Best cheap gaming laptop deals

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Lenovo LOQ | RTX 4060 | Core i5 13450HX | 15.6-inch | 1080p | 144 Hz | 16 GB DDR5 | 512 GB SSD | $999 $879 at B&H Photo (save $120)
Even with new Nvidia laptop GPUs starting to ship, it'll probably be a while before we see a truly budget mobile RTX 50-series. So for those saving the pennies, this RTX 4060-sporting Lenovo is still just about a good deal, even if the price has gone up a bit recently. It's got a decently speedy screen, 16 GB of DDR5, a 115 W TGP GPU, and, err, a very small SSD. Still, it's the easiest thing to upgrade in a mobile machine, and at this price it's very difficult to find more gaming laptop for your buck—and likely will be for a while yet, too.

Price check: Amazon $1,269 (Core i7 13650HX)

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Asus TUF F15 | RTX 4070 | Core i7 13620H | 16-inch | 1080p | 144 Hz | 16 GB DDR5 | 1 TB PCIe SSD | $1,399.99 $999 at Best Buy (save $400)
Now the RTX 50-series mobile GPUs are here, it can be tempting to think that RTX 40-series laptops aren't worth considering—but you'd be wrong. The RTX 4070 mobile (particularly the 140 W variant, as found here) is still a very grunty gaming GPU, particularly when paired with a 1080p screen. For just under $1,000, this particular machine is well worth some serious consideration, even in the face of incoming competition. Plus it's got a decently-sized SSD, which is sometimes rare at this price point.

Price check: Amazon $1,499

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Acer Predator Helios Neo 14 | RTX 4070 | Core Ultra 7 155H | 14-inch | 1600p | 120 Hz | 16 GB LPDDR5X | 1 TB SSD | $1,299 $1,219.99 at Amazon (save $79.01)
With a 110 W version of the RTX 4070, with wee Acer machine has plenty of grunt about it, and that 120 Hz refresh 1600p panel will make a really crisp screen for a 14-inch laptop. You're also getting a full 1 TB SSD alongside your 16 GB of soldered memory (no upgrades happening there) and a decent Meteor Lake CPU at its heart. It's one of Intel's more efficient chips, with six Performance and eight Efficient cores, which ought to help with the battery life of this portable machine.

Price check: Amazon $1,349 (2 TB variant)

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HP Omen Transcend 14 | RTX 5060 | Intel Core Ultra 7 255H | 14-inch | 1800p | 120 Hz | 32 GB RAM | 1 TB SSD | $1,829.99 $1,479.99 at Best Buy (save $350)
RTX 5060 laptop deals are starting to trickle through, but many are still pretty hard to justify for the cash. This HP Omen Transcend 14, though, is a slim and svelte travel-friendly little machine with an OLED panel, making that +$1,500 price a little easier to swallow. If you're looking for a laptop of this size and price, you're unfortunately going to have to put up with a low-wattage variant of the RTX 5060—but DLSS 4 and Multi Frame Generation support means it still stands a chance of pushing decent framerates at that 1800p panel. 32 GB of RAM is nice to see, too.

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Alienware 16X Aurora | RTX 5070 | Intel Core Ultra 9 275H | 16-inch | 1600p | 240 Hz | 32 GB RAM | 2 TB SSD | $2,099.99 $1,649.99 at Best Buy (save $300)
Beyond the brand-spanking-new 115 W variant of the RTX 5070 sitting at its heart, you're also getting a beefy eight Performance core, 16 Efficient Intel chip, 32 GB of DDR5, and a 2 TB SSD thrown in with this particular machine. Oh, and a speedy 240 Hz screen, making for quite the specs sheet. It's not got a fancy OLED panel, but otherwise this is a very well-rounded package for a fair bit less than most RTX 5070 machines we're finding right now.

Price check: Dell $1,899.99

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MSI Vector 16 HX AI | RTX 5070 Ti | Core Ultra 7 255HX | 16-inch | 1200p | 144 Hz | 16 GB DDR5 | 512 GB SSD | $1,924.99 at Best Buy (save $75)
Sitting somewhere under the RTX 4080 and well above the RTX 4070 in terms of gaming performance, the RTX 5070 Ti is a great mid-range laptop GPU. I've used the new Vector 16 HX AI for weeks, and have been hugely impressed with the RTX 5080 version, and the RTX 5070 Ti version promises much of the same. The 1200p IPS screen is a good match for the GPU and CPU, which is of 20-core Intel stock. But, ack, another 512 GB SSD. Why?! Thankfully there are two M.2 slots in the system, making it an easy and cheap upgrade down the line.

Price check: Amazon $2,299.99 (32 GB variant)

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MSI Vector 16 HX AI | RTX 5080 | Core Ultra 9 275 HX | 16-inch | 1600p | 240 Hz | 16 GB DDR5 | 1 TB SSD | $2,499.99 at Best Buy
I know, I know, it's a lot of cash. But the truth is, it's difficult to find RTX 50-series laptops for anything less than silly money right now, and this one's got the big boi RTX 5080 for a just about reasonable sum. Our Dave has been playing with this particular model recently and likes the value proposition you get when you take into account that mega GPU, although it is a bit of a hairdryer on full whack. Still, stick it in Balanced mode and the noise is much more reasonable, and it still performs about as well as the other RTX 5080 machines we've tested. Which is to say, very well indeed.

Price check: Newegg $2,499.99

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Lenovo Legion Pro 7i | RTX 5080 | Core Ultra 9 275 HX | 16-inch | 1600p | 240 Hz | 32 GB DDR5 | 2 TB SSD | $3,499.99 $3,099.99 at B&H Photo (save $400)
Here comes the Lenovo Legion Pro 7i again, except this time with a full-fat 175 W RTX 5080 on board. Oh, and still with a rather substantial discount. We've extensively tested the mobile RTX 5080 at this point, and can confirm it's a very speedy GPU indeed. Plus, 32 GB of RAM, a 2 TB SSD and a 240 Hz screen? Yeah, this is the full package alright, although it's not exactly cheap, I'll grant you.

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Steam Deck (LCD) | 256 GB SSD | SteamOS | $399 at Steam
Okay, the Steam Deck may have had an OLED refresh and there are heaps of more powerful handhelds around, but the original version is still the archetype of what a mobile PC gaming device should be. It's just as powerful as the OLED model, so all those Steam Deck compatible games should run well. It's the OG PC gaming handheld, and it still demands respect, although this particular version does have quite a small SSD. Replacing it later with a larger unit is no great hassle, however.

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Lenovo Legion Go | Z1 Extreme | 8.8-inch screen | 16 GB RAM | 512 GB SSD | $699.86 $571.09 at Newegg (save $98.77)
The Legion Go is one of the more polished handhelds on the market, with a sleek 8.8-inch screen and detachable controllers. That screen is a little overkill for the lil' AMD chip inside this machine, the Z1 Extreme also found in the ROG Ally, but it's great for playing indies on while relaxing. One of the controllers also becomes a mouse if you need it, which is a bit of a gimmick but works pretty well. The main downside here is the small SSD, but it's a pretty easy upgrade later on.

Price check: Best Buy $699.99 | Amazon $614.99

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Steam Deck LCD | SteamOS | 256 GB | £349 at Steam
There's no deal on the Steam Deck right now, but since the launch of the OLED model, you can buy the mid-sized LCD for a good price. It's still a wicked handheld, too, most of all because of its custom SteamOS operating system.

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Gigabyte G6X | RTX 4060 | Core i7 13650HX | 16-inch | 1200p | 165 Hz | 16 GB DDR5-4800 | 1 TB SSD | £949 at Amazon
Another superb combination of components in a Gigabyte laptop for a very reasonable price. The G6X has a speedy 165 Hz screen, a decently powerful Core i7 CPU, and a 105 W RTX 4060. That's not quite top spec for the mobile version, but close enough that it'll have no problem firing frames at that 1200p display.

Price check: Overclockers £949.99

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Gigabyte Aorus 16X | RTX 4070 | Core i7 14650HX | 16-inch | 1600p | 165 Hz | 16 GB DDR5-5600 | 1 TB SSD | £1,699 £1,199 at Currys (save £500)
Well lookee here, it's that rarest of things—a 1600p, 140 W RTX 4070 gaming laptop deal in the UK from a major manufacturer for less than £1,500. Much less, actually, which makes this a very good shout for anyone looking for an RTX 4070 machine for less with very few drawbacks. I'd like to see some more RAM, but other than that it's a corker.

Price check: Amazon £1,199.99 (Intel Core i7 13650HX)

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Gigabyte Aero X16 | RTX 5070 | Ryzen AI 7 350 | 16-inch | 1600p | 165 Hz | 32 GB DDR5-5600 | 1 TB SSD | £1,499 at Currys
The bad news here is you're getting an 85 W variant of the RTX 5070. The good news is, it's a very slim and svelte machine, and thanks to DLSS 4 and Multi Frame Generation, this sleek lappy should be able to pump frames (AI-generated or otherwise) at its 1600p 165 Hz display with aplomb. RTX 5070 machines are yet to see substantial discounts in the UK, but this one is definitely worth a look if you want to get on the DLSS 4 train for reasonable cash.

Price check: Amazon $1,499

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MSI Vector 16 HX AI 16 | RTX 5070 Ti | Core Ultra 7 255HX | 16-inch | 1600p | 240 Hz | 32 GB DDR5 | 512 GB SSD | £1,899 at Amazon
We've been very impressed by the RTX 5080 version of this particular laptop for the value proposition it provides, and the RTX 5070 Ti variant is unlikely to be a slouch, either. While most RTX 50-series lappys are still priced into the stratosphere, this 16-inch machine is downright reasonable for the components you end up receiving. That's apart from the SSD, unfortunately, which is far too small. Still, sticking a 1 TB drive in a laptop is one of the easier hardware tasks you can perform, and the rest of the components are pretty stellar for the cash.

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MSI Vector 16 HX AI 16 | RTX 5080 | Core Ultra 9 275HX | 16-inch | 1600p | 240 Hz | 32 GB DDR5 | 1 TB SSD | £2,799 £2,399 at Currys (save £400)
RTX 5080 machines are still eye-wateringly expensive for the most part, but we're big fans of this Vector lappy, especially because of the price. It might not have the prettiest chassis, but it's as fast as a very, very fast thing for much cheaper than the competition—with a speedy 240 Hz IPS panel thrown into the bargain, too. That makes it a genuine value proposition in a laptop market that's still starved of stock and filled with extremely pricey equivalents. A smart buy right now, no doubt.

Price check: Amazon $2,992.98 (2 TB variant)