LEAN MACHINES

The latest laptops combine power and portability, with all of the features you need for work and play both at home or on the move

- DAVID PHELAN

Choosing a laptop usually comes down to three priorities – weight, power and price. For business travelers that has often meant accepting a smaller display and a slower processor because portability is the most important factor. However, our period of working from home has changed the dynamic, with our laptop becoming our go-to gadget for domestic work and play. So if it’s a machine you’re going to be using more at home, then a bigger screen may be more important than portability.

Greater power has certainly become paramount, although the importance of a laptop you can carry easily will still be front of mind. Is it possible to find the ideal notebook computer, one that has a display big enough for easy home use and sufficient speed to keep everything motoring along, but is not too heavy to carry? While battery life is less important if the computer can be plugged in all day, that won’t always be the case, so it’s still an important factor.

Here are the best laptops around, with choices for everyone, no matter which priority is most important to you. There are three operating system choices: Microsoft Windows is on all of the laptops here except the Macbook Pro and Google Pixelbook, which have their own operating systems and range of programs. All except the Macbook Pro have touchscreen displays.

APPLE MACBOOK PRO 13-INCH

From $1,299 apple.com