Tested: Top 10 All-Purpose Laptops

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Tested: Top 10 All-Purpose Laptops | PCWorld



Laptops For Everyday Use
What is an all-purpose laptop? We generally define them as between 14 and 16 inches, weighing more than 4.5 pounds. Some 13-inch laptops that are thicker and heavier than the standard may fit the bill. These are large and powerful enough to serve as your everyday computer, but portable enough to accompany you on the go. By the way, we've tested every laptop in this slideshow in the PCWorld Labs.

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Asus N53SV
If speed is your passion, you'll like this all-purpose unit from Asus, but its input ergonomics are weak.

Pros

- Excellent performance

- Large display

Cons

- Only single-band, 2.4GHz Wi-Fi

- Weak touchpad and buttons

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AVADirect Clevo P151HM
The P151HM brings a robust GPU and solid gaming performance to the 15-inch category of laptops, but at the cost of added weight and bulk.

Pros

- Very good game performance for its size

- Great keyboard with excellent tactile feedback

Cons

- Quite hefty for its class

- The system gets pretty loud under a full gaming load

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Gateway ID49C13u
Gateway finally racks up some style points with this mainstream laptop, which also delivers good performance.

Pros

- Nice styling and input ergonomics

- Good overall and gaming performance

Cons

- Mild junkware

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Acer Aspire 5741G-6983
A great all-purpose unit with superior gaming potential.

Pros

- Fast and stylish

- Great gaming frame rates

Cons

- A bit pricey for a mainstream laptop

- Ethernet port is inconveniently located

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Sony VAIO VPCEA22FX
Sony's VAIO EA series may not be the cheapest all-purpose laptop line, but the excellent design and usability are worth the modest price premium.

Pros

- Good arrangement and variety of ports

- Excellent keyboard and touchpad

Cons

- Horrible green color

- Slightly washed-out display

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Asus N82Jv
The Asus N82Jv has good graphics, a nice screen, and a USB 3.0 port. If only it weren't so heavy.

Pros

- Cool cover

- Nice, bright screen

Cons

- Heavy

- Touchpad is only semi-multitouch

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Micro Express NBL26
Micro Express manages to ship a staggeringly average laptop using Intel’s new Sandy Bridge CPUs.

Pros

- Good desktop app performance in a $1200 laptop

- Lighter than average

Cons

- Surprisingly poor gaming performance

- Noisy video upscaling, visible edge enhancement

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Asus U41JF
The U41JF performs pretty well for its category, but the case looks and feels cheap.

Pros

- Nice graphics card

- Thin screen

Cons

- Feels cheap

- Looks cheap

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Samsung SF510
Samsung ships an elegant looking laptop with a great keyboard, but the machine is overpriced for what you get.

Pros

- Excellent keyboard

- Sleek exterior and light weight for a 15-incher

Cons

- Intel graphics useless for modern PC games

- Motion smearing in video