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Updated January 10, 2024·
The Lenovo IdeaPad 3 17" is more affordable, with adequate performance for general use and a larger screen that's beneficial for productivity tasks. However, it's not designed for heavy gaming or intensive engineering work. The Lenovo Legion 9i is a premium laptop that offers significantly better performance suitable for intensive gaming, 3D rendering, and engineering software due to its powerful processor and graphics card. It also has a high-quality display with better color accuracy and higher resolution. The tradeoff is that it's more expensive and less portable due to increased weight and lower battery life. Choose the IdeaPad for everyday tasks and portability, or the Legion 9i for top performance and a better screen at a higher price and with portability compromise. 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 Lenovo IdeaPad 3 17"
- Good portability
- Good battery life
Advantages of the Lenovo Legion 9i
- Very good for general use
- Best in class for engineering and design
- Excellent for gaming and AI
- Very good for software development
- Very good for content creation
- Best in class overall display quality
- Very good overall build quality
- Best in class speakers
- Excellent keyboard
Key differences
General Use
7.3
8.4
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
3200 x 2000
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
Mini LED
307.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
682.0 nits
9.0 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
3.0 Hours
6.5/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
9.0/10
7.1/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
6.3/10
The Lenovo Legion 9i is very good for general use, while the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 17" is good.
The Lenovo Legion 9i surpasses the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 17" in performance as it has a more powerful CPU and more RAM, important for intensive tasks and multitasking, and offers superior screen quality with a higher resolution and better color coverage which is beneficial for visual tasks. However, the IdeaPad 3 with its larger screen and longer battery life is more suitable for casual use and productivity, while being more portable due to its lighter weight and less bulky design compared to the Legion, which prioritizes top-end performance possibly at the expense of battery life and portability.
Gaming and AI
6.1
9.2
3.6/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
9.8/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
3200 x 2000
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
165Hz
No
SUPPORTS DLSS
Yes
No
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
Yes
9.5/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
6.5/10
The Lenovo Legion 9i is excellent for gaming and AI, while the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 17" is only fair.
The Lenovo IdeaPad 3 17" is limited in gaming and 3D tasks due to its integrated AMD graphics and a standard screen refresh rate, whereas the Lenovo Legion 9i excels with its powerful Nvidia RTX 4080 GPU and a high refresh rate display, which are more conducive to high-performance gaming and smoother visuals.
Engineering and Design
6.6
9.6
5.8/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.9/10
3.6/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
9.8/10
8.0 GB
RAM
32.0 GB
The Lenovo Legion 9i is best in class for engineering and design, while the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 17" is only fair.
The Lenovo IdeaPad 3 17" with its AMD Ryzen 5 CPU and Vega 7 GPU is considered fair for engineering and design due to its adequate processing capabilities for basic tasks, but it may struggle with more demanding software commonly used in these fields.
Content Creation
7.4
8.7
5.8/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.9/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
3200 x 2000
8.0 GB
RAM
32.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
Mini LED
The Lenovo Legion 9i is very good for content creation, while the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 17" is good.
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
7.2
8.3
5.8/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.9/10
8.0 GB
RAM
32.0 GB
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
3200 x 2000
6.5/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
9.0/10
The Lenovo Legion 9i is very good for software development, while the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 17" is good.
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.
Screen Quality
6.7
9.7
17.3in
SIZE
16.0in
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
3200 x 2000
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
Mini LED
60Hz
REFRESH RATE
165Hz
307.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
682.0 nits
The Lenovo Legion 9i has a better screen than the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 17" for general use, gaming and AI, engineering and design, content creation, and software development.
The Lenovo IdeaPad 3 17" offers a large, high-resolution display with ample brightness, making it suitable for daily tasks and professional work that doesn't require the most vivid colors. On the other hand, the Lenovo Legion 9i excels in both resolution and color reproduction, covering wider color gamuts essential for engineering and design professionals needing precise color accuracy. However, neither are optimized for gaming or 3D applications because they lack high refresh rates necessary for smooth visuals in fast-paced environments.
Battery
9.0 Hours
3.0 Hours
The Lenovo IdeaPad 3 17" has 9 hours of battery life. The Lenovo Legion 9i has 3 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
Fair
17.3in
SIZE
16.0in
4.4 lbs
WEIGHT
5.6 lbs
0.7in
THICKNESS
1.0in
The Lenovo IdeaPad 3 17" has good portability, while the Lenovo Legion 9i has only fair portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Build Quality
6.5
8.5
The Lenovo Legion 9i has very good build quality, while the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 17" has only fair build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$784
$3,420
$0
$1,000
$2,000
$3,000
$4,000
The Lenovo IdeaPad 3 17" has a price of $784 and the Lenovo Legion 9i costs $3,420.
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How the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 17" and the Lenovo Legion 9i compare to other laptops
Spec Comparison
 |  | |
| Lenovo IdeaPad 3 17" | Lenovo Legion 9i |
GENERAL | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | |||
$784 | $3,420 | ||
Release Date | |||
Release Date | April 1, 2022 | October 1, 2023 | |
Overall Dimensions | |||
Overall Dimensions | 15.7'' x 10.8'' x 0.78'' | 14.1'' x 10.9'' x 1.01'' | |
Weight | |||
Weight | 4.49 lbs | 5.64 lbs | |
Width | |||
Width | 15.71" | 14.08" | |
Depth | |||
Depth | 10.79" | 10.93" | |
INTERNAL | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Processor | |||
Processor | AMD Ryzen 5 5625U | Intel i9-13980HX | |
RAM | |||
RAM | 8 GB | 32 GB | |
DDR Memory Version | |||
DDR Memory Version | 4 | 5 | |
RAM Slots | |||
RAM Slots | 1 | 2 | |
Storage | |||
Storage | 512 GB | 1024 GB | |
BATTERY | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Battery Life | |||
Battery Life | 9 Hours | 3 Hours | |
Battery Capacity | |||
Battery Capacity | 45 Wh | 99.9 Wh | |
SCREEN | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Diagonal Size | |||
Diagonal Size | 17.3" | 16" | |
Display Technology | |||
Display Technology | IPS | Mini LED | |
Resolution | |||
Resolution | 1920 x 1080 | 3200 x 2000 | |
Refresh Rate | |||
Refresh Rate | 60Hz | 165Hz | |
Display Brightness | |||
Display Brightness | 307 nits | 682 nits | |
RELIABILITY, APPEARANCE & ACOUSTICS | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Build Quality Score | |||
Build Quality Score | 6.5/10 | 8.5/10 | |
Portability Score | |||
Portability Score | 7.2/10 | 6.4/10 | |
Gaming Laptop Appearance | |||
Gaming Laptop Appearance | No | Yes | |
Premium Business Laptop | |||
Premium Business Laptop | No | No | |
Fan Noise Score | |||
Fan Noise Score | 9.5/10 | 6.5/10 | |
HARDWARE FEATURES | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Keyboard Quality Score | |||
Keyboard Quality Score | 6.5/10 | 9/10 | |
Speaker Quality Score | |||
Speaker Quality Score | 6/10 | 9.8/10 | |
Webcam | |||
Webcam | 720p | 1080p | |
Fingerprint Reader | |||
Fingerprint Reader | Yes | Yes | |
Backlit Keyboard | |||
Backlit Keyboard | No | Yes | |
Number Pad | |||
Number Pad | Yes | Yes | |
CONNECTIVITY | |||
|---|---|---|---|
USB Type-A | |||
USB Type-A | 2 | 2 | |
USB-C ports | |||
USB-C ports | 1 | 3 | |
USB-C Charging | |||
USB-C Charging | Yes | Yes | |
Display Outputs | |||
Display Outputs | 2 | 3 | |
Thunderbolt Version | |||
Thunderbolt Version | N/A | 4 | |
Shopping
Lenovo IdeaPad 3 17"
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Dig into reviews and images
LaptopMedia
Alex Iliev | December 2022
"The Lenovo IdeaPad 3 17" defies expectations. Indeed, it is just a minor upgrade over last year. However, this doesn’t make the laptop any less terrific. It’s got a great performance, courtesy of the Ryzen 5x25U processors. In addition, you get a pretty good battery life. Perhaps, the 2-hour decrease in video playback, compared to last year is not great, but still, 10 hours of Web browsing and 7 hours of video playback is okay for 17-inch notebooks."
Lenovo Legion 9i
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Dig into reviews and images
PCMag
Matthew Buzzi | December 2023
"The Lenovo Legion 9i is meant as a top-end flagship showcase for enthusiasts, and on that, it delivers. You'll find flashier designs in this price tier—Razer’s all-metal build in a similarly sized laptop like the Blade 16, or monstrous 18-inch machines—but this is a well-thought-out laptop. The chassis is trim for a 16-inch powerhouse, the lid is unique, and bespoke liquid cooling takes performance to the next level."
Get a great deal on the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 17" or the Lenovo Legion 9i
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.
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