The Best Laptops for 2026

Brian Westover, Joe Osborne — Tue, 01 Sep 2026 10:00:00 +0000

Whether you want a simple budget PC, a productivity workhorse, or a screamer of a gaming notebook, our experts have done the heavy lifting to help you find the right laptop for the job.

Buying the best laptop for you can be maddening, given all the specifications and features you'll encounter in your search. Which class of laptops is best for you depends on your budget and how you plan to use it. Take a systematic approach when shopping—here's how to make a smart …

The Best OLED Laptops for 2026

Matthew Buzzi — Mon, 31 Aug 2026 23:36:55 +0000

Laptops with brilliant, ink-black OLED screens are getting ever more affordable. Still, are the benefits of this striking display technology worth paying a premium for? Let's dig in, and see our top performers in testing.

You might be asking: What is an OLED display, anyway?

To answer that, we'll start by getting into the details of OLED screens and the advantages they offer. As we said, the acronym stands for "organic light-emitting diode." The short explanation is that OLED technology is similar to traditional LED technology—the …

The Best Battery Life Laptops for 2026

Matthew Buzzi — Mon, 31 Aug 2026 21:36:01 +0000

We've tested hundreds of laptops to find the ones that last the longest between charges. These battery-life champs will easily take you through a day of work or school, plus an evening's entertainment.

Modern improvements in laptop battery life are largely thanks to CPUs and other more power-efficient components; it's not just battery technology that deserves the credit. That's especially true of Intel's and AMD's latest processors (especially the AI-centric Intel Core Ultra chips), which power some of the longest-lasting models on our …

Asus Zenbook A16 Review: A Featherweight 16-Inch OLED Powerhouse

Brian Westover — Sun, 30 Aug 2026 20:00:00 +0000

Luxury pricing for laptops often comes down to two things: performance and panache. This year's Asus Zenbook A16 (starting at $1,699.99) aims for both, combining high-end processing power with a distinctively rich, tactile build. The result is a lightweight and premium

Spend Less on Your Next Laptop: These 17 Savings Tips Never Fail Me

Brian Westover — Sat, 29 Aug 2026 12:40:58 +0000

Between roller-coaster tariffs and inflation, it's too easy today to overpay. Here’s my proven playbook for landing the right laptop at the right price.

One of the first responses I hear when I tell people that I review laptops for a living is, "Why do they cost so much?" Blame the ongoing rollercoaster of tariffs, generalized inflation, and the increasing demand for crucial components like memory and storage: …

Not Again: HP Says More Price Hikes Are Coming, Blames Memory Shortage

Michael Kan — Thu, 27 Aug 2026 18:20:50 +0000

Even though HP's unit sales were down 16% year over year, its revenue this quarter was up as it prioritized more premium products.

The worsening memory shortage is forcing HP to roll out more price hikes.

"We have been increasing pricing. We expect to continue to increase pricing as input costs rise,” HP CFO Karen Parkhill said in an earnings call on Wednesday. HP warned about price hikes …

Is 8GB RAM Enough for Windows 11? I Tested Two Dell XPS Laptops to Find Out

Matthew Buzzi — Tue, 25 Aug 2026 20:34:42 +0000

Rising memory costs mean you'll see more and more budget PCs selling with just 8GB of memory. Are the savings worth it, versus shelling out for 16GB? I ran the numbers.

It's hungry times for PC shoppers: AI data centers are eating the world’s RAM supply for breakfast, forcing your next laptop or desktop to scramble for the crumbs. Demand from data giants is gobbling up memory manufacturers' supply before it’s even produced, …

The Best Gaming Laptops for 2026

Matthew Buzzi — Mon, 24 Aug 2026 17:42:56 +0000

Playing your favorite PC games with maxed-out settings doesn't mean you need a big desktop rig. We've found the best gaming laptops for every type of gamer based on our in-depth, hands-on reviews.

How to Choose a Gaming Laptop: Start With Your Budget

No surprise here: The ultimate factor in your gaming laptop purchase decision will be how much money you have to spend. Gaming systems have higher-end components than run-of-the-mill consumer laptops, so their prices will be higher, but the range across the …

Lenovo Yoga Pro 9i Gen 11 Aura Edition Review: A Slick Creator's Laptop at a Steep Price

Marshall Honorof — Sun, 23 Aug 2026 11:00:00 +0000

In a vacuum, the Lenovo Yoga Pro 9i Aura Edition Gen 11 is a decent high-end content creation laptop. Lenovo gave it an incredible OLED screen, an elegant design, and excellent battery life. When you take the price into account, though, the system's appeal diminishes. While …

The Fastest Laptops for 2026

Matthew Buzzi, John Burek — Fri, 21 Aug 2026 13:59:09 +0000

PC Labs tests more than 100 laptops every year. Buckle up: Based on our in-depth benchmarking, these are the speediest laptops on the market today.

What Does 'Speed' Really Mean in a Laptop?

The idea of speed in a laptop can be sliced in many ways. In practical terms, you can look at it as a blend of two factors: (1) CPU processing power and (2) graphical prowess for tasks …

Googlebook Preview Event Confirmed, Set for Sept. 15 in NYC

Jon Martindale — Wed, 19 Aug 2026 13:24:47 +0000

The media preview will feature partner demo models and a keynote explaining how the new operating system will work.

Update (8/20): This story previously stated this was the Googlebook launch event. This is instead, a media event, with an official launch coming later.

Original story: Google is hosting a preview event dedicated to its new Googlebook laptop range in New York City on Sept. …

Lenovo Yoga Slim 7x Gen 11 Review: Oh, Snap! Elite CPU Speed at a Heavy Price

John Loeffler — Tue, 18 Aug 2026 22:39:11 +0000

Lenovo's high-end Yoga laptops are widely appreciated for their style, comfort, and performance, and the company’s latest, the Yoga Slim 7x Gen 11, is a stunner with speed to back it up. Starting at $1,499.99 ($1,999.99 as tested), the Yoga Slim 7x gives a similarly configured arrived to address the …

The Best Chromebooks for Kids in 2026

Brian Westover — Tue, 18 Aug 2026 17:19:40 +0000

Chromebooks are now a staple of American education. If your child needs one for schoolwork or playtime, here's help with the specs, the features, and everything else you need to know before you buy.

Even if your child's school doesn't deploy Chromebooks, the occasional need for remote learning and virtual get-togethers may well tempt you to buy one (or one per child). In addition to web surfing with the Chrome browser and keeping in touch with Gmail, Chromebooks are capable productivity platforms for use …

The Best Ultraportable Laptops for 2026

Brian Westover, Matthew Buzzi — Tue, 18 Aug 2026 15:45:10 +0000

Need a featherweight laptop that lasts all day on a battery charge? Thin, light, and power-efficient, these ultraportables are our top performers in testing.

While ultraportable laptops as a class may look sleek, several key differentiators set models apart. The first to consider is price. You'll notice a significant difference between a system that costs $400 and one that costs $1,300, even if they share the same brand name, looks, and features.

At the low …

Back-To-School Sale Season Is Almost Over, Grab a New Laptop While You Can

K. Thor Jensen — Tue, 18 Aug 2026 14:53:06 +0000

Once the first bell rings, laptop prices are going to rocket back up. Take advantage of these nine deep discounts while they're still good.

It's a tragedy that summer is almost over, but if you haven't shopped your way through your entire back-to-school list, you still have a little time to pick up a new laptop at a lower price. The weeks before school starts see major retailers and …

The Best Work Laptops for 2026

Brian Westover, Tom Brant — Tue, 18 Aug 2026 14:52:09 +0000

Laptops built for business are thinner and more powerful than ever. Check out our favorite expert-tested laptops for the office.

Every laptop benefits from a speedy CPU, a bright screen, a comfortable keyboard, and long battery life, but let's look at what separates business-grade laptops from consumer models.

What Is a Business-Grade Laptop?

The makers of business models add features to meet specific office needs, such as secure logins (via biometric fingerprint …

This Framework Rival With Up to 72GB of RAM Launches at a Surprising Price

Jon Martindale — Tue, 18 Aug 2026 13:42:05 +0000

However, the largest RAM configuration isn't available quite yet.

You could spend $950 on a Microsoft Surface Laptop with just 8GB of RAM (although you shouldn't), or you could buy the newly launched Schenker Element 16, with up to 72GB of RAM, starting at $1,450, as TechRadar Pro reports. …

The Best Laptops for College Students in 2026

Brian Westover, Tom Brant — Tue, 18 Aug 2026 01:45:46 +0000

Looking for a computer for taking remote classes, or just for carrying around campus? Start your "best college laptops" short list with the top-rated, best-value models we've tested.

How do you narrow down this list, let alone other systems not mentioned here, to find the right one to be your college colleague? Some questions will apply to all college laptop shoppers, whether families with kids or corporate executives; others are specific to higher education. Let's run down what …

HyperX Omen 15 Review: A Comfy Budget Gamer Sunk by Nerfed Graphics

Charles Jefferies — Fri, 14 Aug 2026 23:41:15 +0000

Maximum value matters most in entry-level gaming laptops, but HP’s HyperX Omen 15 (starts at $1,099.99) misses the other critical mark: graphics performance. The Omen 15 delivers excellent everyday usability and is capable of modern gaming, but our $1,199 starting configuration from Walmart trails faster-performing rivals …

Leak Tips Lenovo's IdeaPad Vibe, Its Version of the MacBook Neo

Jon Martindale — Thu, 13 Aug 2026 15:41:37 +0000

The PC features strong port selection, various color options, and a capable CPU.

Lenovo is working on an IdeaPad Vibe laptop that's designed to compete with the MacBook Neo. It's colorful, has a robust selection of ports and connectors, and will offer AMD and Qualcomm Snapdragon SoC options, according to Windows Latest.

The MacBook …

Dell XPS 13 (2026) Review: The Windows Rival to the MacBook Neo Has Arrived

Matthew Buzzi — Thu, 13 Aug 2026 11:00:00 +0000

Soon after Apple rocked the laptop-buying world with its bargain-priced MacBook Neo, Dell announced an equally affordable revival of its iconic XPS 13. The $699.99 base model I tested has its compromises—just 8GB of memory, no headphone jack, and a modest Intel "Wildcat Lake" processor—but …

Still Have an Intel Mac? It’s Time to Make the Move to Apple Silicon

Brian Westover — Wed, 12 Aug 2026 20:09:11 +0000

Apple will drop support for Intel processors with the release of macOS 27 Golden Gate in the fall. Don't wait until then to upgrade.

Holding on with a death grip to your old pre-Apple silicon Mac? Maybe it's nostalgia, or a reluctance to switch from Intel's familiar architecture. Or maybe it's simple frugality. (Who wants to buy a new Mac at today's prices?) If you were looking for a sign that the end of …

Students Want PCs to Handle Demanding Workloads, But Can They Afford Them?

Jibin Joseph — Wed, 12 Aug 2026 14:14:17 +0000

With AI becoming a regular part of coursework, 43% of undergrads surveyed in a study from Nvidia say they feel disadvantaged because of a less capable laptop.

Back-to-school season is here, and for most college students starting out, that often means purchasing a new laptop. While price and battery life remain priorities, a new study commissioned by Nvidia finds that students are becoming more discerning …

'Aeroblade' Leak Suggests Lenovo Is Gunning for the Thinnest Laptop Prize

Jon Martindale — Fri, 07 Aug 2026 16:10:43 +0000

The slim front end of the keyboard juts out dramatically at the back, just to house the ports.

Ports may well be the only thing stopping us all from having laptops that are just a few millimeters thick, as images leaked to Windows Latest of a new Lenovo laptop show an incredibly trim design that only deviates from its sleek look around the …

Asus Zenbook A14 (2026) Review: A Snapdragon Scorcher With a Marathon Battery

Marshall Honorof — Fri, 07 Aug 2026 10:00:00 +0000

As ultraportable laptops go, this year's Asus Zenbook A14 (starting at $1,349.99; as tested) nails almost everything. With laser-fast performance, a gorgeous OLED screen, and a generous selection of ports, the device is a productive power player. These features alone would be enough to earn …

Have an Intel Mac or Old Windows PC? Revive It With One of These 20 Fun DIY Projects

Eric Griffith — Wed, 05 Aug 2026 17:10:33 +0000

Do you have an ancient laptop or desktop just lying around? Transform that aging PC into an NAS, experiment with a new OS, build your own security cam, and more.

Just over three in 10 (31%) US adults hang onto old devices because they are unsure what to do with them, according to a CNET survey. Nearly one-fifth (19%) of those surveyed simply throw them away. Now that Microsoft has abandoned Windows 10 and Apple …

Need a New Laptop? Prepare to Pay Double Your Budget

Mark Yarm — Tue, 04 Aug 2026 17:30:06 +0000

The surging costs of memory and storage make for bad news for back-to-school laptop shoppers and tech consumers as a whole. Our recent survey shows a disconnect between expectations and actual prices.

In June, in a move that reverberated through the tech industry, Apple raised prices across nearly all of its product lines in response to the surging costs of memory and storage, which are being gobbled up for AI infrastructure.

“We’re doing our best to mitigate the …

Lenovo Googlebook 15 Renders Give First Look at Style and Substance

Jon Martindale — Tue, 04 Aug 2026 15:52:23 +0000

The laptop features a clean aesthetic with a slimline keyboard and Android-style software.

Leaked renders of Lenovo's rumored Googlebook 15 have appeared online, giving us our first glimpse of the new laptop.

Digital Citizen claims to have obtained press images of the laptop that reveal key details about its keyboard layout, app design, and connectivity. The shortage of Apple’s Mac mini and Mac Studio, and now we may see a limited supply for the MacBook Air, Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman …

MSI Cyborg 15 (2026) Review: This Able Budget Gamer's Outshined by Its Own Sibling

Marshall Honorof — Sun, 02 Aug 2026 18:00:00 +0000

If you're in the market for a budget gaming laptop, you could do much worse than the MSI Cyborg 15 (2026). You could also do a little bit better. Starting at $1,199.99 (as tested), this laptop pumps out punchy gaming …

Dell 14S Review: Marathon Battery Life, Middling Value

Charles Jefferies — Sat, 01 Aug 2026 00:01:14 +0000

Dell’s 14S is for when you want more than a budget laptop but don’t want to pay for an ultra-premium ultraportable. Starting at $1,269.99 (we've seen it as low as $999.99 on sale), the 14S combines a sturdy, all-metal chassis with comfortable …

MacBook Neo Is Big Win for Apple's Mac Revenue, But Memory Crunch Looms

Michael Kan — Thu, 30 Jul 2026 22:46:07 +0000

Outgoing Apple CEO Tim Cook warns during an earnings call that memory prices are expected to increase even more during the current quarter.

The affordable MacBook Neo helped Apple’s Mac business reach new revenue records, despite the ongoing memory shortage. However, CEO Tim Cook warns that memory costs are expected to continue rising.

“Mac delivered its best June quarter yet,” Cook said in an

Did This Guy Find a Surface Laptop Ultra Prototype on the Side of the Road? Maybe. Here Are Some Benchmarks

Jon Martindale — Tue, 28 Jul 2026 21:09:47 +0000

With pre-release drivers, performance on the N1X-equipped system is underwhelming.

A TechPowerUp forum user who claims to have "found" an engineering sample of an unreleased Microsoft Surface Laptop Ultra equipped with an Nvidia N1X chip has posted an informal review, giving us another look at Nvidia's new RTX Spark …

Framework Laptop 13 Pro Review: A MacBook Rival You Can Tear Down to the Studs

Joe Osborne — Mon, 27 Jul 2026 15:29:52 +0000

Framework achieved the almost unthinkable with the Laptop 13 Pro: a flagship, top-end laptop you can tear down for upgrades and repairs that also feels like a one-piece, luxury design once assembled. It's a remarkable achievement in hardware design, and impressive to this Framework first-timer. However, …

Living With the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 14 Aura Edition, a Fantastic Business Travel Companion

Michael J. Miller — Sat, 25 Jul 2026 18:00:00 +0000

Better serviceability, improved port placement, and Intel's Panther Lake chips make the latest version of the venerable X1 Carbon stand out.

Lenovo's ThinkPad X1 Carbon has long been the company's flagship business laptop, and this year's version, the Gen 14 Aura Edition, not only offers the newer Panther Lake chips but also has …

Apple Has Big Plans for Its Mac Lineup. And Yes, That Includes a Touch Screen

Bee Wertheimer — Fri, 24 Jul 2026 18:17:03 +0000

We've heard it before, but Apple is finally ready to roll out an OLED touch screen on the MacBook, alongside a huge overhaul for the rest of its lineup over the next two years, Bloomberg reports.

With consumer tech prices continuing to soar, how can Apple persuade customers to keep buying its expensive devices? By releasing a shiny new lineup of Macs, apparently.

Apple will soon debut new and improved Macs, and the highlight will be OLED touch screens on the MacBook, according to

$800 More? Memory Crunch Derails Pricing for Framework's Newest Laptop

Michael Kan — Wed, 22 Jul 2026 22:44:31 +0000

The memory situation is so bad that Framework has been forced to change the RAM configurations for some Laptop 13 Pro preorders.

The memory shortage is destabilizing pricing and preorders for Framework and its newest product, the Laptop 13 Pro, causing one configuration to jump by $800.

In a Wednesday blog post, Framework’s CEO said one of its suppliers drastically increased …

Apple May Soon Launch Subscription-Style Leasing Program for iPhones, Macs

Jibin Joseph — Wed, 22 Jul 2026 09:25:11 +0000

Once the program rolls out next week, Apple will discontinue the standalone iPhone Upgrade program, Bloomberg reports.

Apple is reportedly preparing to launch a new device leasing program that would reduce the upfront cost of buying iPhones, iPads, Macs, and Apple Watches. The program, called Apple Upgrade, is backed by Klarna and will be available both online and in physical Apple stores on July 28, Bloomberg

Acer Swift 16 AI (2026) Review: A Great Big-Screen Laptop With One Giant Hurdle

John Loeffler — Mon, 20 Jul 2026 22:56:44 +0000

Acer's Swift 16 AI (starts at $1,599.99; $1,799.99 as tested) desktop-replacement laptop returns with powerful new hardware and interesting features that might put it on your shortlist. Anchored by Intel's latest-gen Core Ultra Series 3 processors (featuring the company's Arc B390 integrated graphics), the Swift 16 …

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