Planning on getting a newer laptop once I save up enough money, but I have some questions.

[CSDX]

I see certain games require a graphics card with 8GB or even 12GB VRAM, but does that matter if the graphics card is strong enough? For example, what's the difference between an RTX 4050 with only 6GB VRAM and my current RTX 2060 with the same amount of VRAM? How does the 4050 handle any better, and for major high-end games such as, for example, Senua's Saga and even the WWE 2K games, is the 4050 enough for hitting high-max settings at 60FPS(I'm fine with 60 being the cap, if need be, as I feel I'd get sick if it was any higher)?

On top of that, most I find come with 16GB RAM by default. Is that genuinely enough for using it for gaming as well as other tasks such as editing software and infamously having too many internet browser tabs open but being too stubborn to close most of them, or is it recommended I upgrade it when possible?

I don't exactly plan to play many high-end games on it, but I'd like the option to be there. However, I also don't want to spend too much money on it. So, overall, what would you say are the best specs to go for on a budget, but looking to get a laptop with an RTX 40 Series graphics card?

[CSDX]

Algorithms are dumb.

[Raoul]

https://www.notebookcheck.net/Mobile-Graphics-Cards-Benchmark-List.844.0.html

4050 is midrange but a decent option, would see if there is any gameplay on yt for the games you want to play and a review on a laptop you're looking to buy.

[Illusion of Progress]

RAM (and VRAM) holds data, but they aren't doing the calculations. Extra capacity usually doesn't do much, if anything, for performance. The opposite, however, is true. You will lose performance if you don't have enough capacity.

When it comes to VRAM, you can usually lower how much you need by lowering the resolution/settings.

Few, if any, games absolutely need 8 GB or 12 GB of VRAM. Some of them may definitely benefit from it when the settings are higher, though, so you'll probably see people saying 8 GB isn't desirable... but that's a separate discussion from "needs".

The RTX 4050 is an entry level chip. It's not going to fare glamorously in demanding games from today, but you can get a good experience in most, if not all, games if you have your expectations in check and set things accordingly (such as running at 1080p and turning settings down if you're not satisfied with the frame rate). The RTX 2060 will almost always be a bit slower (15% to 25%, give or take).

Unlike the CPU or GPU in laptops, RAM capacity can usually be upgraded later so it's not as important to get right up front. Just watch out for the ones soldering RAM on and not including many, if any, extra slots. That said, if you think you might need it then go with 32 GB. 16 GB is still usually more than capable if you're on a budget though.

[Yamantaka]

I'd aim for 4060 at minimum and forget the 4050. Even better if good deal with 4070 can be found. Personally I'd go for 32 GB of ram rather than 16 at this point. AMD CPUs tend to run cooler so they're better option imo for laptop as well.

[CSDX]

Originally posted by Illusion of Progress:

RAM (and VRAM) holds data, but they aren't doing the calculations. Extra capacity usually doesn't do much, if anything, for performance. The opposite, however, is true. You will lose performance if you don't have enough capacity.

When it comes to VRAM, you can usually lower how much you need by lowering the resolution/settings.

Few, if any, games absolutely need 8 GB or 12 GB of VRAM. Some of them may definitely benefit from it when the settings are higher, though, so you'll probably see people saying 8 GB isn't desirable... but that's a separate discussion from "needs".

The RTX 4050 is an entry level chip. It's not going to fare glamorously in demanding games from today, but you can get a good experience in most, if not all, games if you have your expectations in check and set things accordingly (such as running at 1080p and turning settings down if you're not satisfied with the frame rate). The RTX 2060 will almost always be a bit slower (15% to 25%, give or take).

Unlike the CPU or GPU in laptops, RAM capacity can usually be upgraded later so it's not as important to get right up front. Just watch out for the ones soldering RAM on and not including many, if any, extra slots. That said, if you think you might need it then go with 32 GB. 16 GB is still usually more than capable if you're on a budget though.

Originally posted by Yamantaka:

I'd aim for 4060 at minimum and forget the 4050. Even better if good deal with 4070 can be found. Personally I'd go for 32 GB of ram rather than 16 at this point. AMD CPUs tend to run cooler so they're better option imo for laptop as well.

Thank you, guys. I did find one on Amazon with a 4070 and I think it has upgradable RAM on top of an upgradable SSD, and I THINK it's saying it can add more SSDs cause it has 4 PCIe slots, but I can't properly search reviews for it cause of the stupid AI replacing it.

https://a.co/d/8s2DFuH

No idea why the link to share it is abbreviated like that, but it's better than the paragraph the initial URL is. Would you guys say this would work out for me?

Oh, I also want to ask this in case you guys know. How come there are so few reviews and ratings on Amazon for laptops?