Are you a newbie who is just beginning your gaming career? Then you must be confused about choosing between a gaming laptop and a gaming desktop! Don’t worry at all because every pro-gamer goes through this phase at the beginning of his/her career, however, one good guide can help you through it. Therefore, stick around because this complete guide will help beginners to make an informed decision. So without any further do, let’s get straight into it!
Highlights of the article:
- Factors to Consider
- Comparison of specs of gaming laptops and gaming desktops
- Expert Opinion
Introduction to Gaming Laptops and Gaming Desktops:
Before we begin the comparison let us give you a brief introduction about “gaming laptops” and their competitors “gaming desktops”, to help you decide at a better pace.
Gaming Laptops:
Gaming Laptops are designed with portability and convenience in consideration. Whether you are joining a LAN party or going on a trip with your friends, you can play your favourite games at any time and any place without any restriction. These devices come equipped with high-end components like powerful CPUs and GPUs, as well as, the manufacturers have improved the reputation of gaming laptops by topping them up with advancements in battery technology in 2024, hence enhancing the playtime without needing a power outlet.
Gaming Desktops:
Gaming Desktops are designed to deliver exceptional gaming performances which will blow up one’s mind. They offer greater customizations and upgradability, like, easily swapping out graphic cards, RAM, SSDs, CPUs and GPUs etc. Moreover, if you don’t like prebuilt gaming PCs, you can make one yourself, ensuring the quality and flexibility of these exceptional machines.
Factors to Consider:
The above introduction might make you think laptops are better than desktops, however, when you come down and read about desktops you might think the opposite of that. Let us tell you a secret! “The choice between a gaming laptop and a gaming desktop really depends upon your personal preferences and requirements”.
If you prefer portability, go for gaming laptops but if you crave unrivalled performance, choose gaming desktops. And if you are not sure about your preferences then here are some of the factors to consider before choosing one of them:
Performance And Power:
Talking about performance, one thing is for sure that gaming laptops can not deliver performance like gaming desktops.
- Gaming desktops come with powerful components like CPUs and GPUs, helping them to well handle high-demanding games (such as; Dota 2, Call of Duty etc) which require higher frame rates and graphics.
- Moreover, Gaming Desktops come with strong cooling systems with large heatsinks and fans, ensuring better temperature regulation.
- Additionally, gaming PCs consume more power than laptops due to heavy components. For instance; a PC is capable of consuming 500 watts of electricity when loading, 1000 watts for high-end configurations, and 100 watts when idle.
- Gaming Laptops have quite improved in terms of performance over the years, however, they still can not beat the performance delivery of gaming PCs. Their compact design and power limitations keep them one level behind the desktops.
- Moreover, gaming laptops are noisier than PCs because their cooling fans that come tightly integrated inside the laptops make the fans work twice as fast as the fans provided in gaming desktops. Thus making more noise and needs to be carefully monitored to prevent overheating.
- While gaming desktops can consume such high power, gaming laptops relatively consume a lot less, around 200 to 300 watts at loading, and even less when they are left idle with the screen on.
Mobility and Portability:
Nothing can beat the portability of laptops and that is for obvious reasons. Whether you want to go on a trip or to your office, laptops will never disappoint you. However, there are exceptional cases.
For instance; mini PCs such as; Intel’s NUC Extreme, the Falcon Northwest Fragbox, and Origin Chronos can be packed and taken, but the problem is; that they also require external power and peripherals, eventually ceasing your mobility to some extent.
Customization and Upgradability:
Gaming Laptops come with very limited to no customization and upgradability options. Although, today’s laptops come with high-end hardware that allows for competitive and AAA gaming. But, when it comes to upgrading them, they might just allow you to upgrade the RAM or storage, however, upgrading CPUs and GPUs is nearly impossible.
Talking about customization, there is no hope that you can customise a laptop, as well as, it is no secret that you can build your own gaming rig by just assembling the components in a desktop case (just according to your preferences). Therefore, in terms of customization and upgradability, laptops are a big no-no.
Price:
The price factor is one of the most important factors in making the right decision. Let’s compare some features of both gaming laptops and gaming desktops to better understand which one is relatively more expensive than the other.
| Gaming Laptop Common Features | Gaming Desktop Common Features |
| Built-in display, keyboard, touchpad | The display, keyboard, and touchpad need to be attached |
| Limited wired connectivity | Extensive wired connectivity |
| Hard or impossible to upgrade | Easy to customise and upgrade |
| Integrated battery | No battery |
| Portable | Not easy to move |
| Slower than desktops | Faster anyway |
The above table gives you a clear image of both machines. You might guess laptops are cheaper. Surprisingly, the reality is quite the opposite because gaming laptops are more expensive than the gaming desktop. As you literally pay for their portability instead of performances or any other factors.
Don’t fool yourself by thinking laptops come with everything integrated in them so they should be cheaper, as they won’t give the type of performance you get from a gaming desktop.
In general, a PREBUILT gaming laptop will cost you anywhere between 4000 AED, ASUS TUF F15 (2024) FX507ZI-F15.I74070 Gaming Laptop comes with the following specs;
Model: ASUS TUF Gaming F15
Operating System: Windows 11 Home
Processor: Up to 13th Gen Intel Core i9-13900H Processor
Graphics Card: Up to NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 Laptop GPU
Display: Up to a QHD 165Hz panel with G-SYNC support, slim bezels, and an 80% screen-to-body ratio
Memory (RAM): Up to 32GB of RAM
Storage: Up to 2TB PCIe Gen 4×4 storage
Battery: Large 90Wh battery for extended battery life
Cooling: Features 84-blade Arc Flow Fans, 4 exhaust vents, and up to 5 heat pipes for efficient cooling
To 20,000 AED like the Dell Alienware m18 Gaming Laptop that comes with the following specs;
Model: Dell Alienware m18
Processor: Options include the 13th Gen Intel Core i7-13700HX or the 13th Gen Intel Core i9-13900HX.
Operating System: Windows 11 Home (specific language options may vary).
Graphics Card: NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 or NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4080.
Memory (RAM): Up to 64GB of DDR5 RAM at 4800 MT/s.
Storage: Up to 1TB M.2 PCIe NVMe SSD.
Display: 18″ FHD+ (1920 x.
Although gaming desktops need all the peripherals devices, you can buy them in many suitable deals offered on our online stores ( here is a must-read detailed guide on “How much a Gaming PC costs in UAE?”).
In general, a low-budget PREBUILT gaming PC will cost you 3000 AED – 5000 AED like the AMD Ryzen 5 5600X which comes with the following specs:
Processor: AMD Ryzen 5 5600X
Memory: 16GB DDR4
Storage: 512GB SSD
Motherboard: ASRock B550M-HDV MATX D4
Graphics Card: ZOTAC GAMING GeForce RTX 3050 Twin Edge OC GDDR6 8GB
Power Supply: 550W
PC Case: GALAX PC Case (REV-05) 4-Fan
A high-end prebuilt gaming PC will cost you 6000 AED to 16000 AED like the Intel i9 13900K which comes with the following specs;
Processor: Intel i9 13900K
Memory: 64GB
Storage: 2TB SSD
Motherboard: ASUS ROG STRIX Z690-F GAMING WIFI
Graphics Card: MSI RTX 3090 GAMING X TRIO 24GB
Power Supply: 1200W
Operating System: Windows 11
PC Case: ASUS ROG HYPERION GR701
Colour: White
On the other hand, if you prefer “building your own gaming rig” then the price for each component will decide the final cost. The price can fluctuate depending on the components you may choose.
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Average Lifespan of Gaming Laptops and Gaming Desktops:
This one is quite straightforward, a gaming laptop will cost you more than a gaming desktop and yet will last only 4 to 6 years on average due to minimum upgradability options and almost zero customization. If you are lucky and not clumsy at all, you can stretch this time lap to a further 2 to 3 years but the machine itself may not be able to support the software of a decade. And the worst part is that the batteries will only last 1 to 2 years before replacement so choose wisely.
On the other hand, gaming desktops have longer life spans due to better heat management by 3 to 4 cooling fans provided in PCs, eventually extending the life of the components inside the machine. Moreover, you can always replace one component with its latest version in the market and hence it seems like you can keep a PC for a lifetime unless you are bored by its physical appearance and need to change the scene for your eyes.
Value For Money:
If you have carefully read all of the above factors then this one should be easy for you. There is no good or bad in this battle because both of the machines have their own pros and cons, however, we need to know which is providing us value for money and for me, it is “Gaming Desktop”, period. Why? You may ask! It is because desktops have all the pros except the portability factor, which I can compromise to some extent. Therefore, a gaming desktop is a win-win in this battle of gaming laptops VS gaming desktops.
Comparison of specs of gaming laptops and gaming desktops:
Before comparing the specs, let us analyse your preferences; Do you want to play Path of Exile or Final Fantasy XIV, GTA V, Minecraft, Stardew Valley or Call of Duty, Cuphead, Far Cry 3, or Fortnite? A gaming laptop is perfect for you. Or, do you want to play Red Dead Redemption 2, The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt, Microsoft Flight Simulator, Assassin’s Creed Valhalla, and Cyberpunk 2077? You must opt for gaming desktops.
Here is the comparison of specs for better understanding:
| Aspects | Gaming Laptops | Gaming Desktops |
| Brands | Some popular gaming laptop brands include Alienware, Asus ROG, MSI, Razer, Lenovo Legion, Dell | Popular gaming desktop brands include Alienware, Asus ROG, MSI, CyberPowerPC, and HP Omen |
| Processors (CPUs) | Gaming laptops often feature high-performance CPUs from Intel (e.g., Core i7 and Core i9) and AMD (e.g., Ryzen 7 and Ryzen 9) | Gaming desktops offer a wider range of CPU options, including high-end desktop-class processors like Intel Core i9 and AMD Ryzen 9. |
| Graphics Cards (GPUs) | Gaming laptops typically feature dedicated GPUs from Nvidia (e.g., GeForce RTX series) and AMD (e.g., Radeon RX series) | Gaming desktops offer a broader selection of GPUs, including high-end models like Nvidia GeForce RTX 30 series and AMD Radeon RX 6000 series. |
| RAM | Gaming laptops usually come with 8GB to 16GB of RAM, although some higher-end models like; ASUS ROG Strix G16 (recommended) are equipped with the latest DDR5 RAM which can have up to 512GB RAM | Gaming desktops offer more flexibility in terms of RAM capacity, with options ranging from 16GB to 64GB or even higher. For instance; Acer Predator Orion 7000 (recommended) comes with DDR5 and can have 512 GB RAM. Moreover, DDR6 is under development and expected to be released in 2024. DDR6 will immediately become the standard memory for high performance. |
| Storage | Gaming laptops typically have solid-state drives (SSDs) for faster loading times, with capacities ranging from 256GB to 1TB or more | Gaming desktops offer a wider range of storage options, including larger SSDs, additional hard disk drives (HDDs), and even NVMe PCIe SSDs for faster performance. |
| Display Options | Gaming laptops come with built-in displays of various sizes, typically ranging from 15 to 17 inches, with options for high refresh rates and resolutions up to 4K | Gaming desktops can be connected to a wide range of external monitors, offering more flexibility in terms of size, resolution, and refresh rate. |
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Our Expert Opinion
If you’re just beginning your gaming career, I would suggest considering a gaming desktop over a gaming laptop in case you prefer high performance for upto years ahead. However, you should always opt for a gaming laptop if you are not a homebody and keep hopping from one place to another. As a newbie, investing in a gaming desktop can give you a solid foundation for your gaming journey. But, if portability is your priority then gaming laptops can be exceptionally good for you.
Exclusive Deals Alert
Currently, several exclusive deals are going on our online store for the latest gaming laptops and gaming desktops, as well as, on other related products that may suit your interest. Don’t miss out on exciting sales that will give you value for money in the long run! So don’t sit idle, check out dxbgamers.com or visit our shop to buy your favourite machines and their accessories.
FAQs
What is better: a gaming laptop or desktop?
Desktops are better than gaming laptops because gaming laptops are noisier, have to be replaced every few years, and are not better at performance than gaming desktops. However, one unmatched quality of gaming laptops is their portability which you will never get in desktops.
Do gaming desktops last longer than gaming laptops?
Yes, gaming desktops do last longer than gaming laptops because they are easy to repair and can be upgraded when required.
Do desktops run faster than laptops?
Yes, desktops provide you with unrivalled performances such as blazing-fast speed, high-end resolutions etc.
Should I buy a gaming laptop if I have a desktop?
In my opinion, you should opt for a gaming desktop that comes with the flexibility of upgrading and repairing the components way cheaper than buying a whole gaming laptop every four to five years.
