Lenovo’s rumored handheld could give Steam Deck and Asus ROG Ally competition

(Image credit: Liliputing | Windows Central)

Lenovo is allegedly set to take on the Steam Deck and Asus ROG Ally with its own handheld gaming device. According to its sources, sibling-site Windows Central reports that Lenovo is developing a Windows 11 handheld PC dubbed the “Legion Go.” If true, the already oversaturated handheld gaming market is about to get even more crowded.

Windows Central says the rumored Lenovo handheld will pack AMD’s new Ryzen 7040 “Phoenix” CPU, which debuted during CES 2023. This chip features an AI engine named Ryzen AI, which AMD claims is the first laptop chip to feature a dedicated AI engine. The company also says the new chip can churn through multiprocessing workloads in Cinebench nT up to 34% faster than the Apple M1 Pro. The AMD chip supposedly delivers up to 30 hours of video playback on a laptop — which is certainly a huge claim.

Asus ROG Ally vs Steam Deck — The rumored "Lenovo Legion Go" could be a legitimate rival to the Asus ROG Ally and Valve Steam Deck. (Image credit: Tom's Guide)

As for the Lenovo handheld’s design, Windows Central’s sources claim the Legion Go will have an 8-inch display — which would make it larger than the 7-inch displays of the Steam Deck and Asus ROG Ally. There’s no word on the handheld’s screen resolution or refresh rate. However, if it does truly has an 8-inch display, that would certainly give this rumored Lenovo handheld an advantage over its competitor’s comparatively smaller screens.

Keep in mind though that this isn’t the first time we’ve heard about a Lenovo gaming handheld device. Back in 2021, Liliputing reported on an Android-based cloud gaming-focused Lenovo handheld. That device, which would have been a competitor to the likes of the Razer Edge and Logitech G Cloud, was never released. This supposed new Lenovo handheld could meet the same fate, but given the proliferation of gaming handhelds in recent years, the Legion Go could actually manifest one day.

Outlook

As with all rumors, take everything about the rumored Legion Go with a healthy amount of skepticism. Right now, all we know is that this machine is allegedly in development. Windows Central’s sources didn’t say anything regarding a launch date, so it’s possible we’ll have to wait a while for this handheld to come out — if it ever releases at all.

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Tony is a computing writer at Tom’s Guide covering laptops, tablets, Windows, and iOS. During his off-hours, Tony enjoys reading comic books, playing video games, reading speculative fiction novels, and spending too much time on X/Twitter. His non-nerdy pursuits involve attending Hard Rock/Heavy Metal concerts and going to NYC bars with friends and colleagues. His work has appeared in publications such as Laptop Mag, PC Mag, and various independent gaming sites.