The Slant team built an AI & it’s awesome

Find the best product instantly

4.7 star rating

GamingElectronicsLaptops

What are the best gaming laptops around $2000?

11

Options
Considered

46

User
Recs.

Jan 14, 2022

Last
Updated

Here’s the Deal

8 Options Considered

Best gaming laptops around $2000	Price	Storage	RAM
57 Acer Predator 17 G9-793-79V5	$1,989.99	256GB SSD, 1TB HDD	16GB
-- HP Omen 17	$1,899.99	512GB SSD + 2TB HDD	16GB
53 Asus ROG G752VS	$2,037.95	2x 256GB SSD	16GB
-- Eluktronics PA71HS-G Premium	$1844	-	16GB
-- MSI VR Ready GT62VR Dominator Pro-240	$1,598.00	256GB SSD + 1TB HDD	32

Acer Predator 17 G9-793-79V5

Add Video or Image

Top Pro

Great price-performance ratio

The Predator 17, with the i7 CPU, 16GB of RAM, and GTX 1070 provides one the best price-performance ratio as far as gaming laptops go. It scored at around 22282 points in the 3DMark FireStrike benchmark, surpassing all competitors at this price range. See More

Top Con

The fans get loud really fast

In order to stay cool even under heavy load, the Predator 17 uses large and powerful fans which unfortunately can get quite loud. See More

Specs

Storage:256GB SSD, 1TB HDD

CPU:7th Generation Intel Core i7

Top Pro

Is able to stay cool even under very heavy use

Even when playing resource-heavy games like The Witcher 3, the Predator 17 is able to keep its components and keyboard cool, with the GPU reaching a maximum of 71 °C. The keyboard reaches a maximum temperature of 31 °C, while the underside of the laptop goes up to 41 °C. It's uncomfortable to hold on your lap at those temperatures but still cooler than competitors. See More

Top Con

The placement of the speakers makes them sound muffled

Even though the speakers themselves are good (for a laptop), their placement could have been better. They are placed under the edge of the chassis and they beam music straight into the table. See More

Top Pro

Has five configurable macro keys which can be used to set different settings quickly

To the left of the keyboard there are five configurable macro keys that through the PredatorSense software can be configured to disable the Sticky keys, run the fans at full speed, swap between multimedia modes and much more. See More

Top Pro

The keyboard is very comfortable for gaming

The keys are very responsive and comfortable for all kinds of activities, especially for gaming. See More

Top Pro

The display shows accurate and bright images

The 1080p display shows deep black, bright colours, and has great viewing angles. It's also very bright, making it possible to play games even if the screen is under direct sunlight. See More

HP Omen 17

Top Pro

Great display

The display is capable of producing 173% of the sRGB color space and has very good viewing angles. If calibrated, the laptop can be used for color sensitive work. See More

Top Con

Comes in only one color option

The laptop comes in only one color option without the possibility to order a different one. See More

Specs

Storage:512GB SSD + 2TB HDD

GPU:Nvidia GeForce GTX 1050

Screen resolution:4K

Top Pro

Relatively portable for a gaming laptop

Compared to other gaming laptops, it is very slim--only 32mm thick and weighing 3.35 kg. See More

Top Con

Has issues with cooling

Due to its narrow ventilation holes, the cooling fans need to spin faster in order to cool the laptop down. It can become so hot that it may become uncomfortable to touch the laptop, though the performance doesn’t suffer and doesn’t cause noticeable thermal throttling. See More

Top Pro

Standard, non-flashy look

This laptop is great for those who dislike the overly-gimmicky look that other gaming laptops go for. It doesn’t have big, stylized ventilation holes or dedicated gaming buttons or switches. The keyboard only has a plain red LED backlight, with no customization. The only outward indication that it’s a gaming laptop is the Omen logo at the back. See More

Top Con

The speakers lack bass

The speakers are loud, but they lack bass. See More

Top Pro

Higher-end configurations can play 4K games at decent framerates

Even when purchased with minimal specs, you should be able to play comfortably in full HD resolution. Higher-end configurations with the nVidia GTX 1070 graphics card will allow you to enjoy 4K gaming in medium to high settings at playable framerates. The screen implements G-Sync technology that further smoothens action and prevents tearing. See More

Asus ROG G752VS

Add Video or Image

Top Pro

Easy to upgrade the hardware

By removing just one screw and a panel, you can access the RAM and a 2.5 inch drive bay. Everything else can be accessed by removing just four more screws. This makes it extremely easy to upgrade the hardware for this laptop. See More

Top Con

Speaker placement is not optimal

The speakers are placed on the inside of the hinge which causes the sound to bounce on the lid and sound better on the back of the laptop than on the front, where you will be standing. See More

Specs

Storage:2x 256GB SSD

CPU:Intel Core i7-7820HK

GPU:nVidia GeForce GTX 1070

Top Pro

Great, colorful display

The 1080p display offers great viewing angles, bright images, and lifelike colors. It covers 90% of the sRGB color gamut. See More

Top Con

Keyboard backlighting is not customizable

The keyboard red backlight cannot be changed to another colour. It can only be switched off. See More

Top Pro

Comfortable trackpad

The large trackpad is extremely comfortable to use. It's very responsive and has full support for Windows gestures. See More

Top Pro

Very high-quality keyboard

The keyboard is snappy and the keys have a long travel distance which makes typing on this laptop a treat. See More

Top Pro

Stays consistently cool even when playing resource-heavy games

When playing The Witcher 3 on Ultra settings, the GPU reached a maximum temperature of 81 degrees C, 100 degrees C for the CPU, 33 degrees C for the WASD keys and 43 degrees C for the underside of the laptop. These are some of the lowest temperatures for gaming laptops. See More

Top Pro

Extremely quiet fans

The G752VS has massive vents in the back which allow the fans to efficiently keep the laptop cool. Even the fans themselves are quite cool, never going above a low-volume hum. See More

Top Pro

Upgradable RAM

The ROG G752VS has three empty RAM slots that can be used to upgrade the RAM to 64GB. See More

Eluktronics PA71HS-G Premium

Top Pro

Excellent gaming performance

Both the GTX 1060 and GTX 1070 versions of this laptop offer excellent performance when gaming. The P650RS consistently hits 80+ FPS in most AAA games at ultra settings. For example, the GTX 1070 version can play Total War: Warhammer at 100FPS on 1080p with ultra settings. While the GTX 1060 version can play Battlefield 4 at 80FPS on ultra settings. Even the relatively cheaper version of the P650RS with the GTX 1060 can pack a punch. See More

Top Con

The display should be better for this price

The Eluktronics P650RS uses a IPS display panel which is decent in itself but could and should probably be better for this price point. Where it lacks specifically is in terms of contrast, colours, and response time. There's also some light bleeding when looking at a completely black screen. See More

Specs

CPU:Intel Core i7

GPU:NVidia GeForce GTX 1080

Screen resolution:Full HD

Top Pro

Overall good price/quality ratio

At this price, the Eluktronics P650RS offers a lot of features, performance, and quality compared to competitors. Gaming laptops with a GTX 1070 usually cost $100 or more and might not have the same level of build quality or other features found in this laptop. See More

Top Con

Has some issues with heat

Since the cool air is sucked from the bottom of the laptop, the bottom needs to stay above the sitting surface at all times. But even when this advice is followed, the P650RS still has some issues with overheating. The center and left parts of the keyboard are the most problematic ones. It's not unusual for the keyboard to heat so much as it starts being a bit uncomfortable to use. See More

Top Pro

Good keyboard

The keyboard is pretty good. It's backlit with programmable colors. The tactile feedback is decent across all keys and the travel length is about the average (1.5mm) for this kind of laptop. See More

Top Con

The speakers are not very loud

Even though they provide good sound, the P650RS-G speakers are not loud at all. See More

Top Pro

Excellent build quality

The case is made from a very durable plastic with a metal finish that does not feel cheap or flimsy to the touch. See More

Top Con

Terrible battery life

Even when using this laptop for light activities such as web browsing, watching movies, or editing documents it averages at about three hours of independent use. This was measured at about 40% screen brightness so it would be much lower at a higher brightness. When it's used for gaming then the average battery life drops to less than two hours of independent use because of the relatively high resource requirements that both the GTX 1060 and GTX 1070 have. See More

Top Pro

Quality speakers

The two speakers packed in this laptop are pretty good, especially when compared with previous models. They provide reasonable bass and the mids have both good richness and deepness to them. See More

Top Con

The touchpad has issues with two-finger use

When trying to scroll up or down by using two fingers there are some synchronization issues with the touchpad. See More

MSI VR Ready GT62VR Dominator Pro-240

Top Pro

Excellent gaming performance

It goes without saying but the GTX 1070 handles most AAA games perfectly. Most games consistently hit 120+ FPS on high settings at 1080p. On ultra settings, most games average about 70+ FPS with the Witcher 3 for example reaching 82FPS. Like other GPUs that use the NVidia Pascal architecture, the GTX 1070, and by extension the GT62 Dominator Pro also supports VR gaming. See More

Top Con

The audio is not very loud

The speakers found in the GT62 Dominator Pro produce clear sound that's lacking in volume. See More

Specs

Storage:256GB SSD + 1TB HDD

CPU:Intel Core i7-7700HQ

GPU:NVidia GeForce GTX 1070

Top Pro

Excellent keyboard

This laptop's keyboard is the closest thing to a mechanical without it actually being a mechanical keyboard. Keys have a travel distance of 1.9mm and 66 grams of actuation force. It also goes without saying that the keyboard has a backlight that can be turned on and off. See More

Top Con

Rather heavy

At around 6.4 pounds, it falls on the heavy camp for laptops. Even for gaming ones. See More

Top Pro

Excellent display

This laptop's display is beautiful. It reproduces 105.8% of the sRGB color gamut, beating the average of 91% for laptops at this price. The display is also extremely bright, averaging 301 nits, which means that you can easily take it and play outside during the day and the sun will not give you any trouble. The laptop also comes with a special software from MSI which lets users adjust their screen colour temperature. See More

Top Con

Comes with some bloatware

Top Pro

Excellent design

The GT62 Dominator manages to straddle the line between elegance and the bulkiness gaming laptops are known for perfectly. On the back it has a pair of glossy red strips embedded into the black, aluminium-brushed case. The red accents on the all-black body are found throughout the laptop but without overdoing it, which helps giving this laptop a sleek look. See More

Top Pro

Lots of storage space

Comes with 1 TB HDD and 256GB SSD. See More

Top Pro

Perfect cooling

Even under heavy use, the GT62 Dominator is cool enough to be kept safely and comfortably on your lap. See More

Top Pro

Great build quality

Most of the laptop is made of brushed black aluminium with some chrome highlights. Overall, this is a very sturdy and durable laptop. See More

Dell XPS 15

Add Video or Image

Top Pro

Slick design

The whole design is quite stylish. The aluminium chassis provides a very clean look while the black carbon fiber palm rest with an almost borderless display cements it as a visually modern laptop. All of this is made with a premium build quality. See More

Top Con

9560 model's GPU has compatibility issues on Linux

The new 9560 model has some trouble accepting its GTX 1050 Ti video card while running a Linux operating system. Fortunately, the integrated Intel graphics card is capable enough to substitute it. The manufacturers are probably aware of the issue and will, most likely, release an update for it. See More

Specs

Storage:500GB HDD + 32GB Flash / 1TB HDD + 32GB Flash / 256/512GB/1TB PCIe SSD

RAM:8 / 16 / 32GB DDR4 at 2400MHz

CPU:Intel Core i3-7100H / Intel Core i5-7300HQ / Intel Core i7-7700HQ

GPU:Intel HD Graphics 630 / NVIDIA GTX 1050 with 4GB GDDR5

Top Pro

Operates well on a Linux system

All essential things, like network connectivity, ports and sound, work right “out-of-the-box” with a Linux operating system. There is a compatibility issue on the new 9560 model with its graphics card but the laptop is still very usable with its integrated Intel graphics card. See More

Top Con

Battery doesn’t hold long with the Ultra HD screen

If you’re choosing the configuration with an Ultra HD screen, expect a very short battery life of around 6 hours for general usage. With more intensive tasks it's even less than that. See More

Top Pro

Good battery life if you pick the 1080p display

Models with the 1080p screen last about 10 hours with general usage. Naturally, if more intensive tasks are involved, the battery will be drained faster. See More

Top Con

Audible coil whine

Coil whine can be heard when it’s generally quiet and the fans are not running. Audible when the laptop is connected to the power supply. The manufacturers have acknowledged it as a problem and, if possible, will push out an update which should eliminate it. Until then, it’s still a gripe. See More

Top Pro

Very well-rounded laptop

The cheapest configuration is a great choice for general non-intensive use - things like internet browsing, watching movies and similar tasks. Whereas the more expensive configurations are gradually more capable of intensive tasks, like video editing or gaming. It’s not as good as a specialized computer built for a specific purpose, like a video editing laptop with an enormous RAM size or a gaming laptop with a superior graphics card, but it’s a very well-rounded, reliable laptop. See More

Top Con

Palmrest collects sweat

The palm rest is made from carbon fiber which attracts fingerprints and sweat. After some time it gets kind of unpleasant to touch and needs to be cleaned. See More

Top Pro

Amazing display

Two display choices are available for the XPS 15, an Ultra HD touchscreen or a Full HD non-touch screen. Both screens have a very wide array of colors as they cover approximately 100% of sRGB color space. The viewing angle is around 170 degrees. However, at 45 degrees, slight color change can be noticed. With around 350 nit output for brightness, it’s a viable choice for outdoor usage. All of this makes it an amazing display. See More

Top Con

Some ghosting in games

The display is not intended for gaming purposes so it can produce an effect called “ghosting”. Ghosting is when the pixels are not able to change their colors fast enough, so the color of the preceding frame can still be slightly seen on the next frame. This causes a blurring effect. Note that it only happens on high framerates coupled with fast objects. See More

Top Pro

Optional password-free-sign-in via a fingerprint reader

For an additional $25 it’s possible to enjoy a password-free-sign-in by having a fingerprint reader. It will keep your laptop safe while still providing convenient access to it. See More

Top Con

Noisy fans

The laptop is very quiet during idle and light usage but when there is some workload, the fans get quite loud and distracting. See More

Top Pro

Solid keyboard and trackpad

The keyboard and trackpad are reliable and solid all-around. The keyboard is responsive but is not super “clicky”, rather a bit soft. It has a white backlight on black keys that illuminates them at night. The touchpad is rather large while having no buttons. Despite this, the XPS 15 can reliably distinguish between the left and right clicks which are done on the trackpad itself. See More

Top Con

Awkward webcam location

The webcam is located under the screen instead of on top. It means that your face will be shown from a lower angle which can seem a bit weird. It also means that your fingers can partially obstruct the webcam while you’re typing. See More

Top Pro

Can run most modern games

Being an excellent all-rounder, it can be used as a gaming laptop for games that are not exceptionally demanding, like Overwatch or Dota 2. Unless you’re using the cheapest model, you can expect a reasonable 60 frames per second for almost all modern games, provided that you’re willing to lower the game’s settings. See More

Origin PC EON17-SLX

Top Pro

Can be safely overclocked

The built-in speakers are large and very loud with a rich bass. Not only is it sufficient for most users, it’s also of better quality than the majority of built-in laptop speakers. See More

Top Con

The build quality of the body is not as good as the price suggests

Other than the backplate of the lid, which is metal, the rest of the body is made of plastic, which is mostly fine for a budget laptop but for this price a material of higher quality would be expected. See More

Specs

Storage:Up to 1TB SSD

CPU:Intel Core i7

GPU:Nvidia GeForce GTX 1080

Top Pro

Has one of the largest arrays of ports on the market

This laptop offers one of the widest variety of connections seen on a laptop. It has an HDMI and two Mini DisplayPort connections, for multi-monitor set-ups. There are five high-speed USB 3.0 ports, two new USB-C ports and an SD card slot. It even has two LAN ports with the ability to control the priority of traffic between two networks. Finally, you can connect audio equipment through four audio jack ports that supports 7.1 audio output. See More

Top Con

Poor battery life

Battery life is also an issue, although gamer laptops usually are power hungry, this only works for approximately two hours without a power supply. See More

Top Pro

Comes with top-tier hardware

This laptop comes with the absolute top-tier hardware. Even the base model is more powerful than the vast majority of the laptops you can buy today and will allow you to play nearly every game in 4K. See More

Top Con

Not portable at all

The laptop isn’t built for those who need portability. A large portable bag and some muscle will be needed to carry it around. Weighing almost 5kg and being more than 4,5cm thick, it's one of the biggest laptops there is. Even the power adapter is twice as large comparing to a non-gamer laptops power adaptor and if you opt for a dual graphic card version, you will need two power adapters. See More

Top Pro

Excellent performance for 4K games

4K games will run on medium or high settings with the NVIDIA GeForce GTX1070, the weakest graphics processor you can get in this laptop. If you want to run everything with the maximum settings, you have the option to install two NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1080 cards that will run virtually any video game at max settings in 4K resolution. See More

Top Pro

Good speakers

The built in speakers are very loud and crisp, easily filling a small room. See More

System76 Oryx Pro

Add Video or Image

Top Pro

Excellent choice for gaming on Linux

The Oryx Pro is probably the best laptop with Linux support out of the box that is great for gaming as well. This is mostly because of the NVIDIA graphics cards. It comes by default with the GTX 1060 but for $289 more, you can add a GTX 1070 instead. The default 8GB of RAM is good for gaming but the 16GB RAM is ideal. See More

Top Con

No 4K option

It lacks the option to have a 4K display. While not a deal breaker, it's a shame that a laptop with a display as good as Oryx Pro's does not have a 4K option which would also be a great plus for gamers. See More

Specs

Storage:Dependent on display size 15″: 1× M.2, 1× 2.5″ 7mm height drive. Up to 5 TB total 17″: 2× M.2, 1× 2.5″ 7mm height drive. Up to 6 TB total

Weight: Dependent on display size 15″: 4.37 lbs (1.98 kg) 17″: 6.61 lbs (2.99 kg) Base weight. Varies on configuration

Battery:Dependent on Display 15″: Embedded 4 Cells Polymer battery pack– 55Wh 17″: Embedded 4 cells Polymer battery pack 66Wh

Dimensions:Dependent on display size 15″: 14.96″ × 9.92″ × 0.73″ (37.99 × 25.19 × 1.85 cm) 17″: 16.48″ × 11.30″ × 0.98″ (41.86 × 28.70 × 2.49 cm)

Top Pro

Good display

Has a 1080p matte display with an optional IPS matte display version. With great colors and brightness and almost no eye strain even when it's used for extended periods. See More

Top Con

Customer service could be much better

System76's technical support is pretty bad. When there's a problem that should be solved by them, they usually resort to sending replacement parts instead or blaming third-parties (even if those third-parties are not at fault) of something that they should be fixing. See More

Top Pro

Amazing overall performance

The default 6th generation i7 Processor coupled with the 16GB of RAM (even better with the versions with 32GB and 64GB) make for an absolutely amazing machine. It has a dedicated SSD for the OS only which massively increases startup time and for anything else you can choose up to two SSDs or HDDs of varying sizes. The Oryx Pro is perfectly capable of doing some heavy-lifting including 4K video editing and gaming at highest settings without a hitch. See More

Top Con

Very heavy and bulky

Weighing at 5.5lbs for the 15.6" version it's relatively heavy and it's one inch thicker than the XPS 13. But the extra space is not put to waste, considering how it has an Ethernet port, SD card slot, 2 Mini DisplayPrts, HDMI port, 2 USB 3.1 Type-C ports, 3 USB 3.0 Type-A ports and headphone and mic jacks. The GTX 1070 version also includes a headphone amplifier. However, the power brick that comes with the charger is ridiculously large at 2lbs which understandably adds to the weight of the laptop since most of the time you have to carry both with you. See More

Top Pro

Good keyboard

The keyboard is very nice, it's not amazing by any means but quite comfortable to work with. The keys are pretty thick, thicker than what you may find in laptops today and with a nice springiness to them. The keyboard also supports multicolor backlighting. See More

Top Pro

Very customizable

Before buying the System76 Oryx Pro from the System76 website, you get to customize almost every aspect of the laptop as far as specs go. The price depends on what you choose to put inside your laptop and prices vary from $1475 for the basic version to $7000 for a laptop with a 17.3" Matte IPS Display, a GTX 1070, 6th Gen i7 CPU, 64GB RAM, and two SSDs of 5TB and 4TB respectively. See More

Top Pro

Good speakers

One of the bonuses of having a larger body is that you get to use good speakers instead of some small ones stuck underneath the laptop. They are also angled toward the user and the sound is crisp and loud enough, even though it lacks some bass. See More

Top Pro

Great Linux support

All System76 laptops come with Linux out of the box. The Oryx Pro comes with either Ubuntu 16.04 LTS or Ubuntu 16.10. But that does not mean that other Linux distributions are not supported, quite the contrary. Most Linux distros should work without any major problems with the Oryx pro and most (if not all) drivers are available. See More

Built By the Slant team

Find the best product instantly.

4.7 star rating

Try it now - it's free

Vetted.ai illustration