Lenovo Legion Phone Duel 2: Everything you need to know

Lenovo has announced a new Legion Phone Duel 2 gaming phone that features two USB-C ports, a pop-up camera, and even built-in fans. Following on from Lenovo’s Legion Duel gaming phone last year, Legion Duel 2 is announced now.

A Lenovo gaming phone, the Legion Phone Duel 2, is one of the oddest-looking designs we’ve seen in a long time. This phone is specifically designed with gamers in mind and has a ton of extra controls. The fan-powered back of the device and the mechanized front-facing camera built into the power button certainly make it a lot of fun. One fan insulates and exhausts hot air while the other inhale hot air and transfers it to copper. Lenovo says its second Legion Phone is 30% more efficient in cooling than its predecessor.

Display dimensions have grown to 6.92-inches and still support the 144Hz refresh rate as well as HDR10+.  The display includes two force touchpoints, two pairs of ultrasonic shoulder triggers, and two capacitive keys on the rear. Lenovo has decided that it will be best to move the most crucial components of its phone into the middle of it for the fans to keep it cool during gameplay. As a result, the center is considerably thicker, surrounded by two batteries.  It also brings two linear motors for haptics and two pairs of ultrasonic shoulder triggers. Of course, since this is a gaming device, it will offer touch-sensitive triggers for easy button mapping and high framerate support.

The Snapdragon 888 is geared toward heavy lifting and comes with either 12, 16, or 18GB RAM. There is a choice between 256GB and 512GB of storage. The battery is split between two 2,750mAh cells and has a capacity of 5,500mAh. With a single charging port, charging speeds are 65W, while using an optional adapter boosts the charge speed to 90W and can be completely charged in 30 minutes.

Lenovo Legion Phone Duel 2 Key Specs:

How the phone testing went for Legion Phone Duel 2

Despite not knowing if the Legion device will be arriving in the US anytime soon, YouTuber Zack at JerryRigEverything managed to obtain a copy in his hands and has put it under the testing considerations.

Although it has a unique design, the durability test on the handheld is about as expected. With Mohs hardness level 6, the screen starts to scratch, but the retractable camera avoids damage because it senses when it is in a fall (fall detection). During a burn test, the AMOLED screen cannot recover, and even the fingerprint scanner on the in-display panel cannot recognize a print correctly during setup.

A smartphone’s durability is always tested during the bend testing, and the Duel 2 doesn’t last long in this regard as well. In the video, shortly after the host says, “I’m not even remotely concerned about it breaking,” the phone snaps at the antenna line that meets the raised middle part of the phone, compromising the ability to power on (8:40 in the video). In comparison with some of Zack’s other broken devices, this one breaks into two pieces along the antenna lines, even with the slightest bit of pressure. These plastic antennas just snap in half, breaking cleanly in two. One more push on the Duel 2, and it splits into three separate parts.

It was pretty disappointing to learn that the phone lasted barely through a single flex, given the weird design on display. By a light touch, the host broke the other side to prove the frame’s weakness. Despite being thicker than most modern smartphones, the Duel 2 still snaps like a tree trunk.

Despite its fragile design and unconventional striking look, the Legion Phone Duel 2 comes at an eye-watering starting price of $950 price. If you ever need a replacement for its fragile design, you might end up paying a lot more. Legion Phone Duel 2 will be available starting this month in China, and it will be available in select European and Asian markets starting in May.