Legion 9i: Lenovo's new 16-inch gaming notebook has liquid cooling
Large display, plenty of power and sophisticated cooling: The Lenovo Legion 9i should leave hardly anything to be desired - except for a favourable price.
The Digitec and Galaxus editorial team reports directly from Berlin from IFA 2023. You can find all the news and background information published so far in our overview:
I was able to take a first look at the Legion 9i at the IFA. From the outside, the gaming notebook makes a good impression. The inner workings will have to prove themselves in detailed tests.
Carbon and liquid cooling system
The lid of the Legion 9i, which is made of forged carbon fibre chips, is already a positive feature. I like the look - even if Lenovo doesn't reveal exactly how the forging process works. The material is supposed to be robust and light at the same time. Lenovo uses the RGB lighting, which is unavoidable for a gaming notebook, with restraint. I'm not really a fan of too many colourful lights, but I like the way the Legion 9i illuminates the white tablecloth.
According to Lenovo, the Legion 9i is the manufacturer's first 16-inch notebook to feature the "Legion Coldfront" liquid cooling system. In addition, three fans ensure that the hardware does not get too hot when gaming. The notebook draws in air from under the casing and above the keyboard. It comes out warmer at the sides. The keyboard slides down due to the air intake and the touchpad and palm rests are small, which didn't bother us in the short time we used it.
Chip sets with artificial intelligence are intended to optimise the ventilation and performance of the Legion 9i. The 2.56-kilogram notebook has a lot to offer in terms of the latter. The equipment can
- up to the Intel Core 9i-13980HX
- up to the Nvidia Geforce RTX4090
- up to 64 GB RAM with 5600 MHz or up to 32 GB RAM with 6400 MHz
include. The SSD can offer up to two terabytes of storage space. The 16-inch mini LED display has a 3.2K resolution. Its refresh rate is a maximum of 165 hertz. You should be able to switch between DCI-P3 and sRGB as the colour space. However, Lenovo has not specified how high the colour coverage is in each case.
The battery has a capacity of 99.99 watt hours. The limit for taking it on an aeroplane is 100 watt hours. It is charged via USB-C and a 140-watt power supply unit.
The Legion 9i has Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 5.3 on board. Cable connections include an RJ-45 LAN socket and:
- 1x USB-C
- 2x USB-A
- 1x HDMI 2.1
- 2x Thunderbolt 4 (USB-C)
- 1x audio jack
- 1x SD card reader
Price and availability
Lenovo plans to sell the Legion 9i from October. The exact configurations may vary depending on the country. The price of the notebook will be in the region of 5000 euros. For Switzerland, the manufacturer is quoting 5299 francs.
Cover photo: Michelle BrändleAs a primary school pupil, I used to sit in a friend's living room with many of my classmates to play the Super NES. Now I get my hands on the latest technology and test it for you. In recent years at Curved, Computer Bild and Netzwelt, now at Digitec and Galaxus.