Best Laptops

Best desktop-replacement laptops

Desktop-replacement laptops are a good choice for mainstream users who don't care about portability. Although they often weigh much more than 5 pounds, desktop replacements have enough firepower to serve as your primary computer.

In this category, Dell gets excellent reviews for the 15.6-inch Dell XPS 15z (*Est. $1,000 and up). "If you're shopping for a Windows notebook, the [XPS] 15z is one of the better 15-inch machines that money can buy," says Michael Prospero at Laptop Magazine. Various configurations are available, but the base model comes with a second-generation Intel Core i5 processor, 6 GB of RAM, 500 GB hard drive and Nvidia GeForce GT 525M graphics with Optimus technology, which switches automatically between discrete and integrated graphics to conserve battery life or boost graphics power. Other features include a slot-loading CD/DVD drive, built-in Bluetooth and an 8-cell battery. Most reviewers, however, test an upgraded version with a Core i7 processor that costs closer to $1,500.

The Dell XPS 15z is outfitted in sleek aluminum and magnesium-alloy, which attracts a number of comparisons to Apple's MacBook Pro (discussed in our report on Apple computers). It's also much thinner and about a pound lighter than previous versions, including the Dell XPS 15. The oversized touchpad is responsive to various multi-touch gestures, and strong speakers are another plus. The display is incredibly bright and outputs gorgeous color, according to reviews, although a few reviewers say the colors are a bit oversaturated. "The XPS 15z is at the top of the food chain in terms of screen quality," says Cisco Cheng at PCMag.com.

Performance is outstanding, especially if you opt for the optional Intel Core i7 processor, which has ample multitasking prowess. Reviewers have no problems with demanding photo- or video-editing tasks, and the Dell laptop can more than handle gaming at reasonable settings.

Most reviewers get about six hours of battery life, depending on the task. The chiclet keyboard gets the job done, most say, but others think it has too much flex and isn't particularly comfortable. However, the most common complaint we saw is that the Dell XPS 15z has limited upgrade options -- most notably, it's missing the option for a Blu-ray drive, which is a common feature on desktop-replacement laptops. Several testers also note that the cooling fans are noisy during demanding tasks. Even so, reviewers say the Dell XPS 15z is an excellent Windows alternative to the MacBook Pro.

Dell still offers the Dell XPS 15 (*Est. $800 and up), which packs powerful components and can be quite affordable if you keep the upgrades in check. Even the base configuration comes stocked with a second-generation Intel Core i5 processor and discrete Nvidia GeForce GT525M graphics, along with 4 GB of RAM and a 500 GB hard drive. A CD/DVD drive, 6-cell Lithium-ion battery, HDMI port and two USB 3.0 slots also come standard. Unlike the Dell XPS 15z, the XPS 15 can be optioned with a Blu-ray drive; most reviewers test an upgraded laptop with this option, plus an Intel Core i7 processor and high-resolution display, which pushes the price closer to $1,500.

In its upgraded configuration, the Dell XPS 15 impresses. "A 1080p display, Blu-ray, Nvidia graphics, awesome audio -- the Dell XPS 15 has it all," says Avram Piltch at Laptop Magazine. The high-resolution display gets particularly high marks for its excellent viewing angles and bright, vivid colors, and experts rave about the JBL speakers. In terms of performance, the Dell XPS 15 laptop is blisteringly fast, even for demanding tasks such as transcoding video and 3D gaming. If your computer tasks are more pedestrian -- think sending emails, surfing the web and watching videos -- the base configuration should meet your needs. T3.com tests this version of the Dell XPS laptop and says performance "truly excels." Battery life is pretty good for a 15-inch notebook, lasting over four hours in most tests.

Unlike the Dell XPS 15z, however, the Dell XPS 15 gets low marks for design. It is outfitted mainly in brushed aluminum but is nearly 2.25 inches thick (with the optional 9-cell battery) at its widest point. It also weighs about a pound more than its pricier sibling. As a result, the overall look is somewhat bulky, and PC Pro describes the Dell XPS 15 laptop as a "flabby giant." The keyboard gets relatively high marks overall, although a few experts complain that it has too much flex.

Best ultraportable laptops

Ultraportable laptops sit on the opposite side of the spectrum from desktop replacements. Weighing less than 5 pounds, ultraportable laptops put a premium on portability, and newer models have begun squeezing big performance out of the little laptops thanks to small, powerful and efficient components like Intel's Sandy Bridge processor. Still, while ultraportable laptops are a great choice for frequent travelers, gamers will probably want to look elsewhere, as most ultraportables save space by bypassing discrete graphics and optical drives.

Ultrabooks are a new class of ultraportable laptops. Designed to compete with Apple's MacBook Air line, these ultraportable computers conform to hardware guidelines laid out by Intel that cover processor power, battery life, storage and more.

Only a few ultrabooks have made it to market at this point, but one has already established itself as the laptop to beat. The 13.3-inch Asus Zenbook UX31E (*Est. $1,100 and up) packs a dual-core second-generation Intel Core i5-2557M with integrated HD 3000 graphics, 4 GB of RAM and a speedy 128 GB solid-state drive (SSD) into its compact frame, which is barely over half an inch thick and weighs in at a scant 2.86 pounds.

Asus compensates for the limited storage space by including access to the company's cloud-based Asus Web Storage service, which lets you store 2 GB of data on Asus' servers for free or an unlimited amount of data for $30 a year. Other features include Bang & Olufsen ICEpower audio, miniHDMI and USB 3.0 ports, and Bluetooth 4.0 support. Asus also tosses in a mini VGA-to-VGA adapter and a USB-to-Ethernet adapter. Pricier models include even more powerful CPUs and up the size of the SSD to 256 GB, but most reviewers stick to the base version.

Reviewers across the board love the thin brushed-aluminum chassis of the Zenbook, although many note that the design was obviously inspired by the MacBook Air. The metallic island-style keys generally earn praise from experts, but some wish the keyboard had a backlight. The keys themselves are also just slightly too resistive for some reviewers.

"Overall, typing this review on the UX31 was a pleasant experience, but we had to hit the keys slightly harder than we're used to make sure the notebook registered all of our presses," Michael Prospero writes at Laptop Magazine. The glass touchpad is generally considered a negative; although it includes buttons and is similar in size to the MacBook Air's, critics say the multi-touch gestures are overly sensitive and the cursor is a bit jumpy. "Neither the keyboard nor the touch pad is a deal breaker, but they mar the supposed Zen-like feel I felt that Asus hopes we achieve via the Zenbook," CNET reviewer Scott Stein opines.

While the keyboard and touchpad might not be strong points, critics say the Zenbook UX31E leaves little on the table when it comes to performance. The Asus Ultrabook bested both the MacBook Air and the older Samsung Series 9 laptop in PCMag.com's performance and media handling testing, and gave a strong showing in similar comparative tests at CNET. One thing the Zenbook -- and many other ultraportables -- don't offer is good gaming performance; PCMag.com reports the laptop managed a barely playable 18.4 frames per second (fps) rate in "Crysis." On the plus side, critics say the Bang & Olufsen ICEpower audio and 1,600-by-900-pixel screen resolution are better than the speakers and display found on many other ultraportables. Other positives include speedy boot-up times thanks to the SSD and a battery that lasts between five and seven hours, depending on the testing method. Asus' two-year warranty on parts and labor and one year of accidental damage protection also earn a thumbs-up from critics.

Reviews of the 13.3-inch Acer Aspire S3 Ultrabook (*Est. $900), on the other hand, are much more mixed. The notebook, which includes an Intel Core i5-2467M processor with integrated HD 3000 graphics, 4 GB of RAM and both a 20 GB SSD and a 320 GB traditional hard drive, weighs in at 3 pounds on the nose and is just over half an inch thick, though it lacks the razor-thin taper of the Zenbook. It may be lightweight and slim, but critics take issue with the overall design of the laptop: While the keyboard and glass touchpad are generally well received -- if a bit too resistive -- the case is another matter entirely. The Aspire 3 has a brushed-aluminum lid, but the rest of the body is a gray plastic that critics say feels cheaper and flimsier than it should at a $900 price point.

Additionally, critics say the speakers are weak and tinny, and they find themselves underwhelmed by the 1,366-by-768-pixel resolution of the glossy screen, which is less than the MacBook Air's or the Zenbook's displays. "Whether watching a 480p episode of 'Castle' on Hulu or a 720p trailer for 'The Avengers,' we noticed plenty of pixelation and splotchiness in darker areas, and blacks weren't as true as we'd like," Michael Prospero notes at Laptop Magazine. "Viewing angles were also pretty poor."

Performance is also mixed. While the SSD provides snappy boot-up times, the Aspire S3 fails to meet the benchmark scores set by the Zenbook, the MacBook Air or even the older Samsung Series 9 in tests by multiple publications. But Engadget.com critic Dana Wollman says those numbers don't tell the whole tale: "Say what you will about its benchmark scores, but we freely went about our everyday business, jumping between at least half a dozen tabs in Chrome, checking email and Facebook, chatting over Google Talk, loading YouTube videos and downloading and installing apps." While Acer says the battery life is rated for six hours, most critics say that four hours is a more realistic duration.

The newly released Dell XPS 14z (*Est. $1,000 and up) is already causing a stir among critics who have gotten their hands on review models. Although the general design is similar to the Dell XPS 15z, the smaller screen and thin overall design helps to drop this laptop down to 4.36 pounds, placing it solidly in the upper end of the ultraportable class. Features include a built-in webcam, HDMI, USB 3.0 and Mini DisplayPort connections, a 7-in-1 card reader and -- unlike the ultrabooks mentioned above -- an optical drive that can burn DVDs. Laptop Magazine reviewer Sherri L. Smith points out that "the Dell XPS 14z is the thinnest 14-inch notebook with an optical drive on the market."

Reviewers give Dell kudos for the overall design, especially the comfortable and responsive keyboard and trackpad. "We typed thousands upon thousands of words on this laptop, and barely noticed the keyboard and trackpad -- as good a sign as any that they've been designed with care," Dana Wollman writes at Engadget.com. The audio is also clear and loud, if lacking bass. Critics also appreciate the display; they like the extra screen space created by thinning down the screen's bezel and say that the colors are clear and bright. A few mention that they wished the resolution was a bit higher, however, and the glossy finish is prone to glare that limits the possible viewing angles.

While ComputerShopper.com, AnandTech.com, TechRadar.com and HardwareHeaven.com all take a look at the base configuration -- which includes an Intel Core i5-2430M CPU with integrated graphics, 6 GB of RAM and a 500 GB hard drive -- and come away impressed, the majority of reviewers examine an upgraded version that is priced at $1,300. This build ups the internals to a 2.8 GHz Intel Core i7-2640M CPU, 8 GB of RAM, a 750 GB hard drive and discrete, switchable Nvidia GeForce GT 520M -- a rare find in an ultraportable laptop.

Performance of this stepped-up configuration is strong, experts say, adding that the combination of a Core i7 processor and 8 GB of RAM is not often found in laptops of this size. PCMag.com reports that the XPS 14z posts better performance and media encoding benchmarking numbers than any other 14-inch laptop, and the Dell notebook blows away the average ultraportable benchmark scores compiled by Laptop Magazine. Light gaming is even a possibility, thanks to the discrete Nvidia graphics: Critics achieved playable, if not quite silky-smooth, frame rates in "Crysis," "Street Fighter IV," and "Lost Planet 2."

The downside to packing all that power into a small frame is heat generation. Critics report that the laptop runs slightly warm, and as a result the internal fans -- which are somewhat noisy -- run almost constantly. The battery life is another mild downside. While the duration of four to six hours is deemed decent enough by most experts, they note in the same breath that several other ultraportables hold their charge for considerably longer.

The Sony Vaio Z Series (*Est. $2,000 and up) also strikes a chord with reviewers. Components in the base configuration include an Intel Core i5 processor, 4 GB of RAM, a 128 GB solid-state drive and a 13.1-inch high-resolution display. Other features include Windows 7 Professional, built-in Bluetooth and a backlit keyboard. The laptop also comes with the Power Media Dock, a small docking station that adds additional features, including a slot-loading CD/DVD drive, AMD Radeon HD 6650M discrete graphics and various ports and connections, including one high-speed USB 3.0 port. Pricier configurations of the Sony Vaio Z Series come with an Intel Core i7 CPU and a Blu-ray drive in the Power Media Dock.

Several reviewers rate the Sony Vaio Z series very highly, although that performance comes at a steep sticker price. CNET's Dan Ackerman praises the innovative docking station, which keeps the laptop's weight low while adding features not commonly found on ultraportable laptops. While the touchpad responds very well to multi-touch gestures, some find both it and the keyboard's shallow keys a bit too small and slightly uncomfortable to use. Several reviewers comment that the glossy 1,600-by-900-pixel display is one of the best they've ever seen.

The opinion on audio is a bit more mixed; while Ackerman calls the quality "excellent," reviewers at Laptop Magazine and Engadget.com find the sound underwhelming and somewhat tinny. "For two grand, we'd expect some deeper bass notes and volume loud enough to entertain a guest or twenty," Dana Wollman writes at Engadget.com. Build quality is good overall, but Kevin O'Brien at NotebookReview.com worries that the "paper thin" screen and slim case could become damaged if handled roughly.

Performance is excellent -- especially with the optional Core i7 processor -- and the Sony Vaio Z Series beats other top-performing laptops like the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 and Samsung Series 9 in reviewers' benchmark tests. The dock-enhanced Vaio Z far outpaced the average ultraportable benchmark scores in Laptop Magazine's testing. It can even play mainstream games like "Call of Duty 4," "World of Warcraft" and "Batman: Arkham Asylum" at very playable frame rates when connected to the Power Media Dock -- something few other ultraportables can claim.

Boot-up time is under half a minute for most reviewers, thanks to the notebook's use of a speedy solid-state drive. Battery life is in the four- to five-hour range, which is short, but the optional slice battery pushes the total to well over 10 hours. However, the fans run almost constantly to keep up with the heat generated by the powerful system, and editors at Engadget.com say the left vent gets "hot to the touch" as a result. Critics also say the jaw-dropping price tag is hard to ignore, or as CNET's Dan Ackerman puts it, "The Vaio Z starts expensive and goes up from there."