The Lenovo Legion 5i Pro is a powerful mid-range gaming laptop with an Intel Core i7-12700H processor and Nvidia GeForce RTX 3060 GPU. But is it worth the attention of gamers? trace.
The term ‘gaming laptop’ conjures up a distinct image in our mind. We all envisage a big boxy device that is anything but beautiful. We’ve all had to learn and live with the knowledge that gaming laptops can’t really be stylish because all the big and expensive hardware in there forces companies to add a basic structure to the device. But Lenovo’s Legion series of gaming laptops have also been innovating the design element of gaming laptops and the Lenovo Legion 5i Pro continues the tradition.
And when we talk about design, the laptop doesn’t cut corners when it comes to performance. With the Intel Core i7-12700H processor and Nvidia GeForce RTX 3060 GPU, the laptop is a powerhouse that can take on most games, at least on paper. And after last year’s Legion 5 Pro, which received high praise in our review, expectations were high for the 5i Pro.
So, I have been using the device for over two weeks now, playing various mainstream games from Red Dead Redemption 2, Gotham Knights, Spider-Man Redemption for PC, Cyberpunk 2077, and more. It should be noted that my review unit came with an Intel Core i9-12900H processor and Nvidia GeForce RTX 3070 Ti GPU. These do not come as part of pre-built laptops that you get from retailers and you will have to pay extra to get a custom-built unit with these specifications. As far as the price is concerned, it will cost you Rs. 2,23,600.
So, let’s get down to brass tacks and see if the Legion 5i Pro is finally worth the hype.
Lenovo Legion 5i Pro Design
If you’re used to the design of the HP Omen or the Asus ROG, the Lenovo Legion 5i Pro will pleasantly surprise you. It still retains the hard edges and a boxy design but the body has a smoother texture that feels more premium. The chassis design and form factor remain the same as the previous models but instead of the Legion Y logo, you get the words written in metallic color, which I personally liked a lot. On the white body (which I got), it definitely catches your eye.
The form factor is also very sturdily built and the surface is smudge and fingerprint-resistant, which is great when you’ve got a sleek metallic body. The top lid gets an aluminum and magnesium alloy body and the deck is made of plastic, similar to the previous model in the series. I also like that the hinges are very stable and there’s no noticeable wobble on the display. There’s also no flex on the lid and keyboard deck.
The laptop offers a healthy set of ports for all your input-output needs. On the right side you’ll find a USB-A 3.2 Gen 1 port, a headphone jack, and a shutter for the webcam. On the left, you get a USB-C 3.2 Gen 2 and Thunderbolt 4 port. Everything else is neatly tucked away at the back where you get two USB Type-A 3.2 Gen 1 ports, an HDMI port, an Ethernet port, a USB-C 3.2 Gen 2 port, and a DC charging port.
Overall, the laptop looks professional and sleek and unlike most gaming laptops, it can be easily used in an office or educational setting as well.
lenovo legion 5i pro display
For gamers, a good display is paramount and it’s good to see that Lenovo hasn’t cut any corners here. You get a 16-inch QHD+ IPS display with a 165Hz refresh rate. It comes with an anti-glare coating, HDR 400, and 500 nits of brightness. The resolution of the display is 2560 x 1600 and the aspect ratio is 16:10.
The display is quite bright and shows a vivid array of colors, which makes for a great viewing experience whether you’re watching a movie or playing a game with a particularly dark setting like Batman: Arkham City. Colors feel sharp and lean slightly towards the saturated side when left on the default color profile. As a bonus, it also comes with Dolby Vision and G-Sync by Nvidia which notably makes for a great gaming experience. You can also quickly switch between color profiles using the X-Rite Color Assistant.
I found the display to be very responsive, although I should clarify that the only FPS game I played was Valorant where the refresh rate was actually tested. The only minor complaint I have is that there’s no shortcut to shift between different screen refresh rates. When you want to opt for a lower refresh rate to get a little extra out of battery life, you’ll need to do it manually from Settings.
Lenovo Legion 5i Pro performance
With the reliable Intel i9-12900H processor and Nvidia GeForce RTX 3070 Ti GPU, the Legion 5i Pro leaves no stone unturned to impress. I played a variety of games on the device (as mentioned above) and the games didn’t flinch at anything I threw at it. I was able to run all games at High settings and High to Very High resolution with HDR support (wherever available). While games like Cyberpunk 2077 and Gotham Knights ran at high performance and the laptop was able to hold on to that for over 4-5 hours of continuous gameplay (plugged in), an older GTA V ran extremely smooth with almost console-like performance Walked from
However, you should take care of one small thing. As you set up the device, you’ll find the option to switch between the integrated low-performance Intel GPU and the Nvidia GPU in the BIOS settings. While the former will give you a longer life, the latter will give you performance. Be sure to choose the right one from here.
The Lenovo Legion 5i Pro comes with Windows 11, and everything from productivity tasks to general usage is a smooth affair. Also, the cooling fans never really turned on unless I was gaming or downloading a game in the background.
My work involves a lot of typing and hence, I used the keyboard extensively. To my delight, using them was an absolute pleasure. It’s a full-sized keyboard with spaced-out keys, arrow keys, and even a Numpad. There’s enough travel on the keys to giving the illusion of using a mechanical keyboard and you do feel a little fatigued after typing for a few hours. While my unit came with a white back-lit keyboard, buyers will get zonal RGB lighting. One small downside is missing per-key lighting will reduce some of the customization fun. The trackpad is also large and quite responsive but the left and right buttons are very hard and pressing them can be tiring at times. We’d definitely recommend getting a separate mouse with the device.
My only serious concern in terms of performance is the audio output. I found that neither the sound quality nor the loudness was satisfactory. Especially for a gaming device, it was also a struggle to hear cut-scene dialogues clearly unless the room was completely quiet. Finally, the webcam is nothing to write about. It’s a standard 720p camera and performance is barely average.
Lenovo legion 5i pro battery life
Lenovo Legion 5i Pro comes with an 80Wh battery which lasts for around 3-5 hours during normal usage. However, while gaming, it gets reduced to 1.5 hours. While my expectations for battery life from a gaming device were never high, I definitely expected to get more than 2 hours of gaming out of it. However, it’s never recommended to play a game without it plugged in, so this shouldn’t be a problem.
But if you want better battery performance from your gaming laptop, you can look at the HP Omen 16.
Lenovo Legion 5i Pro Verdict
The Legion 5i Pro breaks the notion that a gaming laptop can’t look good while doing its heavy lifting. The laptop is a beast in performance and can do everything from normal office work to heavy gaming without breaking a sweat. Its professional and minimal look also adds to its charm.
I think it needs some improvement in the speaker and battery life department. But other than that Lenovo doesn’t let any flaws show. If you’re a gamer looking for a laptop that can run pretty much every mainstream game smoothly and look good while doing it, then you should definitely consider this one. But it costs Rs. 1,57,000 for all those and above Rs. 2 lakhs if you want the RTX 3070 Ti and Intel i9-12900H upgrade. That’s a huge amount and I’m not sure if the extra CPU power is worth the price. However, if your use requires extra power, then this device can be beneficial for you.
But if not, you can also look at the HP Omen 16, Acer Nitro 5, and ROG Strix G17, which offer more or less the same specifications as the base model, but different design aesthetics to choose from.
