Simple tips on what to look at when you choose a gaming laptop. A review from Sunday21.
Interest in gaming notebooks has increased dramatically lately. If before about 7 years ago, the portable device could not be used for gaming, now there are laptops that do not differ in performance absolutely from stationary computers. Maybe even exceed them. Processors have become more powerful and video cards have fallen significantly in price, so the portable device can be safely used not only for games, but also for various demanding programs. They can easily cope in graphic applications when editing video clips, and at the same time, such laptops are portable, they are easy to carry. The internal features make users happy. Video cards directly from stationary computers, powerful processors, large volumes of operations, plus often installed high-speed SSD-disks, which significantly increase the speed of data transfer and help accelerate many programs.
What kind of gaming notebook we want to see.
Of course we all want to see a gaming notebook that is significantly faster, more efficient and with support for gaming technology. That is, we want to replace the desktop gaming computer. Notebooks from the multimedia class have powerful processors, gaming speed video cards and have a lot of RAM. These parameters are necessary for a smooth gaming process. Also do not forget about the SSD-drive, plus this display must be high resolution, it is assumed that there are special keyboards. For all this you should add an improved cooling system, and of course different ports, you want to hear great sound. All gaming notebooks also have a special appearance. They are often with a black body, there may be accents of red and orange. In general, the devices may look more aggressive than their fellow office laptops. A gaming notebook can be noticed immediately, its design attracts attention on the shelves of stores.
What kind of processors are needed.
The heart of the notebook is the processor and video card. When buying a notebook you need to focus on these components, do not save money. Because often the boards are soldered and it is quite difficult to replace them. It is better to take everything at once to the maximum extent possible. Among processors you can refer to such kind as Intel Core, they give significant performance and do not consume much power. For a gaming notebook you should not take below the eighth generation. Find out at purchase whether it is possible to accelerate on high frequencies, such possibility is at many. We advise you to choose from more premium processors like Intel Core i7 or the most powerful i9, as well as good performance models AMD Ryzen 7, AMD Ryzen 5. In the case of AMD Ryzen, make sure the name does not contain the letter U. It's best to take the most powerful processor, games always evolve further and become more demanding.
What gaming notebooks require from a video card is a very important component.
A video card is probably the most important component that should be defined after selecting a processor. In order to select it, you need to determine what it will be used for, for games or office work. But now we will only consider the most modern and powerful options. Among video cards there are two types of AMD and Nvidia. For example, Radeon RX 560 has powerful performance, but among Nvidia there is a very wide choice. The minimum gaming video card should be GeForce 1050 or 1050 Ti, which has 4 GB of dedicated memory. If you certainly want to play at Full HD resolution and at the maximum settings, you should pay attention to the more powerful graphics adapters. For example, the GTX 1060, GTX 1660, RTX 2060 or GTX 1070 offer high performance, while the GTX 1080, RTX 2070 or 2080 is the right choice for the most demanding games and smooth gameplay. Always compromise between CPU and graphics card to ensure they're similar to each other.
Screen Matrix - a window into the game world.
Plenty of performance components wouldn't mean anything without a good screen, at least with Full HD resolution. It's with the Screen Matrix that you're immersed in the gaming world. The minimum size requirement is 15 inches and 17 inches. Often gaming notebooks are equipped with a glossy surface, it is it that conveys amazing colors, although the matte surface allows you to use the laptop even in the sun. But if you want a bigger matrix, you should know that this will affect the weight class of your device. If you have a good budget, you can take Quad HD or 4K Ultra HD, which are expensive, but have a significant advantage with viewing angles, color reproduction and brightness. But these matrices place a lot of strain on the internal components, which can have an impact on performance. We recommend that you pay attention to the viewing angles when choosing a notebook and make sure that the screen with its brightness refresh rate is high.
Cooling systems for productive notebooks are very important.
Cooling does not require more CPU, but rather a gaming video card, this is a very important point, it is better to make sure that the device can withstand high loads not with the heat of the case. Notebooks with different pricing policies have different cooling systems. The problem of overheating is an unpleasant thing, if the device does not cope very well, then there is a hanging, slowing down and a decline in performance of the whole device. When you buy a gaming laptop, look at the number of ventilation holes, the more holes, the better and the device will run smoothly. If the device gets very warm and the ventilation doesn't save you, you can buy special stands for cooling. They consist of metal and an alloy that can dissipate heat. The stand will cool down from the bottom, so do not even worry about ventilation on hot days when there is no overheating then and there are no problems with performance.
How to choose the right amount of RAM and hard drive.
RAM in a notebook has an important role too. Its minimum value should be 8 Gigabytes of DDR4 type with 2133 MHz clock frequency. The bigger it is, the better, there are gaming notebooks with 64 Gbytes of RAM already. All gaming notebooks can improve this component, replace it with a new board or add another one to the existing one.
A gaming notebook can not do without a fast SSD-disk, if your games take up a lot of space, you immediately need to take an SSD-drive at least 240 or 256 Gigabytes, plus there is a combination of SSD + HDD. On the first you can leave the system, different programs, maybe even a few games, the second one boldly fill with toys. Plus you can save everything on your hard drive, movies, soap operas, music, take 1 or 2 terabytes, so there is no inconvenience with the lack of space for all your necessary files, media and applications.
Gaming notebooks' keyboards, just like they should be.
A very important element for games is the keyboard. An Antighosting feature should be installed, which will help to avoid sticky keys during gaming. WASD keys are always highlighted, they may even have a special backlight. It is best to choose a notebook with a keyboard that has moisture protection. Let's face it, you've had coffee or tea more than once during a game, too, so the keyboard must be protected from trouble. Also, the keyboard should be quite durable, because during a game it can withstand all beats on the keys, so durability is important.
If to sum up, then immediately note that when choosing a gaming notebook always first look at the bunch of processor and graphics card, they simply can not be replaced. It's best to take a device with the ability to expand RAM and a large amount of HDD + SSD. Pay attention to the screen and how often it is updated. We hope this article was useful for you and now you can choose your own gaming notebook based on our advice.