9 early Black Friday gaming laptops deals I’d buy right now as a creative pro — from only $599

Editor's choice: MSI Vector GP68
I chose this MSI gaming laptop now available from Newegg and Walmart for $1,699. That’s a massive 19% discount, down $400 from $2,099. It’s the cheapest laptop with the Nvidia GeForce RTX 4080 and combined with a powerful Core i9 CPU, will etch a big smile of the faces of gamers and creative pros alike looking to get a deal in early Black Friday sales.

MSI GF63 Thin: was $699 now $629 @ Walmart
This is the cheapest laptop right now that offers a reasonably powerful CPU (Core i5) with 16GB of RAM and a dedicated GPU (in that case, a Geforce RTX 3050 with 4GB) and a 512GB SSD. It’s more than capable of handling casual gaming as well as AutoCAD 2024 or Photoshop 2024. It’s now on sale at Walmart for only $629.

Lenovo LOQ: was $950 now $599 @ Best Buy
The most affordable laptop right now that offers an RTX 3050 GPU. Compared to the GF63 Thin listed here, it has a more recent Core i5 CPU, 50% more video memory and a much bigger 1TB SSD. However, it only has 8GB DDR5 RAM but it’s still a stunning offer. You can however upgrade the memory in less than 10 minutes if you’re a tinkerer. $350 saving on this laptop is nothing to be sniffed at.

Acer Nitro 5: was $799 now $699 @ Walmart
With a more powerful RTX 3050 Ti GPU, the Nitro 5 from Acer earns a spot on my list thanks to a very low price and a combination of great components making it ideal for gaming and for creative tasks: A Core i5 CPU, 16GB of RAM, a 512GB SSD and 15.6-inch 144Hz display tick the right boxes for whoever’s looking for a polyvalent budget laptop in early Black Friday sales. 

HP Omen: was $1250 now $780 @ Best Buy
This clearance sale from Best Buy which sees the price of the HP Omen gaming laptop shaved by a mammoth $470, without any corners cut. You get a super fast RTX 4050 GPU, a Core i5 CPU, 16GB of RAM and 512GB SSD. The screen is a larger-than-usual 16.1-inch 1080p model with a 144Hz refresh rate to ensure smooth graphics. It’s a great all-rounder machine for anyone looking to do a bit of coding or programming outside of gaming. 

MSI Sword: was $1099 now $899 @ Walmart
One of my preferred deals on this early Black Friday sales list is yet another MSI gaming laptop. The Sword adopts a cool white and blue finish and punches well above its price tag. With a Core i7 GPU, a RTX 4060 GPU with 8GB GDDR6, 16GB RAM and a 1TB SSD, it is seriously good value for money. Its elegant design makes this gaming laptop a great choice for a work device. 

Acer Nitro 16: $1250 @ Walmart
The lowest priced laptop with a Geforce RTX 4070 hails from Acer via Walmart. The Nitro 16 will crunch through graphics-heavy games as well as anything professionals may throw at it (and yes even rendering or video editing). Complementing the Ryzen 7 CPU, 16GB of RAM and a 512GB SSD is a 16-inch  2560 x 1600 pixel display with a 165Hz refresh rate. Put it simply, you won’t find a laptop with a faster GPU during early Black Friday sales. 

MSI GP68HX: was $2,099 now $1,699 @ Newegg
There’s no cheaper laptop that comes with a Geforce RTX 4080, one of the most powerful GPUs around. This versatile device packs a super fast Core i9 CPU, 16GB DDR5 memory, 1TB SSD and a 16-inch LCD with a 1920 x 1200 pixel resolution and a 144Hz. It also makes fantastic laptop for AI training for professionals looking for an affordable powerhouse. This laptop is a whopping $400 off at Newegg. 

Lenovo Legion Pro 7 Gen 8: was $3239 now $2702 @ Lenovo
Seriously, if you want the fastest mobile GPU available, then there’s nothing cheaper than this exceptional early Black Friday deal offer from Lenovo. This Legion Pro 7 Gen 8 gets the RTX 4090 with 16GB video memory and adds a 16-core Ryzen 9 CPU, 16GB of RAM and a 512GB SSD. Its 16-inch screen is - on paper - the best of the series, reaching a resolution of 2560 x 1600 pixels and a jaw-dropping 240Hz. This is mobile workstation territory with some awesome firepower.

Dell Alienware m18: $2,800 @ Dell
A powerful combo from Dell and AMD. The Alienware m18 is a gaming laptop that has a big 18-inch display (with a 480Hz refresh rate), making it perfect for photo editing and video editing. It boasts an 16-core Ryzen 9 CPU, AMD’s fastest GPU (the Radeon RX7900M with 16GB VRAM), 32GB of RAM and a 1TB SSD. Not an early black friday deal but I bet this one will get discounted pretty soon so keep an eye on it.