My Experience with a Budget Gaming Laptop After One Year of Use

Almost a year ago I bought this budget gaming laptop and, from day one, I’ve been charging it almost every day. Why? I wanted a machine that could handle both gaming and work without breaking the bank. Here’s everything I’ve learned over these 12 months: from its strengths to the inevitable trade-offs.

1. Performance: the essentials hit the mark

Booting up, the laptop feels snappy for everyday tasks—web browsing, office documents, and light editing. In gaming, it delivers solid frame rates in popular titles like Fortnite, Valorant, and Rocket League on medium settings. Don’t expect ultra-realistic graphics, but you’ll get a smooth, stable experience as long as you tweak your settings wisely.

• Mid-range integrated CPU and GPU
• Capable of 1080p at 60 fps in most competitive games
• Fans ramp up quickly under load—effective cooling, but noticeable noise

2. RAM: an easy, crucial upgrade

It shipped with 8 GB of RAM, which nowadays feels tight once you have modern games, multiple browser tabs, and productivity apps open. My fix was straightforward:

1. Unscrew the four screws on the bottom panel.
2. Remove the original 8 GB module.
3. Install a second 8 GB module, for a total of 16 GB.

The result: seamless multitasking, faster load times, and stable long gaming sessions. My takeaway: if you own this model, 16 GB is the minimum you want.

3. Build quality: functional plastic with a few caveats

The chassis is mostly hard plastic that does its job without frills. The base doesn’t creak under moderate pressure, and the backlit keyboard holds up to daily use. Still:

• Hinges feel a bit loose—always support the base when opening the lid
• Chassis easily picks up scuffs—consider a vinyl skin or hard case for transport

Aesthetically, it nails the bare minimum of a gaming laptop: angular lines, simple RGB accents, and a moderate weight (around 2.2 kg).

4. Battery life: the main weak spot

This laptop wasn’t designed to win battery-life awards. In my experience:

• Web browsing: about 2 hours
• Light gaming (low power): under 1 hour

If you’re replacing a school laptop or taking notes unplugged, look for something with at least a 50 Wh battery and strong power-saving modes. That said, as a “desktop replacement” on work trips, I keep it plugged in and it works flawlessly.

5. Extra tips and tweaks

To squeeze more out of this laptop, I’ve adopted a few adjustments you might find useful:

• Use a cooling pad: drops temps by 5–8 °C
• Set Windows power plan to “Balanced” for better battery management outside gaming
• Disable unnecessary startup processes: frees RAM and speeds up boot
• Configure GPU profiles to lower unneeded textures and boost fps

6. Conclusion: is it worth it long term?

If your budget is tight and you need a laptop that can both game and work without demanding top-tier graphics, this machine is a solid entry-level choice. The trade-offs in battery life and materials are evident but totally manageable if you:

• Plan to use it mostly plugged in
• Are willing to upgrade the RAM
• Accept a more functional than premium build

For me, it’s been a reliable travel companion and a spur-of-the-moment gaming rig. Looking for something portable, capable, and cheap? Here’s a contender that delivers—with a few tweaks.

What’s Next?

If you want to dive deeper into gaming laptop optimization, check out:

• Undervolting guides to lower temperatures and fan noise
• PCIe vs. SATA SSD comparisons for even faster load times
• External GPU (eGPU) options to upgrade graphics on the fly