What to consider before buying gaming laptop

Gerard Hill -

Gaming laptops, as the name suggests, are solely for the gamers. They serve the purpose of providing an enjoyable gaming experience to the player that no other laptop can offer. There are various brands which offer gaming laptops and are quite famous too. Renowned names like Asus, HP, Dell, Razer, and MSI are the pioneers of some amazing gaming laptops of all times. The variety, however, can be very confusing. It is easy to get lost in the bubble of the type that you can get, in the name of gaming laptops. Which one should you buy? Which one is worth the investment? Which one can provide an enhanced gaming experience? The questions are innumerable and forking out quite a significant amount of money, without any useful data, is mere stupidity.

Therefore, we have summed up some amazing and easy to use tips that will help you in buying the best among laptop for yourself. These tips will allow you to consider and analyze a lot of essential information before investing in a good gaming laptop. Thus, make sure that you think the following things before you pool in some handsome amount of cash in a gadget.

Let’s get started!

Quick things to consider

Before digging into the details, some smart things must be on your fingertips before you pick up the best gaming laptops for yourself. Even when you are putting up some choices; you must have the best ones lined up. Thus, the first and smallest things to consider are as follows:

• GPU: Gaming laptops are usually dependent on GPU. Therefore, you need to pay attention to this element as you cannot upgrade these. If the GPU is good, it brings in a guarantee that your laptop will run great for the upcoming years.

• Upgradation: If you would like to keep your gaming laptop along for almost 7-8 years, then you might consider the upgradations that it allows. Most of the gaming laptops do not permit you to the storage or RAM, but there are some exceptions as well. Don’t forget to inquire a little bit into this element.

• Battery Life: Without a second thought, this is one of the essential features to look into while buying a gaming laptop for you. Lousy battery life will certainly not work for gamers. However, gaming laptops usually don’t have more than 8 hours of battery life. Thus, make sure that you get a one that is at least above 5 hours 9on the safer side).

• Keyboard: Keyboard must be excellent and professional because you cannot play games on a stiff console. You will get tired of it. Thus, make sure that you are investing in the right keyboard so that you can play games at ease.

GPU requirements

Before we get into the specification requirements, a lot of people need to understand the GPU considerations. Every gamer requires a different GPU, and you must know your requirement before buying a gaming laptop. Today, most of the gaming notebooks are not CPU dependent, which is why knowing GPU is very crucial. Also, the majority of the laptops are running with GTX GPU or Nvidia GeForce GTX. Thus, we will be explaining the GPU requirements, in brief, with the help of the above mentioned two major GPU’s, which are used in gaming notebooks nowadays.

• Beginners: If you have just made your entry in the gaming world, then you probably do not need a laptop with a high setting. A GTX 1650 will be reasonably good enough for you. You can play almost all the games with this GPU at medium settings which are great for a beginner. GTX 1660 will be a little, and if you have been into gaming for a few months, then you might enjoy that more.

• Mainstream Gaming: Virtual reality is a massive thing in the gaming era these days. However, if you do not have a tremendous amount of cash to invest in a laptop which offers you maximum VR experience, you can rely on NVidia’s GeForce RTX 2060. It provides you an excellent virtual reality experience. On the other hand, it is excellent for a gaming experience at a higher setting. Thus, if you are a pro and it has been a year or two since you started gaming, then this GPU is an excellent pick to make.

• Highest Settings: Now, the professional gamers need the most top virtual reality experience along with superb highest setting for their gaming experience. This is where, the expert gamers, need to get an RTX 2070 or the RTX 2080. You can also get the RTX 2080 Ti if you need much higher settings.

Now that you understand the GPU requirements, you would have hopefully understood the GPU that you would be okay with. Thus, now you can look into the specifications, and you are good to buy the best gaming laptop for yourself that suits your needs perfectly.

What specifications to look for?

GPU plays a significant role in the gaming experience, and once you understand the GPU you need, you are halfway through, making your pick. However, considering some basic specs is also essential. Here, are the specifications that one must look into before finally buying their best gaming notebook.

• RAM: 8GB RAM is the average RAM recommendation for gamers. If you have the right amount to invest, then a 16GB RAM will be perfect as it is the best for professional players.

• Storage: A lot of gaming laptops come with both hard drive and SSD these days. It is smarter to make those laptops your pick. The pros of the larger SSD are endless. Your games will take, little to no time, to load and open. However, the larger the SSD, the more money you need to pool in. So think before you leap.

• CPU: Core i7 is the most powerful and best CPU to opt for, but it comes down to your budget as i7 can be costly. A Core i5 processor will also work just fine.

Display

Once you have looked into all the technicalities of your gaming laptop, don’t forget to pay attention to its display. How can a gamer enjoy his game, without a good display? Here are some things that you should look into before buying the laptop:

• Size: A 15 or 17-inch display screen is great, but if you love larger screens, then an 18-inch display is going to be incredible. Don’t settle for shows less than 14 inches because they aren’t that fun in gaming.

• Don’t buy touch screens: Gamers need to avoid buying touch screens because they kill the battery much faster. Also, we think that the gaming experience is better with the keyboard.

• Resolution: Gamers, don’t invest in any laptop that provides you a resolution of less than 1920 x 1080 displays. It is hard to find this excellent resolution but search as hard as you can because you are investing a significant amount in it and you certainly do not want it to go to waste.

Bottom line

The best advice that you can leave with is; buy a gaming notebook that at least lasts you a few years. Don’t invest a handsome amount of money in a laptop that won’t go through 2 years even. Remember that gaming laptops cost you a hefty amount and no matter the GPU or CPU you choose; the investment is enormous. Also, don’t settle for a reduced resolution and make sure that the keyboard is easy to handle. Read several reviews before making your pick.

In the end, make sure that you rely on famous and well-known brands as they offer you warranty too. Brands like Asus, Acer, Lenovo, HP, MSI, and Samsung are offering some of the best gaming laptops. Search from within them and then make your best pick!

Resources for this guide

  • LaptopDiscovery: How to Buy the Right Gaming Laptop (The Complete Guide)
  • LaptopMag: What to Look for in a Gaming Laptop?
  • TomsHardware: How to Buy a Gaming Laptop: A Guide for 2019
  • Quora: What features are important when buying a gaming laptop?
  • Reviews Crush: Cheap Gaming Laptop Buying Guide