Ah, Call of Duty, the birthplace of many a competitive shooters and gamers thanks to the fast-paced, customizable and competitive aspects of the game. Call of Duty is just that one franchise you can fully expect for something to release yearly, and with the popularity of their latest free-to-play battle royale; Call of Duty Warzone, more and more gamers are jumping onboard the Call of Duty hype train.
Even I've been a fan of the series for quite a while now, with my personal favorite being the classic, OG Call of Duty: Modern Warfare (not the latest Modern Warfare release). Some may even prefer the earlier Call of Duty games like Black Ops, Black Ops II, COD:WW2 etc. What these games may vary with systems, weaponry, and mechanics, the base concept is still prevalent: shoot everyone you see.
We're going to be highlighting some of the very best laptops for Call of Duty to get you well equipped to handle the game. Depending on which game you're keen on getting into, you might find a few variations of the specs to look for.
For the most part, we're going to be concentrating on one of the latest versions of Call of Duty: Modern Warfare. But if you follow along with the specs we're going to outline, you should be more than well-equipped to handle most Call 0f Duty titles, including Call of Duty Warzone. With that in mind, let's start things off by taking a look at the minimum and recommended system
Minimum System Requirements
Based on these specs outlined on the official Call of Duty: Modern Warfare system requirements, we start to get a better picture of what the best laptop for Call of Duty will look like. Keep in mind that these are going to be the bare minimum system requirements to run Call of Duty: Modern Warfare, but it should be pretty similar to the specs required for Call of Duty: Warzone if that was more your jam. Either way, let's get started by checking out the specs you're going to need out of the best laptop for Call of Duty.
Display
First up, we're going to be talking about the display you're going to want on your laptop. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare didn't exactly specify this, but based on our understanding of gaming and gaming laptops, you're going to want at least a 15.6-inch display with a Full HD resolution.
A Full HD resolution should really be the base of what to look for as it's one of the most accessible, affordable and crisp displays you can get these days. It's also the industry standard for many gaming laptops and productivity laptops, so you should be more than capable with this setup. A 15.6-inch Full HD IPS display is 'good enough' we'd say, so this should be more than capable of running Call of Duty: Modern Warfare with great visual fidelity, clarity and vibrancy.
Processor
Next up, we're going to go over what you should be on the look for in terms of the processor. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare recommends finding at least a Intel Core i3-4340 or AMD FX-6300 as the minimum specs to run the game.
For those not very familiar with PC components and laptops, these are really low-powered specs and not to mention pretty outdated at this point. And considering you're going to be using the gaming laptop for some pretty hardcore gaming sessions, it's best to get much better than these specs like a 8th Gen/ 9th Gen Intel Core i5 or Intel Core i7 processors.
RAM/ Storage
For the RAM and storage, you're going to need at least a 8GB RAM capacity and a staggering 175GB free storage space for the base installation. Modern Warfare may also need additional storage space to add in additional maps, game modes, updates, etc. So it's best to find a voluminous storage capacity like a 1TB HDD or 512GB PCIe SSD.
Graphics Card
Lastly, the graphics card is going to be one of the most important parts of any gaming laptop. To run the game at it's very base system requirements, your laptop should have a NVIDIA GeForce GTX 670, or AMD Radeon HD 7950.
Other recent GPUs include the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1080, 1070, 1660, etc. These are pretty mid-range GPUs, but the most important thing to keep in mind is to find a good combination of CPU, GPU, RAM and storage to get the very best out of the best laptops for Call of Duty. CPU, GPU dictates your performance, while the RAM and storage support the processing.
Recommended System Requirements
Display
Here again we're going to recommend a 15.6-inch Full HD display, but we're taking things up a notch and recommending finding at least a 144 Hz high refresh rate. This will make everything you do in-game smoother and look much better than a standard 60 FPS display. Other than that, a Full HD resolution and 15.6-inch display should be the specs to look for to get your game up.
Processor
Call of Duty: Modern Warfare recommends finding at least an Intel Core i5-2500K or AMD Ryzen R5 1600x processor for better performance. Even then, these processors are pretty outdated and aren't as powerful as the one's we have today. You're probably better off with some of the most recent, powerful processors like an Intel i7-8750H, Core i7-9750H, Intel Core i7 10750H, etc. These are reliable, recent processors that have a great max clock speed and should have no trouble running Modern Warfare and other Call of Duty titles.
RAM/ Storage
In regards to the RAM and storage, the recommended specs include a hefty 12GB RAM capacity and we're going a step further and recommending you find a 512GB SSD to mitigate the huge install size for Modern Warfare. With these specs combined you should be more than well-equipped to handle the most intensive firefights in Modern Warfare.
Graphics Cards
And lastly, Modern Warfare recommends finding the best gaming laptops with at least a NVIDIA GeForce GTX 970, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 or AMD Radeon R9 390 / AMD Radeon RX 580 to handle the game. Now again, these aren't too much to ask for but if these are the recommendations, it means we're met with plentiful of gaming laptops capable of running the game reliably. If you were keen on some flagship features and performance like ray-tracing however, best looking for the latest RTX GPUs like the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2060, GeForce RTX 2070 Super, RTX 2080 Super, etc.
Best Laptops For Call of Duty
1. Acer Predator Helios 300
The first gaming laptop we're featuring is going to be the Acer Predator Helios 300, a well equipped laptop with a lot to offer gamers. The Acer Predator Helios 300 features a 15.6-inch Full HD IPS display with a speedy 144Hz refresh rate. On the internals, the laptop comes with a slightly outdated 9th Gen Intel Core i7-9750H processor, 16GB RAM and a standard 256GB SSD storage capacity. Not the most premium specs, but it's pretty great for Call of Duty gamers, covering the base specs you're going to need sufficiently. Definitely not the 'best' gaming laptop on the list, but still, good enough.
For its graphical performance, the laptop comes with an NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1660 Ti which features 6GB of dedicated GDDR6 VRAM. All in all, a great gaming laptop that has sufficient power, that patented 'gamer aesthetic' and a pretty reasonable price point.
2. Razer Blade 15
The next laptop on the list takes things to the next level, and is certainly built for the serious gamers reading this list. It is none other than the Razer Blade 15 which comes packed to the rim with great features. The first thing you'll notice is the 15.6-inch Full HD IPS display, capable of a super quick 300HZ refresh rate. Under the hood, the Razer Blade 15 comes with a 10th Gen Intel Core i7-10875H processor with 16GB RAM and a sizable 1TB SSD capacity. You also get Razer exclusive features like the Chroma keyboard and backlit logo, software, etc.
For the graphical performance, the laptop continues its impressive show with an NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2080 Super Max-Q with a solid 8GB of dedicated GDDR6 VRAM. This gaming laptop is built to last, and is probably for those who take their gaming a little more seriously to justify the exorbitant price tag.
3. HP OMEN 15
Another impressive laptop to game on is going to be the HP OMEN 15 which has some fantastic internal specs and an eye-catching design. First off, the laptop comes with a 15.6-inch Full HD IPS display with a smooth 300Hz refresh rate. That plus the 'alien-esque' design should get your game up a bit. Getting down to the nitty and gritty, the laptop comes with impressive internals including an Intel Core i7-10750H processor, a huge 32GB RAM capacity and 512GB SSD for storage. The Core i7-10750H is one of the latest so should hold up pretty well over the next couple of years.
For its graphical performance, the laptop utilizes the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 2070 Super which comes packing 8GB GDDR6 VRAM to take things up a notch in game. This should be helpful not only for Call of Duty, but other graphically intensive titles available these days. All in all, one of the better specced laptops we've seen so far making this a very capable COD companion.
4. Lenovo IdeaPad L340
Taking a step into the more affordable laptops marketplace, the next laptop we're featuring is the Lenovo IdeaPad L340. This laptop comes with a great spec sheet for the price, not compromising on too much to affect in-game performance on your laptop. Firstly, the laptop comes with a 15.6-inch Full HD IPS display, but sticks to a 60Hz panel. Can't blame em' considering the major discount you're getting here. The laptop also comes with an Intel Core i5-9300H processor, 8GB RAM capacity and a 512GB SSD.
For the graphics and gaming, the laptop utilizes the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 with 4GB of dedicated VRAM. This is definitely one of the more affordable laptops on the list and for good reason. If you were looking for more budget friendly laptops, this is a great option to look into.
5. Acer Nitro 5
The last entry to the list of the best laptops for COD is going to be another value champ, the Acer Nitro 5. Usually I'd recommend an Acer Nitro 5 to those looking for a great, wallet-friendly gaming laptop but this one comes packing a little extra to get your more value for your money. The laptop comes with a 15.6-inch Full HD IPS display which is pretty standard at this point. On to the internals we start to see why this laptop impresses starting with the Intel Core i5-10300H processor, 12GB RAM and a generous 1TB SSD + 1TB HDD storage options. Not running out of storage anytime soon on this laptop, that's for sure.
The Acer Nitro 5 comes packed with an NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 to handle all your graphically intensive programs and features 4GB of dedicated VRAM to help things load up on screen. All in all, an impressive value-for-money laptop which has a great spec sheet for the money. If you were looking for sizable storage capacities, this is going to be your best bet out of all the laptops we've seen so far.
Conclusion
We've gone through a whole host of gaming laptops and all of them are great, with more than enough power to handle Call of Duty: Modern Warfare and any other COD titles you may be into. But out of all these impressive laptops, we're going to have to pick just one as the very best of the best laptops for Call of Duty.
This time around, our winner is going to be the HP OMEN 15!
The HP OMEN 15 has a lot going for it from the unique aesthetics, great internal specs and a reasonable price tag. The super speedy display rate, up to date internals, and sizable RAM capacity gets you admirable performance not only in COD, but most other recently released titles. It's got everything you could ask for, and is going to be our champion for today's search.
