
Gaming laptops we recommend
Update: The MSI GT72S Tobii has lost its ranking to yet another ostentatious gaming device (albeit for different reasons), the latest Razer Blade. Read on to find out why! Don't even bother telling your friends you want to buy a gaming laptop. "Just build a desktop," they'll suggest. But you know better. You have the money to spare and putting time and effort into building your own desktop is more trouble than it's worth. You want to get to the fun part: playing games. A warranty that covers the entire product rather than a small set of parts is simply an added bonus. Being able to take your rig on the go, complete with a built-in monitor and keyboard, however, isn't cheap. A decent gaming laptop starts at about $1,400 (about £900). That's on the low end. If you want to play 4K games at a consistent frame rate, you can expect to pay over $3,000 (around £1,900, AU$4,000) for qualifying hardware. Fortunately, this could soon change thanks to AMD's low-cost Polaris GPUs and Nvidia's insanely powerful-for-the-price Pascal cards. Factor in the cost of your monitor, keyboard, mouse and potential hazards, and a gaming laptop might be more suited to your needs. We know you eat, sleep and breathe gaming, but fiddling with cables and being tied down to a desk sporting an encumbering brute of a machine can be intimidating. Gaming laptops are sleeker and more powerful than ever, with many of them featuring full-fledged desktop GPUs. What's more, some of them even have the battery lives to support the massive workload. Here you'll find the gaming laptop that's best for you, from the ever-evolving Razer Blade to the ostensibly immortal Alienware 17.
1. Origin EON15-X
A desktop-grade CPU in an unbeatable gaming laptop CPU: 4GHz Intel Core i7-6700K | Graphics: Nvidia GeForce GTX 980M (8GB GDDR5 RAM), Intel HD Graphics 530| RAM: 16GB | Screen: 15.6-inch, 1920 x 1080 LED Backlit Matte Display | Storage: 256GB SSD; 1TB SSHD Great value Desktop-grade performance Razor thin viewing angles The Origin EON15-X is a real head turner. Packing a desktop Skylake processor into a fairly compact 15.6-inch notebook that, Origin's greatest offers even more performance than some full-size gaming rigs. This extra CPU power is handy for users who need to edit video and other processor intensive tasks that a mobile chip can't handle. You'll also get an extra kick of performance no matter what game you're running. Combined with a powerful GPU and a not-so-shabby battery life, the Origin EON15-X is definitely worth consideration over all others.

2. Gigabyte P35X v5
Underneath the plain exterior lies a 4K gaming beast CPU: 2.6GHz Intel Core i7-6700HQ | Graphics: Nvidia GeForce GTX 980M 8GB GDDR5, Intel HD Graphics 530 | RAM: 16GB DDR4 SDRAM | Screen: 15.6-inch, UHD 3,840 x 2,160, IPS LCD | Storage: 256GB SSD, 1TB HDD See more Gigabyte P35X v5 deals Splendid performance at 4K Surprisingly decent battery life Poor ergonomics Pointless optical drive The Gigabyte P35X v5 is a monumentally capable, 4K gaming laptop equipped with specs nearly high enough to support it. While even most desktops lack the strength to pull off 4K gaming, this 15-inch rig is as close as you'll get with a laptop. Donning an Intel i7 processor paired with an 8GB Nvidia GTX 980M, the P35X v5 may sound like a workout technique, but it can actually handle 4K gaming if you're willing to tone down the graphics settings. Plus, it even packs a battery life longer than the considerably less powerful Ghost Pro and Acer Predator 17. If Ultra HD gaming without being tied to a desk is your goal, look no further.
3. Lenovo Ideapad Y700 15-inch
An attractive and long lasting 15-inch gaming laptop CPU: 2.6GHz Intel Core i7-6700HQ | Graphics: Nvidia GeForce GTX 960M (4GB DDR5 VRAM), Intel HD Graphics 530 | RAM: 16GB DDR4 (2,133MHz) | Screen: 15.6-inch FHD LED AntiGlare Backlit Multitouch (1,920 x 1,080) | Storage: 128GB SSD, 1TB HDD (5,400 RPM) See more Lenovo Ideapad Y700 15-inch deals Stylish look Ample battery life Gets hot Terrible trackpad buttons Entry-level gaming laptops are a great introduction into the glorious world of PC gaming, and from performance to looks, it's hard to beat the Lenovo Ideapad Y700. It's an inexpensive machine that stands out amongst other budget gaming machines with its all metal chassis and included SSD. It also comes packed with enough power to run modern games at decent settings.

4. Gigabyte P55W v5
High-end graphics on a low-key laptop CPU: 2.6GHz Intel Core i7-6700HQ | Graphics: Nvidia Geforce GTX 970M | RAM: 8GB DDR4 | Screen: 15.6-inch full HD 1,920 x 1,080 IPS anti-glare LCD | Storage: 128GB SSD; 1TB SSD See more Gigabyte P55W v5 deals Decent power Good battery life Slightly chunky Pedestrian design For the most part, the Gigabyte P55W v5 gives you the meat of the company's P57W v5, but in a smaller form factor. Everything about this laptop is subtle. Even the tiger stripes color scheme, which you would imagine to be quite flashy, is discreet and subdued, perhaps even passing as a workstation if you're so inclined. In addition to an affordable price tag, the P55W is a capable, yet surprisingly portable machine with an appearance that might fool you into thinking otherwise. Its use of a GTX 970M gives it an edge over laptops with more unruly, boisterous exteriors and with only a 15-inch chassis to boot.

5. MSI GS60 Ghost Pro
The best thin-and-light gaming laptop CPU: 2.6GHz Intel Core i7 6700HQ | Graphics: NVIDIA GeForce GTX 970M, Intel HD Graphics 530 | RAM: 16GB DDR4 | Screen: 15.6-inch, 1,920 x 1,080 eDP Wide View Angle | Storage: 128GB SSD; 1TB HDD See more MSI GS60 Ghost Pro deals Performance pusher Stupendous keyboard Fleeting battery life A bit expensive High on mature styling and light on weight, the MSI GS60 Ghost Pro is one of the thinnest gaming laptops you can buy. Don't think this svelte machine has sacrificed performance for the sake of cutting weight. It still comes packed with a high-end Intel Skylake processor and graphics card to make it a one of the strongest platforms we've ever tested. Just make sure to stick with a 1080p resolution and medium to high visual settings.

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