The Top 5 Best Laptops for Gaming on the Go in 2018

The Top 5 Best Laptops for Gaming on the Go in 2018 

As game have gotten more impressive, so have the gadgets that run them.

It wasn’t long ago that gaming laptops were mostly fantasy. If you were willing to spend enough you could buy a laptop that could maybe play all of the latest games, but you still had to make some significant compromises, whether dialing down the guality or putting up with terrible battery life. Now a gaming laptop will still cost you a sizeable chunk of change, but the trade-offs are considerably less.

These are the best five options which is  worth buying, whether you're looking for a gaming purpose or something for work and play.

Asus ROG Strix GL502VS

Asus ROG Strix GL502VS

• Pros 

    -Well-balanced combination of hardware
‌    -120Hz G-Sync display
‌    -Reasonable price tag

• Cons

    -Poor battery life

If you’re looking for something a bit more portable than a 17-inch laptop, Asus’ 15-inch ROG Strix GL502VS is another consistently well-reviewed option, and PC Gamer for best overall gaming laptop. Not surprisingly, the laptop’s combination of performance and a somewhat more portable form factor does come with one big trade-off: battery life. You can expect only an hour or two even when you’re not gaming.

Asus's  ROG Strix GL502VS is the best gaming laptop for most users. It combines a robust feature set with a decent build quality in a not-gigantic form factor, all at a reasonable price. 

SPECS

CPU: Intel Core i7-7700HQ (2.8GHz Base)
GPU: GeForce GTX 1070 8GB
RAM: 16GB DDR4-2400
Display: 15.6” Wide View LCD with 120Hz refresh and G-Sync (1920x1080)
Storage: 128GB NVMe SSD, 1TB 5400 RPM HDD
Battery: 62Wh
Connectivity: headphone/mic combo jack, 3x USB 3.0, 1x USB 3.1 Type C, 1x mini-DP, 1x HDMI, 1x RJ45, SD card
OS: Windows 10 Home 64-bit
Weight: 4.80 lbs.
Thickness: 1.2" (30mm)

Acer Predator 17

Acer Predator 17

• Pros 

   - Very attractive price
 ‌  - Solid 1080p performance
 ‌  - Great battery life

• Cons

 ‌  - No G-Sync

Another gaming laptop that won’t be mistaken for anything else, Acer’s red-accented Predator 17 is a top pick of the year 2018 , as it has the “best performance for the price without any major flaws.” It’s not exactly cheap in any configuration, but it will buy you a great 17.3-inch display and gamer-minded features, including a fully programmable backlit keyboard and ample cooling

SPECS

CPU: Intel Core i7-7700HQ (2.8GHz Base)
GPU: GeForce GTX 1060 6GB
RAM: 16GB DDR4-2133
Display: 15.6” IPS (1920x1080)
Storage: 256GB M.2 SATA SSD
Battery: 48Wh
Connectivity: headphone/mic combo jack, 2x USB 2.0, 1x USB 3.0 w/power, 1x USB 3.1 Type C, 1x HDMI, 1x RJ45, SD card
OS: Windows 10 Home 64-bit
Weight: 5.95 lbs.
Thickness: 1.5" (33mm)

Gigabyte Aero 15X-BK4

Gigabyte Aero 15X-BK4

• Pros

 ‌ - Excellent performance
 ‌ - Incredibly portable
 ‌ - Outstanding battery life

• Cons

 ‌ - Stiff and cramped keyboard
‌  - Panel only 60Hz, no G-Sync
 ‌ - Crappy webcam

The best Max-Q gaming laptop for most users is the  Gigabyte Aero 15X-BK4 Featuring an Intel Core i7-7700HQ and Nvidia GTX 1070 Max-Q GPU, the Aero 15X is powerful enough to run most games at 1080p / 60fps or higher on ultra settings. It isn't the cheapest of the 1070 Max-Q laptops I tested, but it outperformed its competition and did so in a slightly-smaller form-factor. 

Every Max-Q laptop I tested featured a 15.6-inch 1080p screen, though with varying features beyond that. What sets the Aero 15X apart, despite it only offering a refresh rate of 60Hz (whereas many of the competition offer 120Hz screens), is its form factor. Max-Q systems value portability over all else, and the Aero 15X succeeds most of all there thanks to a 5mm screen bezel that lets the whole laptop measure in at a width of 14 inches (the size of a 15-inch MacBook Pro), compared to 15 inches for all of the competition. 

SPECS

CPU: Intel Core i7-7700HQ (2.8GHz Base)
GPU: GeForce GTX 1070 8GB Max-Q
RAM: 16GB DDR4-2400
Display: 15.6” Wide View LCD with 60Hz refresh and X-Rite Pantone certification (1920x1080)
Storage: 512GB PCIe NVMe SSD
Battery: 94Wh
Connectivity: headphone/mic combo jack, 3x USB 3.0, 1x Thunderbolt 3 (USB Type-C), 1x mini-DP, 1x HDMI, 1x RJ45, SD card
OS: Windows 10 Home 64-bit
Weight: 4.6 lbs. (including 200W power brick)
Thickness: .78" (19.8mm)

Razor Blade

Razor Blade

• Pros 

  - Attractive slim chassis

  - Sharp display and terrific keyboard 

  - Intel's latest-generation i7 processor

  - VR-ready.

• Cons

  - Expensive

  - Limited configuration options are

  - There's no Ethernet port.

While most gamers may gladly trade a bit of portability for better performance, there are also some options for those who want to keep things as slim and light as possible. The 14-inch Razer Blaze is a standout in that group, with CNET calling it the “MacBook Pro of gaming laptops.” That comparison also of course extends to the laptop’s premium price, as well as a relative lack of configuration options compared to most gaming laptops. But if those aren’t drawbacks for you, expect to get solid performance in an all-around high-end package.

SPECS

CPU: Intel Core i7 (7th Gen) 7700HQ / 2.8 GHz
GPU: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060 - 6 GB GDDR5 SDRAM
RAM: 16GB DDR4-2400
Display: 15.6” Wide View LCD with 60Hz refresh and X-Rite Pantone certification (1920x1080)
Storage: 256GB PCIe NVMe SSD
Battery: 94Wh
Connectivity: headphone/mic combo jack, 3x USB 3.0, 1x Thunderbolt 3 (USB Type-C), 1x mini-DP, 1x HDMI, 1x RJ45, SD card
OS: Windows 10 Home 64-bit
Weight: 4.17lbs. (including 200W power brick)
Thickness: .78" (19.8mm)

Alienware 17 R4

Alienware 17 R4

• Pros 

  - Strong gaming performance

  - Sharp and colorful quad-HD display

  -Long battery life on cheaper model

  - Graphics amp support 

  - Plenty of ports

• Cons

  - Bottom gets hot while gaming

  - Dim display on starting model

  - Slower SSD than on competing laptops

Alienware (now a subsidiary of Dell) has been a go-to choice for gamers for more than twenty years, and the company’s current lineup continues to hold up that reputation. The Alienware 17 R4 laptop is a consistently well-reviewed choice and a favorite of many. It’s relatively affordable in its more basic configurations but, like most such laptops, it can get considerably more costly once you start adding more high-end options, like full VR compatibility.
  

SPECS

CPU: 2.9-GHz Intel Core i7-7820HK CPU
GPU: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1080 - 8GB
RAM: 16GB DDR4-2400
Display: 17.3” Wide View LCD with 60Hz refresh and X-Rite Pantone certification (2560x1440)
Storage: 512GB  SSD
Battery: 94Wh
Connectivity: headphone/mic combo jack, 3x USB 3.0, 1x Thunderbolt 3 (USB Type-C), 1x mini-DP, 1x HDMI, 1x RJ45, SD card
OS: Windows 10 Home 64-bit
Weight: 4.87lbs. (including 200W power brick)
Thickness: .78" (19.8mm)