Newcomer / Intro Best budget gaming laptop for VR headset

nexsuperne101

N
Hi all,

I currently play on an XBOX one. I have an Imperial cutter and am gradually working my way up the ranks. I am now looking at buying a gaming laptop which runs Elite Dangerous easily, plus a suitable VR headset. I am looking at getting my account ported from xbox to PC, as I don't want to do the rank and money grind AGAIN :)

Any advice please? If I get 2 laptops, can me and my son run it in multiplayer on PC? I tried on xbox and PC, but even though they are the same game, the platforms seem to stop him having the cutter on xbox, and me playing gunner position in the cutter on my PC.

Many thanks
Nex
 

the100thmonkey

the100thmonkey
nexsuperne101 said:
Hi all,

I currently play on an XBOX one. I have an Imperial cutter and am gradually working my way up the ranks. I am now looking at buying a gaming laptop which runs Elite Dangerous easily, plus a suitable VR headset. I am looking at getting my account ported from xbox to PC, as I don't want to do the rank and money grind AGAIN :)

Any advice please? If I get 2 laptops, can me and my son run it in multiplayer on PC? I tried on xbox and PC, but even though they are the same game, the platforms seem to stop him having the cutter on xbox, and me playing gunner position in the cutter on my PC.

Many thanks
Nex
Click to expand...
There's currently no crossplay between platforms, except for PC and Mac, but Mac doesn't get Horizons. Microsoft seem quite keen on crossplay, so it may come in the future.

To the best of my knowledge, FDev don't port CMDR data between platforms.

If you get two laptops, you and your boy will be able to play togther. RESes are a blast when you and your wingman are in the same room calling out contacts and working together. I can especially recommend getting one (or two, depending on how many kids you have!) fighters in one of the big ships. Until they get their bounty cuts and wonder why they get less money than when running as a fully-fledged wing.

With regard to VR-ready budget laptops, that's still something of an oxymoron - VR is very demanding, and you're looking at a GTX 1060 6GB as a bare minimum. I'd suggest that your budget needs to be $1,200 per laptop or more. A GTX 1070 or higher will give you a good smooth experience if you set it up right.

Of course, for $1,200, you can build a beast of a desktop that will easily play E:D in VR.
 
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mp4x

mp4x
To be honest, "Budget Laptop" and VR don't go hand in hand.

VR, especially in Elite, is heavy on the system and while you might be able to play it on the screen, on a budget laptop, it's unlikely to be suitable to run an Oculus or Vive well.
 

d8veh

d8veh
That's right. Running it and enjoying it are not the same thing. I have a top spec gaming PC with a GTX1080, on which I find the VR graphics sadly lacking compared with a monitor.
 

Mxpower76

Mxpower76
The most you can get out of a 1060 is med settings with a couple highs. It's what I would call "decent and playable". I get the occasional slow down when I drop out near a station. That said if you're like me "good enough" isn't going to last very long. But I have a home built desktop that I could upgrade. Laptop....no dice. It would be good for some non VR couch gaming though.

Edit: My 1060 is a 6gb version. A $1200 laptop might have a 3gb version. Also my opinion of what's "good enough" might not be the same as yours. You might think a 1060 isn't cutting it and would want to step up to 1080. No way to do that with a laptop.
 
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Slopey

Volunteer Moderator
Slopey
1060 will get you VR Low/med quite nicely, BUT a 1080 is a totally different experience - that is especially true for other VR experiences beyond ED. A laptop ain't gonna cut it.

Unless it's a "full" 1060 also, you're not going to get that sort of power in a laptop unless you go high end. Expensive. Plus remember the VR Headset itself (depending on flavour) is going to add another 500.

You'll be able to buy 2 medium spec desktops for the price of a high end gaming laptop. That will let you play together if you want to.

I'd strongly advise you try someone elses VR setup before you decide to go that way. Some people hate it, some people aren't that bothered, and some absolutely love it. I have both the Rift/Vive and I do play in ED with them, but to be honest most of the time I don't have the time to sit with the headset on, and I'm doing something else/drinking/moving about while exploring etc. With VR you really need to be able to sit there, as taking it on and off is a pest every 2 minutes.

Before you decide you want to spend considerably money on VR, try it out otherwise it's an expensive purchase for something you end up not using potentially, even more so when you need the hardware to properly support it.
 
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