Well you are right that getting an affordable laptop is an issue. Make it a gaming capable laptop and it is even more problematic. About six to eight years ago I did a lot of research into the question. The conclusion I reached was that you want to buy a laptop that is made by the brand. At that point there were companies, Sager, Crown, a couple of others, that was the original manufacturer of the laptop. Ideally you want to buy from a brand like that. Dell, HP, other give those companies specifications, and a target price point. In order to deliver they have to cut corners to get into the sweet spot of specs vs price. When you buy from the actual manufacturer chances are you are getting a better laptop because they are making it without those cut corners. Also means that generally they are more expensive machines.
I imagine that concept still holds up today. I have no idea who are the original manufacturers of laptops these days. Alienware, the last I checked, was not on that list either. I think they are owned by Dell.
Honestly I would avoid a laptop unless you had a real need for mobility. If you do need one then I would do some research into who is actually making the laptop and try to buy one from them.
Of course all my knowledge about this topic is out of date so maybe this is no longer true. I use Dell laptops for work and I generally hate them. They do have some good ones though.
