I’ve awarded two laptops an Editors’ Choice award in recent months, starting with the MacBook Neo in March. With a premium MacBook look and feel at a much lower price, and enough performance for most people, the Neo is the best under-$600 laptop you can buy right now. More recently, the Asus Zenbook A16 took home some hardware for its leading application and AI performance that comes wrapped in an incredibly thin-and-light-yet-rigid design. Beyond these two award winners, I have favorites across a broad range of categories, from sleek, long-lasting ultraportables to high-powered gaming and content creation machines.
Our Picks #
The 15-inch MacBook Air is proof that you don't need a Pro to get a larger display. It supplies a larger screen that you once found only on the pricier Pro models. If you're eyeing the 14- or 16-inch Pro models primarily for the added screen size, the MacBook Air 15 is the more affordable option you should go for.
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Pros
- Optimal balance of screen size and system weight
- Improved app, graphics and AI performance from M5 chip
Cons
- Costs $500 more than MacBook Neo
- Smooth ProMotion display still exclusive to MacBook Pro
The Alienware 18 Area-51 is overkill, and that's the point. No one needs a laptop this large, but if you want the biggest, baddest gaming laptop and have the money to get it, it's a supercolossal showpiece.
Pros
- RTX 5090 delivers outstanding 3D performance
- 18-inch display is massive and fast
- CherryMX mechanical keyboard is awesome
- Dazzling RGB lighting is everywhere
- RAM and storage can be upgraded after purchase
Cons
- Pricing will make you weak in the legs
- You'll need to lift with your legs to move it
- No OLED or mini-LED display options
- Battery life is predictably short
The MacBook Neo is easily the best laptop for school use, especially if you (or the student you're buying for) already have an iPhone. The two devices work seamlessly together. At $599, the Neo is nearly half the price of the cheapest MacBook Air, and students and teachers can get it for only $499. Given the convenience and security that Touch ID provides, however, I'd view Apple's $100 educational discount as a way to get the added Touch ID (along with more storage) for free, rather than lowering the price of the base model.
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Pros
- Premium MacBook look and feel at much lower cost
- 13-inch display not much smaller than Macbook Air's
- A18 Pro chip is powerful enough to provide fulfilling MacOS experience
- Surprisingly impressive sound from stereo speakers
Cons
- Touch ID costs $100 extra
- Baseline 256GB SSD will fill up fast
- No MagSafe or fast charging
- Smaller battery and shorter battery life than MacBook Air
Based on a Qualcomm second-gen Snapdragon X2 CPU, the Yoga Slim 7x Gen 11 is a midrange OLED laptop with a sleek design, strong application and AI performance, and lengthy battery life.
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Pros
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Fantastic application, AI performance
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Nearly 24 hours of battery life
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Trim, solid design
-
OLED display delivers accurate, vivid colors and deep black levels
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Excellent high-res webcam
Cons
- Qualcomm Adreno can't match Intel Arc B390 for integrated 3D graphics power
- Heavier than it looks
- Mechanical touchpad is just OK
- Fingerprint magnet
- Limited port selection
Only a few weeks after ceding the battery life throne to Lenovo in our tests, HP has snatched back the crown with the OmniBook 5 14.
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Pros
- Unbelievable battery life
- Sturdy, stylish and compact design
- OLED display delivers deep blacks, vivid colors
- Generous RAM and SSD for the price
Cons
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OLED display isn't the brightest
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Slow USB-C ports Weighing less than 3.5 pounds and offering amazing battery life, the Acer Aspire 16 AI is a 16-inch laptop that's easy to take with you.
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Pros
- Optimal balance of screen size and laptop weight
- Incredible battery life
- Comfortable keyboard and roomy touchpad
- Crisp 1440p webcam
- Excellent external expansion options
Cons
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Design can't be described as "exciting"
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So-so speakers After killing it off last year, Dell turned right around this year and brought back the XPS this year. The XPS 14 marks a grand return for Dell’s longtime premium laptop brand.
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Pros
- Sleek, solid design at a reasonable weight
- Strong performance with long battery life
- Quiet and cool operation
- Physical keys have returned to the Function row
- Huge, haptic touchpad
- Quad speakers produce great sound
Cons
- Matches MacBook Pro in price but not performance
- Seams along the edges and below the keyboard are magnets for debris
- Limited port selection with no adapter included
- No fingerprint reader
The Lenovo Legion 5i Gen 10 is overkill for most budget gaming laptop shoppers, both in terms of price and features. But if you view it as two laptops in one -- a competent gaming laptop with a reasonably large 15.1-inch display and a general-use laptop that's thin and light enough to carry around more than occasionally -- then its price begins to look like a great value.
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Pros
- 2.5K OLED display is crisp, bright and fast
- Snappy keyboard feels fast for games
- Thin and light for its size
- Free M.2 slot to add second SSD
Cons
- Short battery life
- No biometrics for easy, secure logins
- Lacks fast Thunderbolt 4 or USB4 ports
- Always-on power button LED is annoying
Built around an Arm-based Qualcomm Snapdragon X processor, the Zenbook A14 is the lightest Copilot Plus PC we've tested and the second-longest running. It weighs less than 2.2 pounds and offers a battery life of more than 24 hours.
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Pros
- Incredibly thin and light without feeling flimsy
- All-day-and-all-night battery life
- OLED display at this price is a nice surprise
- Ample RAM and storage for the price
Cons
- Meh performance from Snapdragon X CPU
- Meh mechanical touchpad
- Meh speakers
Based on a Qualcomm Snapdragon X2 Elite Extreme processor, the Zenbook A16 is a rightful successor to last year's excellent Zenbook A14 and one of the best 16-inch laptops you can buy.
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Pros
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Leading application and AI performance
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Thin and light, yet has a rigid design
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Huge OLED is crisp, smooth and bright
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Good sound from six-speaker array
Cons
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Lackluster 3D performance
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Meh mechanical touch pad
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No room for internal expansion
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Beige = boring The ProArt P16 boasts a big, beautiful 16-inch 4K OLED alongside enough graphics horsepower to deliver the performance in Adobe and CapCut that creators crave inside a reasonably slender, lightweight chassis.
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Pros
- Gorgeous 16-inch, 4K OLED touchscreen
- Strong component lineup, including RTX 5070 GPU
- Slim and light given the size and what's under the hood
- DialPad controller on touchpad is useful
Cons
- Runs hot and loud
- 3D frame rates are good but not great
- Display bezels are a bit thick
- Stylus not included for the touchscreen
This recent release from Acer's budget Aspire line is based on an Intel Lunar Lake CPU. Its Intel Core Ultra 5 226V features a neural processing unit (NPU) capable of 40 trillion operations per second (TOPS) for local AI processing, which happens to be the minimum requirement for Microsoft's Copilot Plus PC platform. The Aspire 14 AI is on sale for $619 at Amazon and only $500 at Costco, making it easily the cheapest Copilot Plus PC I've reviewed.
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Pros
- Exceedingly long battery life
- Competitive performance for the price
- Useful port selection
Cons
- Dull display
- Dull design
The Lenovo Yoga 9i 2-in-1 Aura Edition is greater than the sum of its parts. Based on a common Intel Core Ultra Series 2 processor, its component lineup is not all that unusual. But placed inside a sleek and compact enclosure and outfitted with a beautiful 2.8K OLED display becomes a truly exceptional two-in-one.
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Pros
- Beautiful OLED display
- Compact package with sleek aesthetics
- Record-setting battery life
- Great audio and webcam
Cons
- Mechanical rather than haptic trackpad
- No HDMI port or SIM card reader
If you love the sleek look and great portability of a MacBook Air but need a Windows laptop for work, then HP's flagship EliteBook Ultra is a great alternative.
[Read full review](https://www.cnet.com/tech/computing/hp-elitebook-ultra-g1i-review-a-macbook-air-alternative-for-c-suite-execs/)Jump to details
Pros
- Excellent 2.8K OLED display
- Beautiful design that's also compact and lightweight
- Competitive application and AI performance from Intel Lunar Lake CPU
Cons
- Very expensive when not on sale
- Battery life is good but not great
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What is the best laptop overall? #
The new MacBook Neo is the perfect laptop for student budgets, and the MacBook Pro is better suited for creators who need the added power and have the money to get it. In between, the MacBook Air offers an ideal balance of power, portability and price. That’s why the MacBook Air is still CNET’s pick for the best laptop for most people. But I think if you are eyeing a MacBook Air, I say you go big or go Neo.
If you value battery life above all else, then the HP OmniBook 5 14 is the pick. Based on a Qualcomm Snapdragon X series processor, it won CNET's Editors' Choice and Lab Awards for pairing a stylish design and OLED display with record-setting battery life at a great price. Intel has responded to Qualcomm's Snapdragon X processors making laptop headlines with the release of its Core Ultra Series 3 processors, developed under the name Panther Lake. The Dell XPS 14 is one of the first Intel Panther Lake laptops I've tested, and it made a big first impression with an unprecedented combination of power and efficiency. Not only does it provide all-day battery life on the level of Snapdragon X laptops, but it also delivers capable 1080p gaming performance from the integrated Intel Arc B390 GPU.
Read more
Best laptops of 2026 #
Pros
- Optimal balance of screen size and system weight
- Improved app, graphics and AI performance from M5 chip
Cons
- Costs $500 more than MacBook Neo
- Smooth ProMotion display still exclusive to MacBook Pro
The 15-inch MacBook Air is proof that you don't need a Pro to get a larger display. It supplies a larger screen that you once found only on the pricier Pro models. If you're eyeing the 14- or 16-inch Pro models primarily for the added screen size, the MacBook Air 15 is the more affordable option you should go for.
Why we like it
Apple just updated the MacBook Air with its M5 processor, catching it up to the MacBook Pro that got an M5 refresh at the end of last year. I tested the M5 chip in the smaller 13-inch Air and found the new silicon adds incremental improvements, especially in the areas of graphics and AI performance. Apple also upped the minimum storage for the Air to 512GB, which actually makes it a better deal than last year's model despite the higher starting price. You can read my review of last year's 15-inch M4 MacBook Air -- much of it still applies because the design remains unchanged on what I think is the laptop that sits in the Goldilocks Zone of Apple's MacBook lineup.
Who it's best for
People looking for a big-screen MacBook who don't need the power of a MacBook Pro. With its roomy display, trim design and ample performance for most users, the 15-inch MacBook Air should be viewed as the default Air, with its cheaper and smaller 13-inch sibling a good alternative for students and others with tighter budgets and busy, on-the-go lifestyles who might need more power than the MacBook Neo.
Who shouldn't get it
The majority of sudents who need a more affordable and portable laptop will be better off spending a lot less on the new MacBook Neo. Creative types who need more graphics oomph will need to spend more for the added power of a MacBook Pro.
Pros
- RTX 5090 delivers outstanding 3D performance
- 18-inch display is massive and fast
- CherryMX mechanical keyboard is awesome
- Dazzling RGB lighting is everywhere
- RAM and storage can be upgraded after purchase
Cons
- Pricing will make you weak in the legs
- You'll need to lift with your legs to move it
- No OLED or mini-LED display options
- Battery life is predictably short
The Alienware 18 Area-51 is overkill, and that's the point. No one needs a laptop this large, but if you want the biggest, baddest gaming laptop and have the money to get it, it's a supercolossal showpiece.
Why we like it
From the 3D power of Nvidia's flagship RTX 5090 and enormous 18-inch display to the fantastic tactile feel of the mechanical keys and dazzling RGB lighting, the Alienware 18 Area-51 is a wonderland of gaming laptop tech. Who it’s best for
Gamers with deep pockets who are unlikely to travel with their gaming laptop. This thing is huge -- and expensive. It weighs more than 9 pounds, and that’s without the 2-pound power adapter. Pricing starts at $2,400 but quickly escalates. My test system costs more than $5,000.
Who shouldn’t buy it
Anyone operating under a normal laptop budget and creators who need the superior color performance and contrast of an OLED or mini-LED display.
Best laptop for students #
MacBook Neo
Pros
- Premium MacBook look and feel at much lower cost
- 13-inch display not much smaller than Macbook Air's
- A18 Pro chip is powerful enough to provide fulfilling MacOS experience
- Surprisingly impressive sound from stereo speakers
Cons
- Touch ID costs $100 extra
- Baseline 256GB SSD will fill up fast
- No MagSafe or fast charging
- Smaller battery and shorter battery life than MacBook Air
The MacBook Neo is easily the best laptop for school use, especially if you (or the student you're buying for) already have an iPhone. The two devices work seamlessly together. At $599, the Neo is nearly half the price of the cheapest MacBook Air, and students and teachers can get it for only $499. Given the convenience and security that Touch ID provides, however, I'd view Apple's $100 educational discount as a way to get the added Touch ID (along with more storage) for free, rather than lowering the price of the base model.
Why we like it
It has the same luxurious, all-aluminum design as Apple’s other MacBooks, and its 13-inch display is nearly as big as the 13.6-inch Air’s. The Neo’s iPhone chip can’t match the performance of an M-series processor, but it’s still powerful enough to provide a smooth MacOS experience for most people.
Who it’s best for
Anyone on a student budget who can’t spend $1,000 or more on a laptop, especially if you already own an iPhone, because iOS and MacOS work so well together.
Who shouldn’t buy it
Students in STEM or design programs will likely need more power than the Neo offers and will need to spend more on a MacBook Air or even a MacBook Pro.
Pros
-
Fantastic application, AI performance
-
Nearly 24 hours of battery life
-
Trim, solid design
-
OLED display delivers accurate, vivid colors and deep black levels
-
Excellent high-res webcam
Cons
- Qualcomm Adreno can't match Intel Arc B390 for integrated 3D graphics power
- Heavier than it looks
- Mechanical touchpad is just OK
- Fingerprint magnet
- Limited port selection
Based on a Qualcomm second-gen Snapdragon X2 CPU, the Yoga Slim 7x Gen 11 is a midrange OLED laptop with a sleek design, strong application and AI performance, and lengthy battery life.
Why we like it
I like getting an all-metal design, OLED display, quad speakers and high-resolution webcam in a mainstream laptop that starts at $1,300.
Who it’s best for
The Lenovo Yoga Slim 7x is a great pick if you want an easily portable, everyday OLED laptop. With its Snapdragon X2 Elite CPU and ample 32GB of RAM, the Yoga Slim 7x Gen 11 excels as a general-purpose laptop, and it will run all day and into the night without needing to recharge.
Who shouldn’t buy it
The Yoga Slim 7x's marginal 3D performance means it's not the best pick as a compact content creation or gaming machine, and you'll need to perform a Windows-on-Arm compatibility check -- as you would with any Snapdragon X-based laptop -- to verify all the software you rely on has native Arm versions. Also, port lovers will be disappointed to learn that the extremely limited port selection doesn't even include a headphone jack.
Pros
- Unbelievable battery life
- Sturdy, stylish and compact design
- OLED display delivers deep blacks, vivid colors
- Generous RAM and SSD for the price
Cons
-
OLED display isn't the brightest
-
Slow USB-C ports Only a few weeks after ceding the battery life throne to Lenovo in our tests, HP has snatched back the crown with the OmniBook 5 14.
Why we like it
For starters, it runs and runs (and runs and runs). The OmniBook 5 14 lasted more than 28 hours in testing and earned our lab award for longest laptop battery life. In addition to record-setting battery life, the OmniBook 5 14 offers a simple, elegant design and easy-to-carry weight -- plus, an OLED display that delivers stellar contrast and vivid colors. It also supplies an ample 32GB of RAM and a roomy 1TB SSD, neither of which is a given in a laptop that costs less than $1,000. Who it’s best for
For students and others constantly on the go, the OmniBook 5 14 is a fantastic pick at a great price. Who shouldn’t buy it
If you are concerned about Windows-on-Arm compatibility issues, then you should skip the Snapdragon X-based OmniBook 5 14 and go for an Intel- or AMD-based laptop.