The HP Pavilion 15 is a budget-friendly option and is lighter, making it more portable for those who need to move around a lot with their device. Its performance is suitable for everyday tasks and basic productivity work, but it may struggle with more demanding software. The Lenovo Legion 5 17", on the other hand, offers much stronger performance due to its higher-end processor and dedicated graphics, making it a better choice for intensive engineering tasks, 3D modeling, machine learning, gaming, and other resource-heavy applications. However, it is larger and heavier, which may make it less convenient for regular travel. It also typically costs more, so it's a better investment for users needing that extra power. If battery life is a concern, you'll also want to consider that the Lenovo has a larger battery, which typically translates to longer usage times between charges. Give Feedback
this description is based on the product variant with some specs and product variant with some specs. At the time of writing, the variant with some specs cost some dollars and the variant with some specs cost some dollars.
Advantages of the HP Pavilion 15
Good portability
Advantages of the Lenovo Legion 5 17"
Good for engineering and design
Good for gaming and AI
Good for software development
Good overall display quality
Good overall build quality
Good speakers
Very good keyboard
Key differences
Gaming and AI
6.0/10
7.4/10
3.6/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
7.5/10
1366 x 768
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
144Hz
No
SUPPORTS DLSS
Yes
No
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
Yes
8.7/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
6.5/10
The Lenovo Legion 5 17" is good for gaming and AI, while the HP Pavilion 15 is only fair.
The Lenovo Legion 5 17" is good for gaming and 3D because it has a more powerful Nvidia RTX 3060 GPU and a higher screen refresh rate of 144Hz, whereas the HP Pavilion 15 is fair due to its less capable integrated Intel UHD Xe G4 graphics and a lower refresh rate of 60Hz. High-performance GPUs are very important for gaming and 3D, and while both laptops have suitable CPUs and good screen quality, the superior GPU and refresh rate in the Lenovo make a significant difference for these particular uses.
Engineering and Design
6.2/10
7.6/10
4.2/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
7.4/10
3.6/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
7.5/10
16.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
The Lenovo Legion 5 17" is good for engineering and design, while the HP Pavilion 15 is only fair.
The HP Pavilion 15 has a basic CPU and integrated graphics, making it less suitable for demanding engineering software compared to the Lenovo Legion 5 17", which has a high-performance CPU and dedicated GPU, providing better rendering and computational capabilities needed for design tasks. While the HP offers greater portability due to its smaller size and lighter weight, the Lenovo's larger, higher-resolution display offers better screen quality which is essential for detailed engineering and design work, despite it being heavier and less portable.
Screen Quality
5.3/10
7.3/10
15.6in
SIZE
17.3in
1366 x 768
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
TN
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
144Hz
220.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
305.0 nits
The Lenovo Legion 5 17" has a better screen than the HP Pavilion 15 for general use, gaming and AI, engineering and design, and content creation.
The HP Pavilion 15's screen isn't ideal across the board because it lacks clarity and vividness due to lower resolution and brightness, which detracts from general activities and detailed work in engineering and design, and its slower refresh rate diminishes the gaming experience. Conversely, the Lenovo Legion 5 17" provides a good visual experience for general use and engineering tasks with its higher resolution and brighter display that benefits sharper image quality and accurate color representation, but falls short for gaming and 3D because of its subpar refresh rate despite the larger screen size.
Battery
3.0 Hours
4.5 Hours
The HP Pavilion 15 has 3 hours of battery life. The Lenovo Legion 5 17" has 4.5 hours of battery life.
Battery life estimate is based on a mix of common use patterns. More portable and higher performing laptops tend to have less battery life.
Portability
Good
Poor
15.6in
SIZE
17.3in
3.7 lbs
WEIGHT
6.5 lbs
0.7in
THICKNESS
1.0in
The HP Pavilion 15 has good portability, while the Lenovo Legion 5 17" has poor portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Build Quality
6.2/10
7.4/10
The Lenovo Legion 5 17" has good build quality, while the HP Pavilion 15 has only fair build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$600
$1,200
$0
$500
$1,000
$1,500
$2,000
The HP Pavilion 15 has a price of $600 and the Lenovo Legion 5 17" costs $1,200.
The Lenovo Legion 5 17" and HP Pavilion 15 are both good for general use.
The HP Pavilion 15, with its energy-efficient processor and smaller screen, offers a balance of functionality for daily tasks, long battery life, and greater portability, making it well-suited for general use. On the other hand, the Lenovo Legion 5 17" with a high-performance processor and larger, high-quality screen is better equipped for more demanding applications, yet it comes at the cost of reduced battery life and portability.
Content Creation
7.1/10
7.2/10
4.2/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
7.4/10
1366 x 768
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
16.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
TN
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The Lenovo Legion 5 17" and HP Pavilion 15 are both good for content creation.
PerfectRec’s Content Creation Score takes into account the many different features of the laptop that make it more or less suitable for photo editing, video editing and other content creation tasks.
Software Development
6.6/10
7.0/10
4.2/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
7.4/10
16.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
1366 x 768
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
6.2/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
8.5/10
Although they have very similar scores, PerfectRec considers Lenovo Legion 5 17" to be good for software development, while the HP Pavilion 15 is only fair.
PerfectRec’s Software Development Score takes into account the many different features of the laptop that make it more or less suitable for software developers.
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How the HP Pavilion 15 and the Lenovo Legion 5 17" compare to other laptops
"The HP Pavilion 15 carries a fair amount of power and a sharp display in its handsome slimline shell. It's not perfect, but it's a hard worker. This is wonderfully designed and totes a heck of a lot of desktop power, with the added benefit of a decent webcam and a full-sized keyboard. If you're getting down to business on a budget, it's a great fit."
"The Lenovo Legion 5 17 is a current-gen 17-inch gaming laptop and equipped with the latest AMD CPU and a powerful GPU, that manages to reach its full potential. The AMD Ryzen 5 5600H is a very good choice for this laptop and able to maintain its performance level for long periods of time. Our test model only falls behind consistently in a direct comparison with its competitors that are often equipped with eight cores and 16 threads. Despite this, the Legion 5 17 leaves an excellent impression and is almost able to keep up with an Nvidia GeForce RTX 3070 mobile GPU in synthetic benchmarks."
Get a great deal on the HP Pavilion 15 or the Lenovo Legion 5 17"
About HP
HP, also known as Hewlett-Packard, is an American technology company that develops personal computers and computer peripherals. In the laptop industry, HP is known for its entry level Essential series laptops, its mid-range Pavilion, Envy, and Victus series, and high-end Omen and Spectre series, in addition to its business-oriented EliteBook, ProBook, and Dragonfly series laptops. HP laptops generally undercut other mainstream competitors in terms of price, placing itself as the value-oriented mainstream brand.
About Lenovo
Lenovo is a Chinese technology company, and one of the largest personal computer vendor. They are well known for a variety of technology products, including laptops. Their consumer series include their entry level IdeaPad and LOQ series and mid-to-high-end Yoga and Legion series. On the business-oriented side, their series include their entry-level ThinkBook series and mid-to-high-end ThinkPad series. Lenovo laptops offer strong performance for reasonable prices, and are often on sale.
This information was produced and vetted by the PerfectRec laptops team. We are a product research and recommendation organization that meticulously reviews and evaluates the latest laptop information and makes it digestible for you.
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