Intro to Best Laptops in 2025
I cannot wait to review the latest laptops 2025 that offer minimal benefit for twice the price. Laptop prices are massively On the Rise, more so if you’re in the USA Not only do we have to deal with manufacturers jacking up the prices for minimal improvements, but we also have increasing tariffs.
I’ve seen new best gaming laptops for over $5,000 and then lights for almost 2,000. Look at other countries; they have had to deal with inflated laptop prices for some time now, but this price creep is just beyond out of control.
Well, the good news is that you don’t have to put up with it. There are a ton of laptops out there from last year that will give you 90% of what these new ones do for half the price, so today I’m going to go through the laptops from last year that are still best in class and regularly go on massive sales. Let’s start with thinner lights.
Best Laptop to buy in 2025
| Laptop Model | Key Features | Price Range |
|---|---|---|
| 1. Pavilion Aero 13 (hp13) | – Lightweight and portable 13-inch laptop – Comfortable keyboard – Good enough screen – Powerful processor for basic use – 16GB memory, 512GB storage – Downsides: Plain look, feels cheap | ~$600 |
| 2. Yoga Slim 7x | – Great for office apps and web browsing – Premium feel, performs well – Fantastic keyboard, great battery life – Best OLED display tested (14.5 inches) – Downsides: Requires ARM Windows, trackpad issues | $749 – $799 |
| 3. Surface Laptop 7 | – Stunning design, bright high-res screen – Comfortable keyboard, excellent haptic trackpad – Light and portable – Downsides: Short battery life, Qualcomm processor (ARM Windows), can get warm | ~$950 (X+ version) |
| 4. Yoga Slim 7i Aura Edition | – 15.3-inch screen, bright, high-res, fast refresh rate – Better trackpad than Slim 7x, comfortable keyboard – Compact, lightweight for its size – Intel Lunar Lake processor, long battery life, no heat/fan noise | ~$999 (on sale) |
| 5. Zenbook S 14 | – Compact and lightweight – Fantastic battery life, OLED fast refresh rate display – Downsides: Very glossy/reflective screen, not bright enough for well-lit environments | ~$1,000 |
| 6. OmniBook Ultra Flip 14 | – Intel Lunar Lake processor – Two-in-one with touch and pen support, haptic trackpad – Downsides: Larger and heavier than Zenbook S14, shorter battery life | ~$1,100 |
| 7. MacBook Air M3 | – Reliable premium laptop, excellent integrated graphics – Downsides: 60Hz display, low-travel keyboard, limited ports – Good value at discounted price (~$800-$1,000) | ~$800 – $1,000 |
| 8. OmniBook Ultra 14 | – Powerful AMD Ryzen 9 Zen5 processor, 32GB memory – Blows other small laptops out of the water in performance – Downsides: Heavy, 60Hz display, low-travel keyboard | ~$900 – $1,000 |
| 9. IdeaPad 5 Pro 16 | – Budget-friendly with dedicated graphics – Good enough for general use, low-end dedicated GPU | ~$800 |
| 10. Zephyrus G14 & G16 | – Portable gaming laptops with OLED displays – G14: RTX 4060 (~$1,100) – G16: RTX 4070 (~$1,400) – Downsides: Older processors, gets warm easily | $1,100 – $1,400 |
| 11. Yoga Pro 9i | – Great performance laptop – Fast refresh rate mini-LED display, stunning visuals – Comfortable keyboard, powerful – Downsides: Larger/heavier, dated design, poor battery life | $1,300 – $1,500 |
| 12. Predator Helios Neo 14 | – High-performance laptop with RTX 4070, Intel Core Ultra 9 processor – Bright, high-res display, comfortable keyboard – Downsides: Gets warm, heavy, odd keyboard layout | ~$1,300 |
| 13. MacBook Pro M4 | – Insane performance, unparalleled power efficiency – Premium build quality, great speakers/trackpad/webcam – Reliable performance while unplugged – Downsides: High price, but worth it | Starting ~$1,500+ |
| 14. Legion Pro 7i | – Powerful Windows laptop with RTX 4080/4090, Intel 14th Gen HX processor – Upgradeable memory, fantastic display, comfortable keyboard – Downsides: Thick/heavy, loud fans during performance tasks | $2,200 – $2,500 |
1. Pavilion Aero 13
The HP Pavilion Aero Laptop 13z-bg000 is a consistent favorite of ours. It’s a very light and portable 13-in laptop for a phenomenal price. It can regularly be found on sale for around $600. Now, unlike most laptops at this price point, it gets the basics right. Its keyboard is comfortable, its screen is good enough, and its processor has plenty of power for basic home and office use. You get an ample 16 GB of memory and 512 GB of storage. This laptop’s only real downsides are that it looks plain and it feels a little cheap .
Key Features
– Lightweight and portable 13-inch laptop
– Comfortable keyboard
– Good enough screen
– Powerful processor for basic use
– 16GB memory, 512GB storage
– Downsides: Plain look, feels cheap
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2. Yoga Slim 7x
Alright If you’re sticking to basic office applications and web browsing, the Slim 7x is a pretty phenomenal option. It’s a good-looking laptop that feels premium. It performs really well, it has a fantastic keyboard, it has great battery life, and it has a large 14.5-in. display.
In fact, its display happens to be the best OLED we’ve ever tested. It’s bright, high resolution, has a fast refresh rate, and has no screen door effect. The Slim 7x can regularly be found on sale for $799 and, on occasion, $749, which makes it one of the best deals of this entire post, so What’s the catch?
Firstly, it’s a Qualcomm laptop that requires the ARM version of Windows, which means several specialist applications and many games won’t run. Secondly, its trackpad isn’t great; it requires a lot of force to click, and that click is really loud.
Honestly, its trackpad just cheapens the experience of this otherwise premium laptop anyway. If you aren’t picky about trackpads and you know you’re sticking to apps like Microsoft Office, Zoom, web browsing, and that sort of thing, you’re going to love this laptop.
Key Features
– Great for office apps and web browsing
– Premium feel, performs well
– Fantastic keyboard, great battery life
– Best OLED display tested (14.5 inches)
– Downsides: Requires ARM Windows, trackpad issues
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3. Surface Laptop 7
If you are fussy about trackpads like me, the next one has a great one, and it is a laptop that I bought for myself. This is my personal laptop, the Surface Laptop 7.
It looks stunning, its screen is bright with a high enough resolution, and its keyboard is one of the most comfortable out there. It feels very well built, it is light and portable, and, as I said, it has an excellent haptic trackpad.
It can regularly be found on sale for $950. That’s for the X+ version. This is the one I recommend you get. We bought all of them for the ideal buyer of this laptop. You don’t need the extra performance of the ex Elite version, and it just drains this laptop’s small battery faster, which leads me to my negatives.
Its battery life is short even with the X+ chip. Lastly, the Surface Laptop 7 can get warm to the touch. By the way, there is an Intel Luna Lake version of this laptop that Microsoft is only selling to businesses.
Though the Intel version solves all three of the issues of the Qualcomm one, unfortunately, it costs a ludicrous amount more, so I couldn’t feature it in today’s post. I must say, though, it’s interesting that Microsoft is selling the one that they know is better to their all-important business clients but are selling you guys the Qualcomm ones anyway.
Back on the Qualcomm Surface Laptop 7, same deal as the Slim 7x: if you’re sticking to basic office applications and web browsing, it’s a premium laptop for a reasonable price .
Key Features
– Stunning design, bright high-res screen
– Comfortable keyboard, excellent haptic trackpad
– Light and portable
– Downsides: Short battery life, Qualcomm processor (ARM Windows), can get warm
4. Yoga Slim 7i Aura Edition
But what if you want to avoid Qualcomm laptops, You just want a good Windows laptop for light use where everything works, and you would rather not pay the ridiculous price of that Surface Laptop 7 for business that I just mentioned.
My favorite one is Lenovo’s Yoga Slim 7i AA Edition. It is a larger 15.3-inch laptop, but it gives you everything you want with no material issues. Its screen is bright, high resolution, and has a fast refresh rate.
Its trackpad is a bit better than the Slim 7x’s, and its keyboard is of a similar comfort level to that laptop, and for a 15-inch laptop, it is pretty compact, lightweight, and portable.
It uses Intel’s Lunar Lake processor, of course, which is our favorite chip for thin and light laptops. It gives you long battery life, no heat, or fan noise.
All applications run, and it’s snappy enough for these sorts of buyers. Its main downsides, though, are its slightly larger size and that it looks boring, but at $999 when on sale For what you get, it’s hard to pass this one up, by the way, on that slightly larger size.
I believe there is a 14-inversion coming, which we will, of course, get in for a review, so stay tuned for that.
Key Features
15.3-inch screen, bright, high-res, fast refresh rate
– Better trackpad than Slim 7x, comfortable keyboard
– Compact, lightweight for its size
– Intel Lunar Lake processor, long battery life, no heat/fan noise
5. ASUS Zenbook S 14
Now, if you do want something smaller that has that same Intel processor, the Asus MBook S14 is the one to get. It’s extremely compact and lightweight, it looks stunning, it has fantastic battery life, and it has an OLED fast refresh rate display. It can regularly be found for $1,000. Its main downside, though, is that its display is very glossy and reflective, and its brightness just isn’t enough to combat this, so only pick this laptop if you’re primarily working in a darker environment.
6. OmniBook Ultra Flip 14
Finally, for light users and especially students, we have the HP OmniBook Ultra Flip. It also includes an inter-lunar leg processor, and compared with the Zenbook S14 that I just mentioned, the flip screen is a tad brighter.
It has a haptic trackpad, and it is a two-in-one with touch and pen support. The Zenbook S14, though, is slightly smaller and lighter and does have longer battery life.
Overall, the Flip is a really safe pick as it has minimal downsides, and it can regularly be found for around $1,100. By the way, if you’re asking why even bother with the two Qualcomm laptops I mentioned when there are plenty of great Intel ones available, here’s the answer:
The Surface Laptop 7 and the Slim 7x are both normally cheaper, and they have much more comfortable keyboards than the Zenbook S14 and the Omnibook Ultra Flip.
Additionally, the Surface has the best trackpad of all of them, and the Slim 7X has the most powerful processor, but as mentioned, those laptops trade broad application support for those benefits.
Key Features
Intel Lunar Lake processor
– Two-in-one with touch and pen support, haptic trackpad
– Downsides: Larger and heavier than Zenbook S14, shorter battery life
7. MacBook Air M3
All right Before we move on from laptops for light users, we have to touch on the MacBook Air. The new info version was just announced—overall, a pretty disappointing update.
It’s the same MacBook IOS we’ve had for years, and they just haven’t addressed its shortcomings: the 60 Hz display, low-travel-feeling keyboard, pitiful starting storage at 256 gigabytes, and lack of ports and their placement.
But what they did do is lower the price by $100. This has had a knock-on effect of making the old MacBook Air M3 a very good value pick. We’ve seen it for $300 off; that’s $800 for the 16 GB of RAM, 256 GB storage version and $1,000 for the 512 GB storage version.
At those prices, it is a really reliable all-around premium laptop with excellent integrated graphics. You’re going to be very happy with it, and folks, I’m willing to bet that those with light computing needs will notice no difference between the M3 and the new M4 version.
The M3 chip is already fast enough for light use, and it’s built on TSMC 3 nm, just like the M4 chip, so it will likely offer similar power efficiency and battery life. In fact, Apple even lists the battery life as the same as the PRI version.
What you will notice, though, is the difference in their price.
Key Features
– Reliable premium laptop, excellent integrated graphics
– Downsides: 60Hz display, low-travel keyboard, limited ports
– Good value at discounted price (~$800-$1,000)
8. OmniBook Ultra 14
Now we’re going to turn it up a notch and talk about laptops for those who want serious performance while on the go. First up is a laptop that I initially hated, the HP OmniBook Ultra. This is the traditional clamshell version.
Now, when I reviewed this laptop, I just felt it wasn’t special enough. I’ve since done a complete 180 on this one, particularly because of its price. The OmniBook Ultra can regularly be found for $1,000, even as low as 900, and what this gets you is mind-blowing: a powerful AMD Ryzen 9 Zen 5 processor and 32 gigs of memory.
The performance of this laptop completely blows other small portable ones out of the water, and because it’s got an AMD chip, all applications work. Its trade-offs are that it is heavy for a laptop with a 14-in display, its display only refreshes at 60 Hz, and its keyboard feels a bit low travel.
That being said, this is a great laptop for someone like a programmer or audio engineer who wants something very powerful and high quality and is looking to spend around $1,000 or less.
– Powerful AMD Ryzen 9 Zen5 processor, 32GB memory
– Blows other small laptops out of the water in performance
– Downsides: Heavy, 60Hz display, low-travel keyboard
9. IdeaPad 5 Pro 16
Now, if you want a laptop with dedicated graphics but you’re shopping on a tighter budget, we do like the IdeaPad 516. While certainly not a premium device, everything is good enough, and you get low-end dedicated graphics for around $800.
10. Zephyrus G14 & G16
Next up are ASUS’s Airis G14 and G16 from last year. These are two very famous portable gaming laptops. They were completely redesigned last year and are now super compact, very light, and feel very premium.
Both have OLED displays and are powerful with dedicated graphics. The G14 with an RTX 460 can be found for around $1,100, and the G16 with an RTX 4070 can be found for around $1,400.
The biggest issue with both of these laptops is their processors. The G14 from last year has an older Zen 41, which just isn’t as powerful and as efficient as the latest N5 chips.
This and how tiny the G14 is with its metallic heat-conductive chassis just mean it feels very warm even in light use.
When it comes to the G16, the cheaper models all have an older Intel Core Ultra Series 1 Meteor chip in them. This chip is powerful, but it is inefficient.
This means a little more heat and fan noise and less battery life than newer processors from Intel or AMD.
Now, on that note, there are newer versions of both these laptops with better processors and even better graphics.
Key Features
– Portable gaming laptops with OLED displays
– G14: RTX 4060 (~$1,100)
– G16: RTX 4070 (~$1,400)
– Downsides: Older processors, gets warm easily
Conclusion
Well, that’s all I go for you stating obvious, sometimes I can’t predict what prices are like in my location, nor predict how they change tariffs. That being said, these are the Best Laptop to buy in 2025 we have seen regularly on sale and consistently for the value, so check the link out.
If one of these laptops isn’t on time at the time that you’re looking to buy, wait. A laptop’s sale price is its actual price; MSRP is only there so that you think you’re getting a deal. And it’s on sale. Don’t be the muppet who pays full price for your next laptop.
Lastly and importantly, the only way that we can fight back and prevent component manufacturers from continuing to just jack up the prices is if we buy laptops at those prices.
Hopefully, I’ve helped you do that with today’s blog. Go do something awesome with your day, and we will catch you later.
People Also Ask
Q.1 What is the best gaming laptop in 2025?
Based on the information provided in the knowledge base, here is a table listing the best gaming laptops mentioned, along with their key features:
| Laptop Model | Key Features | Price Range |
|---|---|---|
| Zephyrus G14 | – Compact and lightweight gaming laptop – OLED display – RTX 4060 graphics – Older Zen 4 processor (gets warm during use) | ~$1,100 |
| Zephyrus G16 | – Larger than G14, premium build – OLED display – RTX 4070 graphics – Older Intel Core Ultra Series 1 Meteor chip (inefficient, generates heat and noise) | ~$1,400 |
| Predator Helios Neo 14 | – High-performance gaming laptop – RTX 4070 graphics, Intel Core Ultra 9 processor – Bright, high-res, fast refresh rate display – Comfortable keyboard | ~$1,300 |
| Legion Pro 7i | – Powerful Windows gaming laptop – RTX 4080/4090 graphics, Intel 14th Gen HX processor – Upgradeable memory, fantastic display, comfortable keyboard | $2,200 – $2,500 |
| MacBook Pro M4 | – Insane performance with M4 chip (M4, M4 Pro, or M4 Max) – Unparalleled power efficiency – Reliable for performance tasks while unplugged | Starting ~$1,500+ |
Notes:
- Zephyrus G14 & G16: These are famous portable gaming laptops but have older processors that may generate heat and reduce battery life.
- Predator Helios Neo 14: A hidden gem with excellent value for its price, though it gets warm under load and has an odd keyboard layout.
- Legion Pro 7i: A powerhouse with top-tier specs, but it’s heavy and has loud fans during performance tasks.
- MacBook Pro M4: While not traditionally a “gaming laptop,” the M4 chip offers incredible performance and efficiency, making it suitable for light gaming and professional workloads.
These laptops are ideal for gamers looking for portability, performance, and premium features, depending on their budget and needs.
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