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Should I build a gaming desktop or buy a gaming laptop

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FruitBootPro
Posts: 3103 - Karma: 13,866
I'm a college student who changes housing extremely regularly. For the longest time I've thought that getting a gaming desktop was out of the question for me, and that I couldn't deal with the lack of portability, and thus I was willing to shell out the extra money for a laptop. I couldn't really imagine having to lug a desktop tower around every time I moved or went home for the holidays. Even if I had a chromebook in addition to a desktop, having to juggle two computers could be cumbersome. Also I don't like storing my documents on Google Drive anymore.

However, recently I've gotten used to using my laptop exclusively at my desk. Not only is the keyboard broken, so I have to use an external keyboard, but I have a lot of other shit plugged into it and if I were to unplug it, it would probably fall behind the desk and I'd have to reach back there to plug it in when I came back. There's just no reason for me to move it at all right now. So I've started to entertain the thought that I would enjoy a desktop more than I thought.

What would you guys recommend for a guy in college who wants to game and who moves every few months or so?

A PS5 would be cool but I play mainly shooters and I want the mouse and keyboard for aiming, and there are many other reasons that

btw don't just say "gaming laptops are underpowered compared to desktops", I already said I'm willing to pay a premium for a good laptop, and there are many capable laptops out there right now.
Nov 19 2020 2:59PM
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yungona
Posts: 2374 - Karma: -5,803
you could research small form factor PCs.. they are sometimes smaller than the avg console and more powerful.. or get the Series X.. its relatively cheap, 4k graphics, 60fps.. everything you would want. or be alpha asf and build an insane desktop powerhouse
Nov 19 2020 3:03PM
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FruitBootPro
Posts: 3103 - Karma: 13,866
yungonayou could research small form factor PCs.. they are sometimes smaller than the avg console and more powerful.. or get the Series X.. its relatively cheap, 4k graphics, 60fps.. everything you would want. or be alpha asf and build an insane desktop powerhouse


PS5 is definitely gonna be more powerful, cheaper, and better overall than the mini gaming pc's. Unfortunate that it's not compatible with mouse and keyboard play. I think my main options are either gaming laptop, powerful desktop, or PS5. I'm reluctant about going with the PS5.
Nov 19 2020 3:14PM
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roddy116
Posts: 10636 - Karma: 7,511
asus tuf is made with durability in mind and made for long distance traveling.

not to mention that gaming laptops are just really expensive radiators.
Nov 19 2020 3:14PM
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Charlie_Kelly
Posts: 11954 - Karma: 12,302
I have an Asus ROG Strix. Cost $1,000 at Best Buy and I’ve put another $200 of memory into it. I honestly love it. It handles most games on the highest settings without a hitch (MFS 2020 and strategy games mainly for me). Only 500gb of storage but has another slot for more. I’ll probably upgrade to a 1 or 2tb drive within the year. I also have a Logitech gaming mouse because track pads suck.
Nov 19 2020 3:18PM
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FruitBootPro
Posts: 3103 - Karma: 13,866
roddy116asus tuf is made with durability in mind and made for long distance traveling.

not to mention that gaming laptops are just really expensive radiators.


TUF laptop or desktop? Laptop seems okay but I really want to wait for the RTX 3000 laptops to come out. I'd rather ball out on a very powerful laptop than compromise.
Btw I don't need heavy-duty construction like on the TUF, I just need something that's portable in general.
Nov 19 2020 3:21PM
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FruitBootPro
Posts: 3103 - Karma: 13,866
Charlie_KellyI have an Asus ROG Strix. Cost $1,000 at Best Buy and I’ve put another $200 of memory into it. I honestly love it. It handles most games on the highest settings without a hitch (MFS 2020 and strategy games mainly for me). Only 500gb of storage but has another slot for more. I’ll probably upgrade to a 1 or 2tb drive within the year. I also have a Logitech gaming mouse because track pads suck.


That's good, my brother has an ASUS gaming laptop as well and I think it can run everything on recommended at locked 60fps. I think it's also the Strix 15.

My laptop has been straight ass. Multiple maintenance issues, only 256gb of storage, graphics processing has gotten noticeably worse over time...just a headache in general. Has made me hesitant to buy another gaming laptop. I want to buy a 3000 series laptop if anything so that I'll be able to easily run games at 144fps. However, they might be expensive as fuck, especially if they're not chunky.
Nov 19 2020 3:26PM
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roddy116
Posts: 10636 - Karma: 7,511
FruitBootProTUF laptop or desktop? Laptop seems okay but I really want to wait for the RTX 3000 laptops to come out. I'd rather ball out on a very powerful laptop than compromise.
Btw I don't need heavy-duty construction like on the TUF, I just need something that's portable in general.


Desktop for sure, but 3000 series laptops probably wont be really worth the price for quite awhile. But thats fair, my next PC is probably gonna be all TUF parts since i liked my mobo so much, plus im planning on moving overseas and I want something i can throw in a box.

I guess if you got portability in mind, of course laptop will win out, but you can make a variety of desktop sizes without a big sacrifice in performance, and more likely cheaper than a laptop.
Nov 19 2020 3:55PM
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T.L.
Posts: 4729 - Karma: 3,008
I used to build and rotate out a full custom PC about once per year just to stay up to date on hardware before the older stuff lost all its value.

The last two years I've rotated out a gaming level 15" laptop just for portability and less of a headache. Unless you're cranking gfx up to ultra settings and gaming in 4k, laptops are pretty close to desktop levels of performance now for about the same cost.

If I were you I'd find a good 15" or 17" with a decent cooling pad and good mouse and call it a day.
Nov 19 2020 3:58PM
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Charlie_Kelly
Posts: 11954 - Karma: 12,302
FruitBootProThat's good, my brother has an ASUS gaming laptop as well and I think it can run everything on recommended at locked 60fps. I think it's also the Strix 15.

My laptop has been straight ass. Multiple maintenance issues, only 256gb of storage, graphics processing has gotten noticeably worse over time...just a headache in general. Has made me hesitant to buy another gaming laptop. I want to buy a 3000 series laptop if anything so that I'll be able to easily run games at 144fps. However, they might be expensive as fuck, especially if they're not chunky.

Mine is the G531GT to be specific. Nvidia GTX 1660Ti graphic card. Comes with 8gb of RAM but I currently have 32gb. Maybe go a model or too up? I haven’t tried any FPS games on it yet but I suspect it’ll do fine with them.
Nov 19 2020 4:02PM
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T.L.
Posts: 4729 - Karma: 3,008
Charlie_KellyMine is the G531GT to be specific. Nvidia GTX 1660Ti graphic card. Comes with 8gb of RAM but I currently have 32gb. Maybe go a model or too up? I haven’t tried any FPS games on it yet but I suspect it’ll do fine with them.


If you've got the one with 9th gen i7 9750h, I've got the same specs in a Acer Predator. I can do warzone all damn day no problems.
Nov 19 2020 4:13PM
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Charlie_Kelly
Posts: 11954 - Karma: 12,302
T.L.If you've got the one with 9th gen i7 9750h, I've got the same specs in a Acer Predator. I can do warzone all damn day no problems.


I believe it does. Good to know!
Nov 19 2020 4:17PM
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eheath
Posts: 61648 - Karma: 123,472
Desktop for sure brother, unmatched performance and ability to upgrade in the future. Plus, who wants to game on a screen that is < 17" i feel like you want at least a 24" monitor for gaming, so to me, a desktop is the way to go.
Nov 19 2020 4:20PM
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spruitm
Posts: 2221 - Karma: 1,069
Desktop definitely, you can keep upgrading that for many years. Even with a great laptop, I’d put the relevant lifespan at 3-4 years.
Nov 19 2020 4:32PM
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Idahoe
Posts: 1027 - Karma: 7,538
as a pc master race member I can honestly say that there is no upsides to having a desktop besides it being a desk ornament. I spent 1K ++ to build a machine that is similiarly spec'd to the PS5, which is a couple hundred less retail. the PS5 does have the mobile version of all the components, but honestly both will probably have similiar performance. no regerts.
Nov 19 2020 4:38PM
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daannnnieel
Posts: 5163 - Karma: 4,293
honestly moving around a tower/ monitor is not the worst thing to do as long as you have proper storage for it. I was a bit worried with the liquid cooling and shit but we've had 0 issues.

source: pretty much all of my friends have gaming pc's and like to do lan parties, I have a vehicle and no issues transporting friends/ systems around for a couple beers.
Nov 19 2020 4:43PM
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eheath
Posts: 61648 - Karma: 123,472
Idahoeas a pc master race member I can honestly say that there is no upsides to having a desktop besides it being a desk ornament. I spent 1K ++ to build a machine that is similiarly spec'd to the PS5, which is a couple hundred less retail. the PS5 does have the mobile version of all the components, but honestly both will probably have similiar performance. no regerts.


Is your desktop 10 years old or something?
Nov 19 2020 4:54PM
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skierman
Posts: 8371 - Karma: 7,587
"I'm a college student who changes housing extremely regularly. For the longest time I've thought that getting a gaming desktop was out of the question for me, and that I couldn't deal with the lack of portability,"

hahaha, good god you're a fucking pussy. Really? You can't handle 10 minutes of unplugging your shit and putting it into a box?
Nov 19 2020 5:00PM
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spruitm
Posts: 2221 - Karma: 1,069
😂😂😂😂😂
skierman"I'm a college student who changes housing extremely regularly. For the longest time I've thought that getting a gaming desktop was out of the question for me, and that I couldn't deal with the lack of portability,"

hahaha, good god you're a fucking pussy. Really? You can't handle 10 minutes of unplugging your shit and putting it into a box?
Nov 19 2020 5:05PM
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FruitBootPro
Posts: 3103 - Karma: 13,866
skierman"I'm a college student who changes housing extremely regularly. For the longest time I've thought that getting a gaming desktop was out of the question for me, and that I couldn't deal with the lack of portability,"

hahaha, good god you're a fucking pussy. Really? You can't handle 10 minutes of unplugging your shit and putting it into a box?


Taking a desktop, keyboard, monitor, and other accessories on a plane is cumbersome and difficult. I've had to move back and forth from school and home a lot during college.

In addition, I'd need a chromebook if I got a desktop, so that I could study with people in common areas, or just on the go in general, especially if I'm living off campus.
Nov 19 2020 5:17PM
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Idahoe
Posts: 1027 - Karma: 7,538
eheathIs your desktop 10 years old or something?

its only about 3 months old actually.

https://pcpartpicker.com/list/W6mQdD

Heres the parts I used for my build. Builds based off of the Ryzen 5 3600 with similiar specs have been pretty popular in the last year, so im not the only one in this boat. The total price isn't correct as most of the stuff was bought on sale and a few things I bought used, so the total is probably more around the 750 - 850 range.

basic specs for my pc are
- CPU : Ryzen 5 3600 (Zen 2, 6 core, 3.6 GHz)
-RAM : 16 gb DDR4- 3200 MHz
-GPU : GTX 1070 (core clock : 1556 MHz, 8 gb GDDR5 ram)
-storage : 1 256gb ssd, 3 terabyte hdd

basic specs of PS5
-CPU : Zen 2 mobile cpu (8 core, 3.5 GHz clock)
-RAM : 16GB GDDR5
-GPU : mobile equivalent of RX 5700 (core clock : 1465 MHz)
- storage : 825gb SSD

while the pc has more ram, as it has both VRAM and regular RAM, all the other specs are pretty similiar, and most people probably couldn't tell the different while gaming.

bottom line the new console releases kinda cucked most people that have PC's that they didn't spend their life savings on.
Nov 19 2020 5:34PM
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eheath
Posts: 61648 - Karma: 123,472
Idahoeits only about 3 months old actually.

https://pcpartpicker.com/list/W6mQdD

Heres the parts I used for my build. Builds based off of the Ryzen 5 3600 with similiar specs have been pretty popular in the last year, so im not the only one in this boat. The total price isn't correct as most of the stuff was bought on sale and a few things I bought used, so the total is probably more around the 750 - 850 range.

basic specs for my pc are
- CPU : Ryzen 5 3600 (Zen 2, 6 core, 3.6 GHz)
-RAM : 16 gb DDR4- 3200 MHz
-GPU : GTX 1070 (core clock : 1556 MHz, 8 gb GDDR5 ram)
-storage : 1 256gb ssd, 3 terabyte hdd

basic specs of PS5
-CPU : Zen 2 mobile cpu (8 core, 3.5 GHz clock)
-RAM : 16GB GDDR5
-GPU : mobile equivalent of RX 5700 (core clock : 1465 MHz)
- storage : 825gb SSD

while the pc has more ram, as it has both VRAM and regular RAM, all the other specs are pretty similiar, and most people probably couldn't tell the different while gaming.

bottom line the new console releases kinda cucked most people that have PC's that they didn't spend their life savings on.


You're looking at straight up numbers, which is the wrong way to do this, but you're right that if you wanna spend $400-500 on your "computer" (console) and 200-300 on a TV for it (or 1000-1500 for 4k 120hz) which is about $800 total, then yes a console is your best choice.

My desktop** a year ago was about $1600, i9 9900k 8 core 2070 6gb and 32gb of ram with liquid cooling, plus a 144hz 1080p monitor for $200. My setup can produce 1440p 60-120fps and 4k 30-60fps on most games and its a year old, with a 3080 (which I will get in the next 6 months) I will be able to do 1440p 240fps and 4k 144fps.

Yes, this costs more, but the flexibility of computers far outweighs a console (although I'm probably getting a ps5) they both have their pros and cons, but remember that the ps5 is meant to last another 5-10 years so within a year or two, desktop gaming will be past the ps5 and xbx.

This decision for OP has everything to do with using a keyboard and mouse too, so for him I would 100% recommend a desktop (over a laptop for sure too) that costs $800-1500 over a console.

**Also fair to note I use this computer for work too so cost is less of an issue.
Nov 19 2020 5:55PM
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swisssteeze
Posts: 201 - Karma: 499
eheathYou're looking at straight up numbers, which is the wrong way to do this, but you're right that if you wanna spend $400-500 on your "computer" (console) and 200-300 on a TV for it (or 1000-1500 for 4k 120hz) which is about $800 total, then yes a console is your best choice.

My desktop** a year ago was about $1600, i9 9900k 8 core 2070 6gb and 32gb of ram with liquid cooling, plus a 144hz 1080p monitor for $200. My setup can produce 1440p 60-120fps and 4k 30-60fps on most games and its a year old, with a 3080 (which I will get in the next 6 months) I will be able to do 1440p 240fps and 4k 144fps.

Yes, this costs more, but the flexibility of computers far outweighs a console (although I'm probably getting a ps5) they both have their pros and cons, but remember that the ps5 is meant to last another 5-10 years so within a year or two, desktop gaming will be past the ps5 and xbx.

This decision for OP has everything to do with using a keyboard and mouse too, so for him I would 100% recommend a desktop (over a laptop for sure too) that costs $800-1500 over a console.

**Also fair to note I use this computer for work too so cost is less of an issue.


This. People also dont realise how much thermal throttling is going on in consoles. There is a reason that desktop PCs are thick as heck and we chuck the biggest coolers in that fit. Cooling and dust protection are the two main things you should worry about.

My setup going strong for 2 years now:
i9700k is at 5.05 ghz 80° (won the silicone lottery here)
1080ti 2080mhz 30-60° (Literally 2x case fans ziptied to cooler on 50-80%, praise noctunas silent fans)
16gb of ddr4, i am to scared to overclock ram
Only air cooling, the cooling will never die... my cpu might with me being such an overclocking crack.

Anyone with a little motivation and time can overlock ther cpu and gpu to safe rates. Just dont push it.
Nov 20 2020 3:29AM
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ReturnToMonkey
Posts: 6416 - Karma: 69,672
Also a college student who changes housing regularly. I have a 7 year old desktop that's still going strong and I have moved states, multiple houses, etc with it without much of an issue. The main concern when moving it all is protecting the monitor, but that's not alleviated by getting a console. The only issue regarding the computer was when I was moving back into my apartment last year, a couple hot girl neighbors had to hold the door while I walked through with my huge gaming pc and suffice to say, they never talked to me again.
Nov 20 2020 3:22PM
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