How to upgrade the SSD in the Lenovo Legion Go

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If you own a Lenovo Legion Go or are thinking about getting one, you've probably already thought about how to get the most storage possible. There's an official 1TB option that's not too expensive, but if you want to save money now and buy the 512GB model, or want more than 1TB of storage, you can upgrade it yourself.




Since the Legion Go uses a 2242 M.2 SSD, you'll need a few things to get started and your replacement SSD will need to be the right size, so any others won't be enough for the Asus ROG Ally or other Steam Deck alternatives.

What you need to know about replacing the Legion Go SSD

When replacing the SSD in the Legion Go, you will need the following:

  • A new replacement SSD
  • A PH00 screwdriver and a PH0 screwdriver
  • A plastic spudger to separate the back plate
  • An SSD enclosure for cloning the drive

For the SSD enclosure, we recommend buying two of these if possible, as you can then use a tool like Macrium Reflect to clone from the old drive to the new one. From there, you can enable it to expand the drive size to fill the entire SSD. Once it's ready, you can just pop it into your Legion Go and boot it up as normal.


If you really don't want to buy a new SSD enclosure, you can try installing this SSD into your computer, but we don't recommend it. Although it's shorter, it will still work in a regular NVMe slot on a motherboard. However, it's easier to use an enclosure, so you should use one.

Step 1: Turn off the Legion Go, remove the controllers and the back plate

The easiest step

To replace your SSD in the Legion Go, you first need to do the following:

  1. Turn off the Lenovo Legion Go.
  2. Turn on the device on the front And Remove the controllers.
  3. Lift the stand to expose the area underneath.
  4. Unscrew the rear screws with your PH00 screwdriver.
  5. Use your plastic separation tool to get between the plastic backplate and the chassis of the Lenovo Legion Go, starting at the lip of the backplate below the kickstand.


Be careful when removing the back plate as it is attached to the rest of the device with many plastic clips. We recommend separating it to the left or right of the lip of the back plate under where the kickstand was. Be slow and careful when removing it and it should be no problem.

Step 2: Lift the adhesive tape and disconnect the battery

Be careful with it

Battery connector on Lenovo Legion Go

Next, you need to peel off the tape that covers the battery connector on the right side of the Lenovo Legion Go. Remove it by pulling it downwards away from the connector, but be careful not to damage the connector.


Step 3: Lift the tape covering the SSD and unscrew it

Make sure the metal foil is intact

Lenovo Legion Go SSD still in the device, but with the tape removed

Once the battery is disconnected (you don't have to pull it far to disconnect it), you can remove the SSD.

  1. Remove the black tape covering the SSD.
  2. Screw the SSD from the device with your PH0 screwdriver.
  3. Wiggle the SSD out of the connector, leaving the metal foil intact.

Once disconnected, you can copy your data using Macrium Reflect or any other software of your choice. Leave the metal foil intact as it will prevent interference from other components affecting the SSD.


Step 4: Once your data is copied, reinsert the SSD and reassemble the Legion Go

Putting everything back together

Lenovo Legion Go SSD with foil over it removed from the device

Now you can reinsert the SSD. Make sure that you put the metal foil that was on the old SSD over the new one. This foil is there to prevent electrical interference.

  1. Wrap the film about the new SSD.
  2. Insert the SSD reinsert and screw tight.
  3. Insert the battery back in.
  4. Place the Back plate again, Make sure all clips are in place.
  5. Screw it back on.
  6. Turn on Lenovo Legion Go.

If all goes well, a new SSD is installed and working in your Lenovo Legion Go!


What you can now do with your Lenovo Legion Go

With the money you saved by upgrading the SSD yourself, you can buy a new case or even buy a few more games! Replacing the SSD in the Lenovo Legion Go is one of the more difficult in current gaming handhelds, but still doable for anyone with the right tools and a bit of time.

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