Until recently, the mere mention of a gaming laptop was enough to make gamers chuckle. After all, how could manufacturers cram so much computing power into such a compact package? Despite this, the laptop market is growing. By leaps and bounds, gaming laptops are proving the doubters wrong, which poses a challenge when deciding between desktop and laptop gaming. We’ll give you seven suggestions for buying a gaming laptop in this article, so you’ll have the knowledge and specifications you need to make the best decision.
Here are 7 things to consider while buying a gaming laptop;
1. Battery Life
Battery life is critical when you’re in the middle of a long gaming session and there’s no nearby outlet. Hence battery life is the most important factor when buying a gaming laptop. Larger batteries produce more heat and are heavier, but you may always invest in a rechargeable battery pack to get additional game time.
2. Keyboards and Touchpads
On gaming laptops, a keyboard may be your primary input method, especially if you intend on playing a lot of shooting or strategic games. As a result, it’s critical to consider essential characteristics like key travel, actuation, and support for anti-ghosting and n-key rollover (allowing you to press multiple buttons at once for combos and not miss out on any).
The optimal key travel distance is between 1.5 and 2 millimeters. In the meanwhile, aim for keys that aren’t too soft or too difficult to push. When it comes to illumination, most gaming laptops will feature some sort of backlighting on the keys. When buying a gaming laptop, the majority will have a single red/white backlight, some will include RGB illumination that can be adjusted per section or per key. These not only look great, but they may also assist you in swiftly finding the proper keys when gaming.
Because you use the keyboard for the majority of your motions, you should check the keyboards as well. The key travel, or how far you can press the key down; actuation, or how much force you need to apply to press the key down; and anti-ghosting and n-key roller, which allows you to register all of the keys if pressed quickly, should all be taken into account to make your gaming experience more enjoyable. Also, most entry-level gaming laptops have a red or white backlight or some also may have an RGB backlight while some allow you to change colors as per the game.
3. Budget
Unless you’re Bill Gates or a multimillionaire, the cost of a computer is something that you should consider. And, certainly, computers are expensive in this day and age. You may expect to pay at least $700 for a good one. That already comes with standard specifications. They aren’t great for large games with complex visuals and music, but they will do for the majority of games. You must consider your total budget while buying a gaming laptop.
If you want something more costly, you might be able to locate anything for $1,000 to $1,500 or more. As a result, you may immediately fully enjoy your game without having to worry about it lagging. Its specifications will also save you money on future components and accessories. Of course, if you have the financial means, there are PCs available for as little as 1500 dollars or more.
4. CPU and GPU
Your CPU and GPU are, without a doubt, the performance drivers of your new gaming machine. As well as the most significant components of the laptop while you’re buying a gaming laptop. The more powerful the CPU and GPU, the better the overall performance of your gaming laptop. At this time, you should opt for an Intel Core-i7 CPU from the 10th or 11th generation. An i9 processor is also an option.
Nvidia GeForce GTX or RTX GPUs are some of the best to look at right now for the GPU, with the RTX 30-series being the most recent alternative. The AMD Radeon RX 5000M series, as well as the RX 5500M, 5600M, and 5700M are available.
Quad-core laptops are designed for gaming, but anything with more than four cores will usually be unused. The frequency of the processor is also crucial since it impacts how quickly the CPU functions. The two most popular CPU manufacturers are AMD and Intel®, but you’ll want to save enough money to get a good graphics card and extra RAM.
5. Screen Size
Every action you do, every goal you set, every detail, every adversary, and everything you enjoy while gaming is all visible on your screen. So keep in mind the laptop with the finest resolution, refresh rate, and viewing angle! Size, resolution, refresh rate, panel type, and G-sync and free sync are all factors to consider.
The most apparent consideration for buying a gaming laptop is the display size. Small laptops are convenient, but they typically lack the higher-end components you need to game on your own terms. Laptops with a screen size of 17 or 18 inches are generally more powerful since they have more area for heat-generating components to breathe. Look no further than a 15-inch laptop if you’re seeking a portable gaming notebook. These systems are usually between four and seven pounds in weight.
A 13- or 14-inch notebook is a stylish, portable alternative if you often attend LAN events or competitions. Your selection will also be influenced by the panel resolution. The most common resolution is 1080p. Although graphics cards with a 4K display are available, the technology required to support such a high resolution can be demanding.
6. Storage: SSD or HDD?
When it comes to gaming notebooks, quicker is usually better, which is why so many people choose SSDs, especially the latest PCIe cards, which provide lightning-fast file transfers. That added performance correlates to faster game load times and less hitching – that uncomfortable halt when your drive can’t keep up with the game because it can’t build assets quickly enough.
If an SSD is out of your price range, at the very least, purchase a 1TB hard disk with a 7,200-rpm speed. Instead of deciding between the two, we recommend going with a setup that includes both an SSD and a hard drive. That way, you can store your games and essential data on the fast SSD while still having enough space for anything else. You need to consider SSD or HDD while buying a gaming laptop.
7. Upgradability
Because gaming may tax your machine’s RAM, being able to update your RAM in the future will be critical. A gaming computer should have at least 16GB of RAM. If you’re buying a gaming laptop, you might be able to get by with an 8GB RAM model, but it’ll be perfect if you can upgrade to 16GB tomorrow.
