A gaming laptop usually requires extra storage, better graphics and a faster CPU. It consumes more power and ican be quite bulky. To achieve the best gaming experience, the following factors should be taken into consideration when choosing the ideal gaming laptop:

1. GPU

What differentiates a gaming laptop from any other laptop is the GPU. The Graphics Processing Unit (GPU) is a single chip processor responsible for the high end graphics, videos and game performance. Also called discrete GPUs, these particular chips are solely committed to the graphics side of the laptop and have their own share of memory available, resulting in better performance.

There are many graphics chips to choose from, anything from Nvidia’s GeForce GTX series to AMD Radeon HD series is money well spent. It would still be wise to read up on the different Graphic Cards available and compare the prices and performance to suit your gaming needs, e.g. Nvidia’s cards are quieter and cooler yet AMD has some problems with older games-AMD is also more expensive which is reflected in the superior performance. Notebook Check provides an informative guide on examining the features of various Graphics Cards. A gaming laptop must have a Class 1 graphics card to be considered suitable for serious gaming.

Note that most gaming laptops come with single and dual GPUs yet when accounting for space and heat, a faster individual GPU is a much better option rather than dual.

2. CPU

CPU (the processor) is the second most important element after the GPU. It’s the core of the computer and is responsible for the operating system and applications that are run. The two top contenders in the CPU race are Intel and AMD, this is largely determined by factors such as:

clock speed – speed of a computer (in gigahertz)

number of cores – basic computation units of CPU (usually range from 2 to 6)

AMD and Intel Processors

The higher the clock speed and cores, the greater the laptop speed. Intel’s quad Core i7 series is currently favoured  when it comes to gaming and stands up well against bottle-necking (the phase when a process slows/stops). Intel’s quad Core i5 series also compares well. Quad (four) cores are always preferred over dual (two) cores when it comes to the CPU.

It is important to note that if the games being played don’t demand the full use of the cores then the CPU will not be used to its maximum capacity. Hence it is always advisable to spend more money on the GPU side of the gaming laptop rather than the CPU.

3. RAM

Random Access Memory (RAM) is the primary memory in a laptop. DDR (Double Data Rate) is a type of RAM that transfers twice the data in a certain given time. From DDR2 to DDR3 to DDR4, the faster the memory, the more efficient the games will be. To prevent bottlenecking, a memory of 8GB or 16GB is required. More than sufficient allocated memory usually gives games and the Operating System adequate space to work with.

Transcend DDR2 RAM 200-pin

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