This Lenovo laptop makes a case for using gaming hardware at work

The new Lenovo Legion Pro 5i is an excellent, well-specced gaming laptop that is also capable of pulling double-duty in the office. By limiting RGB lighting to the keyboard, as well as having a straightforward design and decent battery life, you can take the Legion Pro 5i to work or on business trips without feeling out of place. 

Also: 5 ways to explore the use of generative AI at work

And the best part is underneath its unassuming facade are some of the best PC components you can get your hands on at this price.

ZDNET RECOMMENDS

Lenovo Legion Pro 5i

The Lenovo Legion Pro 5i features a 13th gen Intel Core i7 CPU and Nvidia GeForce RTX 4060 graphics card. 

The Lenovo Legion Pro 5i is built with an Intel Core i7-13700HX processor, 16GB of RAM, a 512GB SSD, and an Nvidia GeForce RTX 4060 graphics card to give you more than enough power and performance to tackle everything from spreadsheets and video calls with colleagues to late-night squad matches or hanging out with friends in VRChat. 

It also has room for up to 32GB of RAM and up to two 1TB SSDs, which means you can upgrade the laptop on your own if your needs change later rather than spending $1,000 or more on a new laptop. 

Also: This lightweight laptop is surprisingly powerful (and it’s not the MacBook Air)

The 16-inch display produces 2560 x 1600 resolution, and you can choose between either a 60Hz or 165Hz refresh rate; this makes transitioning from office work to gaming or vice versa quick and easy. The laptop also has plenty of USB ports and connectivity options, with four USB 3.2 ports, two USB-C inputs, an HDMI connection, Ethernet, a headphone/mic jack, Bluetooth 5.1, Wi-Fi 6E, and a dedicated power input. 

While it’s a little annoying to have a proprietary power connection rather than a universal USB-C, it does mean that you don’t have to sacrifice a port to charge your laptop.

Lenovo has also managed to fit an almost full-sized keyboard with a 10-key input into the design. And even though the keys use a traditional membrane construction, they still feel smooth and satisfying while typing or playing games. 

Also: My favorite Logitech keyboard just got a major upgrade – and ChatGPT users will love it

The 10-key input is also a nice touch for handling office work as well as complicated inputs for MMOs or games like ARMA and DayZ that require dozens of input commands. The offset touchpad feels super responsive for streaming and everyday use but does take some getting used to so you don’t end up just tapping the wrist rest when you want to right-click.

Lenovo claims that the Legion Pro 5i can give you up to 6.5 hours of use on a full charge, and my testing (both video playback and heavy gaming) gave a similar average of about 5-6 hours of real-world use. You can squeeze out another 30-45 minutes by dimming your screen, decreasing audio, and using battery optimization settings. But you’ll absolutely need to keep your charging cord handy to get through the last half of your workday. 

Also: The best laptop docking stations to fit your setup

The power cable has a very large power supply; it’s a little bit larger than my iPhone 13 and can be cumbersome to carry around, especially since the laptop itself is on the heavier side at 5.6 pounds. But the power supply has a thin enough profile to make it fit comfortably into a laptop bag pocket or backpack.

The Lenovo Legion Pro 5i base configuration starts at $1,260, while the top configuration retails for $1,800. The configuration I was sent for testing will cost you around $1,450, which is a very decent value for the components and performance you’ll get.