To steam stream, or not to steam stream...... that is the question.

I've been set on a gaming laptop for months now. I'm ALWAYS on my laptop and never on my desktop, I use it all the time hence why I settled on one.

However, being completely ignorant to gaming to any degree I just assumed it was my only real option. That was until I started looking into this "steam" thing, yes... I know... point and laugh, and found out that I can actually stream to a not-so-powerful device.

This has left me with a rather unique opportunity. I still don't really know the ins and outs of how this steam thing works along with it's limitations so I'm hoping some of you guys on here will be able to help me make my mind up. My options are as follows.....

Option 1. Top end gaming laptop with desktop CPU/GPU, able to play VR and just about everything I can throw at it.

Option 2. High end gaming laptop with desktop CPU and mobile GPU (likely GTX 970m) and either a GTX 1070 or a GTX 1080 for my current desktop PC.

I have a reasonably fast wired network (1GB router, switches, etc).

What would my limitations be?

 

Alternatively, you could make use of Moonlight.

It is another game streaming function which basically uses the Nvidia GameStream protocol. In my opinion, if your sole purpose was to stream games to your laptop, that would be a much better bet.

In my opinion option 2 sounds much better. Keep in mind, as long as you are in house then streaming should be fine, should you attempt to stream over the internet, expect a lot of input lag even with a powerful upload connection.

 

Are there any limitations though? Such as less frame rate (limited by the streaming setup), etc? Or would you simply not know that were playing on a different PC?

 

I've dabbled with streaming out of curiosity. I found close to my wireless access point (a few meters) I could get a lovely 1080p 60fps (60fps is a limitation) with totally acceptable input lag. Going into another room the quality sharply dropped off. I was using Steam to stream.
I think streaming can make sense if you're in close proximity to an access point or have more than 1 physical connection available in another room.
Most importantly it depends on what games you play.

You're option 1 and 2 aren't separated by much by the way.

Having had a powerful pc and a high res tablet I can stream to, and then a desktop CPU powered Laptop - I'd recommend the power laptop solution. 1 device can get the job done in spades.

 

Thanks for the reply.

My main worry was actually the GSync. It's make a massive difference and look stunning at 70fps. If GSync wasn't possible over streaming then it would annoy me.

 

Its definitely not possible streaming bud

 

G-Sync definitely is not available and it won't make a difference for you in this case. What you need is a physical connection or a 5GHz signal close range. You really don't wanna have packet loss because you'll end up with major lag and even freezes while your game is running normally on the host PC.


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Network speed isn't an issue at all.

PS. I'm now finding this site almost un-usable with edge. It constantly pauses and freezes while I type due to all the ads. It's a nightmare.

 

Make sure you optimise the settings according to what you'll benefit on the machine you'll be playing on.

I'm 99% certain Nvidia has some feature which auto sorts this out but then again I don't trust em.

E.g No need to render in 4K if you'll be streaming to a 1080P screen.


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