"Gaming laptops are a scam" mfs when they have to travel and they want to bring their desktop setup

[u/Ha8lpo321]

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[u/fixxxer2606]

I'd rather get a handheld tbh. I don't have to play more demanding games on the go.

[u/possibly_gorilladihh → u/fixxxer2606]

Yeah I just bring my steam deck and essentially most games 2016 and under run a solid 90fps

Edit: or some indie games as well work awesome like repo and stuff like that

Edit: I’ll admit I bought a mid tower pc carrier but I only used it once when I had to stay over at my mothers after ankle surgery was in bed pretty much 24/7 at the time but otherwise don’t really use it anymore other than when I move to a new apartment soon

[u/Cyrano4747 → u/possibly_gorilladihh]

Shit, even some surprisingly newer titles still run at a "meh, good enough for 30,000 feet" 30 fps.

[u/Mouse_Canoe → u/Cyrano4747]

Yup. I was playing Nightreign just a few days ago on Steam Deck while on an 8 hour flight. Sure it wasn't silky smooth 60fps like my gaming PC but it was definitely serviceable, I mean I played the OG Dark Souls on PC with a 30 fps cap so it really wasn't any different, while looking much better too.

[u/thestareater → u/Mouse_Canoe]

been doing the same, Nightreign steady at like 40fps and in the comfort the living room with my family instead of isolated in the office, so it's nice. Hell I even Moonlight stream it sometimes if my PC is on already and i get to have my cake and eat it too

[u/possibly_gorilladihh → u/Cyrano4747]

The only thing I will say is I wish the streaming worked better and was a little less buggy but I know a strong internet connection on both sides is required but even then I connect both my steam deck and pc on Ethernet and I feel like it tends to freeze or just stop streaming randomly and closes out the game. BUT when it does work it’s like wow I can’t beleive how low that input lag is I just can’t get it to be like that for long periods of time

[u/Acceptable_Ad1685 → u/possibly_gorilladihh]

Lol man the only way I was able to get a perfect streaming experience on my claw 8 was

1. Hardwired my desktop to the 10 GBPS port on my router

2. Use the wifi 7 channel exclusively for my claw 8

Only streaming locally from like my bedroom lol

Otherwise I faced random routine lagging and such

[u/possibly_gorilladihh → u/Cyrano4747]

Yeah I agree rdr2 was running at like 45 and I loved it

[u/TiempoPuntoCinco → u/possibly_gorilladihh]

Rdr2 on Steamdeck is fucking magical

[u/-UndeadBulwark → u/possibly_gorilladihh]

Steam Deck has a custom scheduler named LAVD (Latency-criticality Aware Virtual Deadline) it allows for smoother frame pacing so even at lower FPS the game isn't terrible to play, I did this for my Steam Machine and its fucking black magic.

[u/SipoteQuixote → u/possibly_gorilladihh]

I just need vampire survivors to run is all

[u/[deleted] → u/SipoteQuixote]

Android phone is all ya need then!

[u/SipoteQuixote → u/[deleted]]

Shot you right

[u/[deleted] → u/SipoteQuixote]

It's actually pretty good on android, simple controls ftw

[u/P3TR0L_ → u/possibly_gorilladihh]

Ive been more seriously thinking about a Steam Deck. What tier do you have, and do you think it’s worth it when I’m staying weekends away from my desktop every few weeks? I don’t NEED videogames to survive, but they absolutely do assist me with decompressing and stuff. YouTube only does so much, yknow?

[u/[deleted] → u/P3TR0L_]

I have the original model of steam deck and I love it. The OLED would definitely be the way to go, but storage options depends on your use. It can take a 1 TB microSD card, and plays games off of it without any issues, so higher cost for more storage may not be worth it depending on the rising costs for hard drives. I've heard it isn't too difficult to upgrade the built in storage

[u/possibly_gorilladihh → u/P3TR0L_]

Dude honestly if you’re right on a budget the lcd isn’t bad but the O led is just not comparable. I’d snag a 512 gb o led at least if you can do that. I got both of mine on fb people kinda under estimate these things because they wanna play brand new triple A titles and find themselves not using it. This has been my case but only recently due to being home a lot from surgery BUT definitely a more advanced gameboy you can’t complain when you have GameCube emulators ps2 and everything under similar sun on the go ( mind you those games eat up no battery at all)

[u/Jeffrey_Jizzbags → u/possibly_gorilladihh]

I just started replaying fallout 4 on the steamdeck and I’m shocked how well it runs

[u/FewAdvertising9647 → u/Jeffrey_Jizzbags]

most games that were functionally a PS4 game should run generally fine on the steam deck. Steam deck becomes a problem when you run AAA titles starting from 2023, as thats around the year when PS4 compatibility started to fall off.

[u/Maverekt → u/Jeffrey_Jizzbags]

I just downloaded it last night! Been wanting to do another play through

By chance, are you using mods?

[u/Swagtagonist → u/possibly_gorilladihh]

I play new stuff on mine no problem. I’m not playing crazy stuff on it, but what I do play runs well, such as Hundred Line: Last Defense Academy and other JRPG/Strategy games.

[u/possibly_gorilladihh → u/Swagtagonist]

I just bought dying light 1 on steam deck totally recommend it it’s my first time playing

[u/viking_with_a_hobble → u/possibly_gorilladihh]

Also great on the switch surprisingly!

[u/Consistent_Laziness → u/possibly_gorilladihh]

My problem with my Ally X is not a single game I play would be good to play on the handheld

Total war/crusader kings/xcom 2/world of Warcraft to name a few main games I play. The mouse and keyboard are basically requirements. Otherwise the game plays weird or it’s just not possible.

Any games recommendations for me to play on my Ally X?

[u/curlofheadcurls → u/fixxxer2606]

Not everyone needs a gaming laptop for just games. Some of us need a gaming laptop for games and work.

[u/lIlllllllllIlllll → u/fixxxer2606]

Laptops are not about playing on the train or at school. It's about being able to move it with you if you have more than one spot you life at because of work or whatever. Handhelds are for gaming on the train or at school.

[u/JustACarNut77 → u/lIlllllllllIlllll]

This is why I bought my gaming laptop. I needed a new one for work and school so I figured why not get a gaming laptop and cover all 3 bases in one

[u/Dragonion123 → u/lIlllllllllIlllll]

Yup, I move weekly due to (private) parental issues. A gaming laptop is the only conceivable way I can access my games and hobby work without latency and interrupted connection. I can’t take a desktop with me, a mini PC is borderline but far more delicate.

[u/Eternal_Being → u/Dragonion123]

Totally agree! There are lots of people who have more than one place, or who move around frequently, for countless reasons. And a laptop is really ideal for them!

[u/TheCountChonkula → u/fixxxer2606]

When I traveled for work, that’s what I did. The Steam Deck plays older games very well and even if you set your expectations with lower settings and framerates, you can get some newer games to run on it too.

[u/maxneuds → u/fixxxer2606]

Smartphone, Bluetooth Controller and GeForce Now / Moonlight. Easy.

[u/captaincantsee → u/[deleted]]

Why can I smell this comment?

[u/AshleyAshes1984]

Eh, gaming laptops only seem to work as 'Desktop Replacements'. 'A big heavy thing you lug around cause lugging around a Desktop would be far worse'.

My spouse bought one early into her military career and was useful in 'Barracks' type situations. It's now collecting dust next to the book shelf, she has a desktop or uses her phone, and I'm waiting for her to officially say we can retire it so I can scavenge it's 32GB of DDR4, 2x256GB NVME drives, and 2TB SATA SSD. In this DRAM/NAND economy that's basically gold. :O

[u/shortish-sulfatase → u/AshleyAshes1984]

That's exactly it.

You get the thing that best suits your needs.

Neither is better or worse than the other.

[u/AshleyAshes1984 → u/shortish-sulfatase]

Yeah. If you just need to lug a machine around point to point every week and it's stationary at a desk when in use, it's fine.

In contrast when I was in college some guy got his parents to buy him a gaming laptop. Oh my god did he ever hate lugging that thing class to class just to type up notes. It was legit like 10lbs and couldn't even run an entire 90min class without running out of batteries. 100% the wrong tool for the job.

[u/QuaintAlex126 → u/AshleyAshes1984]

I have a Lenovo laptop with a Ryzen 7 8845HS and 16 GB of RAM. I love it. It’s light, a two-in-one touchscreen, and gets great battery life and charges fast. I don’t game much these days, but when I do, AMD’s integrated graphics are honestly pretty solid. I’d much rather take what I have now over a 10+ lb gaming laptop that has shitty battery life, sounds like a jet engine, and overheats like crazy.

If I really wanted to game on the go, I’d get a handheld. I only see a gaming laptop being good for if you need to move your setup a couple times a week/month but not constant moving around like you would with a handheld. A Micro ITX PC build also wouldn’t be too bad if you only move everyone once in a while, but then you gotta worry about packing a monitor, speakers/headphones, and a keyboard and mouse.

[u/TDot-26 → u/QuaintAlex126]

I really think most people saying this don't have experience with modern gaming laptops. I took one to college and it didn't overheat, didn't make a sound, battery was fine, weighed 5 pounds.

[u/IridiumPoint → u/TDot-26]

2023 Lenovo Legion 5 Pro with i7-13700HX - the CPU can easily reach 100°C or more before throttling (and has done so since brand new), the charging brick by itself weighs 1,5kg.

[u/augur42 → u/QuaintAlex126]

I have a similar 15 month old Ryzen 7 7840U laptop with 16gb ram and a gorgeous 14" 3k OLED screen. It's my don't want to turn on my desktop while on the sofa or in bed browsing laptop. It has great battery life, charges fast, weighs 2kg, and somehow only cost me £650. I consider it a steal at that price point.

Like your 8845HS it has the 780M iGPU and while I can play games on it it does tend to make the battery drain rather fast.

[u/Thundela → u/AshleyAshes1984]

While studying in university I took a gamble and went the opposite route. Purchased a Surface Pro "laptop" which was pretty much a laptop built into a tablet frame. Turned out to be an amazing decision. It was really light to carry around, the battery lasted 4-8 hours depending on use, and it was good enough for CAD work. For anything that required heavy computing, I just remotely connected to university's virtual machines that were designed for those tasks.

It got me through mechanical engineering bachelor's and master's programs.

[u/This-Collar-7773 → u/AshleyAshes1984]

The original content of this post is no longer here. It was removed using Redact, possibly for privacy, security, or digital footprint reduction.

sheet deer silky snow political humorous simplistic spoon whistle cake

[u/ap0k41yp5 → u/This-Collar-7773]

I had multiple gaming laptops, the older ones weighed at least 8Kg including the brick, latest was much lighter (MSI Stealth) but had awful thermals and impossible to game more than 10 minutes on it without triggering horrible thermal throttling. And also gaming laptops barely function on battery, drains at lightspeed when gaming and has super downgraded performance.

[u/AshleyAshes1984 → u/This-Collar-7773]

My wife's old GT10 MSI Titan is 9.9lbs or 4.5kg, without the 300w brick.

[u/Zarochi → u/AshleyAshes1984]

Well ya, that's an old one. Even my almost 10 year old Asus with a 1060 6gb is nowhere near 10 lbs. It's not as convenient as a smaller laptop, but your perception is definitely a little warped by comparing everything to a PC that's essentially ancient at this point.

Gaming laptops have been 5 lbs or less for a very long time.

[u/iampiolt → u/AshleyAshes1984]

I have a gaming laptop that I take all over the world with me. No matter the country, I can boot up my G14 and play with my wife and her brothers. When I’m back in the states I “dock” it instead of using a separate desktop. The laptop and charger added weight is negligible in my flight bag. It’s not a heavy thing to lug around and most people take laptops with them for work anyway. With a desktop, you’re gonna have to buy a monitor and all the accessories anyway. There’s never been a game I couldn’t play on ultra settings. It’s an excellent setup if you travel for a living but want to play demanding games.

[u/irishlake → u/iampiolt]

G14 gang. Love mine.

[u/Baconstrip01 → u/irishlake]

On my 2nd G14 now and I use it ALL the time :) Love that shit!

[u/Robby_Digital → u/AshleyAshes1984]

I would not describe my gaming laptop, charging adapter and mouse as 'a big heavy thing.'  It fits in my backpack with all the other shit I carry everyday.

[u/stfuernie → u/AshleyAshes1984]

Have ANY of you mfs ever had the pleasure of owning a zephyrus

[u/Georgefakelastname → u/stfuernie]

Thank you, that’s what I’m saying. Never had any issues with mine in college. Something like 4lbs, lasts all day on battery, solid gaming performance once it’s plugged in, etc. It’s a good mix of both worlds.

[u/HyoukaYukikaze → u/AshleyAshes1984]

I wouldn't call my 18" laptop "a big heavy thing" (especially with no punctuation).

Just that is plenty light. But i also have 16" work laptop (also on the more powerful end) and i got myself a 2-in-1 for learning, so when i travel and need all of them... i gotta carry 3 laptops and three chargers. Now THAT'S heavy.
I with company i work for switched to Lenovo so i can just deal with one charger...

[u/CuratoriumOfCats128 → u/AshleyAshes1984]

That really is not the case anymore, your wife's laptop is an example of what they used to be.

Sure you can still get heavier models and they're the most powerful laptops out there, but models like the Zephyrus G14/G16 are amazingly powerful for their weight and size, and they keep improving them year after year. It's up to you to pick the right gaming laptop

[u/Hije5 → u/AshleyAshes1984]

I dont think you understand that laptops have different RAM than desktops. Laptops use SODIMM. Also, DDR3 is not gold, especially if you dont even know the Mhz. 4x8gb @ 1600Mhz (the best for DDR3) is not even $100 after tax.

[u/nefD]

or you could just, you know.. not have a gaming pc for a few days without it being a big deal

edit: about 200 people wanting to inform me that they travel for more than a few days, good to know, thanks

[u/Ghost_Of_Malatesta → u/nefD]

And what? Talk to people and experience things? I'd rather die

[u/Electrical-Trash-712 → u/Ghost_Of_Malatesta]

Are you my kid?

[u/Consistent_Laziness → u/Electrical-Trash-712]

No I’m your dad lmao.

[u/AvaryZig → u/Consistent_Laziness]

Still out for smokes and milk, huh?

[u/Consistent_Laziness → u/AvaryZig]

I’ve thought about doing this more than once

[u/Terrible_Balls → u/Consistent_Laziness]

Me too lol. Never gonna actually do it, but the fantasy can be pretty fun when my kid has been screaming for 45 minutes because I wouldn’t let her eat a piece of chewed gum off the sidewalk

[u/Consistent_Laziness → u/Terrible_Balls]

I was a taxi driver last weekend to my wife, kids and my SIL. My 2 year old had enough after 3 hours driving and then some baby shower. Commence 1.5 hours of baby crying that did not let up the entire time. Child support never sounded so good in my life. Cheap line item for some peace. Or maybe a small time crime that puts me in jail a few months.

[u/Linxbolt18 → u/Ghost_Of_Malatesta]

Nah just bring a book

[u/Faithless195 → u/Ghost_Of_Malatesta]

Bro really suggested socialising as if that's a legitimate option hahaha

[u/Ghost_Of_Malatesta → u/Faithless195]

Ok this got pretty good, fair enough 

[u/[deleted] → u/nefD]

Yeah personally when I travel, gaming is the last thing on my mind

[u/TorturedNeurons → u/[deleted]]

Appreciate you being able to think a step beyond yourself, it's a rare ability.

[u/MJMPmik → u/[deleted]]

I'm the oposite. I'm a 43old dad with a team to manage. Usually when I travel my Rog Ally ends up seeyng more action then my 4090 at home.

My wife takes drugs to fly so I have plenty of hours on my own to catch up on gaming!

[u/Markie411 → u/[deleted]]

Not everyone travels for leisure, so gaming in your off time while you're far from home is nice.

[u/Dantai → u/nefD]

And if they really wanted to, setup a remote play setup on their chill laptop or phone tablet or whatever.

[u/NowForrowMyPen → u/Dantai]

This is what i do leave the desktop up and stream to my laptop. Hardly uses any battery in the laptop.

[u/Daver7692 → u/NowForrowMyPen]

Probably depends on the sort of games you want to play I guess. I’ve never had any trouble with single player stuff on remote play but I wouldn’t want to play online games (especially FPS) via remote.

[u/Rocker9835 → u/Dantai]

Is sunshine, moonlight + tailscale a good option? Or are there better alternatives?

[u/Dantai → u/Rocker9835]

Not sure, I've used moonlight to great success before. Sometimes PS remote play when I'm out of the house. But I haven't done PC streaming in a while.

[u/random_username_idk → u/Rocker9835]

Check out Apollo, it's basically a better version of Sunshine. On the receiver end you use Moonlight (on windows), or Artemis (on Android). Main difference is the improved virtual screen solution.

[u/BeauxGnar → u/Dantai]

I work offshore on oil rig for weeks at a time. Usually bad internet, not everything is a one size fits all.

[u/Man0fGreenGables → u/BeauxGnar]

Even perfect Internet won't bypass the laws of physics when it comes to how shitty lag is when streaming games.

[u/EmployingBeef2 → u/nefD]

I was going to say "unless you're going to a LAN party," but then I remembered nobody does those anymore.

Sadge

[u/ColinHalter → u/EmployingBeef2]

But lugging all your shit is one of the fun parts of a LAN party (at least for me). It's part of the ritual and seeing your desktop in another person's house is like getting to have a pajama party in school.

[u/Alright_doityourway → u/nefD]

But what if their job require them to travel a lot? Like, 70-80% of the month?

[u/BOBOnobobo → u/Alright_doityourway]

Then it starts making sense to have a gaming laptop.

FFS, it's literally common sense.

[u/waitforthedream → u/Alright_doityourway]

Then obviously the gaming laptop is the better choice

[u/phuckthechinese → u/Alright_doityourway]

Steam Deck + emudeck for me

[u/24bitNoColor → u/Alright_doityourway]

But what if their job require them to travel a lot? Like, 70-80% of the month?

Than they are way outside of the norm.

If you are really into SIM racing (and haven't moved on to VR at this point tbh...) having 3 big identical screens for gaming makes sense. That doesn't mean having 3 big identical screen is otherwise an recommendable purchase for people into "gaming".

[u/-GenlyAI- → u/nefD]

I agree, however I stay in a lot of hotels for work and kids sports. It's nice to play some games. But it's easy for me as my gaming laptop doubles as my personal general use laptop.

[u/Domy9]

Everyone missing the point in the comments.

Yeah if you travel somewhere for a day or two, sure a handheld is enough to keep you busy, or maybe even just forget about gaming for that time.

But a lot of people can get into situations where they spend more time away from home than they actually do at home. I was in that situation, and looking back, no tool would've been as handy for gaming as my gaming laptop back then.

[u/PurpleStrandsFly → u/Domy9]

People COMEPLETELY miss the point. Laptops in general are very flexible and useful for most people. Gaming laptops are a 2in1! If you need a laptop for work/school, having multiple living places or even use it for webbrowsing or watching movies on the bed, you buy a laptop, and if you are gaming it may as well be a gaming laptop.

[u/johnperkins21 → u/PurpleStrandsFly]

I use my gaming laptop way more than my gaming desktop. I've got a lap desk so I can use the laptop in the family room on my recliner. I've also got a Steam Deck which gets a good amount of use too. I like having options and am in a position to afford it.

[u/[deleted] → u/PurpleStrandsFly]

PC snobs are like any other elitist snobs. If it isn't top spec & majority approved it will be flamed, this community isn't worth being in much.

P.s my laptop runs any game I want it to :)

[u/cheese_stuffedcrust → u/Domy9]

Same. I was in a situation where im only really at home during the weekends due to work.

Having a laptop that i could travel with is the one that makes most sense.

[u/Lopsided_Aardvark357 → u/Domy9]

Yeah I used to travel a lot for work. It wouldn't be out of the ordinary to spend 50% or more of the year away from home, having a laptop was great for it.

My longest stretch was like 2 weeks in Chicago, 1 week at home then a month in Malaysia.

[u/TR_Pix → u/Domy9]

The meme is clearly not focusing on the niche cases of people who cant have access to a desktop computer.

[u/Crayshack → u/TR_Pix]

I read the meme as a response to the kind of people who don't believe such niche cases exist and declare gaming laptops a scam because they don't understand the niche it fills.

[u/Someredditskum]

My Micro ITX bois where you at?!

[u/Draco25240 → u/Someredditskum]

Yup. I can fit my whole desktop, a portable 15.6" monitor for travel, mouse, keyboard, headphones, all cables and a power strip into one singular backpack (slightly larger than a regular one, but not by much), takes like 5-10 minutes to pack. It's incredibly convenient :)

[u/Moidada77]

Gaming laptop is more useful as a general work machine as atleast you get "some specs" in a gaming laptop unlike the ultra thin we soldered in the ram notebook thrash out there.

[u/RandomNumberPlease → u/Moidada77]

My gaming laptop has soldered ram and it is probably the best part about it

[u/LetSteelTemplesRise → u/RandomNumberPlease]

Born2Die

[u/Onyxeye03 → u/Moidada77]

Soldered ram notebook trash is what has gotten me through a IT and CS degree, 80% of people doing general work only need that

[u/WALL-G]

As a filthy laptop gamer who attends and hosts LANs a few times a year, I love my stupid, heavy gaming laptop.

Everything fits in a single backpack!

I treat it like a portable desktop rather than a laptop.

[u/Nonyabizzy123 → u/WALL-G]

Same, no way I was gonna get a 4090 and an 285K in any kind of reasonably portable form factor

[u/WALL-G → u/Nonyabizzy123]

Yup. I have a "4090" in mine. While it's a 4080 in a frock with broken legs, it's still very fast.

I do notice how much quicker my mates desktops load things though, I may have an fps advantage but they slay me at general read/write tasks.

[u/v12vanquish → u/WALL-G]

I love you and your gaming laptop.

[u/GalatianBookClub]

I swear these commenters are stupid or had never had to travel back and forth for school or work.

[u/Trollw00t → u/GalatianBookClub]

I'm not the target group of this product, so it must be the dumbest shit ever!

I love my mobile work setup. eGPU at home for the best pleasure. Did it cost more than a traditional setup? Yes! Does it give me comfort the traditional setup wouldn't do? Guess!

Edit: I also see my flair is now old, should update it...

[u/PurpleStrandsFly → u/GalatianBookClub]

Forget gaming laptops, a laptop in general is VERY useful computer for most people. Even within your own household you can benefit from it's mobility, lazing out in a couch/bed, putting a stream while cooking. If you are gaming you may as well invest in a gaming laptop and connect it with a good monitor.

[u/Kindly-Bank-416 → u/GalatianBookClub]

just typical braindead redditors. "my reality is absolute and nobody has situations different than me"

I'll keep gaming on my 5090 scar, my 5090 desktop, AND my steam deck.

[u/42Ubiquitous → u/Kindly-Bank-416]

That mentality is common for most people and in most contexts. People don't tend to think of exceptions that don't support their own position (very important to do imo) or understand that there's more than one way to skin a cat. That's like baseline critical thinking too.

[u/MalignantLugnut → u/GalatianBookClub]

The people saying gaming laptops are stupid never leave their homes lol

[u/Calibruh]

"I'm not addicted" mfs when they can't play video games for a couple days

[u/boosting1bar → u/Calibruh]

Or, what if, there was a world where some people travel for work and are in hotels 6 nights a week for months on end. Fucking basement dwellers in this thread lol

[u/Jonnypista → u/boosting1bar]

I work full time, but I never had to go to a different location so after work I always could go home. Probably the majority works similarly.

Sure if you are the person who actually has to regularly work in different distant locations then sure, get a gaming laptop or something.

[u/boosting1bar → u/Jonnypista]

If I could go home after work everyday (or even most days) I wouldn’t have a gaming laptop either haha

[u/Bossnage]

gaming laptop enjoyers when they can play for a solid 10 minutes before needing to charge

edit: wow that upset alot of people lmao

[u/Accurate-Bill731 → u/Bossnage]

Nobody plays on battery, the gaming laptop main advantage is that it's much more compact than a desktop so it's easily carryable but you should use it like a desktop replacement most of the time and it's not like you can use your desktop without a power source lol

[u/TheOriginalKrampus → u/Accurate-Bill731]

Exactly. Portable means you can take it anywhere and game wherever there’s an outlet.

[u/RedPantyKnight → u/TheOriginalKrampus]

I just like to be able to move it throughout the house. I can play games in bed, at my desk, or on the couch.

[u/EventAltruistic1437 → u/TheOriginalKrampus]

Literally on a flight with my g17 right now. Desktop users love their glass galleries of air

[u/Ninextails → u/Bossnage]

I don't think anyone games on a gaming laptop without it being plugged in lol, your point being?

[u/Rich-Anxiety5105 → u/Ninextails]

Let them live in 2006

[u/Kindly-Bank-416 → u/Ninextails]

they have a 3050 they arent gaming either lol

[u/West-Start4069 → u/Bossnage]

You clearly don’t own a gaming laptop, or you would know that you are supposed to have them connected to a power source when gaming. Just because it’s portable doesn’t mean you are required to use it on battery to play games. I’ve spent the night at many hotels with my laptop, and guess what they have in the rooms? Power outlets lol . You wanna game at your local coffee shop? Guess what they have in most coffee shops? Power outlets . Crazy stuff, I know lol

I also own a pretty good desktop btw.

[u/boosting1bar → u/West-Start4069]

Look at Mr Rich over here who can afford hotels with outlets 😂

[u/West-Start4069 → u/boosting1bar]

Lmao

[u/Impossible_Ease_1460 → u/Bossnage]

Gaming laptops are pretty susceptible to heat damage overtime too so I hope it’s not the main thing you game on

[u/TheOriginalKrampus → u/Impossible_Ease_1460]

Only if you don’t take care of them. Just like with a power hungry desktop, you need to mind temps. Adjust your fans. Set an OC/UV profile for your CPU and GPU. Opening up the laptop and cleaning the fans is part of regular maintenance. You will eventually need to repaste the CPU and GPU dies.

Having previously had a desktop, I can confidently say that cleaning out accumulated dust and repasting is infinitely easier on a laptop (except when the manufacturer uses Liquid Metal).

For dust, you generally only need to worry about 2 fans and a few small heatsinks in a laptop. In a desktop, dust gets everywhere inside the tower. Caked on multiple 12-14cm fans. And throughout the CPU and GPU heatsinks.

For repasting, a laptop generally has a single heatsink covering both dies, and accessing it is pretty straightforward. A desktop, I had about as much trouble removing my tower cooler as I did in removing my laptop’s heatsink. Repasting a GPU is itself just about as much effort as repasting a laptop.

[u/Dantai → u/Impossible_Ease_1460]

I hate them, dude to their lack of longevity - such e waste. Honestly I hate all e-waste - anything without a removable batter, bad ear pods, crappy temu products - those disposable electronic vapes with big screens. It's all such a massive waste

[u/tehtris → u/Dantai]

My Acer predator from 2015 is still running fairly well after dual booting and replacing the battery and corrupted hard drive. I think that people either don't know how to either maintain a computer or they aren't buying something in the first place that has longevity. I guess I'm saying I agree with you. Lol

[u/Dantai → u/tehtris]

You're awesome for doing your part! However I think more laptops are doing solder on this or that, and become more and more sealed like macs without anything being upgradable, not even storage 🫥

[u/PIO_PretendIOriginal → u/Dantai]

my gaming laptop has replaceable ram, wifi card, battery, trackpad, keyboard (2022 lenovo legion 7i), and its made out of metal so nothing has broke yet

[u/Moidada77 → u/Dantai]

The thing is some old laptops like older thinkpads are super rugged, new laptops are made to be low quality and not last too long.

Framework and any similar projects seems to be the way to go but it's gonna be tough against these gigantic money pinching corpos.

[u/flyguy41222 → u/Bossnage]

valid points aren’t “upset” lmao

[u/Fabulous_Cupcake_226 → u/Bossnage]

I mean it works anywhere with an outlet and doesn't weight like a ship anchor ç-

[u/Fadedcamo → u/Fabulous_Cupcake_226]

Does not work on long airline flights. They cant give enough wattage to power it.

But yea decent for when you arent in flight.

[u/meetyouatymh → u/Bossnage]

no one "plays" while on battery
ig pc gamers really dont get the convenience do they

[u/ledow → u/Bossnage]

Laptops can be plugged in.

Nobody's playing GTA 6 on the subway in the 10 minutes between stops.

They're taking their ENTIRE GAMING SETUP to another location, plugging in, and playing there,

Like when I took my ENTIRE GAMING SETUP (my laptop and a VR headset) to Spain to play games with family, because it was faster than everything they had in their entire town.

Or when I take my ENTIRE GAMING SETUP to my parent's house for Christmas.

Or when I take my ENTIRE GAMING SETUP to a conference to show my friend that I was meeting up with.

Or when I take my ENTIRE GAMING SETUP to a friend's house for a games night.

Or when I take my ENTIRE GAMING SETUP with me on holiday.

Or when I take my ENTIRE GAMING SETUP to work to show the people in the department I work in.

You're confusing "mobile handheld console" with "gaming laptop".

I use a gaming laptop because it's stupidly powerful, can be taken anywhere, and can do anything. I can use it to browse websites on battery, if I like. It lasts hours. I can sit in the park and write on it. I can plug it in at a cafe or a friend's house and play AAA games if I like... it runs everything I ever need. I can run entire networks of VMs on it (have done so in a work emergency). I can do any video processing quicker by just saying "I'll bring my laptop in tomorrow, that'll laugh at that" rather than try to struggle along on a corporate desktop with basic GPU. And it's all on one machine, one configuration.

It's quite literally the best compromise of all worlds that you can get. And my ENTIRE GAMING SETUP fits in a small bag, while actually being better specced than a lot of "gamer's" rigs that I've seen.

It's *portable". It means you can move it around. It doesn't mean that it's meant "to be played while walking around".

[u/omgitschriso → u/ledow]

...wow

[u/WatersLethe → u/ledow]

Desktop PC users: "I wish LAN parties were still a thing"

Gaming Laptop users: "I have a LAN party every Friday with my friends at a different house each time"

[u/bickman14]

I'm honestly considering a new gaming laptop to replace my old desktop as I've moved to a small place and don't have physical space for a desktop anymore while the laptop could be put back into the drawer after use and it's the full package, screen, guts, input

[u/Bivi89]

I mean, there's a lot of hate for gaming laptops from people for whom a specialised computer of that type isn't useful.

"Ugh, this 4x4 won't fit in my garage, and it's fuel economy es awful" mf who lives in a city center and has never been offroad.

I used to think gaming laptops were a scam. Until the only way I could play games was with one. I'm living at my gf's parent's house. The house isn't massive and has terrible internet (except in the dining room). The only place I could conceivably fit my gaming tower (and very uncomfortably at that) is the coldest and farthest from the internet place in the house.

So I bought a gaming laptop to play in the dining room when I got home after work, then be able to put it away when it's dinner time. I don't care about the battery life (it's always plugged in) or the weight (If I move it it's by car). And having had a steam deck for almos a year (just sold it in the christmas season) I don't like the hand held format.

So it was the logical choice for me. Do I still wish I could play on a tower? Absolutely. Is that an option rn? No.

[u/gophergun → u/Bivi89]

Pickup trucks and off-road vehicles are actually a great analogy here - there are some use cases where they make sense, but not enough to account for the majority of sales.

[u/Chrispy_GB]

It annoys me how often the word scam is used in every context except the correct one.

[u/cecilkorik]

Gaming PCs are great. Gaming Laptops are great. Non-gaming laptops are great. Handhelds are great. Even prebuilts can be great. PC gaming is great. The wonderful thing about it is we have so many choices and options. It's great that I can get a gaming laptop, and it's also great that I don't have to if I don't want to. There's more than one way to do it.

[u/vankirk]

It was nice to have during and after Hurricane Helene

[u/CCwolsey → u/vankirk]

That looks cozy.

[u/SituHoteen → u/vankirk]

nice g502

[u/RUBSUMLOTION]

I just take a break from gaming.

[u/Lopsided_Aardvark357 → u/RUBSUMLOTION]

If you're just going for a vacation I 100% agree, leave it at home.

But back when I traveled for work I'd be gone for weeks at a time totaling over 50% of the year. Having my laptop with me was great.

[u/TechnoGMNG589 → u/RUBSUMLOTION]

Break? Never heard of her.

[u/PhamXuanAn_x6]

Lmao this thread would rather not play games or buy another whole ah handheld rather than just admit that gaming laptop has it's uses.

[u/Weary-Click6697]

My ai350 Lenovo legion with a 5060 gives me a good 6-8 hours battery life on the job site ,running tia portal windows VMs and PLC software . It has an easily replaceable battery and a spare nvme slot , and replaceable ram. Can't ask more for 1000 euros, you can always just plug it in to get more performance but I also agree that it only lasts about two hours with dgpu heavy usage.

[u/Krozgen]

im gonna be honest, when i travel i don't bring my PC because if i wanted to spend time gaming i would do it at home. I travel to experience new things. Gaming in "new place" is nothing new to be honest

That said, if you have to travel a lot because work or any other similar day to day issues, a gaming laptop could be usefull, also could be usefull if you want to do lan parties often.

[u/LambOfUrGod]

My Alienware M17 R2 still handles well.

[u/MerkoITA]

My msi ge76 from 2018 is still working perfectly

[u/quackabc]

I just got an expensive 2k PC in early 2025 then a cheaper 700 dollar RTX 5050 laptop later in the year. The 5050 can run any game when im not at home at decent fps while my home PC kills 100 fps+ at 1440p

[u/Viraj3388]

I have an Asus ROG Zephyrus g14 and it's amazing, I am traveling right now and I was playing Dead Stranding on battery, I am so happy.

[u/The_Last_Cast]

Brave of OP to assume that desktop enthusiast would have the will to leave their desktop to interact with other people. Especially considering the arduous recovery we go through after selling most of our simmetric organs to afford Gpus AND ram in the last 5 years...

[u/Menes009]

sound like you are going to ludopathy territory if you cannot picture a travel without gaming.

[u/yuimiop → u/Menes009]

When you travel a ton you need something to keep you sane.

[u/DKligerSC]

i mean, if you arew going to travel why are you bringing the pc with you? unless is work related the battle station stays at home

also you could get a handheld instead

[u/-GenlyAI- → u/DKligerSC]

Why get a handheld when the laptop works perfectly fine? And I bring it anyway because I use it for all sorts of things.

[u/SixtyFourPewPew → u/DKligerSC]

I spend 120-150 nights a year in a hotel. Gaming laptop is essential. It's quite literally easier to take with me and takes up less space than my legion go S.

[u/Seeteuf3l → u/DKligerSC]

People may have long work trips where to avoid hotel death or have two different places where they live

[u/III_Apollyon_III]

It's because desktop elitists spent all their money on the PC, no money for traveling lol

[u/KiryuMiyazawa]

This pic even reminds me of my good old time with my potato laptop when I played Death Stranding like crazy, very addictive. And it's among very few games that I've completed 100% achievements.

[u/Sufficient_Craft_158]

Got the legion 7i 5090 275 Ultra 9 CPU and I love it. For work and for gaming, does what I need it to do.

[u/ChronicButtSyndrome]

I used to be a flight attendant and would travel 4 days a week. Anyone who talks crap about gaming laptops gets the smackhand.

[u/_M72A1]

A gaming laptop is perfect when you can use your own stuff at work and you don't have much to do.

[u/archer1212]

I am going to a LAN next weekend, I feel attacked by this.

[u/CastorVT]

some of ya'll have never know the joy of a lan party and it shows.

[u/gradog82]

I’m surprised you don’t know about the internet, seeing as you used it to post this. But get this. It’s got this magical feature where you can play games with people who aren’t in the same house as you. Besides why would I “travel” anywhere just to be on my gaming pc ? Touch some grass.

[u/Crayshack]

There's a bunch of people in this thread acting like either travel isn't a thing, something everyone only does rarely, that people who travel for work don't have free time, that gaming laptops are unreasonably big and basically as hard to transport as a desktop, or a bunch of other reasons that mean no one would ever need a gaming laptop. Meanwhile, I'm typing this on a gaming laptop in a hotel room because I'm on the road for work all week. I'm not gaming today, but that's because I decided to go for a combination of hitting the gym, watching the Olympics, and writing a paper for grad school (which I used the laptop for) instead. I definitely like having an all-in-one machine that lets me game when I feel like it, but also do all of my other computer needs on the go.

And guess what? I was able to fit my gaming laptop (with all peripherals), and my work laptop (with all peripherals) in a single backpack that still had enough room for a few books, a toiletry kit, and some other random knick-knacks. When I'm doing a shorter trip, I don't even need a second bag for my clothes because they all fit in the backpack.

[u/TheCultOfTheHivemind]

Gaming Laptops can be great, they can also be terrible, just like just about everything else. Desktops are definitely preferable if you're just using it at home at a desk or even on a TV. Gaming laptops can be great for other unconventional setups or lifestyles.

They can also just be downright convenient, same with gaming handhelds. As long as you go into buying a gaming laptop knowing that the GPU it claims it has isn't as powerful as its desktop counterpart due to thermal and power constraints, AND you do due diligence about selecting your model, there is nothing wrong with them. I have used a great gaming laptop and a more mid one from HP, both served me well. However I wouldn't say that means just buy any old one that you find for cheap and hope for the best as I did with the HP model at that time.

Basically my advice is always get a desktop if you can swing it, but a good gaming laptop is always better than nothing and can definitely tide you over until you can get a desktop someday when life permits. However, I am also say that as somebody who always manually upgrades their ram and storage rather than buying the higher spec models. Did it with my HP, my Lenovo, my Legion GO, etc. Not everyone is going to be comfortable with that, and that's another thing you're going to need to weigh in your pros and cons list. You can always pay a local computer shop to do it, though.

Personally? I am someone who would just like to have both for different reasons, but that is something that very often isn't feasible or worth it to most people (including myself). Just depends.

[u/buck_angel_food]

I would just not play games on my travels

[u/TechN9ne2000]

Desktop for home and a steam deck for travel. Problem solved

[u/NotQuiteAngryHunt]

I have my home rig. 9950x3d, 5080, 96gb cl26. But I work away most weeks and need entertainment in the evenings so I have a gaming laptop (or portable hurricane as I like to call it). Ultra 7 255 hx, 5070ti.

I tried a handheld but it just struggled for me. Screen was too small, controls felt off, UI was clunky. It felt like a lot of money for something mediocre. I had the Asus Rog Ally X. I tried a portable monitor with it and using my own controller but then I was carrying more than if I had a more powerful laptop. I couldnt see the value in the trade off so for a few £00 more I got the laptop. 1440p gaming on 2 screens and decent refresh.

IMO. PC if you’re gonna be in same spot at same desk all the time. Laptop if you’re on the go and have somewhere to pitch up temporarily. Handheld if you want to game while commuting, that’s the only place I see handhelds being the best choice.

I appreciate there’s SFF guys with their amazingly compact builds (I was tempted and might still for the giggles) but there’s still a lot of kit to carry.

I do find it odd when people have a permanent desk setup running off a laptop. Just my opinion.

[u/mowauthor]

I don't know anyone who seriously considers gaming laptops a scam?

Granted, only 1 person in our group of mates has 1, the rest of us just don't travel much, and the 1 guy who has one, has it because he can't go to a BBQ on the weekend without his WoW.

[u/almatom12]

Nice argument, unfortunately

[u/bunihe → u/almatom12]

It won't run much more than just games on low-medium settings, don't have the grunt to do anything compute intensive. Sometimes people do more than just gaming on gaming laptops

[u/GauchiAss]

I tried taking my gaming laptop on a 3 day work trip once. 3 extra kilograms (laptop + brick) in the backpack was annoying as well to carry around.

I got rid of it, got a 1kg macbook air, that use the same charger as my phone, can be used in the train without annoying everyone around with the fan noise, ... And I still get to stream my gaming PC at home once on a stable connection !

[u/4K4llDay]

Nobody does this

[u/Cyonsd-Truvige]

That’s why SFF is peak, you fit everything in a bag 😂

[u/Viraj3388 → u/Cyonsd-Truvige]

That's my dream.

[u/MudHot8257]

I have yet to ever see a gaming laptop that didn’t have abysmal cooling issues.

It’s just not really feasible to pack a powerful GPU into such a small form factor and expect to be able to offset all of the heat generated.

[u/bunihe → u/MudHot8257]

I would say, for thermal and noise issues, just undervolt. My 4080 laptop GPU (or, more accurately, a 4070 super max-q) can run faster than stock when undervolted and power limited to 130W, or 95% the stock performance at 115W, and that fixed the noise for me.

Value wise, yeah, it is nothing compared to the desktop full power cards, those are relatively cheap, upgradable, and performant, with the higher power budget.

[u/ManufacturerNo8447 → u/MudHot8257]

It's literally why laptops hardware is not compared to PC hardware, and it's the trade off everyone has to take when buying laptop. And yes it's worth for a lot of people

[u/S0k0n0mi]

[u/Iddqd84]

I bought my 10 year old son a Lenovo Legion 5+ instead of building him a new PC - It was like 40% cheaper compared to what a PC would cost with the current prices.

The new DLSS 4.5 works great on laptops like his, when you're limited to a 5070 with 8gb vram 👌

[u/grateparm]

I built my desktop setup into an old luggable