Reddit mentions of ASUS M580VD-EB54 VivoBook 15.6" FHD thin and light Gaming Laptop (Intel Core i5-7300HQ, GTX 1050 2GB, 8GB DDR4, 256GB SSD), backlit keyboard

Most (cheap) gaming laptops have a fairly gaudy look, and if she wants a Macbook then I doubt she's going to like a flashy gamer laptop look.

This is a pretty good deal for $740, it's got good specs in a sleek looking laptop that doesn't scream gaming.

A decent all-around option would be the Acer VX15 for $800. It comes with a Quad Core i5 processor, 8gb of ram, 256gb SSD and a GTX 1050 dGPU. It also has a 6 hour advertised battery and a 1080p ips display. It isn't quite as light as you'd probably like at 5.5 lbs though. You could also look into the Dell 7567 for a similar price for a better battery, but it's even heavier at 5.8 lbs.

A cheaper option is the Asus M850 for $800 which also has a GTX 1050 and a quad core processor. The cooling probably won't be quite as good, but it has a much more sleek appearance and weighs in at 5.1 lbs. It has a 47Wh battery which I'd expect to last around 5 or so hours of light use.

For something cheaper and even more portable, lenovo Ideapad 510s for $650. It comes with skylake i7, 8gb of ram, 256gb SSD and AMD R7 dedicated graphics. It should work fine for any light and moderate gaming, and could play Overwatch around mid settings with good FPS - it will struggle with more graphic intense games like Witcher 3 though. I'd expect it to only be playable on lowest possible settings. The battery isn't nearly as good as the Envy 13 though. You can also look into a new version for $800 but the only improvement is a slightly faster processor, and it still has the same GPU.

If you're looking for more suggestions or are interested in getting a better idea of options on the market, I suggest taking a look at my Laptop Suggestion Guide. Best of luck!

Here's the short list. I'll probably get one of the below.

• https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B072C7TNBZ/ref=ox_sc_sfl_title_1?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER
  
• https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B076CXDL9R/ref=ox_sc_sfl_title_2?ie=UTF8&psc=1&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER
  
• https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0788ZS24N/ref=ox_sc_act_title_3?smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER&psc=1
  
• https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B075X4WV1Z/ref=ox_sc_act_title_2?smid=A33IRKQJIMLX3X&psc=1
  
• https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0746P25QX/ref=ox_sc_act_title_1?smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER&psc=1

I usually go for ASUS or Lenovo.

https://www.amazon.com/M580VD-EB54-VivoBook-i5-7300HQ-backlit-keyboard/dp/B072C7TNBZ/ref=sr_1_1?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1505589846&sr=1-1&keywords=Asus+laptop&refinements=p_n_feature_fourteen_browse-bin%3A2057441011%2Cp_36%3A2421889011

asus vivobook same specs as the one in your post
hp pavillion with gtx 1050 with 4GB of GDDR5

Hello, you should check out this review to get an idea of what's available on the market now.

For your requirements, you may want to consider this one. It has 15.6" FHD screen, Intel Core i5-7300HQ, GTX 1050 2GB, 8GB DDR4, 256GB SSD, backlit keyboard. Pretty decent!

A GTX 1050 is a graphics card. I have found some laptops on Amazon that I would recommend:

This Acer Nitro has good specs for the money and isn't too thick but it does look quite gamer which can be a turn off. - https://www.amazon.ca/Acer-Gaming-Laptop-i5-7300HQ-Windows/dp/B071JLXGCW/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1521221922&sr=1-1&keywords=Acer+Nitro+5

This Asus looks like it might be slimmer and looks more normal but it has a slightly worse graphics card but has more storage. A 1tb SSHD instead of a faster but smaller 256gb SSD. https://www.amazon.ca/Asus-Powerful-i5-7300HQ-Quad-Core-Processor/dp/B076H6X5SS/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1521221963&sr=1-1&keywords=ASUS+FX503VD

The MSI one is very pretty imo but only has the 2gb 1050 instead of the 2gb 1050 ti.
https://www.amazon.ca/MSI-GL62M-7RD-1407-Performance-SteelSeries/dp/B072QT88DG/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1521221994&sr=1-1&keywords=MSI+GL62M+7RD-1407

This Asus one is very thin and looks sorta like a macbook. It has a 2gb GTX 1050 but it sure is beautiful.
https://www.amazon.ca/Asus-M580VD-EB54-VivoBook-Multimedia-i5-7300HQ/dp/B072C7TNBZ/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1521222018&sr=1-1&keywords=ASUS+M580VD-EB54

This MSI one has the i7 instead of the i5 in most of them but doesn't look as good imo and only has the 2gb. It is also $100 more but the i7 is quite a lot better.
https://www.amazon.ca/MSI-GL62M-7RDX-1408-Performance-SteelSeries/dp/B071K1Q8TK/ref=sr_1_fkmr0_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1521222038&sr=1-1-fkmr0&keywords=MSI+GL62M+7RDX-140

If you find a laptop that you think you like just reply to me with it and i'll check it out for you too see if it's worth the money. The main thing is too look at the specs and look at the build to see what you would prefer. These laptops will run almost anything that you would run on your Mac and if the software isn't avaliable which is very rare it would have alternatives. Windows usually is a lot better than MacOS.

You said about editing videos which the i7 would be better for but it wouldn't be a massive difference since they have the same GPU. The GTX 1050 would get over 100fps on Fortnite. They would all run Microsoft office and stuff like that. Hope this helps

Edit: Changed the links to the same laptops for Canada. They are more expensive due to the Canadian dollar not being as good but still a good deal.

yup, just recognizes it as another storage device. Just make sure to install the games onto it and not the ssd :p
Im home now and heres the options which seem to be pretty good.

https://www.amazon.com/Notebook-i7-7500U-NVIDIA-Windows-Computer/dp/B073R2V1MQ/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1502047381&sr=8-2-spons&keywords=1050+laptop&psc=1

this MSI means no need for external hdd, BUT it comes with a U processor which is a less powerful i7, but it wont bottleneck you unless youre say video editing or streaming. Just make sure to install the games onto the HDD and not the ssd so the SSD doesnt become cluttered

https://www.amazon.com/M580VD-EB54-VivoBook-i5-7300HQ-backlit-keyboard/dp/B072C7TNBZ/ref=sr_1_6?ie=UTF8&qid=1502047381&sr=8-6&keywords=1050+laptop
https://www.amazon.com/Seagate-Expansion-Portable-External-STEA1000400/dp/B00TKFEEAS/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1502047412&sr=8-4&keywords=external+hdd

This is the original setup i was saying. You get the better processor and aside from that practically the same specs. Downside is the external, BUT for a college student that may be better as you wont be tempted to load up games in class since your external will be in your dorm most likely.

My personal pick is the ASUS since it has better build (Aluminum) and only slightly heavier. Its 5lbs, BUT thin and 5lbs is really not a lot. Its lighter than a standard textbook and itll feel sturdy. AND the ASUS will get better battery life

https://www.amazon.ca/Asus-M580VD-EB54-VivoBook-Multimedia-GeForce/dp/B072C7TNBZ/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1500767084&sr=8-1&keywords=asus+m580vd

This comes with low quality TN screen so I wouldn't recommend it, this is a great choice if you care more about looks than raw power.

Hey, the AsusM850 doesn't look too bulky. The nitro 1050ti is cheap right now though, so it's really hard to find a lightweight alternative for the price. There's going to be a new Nitro, that's why it's so cheap.

The new dell G3 might be good for you. It's got a 1050 and it's not too bulky either.

This with i5-8250u and mx150, it has 256 gb of ssd.

Or this now this is more expensive but has a powerful i5-7300HQ and GTX1050, but you need to sacrifice battery.

It still looks a bit bulky.

What do you think of this Asus vivo Pro

And those are not too demanding at all... The M580VD-EB54 will certainly do the job for you and in terms of aesthetics, fits your criteria very well.

Cheapest sensible improvement would be around the $800 mark with something like this https://www.amazon.com/M580VD-EB54-VivoBook-i5-7300HQ-backlit-keyboard/dp/B072C7TNBZ/ref=sr_1_4?ie=UTF8&qid=1501458354&sr=8-4&keywords=laptop+gtx+1050

I was just on a similiar search, if you dont mind refurb you can get this https://www.amazon.ca/gp/product/B072C7TNBZ/ref=ox_sc_saved_title_2?smid=AUJBRIGYRJ3Q8&psc=1 comes with a 1050 which could probably even run something like the witcher 3 on low.


This one is also pretty nice https://www.amazon.ca/Asus-F510UA-AH51-VivoBook-i5-8250U-NanoEdge/dp/B0762S8PYM/ref=sr_1_18?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1540584504&sr=1-18&refinements=p_36%3A-75000%2Cp_n_feature_four_browse-bin%3A7322346011


If you dont care about looks I would look for a local deal on a thinkpad.

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First of all, gaming on ultra thin/light laptops is a bit of a contradiction. The laptops that can do this well (Gigabyte Aero 14, Razer Blade, MSI Stealth, Asus Zephyr) are all priced over 1200 dollars. Basically, smaller space + more heat = more noise, that is just a fact. With nvidia releasing the Max-Q series this might change since it is designed to deliver performance for less than 40dB.

The best bet would be a ultrabook with a dedicated GPU like this one:

https://www.amazon.com/M580VD-EB54-VivoBook-i5-7300HQ-backlit-keyboard/dp/B072C7TNBZ/ref=sr_1_1?s=electronics&ie=UTF8&qid=1501140995&sr=1-1&keywords=asus+vivobook+gtx+1050


The gtx 1050 will play most games om medium on 1080p. But in a few years triple AAA titles might not be playable.

You would just need any recent i3 laptop that uses Intel HD 620 (I3 6100U, for example)

It would run ~50 FPS at max settings at 720p

So just put it on high rather than very high and you'll get a smooth 60 FPS

Edit: And if you get a high power CPU laptop (I3 7100H, 7100E or 7102E) you can even play maxed at 1080p, but these are much less power efficient compared to the U versions

Edit 2: If your budget is higher, you can get this ASUS laptop which is powerful and doesn't look like a gaming laptop

Dell Inspiron - https://www.amazon.com/dp/B06XFGDD8P/ref=olp_product_details?_encoding=UTF8&me=&th=1#customerReviews

ASUS VivoBook - https://www.amazon.com/M580VD-EB54-VivoBook-i5-7300HQ-backlit-keyboard/dp/B072C7TNBZ/ref=cm_cr_arp_d_product_sims?ie=UTF8&th=1&psc=1