Finding a good gaming laptop isn’t a simple matter. The best laptops for gaming are powerful and often expensive machines. While virtually any laptop is capable of word processing, gamers demand much more from their machines.
So what are the best laptops for gaming? Alienware is the big name in this business, and indeed they have some interesting products. But other companies like ASUS and Toshiba also offer compelling laptops for gaming. This article contains my top picks. If I were going to buy a gaming laptop today these are the ones I would look at.
Alienware M15x
It is hard to write about the best laptops for gaming without writing about Alienware. When Dell bought Alienware many predicted that it would be the beginning of the end for the once independent company. On the contrary, Alienware under Dell’s ownership has constantly revised and updated its products to keep them ahead of the pack.
The M15x is probably the most mainstream of the gaming laptops which Alienware sells, and it provides everything a gamer could want. What sets the Alienware apart from most competitors are the details, like the LED backlit keyboard which makes it easy to game in darkened environments. Alienware also has the more robust customer service than most competitors. While there are plenty of horror stories about Dell, I’d much rather have to make a warranty claim with them than with ASUS.
While the M15x starts out at about 1,200 bucks, upgrades (and you WILL want the upgrades) rapidly increase the price. A decently equipped M15x will set you back about 1,700 clams. That is a big bucket of cash, and to be honest the Alienware isn’t the best value. But if you want to purchase a product you can be confident in and are willing to spend extra to do so, I recommend the Alienware.
Five years ago I wouldn’t have dreamed of recommending a ASUS product which wasn’t a motherboard. But the company has really turned on the afterburners, and as a result they now have a line-up of laptops which is among the best in the world.
The is an example of why the company is doing so well. It feels as if ASUS made a checklist of all the things gamers absolutely need and then crammed every single component into a 15 inch chassis. Core i5 processor? Check. Full HD screen? Check. Nvidia Geforce graphics? Check. Four gigabytes of DDR3 RAM? Check. The result is a gaming laptop which is undoubtedly among the fastest which can be purchased today.
What is most amazing about the , however, is the price. The base models – which include everything I mentioned above – start at a hair over 1000 bucks. A similarly configured Alienware M15x would cost you $1,700! Granted, you’re not getting the same level of customer service, or the cool back-lit keyboard, or Alienware’s awesome styling. But if you just focus on the hardware, the is easily among the best laptops for gaming.
While the Alienware M15x and the ASUS G51 are both great, they are also 15 inch gaming laptops. Most laptops built for gaming are around that size these days, and I understand why. A laptop of around 15 inches is still portable enough to go down to the coffee house, but is large enough to provide a satisfactory gaming experience.
But what if you really want to go big? Well, then the best gaming laptop for you will probably be the . This monster has an 18.4 inch full HD screen. Yes, you read that right. The screen is 18.4 inches. That’s huge. Your mom’s desktop computer probably has a smaller monitor than that. The hardware is awesome, as well – Core i5 processor, 4GB DDR3 RAM, Nvidia Geforce Graphics, etc. And then there is the price. The usually retails around $1,200. Not bad at all for one of the largest laptops money can buy.
Of course, size isn’t everything. The X505-Q860 weighs in at a titanic 10 pounds and it is only good for four hours of battery life in absolute optimal use. Gaming can easily half that. This is not the kind of laptop you’ll want to lug down to the coffee house to get your Facebook on, but it is the perfect gaming laptop for those who want something to take to LAN parties.
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