Earlier this week, Lenovo took the wraps off of five new products that the company is introducing to the South African market.
We are Legion
The two gaming-focused products are from Lenovo’s new Legion range of gaming laptops, sporting 7th-generation Intel processors, plenty of hard drive space and RAM, and NVIDIA graphics.
They are the Legion Y720 and Legion Y520; the Y520 is aimed at the more entry-level gamer and as such isn’t quite as powerful, while the Y720 is packed with more high-end hardware.
The model Lenovo brought along for us to see at the launch event was specced with a GeForce GTX1060 6GB card (which is fantastic for 1080p gaming at 60fps and graphics details cranked to the max), but we were told the Y720 will be available with hardware right up to a 4K panel, NVIDIA’s excellent GeForce GTX1080 mobile graphics chip, and Intel’s most powerful 7th-generation Core i7 mobile processors. Such a configuration is for uncompromising gamers who want the ultimate gaming experience, and will be available on request.
Due to its power, the Y720 is also VR-ready, meaning gamers can hook up their Oculus Rift or HTC Vive VR headsets up to it and play their VR games without any fuss, at 60fps with graphics set to Max.
Of course, no top-end gaming laptop is complete without RGB lighting, and Lenovo doesn’t disappoint. The Y720 comes with full under-key RGB lighting that can be configured in a number of ways, from appearing to “breathe” as the LEDs fade in and out through the light spectrum to having specific regions light up with specific colours. It’s beautiful to watch. The Y520 also features keyboard backlighting, but it’s the non-RGB kind.
Lenovo also told us the Legion Y720 is the first of their laptops to feature Dolby’s Atmos Sound technology, which gives them an edge when it comes to how well they deliver crisp, clear, realistic audio in every bit of media you consume on them, be it games, music, YouTube videos, or movies.
These Legion laptops are great for entertainment, in other words, and can handle whatever you throw at them. Doesn’t hurt that they look fantastic and are made out of sturdy metals, too.
Here’s Lenovo’s Legion promo video:
Yoga Time
The other three products are from Lenovo’s 2-in-1 Yoga range: the Yoga 920, 720, and 520. While they all feature a hinge that lets their screens open all the way, the Yoga 920 features a beautifully-crafted watch-band hinge. As such, all three 2-in-1s can be folded into four different positions, or “modes” – Laptop, Stand, Tent and Tablet – for easy usage in a range of scenarios.
At the official launch, Lenovo’s Pre-Sales and Product Technologist Julian Pienaar told the assembled group of journalists that the configuration Yoga users make use of the most is the Stand mode, which positions the keyboard facing downward and the touchscreen angled toward the user’s face.
The broad appeal of the top-of-the-line model, the Yoga 920, lies in its flexibility, its power, the gorgeous touchscreen, its ability to be folded into a tablet-like configuration (fantastic for creative types who like to draw on them), and its incredible lightness. We were told the Yoga 920 weighs as little as “from 1.3kg”, which is impressively lightweight, and thus super easy to carry around with you.
It’s also powered by Intel’s 8th-gen mobile processors, ships with solid-state storage, and is thinner than the average A4 notepad. The Yoga 920 is particularly beautiful to look at, it performs really well, and its foldability is sure to find favour with a new generation of consumers.
Here’s Lenovo’s Yoga promo video that shows off the range in a bit more detail:
Pienaar also commented that Lenovo’s own internal projections have it that by 2025, 70% of all portable computers being sold will be some form of 2-in-1.
All of these SKUs will shortly be available for sale through Tarsus Distribution. Should you be interested, or you would like more information on any of them, you can contact Lenovo’s product managers via email at these two addresses.
