Best Traditional Laptop Computers
15.6" Full HD (1920 x 1080) widescreen IPS display, Red Backlit Keyboard.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"All of the gaming laptops from all of these companies are great for this price range, and they all make their compromises in different areas of their laptops to reach that point. Now to my second concern I had, which was heat and cooling. I do plan to use this laptop for gaming, and although I don't plan on doing extremely heavy gaming on it, as I have a PS4, Xbox 360, 2 ps vitas, and a Nintendo Switch, all with plenty of games on them to which are my primary gaming platforms, there are just some games you cannot get on consoles, especially indie games that are offered on Steam, and this is my main use for this laptop, but I did want to see what this thing is capable of, so I purchased The Witcher 3 and Far Cry 4 to really test what it can do. I'll say, between those two games, and above all my other indie games and older, easier to run games that aren't near as taxing on the hardware, The Witcher 3 is the ultimate test to see what a system can do, as it runs it HARD, pushing the CPU and GPU to their limits as is, but it does run the game EXTREMELY well, keep in mind you HAVE to be plugged in to the power supply for these particular heavy running games to perform adequately, as if you try and unplug and run them solely on the battery power, both Witcher 3 and Far Cry 4 will instantly cut down to 9fps and are completely unplayable in that manner, and this is NOT something that can be changed, it is just the way the BIOS is set up. All of my other games, however that are xbox 360-era games, such as dark souls and payday 2, and ALL of my indie games, run a smooth 30-60+ fps in battery only mode. So, while running either The Witcher 3 or Far Cry 4, I noticed that after extended periods of play (1+ hours), on the auto setting and with CoolBoost off, CPU temp was staying around 90 Celsius, and 80 Celsius for the GPU, and there were short spikes that would last a few seconds at a time where the CPU would actually jump up to 97 Celsius, which was enough to concern me, so I tried messing with the settings more, and concluded that if you are going to play any heavy games that tax the hardware this much, I HIGHLY recommend that you turn CoolBoost ON, as once this was on, on the Auto fan setting, playing The Witcher 3 or Far Cry 4 for extended periods, it considerably helped to cut down these max temperatures, where now the CPU max was at 87 Celsius, and the GPU at 78 Celsius max. Now, as for all of my indie games and Xbox 360 era games, this ran considerably cooler, with Dark Souls pushing the CPU to 72 Celsius max, and GPU 61 Celsius max. In summary, I would definitely recommend this laptop for anyone that is looking for something similar to what I was looking for that wants to get the absolute most performance they can for a price point of $1099 and that isn't concerned too much about being bothered by having a laptop that looks like a gaming laptop."
"Pros: -Price/Performance. -GTX 1060 easily pushes 1080p monitor. -Cooling seems to do a good job. -Quality build. -m.2 is PCIe/NVMe compatible. -free 2.5" bay with mounting included. -Matte screen. -Not too bulky. Cons (I gonna really reach here, no reason to complain at this price): -Single USB 3 port. -USB C is NOT thunderbolt 3. -finger prints show easily on metal exterior. The build quality is instantly obvious. The first thing I did after unboxing was create a backup using a USB 3 stick which took ~1 hour. The base has all around the perimeter plastic snaps that require a little effort to unsnap by pulling. I can tell you unless you are a professional photographer/graphics designer who needs precise color that the monitor is impressive for what it is. I notice no difference in speed, if anything this laptop is a bit faster (most likely thanks to the 960 Evo SSD). In a relatively small 3rd bedroom/office my desktop could easily heat the room up to the point of needing to open a window or point a fan into the room to direct cool air in. The Predator Sense app is simple and makes controlling the fans easy. Temps are reasonable in my opinion (Celsius): CPU: 40min/~75gaming. GPU: 60min/70max (GTX 1060 disables when not gaming, so temp is min/max gaming). In conclusion, for ~$1k you get a 7700HQ, GTX 1060, 16GB DDR4, nice matte 1080p screen, quality build, NVMe capability, free 2.5" bay, backlit keyboard."
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Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"With that said, I spent about 20 working hours comparing over 400 laptops (nerd) from all major brands, and looked at over 300 deals(super nerd) offered on laptops by all major retailers on both black friday and cyber monday. 2) DDR4 ram, again the latest and greatest, also happens to be the cheapest ram available. Most things cost more when new, but because PC components become obsolete so quickly, when ram is first introduced this is the product being currently manufactured, which in turn means supply can easily exceed demand, which means lower prices. Also ram can EASILY be added to this laptop, takes less than 5 minutes and costs exactly $24.99 for the best available, here is the link to the 4GB stick I added: https://www.amazon.com/Ballistix-16GBx2-PC4-19200-SODIMM-260-Pin/dp/B01DGOF6GE?th=1. ***Additional note about ram, I chose to purchase an additional stick of 4gb rather than a 8gb or 16gb. There is a phenomenon known as "dual channel" with regards to ram, the concept is that if you have 2 like sticks of ram (they need to match in a few tech specs), in the exact same size, ie: 2 sticks of 4gb of ram, your pc will be able to access both sticks of ram at the same time. Therefore after talking to a computer genius friend of mine and doing about an hours research on this specific application, my best guess is that the extra money on the 8gb stick of ram would be a waste, two 4gb sticks of dual channel ram will out perform a 4gb and 8gb stick together for most applications. If you do want to have more than 8gb of ram total, I would recommend purchasing 2 identical sticks of 8gb or 16gb ram to utilize dual channel. You can either purchase a traditional sata SSD and replace the existing hard drive, or purchase a m.2 SSD and have 2 hard drives. ***If you decide to pull the stock hard drive, you can purchase a usb case for it and turn it into an external hard drive that connects via usb cable. This laptop is a unicorn in the fact that it has ALL SOLID FEATURES, with 2 potentially weak spots for some users (ram and hard drive). But these are easily upgraded, and the truth is (regardless of what tech nerds might argue), 4gb of ram, and the included hard drive are more than adequate for the majority of users."
"It's a Great Laptop: Even Novices Like Myself Can Upgrade it (Explained). I came into this laptop for the same reason most of you probably are; my budget is "as cheap as I can make it" while still having a functional Windows operating system (not a chromebook) for school related reasons. It seems like a silly thing to talk about but you'd be surprised, especially with lower-end laptops, how problematic that can be when it isn't L shaped (for that reason, I recommend staying away from Dell Inspirons and any other laptop like that). Kingston Technology HyperX Impact 8GB 2133MHz DDR4 CL13 SODIMM Laptop Memory HX421S13IB/8 is the RAM I used to upgrade with. If you were so inclined, you could pay for 8 gigs of ram to bring you to twelve, or buy two sticks of 4/8/16 and replace the stick they give you as the laptop can theoretically be taken up to 32. If you move windows and programs onto the ssd, and you upgrade your ram, you'll have a real real nice laptop and it shouldn't cost you more than 500 total. This laptop's integrated graphics will limit it when it comes to playing modern, intensive games but the 7th generation i3 hold up strong and upgrading ram/ssd will improve that. The only real downside to this laptop, which is to be expected in the pricerange, is the integrated graphics card which limits its gaming possibilities but in reality, it makes much more sense to have a basic laptop and a dedicated gaming pc at home as you'll get much more bang for your buck that way. I strongly urge you to purchase this unit, even if you're not going to screw around with upgrades, over spending the $1,500 Apple wants for their worst 13 inch laptop (they want 2,400 for their low-end 15 inch laptop.). Buying expensive laptops is a luxury with minimal value and you'd be better off spending it on other luxuries instead, as this is a new golden standard for laptops."
15.6" Full HD Widescreen Comfy View LED-backlit Display supporting Acer Color Blast technology.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"If you're reading this review it's because you're in the marketplace to buy a new puter running the latest i5 CPU or killing time. SSD - None. SK Hynix M.2 SATA III 256 GB - 5 *****. Surprised to discover my rig is running with an M.2 SATA III stick instead of an SSD. The SSD hole is empty in case one wishes to add one. You do this by right clicking an empty spot on your desktop, the drop down menu will list Intel Graphics Setting and Nvidea Control Panel. Set every control to the Nvidea card; 3D and PhysX, brightness, contrast, hue and saturation. The system is set to auto select between the two but appears to always choose the crappy fuzzy Intel GPU. I can't tell you enough how horrible the Intel GPU makes the display look. Once set for Nvidea the display comes to life, letters are crisp and sharp, and colors vibrant. This display has zero glare, zero reflection even with a reading lamp above and behind my shoulder pointing directly at the screen or sitting in front of a bay window with mid-day sun. It's nice to have DVD R/W, Ethernet rj-45 port, HDMI and VGA outputs, an SD card slot, headphone jack, and 3 USB ports two of which are 3.0. And, laptop comes with battery life indicator icon located in the taskbar. Weight is heavy attributed to the long battery life. In a few years I anticipate the market will be flooded with replacement batteries. Font size changes unexpectedly, usually smaller, lighter with squigly lettering. Close & reopen the browser and/or App resolves the problem. Pull gently on the small plug and, wala, the battery comes out."
"1) Not a hardware issue but beware the Windows 10 upgrade (for latest fixes) took 3 attempts (12 hours, 16 hours, and 20 hours) with a reboot between each. It took the upgrade 3 hours to get to 99% and then just sat there. 7) With no external power button it is difficult to use an external monitor, keyboard, and mouse because the laptop must remain open to allow access to power button to turn on and off."
"Before anyone is scared off by the idea of adding a stick of RAM, I literally spent more time googling an instructional video on YouTube than I did installing the RAM (TL/DR: three screws, a few snaps, plug and play, ready to go). The key board itself feels great to type on, and, one final positive, this has plenty of ports, including an old school VGA port and a disc reader. It's not pretty, it's not chromed out, and it's not particularly light (I'd say a good 6 lbs.). Second, the screen is a good 1080p TN panel display; however, it's not IPS and you will notice the difference between it and an IPS panel (if you've gotten used to IPS). I don't want to scare anyone away - the screen is still good, but it won't be as gorgeous as a 4K or UHD IPS screen; however, as an unexpected positive, TN Panels consume a lot less energy, so you do get a battery-life dividend."
Best Laptop Computers
Acer Aspire E5-575-33BM comes with these high level specs: 7th Generation Intel Core i3-7100U Processor (2.4GHz, 3MB L3 cache), Windows 10 Home, 15.6" Full HD Widescreen LED-backlit Display, Intel HD Graphics 620, 4GB DDR4 Memory, 1TB SATA Hard Drive (5400RPM), 8X DVD-Super Multi Double-Layer Drive (M-DISC enabled), Secure Digital (SD) card reader, High Definition Audio Support, 802.11ac Wi-Fi featuring MU-MIMO technology (Dual-Band 2.4GHz and 5GHz), Bluetooth 4.1, Gigabit Ethernet, Built-In HD Webcam (1280 x 720) supporting High Dynamic Range (HDR), 1 - USB 3.1 (Type C) port, 2 - USB 3.0 Ports (One with Power-off Charging), 1 - USB 2.0 Port, 1 - HDMI Port with HDCP support, 6-cell Li-ion Battery (2800 mAh), Up to 12-hours Battery Life, 5.27 lbs. Enter your model number to make sure this fits.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"With that said, I spent about 20 working hours comparing over 400 laptops (nerd) from all major brands, and looked at over 300 deals(super nerd) offered on laptops by all major retailers on both black friday and cyber monday. 2) DDR4 ram, again the latest and greatest, also happens to be the cheapest ram available. Most things cost more when new, but because PC components become obsolete so quickly, when ram is first introduced this is the product being currently manufactured, which in turn means supply can easily exceed demand, which means lower prices. Also ram can EASILY be added to this laptop, takes less than 5 minutes and costs exactly $24.99 for the best available, here is the link to the 4GB stick I added: https://www.amazon.com/Ballistix-16GBx2-PC4-19200-SODIMM-260-Pin/dp/B01DGOF6GE?th=1. ***Additional note about ram, I chose to purchase an additional stick of 4gb rather than a 8gb or 16gb. There is a phenomenon known as "dual channel" with regards to ram, the concept is that if you have 2 like sticks of ram (they need to match in a few tech specs), in the exact same size, ie: 2 sticks of 4gb of ram, your pc will be able to access both sticks of ram at the same time. Therefore after talking to a computer genius friend of mine and doing about an hours research on this specific application, my best guess is that the extra money on the 8gb stick of ram would be a waste, two 4gb sticks of dual channel ram will out perform a 4gb and 8gb stick together for most applications. If you do want to have more than 8gb of ram total, I would recommend purchasing 2 identical sticks of 8gb or 16gb ram to utilize dual channel. You can either purchase a traditional sata SSD and replace the existing hard drive, or purchase a m.2 SSD and have 2 hard drives. ***If you decide to pull the stock hard drive, you can purchase a usb case for it and turn it into an external hard drive that connects via usb cable. This laptop is a unicorn in the fact that it has ALL SOLID FEATURES, with 2 potentially weak spots for some users (ram and hard drive). But these are easily upgraded, and the truth is (regardless of what tech nerds might argue), 4gb of ram, and the included hard drive are more than adequate for the majority of users."
"It's a Great Laptop: Even Novices Like Myself Can Upgrade it (Explained). I came into this laptop for the same reason most of you probably are; my budget is "as cheap as I can make it" while still having a functional Windows operating system (not a chromebook) for school related reasons. It seems like a silly thing to talk about but you'd be surprised, especially with lower-end laptops, how problematic that can be when it isn't L shaped (for that reason, I recommend staying away from Dell Inspirons and any other laptop like that). Kingston Technology HyperX Impact 8GB 2133MHz DDR4 CL13 SODIMM Laptop Memory HX421S13IB/8 is the RAM I used to upgrade with. If you were so inclined, you could pay for 8 gigs of ram to bring you to twelve, or buy two sticks of 4/8/16 and replace the stick they give you as the laptop can theoretically be taken up to 32. If you move windows and programs onto the ssd, and you upgrade your ram, you'll have a real real nice laptop and it shouldn't cost you more than 500 total. This laptop's integrated graphics will limit it when it comes to playing modern, intensive games but the 7th generation i3 hold up strong and upgrading ram/ssd will improve that. The only real downside to this laptop, which is to be expected in the pricerange, is the integrated graphics card which limits its gaming possibilities but in reality, it makes much more sense to have a basic laptop and a dedicated gaming pc at home as you'll get much more bang for your buck that way. I strongly urge you to purchase this unit, even if you're not going to screw around with upgrades, over spending the $1,500 Apple wants for their worst 13 inch laptop (they want 2,400 for their low-end 15 inch laptop.). Buying expensive laptops is a luxury with minimal value and you'd be better off spending it on other luxuries instead, as this is a new golden standard for laptops."
Best 2 in 1 Laptop Computers
Microsoft Surface Book features the 6th Gen Intel Core i5 processor, NVIDIA GeForce GPU with 8GB memory and a 128GB solid state drive. Enter your model number to make sure this fits.
Reviews
Find Best Price at Amazon"- It's solid, even when you're holding the tablet, when connected to the keyboard, it will not get loss of feel it’s about to disconnect. - Unlike many laptops, you will never see any key outlines of oily imprints on the screen when you close it. - The keyboard layout is one of the best as it private a deep click, creating a satisfying feedback. - Two USB 3.0 ports. - Nvidia graphic chip will be able to run some basic gaming. - Dark scenes in videos are deep and consistent in quality, even when the brightness on the computer is turned up. - Backlit keyboard is a beautiful light display that illuminates the symbol on each key. - High power I-core and GTX 965M graphics card make this a beast with higher end programs. - 6-10 hours of battery life (this is also a Con) of the normal day browsing the web, jumping between apps, writing an email, social media. - The webcam is enough to have meetings on it as well has a built-in facial recognition for signing into Windows without a password (Yes, it does work just as it promises). - No key function to control the screen brightness as sometimes the auto-adjusting light sensor isn’t entirely accurate. The battery life can be as low as 6 hours and as high as 13, given on how much power you use it for, but I believe this system is built for specific people. Specific people who are illustrators, Media professionals, designers, office presenters (PowerPoint), and video / photo editors will enjoy the concept this system. The detachable design makes it excellent for business collaboration and is built for those who need to show others what they’re doing."
"I'm happy with the purchase and I would recommend it (unless you want your decision to make financial sense, because it doesn't). Pros: Unbelievable screen. Touch and pen work really well. Great finishing and quality. Fast performance and no preinstalled software apart from a couple that are meant to show the capabilities of the surface book. Great battery life (base part). Cons: Wireless performance is OK but 2 years older laptops with Intel 802.11ac Wi-Fi cards perform better. You'll have to install loads of updates when you first receive it, not really a con but it took me a few hours. Long charging time. Not very easy to open the lid when its closed."
"What is clear, though, is that all of those who are disappointed were first-day buyers so I'd look at the one star reviews as a cautionary tale about the perils of being an early adopter. I was a bit lucky, in that I live in Australia and the release was delayed until Microsoft's new flagship store opened in Sydney a couple of weeks ago. The service was excellent and it means my experience is of a Surface Book with the latest Windows 10 updates, which seems to make all the difference. It eliminates the inner dialogue where I try and work out which device will involve the fewest compromises for any given task and it means I can now leave my tablet at home when I have my sBook with me. So, for me, this is what makes the sBook a five star product - the overall experience and massively expanded utility over my old laptop. The specs are far less important, other than being more than adequate to run all my professional software, from Adobe Creative Suite 6 to Autodesk 3DS Max and Maxon Cinema 4D. It is also very capable when it come sot my realtime music software and I can't wait for an opportunity to use it on stage, in front of an audience. EDIT/UPDATE: Many of the problems other users were reporting kicked in for me after a month or so and took until about April for Microsoft to finally fix them all through firmware and software updates."