Pros
- Full HD IPS panel at 144 Hz
- Eightfold processor AMD Ryzen 7
- Dedicated GeForce GTX 1660 Ti graphics
- Autonomy of up to 8 hours
Cons
- It does not have an SD card reader
- It only incorporates a USB-C port
With the firm commitment to offer you the most enjoyable gaming experience, Lenovo Legion 5 laptops debut with a series of components and features ready to immerse you in the most anticipated videogames on the market. And, if there's one thing we love about this laptop, is that unlike the recently reviewed MSI GL65 Leopard 10SFK-062, it boasts a design that doesn't scream gamer.
That said, today we delve into the most relevant features of the Lenovo Legion 5 (82B1000AUS), an advanced 15.6-inch gaming laptop, which stands out partly due to its great price point, partly due to it being an amazing laptop overall.
A high-end gaming laptop that has managed to garner hundreds of positive reviews thanks to the elegant finish of its chassis, the comfort of its keyboard when typing and playing- it features a 1.5mm keytravel -, the excellent performance of its AMD processor and NVIDIA GeForce graphics, as well as the smoothness of its 144 Hz screen when playing titles of different nature. Without further ado, let's see what all the fuzz is about.
Index
- Who's it for?
- Technical specifications
- Design and Panel
- Processor and RAM
- Storage and Graphics
- Battery Life and Ports
- Wrapping it up
Who's it for?
The Lenovo Legion 5 (82B1000AUS) is perfect for those looking to take a leap in performance and image quality, both when playing AAA games and when working with demanding software such as Photoshop, Adobe Premiere Pro, Virtual Machines, etc.
The above would not be possible without Lenovo's commitment to a FHD screen with a 144 Hz refresh rate, an octa-core AMD processor, NVIDIA graphics with 6 GB memory, and a respectable battery life.
Its display, which features 330 nits of brightness and a 100 % sRGB color gamut is also an excellent choice for photographers, designers, and multimedia professionals in general who value the possibility of working with a perfectly calibrated display. Not to mention the everyday Joe who can also enjoy the display to stream movies properly
From the outset, this notebook boasts the same minimalist, sober and robust aesthetic that benefits all Legion 5 models. The chosen color is an elegant phantom black, coated with an anti-fingerprint finish with a totally smooth surface.
Technical specs
| Make model | Lenovo Legion 5 (82B1000AUS) |
| Dimensions | 14.29 x 10.22 x 0.98 inches |
| Weight | 5.4 pounds |
| Panel | LED | IPS | 15.6 inches | 144 Hz |
| Resolution | Full HD (1920 x 1080 pixels) |
| Processor | AMD Ryzen 7 4800H (8 cores at 4.20 GHz) |
| RAM | 16GB (DDR4) |
| Graphic Controller | NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti (6GB) |
| Storage | 512GB (SSD) |
| Drums | 80 Wh (Li-Po) |
| OS | Windows 10 Home |
| Connectivity | Wi-Fi 6 Bluetooth 5.0 RJ-45 USB-A 3.1 (x4) USB Type C | DisplayPort HDMI 2.0 Audio combo connector HD webcam Digital microphone |
A modern, minimalist, yet robust design
Built with excellent quality materials
From the outset, this notebook boasts the same minimalist, sober and robust aesthetic that benefits all Legion 5 models. The chosen color is an elegant phantom black, coated with an anti-fingerprint finish with a totally smooth surface.
We especially like this because it's not an alienating design that's only tailored towards the gaming community but rather a design that's open to being used for more than just gaming.
Internal cooling is provided by the exclusive technology, Legion ColdFront 2.0, responsible for dissipating heat through an efficient and silent dual ventilation system with dedicated heat pipes.
This model opts for a keyboard with white backlighting, whose convex keys with optimal travel, multi-touch trackpad, and slightly separated directional keys, ensure a pleasant gaming experience, regardless of the surrounding light conditions.
Internal cooling is provided by the exclusive technology, Legion ColdFront 2.0, responsible for dissipating heat through an efficient and silent dual ventilation system with dedicated heat pipes.
This model opts for a keyboard with white backlighting, whose convex keys with optimal travel, multi-touch trackpad, and slightly separated directional keys, ensure a pleasant gaming experience, regardless of the surrounding light conditions.
All of this to say it's a really nice and ergonomic keyboard as many of its users have attested, which is an often overlooked yet fundamental design element when it comes to designing with productivity in mind.
The hardware section takes an important leap by betting on the new AMD Ryzen 7 4800H processor, powered by 8 real cores (operating up to 4.20 GHz), 16 virtual cores, and L2 and L3 caches of 4 and 8 MB, respectively.
If you're coming from an Intel background then you should know this processor is slightly more powerful than the hexa-core Intel Core i7-10750H featured on both the aforementioned MSI GL65 Leopard 10SFK-062, as well as the Acer Predator Helios 300 PH315-53-72XD.
The gaming immersion you were looking for so much
When it comes to gaming laptop displays, they're not often something manufacturers take special care off. This always seemed weird as the display is the "window" to the laptop, even if many gamers opt to use an external monitor, it still should have a good display.
That said, while most gaming laptops within this price range will deliver a 250 nits display. The Lenovo Legion 5 82B1000AUS raises the bar with a 330 nit display that features a 144 Hz refresh rate, which delivers up to 240% more fluidity than your standard 60 Hz display. That means you can game at high settings and things won't get "blurry" when things are getting interesting.
Couple that with an IPS display with wide viewing angles, very slim bezels for a modern look, and a 100% sRGB color gamut and you've got yourself a display that's perfect not only for gamers but also for designers, photographers and anyone who works in an "image-oriented" field.
Shattering multitasking performance
Welcome to the next generation of AMD processors
The hardware section takes an important leap by betting on the new AMD Ryzen 7 4800H processor, powered by 8 real cores (operating up to 4.20 GHz), 16 virtual cores, and L2 and L3 caches of 4 and 8 MB, respectively.
If you're coming from an Intel background then you should know this processor is slightly more powerful than the hexa-core Intel Core i7-10750H featured on both the aforementioned MSI GL65 Leopard 10SFK-062, as well as the Acer Predator Helios 300 PH315-53-72XD.
It also features the same CPU that's on the recently reviewed Asus TUF Gaming FA506IH-AS53, a laptop that's topping the charts whilst accruing excellent reviews - in a big part thanks to its processor -.
The set is completed with a 16 GB RAM, running under the low-consumption DDR4 architecture at frequencies of 3200 MHz.
What tasks can you move with ease?
As mentioned previously, with this set of specs there's little this powerhouse gaming laptop can't get away with. We're talking about programming, photo retouching, video editing, 3D CAD modeling, graphic design, and virtualization, amongst others. Truly with this octa-core processor, 16 GB of RAM, dedicated graphics, and SSD storage there's very little we could think of where this laptop wouldn't be up to the challenge.
Access your applications and games in one click
Capacity-wise we've got 512 GB which is pretty incredible if you consider that just a couple of years back that would've been unthinkable at this price point. What's more, while we think that 512 GB should accommodate most users, you can also upgrade the storage by adding an additional SSD, and the laptop even arrives with the connector to do so.
Equipped with a 6 GB dedicated memory, the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti graphics allows you to comfortably play such outstanding games as Flight Simulator 2020, Horizon Zero Dawn, F1 2020, Gears Tactics, and Red Dead Redemption 2, among other popular releases.
Enjoy the most popular AAA titles
Equipped with a 6 GB dedicated memory, the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti graphics allows you to comfortably play such outstanding games as Flight Simulator 2020, Horizon Zero Dawn, F1 2020, Gears Tactics, and Red Dead Redemption 2, among other popular releases.
What other sections of this laptop stand out?
If there's something we were not expecting was a gaming laptop with decent battery life. It's just not something you see every day. Yet the Lenovo Legion 5 does just that.It offers us an 80-watt battery capable of delivering roughly 5 hours of modest usage and a little under 2 hours of hardcore gaming. Sure enough, this isn't great by current standards but when you consider that most gaming notebooks rarely surpass the 3-hour mark, this becomes quite impressive.
What's more, the 82B1000AUS also features fast charging, meaning you can charge the battery up to 50% in just 30 minutes. Respect.
To keep you connected to your surroundings, this laptop is powered by Wi-Fi 6 and Bluetooth 5.0 wireless technologies, a USB-C input with a DisplayPort interface for monitors, and an RJ-45 network port.
Additionally, it offers you an HDMI 2.0 video output, 4 USB-A inputs, an audio output combined with microphone input, an HD webcam for live broadcasts, and a 2W Harman / kardon audio system, compatible with Dolby Atmos through headphones.
Versatile and functional connectivity
To keep you connected to your surroundings, this laptop is powered by Wi-Fi 6 and Bluetooth 5.0 wireless technologies, a USB-C input with a DisplayPort interface for monitors, and an RJ-45 network port.
Additionally, it offers you an HDMI 2.0 video output, 4 USB-A inputs, an audio output combined with microphone input, an HD webcam for live broadcasts, and a 2W Harman / kardon audio system, compatible with Dolby Atmos through headphones.
Bottom line: Is it worth it?
And so, at the end of this review of the Lenovo Legion 5 (82B1000AUS) the million-dollar question pops up: is it worth it? The answer is rarely as straightforward in our reviews but in this particular case, it's quite easy. Yes. It's worth it.The Legion 5 is not without its faults. Mainly the lack of an excellent battery-life but leaving that aside -which affects every gaming pc - we're talking about a relatively lightweight powerhouse of a laptop with a bright and colorful display that features a 144 Hz refresh rate, enough RAM for intensive multitaskers to do whatever they want and a processor that's seduced every tech-reviewer on earth since its launch.
Couple that with the possibility to manually upgrade its key components with very little fuzz, a graphics card that will allow you to get down with the most GPU-intensive software and a discreet design and you've got yourself just about one of the best laptop deals of the year. So again, yes, it's worth every penny.