As much as I love the idea of portable PC gaming, I haven't bought a console yet. The Steam Deck is a little pricey for me to give the hobby a shot, and third-party models tend to go the opposite direction of affordability, opting instead to make more powerful models. However, when I reported that there might be a Lenovo Legion Go "S" model, I got interested. It seemed like the perfect way to get started with handheld gaming without making too much of an investment. So, here's why the Lenovo Legion Go "S" might finally get me into the hobby.

3 It's rumored at a really nice price point

A good cost for beginners

The main draw to the Lenovo Legion Go "S" is its potential price point. Yes, "potential" price point—we still don't know how much this thing will cost or if it will ever be released. However, the predicted price point would sit the console at around $399-449. That's a really nice price for an entry-level console.

You'd think that there would be more consoles sitting around this price area, but there isn't a great deal. When I see companies release their Steam Deck alternatives, they're usually priced similarly or more than Valve's offering. And it makes a ton of sense for companies to do this; given how Valve focused the Steam Deck at the mid-level range, they can compete a lot easier if they offer powerful luxury variants for people who want more out of their handhelds.

It's great for enthusiasts, but not so hot for people who want to give handhelds a try without purchasing a model that scrapes the bottom of the barrel. As such, I'm excited to see if the Lenovo Legion Go "S" can become a good model to dip your toes into portable gaming with.

2 It ekes out some wins over the Steam Deck

More bang for your buck

So, let's assume the Lenovo Legion Go "S" comes in at $399. For that same amount of money, you can purchase the lowest rung of the Steam Deck. So, why am I more excited over the Lenovo Legion Go "S" instead of simply buying the cheapest Deck?

Well, if the specifications leak from VideoCardz is correct, the Lenovo Legion Go "S" will have a slight edge over the Steam Deck. This is to be expected; the Legion Go "S" will release around three years after the Deck, so it can take advantage of newer hardware developments and squash even more stuff into the $399 price point.

So, what are the big hardware winners for the Lenovo Legion Go "S"? Well, it has the same amount of RAM, so that's a good starting point. It also has an 8-inch screen over the Deck's 7.4-inch one and has a slightly bigger battery. But the real spotlight on the Legion Go "S" is the storage—a lovely 512GB of space versus the Steam Deck LCD's 256GB. That's a lot more space for a lot more games and less time shuffling installs around when I want to play a particularly chunky title.

1 Lenovo may learn from its Legion Go lessons

The second time's the charm, hopefully

There is one thing that's giving me pause about grabbing the Lenovo Legion Go "S." See, when our lovely editor Adam Conway got his hands on the Lenovo Legion Go, he gave it a pretty scathing 5/10 score, stating that he wanted to love the console but couldn't. He saw that the Lenovo Legion Go had a promising soul to it, but many things were holding it back from becoming a stellar console. That's not to say the Lenovo Legion Go is bereft of reasons to love it, but it's still a shame that some design choices let it down.

So, hey—maybe the Lenovo Legion Go "S" may address the issues Adam had with the original console and make a better overall console. Part of me feels like expecting more from a console designed specifically to cost less is a fool's errand, but there's always the chance that Lenovo takes the time to revisit the pain points of its original console and fix them with this new version.

Here's hoping the Lenovo Legion Go "S" knocks it out of the park

Moving forward, I'm going to keep my eyes out for information on the Lenovo Legion Go "S" and hope that it shapes up to be the powerful yet beginner-friendly console that I dream that it could be. I could be totally wrong; it may be released with a higher price point, the reduction in designs to make it more cost-effective may stymie the overall feel, and Lenovo may double down on the things that cost the Legion Go a place in our hearts. But hey—if it goes south, I could just bite the bullet and get the Steam Deck LCD instead.