Deal | Cheap Lenovo gaming laptop: Lenovo LOQ 15 with RTX 4050 enjoys sizeable 33% price cut

Nintendo launching the Switch 2 at $449.99, Sony increasing the price of the base PS5 to $550, and Microsoft double-tapping gamers with two Xbox Series price adjustments have left many gamers without an option. It can now be argued that console gaming is no longer the value-packed safe haven it once was for cash-strapped gamers.

This is where budget gaming laptops make the most sense. Armed with capable CPU/GPU options, often expandable RAM/storage, and high-refresh-rate displays, some of the best budget gaming laptops can be absolute value champs. Like this Lenovo LOQ 15, which packs an RTX 4050 and a 144 Hz display, for just $579.99 at Best Buy.

Retailing at a discount of around $290, the Lenovo LOQ 15ARP9 pairs the RTX 4050 with a Ryzen 5 7235HS CPU, 12 GB of RAM, 512 GB of storage, and a 144 Hz display. The laptop also features a port selection that covers all the essentials, Wi-Fi 6, and a full-sized backlit keyboard.

It is abundantly clear from the LOQ 15 specsheet that Lenovo has had to cut considerable corners to make the notebook inexpensive. For instance, the 4-core Ryzen 5 7235HS isn’t a beast by any regards. However, while this sucks, it makes total sense for a cheap gaming laptop. Fortunately, the Lenovo LOQ 15 is plenty upgradable. So, you can increase the RAM from 12 GB to 32 GB and the 512 GB storage to a 1 TB rather inexpensively. 

When it comes to the overall quality of the laptop, the Lenovo LOQ 15 should satisfy most users. In our review of an Intel Core i5-based Lenovo LOQ 15 (Gen 9) with an RTX 4060, we remarked that the machine is an “affordable FHD gaming laptop that suffers from one or two minor flaws”. This, for the most part, is also true for the LOQ 15 SKU on sale thanks to 1080p-capable internals and a good display.

Performance-wise, the RTX 4050 inside the LOQ 15 should get you more than playable frames in AAA games. For instance, our testing shows that the RTX 4050 laptop can run The Elder Scrolls IV Oblivion Remastered at over 60 FPS at 1080p/Medium settings. Naturally, turning on DLSS will see these frame rates jump much higher.

Finally, the 15.6-inch 1080p IPS panel with a 144 Hz refresh rate is quite good for gaming. It covers complete sRGB, boasts good contrast, and comes pre-calibrated. Sadly, it is only suitable for inside use with around 310 nits of max brightness.

All in all, the Lenovo LOQ 15 gaming laptop on sale is an undeniably good value at just $579.99.