Lenovo's Legion Go 2 is the second-generation handheld gaming PC from the company, built around AMD's Ryzen Z2 Extreme APU and an 8.8-inch OLED display at 1920x1200. It shipped with Windows 11 in late 2025, starting at $1,100 (€1,020) for the 16 GB model and $1,350 (€1,255) for the 32 GB Z2 Extreme configuration I picked up. Since then, prices have climbed substantially due to a global memory shortage, with the 32 GB Z2 Extreme 1 TB now running $2,000 (€1,860) and the 2 TB model reaching $2,850 (€2,650). A SteamOS variant launched in June 2026 starting at $1,200 (€1,115), but when I got my unit that was still months away, so I installed Bazzite and got to work.
The SSD upgrade from the stock 512 GB to a 2 TB WD Black SN7100 was straightforward. The back panel comes off after removing six Phillips screws, and pushing on the plastic clips holding it together. After disconnecting the battery cable, the M.2 drive swaps out and the whole thing goes back together in reverse. No specialized tools needed beyond a small screwdriver and a plastic prying tool, though it does take some patience. I did have to buy some thermal pads for this particular SSD, though.
After several months of use, the Legion Go 2 running Bazzite has been pulling triple duty: as a gaming handheld, a Linux workstation, and a docked living-room console. The hardware is solid, Bazzite's support was ready from day one, and the combination is more versatile than either a stock Windows handheld or a dedicated Steam Deck.
Specifications
- SoC: AMD Ryzen Z2 Extreme (Zen 5 + Zen 5c, 8 cores / 16 threads)
- 3 Zen 5 cores, boost up to 5.1 GHz
- 5 Zen 5c compact cores, boost up to 3.3 GHz
- GPU: AMD Radeon 890M (RDNA 3.5)
- Memory: 32 GB LPDDR5X, 4-channel, configured at 8000 MT/s
- Storage: M.2 NVMe (512 GB / 1 TB / 2 TB options); microSD card slot (PCIe-attached), as tested: WD Black SN7100 2 TB (PCIe 4.0 x4, 7250/6900 MB/s sequential read/write, DRAM-less, 1200 TBW endurance
- Display: 8.8-inch OLED, 1920x1200 (16:10), 144 Hz, variable refresh rate (30-144 Hz)
- Battery: 74 Wh
- Connectivity: WiFi 6E (MediaTek MT7922), Bluetooth, 2x USB4
- Controllers: Detachable, redesigned rounded profile
- Dimensions: 295.6 x 136.7 x 42.25 mm (11.6 x 5.4 x 1.7 in)
- Weight: 920 g (2.0 lbs) with controllers attached
- OS: Ships with Windows 11; SteamOS variant available as of June 2026
Design and Build
The build quality is very good. The Legion Go 2 feels like a solid, well-made device in hand. At 920 g (2.0 lbs) it is one of the heavier handhelds on the market, but for me the weight contributes to a sense of quality rather than being a burden during play sessions.
The controllers have been redesigned with a rounded profile compared to the more squared-off shape of the original Legion Go, and the improvement is immediately noticeable. The first-generation controllers became uncomfortable after short play sessions while the Go 2's rounded grips are a significant upgrade. The left thumbstick is not the most comfortable for extended use, however, at least for my hands.
The 8.8-inch OLED panel at 1920x1200 is phenomenal. The resolution is lower than the original Legion Go's 2560x1600, but at this screen size the tradeoff between pixel density, GPU load, and visual quality lands in the right place. Colors are vivid, blacks are deep, and the 144 Hz refresh rate with VRR support (30-144 Hz) keeps gameplay smooth across a wide range of framerates.
Performance
The Z2 Extreme uses a hybrid core architecture: three Zen 5 performance cores that boost up to 5.1 GHz for single-threaded work, and five Zen 5c compact cores topping out at 3.3 GHz for power-efficient multi-threaded throughput. This asymmetric layout is similar in concept to ARM big.LITTLE designs, and the Linux scheduler handles it transparently on Bazzite.
In 7-Zip compression, the Z2 Extreme scored 5436 MIPS single-threaded and averaged 50182 MIPS across three multi-threaded runs (50824, 49866, 49855). Single-core clock speeds held stable at 5044-5050 MHz under sustained load, right at the advertised boost ceiling. Under full 16-thread load, the mixed core architecture settled the average to approximately 3600-3700 MHz as the Zen 5c cores bring down the aggregate clock.
Memory bandwidth measured 24500.7 MB/s on memcpy and 34361.5 MB/s on memset, with the four-channel LPDDR5X running at 8000 MT/s. Of the 32 GB physical memory, about 19.3 GB is available to the OS; the firmware allocates roughly 12.7 GB to the Radeon 890M as shared VRAM.
Gaming
I ran Cyberpunk 2077 v2.31 through its built-in benchmark on Bazzite via Proton at the panel's native 1920x1200 with FSR2 upscaling active across all presets.
| Preset | Upscaling | Avg FPS | Min FPS | Max FPS |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Low | FSR2 Ultra Quality | 63.1 | 53.8 | 75.7 |
| Medium | FSR2 Ultra Quality | 53.5 | 46.2 | 64.0 |
| High | FSR2 Quality | 41.4 | 34.7 | 49.0 |
| Ultra | FSR2 Quality | 34.5 | 28.4 | 43.1 |
| Steam Deck | FSR2 Balanced | 54.9 | 46.9 | 66.6 |
| RT Low | FSR2 Ultra Quality | 29.3 | 24.6 | 36.3 |
| RT Medium | FSR2 Ultra Quality | 17.1 | 14.6 | 20.7 |
| RT Ultra | FSR2 Ultra Quality | 12.8 | 10.6 | 16.6 |
The Steam Deck preset, which uses FSR2 Balanced upscaling, delivered a smooth 54.9 FPS average with minimums staying above 46 FPS. Low and Medium presets both stayed above 53 FPS on average, comfortably into smooth handheld territory. High is playable at 41.4 FPS. Ultra is less smooth, with dips into the high 20s.
Ray tracing through Mesa's software RT path is a different story. RT Low managed 29.3 FPS, borderline playable but not smooth. RT Medium at 17.1 FPS and RT Ultra at 12.8 FPS are not viable for gameplay. This is expected for an integrated GPU handling software-based ray tracing at this resolution.
For reference, I also ran several of these presets on Windows 11 before installing Bazzite. At Low, Windows averaged 59.1 FPS; Ultra came in at 31.2 FPS; Steam Deck at 51.5 FPS; RT Low at 27.1 FPS; and RT Ultra at 15.8 FPS. These cross-OS numbers should not be read as a direct performance comparison. The driver stacks are fundamentally different (Mesa RADV on Linux versus AMD's proprietary Radeon Software on Windows), the VRAM allocation varies between platforms (14.8 GB on Bazzite versus 12.3 GB on Windows in this case), and Proton's DirectX-to-Vulkan translation layer introduces variable overhead that makes head-to-head comparisons unreliable. They are included here as directional context only.
In GravityMark running with the default settings of Vulkan at 1600x900 with Temporal AA and 200,000 asteroids, the Radeon 890M averaged 52.7 FPS over 167.1 seconds at 99% GPU utilization and 63 degrees C.
Software and Linux Support
I installed Bazzite rather than waiting for the official SteamOS variant. The process is straightforward following the Bazzite installation guide.
Bazzite added official Legion Go 2 support in its Fall 2025 update, which moved to a Fedora 43 base. That support landed as the hardware was reaching the market, covering the Go 2 from day one for anyone willing to leave Windows early.
Once installed, Bazzite just works. I have had no issues with the software. The controllers, display, WiFi, Bluetooth, and SD card reader all function without manual configuration. The current installation runs kernel 6.17.7 with Mesa 26.0.4, and the Radeon 890M has full Vulkan 1.4 support through the RADV driver. Hardware video decode covers H.264, HEVC, VP8, VP9, MPEG-2, and MJPEG; encode support includes all of those plus AV1, which is a welcome feature for a handheld device.
The SteamOS variant of the Legion Go 2 launched in June 2026 starting at $1,200 (€1,115, not counting for possible price hikes), giving buyers who prefer pre-installed Linux a first-party path. SteamOS 3.8.11 brought Legion Go 2 specific fixes including SD-card reliability improvements and preliminary charge limiting. For anyone who already owns the Windows model or wants a full Fedora-based desktop environment alongside game mode, Bazzite remains a strong alternative.
Thermals, Power and Noise
The SoC idled at 57.0 degrees C and peaked at 81.6 degrees C during a sustained memory benchmark burst, with an average of 63.5 degrees C across the full benchmark suite. These temperatures are well within the Z2 Extreme's thermal envelope for a handheld form factor.
Under single-threaded 7-Zip load, clock speeds held steady at 5044-5050 MHz with no frequency drops detected. Under full multi-threaded load with all 16 threads active, clocks settled to approximately 3600-3700 MHz sustained, consistent with the Zen 5c compact cores running at their lower ceiling alongside the Zen 5 performance cores.
sbc-bench confirmed no thermal throttling: measured clockspeeds did not drop below the advertised maximum, and there was no swapping to disk under load. The NVMe drive ran cool at 35.9 degrees C throughout testing. During the GravityMark GPU stress test, the Radeon 890M held at 63 degrees C at 99% utilization.
Everyday Use
The Legion Go 2 running Bazzite has been filling three roles in my daily setup. In handheld mode, Bazzite's game mode boots directly into a Steam Deck-like interface, and the experience of picking up the device and jumping into a game is genuinely console-like. The OLED panel and 144 Hz VRR make handheld gaming a quality experience, and the Cyberpunk results confirm there is real GPU headroom for demanding titles at this resolution.
In desktop mode, Bazzite provides a full Linux desktop that handles productivity work well. Connected to an external display, the Z2 Extreme's eight cores and 32 GB of memory make it a capable workstation
I have also used it by connecting the Go 2 to my TV via a USB4 eGPU and pairing it with a wireless controller, turning it into a living-room console. The two USB4 ports make this possible without adapters, and the transition from handheld to docked play is seamless. We'll be posting a later review about this setup soon.
Verdict
The Legion Go 2 with the Z2 Extreme is a versatile piece of hardware that goes well beyond its intended role as a Windows gaming handheld. Running Bazzite, it serves as a capable gaming handheld, a productive Linux workstation, and a dockable console for the living room. I really like it.
The Cyberpunk 2077 results show the Radeon 890M handles demanding titles at the panel's native resolution with FSR2 upscaling, maintaining playable framerates through Medium and a comfortable 55 FPS at the Steam Deck preset. Ray tracing is not practical on integrated graphics at this level, but rasterized performance is solid for the form factor. The Zen 5/5c hybrid CPU provides strong single-threaded boost (5436 MIPS, sustained at 5050 MHz) and capable multi-threaded throughput (50182 MIPS average). The 32 GB of LPDDR5X provides enough headroom for multitasking in desktop mode, even with the ~13 GB I've allocated to the iGPU.
The pricing landscape has shifted since launch. The 32 GB Z2 Extreme configuration that started at $1,350 (€1,255) now runs $2,000 (€1,860) for 1 TB of storage. Bazzite on the Windows model remains a strong option for anyone who wants a full Fedora-based Linux desktop alongside the handheld gaming experience. The Legion Go 2 is not just a Windows handheld gaming PC: with Bazzite, it is a genuinely versatile Linux device.
