When buying a gaming laptop, even if it costs less than $1,000, there is no need to compromise on previous generation hardware. What matters is timing and what's on sale at the time. Right now, for example, you can get a Dell G15 Ryzen Edition gaming laptop with Zen 3 and Ampere hardware for $832.99.

This is $346 less than Dell's "estimated price," and while this number is inflated, it is still a bargain at the current discount. the two main components, CPU and GPU, are an 8 core/16 thread Ryzen 7 5800H processor (3.2GHz to 4.4GHz, 16MB L3 cache) and GeForce RTX 3050 Ti graphics.

According to Dell's GPU specifications page, the RTX 3050 Ti is the maximum power type, running at 80W, 1,462.5MHz (base) to 1,695MHz (boost) OEMs will set the RTX 3050 Ti at 35W with a boost clock of just 1,035MHz option, so we are pleased to see that Dell is exploiting the GPU's full performance potential at this setting.

What is at stake, then, is the lack of RAM and storage, as is often the case with low-cost laptops. In this case, it has 8GB of DDR4-3200 memory (and a single module) and a 256GB NVMe SSD. At least these are fast.

RAM and storage are common places where OEMs cut corners, so it's not too surprising that both are fairly skimpy at this price point. And fortunately, both are relatively easy to upgrade on this model. This is because Dell uses its own mounting brackets, which are only included for the primary slot occupied by the 256GB SSD.

As for the display, the 15.6" panel has a resolution of 1920x1080 and a fast refresh rate of 120 Hz. Taking full advantage of this refresh rate is a challenge for the RTX 3050 Ti in demanding games, but in less demanding titles such as many esports games (e.g., Counter-Strike: Global Offensive), headroom in excess of 60Hz is It is nice to have.

Overall, this is a value-for-money gaming laptop and one of the better buys in the sub-$1,000 realm.