Why Gaming Laptops Are So Heavy? (8 Crucial Reasons)

When I was a beginner in the world of computers, I used to hear a lot about Gaming laptops and I always heard that they are costlier and heavier. But, I am a person who loves laptops that are quite light such as Macbook Air that I currently use. Also, my work doesn’t need a very high-performance machine, so I am fine with it. But, those who are gamers or video editors, or animators, need high-end laptops, and there is nothing better than a high-end gaming laptop for such purposes.

Recently, my sister got Acer Nitro Gaming Laptop for her son, and when I got a chance to get my hands on that, I loved it, and, I didn’t feel it as heavy as I heard because the modern generation gaming laptops are becoming a bit lighter than early gaming laptops. But, still, they are heavier than normal laptops. 

In this article, I am going to explain the reasons why gaming laptops are so heavy. Why can’t they be lighter like normal laptops?

So, without any further ado, let’s have a look at those reasons that make gaming laptops heavier.

10 Reasons Why Gaming Laptops Are So Heavy?

Gaming laptops are heavier because of the need for a giant dedicated GPU, a larger and robust cooling system, sturdy chassis, a larger screen, and a larger battery. These components need to be this way because Gaming laptops need to be high-performance machines. Especially, it needs a very heavy GPU because gaming is all about Graphics, 3D objects, images, etc. And, for giving the best quality output on your screen a monster GPU is what you need. 

Let’s get into the details of each hardware component that makes a gaming laptop heavier.

1. Dedicated Graphics Card

The biggest difference between a gaming laptop and a normal laptop is that gaming laptops have a dedicated monster graphic card which is responsible for all the visual display on the screen. This is very important in gaming. With an integrated graphics card that is there in normal laptops, you cannot play high-end games pretty well because the display won’t be so good, and the system will also start lagging.

Integrated graphic cards may be suitable for normal users but for gamers, it is important to have a dedicated one. That is the reason, all gaming laptops have dedicated graphics cards. 

Because of the requirement, using the dedicated GPU makes things bulkier which results in adding some extra weight to the overall laptop’s weight. Thus, in my opinion, the dedicated GPU is the prime reason for making gaming laptops heavier. Furthermore, there are more components that add more weight to the laptop.

2. Larger Screen

Gaming is all about performance and display, and for a great experience, a larger screen is required. The larger screen with high resolution offers a great immersive gaming experience. That is the reason, gaming laptops come mostly in bigger sizes such as 15inch or 17inch generally. When it comes to normal laptops, most of us are happy with 13-inch laptops.

You will hardly see gaming laptops coming with smaller screens. They are making even bigger screens for having extra space on the screen to show everything in high resolution. This increase in size adds some extra weight to the overall laptop’s weight as well.

3. Larger Cooling system (Heatsink)

A gaming laptop’s GPU gets extremely hot when you play high-end games. Apart from that, the processor also gets hot. For the normal functioning of the laptop, there is a cooling system installed that takes out all the heat from the laptop to keep the components cool. 

Since gaming laptop has high-end GPU and CPU, there needs a more robust cooling system to cool down. In that cooling system, there is a heatsink, thermal paste, and fans. Thermal paste is not a heavy thing tough. But, a heavy heatsink adds some extra weight to the laptop. And, you must know that a gaming laptop has more fans than a normal laptop. That all collectively add a lot of weight to the overall weight of the laptop.

4. Larger Battery

In a gaming laptop, there is a monster GPU, a larger cooling system, a larger screen, and other things that are all more robust than the normal laptop. Therefore, there is a need for larger batteries too in order to supply uninterrupted power to these components.  All of these, need more power to function properly. If there is a small battery, it won’t be able to give a longer backup and their lifespan will be too short as well. Thus, a bigger battery is required in order to supply power for a longer time and to provide a long duration of gameplay without having to recharge again. Even the bigger batteries have a short lifespan in Gaming laptops. 

Gaming laptops are known for terrible battery life!

5. More Ports

Gaming laptops have more ports than normal laptops giving options to connect more devices to enhance the gaming experience such as gaming mouse, gaming keyboard, Joystick, etc. Anything added extra adds some weight. Thus, because of having more ports makes the gaming laptop heavier too.

6. Sturdy Chassis And Unique Design

Gaming laptops often boast distinctive shapes, patterns, lights, and designs that set them apart from traditional/normal laptops. While these design features can be appealing to buyers seeking a cutting-edge gaming rig, they also tend to increase the weight of an already hefty gaming laptop.

For making a heavy gaming laptop look good and different from normal laptops, the designers use sturdy chassis and very distinctive design patterns.

Generally because of their bigger and heftier design, gaming laptops generally look ugly, but modern-day designers are making some progress to make them look beautiful even with heavy bodies. 

The unique design and heavy chassis add more weight to the overall weight of the gaming laptop.

7. More RAM

Gaming Laptop has more RAM than normal laptops. It is quite important to have extra RAM on a gaming laptop so that it helps the processor quickly access the instructions that are needed while gaming. Also, multiple tabs and applications can run smoothly because of increased RAM. 

Since RAM is random memory that stores all the temporary data and instructions, it is very important to have more and more RAM. For more RAM, more RAM sticks are added to the motherboard. This adds some extra weight as well.

8. Bigger Motherboards

Since all the components that are integrated into Motherboard are bigger and heavier, the size and weight of the motherboard get heavier as well. Thus, having a bigger motherboard is normal for a gaming laptop. That also adds some extra weight.

Overall, everything that is in the gaming laptop is heavier and sturdier. Thus, a gaming laptop weighs more than a normal laptop.

How Heavy is Too Heavy for a Gaming Laptop?

More than 2.4kg is too heavy for gaming laptops. For comparison, my Macbook Air laptop is just 1.3kg which is normal and fine for a normal laptop, and Acer Nitro(My sister has it) which is a gaming laptop weighs 2.3KG which I think is a normal weight for a gaming laptop but a heavy. You may consider up to 2.4KG as a bit more than normal for gaming laptops. But, anything more than 2.4KG is too heavy for a gaming laptop in my opinion.

For example, Acer Predator Helios is almost 2.7KG which I consider too heavy even for a gaming laptop. If portability is not a problem, this is one of the best gaming laptops on the market.

You will be surprised to know that there are even heavier laptops than this, here is a table of the heaviest gaming laptops. 

Are Gaming Laptops Getting Lighter than Earlier?

Yes, new-generation gaming laptops are getting lighter than ever. Most users love lightweight laptops because they are more portable. Thus, looking at the users’ requirements, and advancements in technology, manufacturers are trying every possible thing to make gaming laptops lighter. 

But, gaming laptops will never be light as normal laptops. Lighter gaming laptops are there in the market, but they are not considered high-end dedicated gaming laptops.

Conclusion

These are 8 reasons Why Gaming Laptops Are So Heavy. A high-end  & high-performance gaming laptop can never be as light as normal laptops. If you try to make them lighter, you will have to sacrifice some performance-enhancing components.