures fast charging, allowing the battery to reach full capacity in just 40-50 minutes.
Ports and Connectivity
The laptop includes a comprehensive set of ports for various use cases:
Right Side:
- Headphone/mic combo jack
- USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-A port
- Physical camera shutter button (disconnects the camera from the motherboard for added privacy).
Left Side:
- USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-A port
- Thunderbolt 4 port with support for:
- Display output
- Fast data transfer
- RTX 4090 functionality (note: no power delivery support).
Rear Side:
- Power input port
- Two USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-A ports (one supports power-off charging).
- HDMI 2.1 port (compatible with RTX 4090 for 4K and big-screen gaming).
- USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-C port with support for:
- Display output
- Fast data transfer
- 140W Power Delivery (PD).
The laptop can also be charged with lower wattage PD chargers, such as 100W, but charging will be slower and is not recommended for power-intensive tasks like gaming.
Keyboard
The Lenovo TrueStrike keyboard offers an outstanding typing and gaming experience. It features per-key RGB lighting, fully customizable through the Legion Spectrum option in Lenovo Vantage software. You can personalize the keyboard lighting and RGB strip, adding effects to suit your preferences.
A unique feature is the power button’s color-coded lighting, which indicates the current power mode:
- Red: Performance mode
- Other colors: Reflect other power modes, adjustable via Lenovo Vantage.
For Balance mode, the power button turns white, and for Quiet mode, it turns blue. You can also check the mode by pressing FN + Q, but the color of the power button itself provides an immediate indication of the laptop’s current mode.
Even after long gaming sessions, the temperatures are well-managed. The keyboard temperature stays around 30-35°C, which feels slightly warm but never uncomfortably hot. These temperatures are observed after 5-6 hours of continuous gaming.
The trackpad is a good size and features a Mylar surface, providing smooth functionality. It supports multi-gesture inputs, and I didn’t face any issues while using it. Additionally, it’s fully clickable and supports gestures for video playback control, such as adjusting the volume (on the right) and brightness (on the left). While watching videos or editing, you can swipe to skip or rewind, although this feature isn’t available during video editing.
Display
This flagship laptop features a 16-inch WQXGA display with an anti-glare IPS panel and a resolution of 2560×1600 (16:10 aspect ratio). The 240Hz refresh rate is ideal for esports titles like Valorant, where you can achieve up to 400 FPS, offering a competitive edge. In competitive gaming, every frame counts, and the high refresh rate is crucial.
The color gamut is excellent, covering 100% sRGB, 89% AdobeRGB, 87% NTSC, and 99% DCI-P3, which is effectively 100% DCI-P3. The display offers a peak brightness of 487 nits, supporting up to 500 nits. It also supports DisplayHDR 400, Dolby Vision, and is TUV low blue light certified, along with a TUV high gaming performance certification. Furthermore, the display comes with X-Rite factory color calibration, making it perfect for color-sensitive tasks such as photo and video editing, delivering accurate and vibrant colors.
If you’re into gaming or multimedia consumption, the display is outstanding. Additionally, Lenovo laptops come with the Tobii Experience app, which uses the built-in camera to track your head movements, translating them into in-game actions. The app also offers smart camera and streaming features, including presence-based privacy. With smart framing, you can create a customized experience by using the camera. You can even add an avatar for live streaming.
If you prefer not to show your face, you can use an avatar instead. The privacy screen features are impressive. When you move away from the laptop, it automatically locks, requiring you to log in again. There’s also a peaker detection option that alerts you if someone is looking at your screen from the side. In that case, the screen blurs to prevent the person from seeing what you’re viewing. You can imagine how useful this feature is for maintaining privacy.
Additionally, there’s an auto-lock window feature. If you’re not in front of the screen for a set period, the laptop will automatically lock to protect your privacy. It also includes several productivity features, such as a dim screen, stay-awake feature, and a digital well-being tool. This tool allows you to check the optimal distance from the screen to avoid eye strain. It’s a great app, especially if you’re purchasing a flagship Lenovo laptop. Be sure to check it out—it can be really helpful.
Speakers
Now, let’s talk about the speakers. While you might prefer using headphones for music, the laptop comes with two 2W speakers. The sound quality is premium, with good bass and treble. Though not extremely loud, the volume is above average, and the speakers won’t disappoint you. The audio is tuned by Harman, and you can customize it using the Nahimic app for an enhanced experience with both headphones and speakers. However, I was expecting Dolby Atmos support, which is missing.
Webcam and Microphone
As for the webcam and microphone, both are of good quality. The laptop is equipped with a 1080p webcam, which is suitable for meetings. Feel free to comment on the quality if you’ve tried it. It doesn’t have the AI-driven Windows Studio effects that some laptops offer, but it does feature several microphone modes, including voice recognition, normal, and multiple voices. You can adjust these settings to your preference.
That concludes the review of the Lenovo Legion Pro 7i.
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