Simply put, the Asus VivoBook S15 will be the perfect laptop for many users, combining a quality tech spec and everyday-versatile design at a very firmly mid-range price point. There are plenty of ports to play around with, and the fingerprint sensor built into the trackpad makes logging into Windows a breeze.
Those chips will guarantee excellent performance without sucking up too much battery life, and unless you're wanting to play top-tier games or do some 4K video editing, this portable computer will cope with everything you've got to throw at it. The price is a little on the high side, but you do get a lot back for your money, including the latest 11th-gen Intel CPUs – i5 or i7 is the choice. It's lightweight despite the 15.6-inch screen, it's stylish, and it wraps just about everything you could want in a laptop in one appealing package.
Wedded to Windows? The best mid-range Windows 10 laptop you can buy now is the Asus VivoBook S15. To learn even more about the MacBook Air M1 2020, as well as how it looks set to stack up against a 2021 version, be sure to also check out our should I buy it guide. As long as you can live without Windows, the MacBook Air is a laptop that balances portability and power with hardly any compromises.
If you really need more power, you might be better with a Macbook Pro (#4 in our list) – head to our Macbook Air M1 vs Macbook Pro M1 comparison to help you decide.
The base specs of 256GB storage and 8GB of RAM may also be too little for some people, but you can upgrade and customise when you buy – though you can't add more after purchase, we should note.
There can also be some issues with software compatibility with the new processor, but these tend to only be with really niche stuff, so won't be a worry for the vast majority of people. It's a shame that it only has two USB-C ports (which also must be used to power it), since that means you'll probably need adapters, but maybe you're all in on wireless and cloud already anyway. The sharp screen is also a pleasure to use, with a good level of brightness. Comfort and usability is top-notch too – the keyboard and trackpad are excellent, it's a great size and weight to be portable, and the all-aluminium build is solid and feels premium. And it can give you around 15 hours of battery life in real-world use (for things like light browsing) – a huge leap over previous Macs. It's even got pretty solid graphics performance, playing games far more smoothly than anything else with an integrated GPU (though, being a Mac, the selection is more limited).
But it also runs cool enough that it doesn't need any fans at all, so it's silent. Combined with the speediest storage in the business, this laptop is fast. It's an eight-core chip that's as powerful as what you find in the high-end MacBook Pros or gaming PCs, but uses a fraction of the power. It's all thanks to the M1 processor – the first Apple-made chip for Macs. Or that getting all of these things in one machine would be expensive? Wrong again. Or that big performance means smaller battery life? Nope. Think thin and light laptops have to sacrifice power? Not any more. We also have a guide to the best gaming laptops and a guide to the best lightweight laptops and the best 2-in-1 laptops.Īs our MacBook Air (M1, 2020) review explains, Apple's cheapest laptop is the start of a revolution. If you already know what make you prefer, or if you have specific requirements you’re after, then you may find some of our specific guides more useful, such as our in-depth guide to the best Dell laptops, the best MacBooks for Apple fans, and another for the best Chromebook. Whether you’re on a budget and simply looking for something to use for everyday tasks, or you need something a little more professional for your work or projects, we’re sure you’ll find the best laptop for you in this guide.Įveryone is looking for something different, and what works for some, may not work for others, which is why we’ve covered a variety of models with a range of features to suit both work and play.
Should you opt for a Windows 11 laptop from Dell? A macOS system from Apple? A ChromeOS system from ACER? And, further more, if you do say choose a Apple Mac should you get a system with an M1 chip? Is 4GB of RAM enough for a ChromeOS system? Are you smarter buying a cheap PC from last year that ships with Windows 10 S? These are the sorts of questions that make navigating the best laptop market such a mine-field.īut in our no-nonsense guide we’ve made it easy to see which laptops are offering the best features, prices and more to suit your needs.