Ryzen Z2 Go Appears to Be 10% Slower Than Ryzen Z1 Extreme — Legion Go S vs. ROG Ally X Showdown

AMD recently made waves with the unveiling of the Ryzen Z2 Go APU, stirring up excitement and prompting plenty of questions about how its performance stacks up against the previous Ryzen Z1 series. Luckily, our curiosity didn’t have to wait long to be satisfied, thanks to the folks at Fps VN. They provided a detailed FPS analysis, putting the Lenovo Legion Go S to the test against the Asus ROG Ally X across three games, using various power settings.

Lenovo stepped up with the launch of the Legion Go S, powered by the new Ryzen Z2 Go APU. This unit features just half the cores of the Z1 Extreme and relies on the Zen 3+ architecture instead of the more recent Zen 4. With base and boost clock speeds lower at 3.0 GHz and 4.3 GHz respectively, compared to the Z1 Extreme’s 3.3 GHz and 5.1 GHz, one might wonder about its performance. Yet, Lenovo still selected it for their latest gaming handhelds, making us eager to see how it stacks up against the top-tier AMD Ryzen Z1 Extreme from the previous generation.

Before diving into the performance numbers, let’s take a closer look at the overall specs of the two devices. The Lenovo Legion Go S, introduced at CES 2025, is equipped with an AMD Ryzen Z2 Go processor and 16GB of LPDDR5X-6400 memory. It offers 512GB of PCIe 4.0 SSD storage and features an eight-inch, 120 Hz, 1920×1200 IPS display. The Asus ROG Ally X, released in mid-2024, runs on the AMD Ryzen Z1 Extreme chip, packing 24GB of LPDDR5 memory. This powerhouse also includes a 1TB PCIe 4.0 SSD and boasts a seven-inch, 120 Hz, 1920×1080 IPS screen.

Here’s a snapshot of what the FPS testing revealed:

| Game Title (Settings) | Lenovo Legion Go S (Average FPS) | Asus ROG Ally X (Average FPS) |
|——————————————–|———————————|—————————–|
| Black Myth Wukong (720p Medium 15W) | 36 | 40 |
| Black Myth Wukong (1080p Low FSR 20W) | 30 | 32 |
| Black Myth Wukong (1080p Low FSR 30W) | 60 | 64 |
| Cyberpunk 2077 (720p Medium 15W) | 50 | 54 |
| Cyberpunk 2077 (1080p Low FSR 20W) | 45 | 47 |
| Cyberpunk 2077 (1080p Medium FSR 30W) | 61 | 66 |
| Ghost of Tsushima Director’s Cut (720p Medium 15W) | 62 | 66 |
| Ghost of Tsushima Director’s Cut (1080p Medium FSR 20W) | 48 | 52 |
| Ghost of Tsushima Director’s Cut (1080p Medium FSR 30W) | 62 | 66 |

The test results show that the Z1 Extreme, featured in the Asus ROG Ally X, consistently outshines the Z2 Go found in the Lenovo Legion Go S. This comes as no surprise, given that the Z1 Extreme boasts double the cores and higher clock speeds. It also offers a larger L3 cache, and its integrated GPU, the 780M, is a newer generation compared to the 680M in the Z2 Go.

Yet, despite these advantages, the performance difference across the three games was marginal—a mere 4 FPS on average for the ROG Ally X over the Legion Go S. In terms of raw figures, the Ryzen Z2 Go held its ground, managing to perform just about 10% less efficiently than the Ryzen Z1 Extreme.

We anticipated a wider performance gap, especially since the Ally X features 8GB more memory and has a smaller screen with lower resolution, which means it doesn’t need to push as many pixels. Nevertheless, AMD and Lenovo appear to have deftly optimized the Z2 Go to perform respectably, even within the constraints of handheld console power limitations and portability.

The Asus ROG Ally X comes in with a price tag of $799, while its competitor, the Lenovo Legion Go, is priced slightly lower at $729. In terms of sheer performance, the Ally X with the Z1 Extreme demonstrates superior capabilities compared to the newer rival. However, the price-conscious gamer might find the larger screen and slightly cheaper price of the Legion Go more appealing, especially since most users won’t notice the small FPS differences between these devices.