Oliver has more than 10 years’ expertise researching tech products. He leads our laptops and printers testing projects and also writes about privacy and security.
Laptops come in all sorts of prices and sizes – even before the rabbit hole of all their specs. So it’s tricky to know where to start. Follow our guide for Chris as a handy shortcut to help you know what to look for.
When you're researching which laptop to buy, you’ll see praise for a flagship £2,000 Dell laptop, and a £300 bargain HP that looks just like a dozen other HP laptops. So what’s the difference really?
What you need is a guide on what will be best for you – to get what you need, and avoid a costly mistake on what you don’t.
Chris didn’t know what specs suited her uses. And with so much to consider when buying a laptop, she didn’t know what to focus on.
At Which? we’re testing laptops continuously throughout the year, so we know exactly what matters most – see our advice for Chris so you don’t get caught out. Plus find out which model she bought.
Best laptops – Looking for a shortcut? Our expertly curated recommendations tell you exactly which models to go for, whatever your budget.
There are three main brands: Intel Core, AMD Ryzen and Snapdragon. Higher numbers tend to mean faster processors.
For a typical user, Intel Core 5, AMD Ryzen 5 or Snapdragon X are pretty fast. For an intensive user, or if you plan to keep your laptop a decade and want it to stay nippy long into the future, go a stage higher: Intel Core 7, AMD Ryzen 7 or Snapdragon X Plus.
On Windows 11, 16GB Ram is the future-proofed choice. Ram is pricey though, and 8GB will be fine if you don’t open too many apps or browser tabs at the same time - use our laptop reviews to find a model that lets you upgrade Ram at a later date.
Windows is more Ram-hungry than Macs, so the 8GB on the Apple MacBook Neo works well. And it's plenty for Chromebooks.
Most laptops have Full HD screens (1,920 x 1,080 pixels) or WUXGA (1,920 × 1,200 pixels) – these are actually the minimum resolutions you tend to see.
Choose a higher resolution if you’re a creative. However, you don’t need a 4K screen (around 3,840 x 2,160) on a laptop. High resolutions are pricey, more demanding on battery life and you might not notice the difference.
Which? have reviewed more than 200 laptops available to buy right now, with no bias towards the most-hyped models or the high-end specs that brands want you to buy. We test across the whole of the market, so you can make the most of your money. Find out more about how we test laptops.
Like many of us, Chris has used a laptop for work for years. However, choosing one for her own personal use was tricky - she didn't know which specs and ports to prioritise.
Chris has recently retired - she's been a very much appreciated colleague of ours for many years, so we really wanted to do her justice and help her find a model she would enjoy using for years to come.
Chris said: 'I was completely lost in a labyrinth of options. I couldn't weigh up incomprehensible technical specs.
'Even where I understood what they meant, I had no idea of how suitable they'd be for what I needed.'
Chris wanted a laptop for typical everyday tasks: for emails, reading documents and using Office software. Not for higher-end uses, like photo and video-editing. Chris also confirmed she didn’t save loads of photos and videos that would require additional storage space.
She’s also a long-time Windows user, so it made sense to stick with what she knows, and she was happy with the 14-inch screen size of her previous laptop. So for familiarity, we went with that.
Chris told us that she intends to buy a laptop once and forget about it – so we needed to choose a future-proofed machine that would last.
Chris said she was willing to spend up to a grand. This was ideal: as it allowed us to focus on choosing a future-proofed Windows 11 machine.
It also meant we could pick a lightweight laptop. Even though Chris mainly planned to use it at home, a portable model is easier to take from room to room. Plus she wanted the option to be able to take it with her when travelling to stay with family.
A budget of around £750 would likely have meant some compromises (underwhelming but serviceable screen or sound, for example), and £500 would have limited the ability to future-proof to ensure speedy performance for years to come.
Looking for extra value? See our pick of the best laptop deals
Chris's budget allowed us to choose a processor that exceeded her current requirements. Over the years, Windows updates will raise demands. This means a lower-spec processor will eventually become outdated and noticeably slower – exceeding requirements now counteracts this.
Since processors in laptops can almost never be changed, the spec you choose is crucial to make your laptop last.
The same is often true for Ram. But by choosing your laptop carefully, you can save money on Ram now if you need to, then add more further down the line. Our latest laptop reviews tell you which models are upgradable.
We checked if Chris used any old or specialist software and that she didn’t have any older devices she wanted to connect to her laptop (fortunately, she’d only bought her printer last year). If she’d had any older devices, we’d have recommended an Intel or AMD processor just to be on the safe side, rather than a laptop with an Arm processor.
Otherwise, if your laptop has an Arm processor, the only difference is when downloading software from the internet - you need to select the Arm version when downloading (just like with an Apple MacBook, you’d select the version for Mac).
Available direct from Lenovo (from £945).
We like: Very powerful
We don’t like: No USB-A sockets
We chose this model for Chris as it’s a laptop without significant compromise. It has more power than she needs to give it longevity, while the screen, keyboard and touchpad are all superb.
While Chis intended to use her laptop mainly at home, her budget also allowed us to choose a portable model to easily take from room to room or on trips. At only 1.17kg, this Lenovo is lighter than a MacBook Air.
Given Chris is about to settle into retirement, a laptop that’s easy to move about, shouldn’t slow down or run out of space whatever she does with it, and will continue running for ages even if you forget about charging it, sounds like a recipe for success.
We did check with Chris one unusual thing about this laptop before she bought it. It has a generous three USB sockets, but they’re all the modern type: USB-C – it’s a laptop built for the future. Chris didn’t have any devices she plugged into her laptop via traditional USB-A other than a cheap headset, which could easily be upgraded to a USB-C one.
We also flagged Lenovo offers a cheap dongle as part of the buying process for this laptop, and she opted for that in case she ever needed it.
Sound like this could be the laptop for you too? See our full Lenovo Yoga Slim 7x Gen 11 (14" Snapdragon) review.
Feeling primed to do more research for yourself based on your needs? Use the filters on our website to narrow down exactly what you’re after - head over to our expert, independent laptop reviews.
Chris said: ‘The Which? team signposted the way, steering me through the pros and cons, and pinpointing the key decisions.
'With the pitfalls mapped out, and their expert guidance, I found my way to a great laptop and got it set up with software that suited me.'
'If I did it again, I'd maybe look more into Windows 11 set up choices and what they meant in advance. I wasn't clear what some would result in, but it’s a minor point as I know I can change/cancel these later.'
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Available direct from Apple (for £699).
We like: Powerful for the price
We don’t like: Stingy storage (512GB is available for £100 more), only supports one external display plus the laptop screen
If you’re interested in macOS rather than Windows, this year’s all-new MacBook Neo (available in silver, black, lime green or pink) is the default choice. Its processor is impressively quick despite being the cheapest Mac, and while its screen isn't the biggest (at 12.9 inches), it’s pretty high resolution so you could squeeze in a medium-sized spreadsheet without it getting pixellated.
It suits all of Chris’ requirements, other than not being as future-proofed as the Lenovo for two reasons.
There are other limitations with the Neo that Mac users should be aware of before buying. See our full Apple MacBook Neo review.
We’d generally recommend the 512GB version of the Neo, unless you hardly save any photos or videos. For this model, see the buying links below:
Our laptop testing is completely independent – we don’t accept freebie review samples and buy every model we test.
We review 80 new laptops every single year, not just the most-hyped models, so we can tell you exactly what the right model is for your budget. Find out more in our explainer on how we test laptops.
Looking for a new Windows 11 laptop? Head to our expert guide to the best Windows laptops.
