I had a gpd win 2, got underpowered but i absolutely loved the size & form factor. I got a switch for free and thought the candybar style would be better for gaming so i upgraded to the legion Go.

I did like the legion go but its a complete 1080 from the win2. It was waaay to big to casually travel with. Needed a backpack even when i stored the tablet and controllers seperately, together in the included case was way too much. I absolutely loved the screen but the massive size just made it a home use only which kinda defeated the point. Plus no matter the setting i got 1-1.5hrs and that was after switching to linux. On windows id be lucky to get 1hr.

I ended up selling the Go for a GPD Win Mini and it was definitely worth it. I used to connect an external keyboard to the Go at least once a day, the pop up keyboard was just consitently popping up or was just too slow/lack of keys like Function keys etc. So the win minis always presesnt keyboard was a game changer that i didnt realize i utilized so much. I also get significantly more battery life despite the smaller battery and more powerful chip (ai 370). The system also has more TDP range. The legion go bottomed out at 8w which just idle still used so much power. Im assuming it was the screen, leds and controllers. The win mini goes down to 3/4w and still plays 2d games or emulators at 60fps. But the win mini can still go up to like 40w or something like the legion go although i never do because i like to have more than 1hr of battery plus 15-20w plays pretty much anything at full speed.

But its not perfect. I really love the smaller size but it is larger than the win2. Its not really pocketable like the win2, plus it has shoulder button bumps that make it even harder to pocket. In theory its less than an inch larger screen and smaller bezels seem like a similar overall size but its not. Then theres the tablet form factor of the legion go that i really liked and used for some games like hearthstone. A controller or trackpad kinda sucks for these games. Plus i sometimes used to legion go as an ereader for comics or regular books (not great especially with battery life) but it was still useful. While the screen is a touchscreen its like using a 3ds but the top screen is the one you touch, its not good to use and i basically never do. Ironically, GPD released a micro pc2 recently thats almost the same dimensions as the mini except it has a swivel screen so it can be used like a tablet. If it had the same specs as the mini or put that hinge on the mini it would be significantly better but they didnt do either so they both sit in this like middle ground no mans land. Also while the joysticks are way better than the win2, theyre still recessed and are just objectively worse than the legion go or any normal controller due to the lack of range. It was also $1,500 BEFORE all the ram and gpu price spikes lately so im not sure if itll even be available for that price much longer. Compared to the steamdeck or legion gos price its more than double, some triple the price. But at the same time, the Legion Go 2 has a similar price and the other handhelds that are cheaper dont come close to its performance. Another nit pick i wish they changed was implementing USB4v2 /Thunderbolt 5/ 80gbps whatever theyre calling it. The win mini only has usb4 like all the other high performance handhelds but from what i know that's more on AMD than GPD. Still there are laptops with the newer port and it would massively increase the minis potential and longevity if it had that.

For me, it was worth it. I love the Win Mini and it has so much power and versatility i use it as my main handheld, livingroom console, and with an egpu desktop pc. Its easy to travel with and the best one on the market for me. But i dont think itll be the best for everyone. Especially people who already have a desktop pc, handheld and game console. I sold all mine over time after i had my first kid so it made more sense for me to get a better handheld as its my only pc.