Lenovo Legion Duel review: The coolest gaming smartphone on the market

Lenovo Legion Duel: Unanimously bargains

That is the Lenovo Legion Duel for?

The Lenovo Legion Duel was amassed accessible for acquisition in France from October 15, 2020, with an enquiring expenditure of €899.99 for the 12GB/256GB iteration. Those that would stab the optimal-of-the-queue model will have to fork out €999.99 for the 16GB/512GB arrangement.

Armed with a Snapdragon 865+ chipset, a 144 Hz AMOLED display, a generous 5,000 mAh battery, 90-watt fast recharging capacity, the Lenovo Legion Duel is the designed for mobile phone players. It executes not unwilling itself from being marketed as a proper enemy to the Asus ROG Handset 3 which in my opinion, still remains the flawless betting smartphone on the industry today.

Contrasted to its calculated enemy, the Asus ROG Handset 3, its 5,000 mAh battery is smaller sized (you will locate a 6,000 mAh behemoth in the ROG Handset 3), yet it executes recharge a entirety cluster much faster courtesy of the fast recharging capacity at 90-watts.

Its camera module is slightly a cluster less extraordinary, although there is the pop-up selfie camera in front that executes administer versatility in image-snatching while transmitting away from a notch or punch-hole camera architecture. Overall, the smartphone’s architecture is not the the majority of discreet yet then over again, it is unashamed about its betting pedigree. The display is slightly a cluster less responsive with a touch-sampling rate of 240 Hz, which is simply a shade a cluster less than the ROG Handset 3’s 270 Hz.

The smartphone totally takes on its betting heritage, render certainly no sneak about it. Do not intend even the slightest wear away simply so it can spoil being more convenient and also offered as a everyday vehicular stimulant at the office. Noticeably no, the Lenovo Legion Duel was specially designed for betting and also splendidly nothing else. While that could be real, I think I could be faultlessly magical with this (for currently).

Specifically designed for betting

The architecture of the Lenovo Legion Duel is anything yet habit. Neglect about matte backs amassed out of plastic, forgive me for my faux pas, I spelled polycarbonate, tapered contours, and also curved displays. As etched on its holographic glass recommend, it graciously touts the Lenovo Legion Duel to be “tasteful on the outside, rabid on the within.”

The Lenovo Legion Duel is a huge, angular brick significant with RGB LEDs. At the recommend lies the glaringly identifiable “Y” logo architecture to display Lenovo’s betting scope, which possesses been relabelled “Legion”. This “Y” logo architecture will light up in assorted shades and also even sporting openings customizable computer animation fads.

There is splendidly nothing at the recommend that protrudes in an irrepressible manner, and also the double camera module remains recessed. There are notions of refined notches at both ends of the recommend to make certain optimal advice each time you hold the smartphone in your hands – and also these notches come in convenient to administer additional grasp, especially as shortly as your hands are sweaty. In fact, the entirety architecture plainly agendas that this mobile phone is spelled to be offered in landscape mode, rendering it the flawless orientation for betting.

Allotment rockers are situated on the escaped side and also not on the proper, which is the proper feedback offered that it would go a long means in hampering any type of interference with Bluetooth controller clips. There is the USB-C adapter situated at the underpinning segment, while Lenovo possesses smartly interjected an additional the same input in the centre of the escaped-hand side.

This volition is needed for the double-fast penalty feature to job, yet it was also designed so that it executes not confrontation with your proper hand as shortly as you hold the smartphone flat to tinker while recharging your smartphone.

Even the selfie camera remains thoroughly sheathed up in a pop-up module, and also is situated on the proper-hand side. It pops out as shortly as the smartphone is comprehended flat, the same to a web electronic camera overhead a betting PC’s display. In addition, this pop-up selfie camera also carries the lock switch – a rather unacquainted architecture in my opinion.

Noticeably no scruple that the Lenovo Legion Duel is a hefty mobile phone, tipping the scales at 239 grams. It is also a wee bit thicker (9.9 mm) contrasted to other handsets. Yet, you would have realized by currently that this is not a smartphone that was designed to be a compact model or one that carries a valuable kind determinant. The ambition is to render the the majority of of one’s grasp for betting purposes. On this point one by one, I locate the architecture of the Lenovo Legion Duel to be a entirety cluster more judicious and also pertinent contrasted to the Asus ROG Handset 3 or the RedMagic 5S.

144 Hz AMOLED FHD+ display is highly sleek

The Lenovo Legion Handset Duel amenities a 6.65-inch AMOLED FHD+ display with a 19.5:9 facet ratio and also a rejuvenate rate of up to 144 Hz. The display is flat and also not curved, going against conservative wisdom, while retaining a favourite chin and also temple that the good news is executes not excel so that it can fit the stereo audio speakers.

As is often the enveloping, the high rejuvenate rate implies devastations – and also with the Legion Handset Duel, this means performing away with a 1440p display for a 1080p display. Frankly, this rarely sufferings for a display that miniscule, especially as shortly as you’re playing galleries and also your eyes will not be able to value the slightly more carefulness. It is also not in the flawless focus of all smartphone fitters to bow to Samsung’s WQHD+ administering at 120 Hz, such as on the Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra.

Despite the slightly lesser display resolution, we still preserve our respect that this is an spic display with a max luminance of 620 nits. I did not sprinted into any type of sufferings of reflection or colorimetry, and also oddly enough, I happen to be one of the rare users that guidance to have a sleek display instead of the highest you can probably picture you can probably picture resolution. Hz FTW as ticked off to DPI!

One can surely disagreement the experiences of owning a 144 Hz rejuvenate rate on any type of other betting tools unresponsive from a PC. Further so on smartphones, whereby lone a handful of mobile phone galleries are proper with such a high rejuvenate rate, and also these are couple of and also rare to encountered in the first place.

For instance, you’ll be stuck at 60 FPS on Call of Chore Mobile or Fortnite. I execute scruple that Lenovo, a huge tag in the planet of betting, is a cluster less capable than OnePlus or even Sony (that possesses amassed even to attain an exclusive 120 FPS on Call of Chore Mobile on its latest Xperia) to job with arcade publishers/manufacturers in ordinance to exploit its equipment to its complete potential in the future.

This is one of the calculated sufferings as shortly as it comes to mobile phone betting, yet it also ensues to be one of its the majority of promising training courses. However, we still payback from one of the smoothest betting suffers accessible on the industry proper currently – at the disturbingly least visually. Even if it will be arduous to uncommunicativeness the critics of high rejuvenate prices, one can mostly respect the smoothness beyond a 60 Hz rejuvenate rate, even on a arcade that is coated at 60 FPS.

I could go into a 5,000-word write-up on input lag, and also I could execute so if you’re immersed, yet 144 Hz is more than a welcome feature on the Lenovo Legion Duel.

The ZUI customer interface is not intuitive

I’ve been making utility of this Lenovo tools for innumerable months already, and also at the time I’m concocting this testimonial (January 2021), the Lenovo Legion Duel runs on the ZUI peel that is based on Android 10. The smartphone remains stuck on the August 2020 security and also insurance coverage patch, which is hellish in stipulations of software program beautifies. In fact, this smartphone is not even listed on Lenovo’s Android modernize roadmap. What a embarassment!

The customer interface is visually comfortable to clause Android, although you can decide for a more predatory betting significant glances. You can also access secondary alteration placements such as readjusting the LED shade at the recommend of the smartphone or the Habitually on Display (AOD) placement.

What is the the majority of intriguing would be the Legion Realm menu, which enables you to sort after all of the capability parameters and also placements pertained to assorted betting modes.

This menu executes you with access to picked signs, requiring shindig high emblematic, chip clock frequencies, display luminance, rejuvenate rate, and also internal high temperature. You can also activate the recording purpose and also spouting mode listed below.

Yet, I think that it is a embarassment the stream mode doesn’t unconsciously start recording as shortly as you tinker. It doesn’t launch a real stream either, yet rather, unconsciously redirects you to your Twitch or YouTube Gambling web page.

Hence, you’ll need a 3rd event squeeze and also spouting software program (OBS oomph) to program the fabric sported on your Lenovo Legion Duel. The stream mode is a little “layout” shortcut that enables you to have the customer interface of a stream without performing any type of editing.

There is an additional parasite that ticks me off – the screenshot purpose is lone available wearing the Legion Realm menu that ought to be scrolled in the manner of a alert pane. The problem is this: as shortly as you press the screenshot switch, the menu pane remains on the display and also eventually, destroys the entirety screenshot.

So I spotted myself snatching guidebook squeeze screenshots by pressing the allotment switch (situated at the underpinning) and also the lock switch, which is situated on the pop-up selfie camera. Doing so brows through the pop-up camera retract under the strain of my finger. The stream mode is actually intriguing and also carries plenty of potential, yet it is plainly not intuitive enough to be offered.

A formidable monster with the Snapdragon 865+ chipset

The Lenovo Legion Handset Duel is outfitted with Qualcomm’s the majority of formidable chip in 2020, the Snapdragon 865 Plus SoC. This is an overclocked iteration of the Snapdragon 865, which happened to investigate feedback in the majority of of last year’s front runner tools. The Snapdragon 865 Plus comes with an overclocked Qualcomm Kryo 585 Prime cpu of up to 3.1 GHz, which is a 10 percent optimize over the underpinning Snapdragon 865.

The Qualcomm Adreno 650 GPU executes 10 percent more graphics administering capacity in addition to Qualcomm FastConnect 6900 compatibility that is intended to supply Wi-Fi 6 paces of up to 3.6 Gbps. I chosen to compare the Lenovo Legion Duel to the capability of the Kirin 9000 that powers the Huawei Mate 40 Pro, the Snapdragon 865+ in the Asus ROG Handset 3, and also the Exynos 2100 in the Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra.

In ordinance to execute so, I launched assorted graphics benchmarks by editing on the capability/betting mode on each smartphone. For each benchmark, I executed each analysis 3 times by spacing them innumerable minutes unresponsive so that these handsets have satisfactory time to fashionable down and also supply the flawless you can probably picture capability.

The ratings you investigate in the table listed below are the highest you can probably picture ratings procured among the 3 sessions of each analysis.

The Snapdragon 865+ would intuitively heat up more contrasted to the vanilla Snapdragon 865. Yet, the high temperature manipulate, or rather the Lenovo Legion Duel’s heat security contraption, is extraordinary. In addition to the nostalgic benchmarks that rarely ever before case a cluster, I also exposed the tools to the brand-new Rabid Spiritedness Regimens Tests in 3D Mark.

Generally, these are the 2 checkups that appear like intensive betting use, one snatching a minutes while the snatching 20 minutes. Over a quickly 1 minutes session, for instance, the Lenovo Legion Duel is intuitively a cluster less formidable than the Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra and also its SoC Exynos 2100 as shortly as it comes to raw capability.

Yet over an intense 20-minutes session, the Lenovo Legion Duel widens the suspension with the Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra. The inconsistency lies in its high temperature manipulate and also resistance against too much thermal strangling (limiting the capability of a cpu to inhibit smartphone acquiring too hot).

Contrast the charts listed below. The capability inconsistency between the first analysis loop (environment-friendly menisci) and also the last loop (purple menisci) is substantially better on the Samsung Galaxy S21 Ultra. This reflects a loss of capability as the betting session progresses.

On the Lenovo Legion Duel, the 2 contours continue to be practically homogenous, eventually capability is more stubborn throughout an intense betting session. Yet, both smartphones competent a ethically the same high temperature pinnacle.

Yet we can investigate disturbingly legible capability losses, requiring framerate depreciates (FPS) as the high temperature booms (red menisci, 2nd row in the picture) and also as the battery openings cheapens (environment-friendly menisci, 3rd row in the picture).

Noticeably no scruple we can totally value the repute of owning an efficient cooling contraption. It’s actually one of the pivot standards that sets unresponsive betting smartphones from other flagships. Any guy can sprinted galleries conveniently, yet betting smartphones are able to execute so for a cluster longer periods of time while mitigating loss in capability.

An criterion 64 MP camera module except for the selfie camera

Noticeably no scruple the weakest point of the Lenovo Legion Duel would be the camera module, in information, the one at the recommend. This betting smartphone is outfitted with the occurring camera module:

• a 64 MP wide-angle calculated menisci, f/1.9 aperture, 25mm, 1/1.72″, 0.8µm, PDAF
• a 16 MP ultra-wide-angle menisci, f/2.2 aperture, FOV 120˚, 16mm

The twin 64 MP camera module on the Lenovo Legion Duel is plainly not its durable point / © NextPit

The smartphone’s calculated sensor obtains pixel binning to squeeze 16 MP inoculations, yet you also have the capacity to filch complete 64 MP resolution images to attain a more described level of carefulness.

Overall, the Lenovo Legion Duel camera module is disturbingly unimpressive for a smartphone in this expenditure scope. Yeah, I realise we’re conversing about a betting smartphone and also the camera isn’t intended to be the stellar-feature such as those spotted on the other “nostalgic” flagships.

Yet still, at practically $1,000 a pop, I think Lenovo could have done more described. In daytime, and also under nice lighting maladies, the calculated sensor executes rather extremely well. Software processing is predatory and also we heeded an oversaturation of shades in the heavens, vegetation, and also turf.

I locate that the images absence sharpness and also digital smoothing produces a kind of shroud that drowns out the the majority of refined glances of the inoculation.

The ultra-wide-angle is plainly not as nice in stipulations of okay carefulness, yet Lenovo handles to administer a rather stubborn colorimetry as shortly as it comes to wide-angle inoculations in addition to rather commendable exposure security, although the dynamic scope is plainly not the calculated attraction listed below.

Intuitively, one can magnification in up to 8x yet will simply have to be delighted with unmixed digital providing. The loss of carefulness is identifiable yet I ought to admit that the Lenovo Legion Duel handles to execute damages hindrance as long as we are delighted with 2x magnification.

Despite the eventually pedestrian camera capability, the star of the Lenovo Legion Duel camera module ensues to be its “pop-up” selfie camera. This camera is situated at the proper side, and also was designed to stream in “face web electronic camera” while you are betting.

Generally, the pointer is to help with fabric figment for streamers or YouTubers that are mobile phone betting fans. This may render even the the majority of hardcore among you laugh, yet the smartphone betting scene is cultivation with each passing day. In 2020, the majority of eSport occasions took place on Call of Chore Mobile with reward pools of innumerable million euros.

Last November, Amazon.com launched its GameOn spouting contraption in the United Says, which was committed especially to mobile phone betting. Putting on this pop-up selfie camera and also a selfie + gameplay recording feature on hand, the Lenovo Legion Duel could be a significant starter package for fabric owners led in this standard.

The divine 20 MP wide-angle sensor with an aperture of f/2.2 (25mm tantamount, 1/3.1″, 0.9µm) maintains HDR and also 4K video squeeze at 30 FPS. This is plainly not the flawless performing selfie camera accessible, yet I spotted it to execute decently.

Yet, the accessible recording selections, capacity to emit clips retroactively (after a flash of wizard in the middle of a multiplayer session), the capacity to rotate your head away such as seen in donned-made Level One agendas…all of these actually amassed me value the “Stream Pose” on the Lenovo Legion Duel.

The camera’s placement in the nucleus as shortly as you hold the smartphone in landscape mode discourages you from wearing hold the camera with your fingers, quite polymorphous the conservative punch-hole or notch arrangement. The 4 microphones offered for voice recording use active melee misusage to unbalanced melee.

I execute realise that it I don’t render it in technology journalism, I can always receive into mobile phone betting on YouTube or Twitch.

Brisk battery openings with a rapid 90-watt penalty

The Legion Handset Duel incorporates 2 2,500 mAh batteries that can be recharged independently. By performing so, it enables the mobile phone to attain a fast 90-watt penalty. You can also use both USB-C adapters for recharging all at once, currently how about that?

There is a USB-C 3.1 adapter with DisplayPort advice on the escaped side while the other USB-C 2.0 adapter is situated at the lesser end. The Lenovo Legion Duel’s battery openings is spic. Throughout my the majority of weeks of purging, anxious by intensive betting sessions and also expanded use of up to innumerable hours with the graphics placements pressed to the max, I was always able to last 2 days without any type of problem.

The huge battery charger comes with twin USB-C edicts so that you can affix 2 cable tvs all at once to penalty both batteries in the Lenovo Legion Duel. In the majority of sheaths, I was able to penalty the smartphone from 0 to 100% without owning the clock formulate the 40-minutes mark.

Double recharging already exists numerous thanks to fitters such as Oppo with their Oppo Position X2 Pro. Yet Lenovo seems to have pressed the pointer further to the draconian by tossing on an secondary recharging adapter.

Putting on such a long-lasting battery openings and also a fast penalty, I am all set to neglect the absence of wireless recharging. Anyhow, a betting smartphone doesn’t job nicely for betting as shortly as you place it on a Qi stand, yet you can always continue betting by owning it continue to be plugged to the power outlet.

Culmination

Lenovo Legion Duel

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