Lenovo Leads with Legion and LOQ Gaming PCs at CES 2024
Lenovo has a wise range of new gaming laptops to show off.News
Lenovo Legion Series: Premium Performance
The Legion lineup, known for its high-end specs and premium performance, is leaning heavily into AI capabilities. But unlike a lot of other PC makers, Lenovo has been working with its own proprietary AI chips, which were introduced last year and which Lenovo says can deliver significantly higher frames per second (FPS), improved power efficiency, and more.
The flagship system at CES 2024 is the Lenovo Legion 9i, which runs up to an Intel Core i9-14900HX CPU and an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 GPU. It also comes equipped with the latest Lenovo LA3-P AI chip. According to Lenovo, this version introduces features like Scenario Detection, which dynamically adjusts power between the CPU and GPU based on user activity, and Smart FPS, optimizing performance in real-time.
There's also new Legion 7i and 5i models, both with Lenovo's LA AI chips for real-time power profile adjustments. These systems can call get a 14th-gen Core i9 and RTX 4070 graphics.
Of course, powerful gaming laptops generate a lot of heat, and every PC maker, Lenovo included, is always working on optimizing cooling solutions so systems can run more efficiently and not throttle performance. The latest version from Lenovo is called Legion Coldfront: Hyper. It comes on the Legion 7i and 5i and changes up the airflow path inside the laptop, taking hot air from the CPU and GPU and and forcing through a hyperbaric chamber inside the chassis, so it doesn't mix with the cooler air being pulled in by the system fans.
Also from the Legion line at CES 2024:
- Legion Tower 5i desktop, with up to a 13th-gen Intel Core i9 and NVIDIA 4080.
- Legion Tower 7i desktop, with up to an Intel Core i9 12900K and up to 64GB RAM/6TB SSD.
- Legion Pro 5i and 7i laptops, with up a 14th-gen Intel Core i9 and NVIDIA 4090, 240Hz displays and switchable keycaps.
Lenovo LOQ Series: Gaming for Less
One great development I've seen in recent years is PC brands offering separate gaming lines with lower prices for casual or budget-minded gamers. For Lenovo, that line is called LOQ, and it includes a mix of Intel and AMD CPUs, and graphics that run across the last few generations of NVIDIA cards. These also include the Lenovo LA1 AI chip for automatically tuning performance settings.
For example, the LOQ 15IRX9 is a 15-inch laptop with a choice of 165Hz or 144Hz screens, and optional four-zone RGB keyboard. It can support a 14th-gen Intel Core i7 and NVIDIA 4060, and the system starts at just $799.
Meanwhile, the Legion series starts at $1,399 for the Legion 5i and goes up to $4,399 for the premium Legion 9i. These systems will be available between January and April of 2024.
Micro Center Editor-in-Chief Dan Ackerman is a veteran tech reporter and has served as Editor-in-Chief of Gizmodo and Editorial Director at CNET. He's been testing and reviewing laptops and other consumer tech for almost 20 years and is the author of The Tetris Effect, a Cold War history of the world's most influential video game. Contact Dan at dackerman@microcenter.com.