BEST GAMING LAPTOPS IN 2021

The Best Gaming Laptop at every Price and Size

1. ASUS ROG ZEPHYRUS G15

THE BEST GAMING LAPTOP

Asus’s ROG Zephyrus G14 was our top gaming laptop pick for quite a while. It did just about everything right, and we weren’t sure whether Asus could ever replicate its resounding success. But somehow, the company managed to make the G14 just a bit bigger, and a heck of a lot better. In doing so, it’s created the ROG Zephyrus G15, the best 15-inch rig you can buy.

At just over four pounds, the Zephyrus G15 is one of the lightest 15-inch gaming laptops you can buy. But you’re not making any compromises on performance for that portability: it’s powered by the top mobile chips that AMD and Nvidia have to offer and includes a fast 165Hz QHD (1440p) display. Together, those components can handle even the toughest AAA titles at QHD resolution. The panel has excellent color reproduction as well, so your games will look great.

But it’s not just the gaming; almost everything else about the G15 is great, too. The audio (pumped from a six-speaker array) has strong percussion and bass, the keyboard and touchpad have a satisfying click, the port selection leaves little to be desired, and the battery can last for a whopping eight and a half hours.

The G15 won’t be the laptop for everyone. There’s no webcam, which is a significant oversight, and some may prefer something more affordable, or with a flashier aesthetic. But as a package, the G15 is the one to beat. Not only is it the best gaming laptop you can buy, but it’s also one of the best laptops you can buy, period.

Buy @ Amazon ₹1,02,000/- INR

2. ASUS ROG ZEPHYRUS G14

THE BEST GAMING LAPTOP IN A 14-INCH CHASSIS

The ROG Zephyrus G14 is the best 14-inch gaming laptop you can buy. We most recently reviewed last year’s model, which includes AMD’s Ryzen 4000 series up to the eight-core Ryzen 9 4900HS and an Nvidia RTX 2060 GPU. There’s a brand-new model out featuring the Ryzen 5000 series and Nvidia’s RTX 30-series graphics, which we’re looking forward to getting our hands on ASAP.

For well under ₹1Lakh, the Zephyrus crams one of the most powerful mobile processors on the market into a super portable 14-inch chassis. With capable cooling to boot, the laptop delivers frame rates we’ve never seen in a laptop of this size before. It handled every game we threw at it without breaking a sweat.

But aside from its excellent gaming performance, the G14 makes a great daily driver. The keyboard, touchpad, display, and port selection are all excellent. Even the battery life is good — something we rarely get to say about gaming laptops.

There are a few downsides to the G14, but they’re fairly small and user-dependent. The most significant note is that it lacks a webcam; you’ll need an external one if you plan on making video calls. There’s also some bleed in the backlighting, there’s no Thunderbolt connectivity (since it’s an AMD system, and that’s an Intel standard), and the fans can get louder than most under load. But these are very much nitpicking that won’t have a large impact on plenty of people’s gaming experience. Overall, we have very few complaints.

Asus recently collaborated with DJ Alan Walker on the Zephyrus G14 Alan Walker Edition, with a box that becomes a DJ deck.

Buy @ Amazon ₹98,900/- INR

3. RAZER BLADE PRO 17

THE BEST BIG-SCREEN GAMING LAPTOP

The Blade Pro 17 delivers some of the best gaming performance you can find in a laptop — but that’s not even its superpower. What makes Razer’s 17-inch flagship so impressive is it packs that unbelievable power into a thin and attractive chassis. It’s just 0.8 inches thick and only requires one charging brick — so you can carry it around in a backpack or briefcase without compromising on power.

Gaming enthusiasts can opt for a model with a 300Hz screen — the highest refresh rate you can get on a laptop — while folks who want to combine gaming with some creative work can opt for a 120Hz touchscreen configuration. Both models come with a customizable per-key RGB keyboard, which adds a touch of color to the Pro’s design without being too obnoxious for the office.

The Blade Pro 17 certainly isn’t cheap, but it’s the laptop to buy if you want the best of the best.

Buy @ Amazon

4. ASUS ROG STRIX G15 ADVANTAGE EDITION

THE BEST BIG-SCREEN GAMING LAPTOP

The ROG Strix G15 Advantage Edition is one of the few gaming laptops you’ll find that includes both an AMD processor and an AMD GPU. Not to worry — it delivers gaming performance on par with what you’ll see from laptops with Nvidia’s top GPUs. It also delivers one of the best gaming battery experiences we’ve ever seen — it was able to maintain playable frame rates on Red Dead Redemption 2 for over an hour with no charger attached.

Speaking of battery, we averaged nine hours and 16 minutes of work use between charges, which makes the Strix G15 far and away one of the longest-lasting gaming laptops on the market. That’s doubly impressive because it’s powering a ton of flashy LEDs, including a per-key RGB keyboard and a colorful light strip around the front edge of the deck. If you’re looking for a jazzy, bold design and you’re all-in on AMD, the Strix G15 Advantage edition is the best gaming laptop for you.

Buy @ Amazon

5. DELL G5 15 SE

THE BEST BUDGET GAMING LAPTOP

The Dell G5 15 SE offers a great gaming experience at a price range far below that of many competitors. You can buy it for around ₹90,000, and it doesn’t ask too many compromises for that price. While it only comes with a 60Hz screen, the hardware inside (especially AMD’s Ryzen 7 processor) is capable of maxing that out on all kinds of demanding games at native 1080p resolution, so you can reliably expect a playable experience from your favorite titles.

We’re also impressed by the G5’s connectivity. It includes a Mini DisplayPort, an HDMI, and an Ethernet jack — all ports you don’t see every day on laptops at this price point. Overall, if you’re looking for great value for your money, the G5 is your best bet.

Buy @ Amazon in ₹88,990/- INR

6. RAZER BLADE 15 ADVANCED

A GREAT THIN AND LIGHT GAMING LAPTOP

The Blade 15 isn’t as powerful as its 17-inch sibling, but it may be a more pragmatic purchase for many people. If you’re looking for a balanced combination of performance and portability, the Blade 15 may hit that sweet spot. It still packs the top chips on the market and can come with a 300Hz display, but at just 4.7 pounds and 0.7 inches thick, it’s comparable in size to several 15-inch productivity machines like the Dell XPS 15.

In addition to its reliable gaming performance, the Blade 15 works well as a productivity machine. We’re big fans of its keyboard, which is quite comfortable to use and has per-key RGB lighting, and the touchpad, which is roomy with a satisfying click. Our primary complaint is that this Blade got quite hot during our game testing — not only did the processor reach 99 degrees, but the hinge and palm rests were uncomfortable to touch.

Buy @ Amazon

7. ASUS ROG STRIX SCAR 15

THE BEST LAPTOP WITH FLASHY RGB

If you’re looking for a “traditional” premium gaming laptop with colorful, flashy panache, the ROG Strix Scar 15 is for you. The Strix’s keyboard isn’t just one of the most comfortable that we’ve ever tested on a gaming laptop; it also has some of the coolest per-key RGB lightings we’ve ever seen with all kinds of effects. There’s also a colorful light strip wrapped around the front of the deck (customizable as well) and a colorful glowing logo on the lid. In short: if you use this in public, people will notice.

Of course, the Strix is great on the inside as well, delivering some of the best frame rates you’ll find from a 15-inch laptop with Intel’s and Nvidia’s top chips. You’ll get the full benefit of their power with a 300Hz screen option as well. And the Strix comes preloaded with various programs to help customize your gaming experience. You can personalize color profiles, bandwidth allocation, and more based on the type of game you’re playing.

Buy @ Amazon in ₹1,80,000/- INR

8. ALIENWARE AREA-51M

A GAMING LAPTOP WITH DESKTOP-CLASS PARTS

If money and desk space are no objects for you, you might be interested in the Alienware Area-51m. This hefty ring is essentially a desktop in laptop form. It pairs a desktop-class processor and a full-power mobile GPU with a 17-inch display and a full-size keyboard, delivering true desktop performance in a chassis that’s still (technically) portable. PC enthusiasts will also appreciate that you can update many of the components yourself, including the processor, RAM, and storage.

Buy @ Amazon