laptop recommendations if you were buying one today (2025).

[El Presidente]

Time to upgrade my laptop warhorse that is showing the first signs of struggle. 

Currently rocking the below. It has been very good. 

I travel extensively so I need it to be light, 13-14 inch, tough (able to handle hundreds of cigar and Negroni spills), fast. No gaming. This is my primary work tool. 

No Mac's please. 

I am no expert. For those that are, your recommendations are most appreciated. 

 

ASUS ExpertBook B9 B9403 14" 2.8K OLED Core 7 32GB RAM 1TB Laptop

ASUS ExpertBook B9 B9403 Star Black Laptop, Intel Core 7-120U,32GB LPDDR5X RAM, 1TB M.2 NVMe PCIe 4.0 SSD, 14inch WQXGA+ 90Hz OLED, Integrated Graphics, WiFi 6E, BT 5.3, FHD IR Webcam, 63Wh Batt, 0.99kg, Win11 Pro, Backlit Keyboard with Copilot, 3yrs ASUS Onsite Warranty

[cnov]

I'm on my second Dell XPS and my wife is still using the first that's nearly 10 years old.

They're pretty sleek and have a barely visible bezel, doesn't take up much room in my rucksack when I'm away.

If it broke I'd probably buy another one tomorrow. Slightly more expensive than some brands but it's a business expense, you might as well spend it before the tax man gets it!

 

 

[hawkeye5050]

Just search from the "business" line of the manufacturer. For HP its the Elitebook line, for Dell its a few like Latitude & XPS. Avoid the consumer/student models. It will come with Windows Pro rather than Home. If battery life is important consider the new ARM systems rather than Intel/AMD.

[ha_banos]

Looks like a good piece of kit! https://www.asus.com/uk/laptops/for-home/zenbook/asus-zenbook-s-14-ux5406/

 

[Lamboinee]

I've had a Microsoft surface for years. It's been great despite some serious abuse. My work also gave me a Microsoft Surface Pro that I've been using for about 1.5 years. The Pro is lighter and is easier to use as a tablet/touchscreen. Although I recommend both, I prefer using the regular Microsoft Surface (not the Pro version from work) because it has a more substantial keyboard. I definitely think that the keyboard and trackpad are two of the most critical features on any laptop.

Whatever you get, I recommend looking for a laptop with plenty of ports, especially USB and USB-C with power transfer. Also, make sure the resolution maximizes the usable area of the screen.

 

[wjs]

I’ve been Dell loyal for almost 30 years.

[BrightonCorgi]

21 hours ago, Lamboinee said:

I've had a Microsoft surface for years. It's been great despite some serious abuse. My work also gave me a Microsoft Surface Pro that I've been using for about 1.5 years. The Pro is lighter and is more easy to use as a tablet/touchscreen. Although I recommend both, I prefer using the regular Microsoft Surface (not the Pro version from work) because it has a more substantial keyboard. I definitely think that the keyboard and trackpad are two of the most critical features on any laptop.

Whatever you get, I recommend looking for a laptop with plenty of ports, especially USB and USB-C with power transfer. Also, make sure the resolution maximizes the usable area of the screen.

 

I was going to recommend the Surface / Surface Pro as well. Great build quality and feel. The laptops I am provided by work are too expensive to recommend. 

[chasy]

I got a Mac book Pro and it’s not been great. I have had to relearn all my hot key shortcuts. I had a Lenovo Thinkpad prior which I really liked.

[Puros Y Vino]

HP Business line is good. Avoid consumer based ones. Get one of those AMD Ryzen based kits. They are fast and sip power. You kinda want something that is upgradeable. That mostly pertains to memory. So something with 2 slots that can support up to or beyond 64gb is key. A fast nvme drive for the o/s and data as well. Screen size, weight form factor etc are up to you. IMO MS surface is trash. Almost everyone at work that chose one over a Thinkpad regrets it. Speaking of, Lenovo makes good laptops too. Dell, Acer, Asus is best avoided.

[ha_banos]

My lord this is as bad as asking for cigar recommendations.

[Lamboinee]

5 hours ago, Puros Y Vino said:

IMO MS surface is trash.

I like my laptops a little on the trashy side. 

[Edicion]

On 1/4/2025 at 6:22 AM, El Presidente said:

ASUS ExpertBook

I am in a similar situation with my laptop. I would probably get the same I have now, just updated - it's a Dell and worked for everything I need - including the cigar ash and coffee spill weekly. 

If I was looking for a change the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 11/12 (good specs and light) looks great and when I had Lenovo's in the past for work, they were solid work horses. 

[HuffnPuffff]

I know you said no Mac but…I have had top end work laptops and iPad Pros on the side for 10+ yrs. I like the iPad Pro for note taking with the pencil and simpler stuff especially if there’s a good app for it. The MS Office apps used to suck.

A couple of years ago the iPad Pro started to outperform the laptop and I honestly haven’t turned on my laptop for more than a year. On an iPad Pro startup time is ultra fast. A MS laptop is slow and all the security and software updates add additional time. On the iPad, MS office used to suck but is now quite functional.

I’m wary about WiFi so when travelling I love that iPads can take a SIM card and smash it on 5G (perhaps not in Cuba…) Admittedly I do look forward to getting into my office once every few weeks and using a MS desktop with a massive screen for complicated spreadsheets etc, but as far as iPad Pro vs laptop is concerned I’m now 100% in iPad Pro land.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[BrightonCorgi]

22 hours ago, Puros Y Vino said:

HP Business line is good. Avoid consumer based ones. Get one of those AMD Ryzen based kits. They are fast and sip power. You kinda want something that is upgradeable. That mostly pertains to memory. So something with 2 slots that can support up to or beyond 64gb is key. A fast nvme drive for the o/s and data as well. Screen size, weight form factor etc are up to you. IMO MS surface is trash. Almost everyone at work that chose one over a Thinkpad regrets it. Speaking of, Lenovo makes good laptops too. Dell, Acer, Asus is best avoided.

For a non-Surface pro choice I like Lenovo products more than Dell or HP. The business grade laptops can get a little weighty, but that's the way it's always been.  

[KCCubano]

6 hours ago, BrightonCorgi said:

For a non-Surface pro choice I like Lenovo products more than Dell or HP.  The business grade laptops can get a little weighty, but that's the way it's always been.  

I have had three Lenovos, two of which were from their business lines. No complaints and would buy again.

[anacostiakat]

Lenovo Thinkpad guy here. Mine is also getting long in the tooth and am thinking of upgrading. Probably 8 years old? Upgraded the wife's already including Win11. Very smooth upgrade. 32M and 1T in a 14 inch display is good for me as well.

[hawkeye5050]

Scratch one option - https://arstechnica.com/gadgets/2025/01/the-end-of-an-era-dell-will-no-longer-make-xps-computers/

HP Elitebook is the way to go.

[PuroDiario]

Lenovo Thinkpad X. Compact, rugged, etc. Great work tool.