Budget gaming laptop

[Vajra]

Hi there, I'm looking for a budget laptop that could run new games, not necessarily on highest settings. Here is the one I'm interested in. Any feedback, comments, suggestions welcome, thanks


Optimus Series: 17.3" Matte Full HD IPS LED Widescreen (1920x1080)
Processor (CPU)
Intel® Core™ i5 Quad Core Processor 7300HQ (2.5GHz, 3.5GHz Turbo)
Memory (RAM)
8GB HyperX IMPACT 2400MHz SODIMM DDR4 (1 x 8GB)
Graphics Card
NVIDIA® GeForce® GTX 1050 - 4.0GB GDDR5 Video RAM - DirectX® 12.1
Memory - Hard Disk
500GB SERIAL ATA II 2.5" HARD DRIVE

Price: £898.00

 

[Oussebon]

Budget gaming and laptop aren't three words that go well together sadly.

If you can stretch to the GTX 1050 ti I'd strongly recommend it. It's £30 more which is like 3% more cost for ~35% more performance. And since you can't replace a laptop's GPU, the better your initial GPU, the longer until your system is obsolete for gaming.

If the budget is super tight you could drop the RAM back to 2133MHz to free up £13. Most games are going to care a lot more about you having a more powerful GPU than slightly faster RAM.

I'd also bump up the HDD to the cheap 1TB one as it's double your storage and a large cache (which may give you better performance) for £11.

More generally, an i5 + GTX 1050 ti + 8gb RAM is a fair gaming spec and should last you a while on high/medium settings, or indeed higher in some games.

 

[rav007]

What is the budget? Are you comfortable switching hard drives and RAM? In your case I would prioritise the GPU because you said you want to game. The 1050Ti is a better option and only 30 quid more. The i5 is fine as it's a quad core, I dont think that will cause any issues. The RAM doesnt need to be 2400MHz, I have 2133MHz in my laptop. Do you need the OS or do you have a copy of your own? Also this quote doesn't include any extras such as warranty (I recommend the silver or gold to be safe), or fast-track dispatch. Also its saying this laptop isn't in stock until 26th too.

Chassis & Display
Optimus Series: 17.3" Matte Full HD IPS LED Widescreen (1920x1080)
Processor (CPU)
Intel® Core™ i5 Quad Core Processor 7300HQ (2.5GHz, 3.5GHz Turbo)
Memory (RAM)
8GB HyperX IMPACT 2133MHz SODIMM DDR4 (1 x 8GB)
Graphics Card
NVIDIA® GeForce® GTX 1050 Ti - 4.0GB GDDR5 Video RAM - DirectX® 12.1
Memory - Hard Disk
NOT REQUIRED
M.2 SSD Drive
256GB SANDISK X400 M.2 2280 (up to 540MB/R, 520MB/W)
Memory Card Reader
Integrated 6 in 1 Card Reader (SD /Mini SD/ SDHC / SDXC / MMC / RSMMC)
AC Adaptor
1 x 90W AC Adaptor
Power Cable
1 x 1 Metre Cloverleaf UK Power Cable
Thermal Paste
STANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLING
Sound Card
Intel 2 Channel High Def. Audio + SoundBlaster™ Cinema 3
Bluetooth & Wireless
GIGABIT LAN & WIRELESS INTEL® AC-8265 M.2 (867Mbps, 802.11AC) +BT 4.0
USB Options
1 x USB 3.0 PORT (Type C) + 2 x USB 3.0 PORTS + 1 x USB 2.0 PORT
Battery
Cosmos VI Series 6 Cell Lithium Ion Battery
Keyboard Language
SINGLE COLOUR BACKLIT UK KEYBOARD
Operating System
Genuine Windows 10 Home 64 Bit - inc DVD & Licence
Operating System Language
United Kingdom - English Language
Office Software
FREE 30 Day Trial of Microsoft® Office® 365
Anti-Virus
BullGuard™ Internet Security - Free 90 Day License inc. Gamer Mode
Browser
Microsoft® Edge (Windows 10 Only)
Notebook Mouse
INTEGRATED 2 BUTTON TOUCHPAD MOUSE
Webcam
INTEGRATED 1MP HD WEBCAM
Warranty
3 Year Standard Warranty (1 Month Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour)
Delivery
STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)
Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 3 to 5 working days
Quantity
1

Price: £961.00 including VAT and delivery.

 

[Vajra]

Thanks guys, budget is about 900 £ but I don't mind spending few extra pennies to get a quality product. I've got no OS. I was thinking about getting a desktop but mobility is important to me. I've changed few things as you suggested, please have a look

Chassis & Display
Optimus Series: 17.3" Matte Full HD IPS LED Widescreen (1920x1080)
Processor (CPU)
Intel® Core™ i5 Quad Core Processor 7300HQ (2.5GHz, 3.5GHz Turbo)
Memory (RAM)
8GB HyperX IMPACT 2133MHz SODIMM DDR4 (1 x 8GB)
Graphics Card
NVIDIA® GeForce® GTX 1050 Ti - 4.0GB GDDR5 Video RAM - DirectX® 12.1
Memory - Hard Disk
1TB SLIM SERIAL ATA III 2.5" HARD DRIVE WITH 128MB CACHE (5,400rpm)
Memory Card Reader
Integrated 6 in 1 Card Reader (SD /Mini SD/ SDHC / SDXC / MMC / RSMMC)
AC Adaptor
1 x 90W AC Adaptor
Power Cable
1 x 1 Metre Cloverleaf UK Power Cable
Thermal Paste
STANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLING
Sound Card
Intel 2 Channel High Def. Audio + SoundBlaster™ Cinema 3
Bluetooth & Wireless
GIGABIT LAN & WIRELESS INTEL® AC-8265 M.2 (867Mbps, 802.11AC) +BT 4.0
USB Options
1 x USB 3.0 PORT (Type C) + 2 x USB 3.0 PORTS + 1 x USB 2.0 PORT
Battery
Cosmos VI Series 6 Cell Lithium Ion Battery
Keyboard Language
SINGLE COLOUR BACKLIT UK KEYBOARD
Operating System
Genuine Windows 10 Home 64 Bit - inc DVD & Licence
Operating System Language
United Kingdom - English Language
Office Software
FREE 30 Day Trial of Microsoft® Office® 365
Anti-Virus
BullGuard™ Internet Security - Free 90 Day License inc. Gamer Mode
Browser
Microsoft® Edge (Windows 10 Only)
Notebook Mouse
INTEGRATED 2 BUTTON TOUCHPAD MOUSE
Webcam
INTEGRATED 1MP HD WEBCAM
Warranty
3 Year Silver Warranty (1 Year Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour)
Insurance
1 Month Free Laptop Insurance inc. Accidental Damage & Theft
Delivery
STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)
Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 4 to 6 working days
Quantity
1

Price: £933.00 including VAT and delivery.

 

[Oussebon]

Looks decent. You will probably want to add an SSD in due course but at least that should be a reasonably straightforward DIY upgrade.

 

[Vajra]

I'm thinking about adding extra 40 quid and upgrading graphics to 6gb, this one looks interesting

Chassis & Display
Proteus Series: 17.3" Matte Full HD LED Widescreen (1920x1080)
Processor (CPU)
Intel® Core™ i7 Quad Core Processor 6700HQ (2.6GHz, 3.5GHz Turbo)
Memory (RAM)
8GB HyperX IMPACT 2133MHz SODIMM DDR4 (1 x 8GB)
Graphics Card
NVIDIA® GeForce® GTX 970M - 6.0GB DDR5 Video RAM - DirectX® 12
Memory - Hard Disk
1TB SLIM SERIAL ATA III 2.5" HARD DRIVE WITH 128MB CACHE (5,400rpm)
Memory Card Reader
Integrated 4 in 1 Card Reader (SD/SDHC/SDXC/MMC)
AC Adaptor
1 x 180W AC Adaptor
Power Cable
1 x 1 Metre UK Power Cable (Kettle Lead)
Thermal Paste
STANDARD THERMAL PASTE FOR SUFFICIENT COOLING
Sound Card
Intel 2 Channel High Definition Audio + MIC/Headphone Jack
Bluetooth & Wireless
GIGABIT LAN & WIRELESS INTEL® N-7265 M.2 (300Mbps, 802.11N) + BLUETOOTH
USB Options
3 x USB 3.0 PORTS + 1 x USB 2.0 PORT AS STANDARD
Battery
Proteus Series 8 Cell Lithium Ion Battery (5,200mAh)
Keyboard Language
PROTEUS SERIES 17.3" BACKLIT UK KEYBOARD WITH NUMBER PAD
Operating System
Genuine Windows 10 Home 64 Bit - inc DVD & Licence
Operating System Language
United Kingdom - English Language
Office Software
FREE 30 Day Trial of Microsoft® Office® 365
Anti-Virus
BullGuard™ Internet Security - Free 90 Day License inc. Gamer Mode
Browser
Microsoft® Edge (Windows 10 Only)
Notebook Mouse
INTEGRATED 2 BUTTON TOUCHPAD MOUSE
Webcam
INTEGRATED 720P 30 FPS HD WEBCAM
Warranty
3 Year Silver Warranty (1 Year Collect & Return, 1 Year Parts, 3 Year Labour)
Delivery
STANDARD INSURED DELIVERY TO UK MAINLAND (MON-FRI)
Build Time
Standard Build - Approximately 4 to 6 working days
Quantity
1

Price: £973.00 including VAT and delivery.

 

[Oussebon]

I'd say it's a waste of cash. If you look at the chart above, the 1050 ti's performance is on par or slightly better than the 970M.

Those GPUs are roughly equivalent to the old desktop GTX 960. The GTX 960 came in 2 flavours - 2gb and 4gb. There was virtually no performance difference between the 2gb and 4gb versions. So I don't think 6gb VRAM is going to be an asset.

The 970M seems to have slightly less horsepower than the 1050 ti. It also lacks the slightly better DX12 support that the 1050 ti has.

The chassis also appears to lack the USB 3.1 connector as well. It does have an i7 CPU but that won't make any meaningful difference in most games (the performance difference between laptop i5s and i7s is much smaller than between desktop i5s and i7s).

 

[Vajra]

Thank you for your help, much appreciated🙂