I've been reviewing gaming laptops for more than seven years, and these are the only ones I'd actually buy this Black Friday
Get in the game for less with these Black Friday gaming laptop deals
Black Friday is the best of times, and it's the worst of times – especially when it comes to for finding a Black Friday gaming laptop deal. Charles Dickens certainly didn't foresee how hard it can be to find a good gaming machine for a great price, but fortunately you've got a different writer to guide you through these Hard Times: me.
I've reviewed dozens of laptops over the years, from super-cheap Chromebooks to powerhouse workstation systems that cost thousands, and this Black Friday, I'm whittling down the enormous list of Black Friday gaming laptop deals into something a little more palatable.
I'm talking about deals like the Asus TUF Gaming A16, reduced to $699.99 (was $1,099.99) at Best Buy, or, if you're in the UK, the Lenovo LOQ 15, down to £879 (was £1,199) at Currys. These are the sorts of Black Friday deals I have Great Expectations for. Okay, I promise I'll stop with the Dickens references now – let's get to the deals!
Today's best gaming laptop deals in the US
MSI is known for its powerful gaming laptops, but usually come at a pretty hefty price point. The MSI Thin 15, however, is an absolute steal right now for under $600. This model has better specs than the one we reviewed a little while back (and which we gave 4.5 out of 5 stars), so for this price, you won't find better 1080p gaming on the go.
Moving on to gaming laptops, my favorite cheaper option is this outstandingly good value Dell G15 with an RTX 4060 and Ryzen 7. These are outstanding specs to get at this price point and should be more than enough to get you started if you're aiming to play games at 1080p resolution. With 16GB out the box, this one doesn't need any glaring upgrades - although a 512GB SSD doesn't go far these days unless you're installing games with less storage requirement.
A powerful RTX 4090 gaming laptop with an immersive mini-LED display, the Razer Blade 16 is simply one of the best gaming laptops on the market, and any discount on this system should be seen as generous - but this whopping $1300 price cut makes this Blade 16 the cheapest it's ever been.
The Asus ROG Zephyrus G16 is one of our favorite laptops here at TechRadar, thanks to its powerful hardware, sleek design, and fantastic display. This model is even better than the one we reviewed earlier this year, and it's selling for nearly half its initial launch price for Black Friday. You definitely don't want to pass this one up.
If you're looking for a budget gaming laptop that can go the distance this Black Friday, the TUF Gaming A16 from Asus is an excellent pick. Packing a Ryzen 7 7735HS processor and Radeon RX 7700S graphics card, it can comfortably handle 1080p gaming on its 165Hz display. With a huge $400 discount at Best Buy, it's a steal right now.
The MSI Claw 155H is a powerful handheld gaming PC that is capable of providing great performance at its 1080p native resolution. It competes with the likes of Asus' ROG Ally using Intel's Core Ultra 7 155H processor, and offers a rich feature set including Wi-Fi 7, Thunderbolt 4 connectivity, and a nippy 120Hz display.
Today's best gaming laptop deals in the UK
With a solid £320 reduction for Black Friday, the Lenovo LOQ 15 is an excellent choice of midrange gaming laptop. Featuring an RTX 4060 graphics card, AMD Ryzen 7 7435HS processor, and a terabyte of high-speed SSD storage all crammed into a sleek, minimalist chassis, the LOQ 15 is one of the better UK gaming laptop deals we've seen this holiday season.
The MSI Thin 15 is a fantastic device for 1080p gaming on the go that doesn't break the bank, as we noted in our MSI Thin 15 review from a while back. This laptop offers a fast 144Hz refresh FHD display, 13th-gen Intel Core i7 CPU, RTX 4050 GPU, and 16GB RAM. If we had a complaint, it'd be the rather small 512GB storage, but you can always upgrade it with a bigger SSD if necessary. And for the price, you really can't go wrong here.
We raved about the Gigabyte Aorus 16X earlier this year, with our own Lindsay Handmer calling it "one of the best performing gaming laptops I have tested" in his Aorus 16X review. Paired with a great 165Hz QHD+ display, 14th-gen Intel Core i7 processor, Nvidia RTX 4070 GPU, and other great specs, this laptop will get you fantastic 1440p gaming on the road or at home for £650 off right now at Currys.
Thanks to its ridiculously powerful internal components (and RTX 4090 and Intel Core i9-14900HX plus 32GB of RAM), this iteration of Razer's iconic Blade 16 laptop can take full advantage of its gorgeous QHD+ OLED screen when playing the latest PC games. At almost 20% off, it's a solid deal for gamers seeking the best of the best this Black Friday.
Asus' ROG Ally Z1 Extreme provides a great balance within all regions of a handheld gaming PC, with incredible speakers, a 1080p 120Hz VRR screen (unlike the Lenovo Legion Go), and great performance thanks to AMD's processor.
You'll no doubt have noticed that I've included a couple of handheld gaming PCs in this list. Yes, I know they're not technically gaming laptops, but they warrant inclusion here: the handheld PC revolution is upon us, and we should welcome it, as it provides a neat, more accessible avenue into the wonderful world of PC gaming.
To that end, I've highlighted the single best deal for each region: folks in the US should pick up the MSI Claw for $441.15 (was $749) at Amazon, while the best option for shoppers in the UK is the Asus ROG Ally Z1 Extreme, down to £399 (was £499) at Amazon.
Whatever you choose, and whether you're diving into PC gaming for the first time or upgrading from a tired old system, know that you can buy with confidence - TechRadar has your back this Black Friday.
What, were you expecting another Dickens novel down here? Go buy a great gaming laptop and come play Warframe with me instead. Go on, scram.
More of today’s Black Friday sales in the US
- Amazon: TVs, smart home & air fryers from $12.99
- Apple: AirPods, iPads, MacBooks from $89.99
- Best Buy: $1,000 off 4K TVs, laptops & headphones
- Cheap TVs: smart TVs at Best Buy from $69.99
- Christmas trees: top-rated trees from $54.99
- Dell: best-selling Inspiron & XPS laptops from $279.99
- Dreamcloud: mattress deals from $349 + free shipping
- Holiday: decor, lights, Christmas trees & PJs from $10.99
- Home Depot: 40% off tools, appliances & furniture
- Lowe's: holiday decor, appliances & tools from $17.31
- Nectar: up to 50% off all mattresses
- Nordstrom: 46% off boots, coats, jeans & jewelry
- Samsung: $1,500+ off TVs, phones, watches & appliances
- Target: save on furniture, tech & clothing
- Walmart: cheap TVs, robot vacs, furniture & appliances
More of today’s Black Friday sales in the UK
- Amazon: up to 68% off toothbrushes and TVs
- AO: savings on games consoles and appliances
- Argos: up to 50% off toys, Lego, TVs and gifts
- Boots: up to 50% off Dyson, Oral-B and Philips
- Currys: early deals on TVs, appliances, laptops
- Dell: laptops, desktops, monitors from £299
- Dyson: up to £150 off
- Ebay: up to 50% off refurbished tech
- EE: up to £600 off Samsung and Apple
- John Lewis: up to £300 off appliances and TVs
- LG: £1,000 or more off TVs and appliances
- Samsung: up to £600 off TVs, phones and tablets
- Very: up to 30% off phones, appliances & clothing
Get daily insight, inspiration and deals in your inbox
Sign up for breaking news, reviews, opinion, top tech deals, and more.
Christian is TechRadar’s UK-based Computing Editor. He came to us from Maximum PC magazine, where he fell in love with computer hardware and building PCs. He was a regular fixture amongst our freelance review team before making the jump to TechRadar, and can usually be found drooling over the latest high-end graphics card or gaming laptop before looking at his bank account balance and crying.
Christian is a keen campaigner for LGBTQ+ rights and the owner of a charming rescue dog named Lucy, having adopted her after he beat cancer in 2021. She keeps him fit and healthy through a combination of face-licking and long walks, and only occasionally barks at him to demand treats when he’s trying to work from home.