The A-List
PREMIUM LAPTOPS
Apple MacBook Air
Affordable Apple M1 ultraportable from £999 from apple.com/uk
Apple’s ARM-based M1 chip is blasting away its AMD and Intel x86 opposition with truly extraordinary speeds. Even the low-end model with 8GB of RAM is ludicrously fast. Apple makes no changes to the Air’s design, but it still looks fabulous and now supports both USB 4 and Wi-Fi 6. Add battery life into the teens and its biggest threat comes from the updated M1 MacBook Pro 13in.
REVIEW Issue 316, p40
ALTERNATIVES
Dell XPS 17 (2020)
An excellent alternative to the 16in MacBook Pro thanks to a 17in IPS screen, bags of power, all-round quality and a great range of specs. From £1,799 from dell.co.uk
REVIEW Issue 315, p48
Apple MacBook Pro 13in (M1)
Apple replaces Intel’s Core processors with its own M1 chip and the results are sensational: brilliantly fast with an incredibly long battery life. From £1,299 from apple.com/uk
REVIEW Issue 316, p44
Huawei Matebook X Pro
This laptop packs a 13.9in screen with a 3,000 x 2,000 resolution and powerful components. It might not be flawless, but it’s very desirable. £999 from johnlewis.com
REVIEW Issue 312, p86
NEW ENTRY
GAMING LAPTOPS
Asus TUF Gaming A15 (2021)
Nvidia GeForce 3070 graphics for £1,600
from uk.store.asus.com
Of the five laptops we’ve already tested with Nvidia GeForce RTX 3070 graphics, the TUF Gaming A15 noses ahead due to the way it mixes power and portability. With a Ryzen 7 5800H processor and 16GB of RAM, this 15.6in machine will storm through any task you throw at it – plus there’s a 1TB SSD as supplied, with one slot empty to add more.
REVIEW Issue 319, p51
ALTERNATIVES
NEW ENTRY
Asus ROG Strix G17 (2021)
The 17.3in Strix got more out of its RTX 3070 than any other in our in-depth tests: choose it if power is all-important. £1,800 from uk.store.asus.com
REVIEW Issue 319, p46
NEW ENTRY
Gigabyte Aero 17 HDR XC
We don’t like the price, but the gorgeous 17.3in 4K screen makes the most out of Nvidia’s GeForce RTX 3070 for creatives. £2,700 from scan.co.uk
REVIEW Issue 319, p53
NEW ENTRY
MSI GF65 Thin
If your budget doesn’t stretch into four figures, make do with this RTX 2060 laptop with its Full HD, 120Hz, 15.6in screen. £899 from currys.co.uk
REVIEW Issue 319, p86
BUSINESS LAPTOPS
NEW ENTRY
Dynabook Portégé X30W-J-10F
The best convertible money can buy
from £1,233 excVAT from laptopsdirect.co.uk
Not only is this 2-in-1 convertible ludicrously light and slim, but it also offers a quiet keyboard, performance fireworks, ports a-plenty, natural-feeling touchscreen and a battery
