this post was submitted on 24 Sep 2023
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PC Master Race

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Hi! I wanted to buy a budget gaming laptop at around ~800 USD (equivalent). Currently checking out a gigabyte 3060/11400@ 850$. Is this priced right? Shoukd I look for better deals? Also, what about gigabyte laptops, are they reliable? Should I buy it? What brands should I look for, if not?

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[–] Dark_Arc@social.packetloss.gg 7 points 1 year ago* (last edited 1 year ago)

Truthfully I wouldn't put budget and gaming laptop together.

Go for a desktop (especially if you're making it yourself). Go for a refurbished or used premium laptop. Go for a steam deck. Go for a Chromebook and use the money on GeForce NOW. Go for an Xbox or a PlayStation.

Or save your money...

Laptops on the budget end are filled with poorly designed chassis that never seem to be able to cool the hardware leading to premature hardware failure and thermal throttling. It's also super common to run into other cheap components that fail like the keyboard switches.

This can be true even in "expensive" computers like Alienware. You either want a beefy thick workstation-like gaming laptop or you want something like a Dell XPS where the chassis and cooling are getting a lot of extra attention, and the hardware isn't put in cheap plastic and overspeced to "wow" you with an impossible combination of "thin" and "powerful."