This is why Nvidia TGP is important: Some GeForce RTX 3070 laptops are already outperforming the RTX 3080

GeForce RTX 30 laptops are now a few weeks old and more widely available than their desktop counterparts. We've tested eleven RTX 3070 and 3080 laptops thus far to have a pretty good idea of what the mobile RTX 3070 and 3080 series can offer if gamers were to purchase one at this point in time. Our comparison charts below show where these eleven systems rank relative to each other.

Based on what we've personally seen thus far, the performance difference between mobile RTX 3070 and mobile RTX 3080 is minor on average to the point where certain RTX 3070 laptops can outperform the RTX 3080. The Schenker XMG Neo 17 and its RTX 3070, for example, is consistently ahead of both the Gigabyte Aero 17 HDR YC and Asus ROG Zephyrus G15 with their RTX 3080 GPUs by at least 10 percent each. The delta can be partly explained by their differing TGP targets or support for Resizable BAR; the RTX 3070 in the Schenker is rated for 140 W while the RTX 3080 GPUs in the Gigabyte and Asus are only 105 W and 100 W, respectively.

The slowest laptop of the bunch is the Asus TUF Dash F15 FX516PR and its 85 W GeForce RTX 3070 which is about 20 to 30 percent slower than the 140 W version in the Schenker XMG Neo 17. If you're in the market for a new RTX 3070 laptop, then you might want to avoid the TUF Dash and go with the far superior (and pricier) ROG Zephyrus Duo 15 SE instead. Older GeForce RTX 2080 laptops might also be a better buy at that point due to inevitable sales for potentially higher performance-per-dollar. This just goes to show that users should absolutely check the TGP ratings of any given GeForce RTX 30 laptop before purchasing to get a rough idea of how the system will perform when running games.

We fully expect larger RTX 3070 and 3080 laptops to become available later this year that should offer higher performance on paper. Thick and beefy gaming laptops like the Dell Alienware Area 51m, Asus ROG G703, or MSI GT76 Titan are yet to launch with GeForce RTX 30 options. Their immense size and cooling potential should allow for higher TGP targets than many of these early thin-and-light models that are already in the market. We'll certainly revisit this comparison as soon as we can test more systems firsthand.