Lenovo’s $1100 Legion Go 2 is shattering preorder expectations

When Lenovo announced its absolutely bonkers Legion Go 2 handheld a few weeks ago, I felt confident in saying that this product, with its $1100 starting pricetag, would be a tough sell for gamers. While its next-gen specs and upgraded controllers make this device one I am eager to get my hands on, I figured that price would be too much for all but the most dedicated handheld PC gamers.

However, it looks like I was wrong.

The Lenovo team recently took to Reddit to answer some questions about the upcoming Legion Go 2, and after an AMA that probably could have gone better, the team acknowledged that demand has outstripped early supply, saying in part:

We know that many of you have been asking about product delays so we owe you an explanation. The truth is pre-orders for the Legion Go Gen 2 has substantially exceeded our projections, leading to unforeseen delivery range extensions. We are working diligently with our teams worldwide to fill these orders as quickly as possible. We truly appreciate the overwhelming support of Legion fans, and ask for your patience while we work to get the Legion Go Gen 2 into your waiting hands.

Unfortunately, this demand has led to some preorder cancelations for customers that ordered the handheld PC directly on Lenovo’s website, with the company saying “As soon as our online inventory is replenished, Lenovo.com will show updated availability and ordering will reopen.”

This update is certainly a surprise to me, and while I had worried that the continuing fragmentation of the handheld PC market would continue to shrink this niche market even farther into potential obscurity, it looks like demand for this top-of-the-line device has actually been incredibly strong, and I suspect Lenovo may have been caught off guard by this unprecedented demand as well.

Though some preorders made through Lenovo’s website have unfortunately been canceled for the time being, if you pre-ordered through another retailer like Best Buy, you should still be good to go. No specific release date has been confirmed but most estimate that the first wave of devices will ship sometime next month.

The Lenovo Legion Go 2 is a beast under the hood

Premium specs for a premium price

Credit: Lenovo/Canva/Pocket-Lint

First announced earlier this month, this update to the original Legion Go, will look similar to its predecessor complete with new and improved versions of the signature detachable controllers that made the original Legion Go so unique. It will also include substantial hardware upgrades including an 8.8-inch 1200p OLED screen with VRR, 50% larger battery and a new, hidden optical mouse. This base model of this new handheld will be powered by AMD’s Z2, and ships with 16GB of RAM and 1TB of storage. Upgraded models include 32GB of RAM, the more powerful Z2 Extreme chip, and an extra TB of storage. You can no longer pre-order on Lenovo’s website, but Best Buy still has preorders available in the US.