The Best Laptops 2019: Our Buying Recommendations

[Julio Franco]

"Things move fast in the world of laptops." I have not noticed last 4 years especially if the winner is still DELL XPS13 and Macbook 13 https://web.archive.org/web/20151124120913/https://www.techspot.com/bestof/laptops/

Haha, point taken. But following that logic we wouldn't have noticed any changes in GPUs either because they are still labeled GeForce and Radeon. Although, wait, that GTX 1080 you bought back in 2016 is still pretty darn good.

After all the crap Apple pulled with its Pro keyboard, you are recommending it as a good buy?

True Mac users have no other choice (or keep using very old MacBooks). I personally use two MacBooks (along with a few other PCs) so I know they are good machines. The keyboards are not great and can fail on you, although I'm typing this on a 2016 MB Pro comfortably, no servicing needed.

 

[VitalyT]

True Mac users have no other choice (or keep using very old MacBooks).

There is, it's called hackintosh, and there are plenty available, for much less money.

 

[Julio Franco]

There is, it's called hackintosh, and there are plenty available, for much less money.

Run a poll on Mac users, not PC users wanting to run macOS as a hobby or project. A minority will agree to run a hackintosh.

 

[Julio Franco]

I'd really like to see a mobile workstation category in these lists. Some of us are power laptop users where gaming is a secondary consideration, if at all. For instance, I've got to source a new workstation laptop for SolidWorks soon to replace my aging Dell Precision system, and it's always good to see what suggestions and alternatives are out there for researching the best fit for our company.

Unfortunately goes beyond the scope of our buying guide. We don't test CAD workstations and the 15-inch powerhorses is the closest we get to what you describe would be an ideal machine for that purpose. There is some hardware overlap in form factor and processing power but I understand you'd normally require Quadro-level graphics. The ThinkPad P line is usually a reference in that segment. Then again, we also often hear about professionals that keep their desktops with multiple displays at the office and then prefer a lighter but still powerful laptop to work on the go, favoring some of the ultraportables mentioned here over the chunkier workstation notebooks.

 

[neeyik]

I'd really like to see a mobile workstation category in these lists. Some of us are power laptop users where gaming is a secondary consideration, if at all. For instance, I've got to source a new workstation laptop for SolidWorks soon to replace my aging Dell Precision system, and it's always good to see what suggestions and alternatives are out there for researching the best fit for our company.

I've just ordered a stack of Lenovo ThinkPad P52s for my department, as they run SolidWorks and Inventor quite nicely (although I dare say we don't generate overly complex structures).

 

[Julio Franco]

I've just ordered a stack of Lenovo ThinkPad P52s for my department, as they run SolidWorks and Inventor quite nicely (although I dare say we don't generate overly complex structures).

Ha! Maybe we should have Nick @neeyik highlight on a feature what makes ThinkPad P series special for work and that would complement our consumer laptop guide nicely

 

[neeyik]

Ah, that would be easy to do - they were cheap!

 

[Vrmithrax]

Unfortunately goes beyond the scope of our buying guide. We don't test CAD workstations and the 15-inch powerhorses is the closest we get to what you describe would be an ideal machine for that purpose. There is some hardware overlap in form factor and processing power but I understand you'd normally require Quadro-level graphics. The ThinkPad P line is usually a reference in that segment. Then again, we also often hear about professionals that keep their desktops with multiple displays at the office and then prefer a lighter but still powerful laptop to work on the go, favoring some of the ultraportables mentioned here over the chunkier workstation notebooks.

Yah, unfortunately that's a pretty common issue with laptop recommendation stories - basic productivity and gaming are about the ceiling for hardware that is discussed.

You are correct, the Quadro / FirePro (and now RadeonPro) level cards have traditionally been the desired mobile cards, because they are tested and certified to work with particular software packages (SolidWorks being a notable example of this). But, there are issues that can happen with those high end cards in mobile platforms - a good case in point is my Dell Precision workstation, which hasn't had a graphics driver update in almost 2 years. Dell loves to sell them as high end workstations and plays up their compatibility and support, but then totally drops the ball and never updates. Every day, SolidWorks complains that I'm not using a current driver, yet I'm using the latest driver available. Ugh.

While I'd love a lighter laptop or ultraportable, the complexity of some assemblies I have to work with (on the road) usually need the heavy horsepower and cooling that you just can't get with an ultraportable. For my personal use, I have a 15" 2-in-1 that I can run Inventor on easily and do some light gaming, but unfortunately SolidWorks can truly be a beast that demands a steady diet of fatty RAM slathered in thick CPU cycles.

 

[Lew Zealand]

There is, it's called hackintosh, and there are plenty available, for much less money.

Run a poll on Mac users, not PC users wanting to run macOS as a hobby or project. A minority will agree to run a hackintosh.

Yup, that'll be a very small minority but I'm one of them as I like the Mac OS but hate Apple's unupgradeable parts and ridiculous prices. Setting up a Broadwell i7 NUCintosh is what eventually led me back into PC gaming, one small step at a time. And I've been running at least one since then, including the Kaby Lake i7 NUC running OS 10.13 sitting in front of me. I'll be adding a Kaby Lake i5 NUC running OS 10.14 in a week's time.

 

[fluffydroid]

I would avoid the MSI laptops, they are at the bottom in terms of reliability. Check out laptopmag for the rankings. Asus is much better. And I own an MSI and can attest to their flakiness. Lots and lots of software problems, have had to reinstall Windows twice in the past few years. The MSI laptops are cheap, though, so there's that.

 

[Mr Majestyk]

Anything with that god awful 16:9 1080p display should be instant fail. Looks like Dell might be coming to its senses with new XPS 13 2-in-1 going to 16:10 1200p. One reason I like Mac and Surface laptops,, not that I’d buy either. Still waiitng for someone to make a good value 16:10/15:10 laptop unlike the egregious trip-off of the Dell.

Avoid Acer and HP too.

 

[lazer]

I have always liked Dell and Lenovo but hated Asus; would never get involved with them again.

However, since I do not play on my computer, just a bit of word and excel stuff plus reading emails and news, I am now using tablets (Samsung 10" and Lenovo 7") coupled with a Zagg BT keyboard.

Why?

MUCH CHEAPER and easier to carry around from place to place.....

 

[poohbear]

Personally, I regard the laptop as an adjunct device. I use my desktop day to day and recharge and use laptop every week or two (or three). Key values are in price, portability, durability and battery life - a 13" 720p display and a dual core at >2.4Ghz is sufficient.
This is not a wizard's machine. It is an appliance which could be replaced by a smartphone except the screen would be too small, and there would be no keyboard or no mouse (which I happily add to the pack).

I wouldn't get anything less than a quad-core in 2019. all 8th gen i5 & i7 cpus are quad-core, and the H models are 6-cores.

 

[p51d007]

I usually wait until a new model comes along, then buy "last years best thing" at a huge discount when they want to clear out remaining inventory. Same with most smartphones.

 

[waterytowers]

Had my 15 Dell xps since 2013 still works well. Upgraded memory and HDD to have 2tb SSD and 16gb ram when I bought it. Still manages all the workloads I throw at it. I'll upgrade when there is something it can't do. Only wish is Dell should provide more Linux support.

 

[David40]

Glad to see the Chromebook didn't make the cut, the Google company sucks!

 

[Alex Powell10]

I am very happy with my Lenovo .
Its not too big nor too small.
Its a convertible 2 in 1.
Its got a touchscreen.
Costs about 1000$ or less.