Lenovo LOQ Essential (15″, Gen 11, 15IRX11) review – The Price of “Essential” Gaming
The Lenovo LOQ Essential (15IRX11, Gen 11) wears its name on its sleeve. Positioned as the absolute entry point into Lenovo’s gaming lineup, it strips away the premium frills to focus on delivering a functional 1080p experience at an aggressively low price. But in the highly competitive world of budget gaming laptops, the term “essential” is often a polite way of saying “strict compromises.” With a stripped-back single-fan cooling system, a heavily power-limited RTX 5050, and some rather peculiar connectivity choices, this machine forces you to ask a critical question: how much performance and flexibility are you willing to sacrifice to save a few dollars? We put this budget brawler to the test to see if its affordable price tag is truly worth the trade-offs.
TESTED CONFIGURATION:
– Intel Core i5-13450HX
– NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5050
– 16GB RAM
– 512GB SSD NVMe
– 15.6″, 1920 x 1080 (Full HD), 144Hz IPS
You can check the prices and configurations in our Specs System: https://laptopmedia.com/series/lenovo-loq-essential-15irx11-gen-11/
Contents
Specs, Drivers, What’s in the box
Lenovo LOQ Essential (15IRX11 / 15ARP11, Gen 11) - Specs
- HDD/SSD
- up to 1000GB SSD
- M.2 Slot
- 2x 2242 M.2 NVMe PCIe 4.0 x4 See photo
- RAM
- up to 16GB
- OS
- Windows 11 Home, No OS, Windows 11 Pro
- Battery
- 60Wh
- Body material
- Plastic / Polycarbonate
- Dimensions
- 361.26 x 255.6 x 22.9 - 24.8 mm (14.22" x 10.06" x 0.90")
- Weight
- 2.30 kg (5.1 lbs)
- Ports and connectivity
- 2x USB Type-A
- 3.2 Gen 1 (5 Gbps)
- 1x USB Type-C
- 3.2 Gen 1 (5 Gbps), Power Delivery (PD)
- HDMI
- 2.1 (8K@60Hz)
- Card reader
- Ethernet LAN
- 10, 100, 1000 Mbit/s
- Wi-Fi
- Wi-Fi 6E
- Bluetooth
- 5.2
- Audio jack
- 3.5mm Combo Jack
- Features
- Fingerprint reader
- Web camera
- HD 720p, with E-shutter, fixed focus
- Backlit keyboard
- optional
- Microphone
- Dual-microphone array
- Speakers
- Stereo speakers, 2W x2, optimized with Nahimic Audio
- Security Lock slot
All Lenovo LOQ Essential (15IRX11 / 15ARP11, Gen 11) configurations
Drivers
All drivers and utilities for this notebook can be found here: Lenovo Support – Drivers & Software
What’s in the box?
Unboxing the LOQ Essential feels like a focused start to gaming, providing the laptop itself and its 135W slim-tip power adapter.
Depending on your specific SKU, you might even find a Lenovo Legion M220 Wireless RGB Gaming Mouse tucked inside, though it’s often a “luck of the draw” situation for these extra goodies!
Design and construction
The Lenovo LOQ Essential (15″, Gen 11, 15IRX11) embraces a wonderfully restrained approach to laptop design. It favors a clean, functional aesthetic over flashy gimmicks, featuring a prominent LOQ logo on the lid and a chunky rear section dedicated to serious cooling and port management.
We ordered our unit in “Eclipse Black,” a sleek dark grey, though Lenovo also offers a lighter “Luna Grey” option for those who prefer silver. One of the immediate highlights of this matte finish is its excellent resistance to smudges; the chassis stays impressively clean and fingerprint-free even after extended handling.
While the entire chassis is constructed from PC-ABS plastic (both top and bottom covers), it feels commendably solid in the hand. You can induce a slight bit of flex if you press deliberately above the trackpad or in the center of the lid, but there’s absolutely nothing concerning here for everyday use. We’d confidently describe the overall build as stable and durable. In terms of its physical footprint, it sits comfortably within the standard range for a modern 15-inch gaming laptop:
| Lenovo LOQ Essential (15″, Gen 11, 15IRX11) | Dimensions | Weight |
| Metric units | 361.26 x 255.6 x 22.9-24.8 mm | 2.3 kg |
| U.S. customary | 14.22 x 10.06 x 0.90-0.98 in | 5.07 lbs |
The hinges strike an excellent balance, offering robust stability to keep the screen from wobbling while still allowing for a smooth, one-handed open. A fantastic feature of this hinge design is that it can fold a full 180 degrees to lay completely flat, which is great for ergonomics and preventing accidental damage, even without any touchscreen options. The display itself is framed by slim bezels, interrupted only by a slight “bump” at the top. This bump houses a basic HD 720p fixed-focus camera. Thankfully, Lenovo hasn’t skimped on privacy, including a convenient E-shutter to electronically cut the camera feed when not in use.
Moving down to the 6-row keyboard deck, you’ll find a dedicated NumPad with slightly scaled-down keys. The typing experience is genuinely comfortable, offering 1.3 mm of key travel that feels crisp. However, we have a serious bone to pick with the arrow keys: they are half-height and crammed directly into the main key layout. Seeing this on a dedicated gaming machine is always a disappointment, especially for racing and fighting game enthusiasts who rely on tactile separation. Another crucial detail to watch out for is the backlighting; depending on your specific configuration, you’ll either get a white backlight or no backlight at all, so double-check the spec sheet before buying. Biometric login is also absent, with no fingerprint reader available.
Finally, the buttonless Mylar trackpad measures 69 x 104 mm (approximately 2.71 x 4.09 inches). It supports Precision TouchPad gestures and is a pleasure to use, providing a stable, distinct physical click with zero complaints from our side.
Ports and Connectivity
The Lenovo LOQ Essential (15″, Gen 11, 15IRX11) offers a practical port layout designed to keep your workspace tidy, though its selection reflects its budget-friendly positioning through certain technical limitations. On the left side, you will find a standard USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-A port operating at 5Gbps, a 3.5mm headphone/microphone combo jack, and a single USB Type-C port. While this USB-C port conveniently supports 65-100W Power Delivery for alternative charging on the go, it is limited to baseline 5Gbps data speeds and lacks DisplayPort capabilities for video output.
The right side is kept intentionally minimal to prevent cables from interfering with right-handed mouse use, housing only a second 5Gbps USB Type-A port and a highly useful physical E-shutter switch to securely disable the webcam.
The thickest and least frequently unplugged cables are smartly routed to the rear of the chassis. Here, you will plug in the proprietary Slim Tip power adapter and find a Gigabit Ethernet (RJ-45) port supporting Wake-on-LAN for stable, low-latency wired gaming. For external monitors, a highly capable HDMI 2.1 port is located on the back, offering video output up to 8K at 60Hz. It is worth noting for content creators that this machine does not include any form of SD card reader, and users relying on high-speed external storage should be aware that every USB port across the device is capped at 5Gbps speeds.
For wireless connectivity, the LOQ Essential is equipped with a Wi-Fi 6 (802.11ax) module utilizing a 2×2 antenna configuration. This provides reliable and fast wireless networking for gaming and everyday tasks, even if it omits the 6 GHz band found on more premium Wi-Fi 6E or Wi-Fi 7 standards. It is paired with Bluetooth 5.2, ensuring stable and power-efficient connections for your wireless gaming controllers, headsets, and mice.
Display and Sound Quality, Display Profiles
We ordered the Lenovo LOQ Essential (15IRX11, Gen 11) with the 15.6″, Full HD (1920 x 1080), 144 Hz, IPS screen – this is the only option available. 1080p is a bit low resolution for a 15.6 inches, and the brightness and contrast are average but it’s a good panel otherwise. Excellent eye-safety, very good color accuracy with our profiles, and good color coverage.
| Lenovo LOQ Essential (15″, Gen 11, 15IRX11) | BOE NE156FHM-NX9 (BOE0C29) |
| Diagonal | 15.6 inches (39.6 cm) |
| Panel Type | IPS |
| Resolution | 1920 x 1080 pixels |
| Max Refresh Rate | 144 Hz |
| Aspect Ratio | 16:9 |
| Pixel Density | 141 PPI |
| ‘Retina’ Distance | Greater than or equal to 62 cm |
The Full HD (1920 x 1800), 144 Hz, IPS display variant under our microscope
Viewing Angles
Viewing angles are good. We take photos from different angles to evaluate the quality.
Also, a video with locked focus and exposure.
Color Coverage
The whole “sail-shaped” map below (Fig. 1) consists of all the colors we can see, while the black crooked line shows all the colors from real-world scenes and nature around us.
Then, we’ve drawn some of the most important and interesting color spaces, compared to the colors the panel of Lenovo LOQ Essential (15″, Gen 11, 15IRX11) can show:
Standard/For Web: sRGB – widely used color space for most consumer devices, ideal for Web design and development
For Print: AdobeRGB – used in professional photo editing, graphic design, and print
For Photographers/Video Editors: DCI-P3 – used in high-end film production, post-production, and digital cinema
Premium HDR: Rec.2020 – the widest consumer ITU color standard, covering a massive 75.8% of the visible spectrum, a benchmark for premium HDR content.
Lenovo LOQ Essential (15″, Gen 11, 15IRX11): the yellow dashed triangle (– – – – – –) represents the range of colors this display can show.
In our tests, we calculated the total color coverage of the display at 98% of the sRGB color gamut and 79% of the DCI-P3 color gamut.
(Fig.1) Lenovo LOQ Essential (15″, Gen 11, 15IRX11) covers 98% of the sRGB gamut
Brightness and Contrast
The maximum brightness in SDR mode is 322 cd/m² in the center of the screen and 332 cd/m² averaged across the surface with a maximum deviation of 9%.
The Correlated Color Temperature (CCT) on a white screen at maximum brightness is 6200K.
The contrast ratio is 1600:1.
Uniformity: Luminance, Contrast, and Color Deviation
The figure below shows the results from our uniformity test across different sections of the screen. It’s measured at 181 nits (Windows slider = 75%) – a brightness level we consider typical for standard working conditions.
DeltaE values below 4.0 are acceptable for regular users. For those working with colors, screens with DeltaE values no higher than 2.0 are recommended.
Color Accuracy
Let’s check the difference between real colors and those you’ll see on the Lenovo LOQ Essential (15″, Gen 11, 15IRX11). We measure that distance in DeltaE – the higher the number, the more different they look.
Values below 4.0 are acceptable for regular users, while values below 2.0 are suitable for color-sensitive work. A value below 1.0 means the difference is indistinguishable to the naked eye.
For the next graph, we’ve selected 24 common colors, including dark/light skin, blue sky, green grass, etc.
Before our calibration of the Lenovo LOQ Essential (15″, Gen 11, 15IRX11), the Average color accuracy was 1.5 dE (Fig. 2), and with our Design and Office profile, it lowered to 3.3 dE (Fig. 3).
(Fig. 2) Lenovo LOQ Essential (15″, Gen 11, 15IRX11) in its factory condition
(Fig. 3) Lenovo LOQ Essential (15″, Gen 11, 15IRX11) with our display profile
Comparison in the sRGB color space.
Here’s an illustration of what the Design and Office profile aims to deliver:
Left: No Profile | Drag the slider to see the difference | Right: Design & Office Profile
Visibility in dark scenes
Have you ever watched a movie with dark scenes where you could barely see anything? This often happens because many display panels struggle to differentiate the darkest nuances, making them appear the same.
The next figure illustrates how well the display reproduces these dark nuances. The left side of the image shows the display with stock settings, and the right side shows it with our Gaming and movies profile activated.
On the horizontal axis are the grayscale levels, and on the vertical axis – the corresponding display brightness.
You can also check how your display handles the darkest nuances but keep in mind that this also depends on the settings of your current display and the surrounding light conditions.
Response time (Gaming capabilities)
We test the reaction time of the pixels with the usual “black-to-white” and “white-to-black” method from 10% to 90% and vice versa.
We recorded Fall Time + Rise Time = 21.6 ms.
After that, we test the reaction time of the pixels with the usual “Gray-to-Gray” method from 50% White to 80% White and vice versa between 10% and 90% of the amplitude.
Health Impact: PWM (Screen flickering)
Some use PWM to regulate their brightness, which means that instead of reducing the light intensity, they pulse or flicker. Our brain merges the image, so it appears darker, but this strains both it and our vision, especially when the frequency of the pulses is low. You can read more about that in our dedicated article on PWM.
In the graph below, you see the intensity of light at different brightness levels—on the vertical axis is the brightness of the emitted light, and on the horizontal axis—time.
The light from the backlight of the Lenovo LOQ Essential (15″, Gen 11, 15IRX11) display is not pulse-width modulated, providing visual comfort in the discussed aspect.
Health Impact: Blue light emissions
Installing our Health-Guard profile reduces harmful Blue Light emissions while keeping the colors of the screen perceptually accurate.
If you’re not familiar with the Blue light, the TL;DR version is – emissions that negatively affect your eyes, skin, and your whole body. You can find more information about that in our dedicated article on Blue Light.
Health Impact: Screen Reflectance
Glossy-coated displays can cause eye fatigue in high ambient light conditions due to reflections. We measure the level of screen reflection with the display turned off, at a 60° angle.
The reflectance of the Lenovo LOQ Essential (15″, Gen 11, 15IRX11)’s screen is 55.5 GU. Good result!
High Gloss: >70 GU
Medium Gloss: 30 – 70 GU
Low Gloss: <30 GU
Get our profiles
Since our profiles are tailored for each individual display model, this article and its respective profile package are meant for Lenovo LOQ Essential (15″, Gen 11, 15IRX11) configurations with NE156FHM-NX9 (BOE0C29), 1920 x 1080, IPS panel.
*Should you have problems with downloading the purchased file, try using a different browser to open the link you’ll receive via e-mail. If the download target is a .php file instead of an archive, change the file extension to .zip or contact us at [email protected].
Read more about the profiles HERE.
In addition to receiving efficient and health-friendly profiles, by buying LaptopMedia's products you also support the development of our labs, where we test devices in order to produce the most objective reviews possible.
Design and Office
The Design and Office profile makes display colors as close to real as possible.Ideal not only for professionals but also for everyday users, it meets sRGB standards (D65 white point, sRGB gamma) with minimal DeltaE for precise color reproduction on your panel.
Gaming and Movies
Have you ever watched a movie where, during dark scenes, you can barely see anything? Many displays fail to distinguish dark tones properly. Our Gaming and Movies profile enhances low-light performance, like HDR tech, using a gamma curve tailored to human perception — ideal for gamers seeking faster reactions and clearer visuals.
Health-Guard
Our Health-Guard profile protects your eyes by eliminating PWM flickering, reducing strain and fatigue, and minimizing harmful Blue light exposure that can disrupt sleep and health. It uses software dimming and a gamma curve tailored to human perception for comfort and safety during screen use.
Get All The Profiles With 33% Discount!
Sound
The sound of the Lenovo LOQ Essential (15″, Gen 11, 15IRX11) is of relatively good quality. When listening to an audio file, the low, mid, and high frequencies have slight deviations in purity.
Work Performance: CPU, Storage, AI
All performance and temperature tests are conducted with Performance/Hybrid mode activated in Legion Space:
CPU and Work Performance
The Lenovo LOQ Essential (15″, Gen 11, 15IRX11) is equipped with Intel HX-series processors, including the Core i7-13650HX and the Core i5-13450HX. The i7-13650HX sits higher in our Top Laptop CPU Ranking at #38, offering stronger multi-core performance for gaming and heavier workloads, while the i5-13450HX at #79 provides a more budget-friendly alternative without sacrificing too much in everyday responsiveness.
Intel Core i5-13450HX is a decent CPU for gaming but if you need a powerful machine within an acceptable budget, Legion 5’s AMD Ryzen 7 260 is the better choice.
Single-core performance ensures smooth operation and responsiveness in operating systems, providing a better user experience.
Results are from the Geekbench 6 Single-Core test (higher is better)
Multi-core performance is essential for handling complex and demanding tasks, such as Video editing, CAD, and Scientific simulations.
Results are from the Geekbench 6 Multi-Core test (higher is better)
Here, we evaluate the CPU's performance using a real-world 3D rendering task, assessing its ability to handle complex computations and rendering workloads efficiently.
Results are from the Cinebench 2024 Multi-Core test (higher is better)
Storage Performance
We ordered a configuration with 512GB of storage and the LOQ Essential arrived with Micron 2500 (MTFDKCD512QGN-1BN1AABLA).
It’s a mid-range, 2242-sized PCIe 4.0 x4 NVMe drive, reaching 6.7GB/sec sequential read and 3.7GB/sec sequential write speeds in our benchmark, while keeping the temperatures within good range.
AI Performance
Here you can see the position of the GPUs and CPUs (NPUs) found within the Lenovo LOQ Essential (15IRX11 / 15ARP11, Gen 11) in our AI Hardware Performance Rankings based on their AI processing power, measured in TOPS (Tera Operations Per Second) - a critical metric indicating the computational throughput, particularly for AI tasks.
The first column shows peak performance for INT8/FP8 precision, which is the most widespread metric for evaluating AI inference capabilities. We exclude Sparsity to provide a more accurate reflection of AI performance in dense computation scenarios where sparsity optimizations may not be applicable. The second and third columns show the performance with Sparsity, and FP4 TFLOPS, when supported.
For SoCs, the results reflect the peak performance of the integrated NPU. Additionally, it’s important to note that, according to Microsoft, a NPU must have at least 40 TOPS of AI computing power for the PC to be considered “AI-capable.”
| # | GPU / CPU (NPU) | TOPS INT8/FP8 No Sparsity | TOPS INT8/FP8 Sparsity | TFLOPS FP4 Sparsity |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1017. | NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060 (Laptop) | 133 | 266 | 532 |
GPU and Gaming Performance
On the graphics side, the laptop can be configured with NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060 (Laptop) and RTX 5050 (Laptop) GPUs. The RTX 5060 currently ranks #60 in our Top Laptop Graphics Ranking, while the RTX 5050 sits at #104, making both options suitable for mainstream gaming and GPU-accelerated tasks depending on the chosen configuration and budget.
As you can see, not all RTX 5050 are made equal. LOQ 15 Essential has a very limited variant of this GPU, and the Legion 5 is 26-27% faster, while Acer Nitro V 15 (ANV15-52) is 7-9% faster.
The results are from 3DMark Time Spy (Graphics). Higher is better.
The results are from 3DMark Wild Life Extreme Unlimited. Higher is better.
Gaming tests
The Lenovo LOQ Essential is a highly capable budget gaming machine. In Counter-Strike 2, it delivers an excellent 153 FPS at 1080p on Very High settings, fully utilizing the 144Hz display for a smooth and responsive competitive experience.
| Counter Strike 2 | 1080p, Very High (Check settings) |
| Average FPS | 153 FPS |
In the visually demanding Black Myth: Wukong, the RTX 5050 performs admirably. You can achieve a blazing 141 FPS on Low settings, while switching to High settings still yields a very playable 69 FPS at 1080p, offering a great balance between visual fidelity and performance.
| Black Myth: Wukong | 1080p, Low (Check settings) | 1080p, High (Check settings) |
| Average FPS | 141 FPS | 69 FPS |
Shadow of the Tomb Raider runs great on this laptop. It pushes 113 FPS on Medium and maintains a smooth 106 FPS on the High preset at 1080p, ensuring a fluid and immersive single-player adventure.
| Shadow of the Tomb Raider | 1080p, Medium (Check settings) | 1080p, High (Check settings) |
| Average FPS | 113 FPS | 106 FPS |
Even with the heavy ray-tracing demands of Metro Exodus Enhanced Edition, the LOQ Essential holds its own. It manages to stay above the sweet spot for smooth gameplay, averaging 62 FPS on High settings at 1080p.
| Metro Exodus Enhanced Edition | 1080p, High (Check settings) |
| Average FPS | 62 FPS |
Temperatures and Comfort, Noise, Stability
Office Work, Web Development, Design
Short periods (0:00 – 0:10 s) of 100 % CPU load
This test shows the CPU behavior during short periods of serious load. It’s important for users who are looking for laptops suitable for tasks like Web Design and Programming.
| Intel Core i5-13450HX | Avg. P-Core Clock | Avg. CPU Temp. | Avg. CPU Power |
| Lenovo LOQ Essential (15″, Gen 11, 15IRX11) | 3869 MHz | 78 °C | 65 W |
The Lenovo LOQ Essential manages a high average P-core clock of 3869 MHz during the initial ten seconds of load. Power consumption peaks at 70 W but averages 65 W in this window. While the average temperature of 78 °C is considered good for quick bursts, the CPU does reach a high peak temperature of 96 °C momentarily. This indicates that the cooling system allows for aggressive performance boosts to handle rapid tasks like web design or programming compilation, though the temperature spike highlights the thermal intensity of the Intel Core i5-13450HX under peak pressure.
Video editing, Scientific computing, Software compilation, 3D rendering
Long periods (0:00 – 30:00 min) of 100 % CPU load
This test shows the CPU behavior during long periods of serious load. It’s important for users who are looking for laptops suitable for tasks like Video Editing and 3D Rendering.
| Intel Core i5-13450HX | Avg. P-Core Clock | Avg. CPU Temp. | Avg. CPU Power |
| Lenovo LOQ Essential (15″, Gen 11, 15IRX11) | 3007 MHz | 82 °C | 55 W |
Under sustained load for up to 30 minutes, the CPU frequency stabilizes at an average of 3007 MHz. This represents a significant drop of 1375 MHz from the initial peak clock observed in shorter bursts. However, the cooling system maintains an acceptable average temperature of 82 °C during this period. The power draw settles at 55 W, showing a controlled performance profile suitable for heavy tasks like video editing or 3D rendering. The thermal management effectively prevents the device from staying in the high temperature range, keeping the hardware within safe operational limits during long workloads.
Gaming Stability
Continuous gaming (1-hour test)
This test evaluates the laptop’s performance under sustained GPU load and high CPU usage.
| NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5050 | Avg. GPU Clock | Avg. GPU Temp. | Avg. Memory Clock | Avg. GPU Mem Temp. | Avg. GPU Power |
| Lenovo Legion 5 (15″, Gen 10) | 2944 MHz | 85 °C | 1272 MHz | 77 °C | 111 W |
| Lenovo LOQ Essential (15″, Gen 11, 15IRX11) | 2371 MHz | 73 °C | 1125 MHz | 74 °C | 60 W |
During a one-hour gaming session, the RTX 5050 maintains an average core clock of 2371 MHz. Thermal performance is excellent, with core temperatures reaching only 73 °C and memory temperatures at 74 °C, both well within the good range. Compared to the Lenovo Legion 5 (Gen 10) featuring the same GPU, the LOQ Essential operates at a much lower average clock speed and power draw (60 W vs 111 W). While the Legion 5 delivers higher frequencies at 2944 MHz, the LOQ Essential provides a very stable and much cooler gaming environment for its specific internal configuration.
Battery Life
The battery of the Lenovo LOQ Essential (15″, Gen 11, 15IRX11) is a 4-cell Lithium Iron Phosphate (LiFePO4), model L24B4PK0. Its nominal voltage is 12.92V and stores 60 Wh of electrical energy.
We tested the laptop with Quiet mode selected in Legion Space, Best Power Efficiency in Windows Settings and Hybrid mode for the GPU.
Lenovo Legion 5 (15″, Gen 10) did a much better job at the battery life tests with 73% higher result – 8:39h for the Legion against 5:00h for LOQ 15 Essential.
Brightness: 180 nits; Display Mode: SDR
Time to Full Discharge: Higher is Better
Disassembly, Upgrade options, and Maintenance
Getting inside the Lenovo LOQ Essential 15 is fairly straightforward once the bottom panel is off, and the internal layout is easy to read at a glance. You can immediately spot the single-fan cooling assembly with three heat pipes, the battery stretching across the front, the two memory slots under a metal shield, the M.2 storage area, and the user-replaceable wireless card.
The cooling solution is simpler than what you get on more powerful gaming machines, relying on one fan and three heat pipes to handle both the processor and the discrete graphics chip under the shared shroud. It is a clean arrangement, and the major components are well covered, but there is no second fan here, which naturally puts a firmer ceiling on how much cooling headroom this chassis can offer.
The battery is a 60Wh unit, secured by three Phillips screws plus a cable connector, so replacement should be easy when the time comes. It is one of the first major components you can remove during a teardown, which is always good news for long-term serviceability.
Storage is one of the more interesting parts of this machine. Lenovo officially specifies support for up to two M.2 PCIe 4.0 x4 drives in the 2242 format, and the motherboard does indeed provide two SSD positions. The reviewed configuration comes with a single drive installed, leaving the second bay open for expansion, while thermal pads on the bottom cover help draw some heat away from the storage area.
Our unit ships with a 512GB Micron 2500 NVMe SSD. It is a compact M.2 2242 drive, which matches Lenovo’s official storage specification. One important detail from the hardware itself is that, although the primary zone has visible PCB room beyond the drive, this particular machine does not have the far-end mounting post for a longer stick, so the only storage size we can confidently confirm here is 2242.
The wireless card is also easy to access and replace, sitting next to the storage area rather than being buried under the motherboard. That makes future servicing simpler, whether you are troubleshooting connectivity or swapping the card down the line.
Memory upgrades are handled through two DDR5 SODIMM slots hidden under a metal protective cover. The good news is that both slots are user-accessible, and our laptop has only one of them populated, which means you can expand the RAM without throwing away the factory module. Lenovo officially rates the model for up to 16GB of DDR5-4800 memory in total, even though the two-slot layout itself looks more generous than that paper specification suggests.
Our unit comes with a 16GB Ramaxel DDR5-5600 module, but HWiNFO shows it operating at roughly DDR5-4800, which matches both Intel’s official memory support for the Core i5-13450HX and Lenovo’s own note for the LOQ Essential 15IRX11.
A look at the underside of the palm rest also shows the touchpad assembly and some of the internal cabling, all of which remain accessible once the lower cover is removed. Overall, the LOQ Essential 15 is pleasantly easy to maintain thanks to its removable battery, replaceable Wi-Fi card, two RAM slots, and expandable storage, even if the SSD mounting hardware keeps the upgrade path a bit more limited than the board layout first implies.
Verdict
The Lenovo LOQ Essential (15IRX11, Gen 11) lives up to its name by offering a stripped-back entry point into modern PC gaming. It focuses heavily on providing a solid 1080p experience while systematically cutting non-essential features to achieve an aggressive price point. This makes it a fascinating, highly practical option for budget-conscious gamers who know exactly what they need and what they can live without.
However, hitting this budget tier requires some significant structural compromises, particularly in its cooling design, connectivity, and inputs. It is a machine that requires you to read the fine print before pulling the trigger.
You can check the prices and configurations in our Specs System: https://laptopmedia.com/series/lenovo-loq-essential-15irx11-gen-11/
✅ The Good
The standout surprise of this budget machine is its display quality. The 144Hz IPS panel covers an impressive 98% of the sRGB gamut, becomes highly color-accurate with our profile, and most importantly, is completely PWM-free to ensure excellent eye comfort during long gaming sessions.
Despite relying on a basic single-fan cooling system, the laptop manages its thermals exceptionally well under gaming loads. The GPU runs remarkably cool, maintaining a chilly 73°C during our continuous one-hour stress test. The chassis itself is also a win, offering a mature, smudge-resistant “Eclipse Black” finish, a 180-degree hinge, and a physical E-shutter switch for webcam privacy.
❌ The Bad
The biggest trade-off for the budget price is raw graphical power. Because of the single-fan cooling solution, the RTX 5050 is severely power-limited to just 60W, resulting in significantly lower clock speeds and gaming performance compared to other laptops with the same GPU. The gaming experience is further hampered by the keyboard, which features half-height, crammed arrow keys – a frustrating layout for a dedicated gaming machine.
Connectivity is also heavily restricted; all USB ports are capped at sluggish 5Gbps speeds, and the USB-C port entirely lacks video output capabilities. Internal upgradeability comes with a catch as well: the two M.2 slots only support the short 2242 SSD form factor, limiting your choices. Finally, the battery life is quite underwhelming, tapping out at just 5 hours of video playback.
🆚 The Competitors
The clearest comparison is against its more premium sibling, the Lenovo Legion 5 (15″, Gen 10) (detailed review). The Legion easily justifies its higher price tag by delivering nearly double the GPU power draw (111W vs 60W) for vastly superior frame rates, full-sized arrow keys, alongside a much larger battery that lasts 73% longer.
If you can afford the step up, the Legion is unequivocally the better gaming laptop. However, if your budget is strictly capped, the LOQ Essential provides a stable, cool-running, and visually pleasing 1080p gaming experience, provided you can accept its connectivity and power limitations.
Our conclusion? Get the Lenovo Legion 5 (15″, Gen 10), you won’t regret it.
Pros
- Great 144Hz display with 98% sRGB coverage and no PWM
- Runs exceptionally cool during sustained gaming
- Clean, smudge-resistant design with a 180-degree hinge
- Physical E-shutter switch for the webcam
- Comfortable 1.3mm key travel for typing
Cons
- Severely power-limited GPU (60W) restricts gaming performance
- Frustrating half-height, crammed arrow keys
- M.2 slots only accommodate short 2242 SSDs
Author: Simeon NikolovEditor-in-Chief at LaptopMedia.com with 20+ years of experience in testing and analyzing laptops and mobile devices.
Author: eng. Kroum NikolovHead of Engineering at LaptopMedia.com, inventor and innovator with 40+ years of experience in electronics and high technology.
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Does the laptop have any VRR (FreeSync or G-Sync)?