Is Buying A Gaming Laptop Worth It !FULL!
A gaming laptop is absolutely worth buying for a specific kind of user. If you have the money to spend and prize portability overpower or the ability to upgrade, then we can recommend a gaming laptop without hesitation.
is buying a gaming laptop worth it
With the proper software you can use gaming laptops as media servers. Basically you dump any and all media files on the laptop, connect it to the Internet and then connect to the laptop from other devices like smartphones and tablets. You can then stream the media files directly to those devices.
If you move around a lot and need a device that can both game and work, then a gaming laptop is an excellent choice and is absolutely worth the money. However, if gaming is an important hobby and you game in the same location, then a gaming PC will offer much better value for money.
Unfortunately, gaming laptops cost a lot of money to manufacture. Not only do they require special parts (hinges, shielding, custom plastic), but they need to include a keyboard, battery, screen, and trackpad. And since gaming laptops are at the center of a very competitive market, companies like Razer, ASUS, and MSI dump a ton of money into laptop R&D.
Modern gaming laptops are shockingly powerful. They can run AAA games without a hitch, and a reasonable five-hour battery life is expected from any decent machine. But even if a gaming laptop matches the technical specs of a desktop PC, it will almost always fall short on performance due to thermal and power constraints.
I strongly suggest looking into these alternatives before buying a gaming laptop. You can try Xbox Cloud Gaming, NVIDIA GeForce Now, or Stadia on any device with a free trial, and while the Steam Deck is backordered, you can make a reservation for just $400.
Competitive gamers demand the best of the best. We know that. Things like a high refresh rate panel and a GPU that can drive enough frames towards said panel are absolutely necessary in this day and age, and luckily gaming laptop manufacturers know this too. You can buy gaming laptops with a 360Hz panel, an RTX 3080 Ti, and a 12th gen Intel CPU, for example.
Of course a gaming laptop will always produce more heat and noise than a slim laptop meant for web browsing and light work applications, but in this day and age we find that the heat and noise levels of most laptops remain very bearable.
While the desktop remains supreme among many PC gamers, sometimes you just need something a bit more portable. A gaming laptop is a rig on the go, with the power to play games in a size you can take with you.
While some games use the CPU, the majority of games are still GPU-bound, so this is one of the biggest decisions you make when buying a gaming notebook. At the moment, the majority of gaming notebooks come with Nvidia GeForce GTX or RTX GPUs.
When you're shopping for a gaming laptop, you may find savings by checking out the latest Best Buy promo codes, Newegg promo codes, Corsair coupon codes, Dell coupon codes, HP coupon codes, Lenovo coupon codes or Razer promo codes.
Generally speaking, the answer is yes, gaming laptops can be a good choice for video editing as they both need similar components: strong CPU, lots of memory and good GPU.
In terms of performance, there is a pretty good overlap. Some (especially higher-end) gaming laptops will probably have stronger GPUs than most video editors need (even at 8K). But in terms of performance, these two categories are similar.
Keyboards, trackpads, sound, etc. are also essential but these really come down to personal preference. In this article, we wanted to cover the most critical components and ease your mind that most gaming laptops are good for video editing.
Buying a gaming laptop isn't easy as there are tons of options these days, with new models coming out every year sporting increasingly more powerful CPUs and GPUs. On top of that, a CPU or GPU might perform very differently from one laptop to another due to their power draw and the chassis' thermal limitations, making the buying decision even harder. To help you, we've narrowed down the best laptops and configurations that'll give you the smoothest gaming experience for various price segments. The list is short for now, but it'll grow as we review more laptops.
We've bought and tested over 65 laptops. Below you'll find our recommendations for the best gaming laptops you can buy. You can also see our recommendations for the best laptops, the best laptops for college, and the best Windows laptops.
The best gaming laptop we've tested is the Razer Blade 14 (2022), a premium 14-inch model. It has an incredibly sturdy aluminum chassis, a comfortable keyboard with per-key RGB backlighting, and plenty of ports for peripherals. It's very portable, thanks to its compact design, although you'll have to bring the charger if you want to game on the go, as the battery life is very short when gaming. Its 1080p webcam is pretty good if you want to stream, and it doubles as a Windows Hello IR camera for facial recognition, allowing you to log in quickly. The keyboard gets a little hot under load, but thankfully, the fans remain relatively quiet and aren't distracting.
Though entirely plastic, this laptop feels surprisingly sturdy, especially for a model in its price range. It has a comfortable and tactile keyboard, and the webcam is pretty good if you want to stream. Its port selection includes three USBs, an HDMI, and an Ethernet port. Like most laptops with a dedicated GPU, the battery life is very short, meaning you'll have to carry the charger when gaming on the go. The memory and storage are easily accessible and user-replaceable, so if you're short on cash, get the minimum of 8GB of memory and 256GB of storage to start and upgrade later on.
Our recommendations above are what we think are currently the best gaming laptops to buy. We factor in the price (a cheaper laptop wins over a pricier one if the difference isn't worth it), feedback from our visitors, and availability (no laptops that are difficult to find or almost out of stock everywhere).
Purists will argue that you need a PC to truly play games, especially if you're a fan of pushing the levels of graphics quality beyond the capabilities of a mere gaming console. To do that, the gaming desktop is still king, particularly when it comes to having the kind of components and horsepower needed to run 4K games smoothly and support virtual reality (VR) setups. But if you want or need something you can tote around the house or over to your friend's place, we're here to help you choose the right gaming laptop.
Our list of picks is ever-evolving as we test new models. We have organized our choices into our current favorites in the budget (under about $1,200), midrange (between budget and $2,000), and high-end ($2,000 and up) categories at each of the two major gaming-laptop screen sizes (15-inch and 17-inch). Smaller 14-inch gaming laptops fall into the "ultraportable gaming" class, and we've also designated a few additional favorites for areas such as overall value and unusual designs (such as twin-screen models). If the base model starts at a lower price, we may designate a model in a different price class than what we tested it at.
Also note that the budget class saw some price inflation through 2022 into 2023, given the silicon shortages and supply-chain issues that have plagued the industry since the pandemic began. Before, we'd have set a hard limit of $999 for budget gaming machines, but we are seeing price rises at the lower end of this market. So, we've lifted the price ceiling for this class of gaming machines. Check out a detailed breakout of our current picks for the best gaming laptops for 2023 below, followed by our extensive buying guide to how to shop for a gaming laptop.
With an entry-level $1,249.99 starting price, a load of configuration options, and a sturdy all-around build, we can comfortably recommend this laptop to the average mainstream gamer. Our configuration is a little pricier than the base model, which helps give you an idea of how it can scale up, so there's something for everyone here in a quality package with minimal concessions. A bright 165Hz display, Intel Core i7-12700H CPU, and Nvidia GeForce RTX 3060 combine for an excellent gaming experience for a wide variety of titles.
As for what makes the system a good pick, it's simply a fair bargain for a very capable big-screen laptop in this range. The Nvidia GeForce RTX 3060 GPU and AMD Ryzen 7 6800H processor are solid core components for mainstream and even enthusiast gaming. Paired with a 144Hz display and roomy 1TB SSD, this laptop delivers a solid gaming and general computing experience. (It's just not very portable.)
Budget-conscious gamers looking for the biggest screen possible will find a lot to like in the Nitro 5, especially if you can find a deal on this configuration. If your laptop will mostly stay in one place, or you're after a large-screen luggable, it's a good fit, and you'll get the wired Ethernet that is no longer standard issue on all gaming machines. Mainstream gamers can fit a large library on this system, and it will capably play most titles, even if the most demanding games will require you to knock down some settings.
Gamers looking for a midrange gaming laptop with a little bling, a lot of pep, and a modicum of value will be pleased with the latest rev of the Helios 300. Competition among laptops in the $1,100 to $1,300 range is so intense, though, that you really want to look for new entries and discounts on a week-to-week basis.
Since the floor for budget-laptop pricing has slowly risen, some true midrange models may give you more bang for your buck. The Lenovo Legion 5 Pro Gen 7 represents that idea splendidly, starting at $1,439.99 for an excellent and fully featured gaming laptop. Our review unit rings in at $1,599.99, and delivers very strong all-around gaming performance with its AMD Ryzen 7 6800H CPU and Nvidia GeForce RTX 3070 Ti GPU. Combined with a roomy 165Hz display, and a load of RAM and storage, this is a pretty blisteringly fast and fully featured gaming laptop, especially for the price. The base model can save you extra cash while still being plenty powerful. 041b061a72