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What we think
The PerfectRec laptop team Learn more
Updated January 10, 2024·
The Lenovo Legion 5 17" has a larger screen, more RAM, and a more powerful battery but it's heavier and more expensive, favoring users who need a bigger display, can forego portability, and may engage in intensive engineering tasks or gaming. In contrast, the MSI Cyborg 15 is lighter, more affordable, with better battery life which makes it more portable and ideal for general use and moderate gaming, but it has less RAM, which could limit performance in demanding applications. 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"
- Good overall display quality
- Good overall build quality
- Good speakers
- Very good keyboard
Advantages of the MSI Cyborg 15
- Good portability
- Good battery life
Key differences
Screen Quality
7.3
6.8
17.3in
SIZE
15.6in
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
144Hz
REFRESH RATE
144Hz
305.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
234.0 nits
The Lenovo Legion 5 17" has a better screen than the MSI Cyborg 15 for general use, gaming and AI, and engineering and design, while the MSI Cyborg 15 has a better screen for software development.
The Lenovo Legion 5 17" likely has a high-resolution display and bright panel, making it great for general use and detailed engineering work, while its range of color gamuts provides accuracy crucial for design tasks. However, its lower refresh rate may not be ideal for 3D applications and gaming, where smoother visuals are key. On the other hand, the MSI Cyborg 15 offers adequate resolution and brightness for day-to-day tasks and sufficient color accuracy for engineering and design, but like the Lenovo, it falls short for gaming and 3D due to its lower refresh rate.
Battery
4.5 Hours
7.5 Hours
The Lenovo Legion 5 17" has 4.5 hours of battery life. The MSI Cyborg 15 has 7.5 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
Poor
Good
17.3in
SIZE
15.6in
6.5 lbs
WEIGHT
4.3 lbs
1.0in
THICKNESS
0.9in
The MSI Cyborg 15 has good portability, while the Lenovo Legion 5 17" has poor portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Build Quality
7.4
6.7
The Lenovo Legion 5 17" has good build quality, while the MSI Cyborg 15 has only fair build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
Cost
$1,200
$1,100
$400
$600
$800
$1,000
$1,200
$1,400
$1,600
$1,800
The Lenovo Legion 5 17" has a price of $1,200 and the MSI Cyborg 15 costs $1,100.
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Key similarities
General Use
7.2
7.3
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
305.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
234.0 nits
4.5 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
7.5 Hours
8.5/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
7.0/10
5.8/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
7.2/10
The MSI Cyborg 15 and Lenovo Legion 5 17" are both good for general use.
The Lenovo Legion 5 17" boasts a larger screen and superior screen quality that benefits users seeking a vivid display for multimedia, with a decent CPU and ample RAM for smooth operation, though it is less portable and has shorter battery life.
Gaming and AI
7.4
7.2
7.5/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
6.5/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
144Hz
REFRESH RATE
144Hz
Yes
SUPPORTS DLSS
Yes
Yes
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
No
6.5/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
6.5/10
The Lenovo Legion 5 17" and MSI Cyborg 15 are both good for gaming and AI.
PerfectRec’s Gaming and AI Score strongly emphasizes graphics processing capability, while also taking into account other factors that impact suitability for gaming and AI work.
Engineering and Design
7.6
7.5
7.4/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
8.7/10
7.5/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
6.5/10
16.0 GB
RAM
8.0 GB
The Lenovo Legion 5 17" and MSI Cyborg 15 are both good for engineering and design.
The Lenovo Legion 5 comes with a robust CPU and GPU combination suitable for strenuous engineering and design tasks and a larger high-refresh rate and brighter screen for detailed visualization, while the MSI Cyborg 15 offers a more advanced GPU and lighter weight for easier portability, yet with a smaller screen and less high-fidelity color representation. Although the Legion 5 has a superior screen for intricate work and better structural rigidity, the Cyborg 15's latest GPU may be more future-proof for some engineering applications, trading off screen quality and size for an updated processing unit and better portability.
Content Creation
7.2
7.5
7.4/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
8.7/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
16.0 GB
RAM
8.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The MSI Cyborg 15 and Lenovo Legion 5 17" 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
7.0
7.2
7.4/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
8.7/10
16.0 GB
RAM
8.0 GB
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
1920 x 1080
8.5/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
7.0/10
The MSI Cyborg 15 and Lenovo Legion 5 17" are both good for software development.
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 Lenovo Legion 5 17" and the MSI Cyborg 15 compare to other laptops
Spec Comparison
 |  | |
| Lenovo Legion 5 17" | MSI Cyborg 15 |
GENERAL | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | |||
$1,200 | $1,100 | ||
Release Date | |||
Release Date | October 1, 2021 | May 1, 2023 | |
Overall Dimensions | |||
Overall Dimensions | 15.7'' x 11.4'' x 1'' | 14.2'' x 9.9'' x 0.9'' | |
Weight | |||
Weight | 6.57 lbs | 4.37 lbs | |
Width | |||
Width | 15.7" | 14.15" | |
Depth | |||
Depth | 11.41" | 9.86" | |
INTERNAL | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Processor | |||
Processor | Intel i7-11800H | Intel i7-12650H | |
RAM | |||
RAM | 16 GB | 8 GB | |
DDR Memory Version | |||
DDR Memory Version | 4 | 5 | |
RAM Slots | |||
RAM Slots | 2 | 2 | |
Storage | |||
Storage | 256 GB | 512 GB | |
BATTERY | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Battery Life | |||
Battery Life | 4.5 Hours | 7.5 Hours | |
Battery Capacity | |||
Battery Capacity | 80 Wh | 53.5 Wh | |
SCREEN | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Diagonal Size | |||
Diagonal Size | 17.3" | 15.6" | |
Display Technology | |||
Display Technology | IPS | IPS | |
Resolution | |||
Resolution | 1920 x 1080 | 1920 x 1080 | |
Refresh Rate | |||
Refresh Rate | 144Hz | 144Hz | |
Display Brightness | |||
Display Brightness | 305 nits | 234 nits | |
RELIABILITY, APPEARANCE & ACOUSTICS | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Build Quality Score | |||
Build Quality Score | 7.4/10 | 6.8/10 | |
Portability Score | |||
Portability Score | 5.8/10 | 7.3/10 | |
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 | 7/10 | |
Speaker Quality Score | |||
Speaker Quality Score | 7/10 | 6.8/10 | |
Webcam | |||
Webcam | 720p | 720p | |
Fingerprint Reader | |||
Fingerprint Reader | No | No | |
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 | 1 | |
USB-C Charging | |||
USB-C Charging | Yes | No | |
Display Outputs | |||
Display Outputs | 3 | 2 | |
Thunderbolt Version | |||
Thunderbolt Version | 4 | N/A | |
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."
MSI Cyborg 15
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Dig into reviews and images
NotebookCheck
Sascha Mölck | April 2023
"The focus of the MSI Cyborg 15 lies on a compromise of performance, mobility, and power consumption. Due to the reduced performance settings, the CPU and GPU perform below their capabilities. Nonetheless, their computing power is still sufficient for FHD gaming at high to maximum settings even then. The power consumption, which is low for a gaming laptop, can be translated into a good battery life. Realistic values of 7 to 8 h are still possible, despite the relatively small battery capacity of 53.5 Wh. Unfortunately the USB-C port doesn't offer any support for Power Delivery, which would be a sensible feature in the case of the Cyborg."
Get a great deal on the Lenovo Legion 5 17" or the MSI Cyborg 15
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.
About MSI
MSI, also known as Micro-Star International, is a Taiwanese technology corporation. MSI is known for their wide range of gaming devices. Their series include the entry-level Cyborg/Thin and Sword/Katana series, the mid-range Bravo/Delta and Crosshair/Pulse series, and their high-end Vector, Raider, Stealth, and Titan GT series. At every performance level, MSI offers a variety of devices with varying balances between performance, battery life, weight, and price, making them a solid option to consider at every price point.
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