Unleash Your Gaming Potential with These Top 5 Gaming Laptops Under $500

Sanjana Kumari
6 min readJul 22, 2023

--

Hey, gaming freaks!

Want an affordable gaming Laptop that can run all the latest games without breaking the bank? Then you’re at the right place. Finding a gaming laptop can become a daunting task if you’re new to gaming because there are many factors that you must keep in mind before making a final decision.

According to a survey in 2020, 46% of the population in Taiwan plays games on Laptops. Whereas, China and Philipines come in second and third place with 45 and 44%. In this article, I will be going to provide you with information about the best gaming laptops under $500 that can be bought immediately.

Preferences List

  • Best Overall: Acer Aspire 5 slim
  • Runner Up: HP Pavilion 15-dw1053dx
  • Most Affordable: HP Notebook 15-dy1008CA
  • Best Touch Screen: Dell Inspiron 15 3511
  • Best Webcam: Lenovo IdeaPad 3i

1) Acer Aspire 5 Slim

Acer Aspire 5 Slim is valuable for anybody looking for a reliable gaming laptop that won’t cost you much. This little gem will help you in tackling everyday duties and even low-resolution games with ease.

You’ll not have to worry about the slow performance because it has 20 GB of RAM. You can easily run numerous tabs and programs smoothly. Moreover, it has an amazing 15.6-inch full HD display, providing bright and clear graphics that will bring your gaming experience to life.

Furthermore, with 512 GB of storage, you won’t be hurriedly deleting data to make room for your gaming addiction anytime soon. For individuals who value both productivity and fun, it’s a dream come true.

What we Love

  • Great performance
  • Smoothly run multiple applications
  • Lots of storage

What we don’t

  • Poor quality of webcam

2) HP Pavilion 15-dw1053dx

The HP Pavilion is an excellent option since it combines power and storage to provide you with smooth and effective performance. You can expect good performance with plenty of storage capacity with its quad-core processor, with 16 GB RAM and 1 TB inbuilt storage.

This laptop, with its huge storage, handles popular games such as Counter-Strike. With this laptop, you can ensure that you’re enjoying the game without any hassle. Moreover, with long-lasting battery life, you can easily engage yourself in long sessions of intense gaming sessions.

Not to forget, the HP Pavilion has an incredible combination of performance, storage, and battery. That will undoubtedly be the best purchase for you. This will be the best gaming laptop you’ll want to have.

What we Love

  • Solid battery life
  • Hard-drive upgraded to 1 TB
  • Plenty of storage

What we don’t

  • The resolution is not full HD

3) HP Notebook 15-dy1008CA

If you’re looking for a budget-friendly laptop for gaming, this one is for you. HP’s budget notebook will not cause you much. You’ll get 256 GB of storage with a number pad that can be handy for gaming inputs for less than $400.

You may not find it faster than the most expensive laptops, but it can run small games for you with less demanding classics. Although, you must know the display for this laptop is less than ideal, don’t let the minor drawback overshadow the laptop’s many strengths.

What we Love

  • Great for classics games
  • Great storage
  • Budget-friendly laptop
  • Large keyboard

What we don’t

  • No HD resolution
  • Display less than ideal

4) Dell Inspiron 153511

The Inspiron 1513511 laptop is worth considering if you’re someone who values the convenience of a touchscreen. This laptop’s Intel core i5–1035G1 quad-core CPU offers quick performance and plenty of power, making it ideal for multi-tasking and even light gaming.

The full HD anti-glare screen improves your surfing experience by offering sharp, clear, and easy-on-the-eyes graphics. Not to mention the touchscreen capability, lets you do away with the touchpad and interact with the screen directly, optimizing your process.

Numerous user evaluations claim that this Dell laptop shows its prowess by smoothly running resource-demanding Adobe programs without irritating pauses or slowdowns.

What we Love

  • Intuitive touch screen
  • Power and Speed quality is better
  • The quality of the display is great

What we don’t

  • Bad Battery life

5) Lenovo IdeaPad 3i

A budget-friendly laptop ideal for work, business, and even light gaming is the Lenovo IdeaPad 3i. Despite its lightweight form, this laptop’s power is sufficient to run the majority of programs and jobs with amazing efficiency.

One noteworthy feature is its excellent camera, which guarantees crystal-clear conversations and Livestream, simplifying online interactions. You can enhance your short-term memory to meet your demands with an extra module if you need more than the default 8 GB of RAM.

You can even test out the laptop’s gaming capabilities right now thanks, to Lenovo’s offer of an Xbox Game Pass trial.

What we Love

  • Upgradeable RAM
  • Comes with an Xbox trial
  • Clear webcam for streaming

What we don’t

  • Loaded with programs

Things to Consider When Buying Budget-friendly Laptops

When you’re new to the gaming world and want a laptop, but don’t know what to look for in it, we’ve got you covered! Here are the fundamentals of choosing a laptop so you may make your own decision if you have your heart set on one or require a more all-encompassing device:

Processor

The major component of any laptop is its processor. However, not all processors are made equal. They all have cores, threads, and clock speeds. Most gaming laptops feature four to eight cores and two threads per core.

Together, these characteristics function as a part that evenly distributes the strain of operations, allowing your computer to operate more quickly. You must consider some of these things while buying yourself a laptop.

Graphics Card

The device that processes the data that is shown on your screen is a graphics card, commonly referred to as a video card or a GPU. With a stronger GPU, your gaming visuals will look better and more accurately reflect what the creator intended.

Any gaming laptop must include a graphics processing unit, or GPU, which enables the rendering of both 2D and 3D visuals. A GPU relieves part of the load on the CPU and speeds up rendering while working with high-resolution video and art.

Battery Life

Let’s face it: battery life is one area where gaming laptops frequently fall short. The promise of being able to play games everywhere you go is the whole point of buying a gaming laptop, but in practice, the battery might jeopardize that goal. Even the priciest and high-end models won’t hold up against a full day of intensive use.

Here’s some good news: our current selections, which lack specialized graphics cards, could surprise you with longer battery lives, and budget-friendly laptop options. It’s a lone shining star in the world of laptops. It’s crucial to remember that gaming will still use up your battery faster than other activities. So it’s important to plan your gaming sessions carefully and pay close attention to your battery indicator and accessible outlets.

Display

Top-tier laptops give outstanding images with crisp, bright screens, much like specialized gaming monitors do. We frequently want a larger screen size, to further immerse ourselves as a gamer, especially when playing on the road or in temporary settings.

The 15-inch range would be the sweet spot if we were to identify one. It provides a pleasant gaming experience without making your laptop too heavy to tote around all day. This size finds a wonderful balance.

Summing Up

In conclusion, our top 5 selections under $500 have you covered if you’re searching for a budget gaming laptop that won’t break the bank. These laptops provide reliable gaming experiences within an affordable price range.

According to a forecast, by 2032, the market for gaming laptops will increase by 18.42 billion dollars, estimated at 11.86 billion dollars in 2022. So what are you waiting for? Let us know in the comments which one you’re buying.

--

--