Lenovo Legion Go S SteamOS Review: The best Legion Go

Handheld gaming consoles have become very popular over the past few years, and we’ve reviewed a few of them. The last one we had in here was the Lenovo Legion Go S Windows 11 version. This time the Lenovo Legion Go S SteamOS version is here, and there are some things to talk about. We’ve used the original Lenovo Legion Go as well as the aforementioned Windows 11 S version. I really enjoyed both of those Legion Go handhelds, but Windows 11 just made the experience a little frustrating. The Lenovo Legion Go S SteamOS version fixes that experience and elevates this handheld to another level.

Estimated reading time: 15 minutes

This Lenovo Legion Go S SteamOS will not be much different from the Windows version, considering everything is just about the same except for the OS. That is the key difference and the primary reason this version is miles better than the Windows version. I let the cat out of the bag already. Let’s get into the review!

The Quick Take

This is a simple quick take. The Lenovo Legion Go S SteamOS handheld is the best Legion handheld you can buy. While I love the original Legion Go and the Windows Legion Go S. This one is elevated by simply having SteamOS as the main operating system. That strips all the Windows issues right out and gives you the best gaming experience you can get on a Legion handheld.

The Bottom Line and Score

The Legion Go S SteamOS should have been the only Go S released. I’m not even sure why we were given the Windows version, probably contracts. This handheld is much better than its Windows counterpart in software performance.

The design is really nice, and I love the color. If I had one complaint about the design it would be the grips. Like the Windows version, these are just a bit shallow for me. But it doesn’t make it bad; I can tolerate it. The buttons, sticks, and D-pad were all amazing and felt good. Performance and battery life are also good; battery life could be better, but this is something we deal with on gaming handhelds.

SteamOS is the star of the show here. No Windows nonsense. No Windows AI. No Windows anything. This makes the whole system much lighter and run better. No worrying about Windows updates or any of its launcher nonsense. It’s not that I can’t deal with Windows; I can. I like the Legion Go S.

Overall, if I have a choice to buy a Windows handheld or the Legion Go S SteamOS handheld. I am picking the Steam version every single time.

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Lenovo Legion Go S SteamOS Specifications

• CPU: AMD Ryzen™ Z1 Extreme Processor (3.30 GHz up to 5.10 GHz)
• GPU: Integrated AMD Radeon™ Graphics
• Storage: 1 TB SSD M.2 2242 PCIe Gen4 TLC
• RAM: 32 GB LPDDR5X-7500MT/s (Soldered)
• Operating System: SteamOS
• Memory Card Slot: microSD
• Display: 8″ WUXGA (1920 x 1200), IPS, Glare, Touch, 100%sRGB, 500 nits, 120Hz
• Ports:
  • 2x USB4 (USB 40Gbps, DisplayPort™ 1.4, Power Delivery 3.0)
  • Headphone/Mic Combo Jack
  • MicroSD card reader
• Product Name: Legion Go S SteamOS
• Display: 8″ WUXGA (1920 x 1200) 16:10 aspect ratio, 120Hz variable refresh rate (VRR), 100% sRGB, 500 nits, 10-point touchscreen
• Wi-Fi: 6E 802.11AX (2×2)
• Battery: 55.5WHr
• Bluetooth: 5.3
• Dimensions: 22.6mm x 127.55mm x 299mm / 0.89″ x 5.02″ x 11.77″
• Weight: 740 grams / 1.61 pounds
• Color: Nebula Nocturne
• Speakers: 2 x 2
• Integrated Microphone: Yes

What’s in the Box?

• Lenovo Legion Go S SteamOS
• Power Supply
• Documentation and Manuals

Design

The Lenovo Legion Go S SteamOS design isn’t unlike some of the other gaming handhelds out on the market already and identical to the Windows version. Its bigger brother, the Legion Go, has a leg up in design because it strayed from the norm. The Legion Go has meatier handgrips that allowed me to hold it more comfortably; these Legion Go S SteamOS grips are fine, but just not as robust as the original Go.

Starting along the bottom of the Legion Go S, you will find the microSD card slot, which I believe supports up to a 2TB microSD card. There are several screws on the bottom, and that is just about it. Flipping the Legion Go S SteamOS over, the back is heavily vented for cooling, and your mappable buttons are on the back as well.

Moving along the top of the Legion Go S SteamOS you’ll find more venting ports, the right and left triggers, and the right and left bumpers. Also along the top are the two USB-C ports. headphone jack, volume up/down, and power button. The power button does have an LED light ring around it.

Flipping the Legion Go S SteamOS over reveals the 8″ WUXGA IPS display that’s smaller than the larger Legion Go and, in my opinion, just not as good because it is smaller. The speakers are also on the front, and you have your controls as follows:

The hand grips are integrated into the body, whereas the Legion Go’s are detachable and much deeper than the Legion Go S SteamOS. I prefer the hand grips on the original Go; these Legion Go S SteamOS hand grips are fine. I just find my large hands don’t fit as comfortably on them as I would like. It didn’t hurt my gameplay; they just weren’t as comfy as I would have liked.

Overall, the design looks great. I love the Nebula Nocturne color, and the LED accents look good. It’s not too heavy, and while I don’t like the hand grips as much as the Go. It was still comfortable enough to hold and use. I do wish this would have come with a travel case. The original Go comes with one, and that would be a nice value add.

Display

The 8″ WUXGA (1920 x 1200) 16:10 aspect ratio, 120 Hz variable refresh rate on the Lenovo Legion Go S SteamOS is smaller in its size, resolution, and refresh rate compared to its older brother, the Legion Go. It still has a nice 500 nits of brightness, though.

I’m not pointing this out as something bad, but it is something to consider when deciding between the original Go, Legion Go S, and the Legion Go S SteamOS. Personally, I preferred the display on the Legion Go, mostly because it is larger. But the refresh rate and resolution are also better. Still, the display on the Go S SteamOS is a killer.

The fact that Lenovo kept this display at 500 nits is great. I need a bright display, and this one is perfect in that aspect. There is some glare on that can make it difficult to view off axis, but that’s only an issue if someone is watching you play and who cares about that?

The refresh rate of 120 Hz is perfectly fine and acceptable. While the Legion Go has 144 Hz, I don’t think most people will notice this small difference. I had no issues with lag, jitter, or dropped frames. But I will admit, I am not a frame rate snob, so I don’t pay attention that deeply.

The colors are nice on this display with 100% sRGB, though I think if it were OLED, it would have better color. The Switch OLED is really nice. Still, the black levels are perfectly acceptable, and the whites are clean and crisp enough.

Touch responsiveness is excellent, and navigating the display via touch, sticks, D-pad, or mini trackpad works perfectly fine. I hate the onscreen keyboard, but that’s only because it takes half the screen up. It hardly gets used either, so not a huge deal.

Overall, the display on the Lenovo Legion Go S SteamOS is one of its strong points. Love the brightness, colors, and accuracy, and even the size is good.

Software

The most significant difference between the Legion Go S SteamOS and Legion Go S Windows versions is the operating system. Obvious, I know.

Windows 11 is great on desktops. I don’t find it very handheld gaming friendly. Windows is a full-blown desktop operating system, and that comes with all the Windows updates, AI, and headaches of a desktop operating system.

Legion Go S SteamOS is much more lightweight and streamlined to run gaming software only. This is basically Steam on a handheld. It’s basically another SteamDeck. And it is fantastic!

SteamOS boots up much faster, and the interface is familiar and well laid out. Of course, you’re not going to get your Xbox experience here, but I am okay with that. I have Xbox Cloud Gaming and I have purchased games on Xbox. But I don’t miss that because I have some of the same games and other games on Steam.

The whole interface and SteamOS are miles better than anything on a Windows handheld gaming console. I think Microsoft needs to ditch Windows 11 on its handhelds and start figuring out something else. Because if Steam continues to expand with other brands. That is going to really eat into the Microsoft’s Windows handheld market.

Overall, SteamOS makes this handheld one of the best on the market. It really makes this device great.

Performance

As most of my regular audience knows, I am not much of a benchmarks guy. I never really have a use for a bunch of numbers some piece of software spits out at me. I prefer using a device and seeing how it performs in the real world under my conditions. Of course, my conditions aren’t yours, and you just have to read several reviews and parse out the information to form your own thoughts. I also would not know where to start with benchmarking on this operating system. Heh.

The Lenovo Legion Go S SteamOS is running the AMD Ryzen Z1 Extreme Processor with integrated AMD Radeon GPU. The performance of these chips on SteamOS doesn’t feel much different from the Windows version. I didn’t really see a lot of gain.

I had no issues with any of my gameplay. The games did not lag or take too long to load. I had no issues with dropped frame rates or any sort of graphics issues. That was evident to me. No issues with heat or overheating either. The fans did spin up a few times during intensive gameplay, but I feel this is normal, and I felt that the amount of time the fans were on was longer than the Windows version. They were pretty loud.

Some of the games I played included:

• Hogwarts Legacy
• Borderlands 3
• Spider-Man Remastered
• Marvel’s Guardians of the Galaxy
• Ninja Gaiden 2 Black
• Tomb Raider: Definitive Edition
• Mafia: Definitive Collection
• Extinction
• Destiny 2
• Batman: Arkham Knight
• Star Wars: Jedi Fallen Order

One of the things I did notice that is loads better than on the Legion Go S SteamOS version, is the start up time. The Windows version takes forever to load and get into the operating system. This one is faster. I won’t say miles faster, but the boot-up time is noticeably faster.

Like the Windows version, the controls of the Lenovo Legion Go S SteamOS version are fantastic. I love the D-pad, and the sticks, triggers, and buttons are all well placed and easy to reach. Overall, this is a fantastic-performing handheld gaming console.

Gallery

Speakers/Sound

The speakers on the Legion Go S SteamOS are fair. The original Legion Go speakers are better, in my opinion, but these are fair. They need a bit more depth and more bottom end, but they are fine for short gaming stints. I suspect most people will be using headphones with this device. I can’t imagine playing this in a space with most people and having your game blaring at them. This is designed to be moved around, and I think gaming headphones will be used a lot. Overall, the speakers are fair, not outstanding or even notable, just fair. Sorry I keep dragging the original Go into this, but I think it’s fair to compare.

Battery Life

This will be a very subjective number, and it will vary wildly from person to person. The settings you use, the way you play, the brightness of your screen, LEDs on or off. There are too many variables to give an accurate determination.

The Legion Go S SteamOS comes with a 55.5 watt-hour battery, which is only slightly bigger than the Legion Go. I was able to pull around 1.5 to 2 hours of gameplay from locally installed games with my brightness at 3/4, LEDs on, and with out ofthe-box settings.

I think this was slightly less than the Windows version of the Go, but handheld gaming is always going to be tough to keep on battery. These games are heavy, and they drain battery quickly. I’m happier with SteamOS and am willing to deal with the battery life here.

Overall, I felt this handheld gave enough battery life and sits within the competition. I’m not going to lie, I would love for battery life to be extended.

Price/Value

The asking price for the Windows Lenovo Legion Go S was a sore point for some reviewers. But I think the SteamOS version is getting better feedback. I was on the fence on the Windows version, but SteamOS really does make a huge difference in value.

Overall, I think the value is here for those who are looking for a smaller handheld and want an alternative to the SteamDeck. I can’t determine great value for you; you have to do that for yourself.

Wrap-Up

The Legion Go S SteamOS should have been the only Go S released. I’m not even sure why we were given the Windows version, probably contracts. This handheld is much better than its Windows counterpart in software performance.

The design is really nice, and I love the color. If I had one complaint about the design it would be the grips. Like the Windows version, these are just a bit shallow for me. But it doesn’t make it bad; I can tolerate it. The buttons, sticks, and D-pad were all amazing and felt good. Performance and battery life are also good; battery life could be better, but this is something we deal with on gaming handhelds.

SteamOS is the star of the show here. No Windows nonsense. No Windows AI. No Windows anything. This makes the whole system much lighter and run better. No worrying about Windows updates or any of its launcher nonsense. It’s not that I can’t deal with Windows; I can. I like the Legion Go S.

Overall, if I have a choice to buy a Windows handheld or the Legion Go S SteamOS handheld. I am picking the Steam version every single time.

This is a simple quick take. The Lenovo Legion Go S SteamOS handheld is the best Legion handheld you can buy. While I love the original Legion Go and the Windows Legion Go S. This one is elevated by simply having SteamOS as the main operating system. That strips all the Windows issues right out and gives you the best gaming experience you can get on a Legion handheld.