Best Gaming Laptops for College Students – in 2020
Aside from everything in life, gaming is something where you can totally lose yourself. With graphic intense games, the necessity for gaming laptops has increased exponentially. So many companies are producing good laptops that it’s hard for a consumer to look for the right product.
It is true that Desktop PCs are more customizable however the portability and comfortability that the laptop provides is essential for a student. There are powerful laptops that provide an amazing gaming experience, better than some desktop PCs.
Besides power, these laptops are a great buy because they provide portability and compactness to the students. You can do tasks on the go like surfing, using powerful tools like video editing since these laptops come with extremely powerful Processors and Graphic Cards.
A gaming laptop is also equipped for your day to day tasks. Most laptops provide you with power-saving modes to get you with your day. Since you will not just be playing games on the laptop but also doing your homework. Being a gaming laptop has its own perks, it means better cooling which means durability.
Almost all gaming laptops are equipped with much power to support various renowned games i.e. Resident Evil, BattleField, Devil May Cry, PUBG, Fortnite and more. It is important to know which laptop is good for you being a student. For that, we have compiled a list of laptops that we think are best for you. So, even if you’re thinking of replacing your desktop you can enjoy all the games that you love without any lags.
Our Top Pick – Top 10 Gaming Laptops for College Students
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Razer Blade Stealth 13 Ultrabook Laptop
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Lenovo Legion Y540
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Acer Predator Helios 300
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Gaming Laptop Guide for Students
Following factors should be considered by a student while purchasing a gaming laptop:
Portability
College students are always on the go hence size and weight are considerable factors for ease and comfortability. Size is an important factor, where 13-15” laptops are good and have amazing gaming experience with portability 17-18” laptops are not. You will have to carry a bigger backpack to carry this laptop and more weight will make it difficult to move around in your day.
Smaller and Mid-sized i.e. 13” and 15” laptops respectively are perfect for day to day tasks and gaming. Rest comes down to the personal preference of each user.
CPU
For a gaming user, i5 CPU is sufficient as they require more GPU power than CPU but for a college student, i7 processors are recommended as they provide better multitasking.
Day to day usage either using programming tools or video editing i7 processor will not show a single lag between these tasks.
GPU
If a user requires every game with a high refresh rate on his laptop then he has to have a laptop that has a GPU costing $1000 or above. This will allow him to run games with a 60Hz refresh rate or higher. Low-cost GPU can get the job done but comparatively low graphics or lower refresh rates. GTX 1060 or RTX 2060 and above are best for high-end graphics.
RAM
Gaming takes up VRAM provided by the graphics card. So, 16GB RAM is more than sufficient for a user who uses his laptop solely for gaming.
For a student, 16GB RAM should be sufficient but one should opt for higher memory as it will allow more applications to run at the same time.
Display Quality
Gaming laptops today should have a minimum of 1920×1080 pixels i.e. FHD display. This provides a true graphics experience of today’s games. A higher refresh rate is always welcomed as it provides a smooth transition between frames. A 4K resolution is absolutely a killer display but all of this means a higher price tag. If you can afford then we have good laptops with 4K or FHD resolution with higher refresh rates.
Battery Life
Most gaming laptops aren’t built to be battery efficient since bigger GPUs drain batteries very quickly. For a student, the battery is a necessity so most laptops have efficient battery usage that slows down the CPU cycles and turns off the GPU when the user i.e. a student is working on less extensive tasks.
If you want a battery with more backup do look for milliamp-hours (mAh) or watt-hours. The higher this is the more backup the battery can provide. Also consider not fully draining your battery as it leads to inefficient charging cycle and hence less battery life.
Storage
Laptops with both SSD (Solid-state drive) and HDD (Hard disk drive) are the best combination these days. Your operating system, applications, and few games can lie in SSD but boosted performance and the rest of your entertainment-related media inside HDD. Games often tend to use more GPU power and RAM rather than CPU and drive speed. So, you can easily run your games through SSD but running your OS and software through HDD will cause lags and disrupt your user experience.
Cooling System
Gaming laptops have extensive CPU and GPU usages, this results in large amounts of heat. Which is a concern if not channeled correctly. Worst case this can burn your chips and can cost you your laptop. Heat also disrupts the charging cycles and reduces the component’s life.
Hence it is critical to opt for laptops that have a good cooling system that allows the laptop to have manageable temperature even during intense gaming.
List of The Top 10 Best Gaming Laptops for College Students in 2020
Best Gaming Laptops for College Students – Comparison Chart
| Name | CPU | RAM | Storage | Display | Price |
| 1- Razer Blade Stealth 13 Ultrabook Laptop | Intel Core i7-8565U 4-Core | 16GB | 512GB SSD | 4K Touch | Updated Price on Amazon |
| 2- Alienware M15 Gaming Laptop | Intel Core i7-8750H | 16GB | 512GB SSD | FHD 144hz | Updated Price on Amazon |
| 3- Razer Blade 15 Gaming Laptop | Intel Core i7-9750H | 16GB | 128GB SSD + 1TB | FHD 60hz | Updated Price on Amazon |
| 4- Acer Predator Helios 300 | Intel Core i7-9750H | 16GB DDR4 | 512GB PCIe NVMe SSD | FHD 144hz | Updated Price on Amazon |
| 5- MSI GV63 8SE-014 | Intel Core i7-8750H | 16GB DDR4 | 256GB NVMe SSD + 1 TB HDD | FHD 120hz | Updated Price on Amazon |
| 6- Dell G5 15 | Intel Core i7-9750H | 16GB | 256GB SSD + 1GB SATA | FHD LED-backlit | Updated Price on Amazon |
| 7- Lenovo Legion Y540 | Intel Core i7-9750H | 24GB | 512GB SSD + 1GB HDD | FHD LED-backlit | Updated Price on Amazon |
| 8- ASUS Vivobook K571 | Intel Core i7-9750H | 16GB | 256GB SSD + 1GB HDD | FHD 120Hz | Updated Price on Amazon |
| 9- Lenovo Ideapad L340 | Intel Core i5-9300H | 8GB | 512GB SSD | FHD | Updated Price on Amazon |
| 10- Asus TUF FX505DT | AMD Ryzen 5 R5-3550H | 8GB | 256GB SSD | 120Hz FHD | Updated Price on Amazon |
1. Razer Blade Stealth 13 Ultrabook Laptop
Razer laptops are known for their gaming experience and Razer Blade Stealth 13 is far from a typical gaming laptop. Razer Blade has a unique look to it which comes with an aluminum body that gives a premium look and feels to it. A thin bezel with a 13.3” 4K Touch display with 60 Hz refresh rate which gives you visually stunning pure sRGB display.
The size gives you a perfect amount of portability, fits perfectly in your backpack and very lightweight which is just perfect for your everyday use. Specs of this laptop are one of the best – Intel core i7-8565U processor, an NVIDIA GeForce MX150 4GB graphics card, 16GB dual-channel RAM and 512GB SSD. Longer battery life so you can complete your tasks and have charge left for some 4K entertainment.
This laptop has everything in terms of specs and regular usage. It will handle anything you can throw at it. The battery should last up to 13 hours, which will get you through your day with excessive use. Razer Blade Stealth 13 comes with a stunning display, Razer Chroma keyboard and 4 stereo speakers which combined creates the perfect work and play machine.
In short Razer Blade Stealth 13 is portable, lightweight, powerful and beautiful designed with a stunning display laptop which makes it an ultimate college laptop.
Pros:
- 4K at 60Hz, unbeatable gaming experience
- Touch display helps with day to day tasks
- Great battery life
- Ease and Portability
- Beautiful Solid build
Cons:
- The processor is built for power efficiency
- 4GB VRAM lies at the edge (6GB would’ve been great)
Features:
- Four-core CPU up to 4.6 GHz
- Powerful Mx150 4GB GPU
- 16GB RAM
- 4K Thin Bezel Touch Display
- Ultra-Thin laptop with Long battery life
- Incredibly durable CNC unibody aluminum frame
- Razer Chroma keyboard featuring RGB lightning with 16.8 million colors
- 512GB Solid State Drive
2. Alienware M15 Gaming Laptop
Alienware is known for its premium build and quality laptops. Formed solely for gaming, which makes their laptops truly gaming oriented. Alienware M15 comes with a 6 Core i7-8750H processor. This series of intel processor ‘H’ is designed for High-Performance Graphics, you can be assured that this laptop is for gaming.
Graphics card RTX 2060 with 6GB of VRAM can be used for day to day college tasks and can run any game you throw at it. Alienware M15 comes with 15.6’’ FHD 144hz anti-glare display combined with graphics-oriented CPU and powerful GPU will give you the ultimate gaming experience. If we talk about memory, this laptop has 16GB DDR4 RAM and 512GB PCIe M.2 SSD. Alienware M15 uses CRYO-TECH V2.0 system cooling technology which will ensure the laptop to have a minimal temperature. The design of the laptop makes it durable and easy to use which is crucial for a college student and the gaming experience is simply amazing.
Pros:
- Beautiful display at 144Hz
- Gaming oriented processor and graphics card.
- Can easily handle day to day tasks
- Sufficient SSD memory
- Solid build with efficient heat dissipation
Cons:
- This laptop has everything you need. One thing that would’ve made it even more awesome is an HDD. but you can always upgrade your current storage.
Features:
- Six-core CPU up to 4.1GHz
- NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 6GB GPU
- 16 GB DDR4 RAM
- FHD ultra-thin bezel 144Hz Anti Glare IPS Display
- 512 GB PCIe M.2 SSD
- CRYO-TECH 2.0 system cooling
3. Razer Blade 15 Gaming Laptop
The Razer Blade 15 is a perfect laptop for both work or play. With a perfect combination of size and weight ratio, this laptop allows ease and portability. This is mainly due to CNC anodized aluminum unibody which makes it perfectly balanced and one of the thinnest 0.78”, 15.6” display laptop.
It’s built to endure daily work tasks which makes it perfect for college use. If we talk about specs, Razer Blade 15 comes with a 6-core i7-9750H processor, built for high graphics use. Talk about graphics this laptop has a powerful NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti with 6GB VRAM. Perfect for an immersive gaming experience with a 60Hz FHD display. It has 16GB RAM and 128GB SSD + 1 TB HDD. This certainly is a good combination, gives you much space for your games in HDD and SSD allows you to install your important work programs for faster access.
Razer Blade 15 provides an edge to edge, thin bezel, 100% sRGB, factory calibrated matte screen combined with 60Hz providing visually stunning display for intense gaming sessions, entertainment, and work. An ideal laptop for college students.
Pros:
- CNC anodized aluminum body gives durability, ease, and convenience
- FHD 60Hz screen will give you an immersive gaming experience
- Performance CPU and GPU
- Bigger storage
- Good Battery
Cons:
- Default 128GB SSD is restrictive
- Best to upgrade the SSD.
Features:
- Six-core i7-9750H CPU up to 4.5GHz
- NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti graphics card
- 16 GB RAM
- 128GB SSD + 1TB HDD
- Biometric security for ease of access
- FHD resolution with 60Hz matte display
- 0.78” thin laptop for gaming and creative work
- CNC aluminum body
4. Acer Predator Helios 300
The Acer Predator Helios 300 is one of Acer’s best laptops with a beautiful design and mid-range budget (different variants) laptop with powerful specs that will get your daily work done and provide you an immersive 15.6” FHD widescreen LED-backlit display that allows 144Hz with 3ms overdrive response time.
Acer Predator comes with a Six-core i7-9750H processor that provides up to 4.5GHz clock speed. This can easily handle all your college tasks. NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 with 6GB VRAM, this graphics unit can handle any game you throw at it.
Lastly, Acer Predator comes with 16GB DDR4 2666MHz memory and a 512 PCIe NVMe SSD with an extra PCIe slot & an additional hard drive bay. So, memory can never be an issue in this beast. You can store all your favorite games within the laptop with a minor upgrade. Another great thing is that the laptop provides an overclockable GPU with a press of a button and to support all that overclocking it uses 4th Gen AeroBlade 3D Technology which keeps your laptop at optimal temperature.
Pros:
- Unbeatable 144Hz gaming experience
- Performance CPU and GPU
- Convenient gaming-oriented design
- Comes with many budget variants
- Fans to support overclocking
- Additional SSD & HDD slot
Features:
- Six-core i7-9750H up to 4.5GHz
- NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 with 6GB VRAM
- 15.6” FHD LED-backlit IPS display at 144Hz
- 16GB DDR4 2666MHz memory
- 512GB PCIe NVMe SSD (+1 PCIe slot & 1 Hard Drive Bay)
- 4th Gen All-Metal AeroBlade 3D Fan
5. MSI GV63 8SE-014
MSI has launched many laptops within these series with different specs and budget prices. MSI GV63 is the best laptop MSI can offer with all the good specs that make your gaming and work life easier. This laptop is considered big when compared to other laptops but they have managed their weight very efficiently. This is a very light laptop which is best for a college student.
For performance, they have equipped it with a graphics performance Six-core Intel i7-8750H CPU which can be overclocked for better graphics and multitasking performance up to 4.0GHz. Combined with NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 GPU with 6GB VRAM which is substantial for any game available. MSI provides a big 15.6” FHD display with a 120Hz refresh rate at 3ms which is the considerate difference compared to low refresh rate difference and perfect for gaming.
It offers 16GBx1 DDR4 RAM with 2 slots (max 32GB) if upgraded can provide a considerate difference in laptop’s multitasking but 16GB memory is also sufficient when you don’t have memory extensive tasks. If we talk about memory this laptop has 256GB NVMe SSD + 1TB HDD. All this power requires an efficient cooling system and MSI GV63 has 2 fans, 2 exhausts, and 6 copper heat pipes which can main your normal temperatures even in extensive use.
Pros:
- Truly good, budget laptop
- Performance CPU and GPU
- Easily upgradeable RAM (x1 16GB card, 1 extra slot)
- Amazing graphics with 120Hz refresh rate
- Efficient Cooling System
Cons:
- Low overclocking CPU (New generation goes up to 4.5GHz)
Features:
- Six-core i7-8750H up to 4.0GHz
- NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060 with 6GB VRAM
- 15.6” FHD 120Hz 3ms Wide-view display
- 16GB DDR4 2400MHz memory (upgradeable to 32GB)
- 256GB NVMe SSD + 1 TB HDD
- 2 fans, 2 exhausts, 6 copper heat pipes
6. Dell G5 15
Dell is known for durable and productive laptops, that caters to all the needs of a user while keeping the price tag manageable. Dell G5 15 is no less, this machine provides an impressive gaming experience with good battery life.
Dell G5 15 comes packed with Six-core i7-9750H CPU up to 4.5GHz clock speed that easily handles all your college tasks multi-tasked plus provides overclocking for boosting your gaming experience. With overclocking CPU it provides NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 GPU, combined together to provide an immersive FHD gaming experience. It comes with a 15.6” FHD anti-glare LED back-lit narrow border IPS display.
It provides 16GB DDR4 2666MHz RAM sufficient for extensive gaming and daily tasks. 256GB M.2 PCIe NVMe SSD + 1TB SATA HDD so you never run out of space. It uses a Dual-Fan cooling system that keeps Dell ensures that it will not let your device run hot which is a very important aspect. Overall Dell G5 15 is a budget laptop with very good features that can easily handle your college tasks and provide you with a non-interruptive Gaming experience.
Pros:
- Performance CPU and GPU
- Standard Storage for Games and Entertainment
- Good laptop within budget
- Built for durability and performance
Cons:
- The display could’ve been a little better. Overall a very good laptop if we consider the price tag.
Features:
- Six-core i7-9750H up to 4.5GHz
- NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 with 4GB VRAM
- 16GB DDR4 2666MHz memory
- 256GB M.2 PCIe NVMe SSD + 1TB SATA HDD
- Innovative Dual-Fan cooling system
- FHD Anti-Glare backlit narrow border IPS display
7. Lenovo Legion Y540
Lenovo has made its way to the market by launching amazing products with all 3 things (Price tag, Specs, and Design). Lenovo Legion Y540 is one of their best products in the market. Provides 15.6” FHD anti-glare IPS Display. Lenovo Y series is the company’s best laptop series.
It comes with a Six-core i7-9750H processor of up to 4.5GHz clock speed. NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 to backup the performance of the CPU by dividing all your complex graphics extensive tasks and a 4GB VRAM to store and process your operations. Y540 comes with a 24GB DDR4 SDRAM which is more than enough for college students to do all their tasks at once.
Lastly, it comes with 512GB PCIe SSD + 1TB HDD offers enough storage for your files and games. Up to 5 hours of extensive battery usage and a white backlit keyboard. Lenovo built another amazing product which is worth considering
Pros:
- Thin, light design
- More than enough SSD and HDD storage
- RAM is definitely a plus point
- Performance CPU and GPUs
- Big extended battery performance
Cons:
- Refresh rate of the display
Features:
- Six-core i7-9750H up to 4.5GHz
- NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 with 4GB VRAM
- 24GB DDR4 SDRAM
- 512GB PCIe SSD + 1TB HDD
- FHD Anti-Glare (energy efficient) LED-backlit IPS wide viewing angle display
8. ASUS Vivobook K571
This is because of years of efforts of the Taiwanese manufacturer that ASUS laptops are known for their quality on the laptops. The Asus Vivobook K571 is probably the reason that made their name in the gaming market. This laptop is built to provide a regular user’s, whether a college student and a gaming user’s needs.
It comes with a Six-core i7-9750H intel core processor with up to 4.5GHz clock speed. Furthermore, it has NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 graphics card which is high quality and an optimized graphics card with Intel i7-9750H processor. Both work together to optimize the graphics quality for the user. Furthermore, it comes with a 15.6” FHD 120Hz nano edge display that provides a smooth and awesome display.
Asus Vivobook K571 comes with a 16GB DDR4 RAM that lets a college student work smoothly between their tasks and enough for any game to load in the memory. A 256GB PCIe NVMe SSD and a 1TB HDD combined to provide sufficient storage to cater to the user’s needs. In a nutshell, ASUS provides a good budget-friendly laptop that is built for varied users.
Pros:
- Budget Friendly
- Performance CPU and GPU
- Beautiful 120Hz display
- Good storage both SSD and HDD
- Sufficient RAM
Features:
- Six-core i7-9750H up to 4.5GHz
- NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 with 4GB VRAM
- 16GB DDR4 SDRAM
- 256GB PCIe NVMe SSD + 1TB HDD
- 120Hz Nano edge FHD display
9. Lenovo Ideapad L340
Lenovo Y series is their premium series and if you’re on a budget Lenovo Ideapad are the ones to go with. Lenovo Ideapad L340 is one of their best budget + performance laptop. It requires a slight update but that totally depends on your personal preference and your work. First let’s talk about its features.
Lenovo Ideapad L340 comes with a 15.6 FHD IPS display which provides good graphics considering the price tag. It uses an Intel i5-9300H processor which is perfect for gaming perspective and most of your daily tasks. Since we talked about that in gaming i5 works seamlessly. The chassis of the laptop is smartly designed which provides better cooling. It uses NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 which is a graphics card we see in all expensive gaming laptops. So, this laptop does ensure an amazing gaming experience.
If we talk about the memory you will get a good 8GB DDR4 RAM and 512GB NVMe SSD which is standard to store your games and work files in it. It’s quite enough but there are always expansion ports, bigger chips that you can use to boost your performance depending upon your usage. This laptop comes with an elegant design with a 1920x1080p display with a very thin bezel.
Lenovo L340 if considered is not the best of best but being on a budget it is one of the best choices you can make.
Pros:
- Elegant design
- Performance GPU
- Low price tag
- Good CPU considering the price
- Good Storage
Cons:
- Low RAM
- Standard refresh rate
Features:
- Quad-core i5-9300H up to 4.1 GHz
- NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 with 4GB VRAM
- 8GB DDR4
- 512GB NVMe SSD
- FHD IPS Display
- Budget Friendly price
10. Asus TUF FX505DT
Asus has a ROG series of laptops that are super high-tech and don’t disappoint when it comes to performance and durability. However, Asus also launched the TUF series which are a bit budgetable but this doesn’t mean less performance. They have used components intelligently which doesn’t disrupt your gaming or day to day tasks usage.
Asus TUF FX505DT comes with an AMD Ryzen 5 R5-3550H which compared to its competitor Intel i5 has an edge of better power consumption by the AMD. Don’t worry you won’t feel the performance difference since NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 is a powerful graphics card that can easily handle most of the CPU tasks and give you a boosted performance. The biggest selling point of the laptop in this price tag is its beautiful 120Hz FHD IPS display. One thing you can never get enough is a better smooth display and this laptop provides one of the best displays in the market and a graphics card to support that display.
It comes with 8GB DDR4 RAM with 256GB SSD both expandable to user preference. All in all, if we look at the laptops in this price tag Asus TUF has produced an amazing competitive laptop.
Pros:
- Intelligently designed laptop
- Very budget friendly
- CPU performance sufficient for gaming
- Performance GPU
- Beautiful 120Hz IPS display
Cons:
- Low RAM.
Features:
- Quad-core AMD 3rd gen CPU up to 3.7GHz clock speed
- NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 with 4GB VRAM
- 8GB 2666MHz DDR4
- 256GB NVMe SSD
- 120Hz FHD IPS Display
- Dual Fans with anti-dust technology
- Durable with MIL-STD-810 military standard construction
- Budget Friendly price
Muhammad Azeem is an Electric Engineer (Specialization in Computer) with Dean Honors List. He loves to use and write about the latest technology gadgets. He also loves playing different high graphics games.
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