Things to keep in mind when choosing a gaming laptop
As technology has matured and manufacturing has improved, computer components have been refined to become more energy efficient and to emit less heat. These developments have allowed the creation of powerful mobile hardware designed to fit inside a laptop. While desktop computers used to be a PC gamers only option, this new hardware has enabled the creation of special gaming laptops capable of running the latest games at high settings; gamers can now choose whether to buy a desktop rig or to buy laptop for their gaming pleasure. This article will examine gaming laptops, pointing out what consumers should look for when choosing a gaming laptop and which brands are making the best gaming laptops available today.
Screen Size, Screen Resolution and Physical Dimensions
Gaming laptops come in a variety of sizes, ranging from 11.6″ screen sizes all the way up to 18.4″ behemoths. Laptops with larger screens run at a higher screen resolution than those with smaller screens, meaning that they need more powerful hardware to run games at acceptable frame rates.
Screen size also dictates the size of the laptop. 11.6″ laptops are small, easily portable and lightweight while an 18.4″ laptop is significantly larger, heavier and harder to move from location to location. Smaller laptops are ideally suited for gamers who spend a lot of time on the go moving from place to place, whereas larger “desktop replacement” gaming laptops are recommended for gamers who move their laptop infrequently but still require the flexibility that a laptop provides.
Battery Life
Running computer hardware at full load requires a lot of power which can quickly deplete battery life. Most gaming laptops offer a battery life of a few hours at most, which may be inadequate for those who wish to game for longer periods of time. It is possible to buy laptop accessories like external batteries or external power packs that can boost battery life, but these can be heavy, cumbersome and difficult to transport.
CPUs, GPUs & RAM
Modern day CPUs and GPUs come in both desktop and mobile flavors. The mobile types require significantly less power than their desktop counterparts while emitting less heat making them perfect for use in laptops.
Intel & AMD both produce mobile chips that are capable of playing current generation games at high quality settings. Generally, AMD chips offer better power efficiency while Intel chips offer more brute power.
RAM prices have fallen dramatically in recent years, allowing for laptops to carry large amounts of RAM as standard. 4 GB should now be considered as the bare minimum, with 8 GB being an optimal amount of RAM. 16 GB of RAM should ensure that the gaming laptop is capable of running the latest games well into the future.
Hard drives & SSDs
Solid state drives, or SSDs as they are more commonly known, have become more popular in recent times as prices have dropped to affordable levels. For gaming laptops, SSDs provide quick read and write access leading to snappy operating system performance and short loading times while gaming. SSDs also emit less heat, use less power and are more reliable than standard disk drives. SSDs are unable to match the storage limits of disk drives, however, with limited space available. The ideal solution to this problem is to pair up an SSD based gaming laptop with an external hard drive.
Recommended Gaming Laptop Manufacturers
Most laptop manufacturers produce gaming laptops. Alienware, a company focused on building high performance gaming rigs, produces a wide variety of laptops with screen sizes starting as small as 11.6″ and as large as 18.4″. These laptops don’t come cheap, however, but their performance and build quality reflects the price.
Asus, MSI, Dell and Sony also produce a number of gaming laptops in a variety of different form factors. These laptops are designed for all purpose usage but they come equipped with powerful CPUs and GPUs capable of running games.
Apple’s Macbook Pro range offers a unique proposition for gamers looking for a portable rig. While these machines are unable to match the performance of their more powerful Windows based counterparts, these laptops offer significantly better battery life than most gaming laptops in a smaller and lighter form factor.
Conclusion
Gaming laptops are a powerful option for gamers looking to game while on the move. These machines are capable of running the latest games at high settings providing gaming performance that was previously unheard of. They are a perfect purchase for gamers looking for a portable gaming fix.
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