If you’re a gaming enthusiast, the laptop we’re reviewing today is one of the best options for you. It is the Lenovo Legion 5i Pro 2022. This gaming laptop is powered by Intel’s 12th-generation processors and NVIDIA RTX 3000 series graphics. It is worth mentioning that it is the 7th-generation Legion series laptop. Furthermore, the model we received comes with two Samsung 980 Pro 1TB SSDs in RAID 0 mode, making it probably the best laptop ever in terms of disk performance.
This laptop features an Intel Core i7-12700H processor and an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 mobile graphics card, ensuring it can handle the latest games. We have also added a comparison of this laptop with other versions powered by the AMD Ryzen 9 6900HS CPU.
In the specifications sheet, we discuss every aspect of the laptop in detail.
Specifications
| Screen | 16.0″ WQXGA (2560 x 1600) IPS, anti-glare with Dolby Vision, NVIDIA G-SYNC, HDR 400, 500 nits, 165Hz |
| Processor | 12th Generation Intel Core i7-12700H Processor (3.50 GHz, up to 4.70 GHz with Turbo Boost, 14 Cores, 20 Threads, 24 MB Cache) |
| Wireless Connection | Wi-Fi 6E (802.11ax) (2 x 2) + Bluetooth 5.1 |
| Graphics card | NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 6GB GDDR6 Mobile GPU |
| Memory | 16GB DDR5-4800 Dual Channel Memory (2x 8GB SK Hynix) |
| Storage | 2x 1TB PCIe 4.0 SSD, Manufactured By Samsung (Model number: Samsung PM9A1) |
| Ports | 2x USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-C Port (supports DisplayPort 1.4 and Power Display) 1x Thunderbolt 4 Port (USB 4, DisplayPort 1.4) 3x USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-A Port 1x 3.5mm Headphone/Mic Combo Jack 1x HDMI Port 1x RJ45 (LAN) Port 1x DC-In (Charging Port) |
| Battery | 80Whrs (5182mAh) Lithium-ion Battery with 230W AC Adaptor |
| OS | Windows 11 Home Edition |
| Weight | 2.49 kg (5.49 lbs) |
Design, Body, and Appearance
The Legion 5i Pro 2022 looks quite simple in terms of appearance and design. There is no noticeable design on the body. The model we received comes in Dark Grey. The laptop weighs just 2.5 kg, and its maximum thickness is 26.4 mm, which seems acceptable for a gaming laptop. There is a large LEGION logo on the display cover.
If you’re looking for significant design changes, you might find it difficult because there are no significant changes. We also observed that the laptop has all the features of its predecessor model. However, changing the logo on the display cover makes the laptop look more reasonable.
This laptop has a larger 16-inch display. A bigger screen is one of the main requirements for gaming laptops. However, probably the weight and thickness of its body will increase, but we can say that Lenovo has designed it well.
Display
The new Legion 5i Pro 2022 features a 16-inch 16:10 IPS LCD display that supports a 2K+ (2560 x 1600) resolution and a 165Hz refresh rate.
The display also boasts 500 nits brightness, a 100% sRGB color gamut, a 3ms response time, support for Dolby Vision and NVIDIA G-Sync, and TUV Rheinland certification for improved blue light filtering. We also conducted a display test to check its performance.
We tested it with the Spyder X, and the results indicate that the screen has 99% sRGB color gamut, 75% Adobe RGB color gamut, 75% DCI-P3 color gamut, and 72% NTSC color gamut. The maximum brightness of the screen was measured at 462 nits, which is pretty much in line with the official claim (i.e., 500 nits). The contrast ratio was 1150:1. It had an average Delta-E of 1.30. Overall, the display is quite good and meets the requirements of the game.
Keyboard
Opening up the laptop, the second main feature we see is the Island Style RGB-backlit keyboard, which also includes a numeric keypad.
Upon closer inspection, we found that the key travel is 1.5 mm, and it also supports an anti-ghosting feature to avoid accidental touches. Additionally, the arrow keys are slightly larger than the other keys, which enhances the ease of the gaming experience.
The keyboard also has RGB Backlit in 4-zone, which means that the keyboard has four different colors (included in RGB) in four specific areas. It is worth mentioning that this option depends on the user’s decision whether they want it or not. The model we got supports this feature.
Ports
In gaming notebooks, expandability plays a crucial role as gamers require different types of external input, output, and storage devices. The all-new Legion 5i Pro 2022 has many ports on the right, left, and rear sides.
There are only two Type-C ports on the left side: one is a Thunderbolt 4 port, and the other is a Type-C 3.2 Gen 2 port (also supports DisplayPort 1.4). The right side has an E-Shutter button (camera switch), a USB Type-A 3.2 Gen 1 port, and a 3.5mm headphone jack.
On the back, there is an RJ45 port, one USB Type-C 3.2 Gen 2 port (with DisplayPort 1.4 and 135W charging support), one HDMI port, two USB Type-A 3.2 Gen 1 ports, and a charging port.
With this number of ports, we believe it’s much less likely that users will need to purchase any dock to expand the number of ports. We also observed that placing the RJ45 port at the rear of the laptop is a positive gesture. You won’t feel messy at all when connecting your network cable to the RJ45 port.
RAM and SSD
The model we received for review comes with 16GB of DDR5 dual-channel memory (2 x 8 GB). The frequency of this memory is 4800 MHz. The higher bandwidth plays a crucial role in significantly improving frame rate reliability and system power efficiency. It can also be upgraded to 32GB.
The new Legion 5i Pro (2022) also comes with 2TB storage, which includes two Samsung 980 Pro 1TB SSDs that make up a RAID 0 mode. As mentioned, this laptop is probably the most powerful laptop on the market today in terms of disk performance.
To test the SSD’s performance, we used the AS SSD Benchmark software. The results showed a maximum read speed of 8,135 MB/s and a write speed of 7,365 MB/s. We also ran another test using CrystalDiskMark, and the results were even more impressive. The test results showed a maximum read speed of nearly 13 GB/s (12,992.6 MB/s) and a write speed of 10 GB/s. Additionally, the 4K random read speed was 90 MB/s, and the write speed was 238 MB/s. Overall, the performance of this SSD is very impressive. This is one of the reasons why many gamers choose this laptop.
Battery and Charging
The new Legion 5i Pro (2022) has an 80Wh (5182mAh) Li-Ion battery that also supports 230W fast charging. The company has also added a 230W AC charger in the retail box of the laptop. It is worth mentioning that the battery can be fully charged in about 40 minutes (when the notebook is powered off).
We also conducted a test of the battery using PCMark 10 Modern Office software. At the end of the test, the battery life was around 5 hours and 42 minutes, with 18% of power remaining. On a full charge, the battery lasted an average of 7 hours, which seems very good for a gaming laptop.
CPU Benchmark
The new Legion 5i Pro 2022 is powered by the latest 12th Gen Intel Core i7-12700H processor with 14 cores and 20 threads.
The processor is based on the 10nm Golden Cove architecture and also has a significantly higher IPC. Compared to the Ryzen 9 6900HS, the Intel Core i7-12700H is a clear winner.
We also ran benchmarks to check the performance of this processor. It is also mentioned how it compares to the Ryzen 9 6900HS (80W power consumption). All these benchmarks were conducted with Beast Mode on, where power consumption was unlocked to 100W.
- CPU-Z: 748 points on single-core and 8098 points on multi-core
- Cinebench R15: 263cb on single-thread and 2,852cb on multi-thread
- Cinebench R20: 689cb on single-core and 7,158cb on multi-core
- Cinebench R23: 1,826cb on single-core and 17,561cb on multi-core
GPU Benchmark
The Legion 5i Pro (2022) also comes with an NVIDIA RTX 3060 mobile graphics card. This graphics card is one of the latest and most excellent options available. It is based on the 8nm manufacturing process and has 6 GB of GDDR6 video memory.
After the introduction, it’s time for benchmarking. We only did GPU testing. We compared the independent direct connection and the hybrid mode.
3DMark Fire Strike Extreme: In hybrid mode, the RTX 3060 GPU has a graphics score of 10,685 points and a power consumption of 135W. In graphics card direct mode, the RTX 3060 has a 2% reduction in performance (compared to hybrid mode), but the maximum frequency is slightly above 2 GHz, and the power consumption is the same (135W).
Gaming Test
In our gaming tests, we compared the performance of the hybrid mode and the discrete graphics direct connection mode. Here are the game and their benchmark results:
- Forza Horizon 5: 77fps in hybrid mode and 81fps in independent direct connection mode (4 fps higher than Hybrid Mode).
- Counter-Strike: GO: 403fps in blended mode, 426fps in single-display direct connection (almost 8% increase in the second mode).
- Age of Empires 4: 116fps in hybrid mode and 121fps in independent direct connection mode (5 fps difference).
- Gears of War 5: 86fps in hybrid mode, 89fps in independent direct connection (3fps difference).
According to the results, it is clear that the advantage of using the direct connection mode with the graphics card is no longer as obvious as it once was. As you can see, there is almost no difference between the two modes. This is probably due to the upgrade to DDR5 memory, which has nearly 1.5 to 2 times the bandwidth of DDR4 memory.
In this case, we recommend that you opt for the hybrid mode, as the difference between the two is too small, and using the hybrid mode can help prevent overheating and reduce the power consumption of the laptop. We can also expect that laptops with 12th Gen Core processors and upcoming gaming laptops will no longer require a graphics card direct connection mode.
Heat Dissipation and Stress Testing
After removing the bottom cover, we found that the inside of the Legion 5i Pro (2022) is quite decent and neat. The Legion Coldfront 4.0 cooling system has two fans and four heat pipes.
Additionally, the CPU and GPU share three heat pipes. There is also a separate heat pipe for the GPU’s power supply circuitry. It’s also worth noting that the memory and SSD slots are covered with metal heatsinks. As stated officially, the cooling system in Legion 5i Pro (2022) has 140% more fan power and 40% thinner fan blades (compared to the previous model). The Legion 5i Pro (2022) design is also perfect for cooling, as it has air vents on the rear, right side, left side, and bottom.
We also conducted a stress test to check how efficiently this laptop manages stress and heat. The tests mentioned below were conducted using AIDA64 Extreme and Furmark on the CPU and GPU, respectively.
CPU Stress Test: Before testing, we also turned on “Beast Mode”. The test lasted 30 minutes, and the processor’s power consumption stabilized at 100W. The core frequency is 3.7GHz, and the temperature reaches 95°C.
GPU Stress Test: The test lasted 1 hour and 30 minutes. It was found that the core temperature reached 80°C, and the power consumption stabilized at 141W.
Combined Stress Test: When the test started simultaneously, the power consumption of the CPU and GPU were 45W and 130W, respectively. The CPU’s temperature reached up to 84°C, while the GPU’s temperature was 82°C.
Summarize:
The Legion 5i Pro 2022 can easily handle all the current heavy games. Thanks to more powerful hardware, an excellent cooling system, and other components, this laptop will not disappoint in any way. The new Intel 12th Gen Core i7-12700H CPU delivers 12% better performance than the Ryzen 9 6900HS in single-core tests and 32% better performance than the Ryzen 9 6900HS in multi-core tests.
The laptop also features DDR5 RAM and two Samsung PM9A1 SSDs. In our tests, we also found that the SSD can achieve a maximum sequential read speed of 13 GB/s and a sequential write speed of 10 GB/s, a performance that is unique in the current laptop market.
