Laptop/Lounge PC/Hybrid idea

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Hi all,

I have this urgent to get back into a bit of PC gaming after a hiatus of some 15 years (home, family all that good stuff).

I have been getting by on casual console gaming but I really don't feel too enthused about upgrading to a next gen console.

My dilemma is that I do not really have the space for a dedicated desk for a traditional setup. Simple, buy a laptop, right? Well I'm not so sure, I've never owned a gaming laptop, for me they have only ever been work tools, and I preferred the space a flexibility of a tower type case. I also feel they are prohibitively expensive for what they are.

I want to be able to sit comfortably/casually in the living room and be able to play PC games but not on the TV. Again, buy a laptop you say, but I'm just not sure it will cut the mustard. I won't be going hard-core playing FPS and things like that, much more into RTS/City builders.

So I have this idea that I could build a small tower/cube case, based around mATX mobo. The case can sit on the floor behind my seat, or to the side on a shelving unit.

I'd then be looking at making a tray/stand to sit on my lap for a compact keyboard and use a portable monitor, something like ViewSonic Omni 17". Obviously I would have to have HDMI and USB cables running to the monitor so wouldn't be wireless, but essentially no different to sitting with a laptop plugged in.

Perhaps this solution gives me the power/flexibility of a desktop with the comfort of a laptop (portability is not a concern).

Price wise I can build a modest gaming rig with monitor and peripheral around £1k, equivalent laptop is going to be 50% more.

Am I mad? Sorry for long winded post but needed to try to explain my thought proceas. Thoughts and comments please
 
The only thing I can see being a problem is monitor stability and the cables - other than that I can't see anything wrong with the idea.

I know it can be a minefield, but have you tried looking at a second hand gaming laptop? I bought one a couple of years ago (mobile gtx 1060, some age appropriate mid range intel cpu). Needs to stay plugged in cos the battery life is now atrocious but it runs Baldur's Gate 3 fine at mostly mid settings at 1080p and wasn't too expensive.
 
Ok, how about you 1) use the TV as your monitor 2) put the PC by the TV and plug into hdmi port there.
3) then buy a wireless keyboard and mouse
4) game on!

If you really can't play on the TV for some reason, then I'd build a little popup TV mount with linear actuators, so your monitor can rise out of the back of the chair, beside it or something similar (but then I am completely mad... :cry: )
 
The only thing I can see being a problem is monitor stability and the cables - other than that I can't see anything wrong with the idea.

I know it can be a minefield, but have you tried looking at a second hand gaming laptop? I bought one a couple of years ago (mobile gtx 1060, some age appropriate mid range intel cpu). Needs to stay plugged in cos the battery life is now atrocious but it runs Baldur's Gate 3 fine at mostly mid settings at 1080p and wasn't too expensive.
Yes, and I have looked at laptops, but I prefer the idea of a desktop style and I can easily upgrade/tinker if I want to
 
Ok, how about you 1) use the TV as your monitor 2) put the PC by the TV and plug into hdmi port there.
3) then buy a wireless keyboard and mouse
4) game on!

If you really can't play on the TV for some reason, then I'd build a little popup TV mount with linear actuators, so your monitor can rise out of the back of the chair, beside it or something similar (but then I am completely mad... :cry: )
Have to assume TV will be in use by wife/kids.

Not crazy, I have been looking at floor standing monitor mounts, or fixing a vesa arm to something nearby so I can swing a monitor infront of me
 
Rather than going for a wired display, have you considered a 'headless' solution, where you stream the tower display to a handheld device.

Depending on your budget there are now quite a few decent options to balance interface and screen quality, some are best used as simple passthrough but there also some we good screens that are decent standalone devices too.

Take a look at devices like Steamdeck (lower cost, has dual trackpads, 7 inch 800p screen resolution), Logictech G Cloud (lower cost, 7 inch 1080p display, best use as a passthrough) or Lenovo Legion Go (8.8 inch 2560x1600, 144hz, one trackpad, higher cost) - lots of other similar devices too.

These would give you the portability you are after and allow you to build a tower with the horsepower for city builder games
 
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