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How To Buy The Best Gaming Laptop Computer: The Top Features Your Gamer Laptop System Must Have

thehigherstandard | Jan 7, 2012 |

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Top Features For A Gaming Laptop Computer: Speed, Sound, and Image Clarity

Gaming laptops are sure to be some of the most popular laptop computers purchased this year. Of course, we all know that the small computers were originally designed for working. Originally pitched to consumers as tools powerful enough to allow you to get work done while not tied to your home or work desk top computer model, but small enough to conveniently sit on your lap while you are on an airplane, watching television in your favorite easy chair, or even lounging on chair on some beach soaking in some sun rays. Nowadays, however, there are not many consumers that will stand for merely getting the job done. If given the opportunity, each and every one of us will absolutely turn the most advanced tool into something to play games on. Why do you think Rovio sold millions upon millions of Angry Birds downloads this Christmas? The answer is simple: Rovio sold almost the same number of downloads of that game as Apple sold new iPhone 4s cell phones. In other words, literally every person that received an iPhone this holiday immediately went into the Apple Ap Store and purchased this $0.99 game. That, my friends, is amazing!

Laptops are no different. I am sure you can all remember the first time you got a laptop computer all those years ago. Besides the standard “work-related” software programs (i.e., a word processor, etc.), what else was on the computer? Games, right! Various card games such as Solitaire, simple adventure games, and some archaic shoot-em-up games were all included “for free” when you made your purchase. If you got a fancier model, they also included some free sign-up offers for some out dated “internet” providers such as Prodigy, Compu Serve, and AOL (yeah, I know that they are still around but I am sure you noticed my use of the description “out dated,” right?). Technology has certainly come a long way and many consumers no longer first consider what work-related software the portable computer comes with, but, instead, want to know if they will be able to play their favorite games on it.

As a result, laptop manufacturers were forced to satisfy those needs, as well as make the product functional and do anything and everything a full-sized desktop computer can do. This was no small task considering they had to take all of the desktop pieces (the keyboard, monitor, mouse, speakers, etc.) and shrink them to fit neatly into a small, two-part box that opens through the use of two hinges, all the while packing it with the everything a gamer demands from their computer system: speed, sound, and image clarity. While that may seem simple, trust me: it is not!

However, if you are in the market to buy the best gaming laptop, there a few features that you must consider when you are looking to pull out your credit card.

The Best Gaming Laptops Have Tremendous Speed

Gaming Laptop Microprocessor

When you are looking for a laptop on which you intend to play advanced high-speed, graphic games, do yourself a favor and do not buy any computer that, in any way whatsoever, compromises on its microprocessor. Without getting too highly technical, a great way to tell if the laptop you are consider is NOT the one for you is to ask yourself what the manufacturer is touting in its sales pitch to you. If you hear or read phrases such as the computer “draws less power,” “generates less heat,” or “costs less money,” the model you are considering is probably not a gaming laptop. You can generally expect that model you will ultimately buy will draw “more” power (causing you to either recharge the battery very often or plug it into a wall current while you play), generate “more” heat than compared to basic laptops, and cost “more” that one where the general purpose will be to do work-related stuff (i.e., typing, surfing the internet, or even playing basic computer games). As a result, the best gamer laptop will include the fastest, most powerful microprocessor available.

Gaming Laptop Memory

If you really want speed in your computer, you will want it to have a ton of RAM. And I mean a ton! In fact, one thing you will absolutely want to do is determine how much RAM is supported by the laptop system (including the motherboard, the microprocessor, and the computer’s operating system). Generally speaking, most laptops manufactured today support between 2GB to 4GB of RAM. Here is a quick trick to determine how much RAM the model you are considering will support. If you the computer is utilizing the 32-bit version of Windows 7 (or even Windows Vista), the maximum RAM limit will be 4GB. However, if it is using the 64-bit version of Windows 7 (meaning that it has a 64-bit processor), you will be able to install much more RAM. While any amount of RAM above 2GB will work really well for most games on the market today, 4GB will obviously be that much better for you in the speed department.

Gaming Laptop Hard Drive

As you are no doubt aware, the computer games made today are extremely advanced, complex, and take up a significant amount of storage space. In fact, a typical high-speed game can take up in excess of 10GB of space on the computer hard drive. If you do not have a ton of hard drive space, you are not going to have a successful gaming career on your new computer. Moreover, these games regularly go back and forth between the memory system and the hard drive to import and load different characters, scenes, sight and sounds as the gamer advances though the game scenarios. As a result, you will need the large hard drive to also have tremendous speed. Generally speaking, you need to select a gaming computer that has a hard drive that use advanced protocols (e.g., SATA) to move the data back and forth, while “spinning” at 7,200 to 10,000 rpm. Keep in mind, however, that manufacturers have begun offering solid-state drives that keep the data and information in a type of flash memory that does not move. This feature is being offered on some of the newest netbooks as well as a few laptop computers. However, since they are typically slower than traditional hard drives, you should skip this “feature” because they compromise the speed you need for the best gaming experience.

This article is continued in Part 2: The Top Sound Features Your Gaming Laptop Must Have.