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posted October 14, 2021 by Achyut Shastri
For a while, people have been buying gaming computers. They could be desktops with giant graphics cards or thin laptops that are easy to carry around. However, most gaming computers with decent specifications are all extremely expensive, ranging from $2000 to even $3000! However, I am here to tell you about my experience with a gaming laptop that follows a tight budget and provides decent specifications: this is the CyberpowerPC Tracer IV!
Now, what makes this laptop the best budget laptop? Well, let’s first talk about the low price point. The Tracer IV, released in 2020, hovered around a price point of $1400. Normally, for a gaming PC, you would have to pay $300-$400 more to get the same specifications. Other laptops, like the Asus ROG G15 GA502, with similar specs, like a 144Hz screen, a 20-series Nvidia graphics card, and an 8-core CPU , cost almost $700 more!
Meanwhile, CyberpowerPC can bump up the specs of the laptop for a small price and it would still cost less than the G15.
So we know it is quite cheap for its specs, but what are its specs? It features one of the most reliable CPUs, the Ryzen 7 4800H. It has 8 cores and 16 threads to power the laptop. It also features an Nvidia RTX 2060 Max-P GPU with an 115W TDP (Thermal Design Power), meaning that the Tracer has a great gaming GPU and a lot of power running through it. The 2060 has 6GB of GDDR6 memory as well as boost clock speeds of up to 1200 MHz. Next, it has a 1080p display, which is understandable on a budget laptop, that has a 300-nit brightness and an 144Hz refresh rate. Refresh rate is how many times a second your monitor refreshes the image on the screen, measured in Hz. Due to the refresh rate, the gameplay looks smooth and natural when you are shooting zombies or strapping a rocket to a car and driving it into a ball. Our eyes normally can perceive the refresh rate of a 60Hz screen, however if your frame rate drops lower than that it may seem a little stuttery. 60Hz can also cause some blurring. For RAM, the base model has 16GB of RAM, which is quite a lot for a budget laptop. You can even upscale it to 32GB to multitask even more. A necessary component on a laptop is its webcam as well. The Tracer has a 720p camera that is smoother than you would expect, however, it
is on the bottom of the screen. This means you have to tilt the screen up in order for people to see you on a video call. It has the latest WiFi technology and bluetooth technology and has a lot of storage. Most importantly, IT HAS RGB LIGHTING! The keyboard has a rgb backlight that can be controlled by onboard software.
So how does it all come together? Very well, actually. The laptop is able to handle multiple games with ease. For example, in Rocket League, it is able to hit 200 FPS (frames per second) with ease at high settings. There are no display errors like screen tearing or frame stutters, and I don’t have to worry about the laptop melting. In Fortnite, the laptop easily passes 100 FPS at ultra settings. Once again, no display errors and no immense heat. The fans are quite powerful and are adept at keeping the entire system cool. It also has various modes to control the components for certain uses. You can control all of this in the Gaming Center software provided on the computer.
You may think that, based on all that I just talked about, it’s only good for gaming. However, this is not entirely the case. It is sleek and portable, so you can take it with you for a journey. It has a battery life of almost 10 hours with battery saving techniques. The keyboard is easy to use and is good for typing. It has nice key travel, and it has a 15” screen so that you can split-screen, work on assignments and more, with ease. It is also light, at 3-4 pounds, making it more portable than other models.
All in all, the CyberPowerPC Tracer IV Edge gaming laptop is a great budget gaming laptop that is also great for everyday use.
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