Gaming Laptops
Discussion
Hi All,
My current laptop is about to become defunct as I am not able to upgrade it to Windows 11.
I am thinking of pushing the boat out and instead of just replacing it with a decent standard laptop (at c.£800) upping the budget to £2k and get a gaming laptop, that can do all the normal things (Office, Email, Web browsing, Netflix etc) plus have the ability to do the high end gaming side of things.
I need the portability so a desktop isn't an option.
I have seen the following on Currys at £2k and was wondering if this is a good spec and will run pretty much any game at a minimum of 1080p and 60fps (both ideally higher)
https://www.currys.co.uk/products/hp-omen-max-16ah...
To those who have more knowledge of this side of things does this look a good spec or would you have a look at alternatives (with different processor or GPU) or is it just overkill and maybe save a few hundred quid for a lower spec?
I also would have preferred an OLED screen but will probably hook up to my OLED TV when at home, so not the end of the world.
My current laptop is about to become defunct as I am not able to upgrade it to Windows 11.
I am thinking of pushing the boat out and instead of just replacing it with a decent standard laptop (at c.£800) upping the budget to £2k and get a gaming laptop, that can do all the normal things (Office, Email, Web browsing, Netflix etc) plus have the ability to do the high end gaming side of things.
I need the portability so a desktop isn't an option.
I have seen the following on Currys at £2k and was wondering if this is a good spec and will run pretty much any game at a minimum of 1080p and 60fps (both ideally higher)
https://www.currys.co.uk/products/hp-omen-max-16ah...
To those who have more knowledge of this side of things does this look a good spec or would you have a look at alternatives (with different processor or GPU) or is it just overkill and maybe save a few hundred quid for a lower spec?
I also would have preferred an OLED screen but will probably hook up to my OLED TV when at home, so not the end of the world.
Are you buying because you want to game, or because you think you might want to game?
On paper that's a decent laptop, will play anything modern on quite high settings.
I have a similar dilemma, my 10 year old gaming laptop is dying, and won't play anything remotely new. I'd like to spend £2k on something but am also painfully aware that £1500 will get me something perfectly adequate and infinitely better than what I have at the moment. The payoff being it will age faster than the £2k laptop will...
On paper that's a decent laptop, will play anything modern on quite high settings.
I have a similar dilemma, my 10 year old gaming laptop is dying, and won't play anything remotely new. I'd like to spend £2k on something but am also painfully aware that £1500 will get me something perfectly adequate and infinitely better than what I have at the moment. The payoff being it will age faster than the £2k laptop will...
I will game on it. At the moment I have a PS5 and Series X so probably not needed in reality but I have to replace the current laptop in a few weeks and it is a good opportunity to go for a gaming laptop.
My concern is that If I just buy a £800 "standard" laptop then I might regret it. I would then have trouble justifying buying a gaming laptop 6 months later and therefore won't have another opportunity for another 4 years at least (current laptop is 8.5 years old and still runs fairly decently).
My concern is that If I just buy a £800 "standard" laptop then I might regret it. I would then have trouble justifying buying a gaming laptop 6 months later and therefore won't have another opportunity for another 4 years at least (current laptop is 8.5 years old and still runs fairly decently).
Following this thread as I'm looking for a new one very shortly as well, probably wait until Black Friday.
Budget of £800, just want to play Old School Runescape, Football Manager every year, and then the odd other game like Fallout 4, Skyrim etc. With mods. I don't need anything major, but want the option of playing some slightly higher spec games. I really fancy a Macbook but the price for the actual specs you get (graphics card) puts me off.
Budget of £800, just want to play Old School Runescape, Football Manager every year, and then the odd other game like Fallout 4, Skyrim etc. With mods. I don't need anything major, but want the option of playing some slightly higher spec games. I really fancy a Macbook but the price for the actual specs you get (graphics card) puts me off.
It will either be as big as your house and weigh about the same to incorporate the 300 fans it needs to stop it from cooking itself when gaming, or it will be smaller and cook itself when gaming resulting in you being deafened by the fans runing at full chat, especially once it's a year old and has started to build-up a layer of dust and crap inside.
I've been down this road with an Asus ROG so speak from personal experience. Seems like a good idea at the time but there's too many annoyances and compromises. You also have to consider that because it's in a laptop case you are paying about 2/3 more than the same spec in a full-fat tower or SFF case, which means it's about the same money to have a gaming spec PC at home to use and a normal non-gaming spec laptop which you can pick up for a few hundred quid which will work fine for your Facebook, internet browsing and emails.
I've been down this road with an Asus ROG so speak from personal experience. Seems like a good idea at the time but there's too many annoyances and compromises. You also have to consider that because it's in a laptop case you are paying about 2/3 more than the same spec in a full-fat tower or SFF case, which means it's about the same money to have a gaming spec PC at home to use and a normal non-gaming spec laptop which you can pick up for a few hundred quid which will work fine for your Facebook, internet browsing and emails.
Tisy said:
I've been down this road with an Asus ROG so speak from personal experience.
I've done Asus ROG, Alienware and custom via Scan & Novatech plus workstation spec stuff too which is sort of similar. Not cheap especially if you're doing full spec desktop replacement. Only real reason for buying is they're semi portable, but they aren't really laptops by any sensible measure and are an expensive way to get the performance.
Power brick(s) can get a bit ridiculous too.
There is lighter weight stuff but usually the cooling is so compromised everything is constantly throttled.
JoshSm said:
I've done Asus ROG, Alienware and custom via Scan & Novatech plus workstation spec stuff too which is sort of similar.
Not cheap especially if you're doing full spec desktop replacement. Only real reason for buying is they're semi portable, but they aren't really laptops by any sensible measure and are an expensive way to get the performance.
Power brick(s) can get a bit ridiculous too.
There is lighter weight stuff but usually the cooling is so compromised everything is constantly throttled.
Yep, the Asus ROG I had weighed about 3 tonnes because of the massive heat sink sticking out of the back of it and the huge battery to be able to game for more 15 minutes on max settings before it dies. It was also a 17.3" screen which added to the weight and bulk, but who wants to game on anything smaller when you can't see sNot cheap especially if you're doing full spec desktop replacement. Only real reason for buying is they're semi portable, but they aren't really laptops by any sensible measure and are an expensive way to get the performance.
Power brick(s) can get a bit ridiculous too.
There is lighter weight stuff but usually the cooling is so compromised everything is constantly throttled.
t ?As I said earlier, they work and will do what you want, but there's a big bunch of trade-offs and compromises you have to weigh up .
Tisy said:
It will either be as big as your house and weigh about the same to incorporate the 300 fans it needs to stop it from cooking itself when gaming, or it will be smaller and cook itself when gaming resulting in you being deafened by the fans runing at full chat, especially once it's a year old and has started to build-up a layer of dust and crap inside.
I've been down this road with an Asus ROG so speak from personal experience. Seems like a good idea at the time but there's too many annoyances and compromises. You also have to consider that because it's in a laptop case you are paying about 2/3 more than the same spec in a full-fat tower or SFF case, which means it's about the same money to have a gaming spec PC at home to use and a normal non-gaming spec laptop which you can pick up for a few hundred quid which will work fine for your Facebook, internet browsing and emails.
This - buy a mid spec laptop and a tower gaming PC.I've been down this road with an Asus ROG so speak from personal experience. Seems like a good idea at the time but there's too many annoyances and compromises. You also have to consider that because it's in a laptop case you are paying about 2/3 more than the same spec in a full-fat tower or SFF case, which means it's about the same money to have a gaming spec PC at home to use and a normal non-gaming spec laptop which you can pick up for a few hundred quid which will work fine for your Facebook, internet browsing and emails.
I have a highend laptop for work, for CAD and FEA. And it is throttled for heat management. Very responsive for quick stuff, but it does really slow down for FEA when it is working for meaningful lengths of time.
MWM3 said:
Hi All,
My current laptop is about to become defunct as I am not able to upgrade it to Windows 11.
I am thinking of pushing the boat out and instead of just replacing it with a decent standard laptop (at c.£800) upping the budget to £2k and get a gaming laptop, that can do all the normal things (Office, Email, Web browsing, Netflix etc) plus have the ability to do the high end gaming side of things.
I need the portability so a desktop isn't an option.
I have seen the following on Currys at £2k and was wondering if this is a good spec and will run pretty much any game at a minimum of 1080p and 60fps (both ideally higher)
https://www.currys.co.uk/products/hp-omen-max-16ah...
To those who have more knowledge of this side of things does this look a good spec or would you have a look at alternatives (with different processor or GPU) or is it just overkill and maybe save a few hundred quid for a lower spec?
I also would have preferred an OLED screen but will probably hook up to my OLED TV when at home, so not the end of the world.
Can’t comment on the laptop you’ve linked, but with the exact same wishlist I just got a ROG G14 with a 5060 and AMD 9 about 6 weeks ago and very happy with it. Won’t deny some of the compromises the other posters have mentioned - it does get toasty if using it on my lap and the fans are loud, but only when gaming and I wear headphones anyway. But the OLED screen is amazing, it’s thin and light, and the non-gamer look was key for me. benchmarks are amongst the top of its competitors as well. My current laptop is about to become defunct as I am not able to upgrade it to Windows 11.
I am thinking of pushing the boat out and instead of just replacing it with a decent standard laptop (at c.£800) upping the budget to £2k and get a gaming laptop, that can do all the normal things (Office, Email, Web browsing, Netflix etc) plus have the ability to do the high end gaming side of things.
I need the portability so a desktop isn't an option.
I have seen the following on Currys at £2k and was wondering if this is a good spec and will run pretty much any game at a minimum of 1080p and 60fps (both ideally higher)
https://www.currys.co.uk/products/hp-omen-max-16ah...
To those who have more knowledge of this side of things does this look a good spec or would you have a look at alternatives (with different processor or GPU) or is it just overkill and maybe save a few hundred quid for a lower spec?
I also would have preferred an OLED screen but will probably hook up to my OLED TV when at home, so not the end of the world.
I purchased a Lenovo Legion pro 3060 4 years ago and it has been brilliant, although I don't really play many games anymore. It is my daily laptop and is on 8 hours a day and four years on is still total overkill for what I now use it for. As other have said, the compromises are.
1}weight, it is 2.7kg
2}fans, it can get noisy when playing games
3}the power supply is a brick
You wouldn't use it on your lap whilst watching TV, and mine has never left the house which on some level defeats the purpose of having a laptop but it has been great.
I got mine because I have a small house and no study, if I had the room I would have got a dedicated gaming PC. But for what it is, it is still deeply impressive four years on.
1}weight, it is 2.7kg
2}fans, it can get noisy when playing games
3}the power supply is a brick
You wouldn't use it on your lap whilst watching TV, and mine has never left the house which on some level defeats the purpose of having a laptop but it has been great.
I got mine because I have a small house and no study, if I had the room I would have got a dedicated gaming PC. But for what it is, it is still deeply impressive four years on.
Depends what you mean by high end gaming.
I bought a Microsoft Surface studio 2 which has a 4060 Graphics card, 64gb ram, nice display and a decent enough processor, but isn't a massive 17" laptop with a brick sized power adaptor. It's a nice middle ground for what I wanted to use it for which was 95% light office, photo editting and CAD work and 5% gaming on the odd evening. Pricey but I do like being able to sit on the sofa and play a quick 30 min FPS game in the evening or use the laptop as a way to watch a movie when away for the weekend etc
I bought a Microsoft Surface studio 2 which has a 4060 Graphics card, 64gb ram, nice display and a decent enough processor, but isn't a massive 17" laptop with a brick sized power adaptor. It's a nice middle ground for what I wanted to use it for which was 95% light office, photo editting and CAD work and 5% gaming on the odd evening. Pricey but I do like being able to sit on the sofa and play a quick 30 min FPS game in the evening or use the laptop as a way to watch a movie when away for the weekend etc
I bought something similar from Curry's last year. But mine was the 17" with an RTX 4070 instead as it was before the 50 series was released. I was like you, just needed a laptop in general. I also have a Meta Quest 3 VR so I thought I might as well!
I don't regret it all. So far it has run everything I have thrown at it on Ultra High settings for standard gaming and High settings for VR. Its not heavy at all and easily manageable to carry around (and mine is a bigger model).
I would definitely buy it again if I was standing in the shop right now, no regrets, great laptop.
I don't regret it all. So far it has run everything I have thrown at it on Ultra High settings for standard gaming and High settings for VR. Its not heavy at all and easily manageable to carry around (and mine is a bigger model).
I would definitely buy it again if I was standing in the shop right now, no regrets, great laptop.
Managed to get what I think is a fantastic deal on a Lenovo Legion Pro 7i with the following spec
Ultra 9 275
32Gb RAM 6400MT/s
Gen 5 1TB SSD
RTX 5070ti
Larger battery -100w
240hz 2560 x 1600 OLED
Slightly more than the OMEN but for the £80 difference this has an OLED, Gen 5 SSD,and faster RAM.
Ultra 9 275
32Gb RAM 6400MT/s
Gen 5 1TB SSD
RTX 5070ti
Larger battery -100w
240hz 2560 x 1600 OLED
Slightly more than the OMEN but for the £80 difference this has an OLED, Gen 5 SSD,and faster RAM.
Edited by MWM3 on Thursday 2nd October 12:20
MWM3 said:
Managed to get what I think is a fantastic deal on a Lenovo Legion Pro 7i with the following spec
Ultra 9 275
32Gb RAM 6400MT/s
Gen 5 1TB SSD
RTX 5070ti
Larger battery -100w
240hz 2560 x 1600 OLED
Slightly more than the OMEN but for the £80 difference this has an OLED, Gen 5 SSD,and faster RAM.
You need to tell us what the deal was and from where?Ultra 9 275
32Gb RAM 6400MT/s
Gen 5 1TB SSD
RTX 5070ti
Larger battery -100w
240hz 2560 x 1600 OLED
Slightly more than the OMEN but for the £80 difference this has an OLED, Gen 5 SSD,and faster RAM.
Edited by MWM3 on Thursday 2nd October 12:20
I'm happy to recommend the Asus ROG Zephyrus. I have a 2024 G14 and it's easily more than capable with my workloads and games.
I moved from an i7 4770k desktop with a AMD 290x GPU. The internal GPU on the laptop knocks that out the park, I've not even tried the 4080GPU yet.
See if you can get a deal on old stock, unless you really need a 5060+ GPU/2025 laptop. Most laptops are still USB/Thunderbolt 4/PCI gen4. Which is more than enough for most people, for now.
I moved from an i7 4770k desktop with a AMD 290x GPU. The internal GPU on the laptop knocks that out the park, I've not even tried the 4080GPU yet.
See if you can get a deal on old stock, unless you really need a 5060+ GPU/2025 laptop. Most laptops are still USB/Thunderbolt 4/PCI gen4. Which is more than enough for most people, for now.
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