Gaming laptops

[Mikebentley]

Sure this has been covered, son needs a laptop for school. He is 13 next month. I thought I should get him a gaming laptop. I’m a bit thick on IT stuff but are there any recommendations for a sub £1k. Laptop for school and gaming?

[dundarach]

console+tv and laptop for work if space isn't a concern.

having it all in one seems like a nice idea, however I prefer to keep them separate.

others will be along in a moment to explain why I'm wrong.

£1000 will buy you a really nice laptop, alienware I would look at, as they look cool and are from Dell which I like along with HP

https://www.dell.com/en-uk/gaming/alienware-laptop...

Actually just looked at the cost - blimey! PS5 (£500) TV (£200) Office lappy (£300) - lucky lad

[joshleb]

How serious kind of gaming?

Fortnite, minecraft type, or Warzone and GTA?

And if it's for school will he want it to be portable, as once you add a graphics card and the required cooling into the mix the laptops just get bigger and bigger!

[Mikebentley]

Thanks guys, yes it needs to be portable. Needs to function as a laptop for Microsoft school use and double up for gaming at home (Fortnite, Minecraft etc).
He is a lucky boy but we are very proud of him. His sister is 15 and has Downs Syndrome so he puts up with a lot and asks for nothing. He is in second year at a private school and recently scored perfect marks across all 14 subjects as well as excelling at swimming and piano outside of school.

I see it as investing in him. Popped into Curry’s today and there were a couple in the £700 range that looked interesting.

[joshleb]

Nice one, he sounds like a good kid!

Had a quick look on Curry's and this kind of one looks like it could fit the bill.

https://www.currys.co.uk/gbuk/computing/laptops/la...

1660 Ti graphics card that should last a while and give good FPS on games over the next couple of years
512GB storage so enough for games
8GB RAM
Ryzen 7 4800H

This would play his games at full HD with good frames per second, be perfectly competent for all school work and it looks pretty snazzy.
Might have to see the size and weight of it first.

Don't take my word as bible though, there are far more experienced people than me!

[Mikebentley]

Thanks Joshleb that’s really kind of you to take the time. I gather they are generally thicker etc because they have bigger fans etc due to how hot they can get.

[frisbee]

Weight and how easy it is to carry is definitely something to consider. My personal laptop (gaming) weighs 2.5 kg and, with a 15.6" screen, is big volume wise as well.

My work laptop weighs 1kg has a 12" screen and is fine to cycle or run commute with.

There is quite a big difference in the weight of the power supplies as well.

[Mr Whippy]

A bit older but I have an MSI GS73VR which has been solid for almost 4 years now.

They did a GS63VR which has a smaller screen but is equally decent.

They came with 1060 gpu and NVMe ssd in most cases. Plenty to game with at 1080p on a telly if needed.

Also decent screen options on the laptops.

You might find a new one or decent used one for budget.

Use MSI Afterburner to undervolt the GPU and they run cooler and quieter and longer on battery.

Very nice quality laptops at the time, now a relative bargain used.


Worth a look.

[bitchstewie]

This looks OK for the money?

https://www.amazon.co.uk/ASUS-FX505DV-Gaming-GeFor...

[xeny]

bhstewie said:

This looks OK for the money?

https://www.amazon.co.uk/ASUS-FX505DV-Gaming-GeFor...

Might be quite a lot of weight for a 13 year old to carry about?

[Mikebentley]

Just found out likely won’t need it at school merely for working when at home on his school work. Changes the game slightly and might mean can get one that looks a bit “cooler”. God I’m old and cringey.

[bitchstewie]

xeny said:

Might be quite a lot of weight for a 13 year old to carry about?

Maybe he's chunky?

I don't know I'm just looking for a laptop too and that looks about the cheapest way to get an RTX.

[Mikebentley]

What about this?
https://www.argos.co.uk/product/8440710?istCompany...la-956883380365%7Ccrid:424831971316%7Cnw:g%7Crnd:15828845069181905458%7Cdvc:c%7Cadp:%7Cmt:%7Cloc:9041129&utm_source=Google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=9596128022&utm_term=8440710&utm_content=shopping&utm_custom1=97868754134&utm_custom2=804-627-9544&gclid=EAIaIQobChMI3fO35JPz6wIVic_tCh3mEAXFEAQYBCABEgIqffD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds

[Mikebentley]

bhstewie said:

xeny said:

Might be quite a lot of weight for a 13 year old to carry about?

Maybe he's chunky?

I don't know I'm just looking for a laptop too and that looks about the cheapest way to get an RTX.

I know your only joking but, typically skinny and already 5’10”!
Everyday I beat him up whilst I still can......now I’m joking....it’s every other day just don’t tell Esther Rantzen.

[xeny]

bhstewie said:

I don't know I'm just looking for a laptop too and that looks about the cheapest way to get an RTX.

Note it's a Ryzen 3000 series rather than 4000.

[joshleb]

Mikebentley said:

What about this?
https://www.argos.co.uk/product/8440710?istCompany...la-956883380365%7Ccrid:424831971316%7Cnw:g%7Crnd:15828845069181905458%7Cdvc:c%7Cadp:%7Cmt:%7Cloc:9041129&utm_source=Google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=9596128022&utm_term=8440710&utm_content=shopping&utm_custom1=97868754134&utm_custom2=804-627-9544&gclid=EAIaIQobChMI3fO35JPz6wIVic_tCh3mEAXFEAQYBCABEgIqffD_BwE&gclsrc=aw.ds

https://www.argos.co.uk/product/8440710?istCompany... Your link

It's not bad, and nice that it comes with the headset and mouse. Drawbacks to it are the HD size, 256GB could start getting full quite quick if he downloads a few games. Fortnite is 20GB, Dirt 4 50GB.
Whilst it is a gaming graphics card, it came out in 2016(?) and is now the minimum spec for games that are coming out now.

This one (if on stock anywhere) is a lot better value for £50 more. Bigger hard drive and better graphics card. You can then pick up mouse and headset for cheap from amazon if required.

https://www.argos.co.uk/product/9199527

[xeny]

bhstewie said:

I don't know I'm just looking for a laptop too and that looks about the cheapest way to get an RTX.

https://www.hotukdeals.com/deals/new-dell-g3-15-gaming-laptop-10th-gen-i7-10750h-rtx-2060-144hz-16gb-ram-512gb-ssd-ps93414-with-code-at-dell-shop-3545952


£65 cheaper and with a 512 GB SSD to boot.

[Mr Whippy]

These gaming laptops are an oddity if you’re gonna use the screens as they feel tiny, and they’re loud, and don’t last long on battery.
And games today are huge. Forza Horizon is 100Gb!
Win10 is about 15-20Gb.

If you’re gonna game in place most of the time get a PC or console.
Ok a pc might not be much faster for the cash but storage space, noise levels, upgradability and stuff will be tons better.
Laptops these days are dead ends once batteries go, unless OE supports them with decent battery replacements.

Then get a laptop for kick about duties.

[Andeh1]

This came up which seems like a good deal OP....

https://www.hotukdeals.com/deals/acer-nitro-5-an51...

[Mikebentley]

Saw that Acer one in there. Have spoken with him over the weekend and he doesn’t think we should spend so much on him.....we must be doing something right.