The best laptops Q3 2020 - 92 laptops in review

In order to achieve the highest score of "Very Good" in the comprehensive Notebookcheck test, a laptop cannot afford to make any huge mistakes. Common to all notebooks are particularly high demands on the display, but the balance between performance and mobility is also crucial for many device classes. You can find more information on our rating system here.

In the summer quarter of 2020, 16 systems out of 92 laptops tested were able to achieve the top rating and receive our "Top Rated Award". The best-rated notebook is the Lenovo ThinkPad 14s, equipped with AMD Ryzen 7 PRO 4750U CPU and Vega-7 graphics. With a score of 91%, the AMD ThinkPad leaves nothing to be desired. But that's not all, as numerous other high-end ThinkPads have also made it to the top of our charts in the last three months of testing. The ThinkPad X1 Carbon 2020, the ThinkPad X1 Yoga 2020 and the ThinkPad X13 also delivered an impeccable performance with a 90% overall rating. Exciting: Two of the four best-placed laptops are based on AMD components. This is a novelty but had already become apparent in recent months.

Dell's Latitude 7310, basically the business version of the XPS 13, comes with a score of 89%, which is likewise a top result. With the Latitude 9510 2-in-1, a business convertible with a large 15-inch display, 89% is once again reached. The Dell top field is interrupted by the Intel variant of the top scorer, the ThinkPad T14s, which with 89% remains just under two percentage points behind the AMD configuration. It continues with the Latitude 7410 and the Latitude 9410 2in1. This means that three of the nine top-placed laptops, all of which come from the business environment, can be assigned to the category of laptop convertibles, i.e. laptops that can also be used as tablets thanks to a special hinge. This shows that the convertibles segment, which has grown continuously in recent years, has long been established and represents a serious alternative to classic clamshell laptops. With the EliteBook 830 G7, HP has also been able to place a player in the top field (89% overall score).

Continuing with, surprise, Lenovo. The ThinkPad T14 (without "s") achieves a very good overall result of 88%. This is followed by the Dell XPS 17 in a powerful configuration with RTX graphics and 4K display. Also among the very good test graduates are the ThinkPad X13 with Intel CPU, the Asus Zenbook 13 UX325JA, the Acer Spin 5 SP513, and the Dell Precision 7550 workstation (all 88%).

AMD's Ryzen CPU helps the current ThinkPad E14 series achieve top performance. So much performance in such an affordable ThinkPad, it's never been seen before. The E-series continues to be aimed at price-sensitive customers, such as EPUs and small startups, and can also be found in the educational and public sectors. Even though the price-performance ratio is very attractive, the ThinkPad E14 has its weak points. In comparison to the more expensive T-series, a thicker and somewhat heavier case has to be preferred. Savings are also made on the display.

On the plus side, the Lenovo ThinkPad E14, apart from the first-class CPU performance, has the typical valuable ThinkPad input devices, a quiet operation at all times, as well as a good upgradeability (RAM slot accessible, two M.2 slots for SSDs). The ThinkPad E14 comes with 24 months' manufacturer warranty, and an extension of the service up to five years is possible. Pricewise the ThinkPad E14 plays, depending upon equipment (CPU, SSD), within the range of 700 (~$832) to 900 Euros (~$1,070).

The recipe for success of LG Gram notebooks is well known: Trim the fat! The Gram 15 manages a total weight of only 1.1 kilograms with a display diagonal of 15.6 inches. Even some 13-inch laptops from the competition weigh more. This is made possible by a radical slimming down process, especially in the case. Although the magnesium case feels like paper, it is extremely robust, even if the lack of case rigidity does not suggest this.

While other manufacturers save money and weight with the battery, LG plants a large 80 Wh battery into the Gram 15. As a result the user gets decent runtimes of up to 12 hours in practice. The display is bright and high-contrast but has a reflective surface. If you can come to terms with it, the Gram 15 is an almost perfect package for ultra-mobile use. The current Gram 15 in the 15Z90N version is priced at around 1,200 Euros (~$1,426). It comes with an i5-1035G7 CPU, 8 GB RAM and 512 GB SSD memory.

The Envy series from HP is positioned in the upper middle class with a focus on multimedia applications. The skills expected there can be well fulfilled by the configuration tested by us with 4k AMOLED display, i7-10750H CPU and RTX 2060 Max-Q GPU. Compared to the previous models, the current Envy series focuses on narrower display edges, a classic central hinge, as well as a simple, robust and silver-colored housing throughout.

In our test, the new Envy 15 not only convinces with its chic and premium case, HP also delivers an attractive package in terms of performance. With Intel's i7 CPU and the GeForce RTX 2060, practically all current games can be smoothly conjured onto the screen in Full HD and maximum graphics details. The package is rounded off with a flawless OLED screen, whose strengths are a high-contrast image, large color spaces and low response times. In the equipment version tested by us (US version 15-ep0098nr, largely corresponds to the Envy 15-ep0670ng version also available in Europe), the Envy 15 comes at around 1,600 Euros (~$1,902).