Tech professionals and students require laptops to run the programming language and applications, this is one career where the laptop is always preferred over a desktop, simply due to its portability and ease of use.
Gaming laptops become a top priority for programs and gamers, as in free space you can play the games, the gaming machine is always optimized with high power which gives an efficient and smooth experience during usage than other laptops.
It is definitely more than capable of handling your programming work, as it is developed with a strong CPU and GPU, additionally, the coding work also requires a lot of memory assets.
As programming applications use memory resources to run smoothly, additionally the SSD is equipped with fast uploading and booting systems making the gaming laptop good for programming.
Moreover, not only performance you must have a few other expectations from the laptop such as portability, budget, upgrading features, and battery life, we will discuss them all in detail below let us go through system requirements for programmers and a detailed buying guide.
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Are gaming laptops good for programming?
Minimum Laptop Requirements
- CPU: 10th gen intel i5 or AMD Ryzen 5 (4 cores and 2.5Ghz speed)
- Ram: 8GB DDR4 with upgradable option up to 16-32GB
- Storage capacity: 256GB SSD drive.
- Graphics card: Integrated graphics card.
- Display size: 13″ to 15″ with Full HD resolution.
- Battery life: 5 hours or above.
Recommended laptop requirements
- CPU: Intel i7 or AMD Ryzen 7 (6 cores and 3.5Ghz speed)
- Ram: 16GB DDR4 with upgradable option up to 32GB
- Storage capacity: 512GB SSD drive.
- Graphics card: Integrated graphics card. (For game development dedicated GPU is a must)
- Display size: 15.6″ with Full HD resolution.
- Battery life: 5-7 hours or above.
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Quick Answer: Why are gaming laptops good for coding?
Even the average gaming laptop released within a 4-5 year span easily meets all the required specifications, and you can smoothly run almost all ide frameworks.
Another advantage of a gaming laptop for programming you can utilize it to run as a server machine, moreover, if you are into machine learning, it is a powerhouse for such intensive tasks.
Budget laptops are equipped with a minimum of 4GB dedicated video card that adds a lot of value while using software like photoshop.
Overall gaming laptops at not any point lag from a technical performance point of view, but there are a few flaws as well, you have to sacrifice a few things in a gaming laptop.
Moreover, there are other non-gaming laptops that are too suitable for programming and coding language, especially MacBook air or pro models are very popular among coders.
But they are quite expensive, base variants starting from around 900 to 1000 dollars, and in this range, you easily get a machine that is suitable for playing games and working on coding.
Is gaming laptops good for programming in 2023
In this section, we will go through step by step on each point to understand all the aspects so you can take a proper decision on which laptop you must choose.
This is applicable to both working professional and students who is learning to code and aspire to be a programmer.
Processing system:
For programmers, this is a very tricky and confusing condition, especially while going with lower-end models.
But when it comes to gaming laptops you do not need to worry, as a modern machine released within 2-3 years gives all the specs one programmer can think of.
For instance, there are many things involved while picking up the right CPU to run your applications.
Like what kind of developer you are, for a basic level of coding 4 cores and 8 threads are essential with a minimum speed 2.5Ghz being a must.
However, this is easily available on gaming laptops, you can easily get a laptop that has a budget of around 650 dollars to 1000 dollars.
In this range, the above requirements are fulfilled easily, and you can do software development and also use it for visual studio.
If you are a heavy user and have to work on multiple applications with a lot of tabs opened I would highly suggest 6 core CPU.
In this case, AMD Ryzen models are a flexible option for lower-budget programmers as even though Intel offers a great CPU for programming, Ryzen at a competitive budget provides you with 6 cores CPU which is also decent for the basic level of 3D modeling.
Overall gaming laptops’ processor has the capability to deliver great performance, as although these are underclocked when compared to their desktop counterparts, still the processing power easily beats the laptops that are meant for daily usage.
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Ram memory is essential
The ram is a very important element in programming and gaming as well.
For modern games, 16GB is recommended, but if your top priority is programming then requirements depend on what you do between JAVA and python.
Additionally to test virtual machines and if you want to use the machine as the server then the device must have strong backing from memory, the working flow depends a lot on how much memory the laptop has.
Moreover, for Python programmers, 8GB is enough to handle all your tasks, but if you work on heavy applications like JAVA or into game design then 16GB is something demanded.
The gaming laptops do come with an upgradable option between 16GB to 64GB so in this case, you can test the machine at the initial stage and later can extend the memory.
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Do you need a graphics card for programming?
The programming and coding are not related to any graphics-intensive task, there is no big issue if you do not have a separate GPU.
However, there is a big misconception that to run a virtual machine and visual studio you must have video card support.
Nevertheless, it definitely helps you to generate more power on the virtual system but overall, it’s pretty much a CPU and Ram Hungary task.
Furthermore, for game developers, there are high chances you also have to test gaming performance, so in this case, a high and efficient GPU makes work smoother.
Lastly, there are a few programmers who also like to do little video editing and of course, for gaming, you require a dedicated graphics card to run the video games.
Overall picking up a graphics card depends on which game you play, you can also read our detailed buying guide on what to look out for in a gaming laptop here.
Which windows OS is good for Programming?
The windows 10 operating system is by far the best for programmers, for instance, this is a very large complex topic when it comes to windows vs Mac.
The Mac provides a lot of flexibility in the of different platforms you can operate both windows and Mac, but unfortunately, there is no scope to run mac on windows laptops.
Another reason to go for Mac is if you are an android developer or work in X-Code then you have to go for Apple laptops.
However, for the user who is considering a machine that supports playing games and running programming applications, for them sadly there are no large options for the MacBook, as windows are dominating there are huge collections of video games.
Overall, it pretty much comes to priority and here I am not saying that windows are not an ideal option in fact to date there is a huge number of programming professionals and students who use windows.
As not everyone can afford to spend on expensive laptops, Apple Mac is not suitable for playing games you can do basic gaming but not meant for modern games.
Hard Drive and storage capacity:
There are not many coding applications where you need large space, which makes gaming laptops in the cheaper range the best laptops for programming,
However, you need to spend 650 to 800 bugs to get a dedicated gaming machine, this is ok to play basic games but for the latest titles you must have a purse of above 1200 dollars.
The 256GB SSD is decent for saving all the applications, though 500GB is recommended for longer use and if you edit videos or into game development then the requirement varies depending on the situation.
Overall 500GB of space is what you should aim for longevity purposes.
The SSD has become mainstream and taken over its HDD, and I always recommend SSD for the rapid loading system, faster speed and efficiency are key to the success of programmers, and that should not be compromised at any cost.
Lastly, though HDD is budget-friendly and offers large storage space, SSD is what must nowadays.
Simply due to its faster speed and most importantly it increases the battery life of the laptop, as it takes lesser time to read and write the data.
Screen size and quality:
The entire time coding and programming professionals spend in front of a screen can strain their eyes.
Fortunately, gaming notebooks have incredibly large sizes and better quality than their counterparts, as gaming requires a large screen to play games easily.
The 13” is the least you can consider for coding purposes but when it comes to gaming devices you will get options from 14” to 17”.
The 14-screen size machine is a little expensive but the screen size from 15” to 17” has huge collections, the 15.6” is definitely recommended as these are portable and enough to write code.
The quality is another factor that should not be overlooked the Full HD resolution with anti-glare technology is decent, you do not necessarily need QHD resolution.
Overall if your work is always on the go and you do not want to compromise on portability then choose a smaller screen but do not go below the 13” screen in your laptop.
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User-friendly keyboard:
The build quality of the keyboard in gaming laptops is highly optimized for playing games, so brands and manufacturers have to make a user-friendly interface to type with ease.
However, another advantage of having a gaming laptop is you surely get a backlit keyboard that allows users to operate under any conditions.
As a programmer, you can utilize it smartly as you have to use the keyboard to type code for long hours continuously and gaming laptop keys are quite responsive that helping you to type efficiently.
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Build quality and design:
The regular laptops do come with good quality build material but gaming rigs have a slightly stronger build than their counterparts.
As these are meant for more rough use, therefore, laptops are equipped with high-quality material.
Moreover, the budget gaming rigs are made with plastic but high-quality durable Abs plastic ensures long use.
The design is quite funky and decorative in gaming machines, this can be a little worry for professionals as if you carry it for meetings then it can look weird at the time.
Still, it’s a personal preference so it depends on you, moreover, there are Lenovo Ideapad gaming 3 and HP pavilion gaming laptops that are more look like professional machines than gaming.
Battery life:
The biggest drawback with gaming laptops is they are pretty average performers when it comes to their battery life, almost all laptops on average deliver about 3 hours of battery life which is very low.
This is the reason why many programmers prefer regular laptops instead of gaming, however thin and lightweight devices are available that gives better backup battery yet it’s not as good as other types of laptops.
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Budget and price:
The budget is a concern for students as they are relying on parents to spend on laptops, and to be honest, every student wants to get a gaming laptop so they can play games and do their work smoothly.
Gaming laptops are slightly more expensive than desktop and business laptops.
As discussed above though brands have cut down the prices on gaming rigs yet you must have a spending capacity above 650-900 dollars to get a decent gaming machine and to run heavy games 1200-1500 dollars is the budget currently.
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Are Gaming laptops good for computer science?
Yes, gaming laptops are good for computer science but do not necessarily need gaming laptops you can also work on ultrabooks and regular laptops, however, gaming laptops are best for those who are working on game development.
Additionally, if you are a professional where a lot of rendering work is involved then gaming laptops can make your work a lot faster as these devices come with a dedicated graphics card that makes the entire process smooth.
Final words:
So here it is I have covered many important aspects to make you understand are gaming laptops good for programming.
The overall conclusion is gaming laptops do perform faster and it’s quite a powerful option, especially for virtual machines gaming laptops are a great asset and JAVA developers can utilize gaming laptops to get their work done.
Another thing that you must consider is the flexibility of the operating system, as in windows you can not have the luxury to get Mac support which is also important as a developer.
However, with strong processing consent, you have drawbacks as well the battery life and portability are something where you need to compromise otherwise overall gaming laptops are worth it for programming and coding.
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