Lenovo Legion 7i Gen 9 Review: A Gaming Laptop
Lenovo Legion 7i Gen 9 review: Can this Intel & RTX 4080 combo power your next-gen games?
I haven’t reviewed many of Lenovo’s modern gaming laptops, but I plan to change that, especially if they are like Lenovo Legion 7i Gen 9. Known as thinnest Lenovo gaming laptop, Legion 7i 16 looks great for both office and gaming use. Its display is bright with vivid colors and sharp details, and with a 240Hz refresh rate and Nvidia Advanced Optimus technology, it offers a smooth gaming experience.
The real strength is its performance. It combines an Intel Core i9 processor with an Nvidia RTX 4070, making it capable of handling most tasks and delivering high frame rates even at maximum settings. Despite its mid-tier price, it offers high-end performance, making it one of the best gaming laptops of the year for its cost.
However, there are a couple of drawbacks. Speakers are subpar and battery life, despite 99.9 watt-hour battery is shorter than expected. Lenovo Legion 7i 16 (9th Gen) is still one of best gaming laptops for both work and play, even with its price, specs and portability taken into account.
Table of Contents
Main Points
- Legion 7i 16 Gen 9 features a user-upgradable design and a premium look.
- Equipped with an i9 processor and RTX 4070 graphics.
- High performance in benchmarks and real-world gaming tests.
- 16-inch display with 240Hz refresh rate, 100% sRGB and Dolby Vision.
Key Specification
| 💻 Processor | Intel Core i9-14900HX | 📺 Display | 16 inches, 2560 x 1600, 240Hz, IPS, G-Sync | 🔋 Battery | 99.9Wh, 8 hours 4 minutes |
| 🧠 RAM | 32GB (2 x 16GB SO-DIMM DDR5-5600) | 🎮 Graphics | Nvidia GeForce RTX 4080 Laptop GPU, 12GB | ⚖️ Weight | Around 5.78 lbs (2.62 kg) |
Specfication
| Feature | Specification |
|---|---|
| 🕹️ Class | Gaming |
| 💻 Processor | Intel Core i9-14900HX |
| 🧠 RAM | 32GB (2 x 16GB SO-DIMM DDR5-5600) |
| 💾 Boot Drive Type | SSD |
| 📦 Boot Drive Capacity | 1 TB |
| 💽 Secondary Drive Type | Hard Drive |
| 🗄️ Secondary Drive Capacity | 1 TB |
| 📂 Storage | 2TB (2 x 1TB SSD M.2 2280 PCIe 4.0×4 NVMe) |
| 🖥️ Screen Size | 16 inches |
| 📏 Native Display Resolution | 2560 by 1600 |
| 🖲️ Touch Screen | No |
| 🔲 Panel Technology | IPS |
| 🔄 Variable Refresh Support | G-Sync |
| 📶 Screen Refresh Rate | 240 Hz |
| 🎮 Graphics Processor | Nvidia GeForce RTX 4080 Laptop GPU |
| 🎨 Graphics Memory | 12 GB |
| 🌐 Wireless Networking | Intel Killer Wi-Fi 6E, Bluetooth 5.3 |
| 📐 Dimensions (HWD) | 14.31 x 10.32 x 0.86-1.02 inches (363.5 x 262.1 x 21.95-25.9 mm) |
| ⚖️ Weight | Around 5.78 lbs (2.62 kg) |
| 🖥️ Operating System | Windows 11 Home |
| 🔋 Tested Battery Life | 8 hours 4 minutes |
| 📸 Camera | FHD 1080p with E-shutter |
| 🔊 Speakers | 2 x 2W Harman Super Linear Speaker System with Nahimic Audio |
| 🎨 Colors | Eclipse Black |
| 🔌 Ports | 4 x USB-A (5Gbps / 3.2 Gen 1) (one Always On), 1 x USB-C (10Gbps / 3.2 Gen 2) with Lenovo PD 140W and DisplayPort 1.4, 1 x USB-C Thunderbolt 4 (USB4 40Gbps) with DisplayPort 1.4, 1 x HDMI 2.1 (up to 8K/60Hz), 1 x 3.5mm headphone/microphone combo jack, 1 x Ethernet (RJ-45), 1 x Power connector |
| 🔋 Adapter and Battery | 330W Slim Tip 3-pin adapter, integrated 99.9Wh battery |
| ⌨️ Keyboard | Per-key RGB Backlit chiclet keyboard (with Lighting Lens, 1.5mm key travel, 100% anti-ghosting, switchable WASD keys) |
| 📦 Box Contents | 1 x Legion Pro 7i Gen 9 16in Intel gaming laptop, 1 x Quick Start Guide, 1 x 330W AC Adapter |
Detail Specification
Lenovo Legion 7i Gen 9: Price and Configurations
- $1,999 Model: Includes an Intel Core i9-14900HX, Nvidia RTX 4070 GPU, 32GB RAM, 1TB SSD and a 16-inch, 2560 x 1600, 240Hz display. Best to buy at Best Buy as it’s pricier on Lenovo’s site.
- $1,699 Model: Features an Intel Core i7-14700HX, Nvidia RTX 4060 GPU, and 16GB RAM.
- $2,215 Model: Upgrades to a 16-inch, 3200 x 2000, 165Hz display.
Lenovo Legion 7i Gen 9: Design
Lenovo Legion 7i Gen 9 stands out with its white color, which is refreshing compared to the usual black, gray or silver. Lid has sleek, floating look and easy to lift.
Deck extends past hinge, giving ports and labels additional room and simplifying connections. Paint, on the other hand, wears easily and scratches easily.
Keyboard and mousepad match lid’s color, with white LED-lit power button featuring Legion logo above. Thin bezels add to its sleek design.
At 5.1 pounds and 14.1 x 10.3 x 0.7 inches, it’s slimmest and lightest 16-inch laptop compared to its competitors like Alienware m16 R2, Acer Predator Helios Neo 16 and MSI Vector 16 HX.
Lenovo Legion 7i Gen 9: Ports
The Lenovo Legion 7i Gen 9 offers a variety of ports:
- Left Side: USB Type-A 3.2 Gen 1 (always on), USB Type-C 3.2 Gen 2, Thunderbolt 4, and a headphone jack.
- Right Side: USB Type-A 3.2 Gen 1, webcam kill switch, USB Type-C 3.2 Gen 2 (DisplayPort) and an SD card slot.
- Back: Power jack & HDMI 2.1 port.
Lenovo Legion 7i Gen 9: Display
Lenovo Legion 7i Gen 9 has 16-inch display with refresh rate of 240 Hz & resolution of 2560 x 1600. Screen’s striking brightness & brilliant colors make it simple to see details in dark places.
In games like Far Cry 6, the display highlighted hidden enemies and colorful environments. The Borderlands trailer showcased sharp details, like individual hair strands, and bright fireworks, even in dark scenes.
The display covers 81.6% of the DCI-P3 color gamut, which is average for gaming laptops, better than the Alienware m16 R2 but not as good as the Helios Neo 16 or Vector 16 HX. At 479 nits of brightness, it’s brighter than most competitors, except the Vector 16, which is slightly brighter at 495 nits.
Lenovo Legion 7i Gen 9: Keyboard and Touchpad
Lenovo Legion 7i Gen 9’s keyboard offers a light, bouncy feel, making typing quick and comfortable. I typed 87 words per minute, faster than my usual speed, thanks to well-spaced keys and spacious deck.
Key per With Lenovo Vantage app, you can personalize RGB lighting, which looks fantastic on white deck.
Windows is simple to navigate on touchpad because it is snappy, glossy and has a nice click.
Lenovo Legion 7i Gen 9: Audio
Bottom-firing Harman speakers on the Lenovo Legion 7i Gen 9 produce mediocre sound with little bass and loudness.
Gunshots in games like Far Cry 6 lacked impact, even though the audio effects were passable. Chappell Roan’s song “Good Luck, Babe!” had a crisp sound, but it lacked bass and depth, making it difficult to discern between different instruments.
Nahimic audio software has a number of presets (such as Music, Movie, Communication, Gaming, and Smart), however none of them produced a pleasing sound quality
Lenovo Legion 7i Gen 9: Gaming and Graphics
With an Nvidia GeForce RTX 4070 GPU, Lenovo Legion 7i Gen 9 runs games smoothly:
- Borderlands 3: Achieved 90 fps on Badass, 1080p, outperforming most mainstream laptops but falling behind Alienware m16 R2 (102 fps) and Vector 16 (136 fps). At 1600p, it scored 60 fps.
- Far Cry 6: Averaged 68 fps on Ultra, 1600p. Note: For best performance, set GPU mode to “dGPU” in Lenovo Vantage.
- Assassin’s Creed Mirage: Reached 98 fps on Ultra, 1080p, beating average and Neo 16 but lagging behind Vector 16 (133 fps). At 1600p, it was 68 fps.
- Cyberpunk 2077: Got 35 fps on Ultra, 1080p, slightly above average but lower than m16 R2 (40 fps) and Vector 16 (54 fps). At 1600p, it was only 17 fps.
Lenovo Legion 7i Gen 9: Performance
Lenovo Legion 7i Gen 9 features an Intel Core i9-14900HX processor and 32GB of RAM, handling multiple Chrome tabs, YouTube videos and Spotify without issues.
- Geekbench 6.3 Score: 17,261, outperforming most gaming laptops, including the Helios Neo 16 (16,730) and Alienware m16 R2 (12,784), but slightly behind the Vector 16 HX (18,055).
- Video Transcoding: Completed a 4K to 1080p conversion in 3 minutes and 8 seconds, faster than the average (4:20) and competitors like the m16 R2 (3:46) and Neo 16 (3:10). The Vector 16 was quicker at 2:31.
- SSD Transfer Rate: 1,705 MBps, faster than the average (1,582 MBps) and the Vector 16 (1,353 MBps), but slower than the m16 R2 (2,015 MBps) and Neo 16 (2,121 MBps).
Lenovo Legion 7i Gen 9: Battery Life
- General Use: Lasted 3 hours and 1 minute, shorter than the average (4:56) and competitors like the Alienware m16 R2 (6:13) and Neo 16 (4:09).
- Gaming: Only 47 minutes, with the Vector 16 lasting 1:38.
Lenovo Legion 7i Gen 9: Webcam
1080p webcam delivers poor image quality with bad contrast and fuzzy details, not suitable for high-quality streaming.
Lenovo Legion 7i Gen 9: Heat
Gaming: The underside reached 85°F, well below the 95°F comfort threshold. Keyboard center hit 101°F, with the hottest spot at 100°F near top center.
Lenovo Legion 7i Gen 9: Software and Warranty
- Software: Includes Lenovo Vantage for managing settings, hardware scans, updates, and monitoring.
- Warranty: Comes with a one-year limited warranty.
Pros and Cons
| Pros | Cons |
|---|---|
| High performance | Lacks Thunderbolt 4 and USB4 |
| Stunning gaming display | No fingerprint or face recognition |
| Durable construction and design | Relatively heavy and bulky |
| Decent battery life | … |
Related Comparision:
Conclusion
Lenovo Legion 7i Gen 9 is a strong choice for gamers who want top performance and high-quality display. It’s not perfect, though—battery life & audio could be better.
For longer battery life and better audio, consider MSI Vector 16 with an RTX 4080, but it costs $700 more than Legion 7i & lacks its smooth touchpad and faster SSD.
Legion 7i Gen 9 delivers great performance and is ideal for gamers who are okay with using headphones and staying plugged in. However, scratches on the body are drawback.
Lenovo Legion 7i Gen 9 16 FAQ
Q: Is Lenovo Legion 7i Gen 9 16 good laptop?
A: Yes, it’s great for gaming:
- Nvidia RTX 4080 & potent Intel Core i9 make this system powerful.
- 16-inch screen with 240Hz refresh rate & 2560×1600 resolution makes for an excellent display.
- Durable: Well-made for extended use.
Considerations:
- Battery Life: Drains quickly with heavy use.
- Weight: About 5.78 lbs, so not very portable.
- Price: Starts around $3,000 USD.
Q: How much does Lenovo Legion 7i cost?
A: Starting at around $3,000 USD, depending on setup.
Q: How long does Lenovo Legion 7i last?
A: It can last several years with good care, though technology changes may require upgrades.
Q: Is Lenovo Legion 7i a good gaming laptop?
A: Yes, it’s excellent for gaming with its high performance and display.
