Top Three Gaming Laptops – All You Need To Know

Finding a good gaming laptop that is packed with good hardware and fits your budget can be a daunting task. A lot of people go for a gaming console which does provide a good and smooth gaming experience, but at the cost of a lower overall graphics quality due to the inability to be upgraded, not to mention you need a good large monitor for a good experience. And so for gamers who really want the best experience tailored to their preference such as buying the perfect Mouse and Keyboard, installed customs mods, take their gamers everywhere, etc., a gaming laptop is just perfect.

Now you will find tons of articles on the web telling you the best 10 laptops, or the best laptops under INR 75,000 etc. but going through all those articles and then user reviews is simply exhausting and confusing, therefore to make your life a little easy we have selected the three best gaming laptops for the price bracket that suits you best.

1. HP 15-G009AX : COMMON MAN’S GAMING NOTEBOOK

Most of the laptops that have the specs to be called a ‘gaming’ laptop usually have a price tag starting at about INR 50,000. However after sifting through various e-commerce websites, Youtube reviews, user reviews, CPU-benchmarks comparison, Game-debate and what not for 2 months, I finally settled on buying the HP-g009ax from Flipkart.com for (wait for it…) INR 30,000. Yes, and I got an amazing deal for a gaming laptop for 30K, and it is currently available only at Flipkart (Click Here) for INR 28,100.

I know you just gazed at the above paragraph again, with your eyeballs as large as the Powerpuff girls’, but indeed this one machine by HP is a beast for its price.

Key Specifications:

• AMD APU Quad-core A8 6410 Processor 2.0 GHz (Turbo boost up to 2.4 GHz) with 512 MB Integrated Graphics
• AMD Radeon HD 8570M Graphics – 2 GB Dedicated
• 4 GB DDR3 RAM at 1600 MHz (Upgradable up to 8 GB)
• 1 TB SATA HDD at 5400 RPM
• 6 inch HD BrightView LED Display at a resolution of 1366×768 pixels
• Free DOS
• Touchpad with Multi-touch gesture support (Pinch-to-zoom, etc.)
• Full-size Textured Keyboard with Numeric keypad
• 2 x USB 2.0 Ports, 1 x USB 3.0 Port
• SuperMulti DVD RW Drive with Dual Layer Support

So, how good is it?

1. Performance – as expected, the basic day-to-day tasks such as web-browsing, music/video playback, etc. are simply a breeze. For hardcore non-gaming users (developers, for example), the laptop easily handle heavy apps such as Visual Studio 2013, Adobe Illustrator, Android Studio, etc.
2. Gaming – Gaming performance has mixed results that also depend on the game.

• Optimized games such as Crysis 2/3, Hitman Absolution, and almost all FPS games (COD/BF series) perform really well on this laptop, running at 25-35 fps on Medium settings. Mind that these game are very demanding, and perform really well on this laptop considering the price.
• Latest games such as NFS Rivals, Assassin’s Creed Unity, FarCry 4 do not perform really very well on this, and give playable frame-rates only at low settings.
• Other casual games such as Limbo, and the latest of FIFA/PES series run smoothly at all times.

3. Display, Speakers, etc. – the 1366×768 resolution is typical in most laptops available and is perfectly good in this laptop too, providing great quality video output, good high-brightness for outdoor use, and the dual-speakers are also decent.
4. Battery – the battery is a 6-cell unit and of a small capacity, and the good thing is that it charges quickly, but the backup leaves much to be desired. For normal usage (Web browsing, streaming Youtube, etc.) you get about 2.5-3 hrs, while gaming on the battery drains it much faster.

Verdict – If you are in search of a gaming laptop on a (very) tight budget, you really don’t have to look further. For a dirt-cheap 28k, the HP 15-g009ax is definitely the best deal you can get for a pretty great gaming experience.

2. LENOVO Z50-70 : YOU DON’T REALLY NEED TO SELL YOUR KIDNEY

If you in the market looking for the gaming laptop that can play almost all high-end games without a hiccup and at the same time does not make a whole in your pocket (maybe, maybe not), then Lenovo Z50-70 is probably your best bet. The company may not be the most popular when it comes to gaming laptops, but for INR 63,900 at Flipkart (Click Here) this one is packing a lot of bang for the buck.

Key Specifications:

• 4^th Gen Intel Core-i7 4500U Processor at 1.8 GHz (Turbo boost up to 3 GHz)
• NVIDIA GT 840 M Mobile Graphics – 4 GB DDR3
• 8 GB DDR3 RAM at 1600 MHz (Upgradable up to 16 GB)
• 1 TB SATA HDD at 5400 RPM
• 6 inch HD Anti-Glare Display at a resolution of 1366×768 pixels
• 64-bit Windows 8.1
• Touchpad with Multi-touch gesture support (Pinch-to-zoom, etc.)
• Full-size Textured Keyboard with Numeric keypad
• 2 x USB 2.0 Ports, 1 x USB 3.0 Port, 2 x 1.5 W Speakers
• SuperMulti Tray-in Drive

So, how good is it?

1. Performance – as expected from the 4^th Gen Core-i7 processor, the basic tasks such as web-browsing, music/video playback, etc. are a breeze, and running many applications at once do not affect performance, thanks to the 8 GB DDR3 RAM.
2. Gaming – unlike the previous one that we talked about, almost all types of games, be it old or new, no matter how demanding or graphically intensive they may be, Lenovo Z50-70 can handle them.

• The latest and most demanding games such as NFS Rivals, Crysis 3, FarCry 4, Saint Row 4, Call of Duty : Advance Warfare, etc. all ran at perfectly smooth at 45+ fps on High settings at native resolution.
• Casual gamers who play franchise games such as COD/BF, FIFA/PES, PoP/AC do not need to think twice before, as the laptop is quite future proof and would play these games easily.
• The only game that I found that strain the notebook was Dying Light, which too starting running smoothly once I turned down the graphics setting from High to Medium.

3. Display, Speakers, etc. – as expected, the 1366×768 give perfectly good video quality in this laptop, great was watching movies or reading books too,. The dual-speakers also produce good quality with loud and crisp audio output at 80% volume.
4. Battery – gaming laptops are not known for their exceptional battery lives, and Lenovo Z50-70 isn’t any exception. The 4 cell battery can give you up to 6 hours of web browsing on power saver mode, and 1-1.5 hours of game time.

Verdict – If you want the most affordable and portable gaming laptop that can handle almost any game you throw at it, the Lenovo Z50-70 is your best bet.

3. DELL ALIENWARE 17 – THE ZARA OF GAMING LAPTOPS

The two notebooks mentioned above are the best deals in their respective price segments. However, if you want simply the best of the best of gaming laptops and money isn’t a problem, then look no further. The most popular and most respected by the gaming community, Dell Alienware is the name of the game in gaming laptops, designed for the true hardcore gamers packing in the best hardware possible, along with some neat little touches here and there was a gaming experience like no other.

Key Specification:

• 4^th Gen Core-i7 4800 MQ Processor at 2.7 GHz (Turbo boost up to 3.7 GHz)
• NVIDIA GeForce GTX 770M – 3 GB DDR5
• 16 GB DDR3 RAM
• 750 GB SATA HDD at 7200 RPM with 64 GB SSD
• 17 inch Full HD LED Display at a resolution of 1920×1080 pixels
• 64-bit Windows 8
• 1 Performance Audio with Dolby Home Theatre v4
• 0 Megapixel Full HD Webcam
• 2 x USB 3.0 Ports (including 1 x Power Share)
• Blu-ray Drive with Dual Layer Support

Designed for the Enthusiast

As expected from the top-of-the-line specifications, the Alienware 17 is the best gaming laptop money can buy. But for the price of INR 194,990 you get more than simply an assembly of the best internals.

The Alienware 17 comes with a premium quality durable anodized aluminium shell which has been reinforced by a magnesium-alloy frame to protect the Display and internal components.

The front facing 5.1 Dolby speakers and are one of the best in the market. For sound working of the CPU-GPU, the laptop has been designed to perfection, with exhaust vents present at the bottom and left and right side for easy and quite dissipation of heat.

User customizable LED lights are present all over including the sides, the user-trackpad, the Alienware logo on the front, and if even the backlight of the keyboard.

As usual, the battery life is not Macbook-air long, with the 8-cell battery running out of juice after 2 hours of Web browsing or 1 hour gaming on high performance mode at 100% brightness, however you can get up to 3.5 hours of web browsing time by turning on to power saving mode and integrated graphics.

The last thing to include in our review is Alien affects, with are basic software tweaks for controlling the LEDs all around the laptop for selective games, giving effects such as LEDs turning red whenever your health is critical in Battlefield 3 and turning back to white as the health respawns.

Verdict – So to sum it all up, for the hefty price tag you get a Portable powerhouse that would satisfy all your gaming needs. In addition to top-notch hardware, the Alienware 17 packs an Excellent display and keyboard, great build quality with sufficient cooling, adjustable LED lightning and the software gimmicks. If you want the best gaming laptop, go for it.

So these were our 3 favorite gaming laptops covering all types of price segments. Which one of these do you like and is there any other gaming laptop in your mind? Do share in the comments below.

By – Raunaq Singh