Quick checklist before you buy
According to the expert, you should first decide for what purposes you need a laptop and start with the tasks assigned to it. A computer for daily work and work should be light and versatile, with at least an entry-level video card, a modern processor and a weight of up to 2.5 kg.
“A laptop for serious professional work should definitely have a powerful processor, at least Ryzen 5 or Core i5 and as much RAM as possible – now it is important to immediately consider 16 GB. A video card and a high-quality screen, It depends on the tasks,” said Knyazev.
If you need a budget gaming laptop, it should have at least eight gigabytes of RAM. Also, it is better to immediately look at video cards from the RTX series, even at the entry level – they have DLSS technology, which significantly extends the current life of the device. When choosing a full-fledged gaming device, regardless of the budget, you need to look at the TDP of the processor and video card – the higher it is, the more powerful the device. A good level is considered a TDP of 100 watts. But as long as the cooling copes with this heat dissipation, the more the better.
And finally, when looking for a laptop with high autonomy, you need to look not only at the battery performance, which is indicated in Wh, but also at the processor – modern AMD Ryzen is more energy-efficient than Intel models. A laptop without discrete graphics will run longer without being charged.
The best laptop for school and work
Weight and a sturdy case are important for a laptop that’s often worn to work or school. One of the most popular models on the market right now is the Thunderobot 911 Air Wave D. It weighs just 2.15kg and has a high-quality metal and plastic casing to help the device survive and look good on the road. A versatile laptop, it can handle video processing, online gaming, and 3D modeling or graphics. That’s why Knyazev believes that for such a device, at least an entry-level video card is a must.
At a price of 52 thousand rubles. Thunderobot 911 Air Wave D can handle all these tasks easily as it has Intel Core i5-11400H processor and Nvidia GeForce RTX3050 graphics card. True, the battery life does not exceed 5 hours, so for this model you need to carry a charger, which is quite compact.
The best laptop for viewing
“If you are looking for a device for demanding professional tasks, you usually need to look at gaming laptops. The specific requirements here vary by field – for example, designers should look for displays with high-quality color reproduction, and editors – models with a large amount of RAM and a modern video card,” he said. Knyazev.
In this case, you should take a closer look at ASUS TUF Dash F15 FX517ZM-HN157, whose average cost in Russia is 100 thousand rubles. The laptop is equipped with a fairly powerful Nvidia GeForce RTX 3060 graphics card, which is supported by many professional software manufacturers – it will give a noticeable increase in the speed of supported applications. The laptop also has 16GB RAM and 1TB SSD. But despite the excellent hardware, the screen here has very mediocre color reproduction – it will not work to achieve ideal colors in this regard. So it won’t work for designers.
The best budget laptop for gaming
Knyazev believes the concept of a “budget gaming laptop” is a contrast. However, if you are looking for an entertainment device that does not strain your wallet too much, it is useful to start with the games you want to start with. The heart of any gaming PC is a video card, and we’re going to build on it.
For simple popular online games, a graphics card like the Nvidia GeForce GTX 1650 is a common budget model found in many low-end laptops. It will be enough for any kind of CS:GO, Dota 2 and similar online entertainment. But if you are interested in more serious projects, you should buy a laptop with a video card from the RTX series.
These graphics cards support an advanced upscaling technology called DLSS that allows you to increase performance with minimal impact on the final image. Now the most common is the RTX 3050, the first card of the third generation, which is, for example, in the Thunderobot 911 Air XS D for 70 thousand rubles. Knyazev says this is a great example of an inexpensive gaming laptop. In addition, after the purchase, the device can be slightly “pumped” by installing another stick of RAM, thereby “finish” up to 16 GB. True, by default, the model has a rather modest 256 GB SSD, which can be solved.
The best gaming laptops
The rules get more complicated when choosing a powerful gaming laptop. The more powerful the iron, the more advanced cooling system it needs. And this is what usually helps to choose the most efficient model. TDP becomes an indirect indicator reflecting the heat dissipation of the device in such a case. The higher this indicator, the more heat the processor and video card emit during operation, and therefore the more powerful they are.
An example of a good gaming laptop is the MSI Katana 17 B12VEK-482XRU. It has a total TDP of 115 watts per system, which allows us to talk about the high power of the installed components. However, if you are worried about the noise level during operation, you should know in advance how loudly the computer “speeds up”. A good indicator would be noise up to 50 dB and acceptable up to 60. It is the second category that the katana 17 falls into.
Another consideration is the display and graphics card. The Katana 17 features a large 17-inch 1080p display, and thanks to the new RTX 4050 graphics card, this pack will remain viable for a long time to come. After all, it gives you access to DLSS version 3.0 technology, which greatly improves both picture quality and gaming performance. On average, the cost of this model in Russian stores is 100 thousand rubles.
The best laptop with long battery life
According to Knyazev, when choosing a laptop with a long battery life, you should look for a solution without a separate video card. It is also worth paying attention to energy-efficient processors – now Ryzen is especially famous for this.
The capacity value in mAh on laptops will not be said as much as on smartphones – it is better to look at the indicators in Wh. For example, the ASUS M1502IA-BQ093 is 42 Wh, which allows the computer to last up to eight hours without recharging. Its average price is 52 thousand rubles. The laptop is equipped with a very powerful integrated video accelerator Radeon Vega 7, an AMD Ryzen 7 4800H processor and 16 GB of RAM.