Best and Worst Laptop Brands 2016

[Solandri]

add to that , they make almost all the case full of battery , and they beat others on battery life even with non low voltage CPU.

That's mostly a consequence of Apple being able to tune their OS to just a handful of hardware configurations. Windows can't be tuned to that degree because it needs to run on millions of different possible hardware configurations. If you put Windows on a Mac, you'll find battery life is pretty horrendous. MBP 15 owners are reporting 4-5 hours in Windows, while a Dell XPS 15 with similar hardware and a smaller battery can manage 8 hours.

more over they use IPS top Quality TFT screen

The Airs use mediocre TN panels. Generally only the discount $300-$500 laptops use worse TN panels. PC laptops at about the same price point as the MBAs use similar or better TN panels. Although I'm seeing more IPS panels showing up at the $700 price point (Asus UX305).

The Pros use good IPS panels. Some of the best in the market, but that's because the MBPs are aimed at graphics artists, photographers, and videographers. If you only run office apps and browse the web, you're paying extra for a panel you don't really need.

and they toss in thunderbolt ports and fast M2 SSD plus a wonderful magnetic power plug and option that is wonderful.

Thunderbolt is fast on its way to becoming Firewire redux.

The Macbooks do not use the M.2 standard. They use a similar but proprietary connector, to guarantee that you can't upgrade a cheaper Macbook to have better specs. You have to pay Apple their tax if you want the better specs.

and you dont M2 PCIe with normal 2.5 SSD with 1/2 speed.

The units for measuring drive speeds is inverted from the way most people perceive disk speed (wait time). If you invert the units, you'll find that PCIe drives only offer 50% the speedup (reduction in wait time) you got going from SATA 2 to SATA 3. And only 14% the reduction in wait time you got from going from a HDD to SATA 3. And that's only the speedup for sequential read/writes of large files. Smaller files are still the same speed as SATA 3.

So PCIe really doesn't make that big a difference, unless you're working with large quantities of large files. e.g. video editing (which is among the target markets for the Macbook Pros, so I don't criticize Apple for going that route).

and you dont compare with uni body elegant alu case plastic ugly thick body

Plastic flexes. Metal dents. This reality is not lost among Macbook buyers. You can get an (ugly) plastic case which completely surrounds and protects the precious metal of your Macbook. Transparent of course so you can still see the oh-so-important Apple logo.

The ideal body is plastic, with a metal lid to protect the screen, and an interior metal chassis to protect the interior components. That is precisely how the Thinkpads are designed. The metal bottom Apple insists on using for fashion reasons and so fanboys have something to claim is an advantage conducts too much heat, and makes the MBP 15 in particular impossible to actually use on your lap during heavy processing.

 

[Arabian Knight]

add to that , they make almost all the case full of battery , and they beat others on battery life even with non low voltage CPU.

That's mostly a consequence of Apple being able to tune their OS to just a handful of hardware configurations. Windows can't be tuned to that degree because it needs to run on millions of different possible hardware configurations. If you put Windows on a Mac, you'll find battery life is pretty horrendous. MBP 15 owners are reporting 4-5 hours in Windows, while a Dell XPS 15 with similar hardware and a smaller battery can manage 8 hours.

more over they use IPS top Quality TFT screen

The Airs use mediocre TN panels. Generally only the discount $300-$500 laptops use worse TN panels. PC laptops at about the same price point as the MBAs use similar or better TN panels. Although I'm seeing more IPS panels showing up at the $700 price point (Asus UX305).

The Pros use good IPS panels. Some of the best in the market, but that's because the MBPs are aimed at graphics artists, photographers, and videographers. If you only run office apps and browse the web, you're paying extra for a panel you don't really need.

and they toss in thunderbolt ports and fast M2 SSD plus a wonderful magnetic power plug and option that is wonderful.

Thunderbolt is fast on its way to becoming Firewire redux.

The Macbooks do not use the M.2 standard. They use a similar but proprietary connector, to guarantee that you can't upgrade a cheaper Macbook to have better specs. You have to pay Apple their tax if you want the better specs.

and you dont M2 PCIe with normal 2.5 SSD with 1/2 speed.

The units for measuring drive speeds is inverted from the way most people perceive disk speed (wait time). If you invert the units, you'll find that PCIe drives only offer 50% the speedup (reduction in wait time) you got going from SATA 2 to SATA 3. And only 14% the reduction in wait time you got from going from a HDD to SATA 3. And that's only the speedup for sequential read/writes of large files. Smaller files are still the same speed as SATA 3.

So PCIe really doesn't make that big a difference, unless you're working with large quantities of large files. e.g. video editing (which is among the target markets for the Macbook Pros, so I don't criticize Apple for going that route).

and you dont compare with uni body elegant alu case plastic ugly thick body

Plastic flexes. Metal dents. This reality is not lost among Macbook buyers. You can get an (ugly) plastic case which completely surrounds and protects the precious metal of your Macbook. Transparent of course so you can still see the oh-so-important Apple logo.

The ideal body is plastic, with a metal lid to protect the screen, and an interior metal chassis to protect the interior components. That is precisely how the Thinkpads are designed. The metal bottom Apple insists on using for fashion reasons and so fanboys have something to claim is an advantage conducts too much heat, and makes the MBP 15 in particular impossible to actually use on your lap during heavy processing.

1- sorry , you are biased. Apple does win in Battery life . and they shrink their motherboards to put in more batteries.
2-funny you bring the Air to win the screen Argument. remember the Pro are the expensive ones not the Air . more over , the Airs are not overpriced as well when compared to similar notebooks.
and the IPS screen Apple offer are the best ... they are available as an option on high end Windows notebook but for at least 200-250$ more . Again Apple is not Overpriced. they just dont throw in cheap IPS !
3- I have been using thunderbolt from day one , and it is amazing. and the M2 Apple uses is 2 times faster. and I dont care about upgrades . we are talking about over priced or not. not about upgradable or not.
4- Again, Compare notebooks with M2 against Apple with M2 then say Apple is overpriced. if Apple does not include cheap technology , this does not make them Overpriced as you claim. it makes them the MERCEDES.
5- about the metal vs plastic , AGAIN , we are talking about Overpriced or not . the similar Alu designs of windows Notebooks are the same price. I dont care about Platic this and Metal that. I am comparing cost and if Apple is overpriced or not. and all the people prefer the Alu uni body design over plastic crap.

and finally , seeing you did not Agree with any of my points , it shows you are biased and just want to win argument.

have a nice day .

 

[drumrocker365]

Thanks for sharing! I've always used Dell and always been happy with them.

 

[Solandri]

1- sorry , you are biased. Apple does win in Battery life . and they shrink their motherboards to put in more batteries.

Considering I actually do recommend Macbooks to people who can get the most out of them (graphics artists, photographers, people who don't know a thing about computers), I'd have to disagree about being biased. I take a strictly technical and analytic approach to my recommendations. Popularity and fashionability plays no role.

As for battery, without looking it up on the Internet, can you say how many Wh capacity the MBP 15 and MBP 13 have? I can. If you can't, then you have no basis for claiming they "put in more batteries". The Macbooks (both Air and Pro) have very good battery life, but are not the leaders in either pure battery life (minutes) nor normalized battery life (min per Wh of battery capacity).

2-funny you bring the Air to win the screen Argument. remember the Pro are the expensive ones not the Air . more over , the Airs are not overpriced as well when compared to similar notebooks.

I'm not trying to win an argument. I believe in recommending the most cost-effective tool for the job. For the vast majority of users, the MBP screens are overkill. Trust me, I know what the MBP screens are good for. I'm a semi-pro photographer who's shot photos for newspapers, magazines, and weddings. The MBP 15 was among the final 3 contestants for my personal laptop.

and the IPS screen Apple offer are the best

They are not the best. They only cover sRGB color space. That's fine for web and video work. Dell, HP, and Lenovo, and a few of the smaller Windows laptop vendors offer screens which cover AdobeRGB space (which is about 40% bigger than sRGB), which is better for stuff that's going to be published or archived. But I didn't mention that because the number of users who'll find it advantageous is even smaller than the number of people who'll find the MBP screens advantageous over a Windows laptop IPS screen. Remember - most cost-effective tool for the job. If you don't need sRGB, then it doesn't win you any brownie points while the extra cost is a negative.

3- I have been using thunderbolt from day one , and it is amazing. and the M2 Apple uses is 2 times faster. and I dont care about upgrades . we are talking about over priced or not. not about upgradable or not.
4- Again, Compare notebooks with M2 against Apple with M2 then say Apple is overpriced. if Apple does not include cheap technology , this does not make them Overpriced as you claim. it makes them the MERCEDES.
5- about the metal vs plastic , AGAIN , we are talking about Overpriced or not . the similar Alu designs of windows Notebooks are the same price. I dont care about Platic this and Metal that. I am comparing cost and if Apple is overpriced or not. and all the people prefer the Alu uni body design over plastic crap.

If you truly want to know if a company's products are overpriced, just look at their profit margin. That's the percentage of your money which is going into their pocket, instead of paying for components in the computer. Most PC vendor's profit margin is about 3%-7%. Apple's is 20%-25%. They are overpriced. They've just picked out a good niche market (graphics, photo, video artists) which is willing to pay the premium they charge because it's inadequately serviced by PC laptops. If you're not in that group and you're buying a MBP, you're vastly overpaying for features you don't need.

 

[zeyuanfu]

^Very good points.

Macbooks are for people who prefer aesthetics over price/performance, in general. Otherwise, a Windows machine would be the best.

 

[Fangovich]

For my life, I had 2 laptops, first was refubrished HP Compaq 6530b that lasted me for 5 years and was in use for another 2 years, so 7 years and only change I made was changing HDD. Not good for gaming, but I loved it.
My new laptop is MSI GE60 2pe Apache Pro for gaming use and I couldn't choose better for that price (26.00 CZK = 670 GBP). At first, I though I should buy cheaper Lenovo y50 or Acer Aspire v15 Nitro, but soon after that I understood that MSI was the best choice.

 

[Ablar]

I typically have a hard time recommending anything besides a thinkpad. They're the only laptop that has never let me down.

 

[AdanClinton]

My friends said Lenovo is affordable for its price and quality ,but Dell and Apple are just over priced.

 

[WitchyCatyr]

For my life, I had 2 laptops, first was refubrished HP Compaq 6530b that lasted me for 5 years and was in use for another 2 years, so 7 years and only change I made was changing HDD. Not good for gaming, but I loved it.
My new laptop is MSI GE60 2pe Apache Pro for gaming use and I couldn't choose better for that price (26.00 CZK = 670 GBP). At first, I though I should buy cheaper Lenovo y50 or Acer Aspire v15 Nitro, but soon after that I understood that MSI was the best choice.

do you like your MSI? Do games run smoothly on high/decent settings? I'm currently debating between the GE62 Apache Pro and the Alienware 15. I'm worried about MSI support and I knwo Dell's isn't that bad but I see people talk crap all the time and I'm worried.

 

[Fangovich]

WitchyCaryr: Well, here I have to be honest. Games run nice, for example The Witcher 3 on high details with no lags. But it makes LOTS of heat and I am bit afraid it will be worse, the cooling in GE60 isn't too well, perhaps it's better in GE62. Personally, I would get some GT instead of GE, but thats just my opinion. I don't know much about Alenware 15, but it looks like cooling is better. I am OK with my MSI, but it has it's problems. I rather asked some Alienware owner what he say.

 

[Willie0]

I really love my Dell no matter how old it is. I had lots of memories with it. Good and bad. and I'm so proud to have it as 2nd among other laptops.

 

[ginapphh]

I had used hp pavilion g5 about 4 years the quality is good. I bought a msi ge62 this year and I love it color light kb.
Apple is over price and acer always make bad laptop can't use it over 1 year.

 

[Mrnlkr]

Best would be apple then Lenovo
Worst would be Emachine (crap boxes)
Next would be Asus major technical issues.
And over 20% repair rates...

I really have never had a good laptop. But one day I hope I will

Best Laptop I ever had was an IBM R series machine which came with a 256 mb ram which I bumped to 2 gb the max and 40 gb hdd ata and 1.6 gigs processor... Still going strong even after 12 years, aside from battery and drive.... Even after Dropping several times n dunking in water the machine is still running... Man they just don't make machines like that anymore.

 

[RazberyBandit]

So... Where are Gigabyte and the Clevo-based Sager and Eurocom brands ranked? What about CyberpowerPC? Or for that matter, iBuyPower?

Seriously, if Laptop Mag wants to tell us who the best and worst brands are, then these brands MUST also be compared!

 

[Say What]

How HP gets third place is beyond me. They make unreliable pieces of garbage. They get hot on the bottom. VERY hot. I replace so many prematurely it's ridiculous.

 

[TheAlmightyProo]

How HP gets third place is beyond me. They make unreliable pieces of garbage. They get hot on the bottom. VERY hot. I replace so many prematurely it's ridiculous.

Ikr? My HP has been ridiculously hot and loud too. Straining the fan like crazy doing nothing. I've checked and double checked but no viruses/malware and not clogged with dust. It's always been hot and noisy but is getting worse.
Maybe it's the AMD A6 in it? I've heard AMD run hot but this is silly.

 

[Say What]

How HP gets third place is beyond me. They make unreliable pieces of garbage. They get hot on the bottom. VERY hot. I replace so many prematurely it's ridiculous.

Ikr? My HP has been ridiculously hot and loud too. Straining the fan like crazy doing nothing. I've checked and double checked but no viruses/malware and not clogged with dust. It's always been hot and noisy but is getting worse.
Maybe it's the AMD A6 in it? I've heard AMD run hot but this is silly.

They just don't know how to properly design a cooling system. Their solution is to have the fan spin all the time. They still get ridiculously hot. You NEED a cooling pad under those. I've also had quite a few Macbook Pro's with dead motherboards within the last year. They were less than 3 years old. The best laptops were the Toshiba ones from about 3-5 years ago. Those were bullet proof. Right now Lenovo is the top brand IMO. They are constructed well and have no issues. Asus is another brand that has bad reliability now. I'm constantly replacing motherboards and mouse buttons on them. The hinges screw down into the cheapest plastic I've ever seen. I've been repairing computers for 15 years now. This is just what I see on a day to day basis. You can't go by these stupid reviews. In 2013 Square Trade did a reliability report. They gave Asus the number 1 spot. Many of those Asus laptops died at around the 2 year mark.

 

[Say What]

How HP gets third place is beyond me. They make unreliable pieces of garbage. They get hot on the bottom. VERY hot. I replace so many prematurely it's ridiculous.

Ikr? My HP has been ridiculously hot and loud too. Straining the fan like crazy doing nothing. I've checked and double checked but no viruses/malware and not clogged with dust. It's always been hot and noisy but is getting worse.
Maybe it's the AMD A6 in it? I've heard AMD run hot but this is silly.

Also look at the way they review these laptops. LENOVO falls down to 6th after they loaded the superfish software which was supposed to be malicious. They stopped doing that when people complained. How does that say anything about the design and reliability.

 

[Adam_8]

5 laptops I had in my life:
Toshiba 486 black and white - real oldschool, cant really compare to anything today
Acer 2000 - great laptop, still works
Acer 2007 - great laptop, still works, even though it has fallen off of a car at 100km/h and still lives!
Acer Aspire S7 2014 - great laptop, my current machine.

My only complaint is that the two latter Acers have shitty touchpads - I dont know why, but it looks like design over utility issue

and then my favourite Dell Alienware M14x R2 - NEVER AGAIN!
premium laptop with nonexistent tech support, I never really gotten any help from dell even though that thing was full of hardware and software issues. That was one bad buy - I would probably be better off with another acer

 

[orlbuckeye]

I've had an Alienware 18, Acer As9810, Acer AS 8950G, an i3 Acer , 2 Sagers one with Pentium M processor and other with a P4 processor., one boutique brand and a Hitachi laptop.

When I started buying laptops the processors were desktops 1 generation behind now they release a notebook and a desktop version on the same processors.