There are a few real differences between gaming laptops and what can be considered an ideal office/work laptop. However, most of those differences are superficial and laptops which suit both purposes do exist. As we get deeper into the discussion, the points stated should make more sense.
What is a Gaming Laptop?
A gaming laptop at its core is any laptop that’s powerful enough to run the latest games in high – ultra settings. It should also have a high refresh rate display (120Hz – 244Hz+) to support competitive gaming online. LED lighting, RGB keyboards, company logos, and additional design elements may or may not be present on laptops specifically marketed towards gamers, but they are neither necessary nor universally present on all gaming laptops. In fact, most manufacturers are now moving towards more sober designs and avoiding the loud builds that older gaming laptops were infamous for.
Can a Gaming Laptop Serve as a Work Laptop?
It depends on the laptop and the kind of work the user does. As far as raw performance is concerned, an average gaming laptop will always be significantly more powerful than the average business laptop by design. They will also have a better keyboard in most instances. However, some gaming laptops are big, heavy, and too flashy to be taken regularly to the office. Even those will more than get the job done, but they may not be appropriate to work within a professional environment.
However, there are several other gaming laptops which are not just powerful enough to run AAA games, but also sleek enough to be suited for any professional environment. For example, go to Lenovo.com and take a look at the Legion 5i series. The Stingray White Model looks and feels as professional as they come. There are no flashy LED lights on the outside that you can’t turn off, and it’s powerful enough to run games and go through casual and serious workloads without a hitch.
What is an Office/Work/Corporate Laptop?
This is where things get a little more difficult to define because the requirements will vary quite widely, depending on the kind of work the professional does. Underpowered but well-built, sleek, lightweight laptops are often sold at a premium price and cited as business/work/office laptops. If the office worker is a multimedia professional, they would find no use for such a device, and neither would a graphic designer, digital artist, or software/game developer among others. The workstations and heavy-duty laptops that some of these professionals work with are much bigger and heavier than most gaming laptops.
Even if an office worker only needs his/her laptop to run MS Office, Zoom, Google Office Suite, browsers, and other low-intensity applications, they will find more value for money by buying laptops that are not branded as work or gaming devices. It would be appropriate to state that any laptop that’s adequately equipped to handle the kind of work that the professional needs it to handle, is essentially a work laptop.