Struggling to find a gaming notebook worthy of the name without spending a fortune? Video games now require so many hardware resources that not only have a real PC category dedicated to video games born. But it has become as important as that of traditional computers. Because of the high-end hardware that a laptop must have to be considered a gaming notebook, prices are never low. In this article, we will give a complete guide about the best gaming laptop under 1000.
It is becoming tough to find cheap gaming notebooks that can run even the most advanced video games with prices below 1000 euros. And often, those looking for an inexpensive gaming laptop at 600, 700, or 800 euros are left with a dry mouth, have to go to use or find themselves with performance below expectations. It is precisely on cheap laptops that we will focus in this buying guide, precisely because finding “decent” offers and below cost below 1000 euros is very difficult.
With the following cheap gaming laptops for sale at an affordable price, you will still have to compromise, but at least you can play without the risk of merging components and without the lag that makes life impossible. After your selection, you will also find our top tips for choosing a notebook wisely for playing video games.
NB, if you play online, the important thing is to have high-level components, a good connection, and a good router that reduces latency times and guarantees the good speed and a good signal. In this regard, we also point out the buying guide with the 5 best gaming routers.
Best gaming laptop under 1000 in 2020
Acer Nitro 5
The strong point of Acer PCs is, most of the time, their amazing value for money. Thanks to the Taiwanese company, you can take home a real laptop designed for gamers for less than 900 €. In fact, on board,, you will find a dedicated Nvidia GeForce GTX 1650 video card with 4 GB of dedicated GDDR5 memory with which to run even the very demanding games if you go down to a minimum of compromises.
A PCIe SSD is also mounted in this budget gaming notebook, which improves performance a lot with its high speed. Furthermore, it is a 512 GB disk, so you can also install several games in it in addition to the operating system. This Acer Nitro 5 is equipped with a more than enough Intel Core i5-9300H processor to play every title satisfactorily, coupled with 8GB of RAM.
The monitor is a 15.6-inch IPS type with Full HD resolution, has good colors and good detail but is a classic enough panel found on mid-range laptops. Of course, there are also other variants of this budget gaming notebook, with GPUs to choose from GTX 1660 Ti and more, of course, at different prices. The stability of the WiFi connection is also good. Praise also to the cooling system that keeps temperatures not too high. But be careful: the operating system installed is Linux, and if you want Windows, you will have to get it yourself.
Key specifications
- Display: 15.6 ″ IPS Full HD 60 Hz matte
- Processor: Intel Core i5-9300H
- GPU : Nvidia GeForce GTX 1650 4GB GDDR5
- RAM : 8GB (up to 32GB)
- Memory : 512 GB PCIe NVMe SSD (2 M.2 slots + 1 2.5 ″ slot)
- Rating: 8.3
Advantages
- Excellent value for money
- Durable battery
- Beautiful aesthetics
- Good temperature management
Disadvantages
- Good screen but can be improved
Also Read: The Outer Worlds Review
Best gaming laptop under 1000: Asus TUF FX505GT
The latest design and borderless display on three sides of this PC among the best budget gaming notebooks should make you understand what it is specifically. It is a computer that focuses on specific elements that provide the maximum performance purely in video games, guaranteeing a high-level visual and “physical” experience.
The laptop has a 15.6-inch screen that is not limited to Full HD + resolution and boasts 100% RGB coverage, which improves color fidelity and is hard to find on budget gaming notebooks. The matte panel guarantees a much above-average performance and is accompanied by powerful speakers with 7.1-channel audio. Also, we find a keyboard with really comfortable keys due to their stroke and with RGB backlighting.
There are dedicated keys for the mouse and, as already mentioned, almost non-existent edges around the display that optimize design and compactness to the fullest. The 9th Gen Intel Core i5-9300H processor isn’t the most powerful, but it’s enough for any game. The Nvidia GTX 1650 GPU with 4 GB of dedicated memory instead is superb.
The RAM amounts to 8 GB, while the internal memory is 512 GB of the PCIe SSD type. Suppose you are not only interested in performance but also want an excellent multimedia experience during the game. You should definitely choose this one instead of other cheap gaming notebooks, which may have better performance, but the field is not surprising in the multimedia.
Key specifications
- Display: 15.6 ″ IPS Full HD 60 Hz matte
- Processor: Intel Core i5-9300H
- GPU : Nvidia GeForce GTX 1650 4GB GDDR5
- RAM: 8 GB
- Memory : 512GB PCIe SSD
- Rating: 9
Advantages
- Excellent value for money
- Perfect design
- Good and constant performance
- Quality audio
- FreeDos
Best gaming laptop under 1000: HP Pavilion 15-ec0012nl
The 9th generation Intel Core i7 processors’ counterpart for the gaming sector is AMD Ryzen 7 3750H, which you find right on board this budget gaming notebook. The HP is usually portable models that last over time. In particular, this model adopts a processor that is not as common as the Intel but capable of giving great satisfaction.
It has a truly remarkable performance by combining the powerful CPU with an Nvidia GTX 1650 GPU with 4 GB graphics memory. At the same time, the integrated GPU is an interesting Radeon RX Vega 10. And with 8 GB of RAM and a 512 GB SSD, they form a hardware compartment that not only can run any game of the moment but also manages to perform well with all other types of use.
The display is a good 15.6-inch anti-glare panel with Full HD resolution, nothing spectacular but more than enough in all, with decent color reproduction. The PC is tranquil and hard to put under strain. It includes a speedy memory card reader and also a good quality backlit keyboard. Interestingly, the audio sector with the double speaker developed by B&O. For connectivity, 2 USB ports and one Type-C are included.
Key specifications
- Display: 15.6 inch IPS Full HD 60Hz anti-glare
- Processor: AMD Ryzen 7 3750H
- GPU : Nvidia GTX 1650 4GB GDDR5
- RAM: 8 GB
- Memory: 512 GB SSD
- Rating: 8
Advantages
- Powerful processor
- Good autonomy
- Stable performance
- Reliable brand
- Display not bad
Disadvantages
- Not well-kept construction
Also Read: Far Cry New Dawn Review
HP OMEN 15-dc022nl
HP has seen fit to create two gaming notebooks: OMEN with the top of the range and Pavilion Gaming with the cheaper mid and medium-high range ones. However, this model belongs to the OMEN series, characterized by the excellent build quality and excellent heat management. In daily experience, the top of the range is closer than the others, always costing less than 1000 €.
It offers a sizable Nvidia GTX 1050 Ti GPU with 4GB of dedicated graphics memory in an elegant and solid body. The difference with many other budget gaming notebooks is not huge, but it is truly remarkable with the possibility of playing titles that require more resources, even with unimportant limitations.
But the aesthetic quality is not the only advantage of this budget gaming notebook equipped with a truly complete and high-end hardware park. In fact, we also have an Intel Core i5-8300H processor, which is currently one of the most powerful, high-end i5s and makes this computer perfect even for those who work on it, putting the computer under load.
As if that were not enough, we find both the hard disk and the SSD disk—the latter with a capacity of 128 GB and the PCIe interface that makes it very fast. The hard disk has a capacity of 1 TB to never run out of memory. Also, we have a speedy SSD and, obviously, the possibility to replace both by upgrading. The 15.6-inch Full HD display and audio with B&O speakers guarantee a more than acceptable multimedia experience.
Key specifications
- Display: 15.6 inch IPS Full HD 60Hz matte
- Processor: Intel Core i5-8300H
- GPU : Nvidia GeForce GTX 1050 Ti 4 GB GDDR5
- RAM : 8GB (max 32GB)
- Memory : 128 GB SSD + 1 TB hard disk
- Rating: 8.4
Advantages
- 144 Hz display
- Excellent temperature management
- Careful design
- Good connectivity department
Disadvantages
- Older hardware than the competition
Also Read: Top High Graphic Games available for Smartphones 2020
Best gaming laptop under 1000: MSI GF63 Thin [Recommended]
MSI has had a brilliant idea to offer cheap gaming notebooks at meager prices while equipping them with components that are far above average and amazing if we consider the prices at which they are sold. This PC, unlike many MSIs on the same range, has Windows 10 pre-installed and is not a FreeDos notebook without an operating system.
Nonetheless, you can count on a hardware arsenal practically unavailable under 1000 euros. Powering the laptop is the remarkable Intel Core i5-9300H processor. MSI GF63 Thin is one of the best gaming laptop under 1000.
But it’s the GPU that surprises at that price: it’s an Nvidia GTX 1650 Max-Q, superior to the GTX 1650 that could already run any game more than enough. A PC that does not even lack a 512 GB SSD disk to maximize performance. Nor a Full HD screen with good colors at the IPS level, 8 GB of RAM, and powerful speakers for an experience very immersive.
Key specifications
- Display : 15.6 inch IPS Full HD 60Hz matte
- Processor : Intel Core i5-9300H
- GPU : Nvidia GeForce GTX 1650 Max-Q
- RAM : 8GB (max 64GB)
- Memory : 512 GB NVMe PCIe SSD (1 M.2 slot + 1 2.5 ″ slot)
- Rating: 8
Advantages
- Super powerful GPU
- Good upgrade possibilities
- Top price-quality
- Compact and lightweight
- Low temperatures
Disadvantages
- Louder than normal even in mild use
How to choose a budget gaming notebook
To make it easier for you to understand, we wanted to group the tips that will allow you to choose the cheap gaming notebooks to buy from a list of components. These components are the most important (and the list is drawn up in order of importance) to obtain the most satisfying gaming experience.
Video Card: GPU (Graphics Processing Unit) is in the first place because it is the component that must bear the greatest load when playing the most advanced video games. The graphics are, in fact, entrusted to this component. The best budget gaming notebooks must have a dedicated video card. Because not all PCs have it. Some have only the GPU integrated into the chipset, which is almost always not enough to play the most resource-intensive titles. Dedicated video cards can be Nvidia or AMD, and we have several series that vary depending on the computer’s price. Some portable PCs support connecting an external video card (eGPU) through the Thunderbolt 3 interface. However, these computers are practically always costly and go well over $ 1,000.
Processor: Considered the main component of the computer, although not for gaming, the processor is practically the heart of a computer. For video games, however, there is no necessarily need for a high-end CPU. Even the mid-range ones are fine.
Cooling system: difficult to evaluate but very important. If a computer gets too hot, it starts to slow down, which is more likely in long gaming sessions.