Top 6 Gaming Laptops Compared
Other Gaming Laptops to Consider
Photograph: Luke Larsen
Alienware 16X Aurora for $1,970: Alienware has lost some focus with its gaming laptops recently, but its latest refresh feels like a return to form. The Alienware 16X Aurora (7/10, WIRED Recommends) sits in the middle of the lineup, attempting to offer the right balance of performance, premium features, and price. At its current price, it nails that walk across the tightrope. Though it isn’t flashy, the design is understated yet refined. And while there are cheaper ways to get RTX 5060-level performance, the bright, color-accurate IPS display is a great upgrade, as is the premium touchpad. All in all, the Alienware 16X Aurora ended up being my favorite Alienware gaming laptop in years. It’s too expensive at retail price, so wait for a discount on this one.
MSI Titan 18 HX for $5,200: Power. It’s what PC gamers want most, right? Well, if that’s you, and you don’t have a budget, get the MSI Titan 18 HX (7/10, WIRED Recommends). It sets the definition for “large and in charge.” This machine is blinged out with tons of advanced features like a mechanical keyboard, an invisible haptic-feedback touchpad, and plenty of RGB lighting. The touchpad wasn’t my favorite, but typing and gaming on the mechanical keyboard is an absolute joy. There are a few other 18-inch laptops to consider, like the updated Alienware 18 Area-51 or the Razer Blade 18. But the incredible 4K+ mini-LED display is something you can’t get on another 18-inch laptop. Games look gorgeous on it, and thanks to the RTX 5090, you can play AAA games at that native resolution at decent frame rates. This MSI is a beast of a laptop, so don’t try to take it with you on a work trip. Trust me.
Asus ROG Z13 for $2,300: There’s nothing else quite like the ROG Flow Z13 (7/10, WIRED Recommends). It’s a 2-in-1 laptop, not unlike the Surface Pro, but this one’s intended specifically for gaming. That might sound like a contradiction—or maybe just a bad idea. But amazingly, the ROG Flow Z13 has created a new product category in gaming over the past few years, and continues to exist alone in it. By putting all the components behind the screen instead of under the keyboard, the ROG Flow Z13 directs all that hot air away from your hands. That’s always an issue with gaming laptops, no matter how loud or thick they are. And yet, with the ROG Flow Z13, the keyboard always stays completely cool. This year’s model uses an interesting new CPU, too: the AMD Ryzen AI MAX+ 395, which has a massive integrated graphics chip onboard that’s even faster than discrete graphics like the RTX 4060. In my testing, I was quite satisfied with the system’s performance in games, especially given how quiet it stays and how long the battery life is. It’s expensive, but it’s also incredibly unique.
Gaming Laptops to Avoid
Ideally, you should stay away from anything older than RTX 40-series GPUs. Because laptops are not upgradeable in terms of graphics, you’ll want to buy something at least somewhat recent. Even the RTX 40-series GPUs have been out for a while. So, you’re still potentially getting something two years old. You won’t find many RTX 30-series GPUs for much cheaper than 40-series laptops anyway. Here are a few older recommendations that aren’t worth it anymore.
Acer Nitro 5 for $1,098: This is an older machine, and it was a great budget gaming laptop for a while. There are other laptops you can find around this price, like the Acer Nitro V 16 we recommend above. It has an RTX 3060 Laptop GPU, 16 GB of DDR4 RAM, and a 512-GB SSD.
Acer Swift X 14 for $1,300: If portability is your top priority, the Swift X 14 (6/10, WIRED Review) is a nice option with good performance, thanks to its RTX 4070 graphics card and Intel Core Ultra 7 155H CPU. Unfortunately, it runs very hot, and the fan spins almost all the time.
Disclaimer : This story is auto aggregated by a computer programme and has not been created or edited by DOWNTHENEWS. Publisher: wired.com
