5 best budget laptops to play World of Warcraft

Modified Dec 22, 2021 14:49 GMT

World of Warcraft (Image via Wallpaper Access)

With the current thin-and-light machines outperforming 'gaming-oriented laptops of the last decade, these portable devices are becoming more powerful day by day. Even though the newer budget gaming laptops can handle modern games, a bulk of players are still playing games CS, League of Legends, DOTA, and World of Warcraft.

Even after 17 years of its release, World of Warcraft remains one of the most played games in the world. Since it can be enjoyed at one's preferred pace (unlike most MMOs), many gamers engage with this title on their commutes, thus requiring a decent laptop to run the game.

Although World of Warcraft was released in 2004, the plethora of updates throughout the years has made the game more demanding than it initially was.

Despite that, it can still be easily enjoyed on lower-end hardware, but the experience increases as the specs go up. However, the ceiling is pretty low, considering the game's age.

Factors to consider when buying a laptop

1) CPU-GPU combo

The minimum for 2021 (or instead 2022) is an intel i5 9th gen along with an Nvidia GTX 1650 and at least 8 GB of RAM (16 GB is preferred).

2) Display

The display should be given preference over other components since it is an integral part of our experience. A gaming laptop must have a higher refresh rate panel (120hz or above) and an FHD Display (1920x1080 at least) with preferably 300 nits (cd/m^2) or higher brightness.

Other required essentials are decent color accuracy (~50% NTSC is enough for gaming) and response time (<5ms GTG is decent enough for 120hz).

3) Cooling and building quality

Inadequate cooling will result in thermal throttling, bottlenecking the laptop’s performance, and might damage its components over time.

It is also essential to get a laptop with decent build quality as you will be physically interacting with your laptop every day.

4) Warranty period and customer service

Many people forget about this aspect. Laptop brands with bad service often capitalize on this by lowering the price of their offerings.

Best laptops for World of Warcraft

Lenovo Ideapad 3 14"
HP Pavilion x360 2020
HP Pavilion 15-dy2024nr
ASUS Zenbook 14
Lenovo Ideapad Gaming 3

5) Lenovo Ideapad 3 14"

This is pretty much the cheapest laptop you can buy to game on. The R5 5500u and its iGPU can deal some serious blows in most older titles.

Specs: 14" 1920x1080 60hz Display, Ryzen 5 5500u, Radeon 7 graphics, 8 GB RAM, 256 GB Nvme SSD, Windows 11.

Get it here.

4) HP Pavilion x360 2020

HP Pavilion x360 2020 (Image via Amazon)

An excellent convertible laptop with decent specs and build quality for under half a grand.

Specs: 14" 1336x768 60hz display, i3 1005G1, Intel UHD, 8GB RAM, 128 GB SSD, Windows 10.

Get it here.

3) HP Pavilion 15-dy2024nr

HP Pavilion 15-dy2024nr (Image via Amazon)

With a bigger 15.6" screen, this laptop with an 11th gen i5 and Iris XE iGPU can breeze through WoW at 1080p.

Specs: 15.6" 1920x1080 60hz display, i5 1135G7, Intel Iris XE, 8GB RAM, 256 GB SSD, Windows 11.

Get it here.

2) ASUS Zenbook 14

A sleek and mean thin and light, with excellent build quality, the Zenbook 14 is a perfect option for both gaming and work.

Specs: 14" 1920x1080 60hz Display, Ryzen 5 4500u, MX350 2GB, 8 GB RAM, 256 GB Nvme SSD, Windows 10.

Get it here.

1) Lenovo Ideapad Gaming 3

Lenovo Ideapad Gaming 3 15 (Image via Amazon)

A 'budget' gaming beast, the Ideapad Gaming 3 with its Ryzen 5 and 1650 can tear through games like WoW like a breeze.

Specs: 15.6" 1920x1080 120hz Display, Ryzen 5 5600h, GTX 1650 4GB, 8GB RAM, 256 GB Nvme SSD, Windows 10.

Get it here.

Note: This listicle reflects the author's views and is in no particular order.

Edited by Srijan Sen