The Lenovo LOQ 15 (2023) is a 15-inch budget gaming laptop. It's available with an AMD Ryzen 5 7640HS or Ryzen 7 7840HS CPU and various NVIDIA GeForce RTX GPUs, up to an RTX 4060 Laptop GPU with a TGP (total Graphics Power) of 115W. RAM and storage max out at 16GB and 1TB, respectively; both are user-replaceable. Display options include two FHD panels (60Hz and 144Hz) and a 165Hz QHD panel. It has a full-size keyboard with a Numpad, a 1080p webcam, Wi-Fi 6 wireless connectivity, and a 60Wh battery. Its port selection comprises three USB-As, a USB-C, an HDMI 2.1, an Ethernet, and a 3.5mm headphone jack. The USB-C port supports DisplayPort and charging (up to 140W).
See our unit's specifications and the available configuration options in the Differences Between Variants section.
Our Verdict
The Lenovo LOQ is okay for school use. It has a large, decently bright display, a spacious keyboard, and a large and responsive touchpad. It's available with AMD Ryzen CPUs and NVIDIA 40-series GPUs, which are fast enough to handle light productivity tasks and demanding workloads, making it suitable for students in fields like programming and 3D animation. Its wide port selection includes an HDMI 2.1 and plenty of USB ports, so you likely won't need a dock; however, its USB-C port doesn't support Thunderbolt or USB4. Unfortunately, it isn't very portable, as it's rather bulky and heavy. The battery lasts around eight hours of light use, so depending on your usage, you may need to plug it in to get through the day.
- Large display for multitasking.
- CPU and GPU can handle demanding workloads.
- Display gets bright enough for use in indoor settings.
- Spacious keyboard with Numpad.
- Bulky and heavy.
- Battery might not last through a typical 8-hour day depending on your usage.
- No USB4 or Thunderbolt 4.
The Lenovo LOQ is an excellent gaming laptop. Its AMD Ryzen CPU and NVIDIA GPU can push high frame rates, delivering a smooth gaming experience at 1080p or 1440p. There are multiple display options, including a 144Hz FHD and 165Hz QHD panel; both support VRR to reduce screen tearing. There's no thermal throttling on the CPU or GPU, so you won't experience any performance loss when gaming for an extended period. RAM and storage are user-replaceable if you want to upgrade later on. The battery lasts less than an hour when gaming, though it charges quickly.
- Delivers smooth gameplay with high, consistent frame rates.
- High-refresh displays with VRR support.
- User-replaceable RAM and storage.
- Minimal thermal throttling.
- Doesn't get overly hot or loud.
- Display response time is on the slower side.
The Lenovo LOQ is okay for media consumption. It isn't very portable because it's bulky and heavy, and its battery lasts less than four hours of video playback, so you'll have to bring the charger with you. Its 144Hz FHD display looks reasonably sharp and gets bright enough for use in most indoor settings; however, its narrow color gamut makes highly saturated colors look washed out. You can get a sharper QHD display with better color reproduction but at the cost of an even shorter battery life. Unfortunately, none of the displays are ideal for dark room viewing, as their low contrast makes blacks look gray. Also, while the speakers get reasonably loud, they sound unnatural, with almost no bass.
- Display gets bright enough for use in indoor settings.
- QHD display option with 100% sRGB coverage.
- Flicker-free display.
- Speakers get reasonably loud with minimal compression.
- Bulky and heavy.
- FHD displays look washed out due to narrow color gamut.
- Speakers sound boxy with no bass.
- Battery lasts less than four hours of video playback.
- Blacks look gray in dim settings due to display's low contrast.
The Lenovo LOQ is outstanding for use as a workstation. It's available with AMD Ryzen 7040 CPUs and NVIDIA RTX 40-series GPUs, which are fast enough to handle demanding tasks like video editing, programming, and 3D rendering. You may need an external monitor for your color-correction work, as even the top-end QHD display only has full sRGB coverage. RAM and storage are user-replaceable, so you can add more later. There's no thermal throttling on the CPU or GPU, and while the fans are loud, they aren't overly annoying. Its wide port selection includes an HDMI 2.1 and plenty of USB ports; however, the USB-C doesn't support Thunderbolt or USB4.
- CPU and GPU can handle demanding workloads.
- Wide port selection.
- User-replaceable RAM and storage.
- Minimal thermal throttling.
- Doesn't get overly hot or loud.
- No wide gamut display option.
- No USB4 or Thunderbolt 4.
The Lenovo LOQ is good for business use. Its AMD Ryzen CPU and NVIDIA GPU can easily handle productivity tasks like web browsing, text formatting, and spreadsheets. You can even do more intensive tasks like photo and video editing, which is great for small business owners needing to do a bit of everything. The display provides plenty of room for multitasking, the keyboard feels spacious, and the touchpad is large and responsive. It has a great 1080p webcam for video calls and a wide port selection for peripherals and external displays. The downside is that it's hard to carry around because it's bulky and heavy. You can likely get through a typical 8-hour day on a full charge, but it's close, so depending on your usage, you may need to plug it in for a quick charge.
- Large display for multitasking.
- Display gets bright enough for use in indoor settings.
- Spacious keyboard with Numpad.
- Wide port selection.
- Decent 1080p webcam.
- Bulky and heavy.
- Battery might not last through a typical 8-hour day depending on your usage.
- No USB4 or Thunderbolt 4.
Changelog
- Updated May 07, 2025: We've updated this review to Test Bench 0.8.3, which removes the viewing angle tests and adds a GPU Total Graphics Power comparison in the GPU section. The Pen Input test in the Extra Features section has also changed, as it now shows whether the laptop supports pen input rather than the inclusion of a stylus in the box. See the changelog for more details.
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Updated Nov 01, 2024:
We've added mention of the Acer Nitro V 16 (2024) as an alternative with better keyboard temperatures under load in the Thermals and Noise section.
- Updated Oct 04, 2024: Added mention of the MSI Katana A15 AI (2024) as an alternative with NVIDIA 40-series GPUs in the GPU section.
- Updated Feb 29, 2024: Review published.
Differences Between Sizes And Variants
We tested the Lenovo LOQ 15 (82XT001TUS) with a 144Hz FHD display, an AMD Ryzen 7 7840HS CPU, an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4050 Laptop GPU, 16GB of RAM, and 1TB of storage. The display, CPU, GPU, RAM, and storage are configurable; the available options are in the table below.
Note: There's a Lenovo LOQ 15 with Intel 12th and 13th Gen processors (model 15IRH8). Most of our results (build, display, keyboard, touchpad, speakers, webcam) also apply to the Intel version, except for the performance benchmarks, thermals, and battery life.
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See our unit's label here.
Popular Laptop Comparisons
The Lenovo LOQ is an excellent budget gaming laptop. It performs well, delivering a smooth gaming experience with high, consistent frame rates. The build is decent compared to other laptops in its class, and its battery life in light use is among the best despite having a relatively small 60Wh battery.
For more options, check out our recommendations for the best gaming laptops, the best budget and cheap gaming laptops, and the best workstation laptops.
The ASUS TUF Gaming A16 Advantage Edition (2023) is marginally better than the Lenovo LOQ 15 (2023) for most uses. The ASUS has a sturdier build, a better keyboard and touchpad, a faster SSD, and a longer battery life in light uses. It also has a higher-end 240Hz QHD display option with full DCI P3 coverage, making it suitable for color-critical work. However, the LOQ 15 has a better webcam and doesn't get as hot under load.
The Lenovo LOQ 15 (2023) is better than the HP Victus 15 (2022) for most uses. The Lenovo is available with newer and faster NVIDIA 40-series GPUs that can push higher frame rates. It also has variable refresh rate support to reduce screen tearing, two M.2 storage slots (the HP has one), and longer battery life. Lenovo has a QHD display option, while HP only has FHD displays.
The Acer Nitro V 16 (2024) and the Lenovo LOQ 15 (2023) are great budget gaming laptops. The Acer laptop offers a better user experience overall. It's better built, its larger display offers more real estate for immersive gaming, and its display options are generally brighter and have higher refresh rates. As far as hardware goes, even though both laptops come with AMD CPUs and NVIDIA GPUs, the Lenovo takes the performance. Its GPUs run at a higher TGP, which results in better performance. However, the Acer has more RAM and storage options; although these are user-replaceable on both laptops, it's nice to get more out of the box if you aren't comfortable adding more yourself.
The MSI Katana A15 AI (2024) and the Lenovo LOQ 15 (2023) are both budget gaming laptops that provide a similar user experience overall. The main difference is that the MSI has a more powerful NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4070 Laptop GPU option, whereas the Lenovo tops out at an RTX 4060. On the other hand, the Lenovo has a much longer battery life for light use, making it a better option for school or work.
Test Results
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