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Updated January 10, 2024·
If you need a powerful laptop mainly for gaming or intensive engineering tasks, the Lenovo Legion 5 17" with its dedicated graphics card offers better performance but with a heftier design and shorter battery life, making it less portable. On the other hand, the Lenovo ThinkBook 13s offers greater portability, a higher resolution touchscreen, and a longer battery life, making it suitable for general use and business applications. Additionally, the ThinkBook 13s is typically less expensive but lacks the gaming and engineering prowess of the Legion due to its integrated graphics. 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 for gaming and AI
- Very good keyboard
Advantages of the Lenovo ThinkBook 13s
- Excellent portability
- Good battery life
- Very good speakers
Key differences
General Use
7.2
7.8
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
305.0 nits
DISPLAY BRIGHTNESS
336.0 nits
4.5 Hours
BATTERY LIFE
8.0 Hours
8.5/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
7.5/10
5.8/10
PORTABILITY SCORE
9.0/10
The Lenovo ThinkBook 13s and Lenovo Legion 5 17" are both good for general use, though the Lenovo ThinkBook 13s is somewhat better.
The Lenovo Legion 5 17" offers a larger screen and powerful graphics ideal for a stationary workspace, but its heavy weight and short battery life limit portability; the Lenovo ThinkBook 13s, with its smaller, higher resolution screen and longer battery life, is better suited for mobility and general use on the go.
Gaming and AI
7.4
6.4
7.5/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
3.8/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
144Hz
REFRESH RATE
60Hz
Yes
SUPPORTS DLSS
No
Yes
MUX SWITCH / ADVANCED OPTIMUS
No
6.5/10
FAN NOISE SCORE
8.3/10
The Lenovo Legion 5 17" is good for gaming and AI, while the Lenovo ThinkBook 13s is only fair.
The Lenovo Legion 5 17" outperforms the Lenovo ThinkBook 13s for gaming and 3D tasks, primarily due to its superior Nvidia RTX 3060 graphics card and a higher screen refresh rate of 144Hz, compared to the integrated graphics and 60Hz screen on the ThinkBook 13s. Both laptops have IPS displays, but gamers particularly value the Legion's graphics performance and smoother visual experience which are crucial for intensive gaming and 3D applications.
Content Creation
7.2
7.8
7.4/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
7.9/10
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
16.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
The Lenovo ThinkBook 13s and Lenovo Legion 5 17" are both good for content creation, though the Lenovo ThinkBook 13s is somewhat better.
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
7.7
7.4/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
7.9/10
16.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
8.5/10
KEYBOARD QUALITY SCORE
7.5/10
The Lenovo ThinkBook 13s and Lenovo Legion 5 17" are both good for software development, though the Lenovo ThinkBook 13s is somewhat better.
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
7.2
17.3in
SIZE
13.3in
1920 x 1080
RESOLUTION
2560 x 1600
IPS
DISPLAY TECHNOLOGY
IPS
144Hz
REFRESH RATE
60Hz
305.0 nits
BRIGHTNESS
336.0 nits
The Lenovo Legion 5 17" has a better screen than the Lenovo ThinkBook 13s for gaming and AI, while the Lenovo ThinkBook 13s has a better screen for engineering and design, content creation, and software development.
For general use, both the Lenovo Legion 5 17" and ThinkBook 13s offer crisp resolution and bright displays, making them ideal for everyday tasks like web browsing and document editing. In engineering and design, they both provide wide color gamuts, ensuring that professionals can see accurate colors and gradients for their projects. However, for gaming and 3D applications, their lower refresh rates may lead to less fluid visual experiences, which is critical for fast-paced action and rendering smooth transitions.
Battery
4.5 Hours
8.0 Hours
The Lenovo Legion 5 17" has 4.5 hours of battery life. The Lenovo ThinkBook 13s has 8 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
Excellent
17.3in
SIZE
13.3in
6.5 lbs
WEIGHT
2.9 lbs
1.0in
THICKNESS
0.5in
The Lenovo ThinkBook 13s has excellent portability, while the Lenovo Legion 5 17" has poor portability.
The most portable laptops are small, thin, and light.
Cost
$1,200
$1,000
$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 Lenovo ThinkBook 13s costs $1,000.
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Key similarities
Engineering and Design
7.6
7.5
7.4/10
OVERALL CPU SCORE
7.9/10
7.5/10
OVERALL GPU SCORE
3.8/10
16.0 GB
RAM
16.0 GB
The Lenovo Legion 5 17" and Lenovo ThinkBook 13s are both good for engineering and design.
PerfectRec’s Engineering and Design Score takes into account the many different features of the laptop that make it more or less suitable for graphic design and 3D rendering work.
Build Quality
7.4
7.6
The Lenovo ThinkBook 13s and Lenovo Legion 5 17" both have good build quality.
PerfectRec’s Build Quality Score incorporates case materials, display and keyboard flex, hinge quality, and overall reliability.
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How the Lenovo Legion 5 17" and the Lenovo ThinkBook 13s compare to other laptops
Spec Comparison
 |  | |
| Lenovo Legion 5 17" | Lenovo ThinkBook 13s |
GENERAL | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| Price | |||
$1,200 | $1,000 | ||
Release Date | |||
Release Date | October 1, 2021 | May 1, 2022 | |
Overall Dimensions | |||
Overall Dimensions | 15.7'' x 11.4'' x 1'' | 11.7'' x 8.3'' x 0.59'' | |
Weight | |||
Weight | 6.57 lbs | 2.9 lbs | |
Width | |||
Width | 15.7" | 11.7" | |
Depth | |||
Depth | 11.41" | 8.3" | |
INTERNAL | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Processor | |||
Processor | Intel i7-11800H | Intel i7-1260P | |
RAM | |||
RAM | 16 GB | 16 GB | |
DDR Memory Version | |||
DDR Memory Version | 4 | 5 | |
RAM Slots | |||
RAM Slots | 2 | 0 | |
Storage | |||
Storage | 256 GB | 512 GB | |
BATTERY | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Battery Life | |||
Battery Life | 4.5 Hours | 8 Hours | |
Battery Capacity | |||
Battery Capacity | 80 Wh | 56 Wh | |
SCREEN | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Diagonal Size | |||
Diagonal Size | 17.3" | 13.3" | |
Display Technology | |||
Display Technology | IPS | IPS | |
Resolution | |||
Resolution | 1920 x 1080 | 2560 x 1600 | |
Refresh Rate | |||
Refresh Rate | 144Hz | 60Hz | |
Display Brightness | |||
Display Brightness | 305 nits | 336 nits | |
RELIABILITY, APPEARANCE & ACOUSTICS | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Build Quality Score | |||
Build Quality Score | 7.4/10 | 7.6/10 | |
Portability Score | |||
Portability Score | 5.8/10 | 9.1/10 | |
Gaming Laptop Appearance | |||
Gaming Laptop Appearance | Yes | No | |
Premium Business Laptop | |||
Premium Business Laptop | No | No | |
Fan Noise Score | |||
Fan Noise Score | 6.5/10 | 8.4/10 | |
HARDWARE FEATURES | |||
|---|---|---|---|
Keyboard Quality Score | |||
Keyboard Quality Score | 8.5/10 | 7.5/10 | |
Speaker Quality Score | |||
Speaker Quality Score | 7/10 | 8.8/10 | |
Webcam | |||
Webcam | 720p | 720p | |
Fingerprint Reader | |||
Fingerprint Reader | No | Yes | |
Backlit Keyboard | |||
Backlit Keyboard | Yes | Yes | |
Number Pad | |||
Number Pad | Yes | No | |
CONNECTIVITY | |||
|---|---|---|---|
USB Type-A | |||
USB Type-A | 4 | 0 | |
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 ThinkBook 13s
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Dig into reviews and images
The Verge
Monica Chin | July 2021
"The best thing about the ThinkBook 13S is that it’s a good deal. Business buyers looking for ThinkPad-level performance and software without ThinkPad pricing will probably find the ThinkBook a solid option. While nothing about it is really spectacular, it’s certainly unusual to see the ThinkBook’s screen resolution at a sub-$1,000 price, and its performance will be more than adequate for most office tasks. The generous port selection, 16:10 aspect ratio, physical webcam shutter, and clear audio are certainly icing on the cake."
Get a great deal on the Lenovo Legion 5 17" or the Lenovo ThinkBook 13s
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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