Reddit mentions of Asus ROG Strix Scar II Gaming Laptop, 17.3” 144Hz IPS-Type FHD, NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070 8GB, Intel Core i7-8750H Processor, 16GB DDR4 RAM, 512GB PCIe SSD + 1TB SSHD, RGB KB, Windows 10 - GL704GW-DS76

I've been researching laptops within your price range for a few weeks now. I keep coming back to this which seems to be the best specs for the price. Features full RTX 2070 (basically the second best laptop gpu you can get), 144hz display, and 17 8750h cpu. It also seems to be on sale for 1799.99, which is the lowest I've ever seen (been checking it pretty much everyday). Theres also this which is the pricier 17" model. It's bigger so probably better cooling/thermals and comes with more storage space.

I got the 17" Asus Strix Scar II and I love mine. Haven't had any issues with it. In my opinion it is worth it. But that could just be me.

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Link to the one I got: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07N3LGZL9/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o02_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Thanks for taking the time to recommend a link. After looking at it I saw another one for only a few hundred dollars more.

https://www.amazon.com/ASUS-IPS-Type-GeForce-i7-8750H-Processor/dp/B07N3LGZL9/ref=pd_sim_147_3/144-5538939-1736527?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=B07N3LGZL9&pd_rd_r=ff17b361-64cc-11e9-867c-c5b0dbebe95a&pd_rd_w=Etfyd&pd_rd_wg=Xz0c7&pf_rd_p=90485860-83e9-4fd9-b838-b28a9b7fda30&pf_rd_r=5ZXX92B6A5SYCYPVXNDF&psc=1&refRID=5ZXX92B6A5SYCYPVXNDF

What do you think about this one? It has a 2070 video card in it.

Hi, aside from the typical RTX 2060 devices in your price range, there aren't many super powerful gaming laptops. But, keep your eye on the ASUS ROG Strix Scar II, this 17.3" model might drop to $1,500 during a sale.

Thank you, I think after reading your response I'm definitely going to replace it. I suppose my budget is a little more flexible, if something that's around $2,000 maintains a decent cost-to-performance ratio. $1600 is an ideal that may not be realized.

Found the 17.3" Acer Predator Helios 300 w/ 1660ti / 512GB SSD for $1,249 on Amazon:

https://www.amazon.com/Acer-Predator-i7-9750H-Keyboard-PH317-53-7777/dp/B07V4QFKDM/ref=sr_1_6?keywords=acer+predator+helios+300+17%22&qid=1573509298&s=electronics&smid=ATVPDKIKX0DER&sr=1-6

Also found an ASUS ROG Strix Scar II for $1699 with an 8750H and a full 2070 for $1,699:

https://www.amazon.com/ASUS-IPS-Type-GeForce-i7-8750H-Processor/dp/B07N3LGZL9/ref=pd_cp_147_1/138-8260141-5601805?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=B07N3LGZL9&pd_rd_r=e5d8b08b-fbd2-4d11-b13e-b65d81d48996&pd_rd_w=WwAxw&pd_rd_wg=WbPxn&pf_rd_p=0e5324e1-c848-4872-bbd5-5be6baedf80e&pf_rd_r=VBEYH3ARMGRFV30S3D2Q&psc=1&refRID=VBEYH3ARMGRFV30S3D2Q

There's plenty of stuff in the $2,000 range, but I don't know if roughly 5% gains on performance jumping from an 8750H to a 9750H is worth $300 to me. There would need to be other factors, like greatly improved thermals and color accuracy / display quality to justify it. The SCAR III/Hero is a shining example of this. I'm unsure if the cooling is that much better than the previous chassis to justify itself.

And, quite simply, an RTX 2070 could be overkill for my use case. Just want the least amount of latency possible in a 17.3" frame.

Update: I could also wait until BF for a Lenovo Legion 740 w/ 2070MQ / 256+1T combo storage for $1,279. That may be hard to beat on price per $, even if I am getting a Max-Q card.

https://www.theblackfriday.com/lenovo-blackfriday.shtml