Legion Go S Faces Off Against ROG Ally X as Ryzen Z2 Go Trails Ryzen Z1 Extreme by 10%

AMD’s recent reveal of their Ryzen Z2 Go APU has ignited plenty of interest, particularly in how it stands up against the Ryzen Z1 series. Fortunately, curiosity found its answer with Fps VN, who shared FPS test results comparing the Lenovo Legion Go S and the Asus ROG Ally X across three games, utilizing various power settings.

Lenovo’s latest handheld, the Legion Go S, brings the Ryzen Z2 Go APU into play. Despite having half the cores of the Z1 Extreme and a Zen 3+ architecture instead of the newer Zen 4, it manages with lower base (3.0 GHz compared to 3.3 GHz) and boost clock speeds (4.3 GHz versus 5.1 GHz). Its selection speaks to its potential performance, warranting comparisons to the previously top-tier Ryzen Z1 Extreme chip found in older models.

Before delving into performance numbers, let’s examine the core specs of these devices. The Legion Go S, which made its debut at CES 2025, boasts an AMD Ryzen Z2 Go processor alongside 16GB of LPDDR5X-6400 memory. Storage is handled by a 512GB PCIe 4.0 SSD, and visual output is rendered on an eight-inch, 120 Hz, 1920×1200 IPS display. In contrast, the Asus ROG Ally X, which launched in mid-2024, utilizes a Ryzen Z1 Extreme chip with 24GB of LPDDR5 memory and provides 1TB of PCIe 4.0 SSD storage, featuring a seven-inch, 120 Hz, 1920×1080 IPS screen.

In performance tests, the Asus ROG Ally X consistently outclasses the Lenovo Legion Go S. This isn’t surprising given the Z1 Extreme’s advantage in core count, clock speed, and L3 cache, as well as its more modern 780M integrated GPU as opposed to the 680M on the Z2 Go.

Yet, the gap in performance across all three games is relatively minor, usually showing just about a 4 FPS lead for the Ally X over the Legion Go S. This translates to roughly a 10% decrease in performance from the Z2 Go compared to the Z1 Extreme based on these benchmarks.

The expected discrepancy might be larger, considering the Ally X benefits from 8GB more RAM and a smaller, lower-resolution screen, leading to fewer pixels to process. Nonetheless, it seems AMD and Lenovo have finely tuned the Z2 Go to punch above its weight within the constraints of handheld devices’ compact and power-limited nature.

Cost-wise, the Asus ROG Ally X sits at $799, with the Legion Go slightly more affordable at $729. Despite the Ally X’s edge in raw performance, the Legion Go’s larger display and slightly lower cost may appeal to gamers. After all, the negligible 4FPS difference may hardly be noticeable to most users when playing on these portable consoles.