Many of the best value laptops that marry high performance with affordability can be found in below the $1,000 price point.

Some of the best value laptops can be found just under $1,000.  Considered mid-priced falling between the cheap entry level laptops in the $300 -$500 price range and the high end models in the $1800 – $2200 price range, they offer enough power to meet the most demanding multimedia and gaming titles on the market today while keeping the price down to affordable levels.  While targeted at the middle class consumers, these laptops are suited to those who  don’t mind saving up and pending a few more dollars above the budget range for a truly satisfying multimedia and gaming experience for hours on end.

Full high definition between 1920 x 1080 and 1600 x 900 resolutions are common in this price range as well as 1TB SATA drives and a host of other features like quad core processor and dedicated graphics processors that use midrange series from Nvidia GeForce and AMD Radeon with their own video RAM.  8 GB RAM is also common that allows 64-bit Window 7 or Windows 8 and many use dual channel architectures to max out hardware performance.

Some of the best Gaming laptops under $1,000

ASUS Republic of Gamers G55VW-DH71 15.6-Inch Laptop

The holiday season is certainly a boon for sales in the secondary markets and this may be a great time to start looking for powerful gaming laptops that used to be expensive but is now at bargain prices.  Here’s one – a gaming laptop from ASUS powered by a high ender 3^rd generation Intel Core i7-3610M clocked at 2.4 GHz with an 8GB DDR3 system RAM.  Its 15.6-Inch full HD (1920 x 1080) LED-backlit screen is driven by a powerful Class 2 Nvidia GTX 660M belonging to the low end in the GeForce GTX 600M family of upper midrange GPUs. It has its own 2G GDDR5 video RAM, making it a second tier gaming laptop that is sure to satisfy budget-conscious serious gamers.  What that means is that it can play all the demanding games out there from medium to high game settings.  The only exception to date is Company of Heroes 2 which is considered the most demanding PC video game in the market that even high end gaming laptops can play with difficulty.  This Asus model can be the game at but only at low game setting, preferably at slightly reduced HD screen resolution. Data storage is served by a fast 500GB SATA drive running at 7200 rpm It comes preloaded with the Windows 8 OS.

Acer Aspire V3-772G-9829 17.3-Inch Laptop

At a list price of a cent below $1000 and now discounted to $899.00, this Acer Aspire V3-772G is configured with the 4^th generation Haswell Intel Core i7-4702MQ clocked at 2 GHz (with Turbo Boost up to 3.2 GHz) and enjoying a game performance boost with its 6 MB Cache.  It is supported by an 8GB DDR3 system RAM.  But what qualifies this Aspire model as a powerful gaming laptop is its Class 2 category NVIDIA GeForce GT 750M Graphics driving a gorgeous 17.3-inch full-HD (1920 x 1080) LED-backlit display.  For a wallet-friendly price, you get gaming value from higher priced upscale models as this gaming monster can play just about any sophisticated game title released this year at medium to high game setting.  Even Company of Heroes 2 can play but a low game setting. It also comes with a generous 1TB SATA hard disk running at 5400 rpm on dual drive bays for an additional hard disk or SSD, an 8xSuper Multi dual layer DVD optical drive, an HD webcam, digital card reader and an 802.11A WiFi housed in slightly hefty 7lb body. It is preloaded with the Windows 8 OS.

MSI Computer Corp. Notebook GE60 0ND-257US; 9S7-16GA11-257 15.6-Inch Laptop

Priced at $999 from its $1,099 MSRP, this MSI GE60 inherits much of the gaming muscle from the more expensive MSI high-enders to deliver a budget-friendly laptop for the cost-conscious serious gamers.  Powered by a high end 3rd generation Intel Core i7-3630QM engine clocked at 2.4 GHz and supported by an 8GB SO-DIMM system RAM, this MSI model offers a typical 15.6-inch LED backlit display with full HD (1980 x 1080) resolution.  What makes this a powerful mobile gaming solution is its Class 2 category NVidia GeForce GTX660M, an upper midrange GPU in the lower end of the GeForce GTX 600 M series.  What this means is that except for the recently released Company of Heroes 2 considered to date as the most resource intensive even for high end gaming laptops, this budget MSI model can play nearly all the most sophisticated game titles released over the last two years with no difficulty in the medium to high game settings at the default full HD or lower resolution. Data storage is average at 750 GB SATA drive that offers a fast seek and write times with its 7200 rpm speed.  It comes bundled with the Windows 8 OS.

Lenovo IdeaPad Y510p

This Lenovo Idea Pad model defines the gaming laptop at this price point.  Under the hood is a 4^th generation Haswell Intel Core i7 4700MQ clocked at 2.4 GHz (3.4 GHz with Turbo Boost) and supported by an 8GB DDR3 system RAM upgradable to 16 GB on two SODIMM slots.  Its standard 15.6-inch LED backlit screen sports the highest HD resolution at 1920 c 1080 and behind it, is a Class 1 dual NVidia GeForce GT 750M on SLI mode with 2GB dedicated video RAM for each card. . This is the 5^th fastest NVidia graphics engine in the Class 1 category overall.  With it, you can play just about all the most sophisticated PC games released over the last two years at medium to the highest game settings using default resolution. A flew games like the recent Company of Heroes 2 is so demanding, you can play this only at low game detail setting.  Other hardware specs include a 1TB SATA drive running at 5400 RPM, and a slew of connectivity options – two USB 3.0 ports, a single USB 2.0 port, VGA and HDMI ports, microphone and headphones jacks and a 6-in-1 media card reader.  It also has a 720p HD webcam, and all these are housed in a 1.4-inch profile laptop weighing just 6.4 lbs.  It comes bundled with Windows 8 OS. Check Out Our Indepth Lenovo Ideapad Y510 Review.

Acer Aspire V3-772G-9653

The Acer Aspire offers another reasonably priced gaming laptop at $1,059.99. Powered by Intel’s 4^th generation Haswell quad core i7-4702MQ clocked at 2.2G Hz (3.2 GHz with Turbo Boost) and supported by an 8GB DDR3 system RAM upgradable to 32 GB over 4 SODIMM sockets, this Aspire VR-722G-0653 brings full HD resolution (1920 x 1080) on a 17.3-inch LED backlit display driven by a powerful Class 1 NVidia GeForce GTX 760M with a dedicated 2GB video RAM.  This choice of GPU puts this Acer model among the fastest gaming laptops at this price point or elsewhere. All the sophisticated RPG and FSP games released over the last two years can be played at medium to highest game settings at the default resolution.  Even the very demanding Company of Heroes 2 and Metro: Last Light can be played at medium setting, though best played at low setting.  With a 7 lb weight from a slim 1.3-inch thick body, the Acer comes with a 1TB SATA drive running at 5400 RPM, a multi-layer DVD optical drive, a media card reader, an HD webcam, VGA and HDMI ports, a couple of USB 2 and USB 3 ports each, and the usual headphone and mic jacks.  It also comes preloaded with the Window 8 OS. You can check the V3-772G-9829 which is really similar .

Sager NP8235 (Clevo P151SM1)

This customizable Sager NP 8235 starts at a base price of $1,082.43.  The base configuration starts with a 15.6-inch anti-glare matte LED backlit screen sporting the highest HD resolution at 1920 x 1080.  It comes with the latest Intel  HM87 chipset that is perfect for 4^th generation Haswell quad core processors, starting with the i7-4700MQ and 6 GB DDR3 system RAM upgradable to 32 GB DDR3 on 4 SODIMM sockets..    It also comes with the NVidia GeForce GTX 770M GPU considered the 3^rd fastest single card graphics engine in the Class 1 category of GPUs and supported with its own 3GB GDDR5 video RAM.  With the exception of the recently released Company of Heroes 2 PC game which can be played  with this GPU at mediums settings, all the most demanding PC games can be played at their high to highest settings at the default HD resolution.   With Optimus technology, you can easily switch down to the integrated HD graphics 4600 on the CPU for less demanding applications to save on battery life.  In addition, the base configuration has three drive bays for one 750GB SATA hard drive running at 7200 RPM and two mSATA solid state drives. It also comes with an 8x super-multi combo optical drive.  It has a 9-in-1 media card as well as data connection ports for S/PDIF, eSATA, USB 3 and USB 2, HDMI, Display Port 1.2, Mic and headphone jacks, and line-in jack, to mention some. There is no bundled OS at the price.

A-Series A10-5750M clocked at 2.5GHz with 8970M beast dedicated GPU.

MSI GX Series GX60 3BE-240US

At $1,099.00, this MSI GX Series laptop is powered by the AMD Trinity A-Series A10-5750M clocked at 2.5GHz and supported by an 8GB DDR 3 system RAM upgradable to 16GB on two SODIMM sockets. Its 15.6-inch non-glare LED backlit screen sports the highest HD resolution at 1920 x 1080 and is powered by the AMD HD 8970M graphics engine with its own dedicated 2GV video RAM.  This is the fastest single card AMD GPU in the Class 1 category and all the demanding sophisticated RPG and FSP games released to date have no problem being played at their high to highest game settings at the default HD resolution.    Its data storage is served with a 750GB SATA hard drive running at 7200 RPM, a Blu-ray ROM optical drive, and an SD card reader.    It has a THX-certified stereo speakers with subwoofer, an HD webcam, gold-plated mic and headphone jacks, an HDMI port, a DisplayPort, three USB 3.0 ports, and a single USB 2.0 port. All these get houses in a 1.77-inch profile laptop weighing 7.7 lbs. Window 8 OS is bundled with the purchase price.

Small Thin Gaming Laptop, Its like razerblade of MSI, Packed with the 4th Generation I7 Haswell Chip, and New GTX 760M card, this ones bang for the buck!

MSI GE Series GE40 2OC-008US

this MSI GE series model has about the same technical specs as the Acer Aspire V3-772G above. It also gets powered by the same 4^th generation Haswell Intel Core i7 4702MQ with 8 GB DDR3 system RAM, as well as the same graphics engine in the Class 1 NVidia GeForce GTX 760M with 2GB video RAM. The main difference comes from a smaller 14-inch non-glare LED backlit display with a mid-HD resolution of 1600 x 900, instead of the 17.3-inch full HD screen on the Aspire.   You also can only play the very demanding Company of Heroes 2 and Metro: Last starting at medium setting, though best played at low settings.  In addition, its storage is served with 750 GB SATA drive running at 7200 RPM and a DVD super-multi optical drive.  It’s about $140 more expensive than the Aspire  but if a slimmer 1.14-inch profile and a lighter 4.4 lbs are what you are looking for, but without a diminution is gaming prowess, this MSI GE40 20C-008US is the better alternative in terms of footprint and lugging weight.

Gaming and Touchscreen? Well here’s on gaming laptop for ya. I7 and 8770M graphics with touch screen capabilites.

SAMSUNG ATIV Book 6 NP680Z5E-X01US

Close to the price point at $1,099.99, this ATIV Book6 from Samsung is powered by a 3rd generation Intel Core i7 3635QM running at 2.4 GHz which can be overclocked to 3.4 GHz using Turbo Boost technology. It is supported by an 8GB DDR3 system RAM memory with 4GB on board and another 4GB module on the single SODIMM socket.  This makes it upgradable to 12GB with an 8 GB memory module on the lone socket.  Its 15.6-inch LED backlit display has a 10-finger sensing touchscreen capability while sporting full HD resolution of 1920 x 1080 powered by a Class 2 AMD Radeon HD 8770M with 1GB of video RAM.  With the exception of Company of Heroes 2 which cannot play at all, and the Metro: Last Light which can only play at low game setting, all the sophisticated games released to date can be played at their medium to the highest game settings at the default resolution. This makes the Samsung ATIV Book 6 NP680Z5E one of the better value gaming laptops for serious gamers at this price.  In addition, it comes with a 1TB SATA drive running at 5400 RPM and a 3-in-1 media card reader. With less than an inch thick profile, Samsung decided not to put in an optical drive to maintain its light 5.38 lb weight. It comes bundled with a 64-bit Windows 8 OS.

4th Gen i7 Haswell Chip, with 4 cores and 8 threads, packed with monster GTX 765 with 1600 mhz 8gb RAM.. This laptop is a combination with beauty and power.

MSI GE Series GE60 2OE-003US

A step up from the GE40 series cited above, this GE60 20E-003US  carries the same GE 40 price tag of $1,119.99 but gets powered with a slightly more muscled 4^th generation  Haswell quad core i7 4700MQ clocked at 2.40GHz (3.4GHZ when turbo boosted) with the same 8GB system RAM upgradable to 16GB on a single SOPDIMM socket.  Instead of a 14-inch screen, the GE 60 comes with a larger 15.3-inch screen and a full HD resolution (1920 x 1080) powered by slightly more muscled Class 1 NVidia GeForce GTX 765M with its own 2GB video RAM.  This allows you to play the Company of Heroes 2 and Metro: Last Light at high game setting, though best played at medium settings at the default resolution. If you are looking to play these games at a higher setting than what the GE40 delivers but at the same price point, this is the laptop to choose.  But its advantage comes at a price of being slightly thicker at 1.46 inches and heavier at 5.28 lbs, though both are still backpack friendly.  You also get the same 750GB SATA drive running at 7200 RPM, HD webcam ,multi-layer DVD optical drive, and a host of wired and wireless connectivity ports.  It comes bundled with the Windows 8 OS with multi-lingual support.

Gaming Touch Screen Laptop with 12gb of RAM and I7 haswell.

Toshiba Satellite S55t-A5277 Touchscreen Notebook

At a reasonable sub-grand MSRP of $989.99, this Toshiba Satellite is powered by the 4^th generation Haswell Intel Core i7 4700MQ clocked at 2.4 GHz (up to 3.4 GHz with Turbo Boost) and comes with a 12GB DDR3 system memory upgradable to 16GB over two SODIMM sockets. Its 15.6-inch LED backlit touchscreen display uses the famous Toshiba TruBrite display technology and has a modest HD resolution of 1366 x 768. Its graphics engine is the Class 2 category NVidia GeForce GT 740M which enables it to play most of the demanding RPG and FSP games released over the last two years seamlessly at medium to high game detail settings at the default resolution., with the exception of Company of Heroes 2 and Metro: Last Light which fail to run at all, and SimCity which can only be played at low setting.  A built-in stereo Harman Kardon speakers and DTS sound support completes is multimedia features.  Its storage is served with a 1TB SATA hard disk drive running at 5400 RPM and a DVD super-multi optical drive.  All these are housed in a light 5.3-lb body that  is just 1.2 inches thick. Windows 8 OS is bundled with the purchase.

The fact that it can play the recently released Crysis 3 in medium setting and Dead Space 3 in high setting speaks volumes of how well it can play other high end games released in 2012.

Acer Aspire V3-771G-9809

At $949, the Acer Aspire V3-771G-9809 has a widescreen LED-backlit 17.3-inch display with high definition 1600 x 900 resolutions and a 5400 rpm 1 TB SATA drive that is standard in laptops at this price point.  But what makes it worth the price lies under the hood.  It is powered by a 3^rd generation quad core Intel Core i7-3632QM clocked at 2.2 GHz that can reach 3.2 GHZ with its Turbo Boost. Enabling it to play most of the demanding games is its DirectX 11 enabled Nvidia GeForce GT 650M which is near top of the GT 600M series.  The fact that it can play the recently released Crysis 3 in medium setting and Dead Space 3 in high setting speaks volumes of how well it can play other high end games released in 2012. Click here to get our deep review about the Acer Aspire V3-771G-9809.

A 3rd generation Intel Core i7-3630QM at 2.4GHz powers the laptop with an 8GB DDR3 memory on two SODIMM sockets to maximize its dual memory channel performance.

Asus N56VJ-DH71

Just $9 cheaper is the Asus N56VJ-DH71 which has a smaller but more gorgeous 15.6-inch display with full HD resolution at 1920 x 1080, giving it a higher pixel density than similar resolutions at a higher screen size.  With a slim 1.2 inch profile on a 5lb body, this Aspire model is among the lightest and thinnest and comes with a 1 TB SATA drive running at 5,400 rpm typical in its class.  A 3^rd generation Intel Core i7-3630QM at 2.4GHz powers the laptop with an 8GB DDR3 memory on two SODIMM sockets to maximize its dual memory channel performance. Its Nvidia GT 645M with its own 2GB of video memory may be 10% less powerful than the GT 650M, but it certainly gets most if not all the demanding games running at medium to high settings Check out our in depth review of The Asus N56VJ-DH71 Budget Gaming Laptop with charts and comparisons.

A more muscled than the rest of the group, Priced at $989, you can play just about all the highly demanding RPG and FPS games at high to ultra settings.

Lenovo Ideapad Y580

Amore muscled high end NVidia GeForce GTX 660M with its own 2GB video RAM powers the graphics of the Lenovo Ideapad Y580 to make it one of the more popular  gaming laptops on the market today. With a 3^rd generation Intel Core i7 quad core clocked at 2.3GHz and supported by an 8GB DDR3 RAM under the hood, this Lenovo offers elegant portability on the side with its 1.4-inch profile on a slightly heavier 6.6lb body that sports a gorgeous 15.6-inch LED backlit display with 1366 x 768 resolution.  Priced at $989, you can play just about all the highly demanding RPG and FSP games at medium to high setting. Ideapad Y580 is part of our Top 8 Gaming Laptop picks, Click here for more detailed review of Lenovo Y580.

The Lenovo Ideapad Y500 offers a stunning full HD 1920 x 1080 resolution on a 15.6-inch screen driven by a powerful GPU in the NVidia dual SLI GeForce GT 650M with a fast 2GB GDDR5 video RAM.

Lenovo Ideapad Y500 (EDITORS CHOICE)

Costing slightly less at $999 but more abled, the Lenovo Ideapad Y500 offers a stunning full HD 1920 x 1080 resolution on a 15.6-inch screen driven by a powerful GPU in the NVidia dual SLI GeForce GT 650M with a fast 2GB GDDR5 video RAM.  While a single GT 650M is mid-range among laptop graphics cards, having two puts it at par with many single high end graphic cards and is certainly more able than the high end single card GTX 660M.  Powered by a 3^rd generation Intel Core i7 quad core engine  that boost up 3.3ghz with 8GB DDR3 system RAM, this Ideapad has 1TB SATA drive running at 5400rpm with standard optical drive on a slightly heavier 6.5lb body. It would be difficult to find a similarly powered laptop at this price.  ABSOLUTELY(NO DOUBT!) THE BEST LAPTOP UNDER 1000 and this ones my personal favorite! – Read our full In depth review of Lenovo Ideapad Y500 plus benchmarks and comparisons.

Priced at at $849.72 can be considered a great value for one of the better brands in gaming laptops in the market.

MSI C Series CX61 0NF-258US 

Last but not least is the  MSI C Series CX61 0NF-258US  which at $849.72 can be considered a great value for one of the better brands in gaming laptops in the market.  Weighing only 5.3 lbs, this MSI model comes with a 15.6-inch 1366 x 768 display and a 750GB SATA hard drive. Bundled with Windows 8, it is powered by a 3^rd generation quad core Intel Core i7-3630QM  clocked at 2.4 GHz with a 6GB system RAM. Its graphics engine is midrange Nvidia GeForce GT 645M with its own 2 GB video RAM and DirectX 11 support that gives this model enough muscle to play virtually all of the most demanding games in the market today in medium to high settings.

To learn more, check out our review pages on the models mentioned above.  Expect our recommendations to change over time as newer models come on line with advances in computing technology.

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