Lenovo's Legion Go S comes in two "flavours", but they didn't launch at the same time. Available as a white variant running Windows 11 and a grey-yet-almost-purple alternative running SteamOS, the same Linux-based operating system as Valve's Steam Deck. The former should have been an attractive option as an entry-level PC gaming handheld, but the laughable MSRP turned most people away. Well, good news, because the Legion Go S (Ryzen Z2 Go) is down to $499.99 at Best Buy for a limited time — the price it always should have been.
It isn't the first time the Windows 11-based Legion Go S has seen a price drop, as it previously fell to $599 in April, but our own Zachary Boddy still found it too difficult to recommend after echoing the sentiments from their review in February. Essentially, this all-white Legion Go S is a tuned-up Steam Deck, sporting similar performance from its AMD Ryzen Z2 Go APU.
Yes, it launched at $729.99 at Best Buy, which is an incredible price jump from the $649 of a 1TB Steam Deck OLED — and that still gets you a technically higher-spec display with better contrast. However, at $499, this Legion Go S sits between the $399 entry-level Steam Deck LCD model with 256GB of storage and the $549 Steam Deck OLED with 512GB — only with more space for games alongside a Windows 11 installation on its 1TB SSD.
It's a shame the white Steam Deck OLED was a limited edition, because that would have basically been the perfect comparison to this Windows-based Legion Go S. Still, that's essentially what you're getting: a Steam Deck-like handheld with native support for PC Game Pass and popular anti-cheat software for online multiplayer.
Plus, if you don't vibe with the Windows installation, you could always replace it with Valve's alternative and essentially emulate the Lenovo Legion Go S — Powered by SteamOS edition. At this reduced price, you essentially get the best of both worlds, and you could even dual-boot Windows 11 and SteamOS if you really wanted to put some time into tinkering.
The Legion Go S is beautiful, polished, and comfortable on every hardware front, and its vibrant 8-inch display helps it stand out in the crowd.
Zachary Boddy, Windows Central
The launch price is really what snared this Legion Go variant, because it simply didn't make any sense. Zachary explains, "I honestly can't comfortably recommend it at that price. If the Legion Go S powered by SteamOS comes in at $500, even with half the RAM and storage, then the conversation may go a lot differently". So, now you actually don't have to compromise on the 32GB of shared memory and 1TB of storage with this deal.
It's frankly a shame that this deal will expire and presumably send the Legion Go S back up to its $730 MSRP — or at least close to that insane number — because this is the only time that it's fairly priced when you consider its specs. No, this won't compete with the best handheld heavyweights like ASUS' ROG Ally X and the upcoming Lenovo Legion Go 2 (no, I will not call it the LeGo 2), but rather it now stands as a viable Windows-based alternative to the Steam Deck, as it should.
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