Mind asking your brother about this: https://www.amazon.com/dp/B072QT88DG/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_RbPoAb6P2FYHZ?th=1

It's basically the same thing except I think the CPU is slightly different generations I think.

1. A thin and portable laptop is more expensive than a chunky one. And the thinner it is, the more inconsistent the fps. That is because they lack proper cooling/ventilation so both the cpu and gpu are more prone to overheating and throttling down. You can't get anything lighter than around 5lbs and expect it to play games well.

2. Just look for one with an SSD instead of a hard disk.

3. $1000 is a reasonable budget.

4. You want something with a GTX 1050. The 960m is older, slower, and sucks up more power (worse battery).

Some choices (just a quick search - I can't personally vouch for any of these but their specs fit):

https://www.amazon.com/Lenovo-Legion-Y520-i5-7300HQ-80WK00FHUS/dp/B06WVMJ713/ref=sr_1_20?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1503593699&sr=1-20&keywords=gtx&refinements=p_36%3A70000-100000

https://www.amazon.com/Acer-Nitro-i5-7300HQ-GeForce-AN515-51-53W5/dp/B073PXNPG7/ref=sr_1_37?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1503593817&sr=1-37&keywords=gtx&refinements=p_36%3A70000-100000

https://www.amazon.com/MSI-GL62M-7RD-1407-Performance-SteelSeries/dp/B072QT88DG/ref=sr_1_21?s=pc&ie=UTF8&qid=1503593699&sr=1-21&keywords=gtx&refinements=p_36%3A70000-100000

I just recently spent $814 on a laptop that runs sims 4 perfectly at high settings so it’s very doable.

MSI GL62M 7RD-1407 15.6" Full HD Thin and Light Performance Gaming Laptop i5-7300HQ GTX 1050 2G 8GB 256GB SSD Win10 SteelSeries Keyboard https://www.amazon.com/dp/B072QT88DG/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_vGwoAb55VC8K3

Oh and it’s on sale for even cheaper now!