With the rise in the gaming industry, the door of opportunities also opened wide for game developers. Today, the gaming industry is one of the highest-increasing and most profitable industries.
So, if you’re a game developer, there is a good chance you could get your dream job. But before, going towards game development. You certainly need a laptop or desktop computer. Therefore, today we’ve compiled a list of the 8 best laptops for game developers under $1000.
Grabbing a random laptop from the list of laptops is easy. But it’s better to take the views and consideration of relative experts regarding the machines. Therefore, the laptops today we’ve brought for you have been recommended and chosen by experts in the gaming industry.
So, if you don’t know anything about laptops and are confused about which one is the best laptop for game development. No worry, you can choose any of these laptops without much consideration, depending upon your personal test.
Table of Contents
Could laptops under $1000 handle game development software?
Firstly, there is not any single software that is used in-game development industry. Instead, there is much software that is being used for game development such as 3DS Max, Unity, Unreal Engine 5, and so on.
Therefore, taking these software into consideration. Experts say that laptops under $1000 are more than enough for these software for game development.
It means that the laptops that we’ve brought for you, are enough for your future as well. These laptops have enough specs, and features to handle the game development process seamlessly without much hesitation and confusion.
Moreover, we’ve also listed down the minimum system requirements for game development. So that you can personally check the minimum system specs for the game development and compare those with the specs of the listed laptops and find the best laptop for game development under $1000 that fits your best.
Minimum system requirements for the game development software:
- Operating system: Windows 7, 8, 8.1, 10, 11, or equivalent.
- Processor: Intel core i3 3rd Gen Processor or equivalent.
- Processor count: Dual Core.
- Graphics: Intel Iris Graphics or equivalent.
- RAM: 4GB of RAM:
- Storage: 50GB of installation and some related files.
These are the minimum system requirements for game development, if you buy a system having these specs will be good.
However, we always recommend buying laptops that have more than the minimum requirements. So, that it won’t create problems for you in the future.
Image | Price | Title | Prime | Buy |
---|---|---|---|---|
![]() | Lenovo Legion 5 15 Laptop | PrimeEligible | Buy Now | |
![]() | Acer Swift X SFX14-41G-R1S6 Creator Laptop | PrimeEligible | Buy Now | |
![]() | ASUS TUF Dash 15 (2022) Ultra Slim creators Laptop | PrimeEligible | Buy Now | |
![]() | 2021 Newest Dell Inspiron 15 3000 Series 3501 Laptop | Prime | Buy Now | |
![]() | Newest HP 17.3 FHD Bussiness Laptop | PrimeEligible | Buy Now | |
![]() | Microsoft Surface Laptop 3 | Prime | Buy Now | |
![]() | Lenovo IdeaPad Laptop (2022 Latest Model), | PrimeEligible | Buy Now | |
Top![]() | ASUS VivoBook S15 S532 Thin & Light Laptop | PrimeEligible | Buy Now |
8 best laptops for game developers under $1000:
1: Lenovo Legion 5 15 Laptop:
- Escalate your game with up to 8 high-performance cores in the AMD Ryzen 7 5800H processor, 16GB DDR4 RAM, and 512GB NVMe SSD storage
- With NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 Ti graphics behind you, you can enjoy the depth and visual fidelity of real-time ray-tracing – RTX Gaming, Its On
- The 15.6 FHD (1920 x 1080) IPS display on the Legion 5 gaming laptop delivers speed and color clarity for full-fidelity gaming
- Legion TrueStrike keyboard with 4-zone RGB backlight; 2 x 2W speakers with Nahimic Audio for Gamers
- Connectivity: Built-in 720p webcam with e-shutter, WiFi 6, Bluetooth 5.0, USB-C, 4 USB, HDMI 2.1, DisplayPort 1.4, RJ45 Ethernet
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The Lenovo Legion 5 15 Laptop allows gamers to enjoy incredible gameplay and provides the power to take on multimedia tasks, and development in clear visuals with the help of 15.6 inches big FHD display along with 1920 x 1080 screen resolution.
This Lenovo laptop is equipped with a 3.2 GHz Ryzen 7 5800H processor along with 16 DDR4 RAM, and a 512 GB SSD hard drive that makes it easy for users to swiftly navigate through their applications and open software without any glitches or errors encountered.
Besides, the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 3050 Ti graphics card allows you to view games more clearly by providing 4K resolutions on its 15.6 inches full HD display screen capable of delivering 1920 x 1080 pixel max resolution.
Users are able to link up with others on this machine via Bluetooth wireless technology allowing them to share files easily without having cables all over the place getting tangled up during use.
With the operating system of Windows 10 Home, users are able to play around with a variety of games and applications using a secure connection.
This device is also equipped with the security features necessary to protect your information from being accessed by others.
The device itself is 5.28 pounds making it rather lightweight and easy to carry around wherever one decides to go on their travels. And with an average battery life of 8 hours, this gaming laptop is one of the best laptops for game developers under $1000.
2: Acer Swift X SFX14-41G-R1S6 Creator Laptop:
- Ultimate Performance. Uncompromised Battery Life: Speed up tasks with AMD Ryzen 7 5800U processor with Zen 3 Core Architecture, available for ultrathin laptops, so you can save time and get back to creating
- RTX, Its On: The latest NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 Ti Laptop GPU (4GB GDDR6 VRAM) is powered by award-winning Ampere architecture
- A True Visual Representation: Create your best content on the 14 Full HD
- Internal Specifications: 16GB LPDDR4X memory (maximum 16GB); 512GB NVMe SSD; 802.11ax Wi-Fi 6 Dual-Band 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz featuring 2x2 MU-MIMO technology; Bluetooth 5.2
- Ports For All Your Accessories: USB Type-C Port USB 3.2 Gen 2 (up to 10 Gbps) DisplayPort over USB Type-C & USB Charging, 2 USB 3.2 Gen 1 (1 Power-off Charging), HDMI 2.0 with HDCP support, Headphone/Microphone-in Jack, DC-in for AC adap
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The second laptop on our list of best laptops for game developers under $1000 is the Acer Swift. This laptop has an IPS touch display with a resolution of 1920 x 1080 which equals out to 14 inches.
The larger the number, the larger the text appears on your screen making it easier to read. This laptop’s relatively low resolution makes it easier to read long documents without scaling them up or having multiple windows open.
Moreover, this Acer laptop comes equipped with AMD Ryzen 7 5800U Hexa core processor, which seems sufficient enough for my needs. It’s been fast enough so far, but I can’t really compare it to other processors.
Additionally, it has 16GB of LPDDR4 RAM which is pretty good for a laptop in this price range. For the most part, the speed hasn’t been a problem with how little I use while doing schoolwork or writing articles since it comes with a 512GB SSD hard drive.
It should be noted that you will need to install Linux support on your own before you’re able to run Linux distros on the computer, but Windows 10 works fine without having to do anything special.
Powering the display is NVIDIA RTX 3050Ti Laptop GPU with 4GB GDDR5 memory. Some benchmarks show that it can handle up to around 100 FPS on League of Legends at medium settings.
It’s good enough for light gaming in my opinion, but not something I’d do often if I’m being serious since it heats up quickly when trying to play games for more than an hour or so.
Obviously, it doesn’t have a dedicated graphics card seeing as the power consumption would be too much for this computer by default and you’d need extremely expensive cooling to run such a powerful GPU while having passable temperature control.
Moreover, the laptop is pretty lightweight with an overall weight of 3.06 pounds only, along with 10 hours of battery backup time. So, if you take your laptop to the office and many other places. You don’t need to take the charge and find places to charge the laptop everywhere.
3: ASUS TUF Dash 15 (2022) Ultra-Slim Laptop: Best budget laptops for game developers under $1000
- NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 Ti 4GB GDDR6 up to 1585MHz at 60W (75W with Dynamic Boost 2.0)
- Intel Core i7-11370H processor (12M Cache, up to 4.8GHz)
- 15.6” 144Hz IPS-Type Full HD (1920x1080) display with adaptive sync
- 8GB DDR4 RAM | 512GB PCIe NVMe M.2 SSD | Backlit Precision Gaming Keyboard
- 0.8” thin, 4.4 lbs ultraportable form-factor
- Comes with Windows 10 Home and a FREE upgrade to Windows 11 (when availabl
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The third laptop on the list of the 8 best laptops for game developers under $1000 is the new New ASUS TUF Dash. This is the new 2022 edition laptop by ASUS, especially for creators. This laptop comes with 15 inches big IPS display with 144Hz full HD resolution along with 1920 x 1080 max resolution.
Moreover, for the processor option, it has an Intel Core i7 11th Gen Hexa core processor along with the GeForce RTX 3050 Ti graphics option, making it one of the best laptops for game development. In fact, the combination of processor and GPU makes it one of the fastest laptops on our list.
Additionally, it has 8 GB of DDR4 RAM, which could be expanded up to 64 GB. And for storage, it comes with 512GB of SSD for storing files, games, and programs without hesitation. In short, the four basic components of this machine are extraordinary without any doubt.
Taking about its weight, it comes with 4.41 pounds which are relatively light, and with a battery backup timing of up to 9 hours. It is fully compatible for gaming, office use, personal use, and for almost anyone looking for a multi-use laptop.
4: 2022 Dell Inspiron 15 3000 Series 3501 Laptop: Best cheap laptop for game development under $1000
- 【Processor】11th Gen Intel Core i5-1135G7 Quad-Core 2.40GHz Processor (8MB Intel Smart Cache, up to 4.20GHz)| Intel Iris Xe Graphics
- 【Display】15.6 Full HD Anti-glare LED-backlit Non-touchscreen (1920 x 1080) Display, enjoy your photos, movies, and games with the crisp quality.
- 【RAM and Storage】RAM is upgraded to 32GB high-bandwidth RAM to smoothly run multiple applications and browser tabs all at once; Hard Drive is upgraded to 512GB PCIe Solid State Drive + 1TB Hard Disk Drive allows to fast bootup and data transfe.
- 【Tech Specs】2 x USB 3.1, 1 x USB 2.0, 1 x HDMI, 1 x Combination Audio Jack, 1 x RJ-45 Connector, 1 x Multi-format SD Media Card Reader; Wireless-AC + Bluetooth Combo
- 【Operating System】Windows 10 Home, 64-bit, Engli
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The Dell Inspiron 15 3501 laptop is an excellent choice for users looking to buy a new computer without spending too much. It offers its users the latest features that are sure to enhance their experience, making it a worthwhile purchase.
The Dell Inspiron 15 3501 laptop comes with a 1920x1080p full HD display which is great for watching movies or playing games at high resolution. Additionally, the device also contains the Intel Core i5 11th Gen Hexa core processor along with 32 GB DDR4 RAM.
The laptop even supports digital assistants such as Cortana and Alexa which makes it a great assistant especially if you have a lot of work to do. Also, the laptop comes with 512 GB of SSD + 1TB of HDD storage, which is a plus point for this laptop here.
Additionally, Intel Iris graphics might not be the one that you’re looking for, other specs such as processor, RAM, and SSD card fulfill the requirements instead of the GPU.
The Dell Inspiron 15 3501 laptop is an excellent choice for users looking to buy a new computer without spending too much. It offers its users the latest features that are sure to enhance their experience, making it a worthwhile purchase.
Moreover, regarding its weight, it has an overall weight of 4 pounds with 10 hours of non-stop battery timing. So, if you want a Dell laptop, which would inspire its users, the new Dell Inspiron 3000 is that laptop.
5: Newest HP 17.3 FHD Bussiness Laptop:
- 【17.3 Full HD IPS display】Enjoy crystal-clear images from any angle. With 178-degree wide-viewing angles and a vibrant 1920 x 1080 Full High Definition resolution, youll always have a great view of your favorite content.
- 【Upgrade to 16GB system memory for advanced multitasking】Substantial high-bandwidth RAM to smoothly run your games and photo and video-editing applications, as well as multiple programs and browser tabs all at once.
- 【Upgrade to 1TB SSD Storage】Boot up in seconds, get to files faster, and have room for loads of files with the lightning-quick solid state drive.
- 【11th Gen Intel Core i5-1135G4 】 11th Gen Intel 4-Core i5-1135G7 (> i7-1065G7) I Base Clock 2.4 GHz, Max Boost Clock Up to 4.2 GHz, 8MB Smart Cache, 8 Threads
- You can get out of windows 10 S mode to Windows 10 home. Windows 10 in S mode is designed for security and performance, exclusively running apps from the Microsoft Stor
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The fifth laptop on the list of best laptops for game developers under $1000 is the Newest HP 17.3 FHD Bussiness Laptop With Touchscreen and Windows 10.
This time we will launch a new HP 17.3 FHD Bussiness Laptop with the newest intel i5 processor and a high-end display screen size of 17.3 Inches to be ready for sale in this week’s holiday season with free shipping.
This laptop comes equipped with 17.3 Inches IPS WLED Backlight Anti-Glare Display Screen with 1920 x 1080 Resolution and Intel HD Graphics 520 Graphics Coprocessor for excellent performance in the business task.
It comes with an intel core i5 11th Gen processor along with 16GB of RAM for fast processing of files and easy and seamless multitasking.
Besides, it has Intel UHD graphics along with 1TB of SSD for your unlimited list of songs, movies, and photos.
Also, this HP FHD laptop comes with long battery life for hours of working without charging or a power outlet needed so you can enjoy more tasks on the go with a good size to carry around in a bag easily.
And there is no compromise on a variety of connectivity options included as USB 3.0 SuperSpeed Ports, HDMI Port, SD Card Reader Slot, and Bluetooth 4.1 Wireless Connectivity for super-efficient file transferability or sharing capability anytime anywhere within your office family members also on the home front with family and friends.
Lastly, the weight of the laptop is 4.86 pounds, which is a few pounds more than the other laptops on the list, but that is negligible. In fact, for a laptop having a 17.3 big-screen laptop this weight is pretty light. Because most of the laptops within this body dimension come between 5.5 and 6.5 pounds.
6: Microsoft Surface Laptop 3 – 13.5″ Touch-Screen:
- Clean, Elegant Design: Thin and light, starting at just 2.79 pounds, Surface Laptop 3 is easy to carry
- Choose from rich tone-on-tone color combinations: new Sandstone, plus Matte Black, Cobalt Blue, and Platinum. Aspect ratio - 3:2
- Improved speed and performance to do what you want, with the latest processors: Surface Laptop 3 is up to 2 times faster than Surface Laptop 2
- More ways to connect, with USB-C and USB-A ports for connecting to displays, docking stations and more, as well as accessory charging
- All day power on the go, with up to 11.5 hours of battery life, Plus standby time when you’re away, Go from empty to a full battery with fast charging up to 80 percent in about 1 hour
- Free Upgrade to Windows
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The company said it takes 1.8 billion minutes of hands-on time each day to learn how to master an art or science through trial and error – that’s why they developed this laptop that combines productivity and performance.
Structurally, The Surface Laptop is made out of Magnesium Aluminum alloy, which gives it its sleek silver finish. It has a “PixelSense” touch screen show built for optimal clarity, responsiveness, and low light reflection.
With Microsoft’s award-winning “Pixelsense” technology perfected over 25 years, you can expect crystal clear images for an enjoyable viewing experience.
The battery is designed for up to 11.5 hours of use and weighs in at just four pounds, making this the perfect laptop for students and business professionals alike.
It has a soft Alcantara fabric deck that not only looks nice but also feels good in your hands, plus it’s easy to clean and tends to resist stains better than other materials.
The keyboard is full size with 1.4mm key travel and minimal key float, making it comfortable even when typing quickly.
This model features 8GB of RAM (onboard) and 256GB of SSD drive storage space (SSD), which is enough power for real work applications like presentations, spreadsheets, word, and more! Plus with support for Bluetooth 4.2, you can connect it to your favorite devices such as headphones and speakers for a more immersive experience.
Additionally, it comes with an intel core i5 quad-core processor along with Intel iris plus graphics for the processing and GPU options.
For connectivity options, the Surface laptop comes with two USB 3.0 ports which give you enough space for all your peripherals and gadgets.
You can also use the fast-charging USB port to charge up other electronics like phones or music players when they run low on power.
All in all, Microsoft said this is their most versatile and powerful laptop yet: “From students to multitaskers, makers, and travelers – we’ve made something that can keep up with your everyday life.
Because we believe the best ideas come from within.” They hope that their clever design will inspire you to explore new horizons and find new ways to express yourself.
7: Lenovo IdeaPad Laptop (2022 Latest Model):
- 【Upgraded】RAM is upgraded to 20 GB high-bandwidth RAM to smoothly run multiple applications and browser tabs all at once; Hard Drive is upgraded to 512 GB PCIe NVMe M.2 Solid State Drive to allow faster bootup and data transfer. Original Seal is opened for upgrade ONLY. If the computer has modifications (listed above), then the manufacturer box is opened for it to be tested and inspected and to install the upgrades to achieve the specifications as advertised.
- 【Processor】AMD Ryzen 7 4700U 2.0GHz 8-Core Processor (12MB Cache, Up to 4.1GHz)
- 【Display】17.3” HD+ (1600 x 900) anti-glare, 250 nits, 45% NTSC
- 【Operating System】Windows 10 Home, 64-bit, English
- 【Included in the Package】Microfi
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Lenovo IdeaPad Laptop is a laptop with many superior specifications and has very powerful performance. It can support high-definition games and does not overheat even after continuous usage.
Lenovo has used the latest version of Windows 10 as its Operating System which ensures the smooth functioning of the notebook.
Its keyboard does not give any kind of trouble while typing for hours and does not create any disturbance during gaming sessions due to its backlit feature.
It is equipped with 2 USB 3.0 ports which allows you to connect to other devices simultaneously and transfer your data at high speed.
Lenovo IdeaPad Laptop has a 17.3-inch screen which is very good for gaming and watching movies. Its Screen Resolution measures 1600 x 900 pixels which delivers a crystal clear display with vibrant colors.
Besides, it has got an anti-glare feature which reduces strain on the eyes due to the substandard quality of screens in most laptops.
Lenovo IdeaPad Laptop comes with 8 core AMD Ryzen 7 4700U processor along with AMD Radeon Graphics that allow you to play high-definition games without any lag or disturbance. That ensures fast performance. It can run all types of heavy games without any lag or hanging problems.
It is equipped with 20 GB DDR4 RAM along with 512GB of SSD which ensures smooth functioning. Its processor speed is 4.1 GHz amd_r_series which delivers extremely fast performance to the users.
Lenovo IdeaPad Laptop has an excellent battery life of up to 7 hours which makes it easy for users to use this laptop while traveling. And the weight of the laptop is 4.8 pounds, which means it is not much heavy and could be carried anywhere in begs.
8: Newest Dell Inspiron 5515 Touch Laptop: Best laptop for game development under $1000 – expert’s choice
- ScreenPad 2.0 adds an interactive secondary 5.65” touchscreen to enhance productivity
- ScreenPad 2.0 fits a series of handy ASUS utility apps: Quick Key, Number Key, Handwriting, Slide Xpert, etc.
- 15.6” Full HD NanoEdge bezel display with stunning 88% screen-to-body ratio and 5.65” Full HD ScreenPad 2.0
- Powerful Intel Core i7-1165G7 Processor (12M Cache, up to 4.7 GHz) with nVidia GeForce MX350 discrete graphics
- Windows 10 H
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One of my favorite and best laptop for game developers under $1000 is the new ASUS Vivobook Thin and light laptop.
The 15.6-inch screen is a real treat on this laptop. The resolution in FHD 1920 x 1080 pixels produces sharp images and rich colors perfect for watching HD movies or playing games.
The viewable angle of this display is very generous so several people can gather around and watch without struggling to see what’s going on. Being touch-enabled means you get more out of your media by interacting directly with what you see on the screen.
Moreover, this light and stylish machine is a huge treat to use, and thanks to its 11th-generation i7 processor and SSD storage make it a competent multimedia workhorse with an extra boost in speed from the solid-state drive.
The power behind the ASUS Vivobook is a strong Intel Core i7 11th Gen CPU clocked at 1.8GHz which can be turbo-boosted up to 3.0GHz when necessary.
Built into this machine is 8GB of RAM which is enough memory to run photoshop, edit HD movies and even play a few games if you’re in the mood for some fun.
The ASUS Vivobook laptop comes with an NVIDIA GeForce MX 350 Graphics Card which is more than capable of rendering crisp images and sounds without too much strain from the CPU.
This card has dedicated 2GB GDDR5 video memory, as well as its own GPU Processor for this purpose which makes sure everything runs smoothly.
Furthermore, it comes with Windows 8.1 preinstalled. However, if that’s not quite to your liking it can be upgraded to Windows 10 before shipping for FREE or in fact purchased ready and installed from the store below!
Lastly, with an average of 10 hours of battery backup timing and 3.96 pounds of weight, this is one of the best of the best laptops on our list for game developers, which can be worth much more than its current price.
Read Next:
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Conclusion:
There is no doubt the game industry is growing. And according to stats and reports, the hike in the growth of gamers will only increase in the coming years. If you’re trying to take game development as a career path. There are still good opportunities for you ahead.
But don’t forget to buy a suitable laptop with you. You might be thinking of any desktop, but laptops are being more common nowadays. And if you want to buy a laptop for game development. This guide is for you. This guide includes 8 best laptops for game developers under $1000 suggested by expert game developers.