The Best New Laptops for this Year

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Laptop technology is advancing at an astounding rate, so it is no surprise that 2020 has brought a great selection of laptops. Specs and performance have improved while size and weight have, in many cases, been reduced. To help you make a purchase decision, here is an overview of the best laptops of the year.

MacBook Pro 16-inch

Best for: Multimedia creation

Starting price: $2399 USD

Weight: 3.4 lbs

Dimensions: 14.09 x 9.68 x 0.64 inches

The sleek aluminum body of MacBook Pro 16-inch houses a powerful i7 or i9 processor, depending on configuration. You can choose from an AMD 5300M (4GB) or 5500M (4 and 8 GB) to power the graphics. The slim bezels, trademark immersive screen and the new and improved magic keyboard makes the new MacBook Pro a favorite among professionals and Apple fans alike.

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Dell XPS 15 (2020)

Best for: Balanced performance

Average starting price: $1799 USD

Weight: 4.5 lbs

Dimensions: 57 x 9.06 x 0.71 inches

The XPS 15 is Dell’s updated and well-balanced flagship laptop that features a brilliant 4k display, GTX 1650Ti in the graphics department, and powerful processor to handle heavy loads. Combined with a battery life of close to 8.5 hours, you can expect the XPS 15 to meet all the requirements of a high-spec laptop.

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Alienware Area-51M R2

Best for: Gaming and performance-demanding work

Average starting price: $2299 USD

Weight: 10.4 lbs

Dimensions: 15.85 x 12.56 x 1.7 inches

Sometimes you want max specs for unlimited power, which is what the Alienware Area-51M R2 offers. The laptop is powered by a 10th generation overclocked desktop processor and has the latest line of Nvidia’s GeForce RTX 2080 graphics card installed. Its 17.3-inch 4k display and up to 64 GB of memory make it a powerful tool to perform any demanding task.

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Microsoft Surface Book 2

Best for: Workload and using as tablet

Average starting price: $1849 USD

Weight: 4.2 lbs

Dimensions: 13.5 x 9.87 x 0.9 inches

When it comes to hybrid laptops, the Microsoft Surface Book 2 is a great choice. It comes with a stunning 4k display and packs both processing and graphics power. The screen can be detached for use as a tablet, which has resulted in a very efficient thermal exhaust system with the processor venting heat form the screen and graphics card cooling from the keyboard base.

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Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon 7th Gen

Best for: Working on the go

Average starting price: $850 USD

Weight: 2.4 lbs

Dimensions: 12.71 x 8.54 x 0.59 inches

The Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon 7th Gen. is arguably the most portable business-style laptop. What it lacks in graphics is well compensated for with other features. It has a 14-inch UHD display, a compact design, comfortable keyboard, and plenty of RAM to make short work of demanding processes.

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Selecting a Laptop

Making your final decision about which laptop to purchase depends on a variety of factors including the main purpose for the device, portability, and required specs. One of the easiest ways to check whether a laptop’s reputation holds up is to check its customer reviews. The users are honest regarding their feedback since they have nothing to gain from hiding the information. Selecting from a predefined, concise list with a clear, objective-oriented approach can significantly streamline the entire process of purchasing a new laptop.