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Updated January 10, 2024·
The Lenovo Legion 5 17" offers a larger screen and a more budget-friendly price while still providing a solid gaming experience. However, if you prefer higher performance for tasks like 3D rendering or intense gaming and don't mind spending more, the Lenovo Legion 9i with its top-tier graphics and processor becomes a more compelling choice, though with a slightly smaller screen. The Legion 9i also boasts a mini-LED display with a higher resolution, offering a superior visual experience. For portability, both are bulky, but the Legion 5 is heavier. The battery life favors the Legion 9i, which is a consideration if you're often on the move. 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 Legion 5 17"
- The Lenovo Legion 5 17" has no clear advantages over the Lenovo Legion 9i.
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
7.2
8.4
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
3200 x 2000
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
Mini LED
305.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
682.0 nits
4.5 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
3.0 Hours
8.5/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
9.0/10
5.8/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
6.3/10
The Lenovo Legion 9i is very good for general use, while the Lenovo Legion 5 17" is good.
The Lenovo Legion 5 17" with its larger screen and good build quality is suited for general use but is less portable and has a shorter battery life, while the Lenovo Legion 9i offers a smaller high-resolution Mini LED display, superior CPU and RAM for smoother multi-tasking and greater storage, albeit with modest portability and battery life.
Gaming and AI
7.4
9.2
7.5/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
9.8/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
3200 x 2000
144Hz
REFRESH RATE
165Hz
Yes
SUPPORTS DLSS
Yes
Yes
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
Yes
6.5/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
6.5/10
The Lenovo Legion 9i is excellent for gaming and AI, while the Lenovo Legion 5 17" is good.
The Lenovo Legion 5 17" provides a solid gaming experience with an Nvidia RTX 3060 and a refresh rate of 144Hz, ensuring smooth gameplay and decent graphic fidelity. In contrast, the Lenovo Legion 9i boasts a superior Nvidia RTX 4080 with a higher refresh rate of 165Hz, delivering exceptional gaming and 3D performance with more detailed visuals and ultra-smooth action.
Engineering and Design
7.6
9.6
7.4/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.9/10
7.5/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
9.8/10
16.0 GB
RAM
32.0 GB
The Lenovo Legion 9i is best in class for engineering and design, while the Lenovo Legion 5 17" is good.
The Lenovo Legion 5 17" is equipped with a capable processor, a solid amount of RAM, and a good quality GPU, making it suitable for engineering and design tasks, yet its screen quality, while decent, doesn't match the superior high-resolution and bright Mini LED display of the Lenovo Legion 9i. The Legion 9i stands out for engineering excellence with its top-tier processor, double the RAM, and a more powerful GPU, enhancing the performance for more demanding engineering software and complex design work.
Content Creation
7.2
8.7
7.4/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.9/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
3200 x 2000
16.0 GB
RAM
32.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
Mini LED
The Lenovo Legion 9i is very good for content creation, while the Lenovo Legion 5 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
7.0
8.3
7.4/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
9.9/10
16.0 GB
RAM
32.0 GB
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
3200 x 2000
8.5/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
9.0/10
The Lenovo Legion 9i is very good for software development, while the Lenovo Legion 5 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
7.3
9.7
17.3in
SIZE
16.0in
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
3200 x 2000
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
Mini LED
144Hz
REFRESH RATE
165Hz
305.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
682.0 nits
The Lenovo Legion 9i has a better screen than the Lenovo Legion 5 17" for general use, gaming and AI, engineering and design, content creation, and software development.
The Lenovo Legion 5 17" offers a large, bright display with a high resolution that enhances everyday tasks and detailed work in engineering, but its lower refresh rate hampers its performance for 3D applications where smooth motion is crucial. The Lenovo Legion 9i excels with superior color accuracy and wider color gamut coverage, making it an excellent choice for professionals in engineering and design who require precise color representation. However, like the Legion 5, the Legion 9i falls short for gaming and 3D work, where its display's lower refresh rate fails to match the smooth visual experience demanded by such fast-paced environments.
Battery
4.5 Hours
3.0 Hours
The Lenovo Legion 5 17" has 4.5 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
Poor
Fair
17.3in
SIZE
16.0in
6.5 lbs
WEIGHT
5.6 lbs
1.0in
THICKNESS
1.0in
The Lenovo Legion 9i has only fair portability, while the Lenovo Legion 5 17" has poor portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Build Quality
7.4
8.5
The Lenovo Legion 9i has very good build quality, while the Lenovo Legion 5 17" has good build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$1,200
$3,420
$500
$1,000
$1,500
$2,000
$2,500
$3,000
$3,500
$4,000
The Lenovo Legion 5 17" has a price of $1,200 and the Lenovo Legion 9i costs $3,420.
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How the Lenovo Legion 5 17" and the Lenovo Legion 9i compare to other laptops
Spec Comparison
 |  | |
| Lenovo Legion 5 17" | Lenovo Legion 9i |
GENERAL | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | |||
$1,200 | $3,420 | ||
Release Date | |||
Release Date | October 1, 2021 | October 1, 2023 | |
Overall Dimensions | |||
Overall Dimensions | 15.7'' x 11.4'' x 1'' | 14.1'' x 10.9'' x 1.01'' | |
Weight | |||
Weight | 6.57 lbs | 5.64 lbs | |
Width | |||
Width | 15.7" | 14.08" | |
Depth | |||
Depth | 11.41" | 10.93" | |
INTERNAL | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Processor | |||
Processor | Intel i7-11800H | Intel i9-13980HX | |
RAM | |||
RAM | 16 GB | 32 GB | |
DDR Memory Version | |||
DDR Memory Version | 4 | 5 | |
RAM Slots | |||
RAM Slots | 2 | 2 | |
Storage | |||
Storage | 256 GB | 1024 GB | |
BATTERY | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Battery Life | |||
Battery Life | 4.5 Hours | 3 Hours | |
Battery Capacity | |||
Battery Capacity | 80 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 | 144Hz | 165Hz | |
Display Brightness | |||
Display Brightness | 305 nits | 682 nits | |
RELIABILITY, APPEARANCE & ACOUSTICS | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Build Quality Score | |||
Build Quality Score | 7.4/10 | 8.5/10 | |
Portability Score | |||
Portability Score | 5.8/10 | 6.4/10 | |
Gaming Laptop Appearance | |||
Gaming Laptop Appearance | Yes | Yes | |
Premium Business Laptop | |||
Premium Business Laptop | No | No | |
Fan Noise Score | |||
Fan Noise Score | 6.5/10 | 6.5/10 | |
HARDWARE FEATURES | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Keyboard Quality Score | |||
Keyboard Quality Score | 8.5/10 | 9/10 | |
Speaker Quality Score | |||
Speaker Quality Score | 7/10 | 9.8/10 | |
Webcam | |||
Webcam | 720p | 1080p | |
Fingerprint Reader | |||
Fingerprint Reader | No | Yes | |
Backlit Keyboard | |||
Backlit Keyboard | Yes | Yes | |
Number Pad | |||
Number Pad | Yes | Yes | |
CONNECTIVITY | |||
|---|---|---|---|
USB Type-A | |||
USB Type-A | 4 | 2 | |
USB-C ports | |||
USB-C ports | 2 | 3 | |
USB-C Charging | |||
USB-C Charging | Yes | Yes | |
Display Outputs | |||
Display Outputs | 3 | 3 | |
Thunderbolt Version | |||
Thunderbolt Version | 4 | 4 | |
Shopping
Lenovo Legion 5 17"
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Dig into reviews and images
NotebookCheck
Sebastian Bade | February 2022
"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."
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 Legion 5 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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