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best subnotebooks

Notebookcheck's Top 10 Subnotebooks

June 2018 update. Here you will find the current best subnotebooks reviewed by Notebookcheck in the last few months. Our list of top models is regularly updated, maintained and commented on and should assist in purchase decisions.
The best alternatives to Apple's MacBook Air

Notebookcheck's Top Windows Alternatives to the MacBook 12 and Air 13

Update April 2018. Lighter than Air? Apple shocked the whole industry with the first MacBook Air: We had never seen such a slim and light notebook before. However, in the meantime the other manufacturers have come up with several slim Windows devices that are good alternatives to the current MacBooks.
Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon prototype: Current model was planned with 3:2 display and as MacBook-competitor (picture-source: pc.watch.impress.co.jp)

Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon prototype: Current model was initially planned with a 3:2 display and as a MacBook-competitor

Getting an inside view into the notebook industry is a rare thing and seeing actual prototypes even rarer still. A few days ago, Lenovo showcased such a prototype to Japanese journalists – the prototype of its current ThinkPad X1 ...
Acer Swift 5 SF514 (i5-8250U, UHD 620) Laptop Review

84% Acer Swift 5 SF514 (i5-8250U, UHD 620) Laptop Review

Lightweight performance mimosa. At just 930 grams (2.05 lbs) the touchscreen-equipped laptop seems to be the perfect business companion. We take a closer look at much more than just the Swift's processor and RAM. What are the notebook's inherent compromises, and what else did Acer have to sacrifice along the way?
Intel Core i5-8250U | Intel UHD Graphics 620 | 14" | 930 g
These popular Lenovo ThinkPad laptops suffer from pulse-width modulation (Source: Own)

Sensitive to onscreen flickering? Take caution when purchasing these Lenovo ThinkPad SKUs

The ThinkPad T, X, and P families are home to Lenovo's more well-known models including the 14-inch T480, 15-inch T580, X380 convertible, and 15-inch P52 workstation. While their design, features, and performance are generally ver...
The USB dock prototype should be launched later this year at a sub-US$100 price. (Source: Anandtech)

USB-C 3.1 Gen 2 dock with many connectors demoed by Realtek

Realtek is almost ready to launch a more affordable all-in-one USB dock for laptops. The latest prototype features a 10 Gb/s USB-C 3.1 Gen 2 main port splits the bandwidth across a great selection of connectors. Even though there ...
best ultrabooks

Notebookcheck's Top 10 Ultrabooks

June 2018 update. Here you will find the best Ultrabooks reviewed by Notebookcheck in the past few months. Our list of top models is regularly updated, maintained and commented on and should assist in purchasing decisions.
The Samsung Chromebook Plus (V2) still sports a premium design. (Source: Samsung)

Samsung downgrades Chromebook Plus display in V2 update

Samsung has updated its Chromebook Plus to Version 2.0. While it picks up some new features, its display gets a notable downgrade from a QHD resolution to FHD.
Asus VivoBook 15 F510UF (i7-8550U, GeForce MX130) Laptop Review

81% Asus VivoBook 15 F510UF (i7-8550U, GeForce MX130) Laptop Review

Cheap price, cheap chassis. There is nothing about this VivoBook that makes it stand out from the crowded 15-inch multimedia segment. When considering the target market and inexpensive price, however, the dull impression shouldn't be a problem. We're hoping that future revisions will address the poor keyboard while adding in USB Type-C charging.
Intel Core i7-8550U | NVIDIA GeForce MX130 | 15.6" | 1.6 kg
The XPS 15 9570 with i7-8750H CPU is almost twice as fast as its predecessor

The XPS 15 9570 with i7-8750H CPU is almost twice as fast as its predecessor

While Coffee Lake-H has been benchmarked and compared with Kaby Lake on this site before, the real-world performance of CPUs more than ever depends on the engineering and implementation of each system. In such a thin-and-light chassis as the XPS 15, thermal constants have traditionally left their mark in performance. The XPS 15 9570 with i7-8750H CPU, however, has performed surprisingly well in our initial tests.
The new LPDDR5 chips should bring a 10% performance boost over the current standard. (Source: Flickr)

Samsung will begin LPDDR5 and UFS 3.0 production in 2H 2018

Judging by the latest leaks, Samsung is most likely preparing major overhauls for next year's Galaxy S10 / Note 10 high-end devices. Apparently, Samsung is planning to begin production on the LPDDR5 and UFS 3.0 chips later this su...
Asus shows off 12.9 mm-thin ZenBook S UX391 with unique ErgoLift hinges (Source: Asus)

Computex 2018 | Asus shows off 12.9 mm-thin ZenBook S UX391 with unique ErgoLift hinges for $1200 USD

The lightweight laptop is exactly as thin as the ZenBook 3 UX490UA but with improved cooling and a unique hinge setup. Asus is promising better ergonomics and external GPU (eGPU) support via its integrated Thunderbolt 3 ports. The...
The Asus VivoBook S15 and S14 come in five different color options. (Source: Asus)

Computex 2018 | The colorful Asus VivoBook S15 (S530) and S14 (S430) get a refresh with the MX150 dGPU

The VivoBook is Asus’s general consumer-focused product line, with the S-series sitting in the crossroad of trade-offs between portability, battery life, and performance, making it a good general-purpose notebook.
Huawei set to unveil Honor MagicBook laptop with AMD Ryzen and Vega graphics (Source: Gizmochina.com)

Huawei set to launch Honor MagicBook laptop with AMD Ryzen and Vega graphics

The mainstream 14-inch SKU will serve as the AMD alternative to the existing Intel MagicBook with Core i5-8250U CPUs and GeForce MX150 graphics. Chinese retailers are already detailing the "Sharp Dragon" Ryzen configuration albeit...
Qualcomm Snapdragon 1000 will be coming to PCs by 2019. (Source: Qualcomm)

Qualcomm Snapdragon 1000-powered Win 10 PCs could arrive by 2019

Qualcomm is said to be working on a new "Snapdragon 1000" ARM-based chip that it is targeting for Windows 10 machines by either late 2018 or 2019. What will set this chip apart is that it is being specially designed for Windows 10...
The new Cortex-A76 is supposed to bring laptop-like performance to handheld devices. (Source: Anandtech)

ARM unveils "laptop-class" Cortex-A76 7 nm CPU

Using the 7 nm manufacturing process, the new ARM Cortex-A76 CPU will bring "laptop-class" performance to handheld devices. The new CPU features a totally new architecture that delivers 35% increased performance, 40% improved powe...
Lenovo releases a USB-C power-bank for ThinkPads & IdeaPads

Lenovo releases a USB-C power-bank for ThinkPads & IdeaPads

Using Power banks is normal in the world of smartphones, but in the laptop-space they are not seen that often. One of the reasons is that only a few battery packs have enough power to charge a laptop. Hoping to profit from access...
Dell Latitude 3490 (Core i5, FHD) Laptop Review

84% Dell Latitude 3490 (Core i5, FHD) Laptop Review

Affordable office worker. Expensive laptops are in vogue but spending a lot of money on a notebook is not suitable for everyone. Hence, manufacturers bring budget workhorse devices to the market, like the Dell Latitude 3490. Find out in this review whether Dell has succeeded with their new budget Latitude.
Intel Core i5-8250U | Intel UHD Graphics 620 | 14" | 1.8 kg
The 3 nm fabrication process will replace the current FinFET semiconductors with the next gen MCBFET ones. (Source: Fudzilla)

Samsung releases roadmap to 3 nm fabrication process

Samsung wanted to prove that it is in no way behind TSMC when it comes to manufacturing process milestones. Even though TSMC is already rolling out a good chunk of 7 nm chips for various companies, it still does not use the EUV te...
The Kaby Lake-G features AMD's Radeon RX Vega M GPU integrated in the chip die. (Source: TheNerdMag)

Kaby Lake-G Chromebook codenamed "Kidd" in the works?

Chromebooks could soon get a substantial performance boost, as the Chrome OS developers are planning to support Intel's Kaby Lake-G CPUs that come with the dedicated AMD Radeon RX Vega M GPU. The first Chromebook that would includ...
HP ZBook 14u G5 (i7-8550U, Pro WX 3100) Workstation Review

81% HP ZBook 14u G5 (i7-8550U, Pro WX 3100) Workstation Review

Based on the EliteBook. The HP ZBook series has been updated to Intel Kaby Lake Refresh processors. HP has also significantly changed the design and is one which we have already seen during our recent EliteBook 840 G5 review. The ZBook 14u G5 should be able to provide enough computing power thanks to its AMD Polaris GPU. Find out whether HP has achieved this in our HP ZBook 14u G5 review.
Intel Core i7-8550U | AMD Radeon Pro WX 3100 Mobile | 14" | 1.6 kg
Opinion | 2018 is make-or-break for the MacBook

Opinion | 2018 is make-or-break for the MacBook

It's been 2 years since the MacBooks were subject to a radical redesign of the keyboard, notably introducing the butterfly switch mechanism and Touch Bar. This year will be a crucial one for Apple's MacBook line, and I think we can predict a lot about the future of the line by observing what happens with the 2018 refresh.
The X50 5G modem could be integrated in mobile devices as well as desktop PCs. (Source: XDA Developers)

Qualcomm could allow OEMs to release several 5G smartphones this year

Major cities in the US and across the globe are testing 5G services throughout this year, and some areas might even get limited 5G connectivity in the second half of 2018. Tis has prompted some OEMs to pressure Qualcomm into allow...
Select Acer laptops will ship with Amazon Alexa pre-installed (Source: Acer)

Select Acer laptops will ship with Amazon Alexa pre-installed

Control your smart home with a compatible Acer laptop. The free update will begin rolling out today for Spin 3 and Spin 5 owners with more on store shelves beginning in June. Instead of offering the software as an option, however,...
Huawei Matebook X Pro (i5-8250U, MX150) Laptop Review

88% Huawei Matebook X Pro (i5-8250U, MX150) Laptop Review

Market disruptor. Huawei wants to prove that you don't need to spend $1500 or more for a decently specced XPS 13 or MacBook Pro. The MateBook X Pro attempts to give it all with an attractively thin aluminum design, 3:2 touchscreen, discrete Nvidia graphics, Thunderbolt 3, and an Intel U class CPU for less than what major competitors are currently offering.
Intel Core i5-8250U | NVIDIA GeForce MX150 | 13.9" | 1.3 kg
Dell Latitude 7390 (Core i7-8650U, Touchscreen) Laptop Review

90% Dell Latitude 7390 (Core i7-8650U, Touchscreen) Laptop Review

Smarter business? One of the best business ultrabooks gets even more powerful with the adoption of an 8th-generation Core i7-8650U CPU and NVMe SSD—as well as an honest-to-goodness anti-glare touchscreen. But are these extra perks worth the cost premium? As always, we’ll investigate with relentless detail in our full review.
Intel Core i7-8650U | Intel UHD Graphics 620 | 13.3" | 1.3 kg
ASUS ZenBook UX3430UN (i5-8250U, MX150, 256 GB SSD) Subnotebook review

88% ASUS ZenBook UX3430UN (i5-8250U, MX150, 256 GB SSD) Subnotebook review

Office exemplar with gaming ambitions. The new ZenBook brings together the core of what office users desire and invites you to play a game or two thanks to its GeForce MX150 GPU. ASUS seems to have succeeded in this balancing act where other subnotebooks have failed. If there is anything to complain about, it is only at a high level.
Intel Core i5-8250U | NVIDIA GeForce MX150 | 14" | 1.3 kg
New business laptops with AMD Ryzen Pro

New business laptops with AMD Ryzen Pro

AMD announced new Ryzen Pro APUs and all three major OEMs Dell, HP, and Lenovo were on display with corresponding products. We had the chance to talk with the manufacturers and check the new models hands-on.
EliteBook 1050 G1 with GeForce GTX 1050: HP challenges the Dell XPS 15

EliteBook 1050 G1 with the GeForce GTX 1050 & Coffee Lake: HP challenges the Dell XPS 15

The market for premium laptops has been growing in recent years, with thin and powerful 15-inch laptops like the Dell XPS 15 or Apple MacBook Pro 15 as one of the growth-segments. Reason enough for HP to release the new EliteBook ...
New HP Envy and Envy x360 refreshes get inspired by Damascus steel

New HP Envy and Envy x360 refreshes get inspired by Damascus steel

HP has announced refreshes to its Envy notebook lineup including the Envy 13, Envy 17, Envy x360 13, and Envy x360 15. The standout feature of these notebooks is the new minimalist chiseled appearance similar to the patterning fou...
Cannon Lake stumbles into the market: The IdeaPad 330-15ICN is the first laptop with a 10-nm-CPU

Cannon Lake stumbles into the market: The IdeaPad 330-15ICN is the first laptop with a 10-nm-CPU

Intel Cannon Lake once was a very highly anticipated CPU-release. After massive delays, the first Intel CPU generation that is manufactured in the advanced 10 nanometer process has finally arrived – and it enters the market silent...
HP EliteBook 830 G5 (i7, FHD, SureView) Laptop Review

88% HP EliteBook 830 G5 (i7, FHD, SureView) Laptop Review

The largest subnotebook. HP’s latest EliteBook 830 G5 is much more than a simple redesign. Not only does it feature a larger display, but it is also a quantum leap for HP’s business line-up. Find out whether or not HP is leaping in the right direction in our extensive review.
Intel Core i7-8550U | Intel UHD Graphics 620 | 13.3" | 1.3 kg
The MacBook Pro's keyboard issues have irked even the most ardent of fans. (Source: Gizmodo)

Apple hit with class action suit over faulty butterfly-switch keyboards

A class action law suit against Apple was filed in the Northern District Court of California by two plaintiffs who have been at the receiving end of the Apple MacBook Pro faulty keyboard fiasco. The suit alleges that Apple intenti...
Dell XPS 15 9570 heatsink assembly diagram. (Source: Dell)

The Dell XPS 15 9570 might inherit the same throttling issues as its predecessor

The service manual for the Dell XPS 15 9570 has been posted online and it looks like the notebook will sport a similar heatsink design with 2 heat pipes as its predecessor. This raises concerns about the possible throttling issues...
The slim design can still pack impressive specs for a 13-incher. (Source: Lenovo)

Lenovo's 13-inch Yoga 730 2-in-1 notebooks now available

With the 13-inch variant of the Yoga 730, users can get an FHD IPS touchscreen, and can opt for an i7-8550U or an i5-8250U CPU. They can further add 8 or 16 GB of DDR4 RAM and up to 512 GB of NVMe SSD storage. This model specifica...
Lenovo: AMD Ryzen models ThinkPad A285 and ThinkPad A485 listed online for the first time

Lenovo: AMD Ryzen models ThinkPad A285 and ThinkPad A485 listed online for the first time

Lenovo has released many ThinkPad laptops in this year already, but no models with AMD Ryzen so far. This apparently changes soon, as the new models ThinkPad A285 and A485 have been listed on the Lenovo website for the first time.
ThinkPad E480 (i5-8250U, RX 550) Laptop Review

83% ThinkPad E480 (i5-8250U, RX 550) Laptop Review

Too hot stuff. The first 2018 ThinkPad is a real price-performance winner - a potential bestseller for Lenovo. Find out in our comprehensive review why the notebook is not recommendable in this configuration. Update BIOS 1.14: Massively reduced GPU performance
Intel Core i5-8250U | AMD Radeon RX 550 (Laptop) | 14" | 1.8 kg
The Dell XPS 15 9570. (Source: Dell)

Update: Now Official | Frank Azor: The Dell XPS 15 9570 is being targeted for availability this week

Frank Azor has confirmed that the much anticipated Dell XPS 15 9570 notebook is likely to launch this week. This would be highly welcomed by those eager to lay their hands on the laptop as the ongoing Cashstar pre-order promo met ...
Dell Latitude 5290 (i5-8250U, HD) Laptop Review

84% Dell Latitude 5290 (i5-8250U, HD) Laptop Review

Display failure. Dell's Latitude series is mainly targeted towards business customers who have different demands than private consumers. However, does this mean that companies should offer a laptop with a bad display to their employees? This is exactly what they would do, if they purchased the Dell Latitude 5290 that we have tested extensively.
Intel Core i5-8250U | Intel UHD Graphics 620 | 12.5" | 1.4 kg
The Exklim eX Core. (Source: Exklim)

Exklim's CEO answers community questions about the eX Core external GPU during interview with NotebookCheck

There has been a growing wave of people in the community calling the Exklim eX Core a scam. Some feel that the eX Core fills a new niche, some think that it can't achieve the claimed performance, while others believe it doesn't ex...
Nothing to see here — Nvidia "Max-P" is just a regular non Max-Q GPU (Image source: Nvidia)

Nothing to see here — Nvidia "Max-P" is just a regular non Max-Q GPU

Samsung recently divulged the name "Max-P" to describe the GTX 1060 GPU in its upcoming Odyssey Z gaming laptop before quietly removing the word. However, we can confirm that "Max-P" is simply a standard GPU without the Max-Q desi...
HP EliteBook 850 G5 (i5-8250U, FHD) Laptop Review

89% HP EliteBook 850 G5 (i5-8250U, FHD) Laptop Review

Business for the Elite. For 2018, the largest PC manufacturer of the world, HP, has given its EliteBook series a big update. The better displays and metal case are supposed to help EliteBooks reach an even wider audience of business users. Find out whether HP has done a good job in our detailed review.
Intel Core i5-8250U | Intel UHD Graphics 620 | 15.6" | 1.8 kg
The Galaxy X looks quite similar to Microsoft's Surface Phone designs. (Source: AndroidLeo)

Samsung Galaxy X concept gets inspired by Microsoft's Surface Phone

While it is still not clear if Samsung is going to release any foldable phones in 2018 or 2019, sleek 3D renders of a rumored Galaxy X model make an appearance in the wild, depicting a device with 1 external display and 2 other in...
Dell P2719H 27-inch productivity monitor. (Source: Dell)

A bevy of new Dell productivity monitors that include USB-C connections and 65 W power delivery

Dell has been number one in monitor sales for 17 straight quarters, and they are looking to continue this trend with the announcement of seven new and refreshed monitors. Three of the new models stand out because of their USB-C co...
Screenshot of the product page on Lenovo's european site.

New IdeaPad 530s surfaces on Lenovo's European website

A new listing for the IdeaPad 530s has just appeared on Lenovo's European site. The mid-range device can be configured with up to an 8th gen Intel Core i7, 16 GB of RAM, and 512 GB of NVMe storage. The 530s can also pack up to an ...
Dell XPS 13 9370 (i7-8550U, 4K UHD) Laptop Review

87% Dell XPS 13 9370 (i7-8550U, 4K UHD) Laptop Review

Fractionally..better? Compared to its i5-equipped sibling, the i7 version of the attractive XPS 13 9370 - this time with twice the hard drive space and double the amount of RAM - doesn't really offer significantly improved performance. Why that might be the case is one of the question we'll try to answer in our review.
Intel Core i7-8550U | Intel UHD Graphics 620 | 13.3" | 1.2 kg
The Dell XPS line could soon offer a 3:2 aspect ratio display like the Microsoft Surface Book. (Source: MobileTechReview on YouTube)

Frank Azor: Dell mulling 3:2 and other aspect ratio screens for future XPS notebooks

Dell could be looking at offering new aspect ratios aside from the standard 16:9 widescreen aspect ratio in future notebooks. This was confirmed in a conference call by Frank Azor during the new XPS and Alienware reveal. Opting fo...
Panama City has great nightlife, incredible historical sites, and this amazing hotel gaming room to offer. (Source: Engadget)

Alienware creates the perfect hotel room for gamers

Gamers planning a trip to Panama City may just want to book a stay at the local Hilton hotel. Alienware has teamed up with the hotel’s management to create a gaming-themed room that is awesome enough to bring tears to the eyes of ...
The Honor MagicBook is its first ultrabook. (Source: Honor)

Honor unveils the MagicBook with 8th Gen Intel CPUs and Nvidia MX150 dGPU

Honor has introduced its first ultrabook. The all-aluminum design is similar to its cousin, the Huawei MateBook X, but is more affordable.
Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Yoga 2018 (Core i5-8250U, FHD) Convertible Review

88% Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Yoga 2018 (Core i5-8250U, FHD) Convertible Review

Best of both worlds. Lenovo's ThinkPad X1 Yoga is a sleek 2-in-1 for business professionals. While the top of the line configuration is an excellent machine, this mid-tier model may be the best solution for most users in need of a well-styled hybrid business device.
Intel Core i5-8250U | Intel UHD Graphics 620 | 14" | 1.4 kg

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Redaktion, 2013-05- 8 (Update: 2013-09-27)