How to Benchmark Gaming Laptops

When it comes to gaming laptops, you’ll typically find a powerful CPU and GPU inside. These components are capable of crunching numbers for spreadsheets as well as rendering graphics for games, so it’s important to know how to benchmark these laptops to get a sense of their performance. The best gaming laptops will show off their capabilities by hitting high frame rates, even when playing demanding titles. In order to benchmark these devices, we use various applications to put the internal hardware through its paces. These include Geekbench, which combines various tests to grade a device’s CPU and GPU performance. CineBench, another popular app, grades the GPU in a laptop by performing image rendering tasks. It’s important to note that these benchmark apps are not perfect and can sometimes be manipulated by hardware manufacturers in order to promote their products.

We’re at a point in gaming laptop tech where it’s possible to squeeze desktop-grade components into slim and sleek notebooks. This is evidenced by the Asus Zephyrus G14, which has an AMD Ryzen processor and RTX 2080 GPU packed into its thin chassis. This laptop pushed out impressive scores across our test suite, including a near-perfect score of 14,155 in Geekbench 5.4 and a super-fast time of 4 minutes and 32 seconds in the Handbrake video transcoding test. In our gaming tests, the RTX 2080 GPU kept up with the competition, scoring 79 fps in Assassin’s Creed Valhalla and 71 fps in Red Dead Redemption 2 at Very High settings.

However, you’ll also need a display that can keep up with the frame rate in order to avoid screen tearing and other artifacts. It’s best to opt for a Full HD (1,920 x 1,080) or higher resolution screen, though you can also go with a higher refresh rate like 144Hz. Higher refresh rates will help your game look smoother by reducing the amount of time that passes between frames onscreen.

While it’s easy to fall in love with the performance of a gaming laptop, it’s equally important to consider the battery life and ports that come with a particular model. You’ll want a device that can last through at least an hour of gameplay without running out of juice, or that has enough USB ports for your gaming peripherals.

Finally, a gaming laptop needs to have a keyboard and trackpad that are comfortable to use. You’ll also want a spacious hard drive for all your games and movies, as well as fast Wi-Fi for streaming content. You’ll also need a decent pair of headphones and a portable power supply if you plan on taking your laptop to a tournament or LAN party. This will ensure that your laptop is ready to go when you arrive. A durable case is a bonus, too, as you won’t want to risk damaging your expensive hardware in the process of transporting it to and from an event.