Should I get a gaming laptop or build a PC?

[Dequara]

Hey, I was thinking of building a gaming setup sometime in July this year. But considering the current chip shortages is it a good idea to build a pc right now ? I was thinking I could get a laptop right now and build a pc next year. What do you think ?

Laptop Specs:

Budget: $1800 (USA)

Type: Preferably a thin to moderately thin laptop. Good Build.

Games: AAA games at 1080p (or 1440p) at 120-144Hz

Use Case: Well, mostly for gaming, but also for development and programming stuff.

 

Any advise would be appreciated!! :)

 

 

 

[emosun]

8 minutes ago, Dequara said:

But considering the current chip shortages is it a good idea to build a pc right now ?

Nope. Anytime in the last 30 years was ok but right now is quite bad. 

[RONOTHAN##]

A pre-built is probably your best option. The main place where the chip shortage is affecting you is GPUs, so if you can manage to score one, you can build the rest of your system, but it take a lot of time and effort to try to score one because they stay in stock for a matter of seconds. Because gaming laptops require GPUs as well, they are still pretty hard to get, though not quite as hard. Pre-builts on the other hand, while stock on them can be a bit iffy, they do come in stock and stay in stock for up to a couple hours, rather than a few seconds. I'd try to find one with a 3070 in it for that price point.

 

https://maingear.com/product/vybe-stage-3-dec2020/

 

https://www.ibuypower.com/Store/AMD-Ryzen-5-3rd-Gen-Configurator

 

https://www.bestbuy.com/site/ibuypower-slatemr-gaming-desktop-intel-i7-10700k-16gb-memory-nvidia-geforce-rtx-3070-8gb-480gb-ssd-1tb-hdd/6458326.p?skuId=6458326

 

Those are just a couple PCs you can buy at this very moment. If you want to build a PC, you can always take one of these, tear it down, and rebuild it.

[Dequara]

22 hours ago, RONOTHAN## said:

A pre-built is probably your best option. The main place where the chip shortage is affecting you is GPUs, so if you can manage to score one, you can build the rest of your system, but it take a lot of time and effort to try to score one because they stay in stock for a matter of seconds. Because gaming laptops require GPUs as well, they are still pretty hard to get, though not quite as hard. Pre-builts on the other hand, while stock on them can be a bit iffy, they do come in stock and stay in stock for up to a couple hours, rather than a few seconds. I'd try to find one with a 3070 in it for that price point.

 

https://maingear.com/product/vybe-stage-3-dec2020/

 

https://www.ibuypower.com/Store/AMD-Ryzen-5-3rd-Gen-Configurator

 

https://www.bestbuy.com/site/ibuypower-slatemr-gaming-desktop-intel-i7-10700k-16gb-memory-nvidia-geforce-rtx-3070-8gb-480gb-ssd-1tb-hdd/6458326.p?skuId=6458326

 

Those are just a couple PCs you can buy at this very moment. If you want to build a PC, you can always take one of these, tear it down, and rebuild it.

That makes sense, I don't need a pc now, but I can spend the time looking for a GPU till then. Thanks for advice!

[RONOTHAN##]

2 hours ago, Dequara said:

That makes sense, I don't need a pc now, but I can spend the time looking for a GPU till then. Thanks for advice!

If you can manage to score a GPU, pretty much anything but a 3090, overpriced 3080, 6900XT, or anything but Reference AMD card would fit in your budget. If you can score a 3080 for less than $1000, you would be doing pretty well.

PCPartPicker Part List

Type	Item	Price
CPU	Intel Core i5-11600K 3.9 GHz 6-Core Processor	$264.99 @ Adorama
CPU Cooler	Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler	$29.99 @ Newegg
Motherboard	Asus PRIME Z590-P ATX LGA1200 Motherboard	$224.00 @ Amazon
Memory	G.Skill Ripjaws V 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-3600 CL18 Memory	$86.99 @ Newegg
Storage	Western Digital Blue 500 GB M.2-2280 Solid State Drive	$59.99 @ Lenovo
Storage	Seagate Barracuda Compute 2 TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive	$55.49 @ Newegg
Video Card	AMD Radeon RX 6800 XT 16 GB Video Card	$650.00
Case	Phanteks Eclipse P400A Digital ATX Mid Tower Case	$89.99 @ Amazon
Power Supply	EVGA SuperNOVA GA 850 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply	$129.99 @ Amazon
	Prices include shipping, taxes, rebates, and discounts
	Total (before mail-in rebates)	$1601.43
	Mail-in rebates	-$10.00
	Total	$1591.43
	Generated by PCPartPicker 2021-04-17 21:26 EDT-0400

As for getting a GPU, I've had pretty good luck with getting it things from AMD Direct. This would allow you to get a 6800 XT or 6800 XT Midnight Black, a card for $650 that would fit in your budget fairly well. AMD (usually) drops GPUs on Thursdays around 12-2PM EST (I have seen it outside of this range, but aside from this past week this is where they have fallen for the past couple months). Be in one of the many discord bots that sends notifications when a card comes in stock, and be ready to buy it. Spam F5 until you get an add to cart button, then go through checkout as quickly as possible. 

Edited April 18, 2021 by RONOTHAN##
Found a Different, better PSU for cheaper

[Dequara]

17 hours ago, RONOTHAN## said:

If you can manage to score a GPU, pretty much anything but a 3090, overpriced 3080, 6900XT, or anything but Reference AMD card would fit in your budget. If you can score a 3080 for less than $1000, you would be doing pretty well.

PCPartPicker Part List

Type	Item	Price
CPU	Intel Core i5-11600K 3.9 GHz 6-Core Processor	$264.99 @ Adorama
CPU Cooler	Cooler Master Hyper 212 EVO 82.9 CFM Sleeve Bearing CPU Cooler	$29.99 @ Newegg
Motherboard	Asus PRIME Z590-P ATX LGA1200 Motherboard	$224.00 @ Amazon
Memory	G.Skill Ripjaws V 16 GB (2 x 8 GB) DDR4-3600 CL18 Memory	$86.99 @ Newegg
Storage	Western Digital Blue 500 GB M.2-2280 Solid State Drive	$59.99 @ Lenovo
Storage	Seagate Barracuda Compute 2 TB 3.5" 7200RPM Internal Hard Drive	$55.49 @ Newegg
Video Card	AMD Radeon RX 6800 XT 16 GB Video Card	$650.00
Case	Phanteks Eclipse P400A Digital ATX Mid Tower Case	$89.99 @ Amazon
Power Supply	EVGA SuperNOVA GA 850 W 80+ Gold Certified Fully Modular ATX Power Supply	$129.99 @ Amazon
	Prices include shipping, taxes, rebates, and discounts
	Total (before mail-in rebates)	$1601.43
	Mail-in rebates	-$10.00
	Total	$1591.43
	Generated by PCPartPicker 2021-04-17 21:26 EDT-0400

As for getting a GPU, I've had pretty good luck with getting it things from AMD Direct. This would allow you to get a 6800 XT or 6800 XT Midnight Black, a card for $650 that would fit in your budget fairly well. AMD (usually) drops GPUs on Thursdays around 12-2PM EST (I have seen it outside of this range, but aside from this past week this is where they have fallen for the past couple months). Be in one of the many discord bots that sends notifications when a card comes in stock, and be ready to buy it. Spam F5 until you get an add to cart button, then go through checkout as quickly as possible. 

Big help, thanks a lot!!