These cheap Acer Nitro gaming laptops offer a great value way to get into PC gaming

These cheap Acer Nitro gaming laptops offer a great value way to get into PC gaming
(Image credit: Acer)

Nowadays, it is genuinely possible to get a cheap gaming laptop that's also very capable. You don't have to throw thousands and thousands of dollars at the situation to get a reliable and enjoyable gaming machine. For example, Acer's Nitro range of gaming laptops are generally toward the budget end of the scale and offer solid, well-considered builds that will have you gaming in no time, all without burning your savings in one hit. You might not be getting the mega performance of a true powerhouse or anything near a desktop, but these are great buys nonetheless - particularly if you travel a lot or are at college and need a versatile machine. 

First up is a 15.6" Nitro model that is specced out with a Ryzen 5 CPU, a Radeon RX 560X graphics card, 8GB of RAM, and a 256GB SSD. It can be yours for just just $569.99 from Best Buy - a healthy saving of $100, and not bad for a cheap gaming laptop. If you fancy something a little further up the scale and/or want a bigger screen, there's also a 17.3-inch sized Nitro available. This is an Intel/Nvidia build and has an i5 processor, a GTX 1650 card, 8GB of RAM and a slightly larger 512GB SSD as the on-board storage. It's going for just $779.99 at Best Buy, another saving of $100. 

Both of these deals prove that you can get a quality cheap gaming laptop under $1000. And given the value that they offer, these cheap laptops give some of the very best gaming laptops a run for their money. 

Cheap gaming laptop deals

Acer Nitro 5 gaming laptop | 15.6" 1080p | Ryzen 5 CPU | Radeon RX 560X GPU | 8GB RAM | 256GB SSD | just $569.99 at Best Buy (save $100)

<a href="https://shop-links.co/link?skuId=6355162&publisher_slug=future&exclusive=1&u1=hawk-custom-tracking&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.bestbuy.com%2Fsite%2Facer-nitro-5-15-6-gaming-laptop-amd-ryzen-5-8gb-memory-amd-radeon-rx-560x-256gb-solid-state-drive-obsidian-black%2F6355162.p%3FskuId%3D6355162&article_name=hawk-article-name&article_url=hawk-article-url" data-link-merchant="bestbuy.com"" target="_blank">Acer Nitro 5 gaming laptop | 15.6" 1080p | Ryzen 5 CPU | Radeon RX 560X GPU | 8GB RAM | 256GB SSD | just $569.99 at Best Buy (save $100)
It's not a rip-roaring set of specs by any means but it's a solid, cheap gaming laptop that is comfortable with what it can offer. A great price for a first portable machine.

Acer Nitro 5 gaming laptop | 17.3" 1080p | i5-9300H CPU | GTX 1650 GPU | 8GB RAM | 512GB SSD | just $779.99 at Best Buy (save $100)

<a href="https://shop-links.co/link?skuId=6345056&publisher_slug=future&exclusive=1&u1=hawk-custom-tracking&url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.bestbuy.com%2Fsite%2Facer-nitro-5-17-3-gaming-laptop-intel-core-i5-8gb-memory-nvidia-geforce-gtx-1650-512gb-solid-state-drive-black%2F6345056.p%3FskuId%3D6345056&article_name=hawk-article-name&article_url=hawk-article-url" data-link-merchant="bestbuy.com"" target="_blank">Acer Nitro 5 gaming laptop | 17.3" 1080p | i5-9300H CPU | GTX 1650 GPU | 8GB RAM | 512GB SSD | just $779.99 at Best Buy (save $100)<a href="https://goto.walmart.com/c/1943169/565706/9383?subId1=hawk-custom-tracking&sharedId=hawk&u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.walmart.com%2Fip%2FLaptop-FHD-GTX-Windows-Black-Intel-Nvidia-Display-i7-9750H-16GB-Tuned-10-THX-Memory-Home-144Hz-9th-SSD-512GB-EVOO-Gen-Spatial-Audio-Gaming-15-1660Ti%2F685182150" data-link-merchant="walmart.com"" data-link-merchant="bestbuy.com"" target="_blank" rel="">
A similar build but you get that bigger, roomier screen as well as an Intel/Nvidia processor and graphics card set up. A solid performer and great value.

More cheap gaming laptop deals:
Walmart | Best Buy | Amazon | Newegg

These gaming laptop deals genuinely do offer a great way into PC gaming that isn't ridiculously expensive, and will still have you comfortably enjoying the latest and greatest games at 1080p on medium settings. 

Also, given all the money you'll be saving on these machines, it'll mean you can redirect some of your overall budget to picking up the best gaming mouse or best  PC headset for gaming, too.

If you prefer your machines to be static, then check out the best gaming PCs going. And if you're in need of a bigger screen, one of the best gaming monitors will prove a great companion to your new laptop.

Rob Dwiar

Rob is the Deputy Editor of sister site, TechRadar Gaming, and has been in the games and tech industry for years. Prior to a recent stint as Gaming Editor at WePC, Rob was the Commissioning Editor for Hardware at GamesRadar+, and was on the hardware team for more than four years, since its inception in late 2018. He is also a writer on games and has had work published over the last six years or so at the likes of Eurogamer, RPS, PCGN, and more. He is also a qualified landscape and garden designer, so does that in his spare time, while he is also an expert on the virtual landscapes and environments of games and loves to write about them too, including in an upcoming book on the topic!