Knowing where to start when choosing a new gaming laptop can be hard. There are a range of features to consider, including the display, form factor, battery life, and of course, the components powering it all.

Upgrading a Gaming Laptop with new hardware isn’t usually feasible, so it’s essential to plan and think about how you want to use your system. We’ll cover all these subjects in more detail, but let’s begin with some of the basics.

• A good GPU: Most games are GPU-dependent, and you can’t upgrade these on laptops. A good GPU will ensure your laptop plays games at high settings for a few years.
• Resolution or speed: The fastest displays, going up to 480 Hz, only come at 1920 x 1080 resolution (or, on a 16:10 screen, 1920 x 1200) right now, so a 4k screen will be slower.
• A good keyboard: You don’t want to play your games on something stiff. Some top-of-the-line gaming laptops use mechanical keyboards, which are our favourites.
• Memory and Storage: Recognize the difference between SSDs and HDDs, and determine how much RAM you need for the way you plan to use your system.
• Design: Lighter laptops may travel better, but more powerful hardware might be a higher priority when playing demanding games at home.

Display

• Screen size- If your main gaming location is at home, you may have an additional monitor you use to game. But when you’re away from your external monitor (or if you don’t have one at all), having a good laptop screen is a must. The common screen sizes are 13, 15, and 17 inches.
• Resolution- Another important aspect is the resolution or the number of pixels that appear on the screen. In all cases, the higher the resolution, the clearer the image. Newer laptops boast a 1440p/4K screen, obsoleting the 1080p models.
• Refresh rate- The refresh rate is also a huge factor to consider when deciding on a laptop screen. Refresh rate is how many times per second the screen can show a new image, this is measured in hertz (Hz). Each hertz equates to one image. Many gaming laptop displays make use of this technology, with some featuring 120Hz or 144Hz (or even higher) refresh rates.

When considering an external display that has a high resolution or high refresh rate, ensure you’re choosing a CPU and graphics card capable of taking advantage of those features.

Central Processing Unit (CPU)

The CPU, or central processing unit, acts as the “brain” of your laptop. It sends signals to the other components in your system and processes the instructions sent by all the software running on your machine.

Your choice of CPU has a significant impact on everything, from the frame rates you see in games to the response times of applications and even the laptop’s battery life There are a handful of specifications that you can look at when deciding what CPU you would prefer, such as clock speed and core count along with a few others.

• Clock speed- Clock speed determines the number of cycles a CPU executes every second (measured in GHz). In general, a higher clock speed means a faster CPU.
• Core count- A CPU has numerous cores. Multiple cores help a CPU to multitask, with each core acting like its own individual processing unit. The more cores, the more potential performance gains.

Here are plenty of CPUs on the market to choose from. To maintain consistent in-game performance while streaming or recording gameplay, we recommend at least an Intel® Core™ i7 processor. Higher clock speeds and core counts are particularly important if you’re interested in live-streaming gameplay, as capture software often requires significant processing power to encode video.

Graphics Processing Unit (GPU)

A laptop’s GPU, or Graphics Processing Unit, creates the pixels that form the images on the screen when gaming. Along with your CPU, it’s the key to enjoying smooth frame rates and high-resolution gaming.

If you are a gamer and would like something with a little more power, you can plump for an upmarket GPU. 440p or 4K, a capable CPU, and GPU are a must. Higher resolutions mean more pixels on-screen. Most gaming laptops are easily purchased with a GeForce GTX GPU factory fitted.

Storage

Solid-state Drives (SSDs, hard disk drives (HDDs) are in almost every aspect of gaming. SSDs are much faster than HDDs which means the system will be able to load files and programs much quicker to reduce start times for games. Almost all gaming laptops now will come with an SSD. And they come in different interfaces, the fastest being the PCIe NVMe M.2.

• NVMe SSD- These drives use the high-speed PCIe bus rather than the older SATA interface, allowing for comparatively fast random read/write speeds and higher throughput.
• SATA SSD- These drives use the same SATA connectors as traditional HDDs. They’re typically faster and more durable than an HDD but slower than newer NVMe drives.
• External storage- When facing limited onboard storage, external hard drives or SSDs can provide affordable additional space.

Random Access Memory (RAM)

RAM (Random Access Memory) is memory that stores data temporarily but makes it much easier and quicker for your CPU to retrieve. You can purchase the best gaming laptops with a good amount of RAM already installed.

How much RAM you need in your laptop depends on how you plan to use the system.

• 2 - 4GB of RAM can be enough for browsing the internet, lightweight work applications, or older games.
• 8GB of RAM can be enough for mid-range gaming and most work applications. Many modern PC games list 8GB of RAM or more as a minimum system requirement.
• 16GB of RAM allows a system to run newer and more resource-intensive games at higher settings, multiple background apps (like voice chat or video highlight recording), and streaming software.
• 32GB of RAM is ideal for resource-intensive multitasking, including gaming, content creation, and anyone who frequently utilizes memory-intensive processes like video editing or rendering.

Design

Gaming laptops come in all shapes and sizes. In recent years, however, that tradeoff has become less universal. Premium laptops with advanced thermal designs can stay relatively thin and light.

Consider the tradeoff between power, price, portability, as well as available ports and performance-enhancing extras when thinking about laptop design.

• The aluminium casing can allow for sleeker and more durable designs than traditional plastic.
• A thinner and lighter design means more portability. However, thicker and heavier gaming laptops — also known as muscle books
• Most laptops incorporate wireless cards that allow connection to hotspots and home routers on the 2.4GHz or 5GHz bands for access to the fastest wireless internet speeds. Another common wireless feature to look out for is Bluetooth, which uses the 2.4GHz band to connect peripherals like headsets or controllers to a system.

Inputs

Connect a gaming laptop with a gaming mouse, a more responsive keyboard, or premium audio to create a fully featured gaming station with a laptop at the center.

• You can easily connect an external keyboard via USB to enjoy a full-sized keyboard layout with the switches and aesthetics you prefer.
• When gaming, it might be preferable to connect a mouse with additional input options for more precise, customizable movement.

Gamers sometimes prefer a Desktop Computer (PC) rather than a laptop, as a Desktop gives them more freedom to upgrade the hardware with ease. But in recent times, companies are manufacturing some of the most powerful gaming laptops to run almost every game, whether it's single or multiplayer, offline or online.

Some Specific Brands of the Best Gaming Laptops

1. HP - HP’s Omen lineup has a classical design but maintains a gamer aesthetic. Its app is the Omen Command Center, which details GPU and CPU use, RAM utilization, and a network booster that lets you prioritize bandwidth.
2. Asus - Asus’s Republic of Gamers brand has some slick designs. Its ROG Gaming Center software shares device information, including temperature, storage, and RAM usage.
3. Acer - Acer is known for having affordable hardware, though it has wowed us with innovation like its ridiculous Predator 21X featuring a curved display and mechanical keyboard. The Predator Sense app lets you monitor your CPU and GPU usage and customize fan speeds.
4. Lenovo - Lenovo’s gaming lineup is called Legion and has been recently redesigned to be more minimalist. Rather than creating new software, the company altered its Vantage app to focus on CPU, GPU, RAM, and HDD info, as well as a button to boost fan speeds.
5. Razer - Razer’s design is some of the best in the business, and it's known for its RGB lighting. Razer Synapse lets you record macros and set lighting on both laptops and accessories.

When you're shopping to get the best gaming laptop at a reasonable price, you may find savings by checking out the latest deals on Amazon, eBay and other online shopping platforms.