13.3"-14" Thin portable laptops for school and possible gaming?

[ImmBananaMan]

Hello,

I'm currently looking for a new laptop for mostly schoolwork but can also do a bit of gaming and video editing. I currently have a custom built desktop as my main gaming platform but I'm looking for a laptop to bring to school but also has the capability of playing some games. My current laptop is not doing to well, I currently have an HP envy m6-n012dx which is now probably 4 years old. When I first got it, it was my only form of playing games even though it only has integrated graphics since I had no idea about computers at the time. But now the laptop it is just a pain, it's pretty heavy so it's not the best on my back if I carry it for a while, one of its hinges is damaged and the q (I had to copy and paste that) key does not work. So I'm looking to upgrade. 

 

 Budget:  ~$1,000 to $1,500

 

What I'm looking for:

GPU/APU able to play CS:GO 1080p with >60fps (Or something around that)

Smaller screen, preferably 13.3"-14"

Thinner than most gaming laptops

Lighter than most gaming laptops

Minimum of 8 gigs of ram, preferably 16 gigs

Minimum of 4 core cpu

SSD, preferably 256 gigs

 

What I have seen that fits:

ASUS UX331UN-WS51T-BL ZenBook (Currently out of stock on amazon)         $999

Xiaomi Mi Notebook Air 13.3 - 8GB + 256GB + GEFORCE MX150 (Only on Gearbest)        $899.99 on sale

Razer Blade Ultra 14" - Core i7-7700HQ, 16GB RAM, 512TB SSD, GeForce GTX 1060          $1,515.19 for a, used - like new, one

 

All of these options fit most of what I am looking for, but I don't know which I should pull the trigger on. Currently the Asus zenbook is out of stock on amazon and I have no idea when it will be back, other than that I would be fine with it. The Xiaomi Mi notebook air looks very good to me but the problem is that I live in the US and buying from a Chinese manufacturer does not seem like the best idea. Finally the Razer blade looks appealing but is a bit high for my price range.

 

If anyone owns the options I have mentioned I would like to hear what you think of them. If you recommend any other laptops I would love to hear them even if it doesn't fill EVERY requirement I have listed.

 

Thank you for the advice!

 

[Coombzy]

I'd recommend looking at 15.6 inch laptops, there is a huge range to choose from then. Clevo based chasis' are probably your best bet as they're usually a lot cheaper. Cyberpower,Origin, etc etc should have a selection on their website.

[ImmBananaMan]

I have noticed that there are indeed many more options with 15.6" displays but I don't know whether I should be looking for one. As I said in my post i'll mainly be using the laptop for school and I think 15.6 is just a bit too big for me. My current one is indeed 15.6" and I can say it's not THAT bad but it would be nice for a smaller macbook esc laptop. But my main complaint of the bigger laptops is probably the weight. If there is a reasonably lightweight laptop with a 15.6" display I would definitely think about it.

[genexis_x]

Acer Swift 3 14 with full blown 25W MX150. FYI most MX150 in Ultrabooks is the 8W variant which means only slightly faster than 940MX.

 

1060 GPU : Alienware 13, Gigabyte Aero 14, MSI GS43VR. Keep in mind that their cooling aren't great due to small chassis.

[ImmBananaMan]

23 minutes ago, ZM Fong said:

Acer Swift 3 14 with full blown 25W MX150. FYI most MX150 in Ultrabooks is the 8W variant which means only slightly faster than 940MX.

 

1060 GPU : Alienware 13, Gigabyte Aero 14, MSI GS43VR. Keep in mind that their cooling aren't great due to small chassis.

Thanks for the suggestions but I ended up coming up with a decision. I ended up going with the ASUS ZenBook UX430UN with Intel Core i7-8550U, 512GB SSD, 16GB RAM, NVIDIA MX150 Graphics. I was lucky enough to stumble upon it on amazon and almost immediately I knew it was perfect. It has an i7, mx150, 500 gig ssd, 16 gigs of ram and a 14" display which is everything I wanted. Also, lucky for me, I was able to find it was sold by Costco for $200 cheaper than it was listed for on amazon so it was only $1,000 in total (before taxes of course). Anyway I'm happy with my purchase and thank you for the suggestion.

[genexis_x]

Just be aware that i5 8250U and i7 8550U don't make much performance difference due to TDP and cooling limitation. Those new Kaby Lake Refresh ULVs need tuning, you can refer to my Aspire 5 review for more info. Also keep in mind that the MX150 in UX430 is the 8W variant.