What We Measure
Every score is designed to answer a buying question: how fast is the laptop after heat has built up, how good is the screen you actually look at, how noisy and hot does it get, and whether the final price makes sense against similar machines.
| Category | Weight | What matters |
|---|---|---|
| Performance | 30% | Game FPS, 1% lows, GPU TGP, CPU limits, DLSS/FSR support, sustained clocks. |
| Display | 18% | Resolution, refresh rate, panel type, brightness, color coverage, HDR behavior. |
| Thermals | 17% | GPU/CPU temperatures after sustained load, fan noise, throttling, surface heat. |
| Battery | 10% | Light-use runtime, gaming runtime, battery capacity, charging practicality. |
| Build | 10% | Chassis stiffness, keyboard, ports, weight, serviceability, RAM/SSD upgrades. |
| Value | 15% | Price checked against competing laptops with similar GPU, TGP, display, RAM, and storage. |
Benchmark Rules
Game benchmarks are run in the laptop's highest stable performance mode with the dGPU active. We report native results where practical and mark DLSS, FSR, frame generation, or ray tracing when used. For comparison tables, we favor 1440p because it exposes GPU differences without being as CPU-bound as 1080p.
- Each benchmark is checked after the laptop has warmed up, not only from a cold start.
- We track average FPS and 1% lows because smoothness matters more than peak FPS.
- GPU TGP is treated as a first-class spec; the same GPU name can perform very differently at different wattages.
- Noise and temperature are judged under sustained load, not short synthetic bursts only.
Price And Availability
Prices on FRAMELIMIT are editorial reference prices or last-observed retailer prices. They are not live checkout prices. Retailer pricing, stock, seller, warranty, and exact configuration can change quickly, so every buyer should verify the final retailer page before purchasing.
When we have verified an exact Amazon product page, the button says “Check Price.” When we only have a search fallback, the button says “Search on Amazon.”
How We Choose Winners
Category winners are not always the fastest laptop. A flagship winner may prioritize sustained performance and display quality, while a student or budget winner may prioritize price, battery, durability, and upgradeability. We also avoid recommending a laptop when the available listing points to a different model than the editorial pick.
Corrections
If a spec, ASIN, price, or model configuration looks wrong, contact us and we will re-check it. Corrections are made in the page content and, where relevant, in the central laptop data that powers comparison cards.