Desktops are dead? Lenovo says no as it shoves new gaming PCs into the spotlight

Despite all the so-called experts and naysayers, the desktop PC is not dead. In fact, it’s still thriving and Lenovo drives that point home with its new Legion-branded desktops for PC gamers. With a starting price of $900, the new Lenovo Legion PCs pack seventh-generation Intel Core processors, Nvidia GeForce or AMD Radeon graphics, and up to 64GB of overclockable Corsair Vengeance LPX DDR4 system memory at 2,800MHz.

As you will see, all three are fine-tuned for the Oculus Rift headset although you should not have any problems using the HTC Vive either. There are plenty of ports to support both and the lower graphics card options should provide the 90 frames per second you need for barf-free virtual experiences. Unfortunately, Lenovo’s new desktops only include AMD’s Radeon RX 500 Series cards and not its two new Radeon RX Vega 64 and Vega 56 cards that just hit the market.

Lenovo Legion Y920

According to Lenovo, the Legion Y920 model targets the enthusiast gaming crowd with components like the GeForce GTX 1080, Intel’s Core i7-7700K processor, Dolby Atmos audio, speedy PCI Express-based solid-state drive storage, and overclockable memory. The Legion Y920 model is the only desktop of the three that provides options for Windows 10 Pro and Windows 10 Home.

For cooling, this model includes a single exhaust fan on the back. The power supply has an exhaust fan on the back too along with a filtered intake vent on the bottom of the machine. There are two intake fans under a filter behind the front panel and an intake fan under the top’s hood. This is the only model with a clear window and a vent on the left side and the only one with Thunderbolt 3 connectivity.

Lenovo Legion Y720

This model is not quite as “elite” as the Y920, targeting the mainstream PC gamer with up to a GeForce GTX 1070 card, and no Thunderbolt 3 port. Its storage capacity is lower too, removing an SSD and shoving the current SSD over to the slower SATA connection. The hard drive has a lower capacity too, but the Y720 still retains the option for installing a 16GB Intel Optane “cache stick” to speed up the hard drive’s performance.

On the cooling front, this model has an exhaust fan on the back. The power supply has an exhaust fan too, and an intake vent on the bottom of the PC. There are two intake fans under a filter behind the front cover and one intake fan under the top’s hood. A vent resides on the left side but with no window to see all the pretty components inside.

Lenovo Legion Y520

Finally, we have the Y520 specifically targeting console gamers wanting to “dip their toes” into the pools of PC gaming. It is the only one in the trio offering a seventh-generation Core i3 processor, and Wireless AC connectivity reaching only up to 433Mbps (1×1). It is still capable of running the Oculus Rift and HTC Vive, but you will have a better experience by grabbing the GTX 1060 graphics option.

As for cooling, this desktop includes the main and power supply exhaust fans on the back, and one LED intake fan mounted under the front panel. There are no vents or windows on the sides, and apparently no intake fan on the top, either.

Finally, we want to note that the specifications of all three list Windows Mixed Reality as a Microsoft “Hero” feature. This is an internal term used by Microsoft and original equipment manufacturers for specific Windows 10 features, such as special hardware supporting Cortana, hardware supporting Windows Hello, and so on. What this essentially means is that the towers can not only optimally handle the Oculus Rift, but upcoming headsets based on Microsoft’s Windows Mixed Reality platform in Windows 10, which also require VR-capable components.

Lenovo’s three new Legion desktops will arrive sometime in October for a starting price of $900.