Rating of the best laptops of 2019

It is a rare case when fundamentally different devices receive such similar designations. We mean business-oriented tablet and laptop LATITUDE 5290, and we will talk about the latter. Unlike the previously reviewed ThinkPad X280 subnotebook, Dell’s proposal more clearly «fits» into some generalized corporate standards that provide for the highest possible level of protection for a wearable device, and the performance of its filling is valued much higher than the quality of the image displayed on the screen. Keep this in mind when choosing.

Of the useful features of the laptop, it is worth noting its compliance with the MIL-STD-810G standard, the presence of interface connectors that disappear from use, such as RJ-45 and D-Sub, support for charging external devices via a USB port, as well as the ability to increase the amount of RAM.

The expediency of buying an ultra-compact laptop seems doubtful to us, however, there is a small steady demand for such models. Whatever the reason for the interest in an ultraportable, it is more convenient to control it via a touch screen, and in this sense, there are very few competitors in the 11-inch HP x360 line. The filling of its representatives does not differ in high performance, but such subnotebooks are captivated by other advantages: an ergonomic transformer-type design, a fairly high-quality IPS display matrix, a solid list of available interfaces, including 802.11ac, and decent autonomy. But Hewlett-Packard has cheated this device with a normal webcam.

We recommend that you immediately take care of replacing the standard hard drive with a solid state drive. Alas, the amount of RAM cannot be increased here.

If the advantages of the «air» version of the MacBook do not look very convincing, mainly due to the discrepancy between performance and the asking price, then in Mi Notebook Air the price tag is quite adequate, and everything is in order with the power of the filling. The developers of this model even found a place for a discrete graphics card, despite the modest thickness of the case. In addition, the ultrabook from Xiaomi boasts faster RAM, high-speed built-in NVMe storage, and a sensitive fingerprint scanner. Although the corner of the touchpad for its installation is not the most suitable place.

What Mi Notebook Air doesn’t do well with is battery life. Especially in modes where an additional video accelerator is used. Well, this laptop “lost” a slot for working with memory cards, imitating its prototype.

Good general purpose laptop. As its advantages over competitors, one can consider an aluminum case, a fingerprint scanner built into the power button in high-end trim levels and a decent potential for upgrading. The metalized bottom part is more effective at dissipating heat and improves the strength characteristics of the device. The fingerprint scanner will be useful both for multi-user family access and for protecting confidential information from indiscreet colleagues at work. And the ability to install two sticks of memory and a pair of drives in general can boast of an extremely limited number of compact laptops.

Of the main disadvantages of the laptop, it is worth noting that the screen is far from being the best. It is based on an IPS-type matrix, but with a small coverage of the color range, low maximum brightness and relatively modest viewing angles.

Super-budget ultrabook for the most undemanding or financially constrained categories of users. In addition to an affordable price, its important advantages are a metal body and a clear IPS screen. Of course, the latter uses the simplest matrix, with mediocre color reproduction and modest viewing angles, but the vast majority of Smartbook 141S classmates cannot boast of such picture quality either. RAM cannot be added to this model, but you can put a normal SSD. Strictly speaking, the classic definition of a smartbook implies the use of processors of the ARM family, so the name of the device can be misleading.

We also draw your attention to the existence of the 141C line. Similar in name, but even less productive (the corresponding laptops are based on Intel Atom).

If by the nature of your work you constantly have to deal with numbers, numbers and arithmetic operations, the choice in favor of a laptop with a full keyboard is inevitable. We dare to suggest that such a specialization is quite far from the tasks of professional graphics processing, and the presence of a display with particularly accurate color reproduction is not necessary for it. Further discussion about the features of a business laptop will lead us to an understanding of the importance of a wired connection and information security issues. The recommended model fully complies with the above criteria, and it is also good because the entire amount of RAM in it is formed using standard brackets and two slots.

It is worth noting that the model cannot boast of high autonomy. For extended work in the field, a laptop from the related ThinkPad T580 line is better suited. True, this is a slightly different price category.

Xiaomi has once again managed to make friends with incompatible concepts and offered a representative class solution at a very affordable price. An elegant recognizable design, a very worthy screen, a huge touchpad, a top-end stuffing with a discrete graphics card, a decent sound — what else can a demanding but economical potential buyer wish for? From our point of view, it makes sense to focus on the oldest configuration of this model — with a Core i7 processor and 16GB of RAM, since the volume of the latter cannot be increased. Of course, everyone has their own needs, so this drawback is relative. In fact, other “cons” are exactly the same nitpicks: noticeable heating under heavy load, a fingerprint scanner integrated into the touchpad, a power button in place of DELETE, a single-level backlighting of the keys. What can really stop you from acquiring Mi Notebook Pro is the initial lack of localization.

No one buys budget laptops to solve serious problems, but this does not mean that working with such a device should not be comfortable. Naturally, everyone has their own criteria for this concept: no delays, a clear picture on the screen, a full-fledged keyboard, good autonomy, etc. We will not claim that the recommended model meets all of the above requirements at once, but it is quite possible to find an acceptable configuration within the framework of the corresponding line. From our point of view, the Ideapad 330 15 on a «fresh» Intel Pentium in combination with a Full HD screen deserves attention. Ideally, I would also like to see a solid-state drive here, but (if desired) you will have to install it yourself. But the design of the device provides a slot for a memory bar, and much more expensive laptops can envy the variety of its interfaces.

Laptops with a large diagonal do not differ in high mobility, but such models are also purchased for working with multimedia content or with an eye on gaming applications (not hardcore, of course). Regarding the latter use case, the recommended PAVILION 17-ab400 laptop is quite good, as long as its processor and RAM operate at higher frequencies, and the discrete graphics card is capable of displaying «heavy» graphics in normal quality with an acceptable screen refresh rate. Another thing is that the IPS matrix itself in it has a modest color space coverage. In addition, it should be taken into account that the powerful hardware heats up under load, and the cooling system in the PAVILION 17-ab400 is not the most thoughtful. As a result, installing a high-speed solid-state drive in this laptop may not be justified.

If you are looking for a good large-format laptop with an eye on social networks, convenient consumption of Internet content and watching movies with an average picture quality, and you rarely plan to work with such a device, it makes sense to limit yourself to the configuration on the younger Intel Core or AMD Ryzen processor lines. One of the options for such a laptop can be a representative of the budget model range HP 17-ca0000, which stands out from its «classmates» with the following advantages. First, the display of the recommended notebook uses an SVA matrix. If you look at such a screen at an angle, the displayed image partially loses contrast, and is not inverted, as on TN panels of other state employees. Secondly, the design of the device provides two slots for RAM strips, which will make it easy to increase its volume if necessary.