Is this laptop a “this is the one, boys” or a “this ain’t it, my guy”, or something in between?
The latter. A 3050 TI for $580 is a pretty bad deal, as you can get a laptop with a 4060 for just a few bucks more if you wait around for a good deal, which is a considerable jump up in terms of gaming performance.
If this thing had 16GB RAM and a 1TB drive I’d say “maybe, if you’re not planning on playing anything intensive,” but with these bottom-tier specs, this thing should be no more than $480.
If you have a Micro Center near you, there are some pretty good deals right now in the $600 range.
Alternatively:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0CGW3W9WN
I wouldn’t recommend anything lower than a 4060 for gaming. A 4070 would be even better, but you should expect a good deal for one of those to be around $850-950. If that’s out of budget, then wait a few weeks for the post-holiday return rush, when you can pick up some really good open-box deals, or even new laptops for cheap due to the glut of inventory.
Thank you for your insight! It takes so much time to look at the specs of every laptop and determine how much of a value it actually is.