Business Users
COMPARE business user FEATURES
Recommended Business User
Processor
Processor Speed
Operating System
Memory
Storage Capacity
Screen Size
Touch Screen
Display Resolution
Weight
Battery Life
Pros
Cons
Microsoft Surface Pro
Best for creative professionals
Intel® Core™ i7-7660U
up to 2.5 GHz
Windows 10 Pro
16 GB
512 GB
12.3"
2736 x 1824
1.75 lbs;
2.45 lbs with keyboard & pen
13 Hrs
Powerful for any application, long battery life, very compact/portable, great graphics and display, laptop/tablet hybrid with stand
Pen & type cover sold separately, add-ons could be pricey, no USB-C only USB 3.0
SYNCROREVIEW'S CHOICE
Dell XPS 15 Plus
Best for mobile workstation users
Intel® Core™ i5-8300H
up to 3.8 GHz
Windows 10 Pro
up to 16 GB
up to 512 GB
15.6"
3840 x 2160
4.5 lbs
11 Hrs
Great horsepower, sturdy build, the thinnest and lightest 15" laptop, beautiful 4K touch screen
Pricey starting cost, only 1 Thunberbolt 3 port, a little heavier weight
Best bang for your $
HP EliteBook
840 G5
Best for small and medium businesses
Intel® Core™ i7-8650U
up to 1.9 GHz
Windows 10 Pro
16 GB
512 GB
14"
up to 1920 x 1080
3.27 lbs
12.5 Hrs
Strong performance, long battery life, multiple USB ports, quality audio, back-lit keyboard
Add-ons are pricey, blurry webcam
Lenovo Flex 5
2 in 1
Best for any business users
Intel® Core™ i7-8650U
up to 4.2 GHz
Windows 10 Pro
up to 16 GB
up to 1 TB
15.6"
up to 1920 x 1080
2.9 lbs
14 Hrs
Premium performance, multiple ports/USB, thin and light weight, has webcam cover & fingerprint access
Dimmer than usual display with basic model
Our review process:
Laptops Considered
Hours Researched
Experts & Consumers Surveyed
Guide for selecting the best laptops:
There are many different factors to consider when buying any laptop. The most important factors are listed in the table above. Here are more details on each of those factors and what you should know or think about before buying.
- Usage: the first thing you must consider is how you will be using the laptop.
- Light users require very little effort on the laptop. You only need the laptop for surfing the web, paying bills online, email and social media. Light users also include watching movies or streaming videos.
- Medium users need to browse and edit photos or do a lot of typing for work. You may also be a student who need to do a good amount of research. If you have a full line of HD movies, you would need a slightly more powerful laptop to play the movies without any lag.
- Heavy users may include content creators or avid gamer. You will need the most high-end components in a laptop. Whether you’re running Photoshop or video editing tools or maybe even playing intense games, you will require specific set of features in a laptop to get the most out of it.
- Processor: the processor is your laptop’s brain. The better and more powerful, the more it can do and do it faster. Generally, there are two companies that make the processor for laptops – Intel and AMD. Each company makes various processor series. Here are the different series you can choose, depending on what kind of user you are:
- Intel Pentium come labeled with either Gold or Silver. They are found in the very basic laptops and is good if you are in the light user category. Laptops with Intel Pentium are best for light internet browsing and maybe watching one or two Youtube videos. This type of process will not be able to keep up with anything more.
- Intel Celeron is slightly more powerful than the Intel Pentium. This processor has enough power to do multiple heavy tasks in Excel or make complex PowerPoint presentations.
- Intel Core i3 is the stepping stone into a more powerful processing unit. Core i3 processors allow better multitasking and open the gateway to 4K (Ultra High Definition) video playback.
- Intel Core i5 is the middle ground between the moderate and heavy user categories. The Core i5 processors are good for light gaming, editing photos and other average activities.
- Intel Core i7 is the most powerful laptop processors for Intel. It is ideal for the heavy avid gamers, professional photo editors and video editing.
- AMD A Series consists of A4, A6, A9, A10 and A12, increasing in power respectively. These are good for the light (A4, A6) and moderate (A9 – A12) laptop user categories.
- AMD FX Series is the flagship of AMD’s processing units and is good for the moderate user category.
- AMD Ryzen is the top of the line processors for AMD. The Ryzen 3 series offers the same level of performance as Intel Core i5 and the Ryzen 7 series matches that of the Intel i7.
Did you know? Cores are like the number of workers in a factory. The more Cores you have, the more work gets done and heavy-duty multitasking. Processors which have 4 or Quad Cores are more than enough for most day-to-day usage.
- Processor Speed: also known as the clock speed and is generally shown in GHz (Gigahertz). Higher clock speeds indicate how fast the Cores on your laptop can run. If the Core is similar to the workers in a factory, then the speed at which they complete their job are similar to the clock speed in a laptop.
Did you know? The more powerful a processor (more Cores + fast clock speed), the faster it will drain your laptop’s batteries. Think of it as your processing unit being a sports car and your battery as the fuel. The faster the car runs, the faster it will drain the tank.
- Operating System: it is the foundation of the laptop’s software and manages all the other software and hardware on the laptop including files, memory and connected devices. It enables you to run all your favorite programs and games in a visual way instead of computer codes. The most common operating systems are as follows:
- Microsoft Windows is the most common in the world. The latest is Windows 10 and has a Home edition or Pro edition. The Pro edition is more suited for businesses so a consumer, you wouldn’t lose anything by getting a Home edition.
- MacOS can be found running on laptops made by Apple such as the Macbook, Macbook Air and Macbook Pro.
- ChromeOS can be found on laptops called Chromebooks. It is Google’s dedicated operating system for Chromebooks and is generally listed as a separate device type for laptops.
Did you know? A laptop with Windows 10 will cost slightly more than a laptop without it. But it is better to buy a laptop with Windows pre-installed because the standalone license for Windows cost more than the difference in price of a laptop with and without Windows.
- Memory: also known as RAM and is the internal memory which stores all of your Apps, files, games, etc. More RAM allows more of these to be open and still allow for a seamless experience, without lagging or hanging. Generally, 8GB is ideal for the average user.
Did you know? DDR4 RAM are the latest models and saves power and improves battery life. DDR3 RAM or older are cheaper, but they may soon be extinct, and any upgrades or replacements will not be possible.
- Storage Capacity: a storage on a laptop is where the operating system is installed, followed by all saved games, movies, documents, photos or other applications and software. There are 2 kinds of storage on a laptop, Hard Disk Drive (HDD) or Solid-State Drive (SSD).
- Screen size: comes in several sizes, all measured diagonally and bigger displays make content easier to see. 15” is the most common, but there are sizes ranging from 10” – 17”. The bigger the screen, the heavier the laptop will weigh. So, if you need to carry your laptop around a lot, you should consider a laptop with a display between 11” – 14”.
- Display Resolution: is a number that tells you how many pixels on a display and is usually measured in width x height. Higher number of pixels delivers higher clarity and sharpness. The higher resolution also means higher cost.
Did you know? Resolution can also be referred to as HD-Ready (720p), FullHD (1080p) or 4K (2160p). You may want to consider FullHD on a display since it is the perfect balance between good visuals and battery life.
- Battery Life: is what keeps the laptop running when it’s not plugged into a power outlet. It is usually measured in Watt-Hour (WHr). The bigger the battery and more WHr means more battery life and more hours of usage. But bigger batteries also mean heavier laptops.
Did you know? Things such as screen brightness, Wi-Fi or Bluetooth connectivity, type of processor and even the load on the processing unit will impact a battery life. Dimming the screen brightness to 50% (or lower) and turning off Bluetooth can provide you an additional hour of battery life.
- Ports & Connectivity: Ports connect laptops to a TV or an external display and connect pen drives, hard disks or even charging phones. Different ports serve different purposes. Here are the most common ports an average user will need.
- USB-A: is shaped like a thin rectangle and allows you to charge and transfer data at the same time. This type of port can operate at USB 3.0 speed or USB 2.0 speed. Laptops use USB ports to plug in everything such as a mouse, external hard drive or even a camera to transfer photos.
- USB-C: is the newest version of the USB port and provides faster data transfer and fast charging for your phone or other such devices. The best part is it allows you to plug in the cable any which way so a user no longer has to fumble with how to insert the cable.
- Thunderbolt: allows any kind of accessory to be connected to the laptop through a single USB-C port. The same cable can be used to plug into a 4K monitor or something simple as an external hard drive. It makes it convenient to have one cable to connect anything to the laptop.
- HDMI: connects the laptop to a TV, projector or a second screen. This allows you to connect external display with FullHD resolution or even 4K and can be super helpful if you don’t have a smartTV and you want to watch movies on a big screen.