The Lenovo Legion laptops have made steady progress in the past few years, and the Legion Y740S is the pinnacle of that series, especially when it comes to design and build quality.
This 15.6-inch computer can be configured with one of the most powerful laptop processors on the market, the Intel Core i9 (10th Generation), but the clever design makes it look like a thin & light, and at 4.18Lbs, it is not very far from that category.
But Lenovo uses a trick to pull this off: this laptop doesn’t have a discrete GPU but instead is designed to connect to its’s own external GPU (eGPU) if need be.
The Intel’s 10th-Gen integrated graphics does offer performance that brings it close to a GeForce MX150, it’s true, but for hardcore gaming, the eGPU is a must-have, and fortunately, the combined price of both remains reasonable given how much performance a desktop GPU adds.
The Lenovo BoostStation External GPU
But be warned the Lenovo’s BoostStation eGPU is transportable at best. With a weight of 18.74 Lbs, it’s probably fine if you’re driving to a friend’s place, but perhaps not convenient for nomadic workers.
That said, it can accomodate up to a GeForce RTX 2080 or an AMD RX5700XT with a maximum card lenght of 320mm (power pins to the side). And it’s more than just an eGPU: you can add one 3.5″ storage device, plus two PCIe SSD.
It will also power one laptop at up to 100W over USB-C, the current maximum limit for that power-delivery connection.
It comes with ports as well, three full-size USB, one Thunderbolt 3, full-size HDMI and a RJ45 network port.
To sustain the laptop’s performance, Lenovo says that it is using an updated version of their Legion Coldfront cooling system, with a vapor chamber and four fans to dissipate the heat.
The Legion Y740S has backlit keys that are optimized for gaming, with bouncier and larger keys than previously.
Lenovo calls this new key design “TrueStrike” and points out that the keys have an anti-ghosting functionality as well.
There are two displays to choose from 1080p and 4K. Not surprisingly, the 4K version is Dolby Vision certified and covers 100 of the sRGB color gamut, which is very good.
To make the multimedia features complete, the speaker system is Dolby Atmos certified.
While the Lenovo Legion Y740S is presented as a “Gaming Laptop,” it seems to us that its potential customer base is much broader because many Creative users could be interested in the CPU performance, but also by having the eGPU option.
We haven’t run any benchmarks yet, but based on the specs and the relative price of the system, the performance/price ratio should look interesting ($1099+ for the laptop and $250 for the eGPU chassis, add the GPU separately).
- Processor: 10th Generation Intel® Core
- Graphics: Integrated and eGPU Support
- Memory: Up to 32GB DDR4
- Storage: Up to 1TB PCIe SSD
- Display:
- 15.6” UHD (3840×2160) IPS (500nits, 60Hz, 100% sRGB, Dolby Vision)
- 15.6” FHD (1920×1080) IPS (300nits, 60Hz, 72% sRGB)
- Battery: 60 Wh (Up to 8 hrs), Rapid Charge
- I/O ports
- 2 x USB 3.1 Gen 2 2 x Thunderbolt 3 Type-C (Thunderbolt, DP, USB 3.1, HDMI) 1 x SD Card Reader (4-in-1) 1 x Headphone Jack
- Audio 2 x 2W Dolby Atmos Speaker System for Gaming
- Networking WiFi 802.11 AX, 2×2, Bluetooth 5.0
- Dimensions 14.01” x 9.91” x 0.58” (356 x 251.8 x 14.9mm)
- Weight 4.18lbs (1.9kg)
- Other
- Backlit Legion TrueStrike keyboard, Fingerprint reader on power button
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