How to choose a gaming laptop in 2024 And not regret spending tens or hundreds of dollars pt.1
How a gaming laptop differs from other laptops
You might assume that gaming laptops are any powerful models. As a rule, this is true, but not always. To run demanding games, the hardware must be not only powerful, but also balanced. A weak processor or lack of RAM can easily become a "bottle neck", when the low performance of one component prevents to reveal the potential of another, more powerful.
In addition, some elements of the laptop may be too powerful even for the most "voracious" games, so there is a risk of seriously overpaying for the device.
For example, Acer ConceptD 7 for $3,610 is a good example of a powerful device not for gaming. The laptop is equipped with flagship hardware: RTX 3080 graphics card, 10th generation Intel Core i7 and 64 GB of RAM.
With such characteristics, you can comfortably run any game, but some of the described details are unreasonably powerful. Even "heavy" games today do not require such a powerful processor and a gigantic amount of RAM. But work in such programs as Premiere Pro and Blender, such power will simplify.
ConceptD 7 has a 4K display with a quality IPS matrix and a 1TB SSD. Suitable for heavy-duty programs
The IPS matrix comes in handy for those who work with color and video: it reproduces colors well, and the 4K resolution allows you to see even the smallest details of the image. Colors are transmitted in the expanded color space Adobe RGB - most modern cameras shoot in it. That's why photographers will find this screen useful.
But gamers don't need a second screen - the refresh rate of the monitor, which in the case of ASUS is standard 60 Hz, is much more important for them. You can't see more than 60 frames per second on the laptop, although technically it is capable of more. The only way out is to buy a stationary 144 Hz monitor for the device, but this is an additional expense.
Refresh rate, Hz, shows how many times per second the screen can refresh. This is the ultimate smoothness in the game: for example, if the refresh rate is 60 Hz, the number of frames per second above 60 will not be displayed
It turns out that not every working laptop is optimal for gaming. But in the opposite direction, the rule works almost flawlessly. If the device copes well with modern games, it will be enough for other tasks - for example, for editing or graphic design.
Fortunately, not all manufacturers today offer a fancy, angular "gamer" look of notebooks with RGB backlighting, so there is plenty to choose from.
Video card
When choosing a gaming laptop, you should first of all pay attention to the graphics card and processor. They are the ones that ensure performance in games.
Video cards for computers and laptops are different
In this article, when describing and comparing different chips, we mean mobile graphics cards - models designed to match the form factors of gaming laptops. Their power is lower than similar versions for desktop PCs due to the limited cooling system.
At first glance it may seem that the bigger the number in the name, the better: it is logical that RTX 3080 video chip is more powerful than RTX 3070. Moreover, video card manufacturers, Nvidia and AMD, take into account different financial possibilities of buyers, that's why they present several chips within the lineup at once - the more powerful, the more expensive.
- A laptop with the weakest of the fresh Nvidia graphics cards, RTX 3050, can be bought for less than 700$, and a device with the most powerful card, RTX 4090, will cost about 2000$. So, there is a device for every wallet.
But there are a few nuances here. First of all, video chips from the latest lineup are not necessarily more powerful than chips of the previous generation. For example, the RTX 2080 mobile graphics card generally performs better than the RTX 3060.
However, it's important to realize that an older line of graphics cards is also an older technology. The RTX 3060 may be weaker than the RTX 2080, but it's technically more advanced. And devices with RTX 2080 can easily turn out to be more expensive.
Secondly, in case of laptops it is not enough just to choose a device with a suitable video card. Often manufacturers artificially limit the power of the video chip. This is not done out of malice: if engineers make a very thin notebook, it will not be possible to place a powerful cooling system inside it, which will cope with all the hot components.
You have to limit the maximum amount of electricity supplied to the graphics card. Thus, it generates less heat so that the fans can effectively expel excessive heat from the device. This has a direct impact on performance. The TDP value, calculated in watts, is used to indicate how much power the system gives to a particular component.
Until recently, Nvidia required all third-party manufacturers to indicate what kind of graphics card was in the device. For this purpose, the Max-Q label was used to designate less powerful devices. Unfortunately, today there is no such requirement. This leads to the fact that two devices with identical hardware can show different performance in games.
Let's take two laptops for example: HP Omen 15-en1030ur and XMG Neo 15 (not officially sold in Russia). The devices have the same not only video card, but also processor, amount of RAM and even weight. Everything indicates that the performance should be very similar. Nevertheless, the TDP of the video card in the HP device is 25 watts lower than in the XMG, which translates into a noticeable difference in the number of frames per second in games.
That is, if you are interested in buying the most optimal laptop model, you will have to familiarize yourself with the detailed technical specifications before buying - find all the limitations, view tests. As a rule, technobloggers such as Jarrod'sTech, Pro Hi-Tech or Linus Tech Tips. have it all.
Now it's important to understand what kind of performance you need. What number of frames per second (FPS) will be comfortable for you? When will you be ready to replace your device with a new, more powerful one? These questions need to be kept in mind, because a laptop is a turnkey solution, and replacing the graphics card in it, as in a desktop PC, in most cases will not work.
If you need maximum performance, you should pay attention to laptops with RTX 4090 (24 GB) and RTX 4080 (16 GB) - or to models with their counterpart from AMD, RX 7000M (8 GB). You'll have to pay at least $2,000 for them, if you manage to find them on sale: it's harder to find them in Russia. Nevertheless, they will remain relevant for the next few years.
- For example, RTX 4080 in the recent Call Of Duty: Modern Warfare 2 produces 144 FPS at maximum graphics settings in 4K. If we consider 60 FPS as a necessary minimum, RTX 4080 should be enough now with a reserve.
RTX 4080 is designed to play in 4K (UHD) resolution - it should be enough to play modern releases at 144 FPS at high settings, but without ray tracing. Don't forget that 144 FPS and 4K gaming requires a proper monitor. You don't have to worry about this in the most recent models, but the lines of top-performing gaming laptops over the past three years have included models with a 1440p (QHD) screen.
If you're willing to make some compromises but want games to look good today, you can go one notch lower: RTX 3060 (6GB) or older versions of last generation's lineup - like the RTX 2080 (8GB). In the case of video cards from previous years, be careful: as I said, it's easy to overpay for devices with them.
With such hardware to achieve high FPS in games - from 60 frames per second and more - you will have to slightly reduce the graphics settings, but even in this case the picture will still be very decent. Laptops with RTX 3060 can be found today within 750$.
Anything weaker than the cards described above is a very serious compromise that will force you to lower the graphics settings in the latest games today. Think twice about whether it's worth saving money in this case. In a couple of years, graphics cards with RTX 3050 (4 GB) may become irrelevant and you'll have to buy a new laptop for gaming. But if you are going to play only undemanding games (Dota 2, Wargaming games, Overwatch, Counter-Strike: Global Offensive), it is quite a working option.
It is also important to decide on the manufacturer of the video card. Today the market is represented by two companies: Nvidia and AMD.
In the community of players it is considered that the former cope with their task better than the latter - and performance indicators in benchmarks and games, as a rule, confirm it. In particular, the RTX 4090, the most powerful current mobile graphics card from Nvidia, outperforms AMD's flagship RX 7000M chip in most recent games.
Another advantage of Nvidia's chips are separate compute cores for raytracing and tensor computing. The former are more efficient at calculating the movement of light in RTX games. The latter are needed for correct operation of another technology, DLSS, which allows to run games in lower resolution, but without loss of visual quality. DLSS is available only on Nvidia RTX chips.
This not only significantly increases the number of frames per second, but also helps games run at the desired resolution: for example, a laptop does not "pull" native 2160p, but thanks to DLSS it will cope with the load. So the technology could potentially make any laptop relevant for longer. Previously, if a device stopped maintaining decent performance in games, it had to be replaced. Today, it's enough to turn on DLSS so that even games that are impossible for the laptop's iron will show a more comfortable frames per second.
But it doesn't mean that a laptop with a chip from AMD is a bad choice in advance. The company's current models have good performance. Plus, AMD has its own DLSS analog called FidelityFX Super Resolution. It doesn't require separate tensor cores and still performs almost as well as the competition.
The only important thing to remember is that it is desirable to buy an AMD video chip in conjunction with a processor of the same company. This will make possible the work of two AMD-exclusive technologies: Smart Access Memory and SmartShift. In brief, they are aimed at making the components of the device work better in conjunction with each other.
Unfortunately, they don't show much efficiency now, but this may change in the future. If it does, it will be a shame that you won't be able to utilize the full potential of the hardware due to improper component selection.
Remember: how to choose a video card
The paragraph turned out to be voluminous - to reinforce the point, I have listed all the main theses on how to choose a video card:
- A laptop is a finished product. You can't replace a graphics card over time like you can on a PC in most cases.
- Not always the bigger the number in the name, the better: video cards from last year's lines may be more powerful than the current ones, but the models with them are more expensive.
- Often manufacturers limit the power of graphics cards in their models so that notebooks do not overheat. Because of this, devices with similar chips can show different performance. It is advisable to know the TDP of the video chip in advance.
- Pay attention to the manufacturer of the video card and choose the model for your needs.
- Do not rely on specs alone - see how the laptop performed in tests and reviews.
Processor
Choosing a video card is the most nuanced, and then it gets much easier.
It is difficult to make a mistake with the choice of processor today for two reasons. First, current models are often sold with current processors, so you don't have to choose between generations.
Second, processors age slower than video cards. This means that any current model will show acceptable results and will serve the player well for many more years. This applies to the last generation models as well.
Of course, more expensive flagship models will give better performance, but the overpayment is not worth such a minor performance boost.
What I described above is relevant only for games. If you are choosing a laptop for work tasks - rendering, graphics, it is worth paying attention to the older models of the current generation.
Processors for consumer laptops today are produced by Intel and AMD. Many players believe that the solutions from AMD in recent years are better, but this does not always correlate with the tests: mobile processors of Intel 12th generation on average cope better with games than AMD Ryzen 7000-series. So if you're only interested in gaming performance, it makes sense to look at Intel.
However, you should keep in mind that modern Intel processors are very power-hungry. For maximum performance they need a "fat" TDP, which not every cooling system can cope with. Therefore, if you decide to buy a device with i7 or i9 - the flagship versions of the current 12th generation processors, you need to make sure that the laptop will be able to serve them adequately
To do this, you will again have to turn to reviews on the Internet. Ideally - to find the results of a stress test, specifically loading the processor at 100%, for example, AIDA64. If the device demonstrates stable performance after a long test and the core temperature does not rise above critical values - +90...95 °C, all is well.
Otherwise, you will not be able to avoid "trotting" - a condition in which the components heat up so much that the system has to sharply limit performance to avoid overheating.
As for Ryzen, they are good processors that offer decent performance. Plus, they have an important advantage for those who often use their laptops without a power supply. AMD processors are more energy efficient than Intel: all other things being equal, a laptop with Ryzen will last longer.
It's also worth remembering that current Ryzen processors work very well at low TDP. When the system allocates little power to the components - when working from the battery or in the "quiet mode", which the user can turn on manually, AMD solutions are ahead both in working tasks and gaming.
The conclusion is self-evident: if compactness is important to you and you are going to use your notebook in battery mode often, you should take Ryzen. If performance is the only thing that matters to you, it makes sense to take a closer look at the 11th generation of Intel processors.