The Lenovo Legion Go S running SteamOS presents a compelling option for anyone weighing a handheld against the $789 Steam Deck OLED. While both devices share the same operating system, the Legion Go S distinguishes itself with a pair of two‑stage triggers, an eight‑inch IPS display that delivers full‑HD resolution at up to 120 Hz, and hardware that doubles the Deck’s memory and storage—32 GB of RAM and a 1 TB solid‑state drive. Under the hood it uses a Ryzen Z1 Extreme processor that is modestly faster than the Deck’s chipset.
Best Buy currently lists the Go S for $999.99, down from its original $1,579.99 price tag, making it worth a look for handheld gamers. It does not match the power of the newly released Asus ROG Xbox Ally X20, which costs $1,299.99 and features a Ryzen Z2 Extreme processor plus an OLED screen, but the Legion Go S still delivers solid performance.
The Go S originally shipped with Windows 11 and a Ryzen Z2 Go processor. Although the Z2 is a newer chip, it is less capable than the Z1 Extreme found in the discounted configuration. Pairing SteamOS with the faster internals should provide a smoother gaming experience. For a deeper dive, see Sean Hollister’s review, where he compares several Go S configurations and outlines benchmark results.