Hands-on: Lenovo’s Legion Go Fold gaming handheld shows a new future for foldables [Gallery]

Source: 9to5Google

Overview

Foldables have come a long way in the past few years, but outside of reinventing the flip phone and hiding a tablet within a smartphone, the concepts haven’t changed all that much. Lenovo, though, has a clever idea in its new Legion Go Fold concept, which I really hope makes it to reality someday.

The Legion Go Fold is a gaming handheld that, as the name implies, has a folding display. When folded, a 7.7‑inch screen sits between two halves of a controller. Unfolded, the screen expands to 11.6 inches and can be used both vertically and horizontally, giving you a tall or wide gaming setup.

Design and Features

• The controllers resemble those of the Nintendo Switch 2 and can be detached easily, or attached to a separate piece that turns the pair into a wireless gamepad.
• The display can be paired with a magnetic keyboard/trackpad/kickstand setup, effectively turning it into a tabletop laptop.
• A small screen on the controller shows CPU temperatures and other data.

Put simply, it’s brilliant.

First Impressions

While this early proof‑of‑concept is a little rough—the controllers feel barely attached and the overall design feels unfinished—the idea is solid. Gaming handhelds already have a lot of power, and being able to detach the controllers and double the screen size gives the device a second purpose. The ability to switch between a compact display and a huge tablet‑sized canvas solves the current trade‑off between handheld and tablet gaming.

Concerns

I’m a bit concerned about the outward‑folding nature of the display. One thing we quickly learned about foldables is that having the display exposed is a bad idea. As Lenovo refines this concept, a more protective design would be welcome—perhaps a book‑style form factor with an external display, similar to the Galaxy Z Fold 7 or the Motorola Razr Fold.

All the ways you can use the Legion Go Fold

Future Outlook

This technology has a lot of promise beyond smartphones, and it feels like we’re just scratching the surface. The Legion Go Fold concept fills many use cases in one device, making it an exciting glimpse of what foldables could become. However, it’s tough to know if this will see the light of day anytime soon. Lenovo has a track record of turning concepts into products, but the timeline remains uncertain.