Picking a new laptop and choosing a new car are pretty similar experiences: They’re two of the most important decisions you’ll make in your precious lifetime.
Okay, laptops are significantly cheaper than that and your life and safety or whatever doesn’t exactly depend on it — but your job and other important life things (like Netflix) are made so much better by the addition of a reliable laptop.
Our point: Laptops are not one-size-fits-all, and this isn’t a choice that can be made just based on price or looks. It’s what’s on the inside that counts: Beginners need something user-friendly and straightforward, frequent travelers need something light with a long battery life, designers and gamers need top-notch 4K graphics and quick central processors, and everyone needs something that’s not gonna shit out on them after a year. We’re sweating already. Read more…
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IMAGE: Amazon
BEST OVERALL
Huawei MateBook X Pro
If you can ignore the webcam placement, this laptop's 3K touchscreen and stellar speakers make it a powerhouse for work and play.
- Storage: 256GB SSD
- RAM: 8GB
- Battery life: 15 hours
- Features: USB-C ports, 3K touchscreen, Nvidia GeForce MX150 2GB GDDR5 graphics card, Dolby Atmos speakers, fingerprint sensor, Intel i7-8550U processor, no SD card slot
IMAGE: Amazon
BEST 2-IN-1
Lenovo Yoga 920
Sitting at an impressively low price point, Lenovo's most recent upgrade to their already amazing convertible offers speed and great battery life.
- RAM: 8 GB
- Storage: 256 GB
- Battery life: Up to 15 hours
- Features: 3840 x 2160 display, 8th gen Intel Core i7-8550U processor, 1 USB 3.0 ports, 3 USB-C ports, Intel UHD Graphics 620, fingerprint reader
IMAGE: Best Buy
BEST FOR VIDEO AND PHOTO EDITING
2018 MacBook Pro
- RAM: 8 GB
- Storage: 256 GB
- Battery life: 10 hours
- Features: 2,880 x 1,800 FHD display, core six i9 chip with 2.9GHz and Turbo Boost up to 4.8GHz, 4 USB-C ports, no headphone jack, Radeon Pro 560X GPU graphics
IMAGE: Amazon
BEST FOR VISUAL ARTISTS
Dell XPS 15
- RAM: 32 GB
- Storage: 1 TB
- Battery life: 7 hours
- Features: 1,920 x 1,080 FHD display, USB-C with Thunderbolt 3, USB-A, SD card reader, headphone jack, i7-7700HQ CPUS with 2.2-GHz, NVIDIA GeForce 1050Ti graphics
IMAGE: Amazon
BEST FOR GAMING
Razer Blade
The best overall (and most aesthetically pleasing) gaming laptop out there, the newest Razer Blade gives top notch graphics with no lag.
- RAM: 16 GB
- Storage: 512 GB
- Battery life: Up to 7.5 hours
- Features: 3840 x 2160 display, Intel Core i7-8750H, 2.2Ghz, Nvidia GeForce GTX 1070 graphics, three USB 3.1, one USB-C Thunderbolt 3, HDMI port, Mini DisplayPort 1.4, Kensington lock port, headphone jack
IMAGE: Amazon
BEST FOR COLLEGE STUDENTS
Samsung Notebook 9 Pro
- RAM: 8 GB
- Storage: 256 GB
- Battery life: 12 hours
- Features: 1920 x 1080 FHD display, Intel Core i7-7500U Up To 3.5GHz, two USB-C and two USB-3, HDMI port, micro SD slot, Radeon 540 graphics
IMAGE: Amazon
BUDGET PICK
Asus Chromebook Flip
- RAM: 4 GB
- Storage: 64 GB
- Battery life: 10 hours
- Features: 1920 x 1080 FHD display, 6th gen Intel Core m7 processor, two USB-C, micro SD slot, 100 GB free storage on Google Drive
