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HP OmniBook 5 14-inch (2025) review: Incredible battery life and a top-tier display at an affordable price

9:20 pm | October 16, 2025

HP Omnibook 5 14 Inch Laptop Next Gen AI PC: One-minute review

The HP Omnibook 5 14 Inch Laptop Next Gen AI PC (yes, that is its full name) has its flaws, but its strengths make those drawbacks easy to overlook. With over 16 hours of battery life, a stunning OLED display, an ultra-portable design, and an affordable starting price, it's hard not to recommend the OmniBook 5 14-inch, depending on what you're looking for in a laptop.

It starts at just $679 / £850 / AU$1,599 for a base configuration with a Snapdragon X X1-26-100 processor, Qualcomm Adreno integrated graphics, 16GB of RAM, and a 14-inch (1920x1200) OLED display.

Somewhat frustratingly, the US base configuration only has 256GB of storage, while the UK and Australia's starting specs include 512GB of storage. Luckily, Best Buy has a middle-ground configuration for US users that offers great value for your money at just $20 more than the US base configuration.

Aside from a bit of pricing confusion, this OmniBook is a great pick for basic work and school-related tasks, especially if you want a laptop that's going to easily last all day, making it one of the best laptops for students and remote workers out there.

The lightweight design also makes this perfect for commuters. While the performance could be stronger, it's hard to complain at this price–and with such an impressive battery life.

HP Omnibook 5 14 Inch Laptop Next Gen AI PC: Price & Availability

An HP OmniBook 5 14 Inch Next Gen AI PC on a desk — (Image credit: Future / Stevie Bonifield)

How much does it cost? Starting at $679 / £850 / AU$1,599
When is it available? It's available now
Where can you get it? Directly from HP in the US, UK, and Australia, or at various retailers like Best Buy

The OmniBook 5 14-inch is available now in the US, UK, and Australia starting at $679/£850/AU$1,599 on the HP website. The base configuration in all three regions includes a Qualcomm Snapdragon X X1-26-100 CPU, Qualcomm Adreno integrated graphics, 16GB of RAM, and a 14-inch OLED display.

The one big difference is that the US base configuration includes 256GB of storage while the UK and Australia base models have 512GB of storage.

With that said, an upgraded in-between configuration is available in the US at Best Buy for just $20 more than the base model on HP's website. That configuration has 512GB of storage and even bumps you up to a Snapdragon X Plus processor. So if you're in the US, I would definitely suggest opting for that version.

The US and UK prices for the OmniBook 5 14-inch are pretty reasonable, but the top configuration in Australia is a bit pricey for the specs you're getting (more on that below).

Value: 4 / 5

HP Omnibook 5 14 Inch Laptop Next Gen AI PC: Specs

Lower starting storage in the US base configuration
All configurations include an OLED display
Upgrades available for CPU, RAM, and storage

My review unit is the US top configuration of the OmniBook 5 14-inch, which is priced at $899, but the base configuration starts at $679/£850/AU$1,599. There is also a middle configuration in the US available at Best Buy for $699, which includes 512GB of storage and a Snapdragon X Plus processor.

All starting configurations include a Qualcomm Snapdragon X X1-26-100 processor, Qualcomm Adreno integrated graphics, 16GB of RAM, a 14-inch (1920x1200) OLED display, Wi-Fi 6E, and Bluetooth 5.3. However, it's important to point out that the base model in the US only has 256GB of storage, half of what you would get in the UK and Australia, which is why I suggest going for the Best Buy configuration instead if you're in the US.

HP Omnibook 5 14 Inch Laptop Next Gen AI PC starting configurations
Region	US	UK	Australia
Price:	$679	£850	AU$1,599
CPU:	Qualcomm Snapdragon X X1-26-100	Qualcomm Snapdragon X X1-26-100	Qualcomm Snapdragon X X1-26-100
GPU:	Qualcomm Adreno integrated graphics	Qualcomm Adreno integrated graphics	Qualcomm Adreno integrated graphics
Memory:	16GB	16GB	16GB
Storage:	256GB	512GB	512GB
Screen:	14-inch (1920x1200) OLED	14-inch (1920x1200) OLED	14-inch (1920x1200) OLED
Ports:	1 x USB Type-A, 2 x USB Type-C, 1 x 3.5mm audio jack	1 x USB Type-A, 2 x USB Type-C, 1 x 5.3mm audio jack	1 x USB Type-A, 2 x USB Type-C, 1 x 5.3mm audio jack
Battery (WHr):	59 WHr	59 WHr	59 WHr
Wireless:	Wi-Fi 6E, Bluetooth 5.3	Wi-Fi 6E, Bluetooth 5.3	Wi-Fi 6E, Bluetooth 5.3
Camera:	1080p FHD IR webcam with privacy shutter	1080p FHD IR webcam with privacy shutter	1080p FHD IR webcam with privacy shutter
Weight:	2.85 lbs (1.29 kg)	2.85 lbs (1.29 kg)	2.85 lbs (1.29 kg)
Dimensions:	12.28 x 8.56 x 0.5 ins \| (311.9 x 217.4 x 12.7 mm)	12.28 x 8.56 x 0.5 ins \| (311.9 x 217.4 x 12.7 mm)	12.28 x 8.56 x 0.5 ins \| (311.9 x 217.4 x 12.7 mm)

The top configurations of the OmniBook 5 14-inch bump you up to a Snapdragon X Plus X1P-42-100 processor and 32GB of storage. The US and UK configurations also get 1TB of storage, which unfortunately isn't the case in Australia.

The top configurations in the US and the UK are a pretty good deal, especially if you can find them on sale, but the top specs in Australia are hard to recommend when you're not getting that storage upgrade. Even so, the improved processor and increased RAM could be worth paying extra for some users.

HP Omnibook 5 14 Inch Laptop Next Gen AI PC Top Configurations
Region	US	UK	Australia
Price:	$899	£1,049	AU$1,999
CPU:	Qualcomm Snapdragon X Plus X1P-42-100	Qualcomm Snapdragon X Plus X1P-42-100	Qualcomm Snapdragon X Plus X1P-42-100
GPU:	Qualcomm Adreno integrated graphics	Qualcomm Adreno integrated graphics	Qualcomm Adreno integrated graphics
Memory:	32GB	32GB	32GB
Storage:	1TB	1TB	512GB
Screen:	14-inch (1920x1200) OLED	14-inch (1920x1200) OLED	14-inch (1920x1200) OLED
Ports:	1 x USB Type-A, 2 x USB Type-C, 1 x 3.5mm audio jack	1 x USB Type-A, 2 x USB Type-C, 1 x 3.5mm audio jack	1 x USB Type-A, 2 x USB Type-C, 1 x 3.5mm audio jack
Battery (WHr):	59 WHr	59 WHr	59 WHr
Wireless:	Wi-Fi 6E, Bluetooth 5.3	Wi-Fi 6E, Bluetooth 5.3	Wi-Fi 6E, Bluetooth 5.3
Camera:	1080p FHD IR webcam with privacy shutter	1080p FHD IR webcam with privacy shutter	1080p FHD IR webcam with privacy shutter
Weight:	2.85 lbs (1.29 kg)	2.85 lbs (1.29 kg)	2.85 lbs (1.29 kg)
Dimensions:	12.28 x 8.56 x 0.5 ins \| (311.9 x 217.4 x 12.7 mm)	12.28 x 8.56 x 0.5 ins \| (311.9 x 217.4 x 12.7 mm)	12.28 x 8.56 x 0.5 ins \| (311.9 x 217.4 x 12.7 mm)

Specs: 3.5 / 5

HP Omnibook 5 14 Inch Laptop Next Gen AI PC: Design

Incredibly lightweight
Stellar OLED display
Build quality feels a bit low-end

The OmniBook 5 14-inch isn't pushing the envelope with its design, but that's not necessarily a bad thing. It's very portable, weighing in at a mere 2.85 pounds. The chassis doesn't feel "premium", with its plastic-y keyboard deck and display bezels, but the low weight helps make up for that.

Plus, it's what's on the inside that counts, which in this case is a superbly snappy keyboard. HP's laptop keyboards can be pretty hit or miss for me, but I loved typing on this one. It has just the right amount of tactile feedback and key travel without being loud. However, I wish the power button was separated from the rest of the keyboard. It matches the rest of the function-row keys except for a little LED indicator.

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The touchpad is also pretty good. Considering the price point on this OmniBook 5 14-inch, I was expecting a mushy touchpad, but I was pleasantly surprised. It might not be the best touchpad I've ever used, but it has a satisfying amount of travel and feedback just like the keyboard. The speakers are also surprisingly decent and got plenty loud enough for my needs.

The real star feature here is the OLED display. I love OLED, and this display did not disappoint. Colors really pop on it, more than you would expect from a sub-$1,000 laptop. It passed our display tests with flying colors, too, reproducing 194.5% of the sRGB color gamut and 138.4% of the DCI-P3 color gamut. I genuinely enjoyed watching shows and movies on the OmniBook 5 14-inch and even playing a few games on it because the display looks phenomenal.

Design: 4 / 5

HP Omnibook 5 14 Inch Laptop Next Gen AI PC: Performance

Performance could be better, but isn't bad, either
Weak graphics performance
Keeps up fine with basic daily tasks like web browsing

If you're mainly looking for a laptop for things like web browsing, replying to emails, word processing, or studying, the OmniBook 5 14-inch is definitely up to the task. This little laptop is more than capable of handling basic work or school-related tasks. I had no trouble managing over a dozen tabs on Firefox while working on the Omnibook. However, if you want to use resource-intensive apps, like Adobe Photoshop and the like, you may want to spend a little more elsewhere.

The OmniBook 5 14-inch's performance falls far short of the MacBook Air, which only costs $100 more than the top configuration. It came in over 1,000 points behind the M4 MacBook Air on the Geekbench 6 single-core test and lagged by over 3,000 points on the multi-core test. Of course, there are plenty of reasons you might not want a Mac or might simply want to save money, especially if you can find the Omnibook at a discount.

	HP Omnibook 5 14 Inch Laptop Next Gen AI PC	MacBook Air M4 (13-inch)	Microsoft Surface Laptop 13 (2025)
Geekbench 6 single-core	2,414	£3,679	2,436
Geekbench 6 multi-core	11,309	14,430	11,321
Crossmark (Overall)	1,184	2,009	1,165
Crossmark (Productivity)	1,116	1,875	1,081
Crossmark (Creativity)	1,298	2,369	1,328
Crossmark (Responsiveness)	1,074	1,505	983

If you're only doing lightweight or web-based tasks, the OmniBook 5 14-inch's more humble performance scores probably won't be an issue, it's just worth keeping in mind. Plus, considering the starting price, it's hard to complain.

It's also worth noting that the OmniBook 5 14-inch is by no means a gaming laptop. It managed to run lightweight, 2D games fine, but really struggles with anything more. Wildfrost ran very smoothly at 60 FPS with no issues, but I was only able to get about 20 FPS in Death's Door and about 30 FPS in Risk of Rain 2. These aren't particularly demanding games, so definitely don't expect to be playing any AAA titles on the Omnibook, but games like Stardew Valley or Slay the Spire should run fine.

Performance: 3.5 / 5

HP Omnibook 5 14 Inch Laptop Next Gen AI PC: Battery Life

How long does it last before the battery dies? Just over 16 hours.
How long does it take to charge to 50%? About 30 minutes.

Battery life is by far the OmniBook 5 14-inch's biggest strength. It lasted a staggering 16 hours and 2 minutes in our battery test, which, for context, is 2 hours longer than the 13-inch M4 MacBook Air. While you're getting a notably less powerful processor in the Omnibook, you get really impressive battery life in exchange. For some, that could be a worthy trade-off.

My only complaint here is that the left side of the keyboard deck gets noticeably warm when the OmniBook 5 14-inch is charging. It's not uncomfortable, and you won't have to charge it often, but when you do, you can't miss how one side of your keyboard is warmer than the other.

Battery Life: 5 / 5

Should you buy the HP Omnibook 5 14 inch Laptop Next Gen AI PC?

HP Omnibook 5 14 inch Laptop Next Gen AI PC scorecard
Category	Notes	Rating
Value	Aside from a couple of quirky configuration differences, this laptop offers great value for your money, especially when it comes to battery life and display quality.	4 / 5
Specs	The base specs are a bit weak for the price, but every configuration includes a really impressive OLED display.	3.5 / 5
Design	While the build quality could be a bit better, the keyboard, touchpad, low weight, and stellar display easily make up for it.	4 / 5
Performance	Overall performance is somewhat lackluster, but good enough for basic daily tasks and lightweight games.	3.5 / 5
Battery Life	With over 16 hours of battery life, the OmniBook 5 14-inch can easily last you all day.	5 / 5
Final Score	Despite a few flaws, this OmniBook 5 14-inch offers great value with incredible battery life and a stunning display at a relatively low price.	4 / 5

Buy the HP Omnibook 5 14 Inch Laptop Next Gen AI PC if…

Battery life is your top priority
The battery life on the OmniBook 5 14-inch is genuinely impressive. Depending on your usage, you can easily go a full day or possibly even two without charging.

You want an OLED display at a budget-friendly price
The OmniBook 5 14-inch's OLED display is one of the best I've tested, which is surprising given this laptop's relatively low price, even for the top configuration.

Don't buy it if...

Performance is your top priority
The Omnibook 5 14-inch is great for students, casual users, and lightweight work tasks, but it doesn't have the processing power for gaming or resource-intensive creative apps.

You want premium build quality
This laptop's design isn't bad, but it does feel like a budget-friendly laptop, with plastic bezels and a plastic keyboard deck that gets pretty warm while charging.

How I tested the HP Omnibook 5 14 Inch Laptop Next Gen AI PC

I spent about a week using the Omnibook
I mainly used it for web browsing and work-related tasks, with some light gaming
The OmniBook 5 14-inch went through our extensive battery of benchmark tests

I spent about a week using the OmniBook 5 14-inch mainly for web browsing and work-related tasks like answering emails and writing (this review included).

I also used it for watching movies and doing a bit of casual gaming. All the games I tried on the OmniBook 5 14-inch were played through Steam at native resolution with no FPS cap. With automatic graphics presets turned on, most games defaulted to low or medium graphics quality.

I've reviewed dozens of mainstream laptops, including other HP Omnibooks and budget-friendly laptops like this one. When I test these kinds of laptops, I'm looking for a good balance of price, performance, and features and considering who each laptop would be best for (or not best for) based on that price-to-performance ratio.

Originally reviewed October 2025

I’ve reviewed more gaming laptops than I can remember, but the new Razer Blade 14 is the only gaming laptop I’d happily carry everywhere

5:26 pm | September 10, 2025

Author: admin | Category: Computers Computing Gadgets Laptops Windows Laptops | Tags: Battery Life, CPU, GPU, Razer Blade | Comments: Off

Razer Blade 14 (2025): Two-minute review

The new Razer Blade 14 (2025) really wants to be the ultimate portable gaming laptop, and after spending two weeks with it, I can say it mostly succeeds.

Packed into a lightweight 14-inch aluminum chassis, the Blade 14 houses the latest specs you can get for a 14-inch form factor, including AMD’s new Ryzen AI 9 365 processor and up to an Nvidia RTX 5070 GPU.

Those updated specs come at a price though, as the model I tested cost $2,699.99 / £2,299.99 / AU$4,144.95 (equipped with an RTX 5070, 32GB LPDDR5X RAM, and a 1TB SSD). Entry-level models start around $2,299.99 / £1,999.99 / AU$3,599.95, while top-end configs climb as high as $2,999.99 / £2,699.99 / AU$4,899.95.

What impressed me most wasn’t just raw gaming power—it was how well this machine stayed cool and quiet under load.

Running Cyberpunk 2077 with ray tracing at 1800p, I averaged around 50 FPS with DLSS and frame generation enabled, though to be honest, you’ll likely want to tone down the RT if you’re gaming at max resolution for best results, regardless of title. For most of the titles tested, you can comfortably get over 60 FPS at 1800p resolution without ray tracing, or about 60 FPS with ray tracing if you use DLSS upscaling.

Equally impressive is the OLED 2.8K 120Hz display. Colors popped, response times were lightning fast, and the DCI-P3 coverage made both games and creative work shine. Add in six surprisingly loud, clear speakers, and I found myself reaching for headphones less often.

The battery life on the Blade 14 isn’t great, lasting about five to six hours in my day-to-day work mix—emails, writing, streaming, light Photoshop—before I needed a charger. While this is pretty decent for a gaming laptop,it’s still not great for day-to-day productivity.

Design-wise, there’s not much to knock here other than the somewhat shallow keyboard and a chassis that picks up fingerprints pretty much instantly. Performance-wise, you’re almost certainly going to get a better value out of Razer’s various rivals, who often offer more raw power for less money. But as a total package, the Razer Blade 14 (2025) easily contends as the best gaming laptop released this year, even if it isn’t spotless.

Razer Blade 14 (2025): Price & availability

A Razer Blade 14 (2025) on a desk showing the Windows 11 desktop — (Image credit: Future / John Loeffler)

How much does it cost? Starting at $2,299.99 / £1,999.99 / AU$3,599.95
When is it available? It's available now
Where can you get it? You can buy it in the US, UK, and Australia through Razer’s website and other retailers.

The Razer Blade 14 (2025) is available now, starting at $2,299.99 / £1,999.99 / AU$3,599.95, coming in with an entry-level RTX 5060 GPU, 16GB RAM, and a 1TB SSD.

My review unit, which comes with an RTX 5070 GPU, 32GB RAM, and 1TB SSD, comes in at $2,699.99 / £2,399.99 / AU$4,144.95. The top-spec config bumps up the storage to 2TB and the memory up to 64GB for $2,999.99 / £2,699.99 / AU$4,899.95.

It’s available in the US, UK, and Australia directly from Razer’s website, as well as major regional retailers like Best Buy and Currys.

Understandably, the Blade 14 isn’t going to be making any best cheap gaming laptop lists anytime soon, given the laptop's premium pedigree, but it's still very expensive for what you're getting. A laptop like the Asus ROG Zephyrus G14, which starts off about $200 cheaper at $2,099.99 in the US (though it is tougher to find in the UK at the moment, and what models are available in Australia end up being more expensive). The US starting configuration for the Zephyrus G14 does get you a better RTX 5070 GPU compared to the Blade 14's RTX 5060 starting GPU. You can also get up to an RTX 5080 on the Zephyrus G14, for some serious portable gaming power that simply isn't available on the Blade 14.

You’re ultimately paying the Razer tax here if you opt for the Blade 14, but if you want a Razer Blade laptop, this is pretty much par for the course, and there's no denying the laptop's other premium qualities that it brings to the table. Just be prepared to pay the higher bill at the end.

Also, in the US and UK, you have the option to select the Mercury colorway rather than the classic Razer Black, though it is only available on the RTX 5070/1TB SSD/32GB RAM configuration.

Value: 3.5 / 5

Razer Blade 14 (2025): Specs

The internal spec stickers on the palmrest of the Razer Blade 14 (2025) — (Image credit: Future / John Loeffler)

Up to RTX 5070 GPU, 2TB SSD, and 64GB RAM
AMD Ryzen AI 9 365 processor
Not upgradeable and not a whole lot of configuration options

The starting configuration of the Razer Blade 14 (2025) gives you the essentials for modern portable gaming: an AMD Ryzen AI 9 365, Nvidia RTX 5060 GPU, 16GB LPDDR5-8000MT/s RAM, and a 1TB PCIe 4.0 SSD. That’s more than enough for strong performance in esports and AAA titles at 1080p, high settings, and medium raytracing enabled when using upscaling, but storage will feel tight if you're planning on installing a lot of big games.

Razer Blade 14 (2025) base configuration
	US	UK	Australia
Price	$2,299.99 at Razer	£1,999.99 at Razer	AU$3,599.95 at Razer
CPU	AMD Ryzen AI 9 365	AMD Ryzen AI 9 365	AMD Ryzen AI 9 365
GPU	Nvidia RTX 5060	Nvidia RTX 5060	Nvidia RTX 5060
Memory	16GB LPDDR5-8000MT/s	16GB LPDDR5-8000MT/s	16GB LPDDR5-8000MT/s
Storage	1TB PCIe 4.0 SSD	1TB PCIe 4.0 SSD	1TB PCIe 4.0 SSD
Display	14-inch QHD+ 120Hz OLED	14-inch QHD+ 120Hz OLED	14-inch QHD+ 120Hz OLED
Ports	2 x USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-A, 2 x USB4 Type-C (Power, DP2.1 , Data), 1 x HDMI 2.1, 1 x MicroSD Card Reader, 1 x 3.5mm Combo Jack	2 x USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-A, 2 x USB4 Type-C (Power, DP2.1 , Data), 1 x HDMI 2.1, 1 x MicroSD Card Reader, 1 x 3.5mm Combo Jack	2 x USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-A, 2 x USB4 Type-C (Power, DP2.1 , Data), 1 x HDMI 2.1, 1 x MicroSD Card Reader, 1 x 3.5mm Combo Jack
Battery	72WHr	72WHr	72WHr
Wireless	Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 5.4	Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 5.4	Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 5.4
Camera	1080p IR w/ Windows Hello	1080p IR w/ Windows Hello	1080p IR w/ Windows Hello
Weight	3.59 lbs \| 1.63 kg	3.59 lbs \| 1.63 kg	3.59 lbs \| 1.63 kg
Dimensions	12.23 x 8.83 x 0.64 ins \| 310.7 x 224.3 x 16.2mm	12.23 x 8.83 x 0.64 ins \| 310.7 x 224.3 x 16.2mm	12.23 x 8.83 x 0.64 ins \| 310.7 x 224.3 x 16.2mm

The top configuration quadruples the available memory and doubles the storage over the base spec while bumping the GPU up to an RTX 5070 GPU. That makes it a very solid mobile workstation for creatives in addition to being a fantastic 1440p gaming platform in an impressively thin 14-inch form factor.

The one knock I do have on the max spec is that other thin and light gaming laptops, like the Zephyrus G14, do manage to give you options for the RTX 5070 Ti and RTX 5080, so those who want even more power do have alternatives to the Blade 14.

Razer Blade 14 (2025) top configuration
	US	UK	Australia
Price	$2,999.99 at Razer	£2,699.99 at Razer	AU$4,899.95 at Razer
CPU	AMD Ryzen AI 9 365	AMD Ryzen AI 9 365	AMD Ryzen AI 9 365
GPU	Nvidia RTX 5070	Nvidia RTX 5070	Nvidia RTX 5070
Memory	64GB LPDDR5x - 8400MT/s	64GB LPDDR5x - 8400MT/s	64GB LPDDR5x - 8400MT/s
Storage	2TB M.2 PCIe NVMe	2TB M.2 PCIe NVMe	2TB M.2 PCIe NVMe
Display	14-inch QHD+ 120Hz OLED	14-inch QHD+ 120Hz OLED	14-inch QHD+ 120Hz OLED
Ports	2 x USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-A, 2 x USB4 Type-C (Power, DP2.1 , Data), 1 x HDMI 2.1, 1 x MicroSD Card Reader, 1 x 3.5mm Combo Jack	2 x USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-A, 2 x USB4 Type-C (Power, DP2.1 , Data), 1 x HDMI 2.1, 1 x MicroSD Card Reader, 1 x 3.5mm Combo Jack	2 x USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-A, 2 x USB4 Type-C (Power, DP2.1 , Data), 1 x HDMI 2.1, 1 x MicroSD Card Reader, 1 x 3.5mm Combo Jack
Battery	72WHr	72WHr	72WHr
Wireless	Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 5.4	Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 5.4	Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 5.4
Camera	1080p IR w/ Windows Hello	1080p IR w/ Windows Hello	1080p IR w/ Windows Hello
Weight	3.59 lbs \| 1.63 kg	3.59 lbs \| 1.63 kg	3.59 lbs \| 1.63 kg
Dimensions	12.23 x 8.83 x 0.64 ins \| 310.7 x 224.3 x 16.2mm	12.23 x 8.83 x 0.64 ins \| 310.7 x 224.3 x 16.2mm	12.23 x 8.83 x 0.64 ins \| 310.7 x 224.3 x 16.2mm

My review unit fell somewhere in between, with 32GB RAM and a 1TB SSD. Of the available configuration options, it offers what I think is the best balance between cost and performance.

With this setup, I never worried about performance bottlenecks in games or creative workloads, and the 1TB drive gave me enough space for my go-to Steam titles, currently Helldivers 2, Satisfactory, and a heavily modded Baulder's Gate 3. But unless you're loading up on small indie titles, you can expect to have to do some storage juggling for this configuration.

It's also worth noting that this laptop is not easily upgradable, and the RAM here is soldered. There are also a limited number of configuration options to choose from, so it's not a very customizable laptop, opting for the MacBook route rather than a more DIY approach.

Razer Blade 14 (2025) review configuration
	US	UK	Australia
Price	$2,699.99 at Razer	£2,399.99 at Razer	AU$4,299.95 at Razer
CPU	AMD Ryzen AI 9 365	AMD Ryzen AI 9 365	AMD Ryzen AI 9 365
GPU	Nvidia RTX 5070	Nvidia RTX 5070	Nvidia RTX 5070
Memory	32GB LPDDR5x - 8400MT/s	32GB LPDDR5x - 8400MT/s	32GB LPDDR5x - 8400MT/s
Storage	1TB M.2 PCIe NVMe	1TB M.2 PCIe NVMe	1TB M.2 PCIe NVMe
Display	14-inch QHD+ 120Hz OLED	14-inch QHD+ 120Hz OLED	14-inch QHD+ 120Hz OLED
Ports	2 x USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-A, 2 x USB4 Type-C (Power, DP2.1 , Data), 1 x HDMI 2.1, 1 x MicroSD Card Reader, 1 x 3.5mm Combo Jack	2 x USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-A, 2 x USB4 Type-C (Power, DP2.1 , Data), 1 x HDMI 2.1, 1 x MicroSD Card Reader, 1 x 3.5mm Combo Jack	2 x USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-A, 2 x USB4 Type-C (Power, DP2.1 , Data), 1 x HDMI 2.1, 1 x MicroSD Card Reader, 1 x 3.5mm Combo Jack
Battery	72WHr	72WHr	72WHr
Wireless	Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 5.4	Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 5.4	Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 5.4
Camera	1080p IR w/ Windows Hello	1080p IR w/ Windows Hello	1080p IR w/ Windows Hello
Weight	3.59 lbs \| 1.63 kg	3.59 lbs \| 1.63 kg	3.59 lbs \| 1.63 kg
Dimensions	12.23 x 8.83 x 0.64 ins \| 310.7 x 224.3 x 16.2mm	12.23 x 8.83 x 0.64 ins \| 310.7 x 224.3 x 16.2mm	12.23 x 8.83 x 0.64 ins \| 310.7 x 224.3 x 16.2mm

Specs: 4 / 5

Razer Blade 14 (2025): Design

A Razer Blade 14 (2025) on a desk with its lid closed — (Image credit: Future / John Loeffler)

Thinner and lighter than Blade 14 2024
OLED Display
Black finish is a fingerprint magnet

The Blade 14 (2025) doesn't take any real risks with the design of the iconic laptop model, being more of a modest refinement of Razer's aesthetic.

The biggest move here is the display, which is a gorgeous-looking OLED panel rather than the more standard IPS of the Razer Blade 14 (2024). It also comes in thinner and lighter than last year's model, managing to shave off nearly half a pound of weight (about 0.2kg) and shrink its height by just over half an inch (nearly 2mm).

The chassis corner of the Razer Blade 14 (2025) — (Image credit: Future / John Loeffler)

The CNC-machined aluminum chassis feels solid in the hands, with zero flex in the lid or keyboard deck. It carries that understated “MacBook for gamers” vibe that a number of the best thin and light gaming laptops hope to hit but often fall short of reaching.

The under-display ventilation ports on the Razer Blade 14 (2025) — (Image credit: Future / John Loeffler)

The matte black colorway on my review model looks sleek, but it attracts fingerprints almost instantly. I didn’t particularly care all that much, but if you do, expect to be wiping this laptop down almost constantly if you're sticking with the Razer Black finish.

The ports on the Razer Blade 14 (2025) — (Image credit: Future / John Loeffler)

Port selection is generous for such a compact laptop: two USB4 (with PD, DP2.1, and data), a pair of USB-A 3.2 Gen 2 ports, an HDMI 2.1 output ports, and a microSD card reader, something creatives will appreciate.

A masculine hand tilting the Razer Blade 14 (2025) upward to show off the keyboard — (Image credit: Future / John Loeffler)

The keyboard offers per-key RGB customization through Razer Synapse, so you have lots of options for customizing the lighting design to your liking. While twinkly, the shallow 1mm key travel left typing feeling somewhat flat compared to a competing MacBook Pro or Lenovo Legion laptop, though the keyboard does feel more comfortable than that of the Dell 14 Premium.

The touchpad, by contrast, is excellent—large, smooth, and every bit as responsive as you’d find on the best MacBook.

One of the speakers along the side of the keydeck of the Razer Blade 14 (2025) — (Image credit: Future / John Loeffler)

The six-speaker setup also deserves mention. I've been on a The Sword kick lately, and their entire catalog sounded fantastic, filling the room with surprising depth. Meanwhile, the chaos of Helldiver 2's recent updates never sounded better, making it one of the few gaming laptops where I felt I didn't need to bother with an external speaker or headphones.

The webcam of the Razer Blade 14 (2025) — (Image credit: Future / John Loeffler)

The 1080p IR webcam is great, but the lack of a physical privacy shutter isn't, though you do get the enhanced security of Windows Hello.

Like Razer Blade 14s of the past though, the design of this laptop doesn't lend itself to much upgradability, so if you're hoping to spec-up in the future, you'll need to plan for that at checkout before you buy and configure it for the long-haul.

Design: 4.5 / 5

Razer Blade 14 (2025): Performance

Helldivers 2 playing on a Razer Blade 14 (2025) that is surrounded by gaming peripherals — (Image credit: Future / John Loeffler)

Phenomenal gaming performance
Outstanding creative performance
Not always an improvement over previous-gen models

Day to day, the Blade 14 felt like a solid desktop PC stuffed into a svelte, lightweight 14-inch frame, making it easy to carry around with me and get things done on the go.

Over the course of about three weeks (including one week of dedicated benchmark testing), I used it for writing, photo editing, and heavy multitasking and didn't experience any real hiccups. Even with my downright abusive Chrome-tab-habits, adding Spotify streaming to the mix and some Photoshop and Lightroom exporting sent to the background, the Blade 14 (2025) stayed fluid and never stuttered.

In my CPU benchmarks, the new Blade 14 generally outclassed its predecessors, and while it doesn't really compete with the performance of the Apple M4 chip for professional workloads, it does generally come in second against Apple's best mobile workstation.

Naturally, the upgraded Nvidia RTX 5070 GPU in the new Blade 14 beats the last two Blade 14 models, both of which we reviewed with an RTX 4070 GPU. There aren't a lot of tests where we can use for an apples-to-razers comparison of the GPU in the MacBook Pro 14 and Blade 14, unfortunately, but at least in the cross-platform 3DMark Steel Nomad, it's not even a contest, as the Blade 14's RTX 5070 GPU scores about 3.6x better in this synthetic GPU test.

In terms of creative performance, the Blade 14 2025 more than holds its own against its predecessors and its main rival amongst the best Windows laptops for creatives, the Dell 14 Premium, falling behind only the MacBook Pro 14 in my Crossmark Creativity testing, and even then, not by much.

When it came to gaming, though, the Blade 14 really impressed me. At its native 2880×1800 resolution, Games like F1 2024 and Helldivers 2 ran well into the high double and even triple digits on ultra settings with balanced DLSS (not counting Frame Generation), while games like Satisfactory (my personal go-to) stayed above 100 FPS constantly.

Cyberpunk 2077 with ray tracing at 1080p pushed the GPU hard, averaging around 50 FPS, but enabling DLSS 4's Transformer model made it silky smooth at 1080p and very playable at 1440p, hovering between 50-80 FPS depending on the DLSS setting used.

Since the base frame rates are north of 50 FPS when using DLSS, you can turn on Frame Generation as well to push that FPS higher to max out the display's 120Hz refresh without having to worry about input latency, which wasn't noticeable in my time gaming on the laptop when I used the feature.

The key standout for me though wasn’t just raw average framerates—it was stability on the low-end. Minimum frame rates on just about every game I tested with balanced upscaling were well north of 50 FPS unless I did something like trying to run Cyberpunk 2077 on its max settings with Ray Tracing Overdrive at native resolution.

This means that for pretty much any title, you're going to get exceptionally smooth gameplay on the go, which is what a laptop like this is really all about.

Performance: 5 / 5

Razer Blade 14 (2025): Battery Life

The Windows 11 battery indicator on a Razer Blade 14 (2025) — (Image credit: Future / John Loeffler)

How long does it last on a single charge? It lasted about five hours on my standard 'performance' test settings
Proprietary charger required to charge it quickly, but you can use USB4 for slower charging

The battery life on the Blade 14 2025 isn't fantastic, but it's pretty solid for a gaming laptop, especially with some power-saving tweaks.

In my normal test settings, with max resolution and frame rate with the laptop set to Windows 11 Performance mode, the Blade 14 2025 fell behind a lot of other competing 14-inch laptops on the market, as well as its two immediate predecessors, with an average battery life of just five hours and one minute in our Web Surfing test.

It manages to do a little bit better on the gaming battery test, though it still lags behind its immediate predecessors. One thing to consider though is that of all the 14-inch laptops I tested here, only the Dell 14 Premium has an OLED panel to match what the Blade 14 is sporting, while the earlier Blade 14s and the MacBook Pro aren't bogged down by the OLED display's higher power consumption.

It is worth noting though that slowing down the refresh rate to 60Hz rather than 120Hz and you turn off the RGB lighting on the keydeck, you can stretch this battery life out to over eight hours.

Also, the Blade 14 2025 comes with a proprietary charging brick and port for the fastest charging and best plugged-in performance while gaming, but the USB4 ports do allow for USB-C charging, just at a slower rate.

Battery Life: 3.5 / 5

Should you buy the Razer Blade 14 (2025)?

A Razer Blade 14 (2025) on a desk with its lid facing the viewer — (Image credit: Future / John Loeffler)

Razer Blade 14 (2025) Scorecard
Category	Notes	Rating
Value	You are absolutely paying the Razer tax here, and you can get the same performance from other laptops for cheaper.	3.5 / 5
Specs	The specs are fairly solid for this laptop, but the lack of upgradability and high-end specs allow rivals to swoop in and offer more for enthusiast gamers.	4 / 5
Design	The Blade 14 2025 doesn't disappoint with its design, slimming down over the previous year and keeping true to its iconic style.	4.5 / 5
Performance	Fantastic performance all around makes this one of the best gaming laptops for on-the-go PC gamers who don't want to fuss with a PC gaming handheld.	5 / 5
Battery Life	The OLED panel on this laptop absolutely tanks its battery life, and anyone needing a work laptop for longevity are better off with a Snapdragon X Elite-powered system or a MacBook Pro 14.	3.5 / 5
Final Score	Overall, between iconic style and fantastic performance, the Blade 14 is a phenomenal slim and light gaming laptop, though it'd be great if it was just a bit cheaper considering its rivals can offer similar or better performance for less.	4.5 / 5

Buy the Razer Blade 14 (2025) if...

You want the best design the iconic Razer style can offer
The Blade 14 (2025) truly is the MacBook of gaming laptops, with a thinner and lighter form factor than last year.

You want the best OLED gaming laptop going
The OLED panel on the Blade 14 is fantastic, beating out mini-LED rivals and absolutely burying IPS laptops without breaking a sweat.

You want the perfect balance of performance and portability
If what you care about most is getting the fastest frame rates possible in your games, the Blade 14 won't beat any current S-tier gaming laptops, but if you're looking to maximize performance and portability, you'll find few better than the Blase 14 2025.

Don't buy it if...

You want desktop-replacement class performance
The Blade 14's performance is great, but if you're looking for face-melting framerates, a laptop with a RTX 5080 or RTX 5090 will be a better option.

You're on a budget
This laptop starts at two grand and only gets more expensive the better its configuration. A cheap laptop, this is not.

You don't want to deal with the quirks of OLED care
OLED displays are gorgeous, but they suffer from burn-in over time, which might be a dealbreaker for anyone looking to use this laptop for more than 3-4 years.

Also consider

Asus ROG Zephyrus G14
The Asus ROG Zephyrus G14 is one of the best gaming laptops in this size, and it offers higher-level configurations than the Blade 14 2025 can, while its entry-level model comes in cheaper than the Blade 14.

Read more about the Asus ROG Zephyrus G14

Apple MacBook Pro 14 (M4, 2024)
Creative professionals who might be considering the Blade 14 2025 will almost always get better creative performance from the MacBook Pro 14-inch across non-3D-modeling workloads, like video editing and photography.

Read the full Apple MacBook Pro 14-inch (M4) review

How I tested the Razer Blade 14 (2025)

I spent about three weeks with the Razer Blade 14 (2025)
I used it for everyday gaming, work, and creative tasks
I ran it through our standard suite of benchmark tests

I had the chance to test out the Razer Blade 14 2025 for about three weeks, which is about 50% longer than I usually have to devote to a single laptop review, so I really got to know this laptop.

I used it for day-to-day writing tasks (including drafting this review), as well as general productivity and creative work, including Adobe Photoshop for editing the photos shown above.

For gaming, I used it extensively as my primary gaming device, focusing on more demanding titles like Helldivers 2, Satisfactory, as well as more requirement-friendly titles like Hollow Knight: Silksong.

I've reviewed dozens of gaming laptops for TechRadar over the course of half a decade, ranging from the very best desktop replacements to the best budget gaming laptops, so I know what the market has to offer. I leverage that insight and expertise to help readers by offering the best advice I can on what gaming laptops offer the best value, and which are worth the splurge.

First reviewed September 2025

I tested the Acer Aspire 14 AI (2025) and couldn’t believe how long its battery lasted – but it fails to impress in other areas

5:22 am | August 29, 2025

Author: admin | Category: Computers Computing Gadgets Laptops Windows Laptops | Tags: AI, Battery Life, Microsoft Surface Laptop, US | Comments: Off

Acer Aspire 14 AI (2025): Two-minute review

The Acer Aspire 14 AI (2025) is a mid-range laptop with AI capabilities that aim to streamline advanced tasks without compromising processing power.

It looks smart and sleek with its minimal design. The blue colorway of my review unit also added an element of vibrancy to proceedings, offering something a little different from the usual black and silver finishes.

It’s also very light and thin, which makes it easy to use and carry around. The bezel around the screen is very small, too, which helps to maximize the size of the display.

The materials feel premium enough, especially the keys, but it’s not the sturdiest unit. There’s a considerable amount of flex to the lid and chassis, falling some way short of the best laptop constructions.

As you’d expect given its name, there are various AI features in the Aspire 14 AI (2025). However, there aren’t as many as you might think, with the flagship app appearing to be Acer LiveArt – a disappointingly basic image editing suite.

The AI apps run fairly smoothly in the main, though, and the Aspire 14 AI (2025) performs everyday tasks quite well, from productivity and browsing to streaming. However, it can succumb to the occasional slowdown and lag, and doesn’t handle 4K content particularly well. More strenuous tasks, such as gaming, are beyond it, as you might expect given the middling GPU it’s saddled with.

Close-up of webcam on Acer Aspire 14 AI (2025), open on desk with wooden panel, plant, and pink wall in background — (Image credit: Future)

What’s more, there’s a pretty consistent fan noise, even during moderate workloads, which increases the harder the Aspire 14 AI (2025) is pushed. I also noticed a strange rattling sound at times, which was slightly concerning.

The display is more impressive, providing plenty of sharpness and brightness. Colors are rendered quite well, too, although they’re not the most vivid, with some of its rivals achieving greater saturation.

The keyboard is mostly pleasant to use, thanks in no small part to the sizable and generously spaced keys. The trackpad is smooth enough, but taps and clicks lack consistency and feedback.

Perhaps the most impressive aspect of the Aspire 14 AI (2025) is the battery life. It lasted 22 hours in our movie playback test, which trounces most of the competition, even at the top end of the market.

Ultimately, the Aspire 14 AI (2025) ends up being a somewhat underwhelming laptop considering its price tag. You might be better off paying a little more to have a laptop with a better design and overall performance.

Acer Aspire 14 AI (2025) review: Price & Availability

Starts from £699 / AU$1,399
Currently unavailable in the US
Well-price for the spec

The Aspire 14 AI (2025) starts from £699 / AU$1,399 and is available now in various finishes. It can be configured with 512GB or 1TB of storage. Currently, the only model available in the US is the larger Aspire 16 AI.

On the face of it, this is a reasonable price for a laptop with this spec. But it does face some stern competitors who, despite being a bit more expensive, might represent better value, all things considered.

Take the Microsoft Surface Laptop: this starts at $899.99 / £1,039 / AU$1,498, and while it has a similar everyday performance to the Aspire 14 AI (2025) and a marginally shorter – but still impressive – battery life, it’s built to a higher standard and more enjoyable to use in our view.

Similarly, there’s also the Dell Inspiron 14. Again, this is more expensive than the Aspire 14 AI (2025), but its everyday performance is better – although it still can’t handle the most intensive workloads, like video editing and AAA gaming. It too has an impressive battery life, although it’s still not quite as enduring as that of the Aspire 14 AI (2025).

Value: 3.5 / 5

Acer Aspire 14 AI (2025) review: Specs

Acer Aspire 14 AI (2025) Specs
	Acer Aspire 14 AI (2025) Base Config	Acer Aspire 14 AI (2025) Max Config
Price	$TBA / £699 / AU$1,399	$TBA / £749 (about AU$1570)
CPU	Qualcomm Snapdragon X X1-26-100 (8 cores), 3GHz	Qualcomm Snapdragon X X1-26-100 (8 cores), 3GHz
GPU	Qualcomm Adreno GPU (shared memory)	Qualcomm Adreno GPU (shared memory)
RAM	16GB LPDDR5X	16GB LPDDR5X
Storage	512GB PCI Express NVMe 4.0 (M.2)	1TB PCI Express NVMe 4.0 (M.2)
Display	14-inch WUXGA (1920 x 1200), 16:10, Active Matrix TFT LCD, IPS, 120Hz	14-inch WUXGA (1920 x 1200), 16:10, Active Matrix TFT LCD, IPS, 120Hz
Ports and Connectivity	2x USB-C (Thunderbolt 4), 2x USB-A, 1x HDMI 2.1, 1x headset jack, 1x microSD, Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 5.4	2x USB-C (Thunderbolt 4), 2x USB-A, 1x HDMI 2.1, 1x headset jack, 1x microSD, Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 5.4
Battery	65Wh	65Wh
Dimensions	0.6 x 12.3 x 8.9in / 15.9 x 312 x 225.9mm	0.6 x 12.3 x 8.9in / 15.9 x 312 x 225.9mm
Weight	2.7lbs / 1.24kg	2.7lbs / 1.24kg

Acer Aspire 14 AI (2025) review: Design

Close-up of keyboard on Acer Aspire 14 AI (2025), open on desk — (Image credit: Future)

Very thin and light
Flimsy build quality
Poor AI features

The Aspire 14 AI (2025) is very portable, even for a 14-inch laptop, thanks to its light and slender frame, free from any bulges or protrusions. This also adds to its sleek appearance. The dark blue colorway of my review unit suited it very well, and helped distinguish it from the monochromatic homogeneity of the sector.

The lid is easy to open, yet offers sufficient stability. Pleasingly, it also reclines all the way back by 180 degrees, making it versatile for various stands and setups.

Instead of four feet, the Aspire 14 AI (2025) features two long bars running across its width, with the rear one being taller than the front. They don’t provide as much grip as more traditional rubber feet, but they suffice for keeping the Aspire 14 AI (2025) stable while in use. What’s more, some may find this lack of traction preferable, as it makes the laptop easier to slide around on a given surface.

Build quality is good in places, such as the keyboard, with the plastics looking and feeling premium. I also appreciated the very thin bezel around the screen, which serves to maximize the full real estate.

However, there’s a considerable amount of flex to the chassis and the lid, which is somewhat disconcerting. It’s probably not one to take on more extreme adventures – it’s certainly no match for the best rugged laptop units in this regard – but it should suffice for basic travel.

View of left-hand ports on Acer Aspire 14 AI (2025), open on desk with wooden panel, plant, and pink wall in background — (Image credit: Future)

As for software, the Aspire 14 AI (2025) is mercifully free from bloatware – although that statement largely depends on how you feel about AI features. Thankfully, those that are installed are unintrusive and only there if you need them.

The included AI features of the Aspire 14 AI (2025) are mainly confined to image and video editing, courtesy of Acer LiveSense. This app has some very basic image editing and webcam effects to play around with, but to call this an AI feature is a stretch. Its generative features boil down to buttons that open Microsoft's Copilot app instead.

If you want more AI offerings from Acer than those preinstalled, you’ll have to download Acer Intelligence Space, which acts as a hub for its suite of AI apps. However, I couldn’t get this to install on my unit, with the app failing to appear once the installer had finished running.

As a side note, if you’re looking to install third-party apps, keep in mind that the Aspire 14 AI (2025) uses an ARM processor, so you may run into compatibility issues. Check with the software provider where you can to determine suitability for the architecture.

There’s a well-judged selection of ports on the Aspire 14 AI (2025). It features two USB-C ports, both of which employ the Thunderbolt 4 standard. These are both located on the left-hand side, in front of the HDMI 2.1 port and USB-A port, which may prove inconvenient for certain setups, since you’ll need to connect the power adapter to one of them.

On the right you’ll find a USB-A port, followed by a headset jack and a microSD slot. It’s a shame there isn’t at least one more port on this side, but this is a minor complaint.

Design: 3.5 / 5

Acer Aspire 14 AI (2025) review: Performance

Hand typing on Acer Aspire 14 AI (2025) — (Image credit: Future)

Reasonable workaday performance
AI apps eat memory
Noisy even under moderate loads

The performance of the Aspire 14 AI (2025) is good, if nothing spectacular. It can handle most everyday tasks, including word processing, spreadsheet editing, and video streaming, although 4K content can result in significant pauses for buffering. There were also a few occasions where it was a little sluggish, such as when waking from sleep.

The AI apps and features run well enough, although they do tend to eat up a considerable amount of memory, despite the 16GB of RAM on board. Models with more would be preferable to deal with such workloads on a regular basis.

Even under moderate loads, the fans of the Aspire 14 AI (2025) are audible. The noise isn’t too loud or shrill, but it’s still noticeable and unexpected. The volume does increase with heavier tasking, though – but at least the unit remains cool throughout.

I also noticed a strange rattling sound at times, as if some part was loose and vibrating. Pressing the offending area fixed the issue temporarily, but this speaks further to the less-than-stellar build quality of the Aspire 14 AI (2025).

View of right-hand ports on Acer Aspire 14 AI (2025), open on desk with wooden panel, plant, and pink wall in background — (Image credit: Future)

Intensive tasks are beyond the Aspire 14 AI (2025). It doesn’t handle gaming very well, even when playing moderately demanding titles with modest settings. I encountered severe stuttering and lag when playing Counter-Strike 2 on the Medium preset, rendering it virtually unplayable; this certainly isn’t a device to replace the best gaming laptops.

The 1920 x 1200 display is sharp and renders colors quite well, although it’s not the most vibrant you’ll ever see. It has high levels of brightness, too, which helps to keep reflections at bay.

The keys are large and generously spaced, which makes them easy to type with. They lack the feedback and satisfying feel of the best laptops for writers, and the omission of a number pad might deter those after maximum productivity, but for basic note taking and essay writing, the keyboard should suffice.

The trackpad manages to stay out of the way while typing for the most part, with it refraining from registering palm contact. It’s smooth and pleasingly large, but the taps are a little inconsistent, and the click feels quite nasty and lacks feedback, making it awkward to use for constant navigation around documents and web pages.

Performance: 3.5 / 5

Acer Aspire 14 AI (2025) review: Battery Life

Rear three-quarter view of Acer Aspire 14 AI (2025), open on desk with wooden panel, plant, and pink wall in background — (Image credit: Future)

Incredible longevity
Beats all the competition

The battery life of the Aspire 14 AI (2025) is very impressive. During our movie playback test, it managed to last an incredible 22 hours – a few hours shy of Acer’s 28-hour claim, but this is forgivable given there are very few rivals that can match this kind of endurance.

It trounces even more premium laptops, such as the Apple MacBook Air 13-inch (M3) (the best student laptop in our view), which only managed a little over 14 hours. The Microsoft Surface Laptop managed just over 17 hours, while the Dell Inspiron 14 Plus lasted over 18 hours.

Battery Life: 5 / 5

Should I buy the Acer Aspire 14 AI (2025)?

Acer Aspire 14 AI (2025) Scorecard
Attributes	Notes	Rating
Value	It’s at the lower end of the mid-range pack, but there are perhaps better value alternatives.	3.5 / 5
Design	It’s light and slender, but hardly the most solid. The included AI software is poor.	3.5 / 5
Performance	It’ll suffice for everyday tasks and productivity, but more serious workloads are beyond it. The display is bright and clear.	3.5 / 5
Battery Life	You’ll struggle to find many laptops that can last as long as the Aspire 14 AI (2025).	5 / 5
Total	The Aspire 14 AI (2025) is somewhat inconsistent, with great portability and battery life, but middling performance and build quality. There are better options if you’re prepared to pay a bit more.	3.5 / 5

Buy the Acer Aspire 14 AI (2025) if...

You want the best battery life
The battery life of the Aspire 14 AI (2025) is truly phenomenal – no other laptop can beat it.

You want something easy to use
The light and thin chassis makes this easy to carry around, and the 180-degree folding display makes it versatile, too.

Don't buy it if...

You want the strongest build
The Aspire 14 AI (2025) is far from the sturdiest laptop out there, so best kept out of intrepid situations.

You want the best performance
For everyday tasks you should be fine, but it can’t handle demanding workloads. It can get noisy, too.

Acer Aspire 14 AI (2025) review: Also Consider

Microsoft Surface Laptop 13-inch
As the best Windows 11 laptop in our eyes, the Surface Laptop is a great all-rounder. It’s better made than the Aspire 14 AI (2025), and although its battery life is shorter, it’s still top-tier. The starting price is higher, but you get a laptop that equates to better all-round value.

Read our full Microsoft Surface Laptop 13-inch review.

Dell 14 Plus
If you’re looking for another affordable yet capable laptop, the 14 Plus fits the bill very well. This has a more impressive performance, and yet again has a battery that’ll last all day and then some.

Read our full Dell 14 Plus review.

How I tested the Acer Aspire 14 AI (2025)

Tested for a few days
Used for various tasks
Plenty of laptop reviewing experience

I tested the Aspire 14 AI (2025) for a few days, using it for productivity, entertainment, and general browsing.

I did plenty of typing and content streaming, and even tested its gaming credentials. I also ran our series of benchmarks to assess various aspects of its performance, and made sure to use as many of its in-built AI apps and features as I could.

I have reviewed many laptops before, ranging in their price points and usage types. I’ve also used them consistently for decades for all manner of tasks.

First reviewed: August 2025
Read more about how we test

The Lenovo Yoga Slim 9i has just about everything you’d want in a Windows laptop, but falls short of perfection

1:50 am | August 27, 2025

Author: admin | Category: Computers Computing Gadgets Laptops Windows Laptops | Tags: CPU, RAM, Total War | Comments: Off

Lenovo Yoga Slim 9i: Two-minute review

The Lenovo Yoga Slim 9i may face some stiff competition from the usual excellent offerings from Apple, Dell, and the like, but it’s more than up to the challenge. In fact, I believe it deserves to be mentioned in the same breath as the best Ultrabooks of this generation.

It’s very slim and portable, helped by the fact that the webcam is hidden under the display in a unique and space-saving measure. And its performance is snappy and responsive, comparing well to the best laptops of this type (don’t expect it to match the power of a gaming laptop, of course). Just as important, the Lenovo Yoga Slim 9i is a gorgeous-looking laptop with an equally gorgeous-looking OLED display.

Really, there are only two drawbacks. The first is price. It’s not anywhere near a budget offering, though that's to be expected of this type of laptop, not to mention that an OLED display always brings a price bump.

The other issue is a little more concerning. The port selection is worse than on an Apple MacBook Air, which is saying something, as that’s already very minimal. More specifically, there’s no audio jack, so hopefully, you have a good pair of Bluetooth earbuds on hand.

However, that’s a pretty short list of things to be concerned about, and one of them (price) is to be expected with a nice Ultrabook. All in all, the Lenovo Yoga Slim 9i is a wonderful laptop that will make a solid upgrade for anyone looking for an attractive, portable, and powerful Ultrabook.

Lenovo Yoga Slim 9i: Price & availability

A Lenovo Yoga Slim 9i sitting on a picnic table outside — (Image credit: Future / James Holland)

How much does it cost? Starting at $1,759.99 / £1,800.00 / AU$3,829.00
When is it available? Available now
Where can you get it? Available in the US, UK, and Australia

The 10th-generation model of the Yoga Slim 9i comes in two configurations, with both available in the US, UK, and Australia. And both configurations are very similar.

The more basic configuration goes for $1,759.99 / £1,800 / AU$3,829 and comes with an Intel Core Ultra 7 256V CPU and 16GB of RAM. The more robust configuration with Intel Core Ultra 7 258V and 32GB of RAM costs a nominally higher price tag of $1,899.99 / £1,900 / AU$4,179. There’s very little difference in performance between the CPUs – it’s just that the 258v supports 32GB of RAM. Essentially, the price difference comes down to whether you want 16 or 32GB of RAM. Everything else is the same, from the color options to the screen and the storage capacity.

The Apple MacBook Pro 14-inch (M4) makes for an easy comparison. Not just because they have a similar-sized screen, though the Yoga Slim 9i has better resolution, but because they have similar price points. This 14-incher from Apple starts at $1,599 / £1,599 / AU$2,499, but that gets you a 512GB SSD. If you want the same amount of storage (1TB), the price goes up to $1,799 / £1,999 / AU$3,299, which is a little more than the Lenovo Yoga Slim 9i. Of course, you’ll probably gravitate towards one over the other, mostly depending on whether you want macOS or Windows.

The Dell XPS 13 offers an interesting comparison, too. It comes in at a similar price – $1,999.99 / £2,049 / AU$3,998.50 – if you opt for a touchscreen like the Lenovo Yoga Slim 9i has, but the screen is smaller. And while the Dell XPS 13 does have an OLED display, it’s at a lower, though still pretty good, 2880 x 1800p resolution. Both laptops have limited ports, but both have plenty of power.

However, the Dell XPS 13 has an interesting design with its edgeless keyboard (meaning it stretches edge to edge) and a touchpad that just uses haptic feedback and doesn’t have a defined physical boundary. This is one of those love-it-or-hate-it design choices and will probably be a deciding factor for most.

Price: 4 / 5

Lenovo Yoga Slim 9i: Specs

The top edge of the lid of the Lenovo Yoga Slim 9i — (Image credit: Future / James Holland)

Of the two available configurations, there’s very little difference. You basically get to choose between two almost identical CPUs, the Intel Core Ultra 7 256V and the Intel Core Ultra 7 258V, which is about 0.5% better.

However, if you select the ever-so-slightly better CPU, you get 32GB of RAM instead of 16GB, since that CPU supports the higher amount of RAM.

Lenovo Yoga Slim 9i Specs
	Base configuration	Review / Max configuration
Price:	$1,819.99 at Lenovo.com / £1,830 at Lenovo.com / AU$3,849 at Lenovo.com	$1,979.99 at Lenovo.com / £1,900.00 at Lenovo.com / AU$3,909.76 at Lenovo.com
CPU:	Intel Core Ultra 7 256V	Intel Core Ultra 7 258V
Graphics:	Intel graphics	Intel Arc graphics
RAM:	16GB LPDDR5X	32GB LPDDR5X
Screen:	14" WQUXGA (3840 x 2400), OLED, Glare, Touch, HDR 600 True Black, 100%DCI-P3, 400 nits, 120Hz, Glass, Camera Under Display	14" WQUXGA (3840 x 2400), OLED, Glare, Touch, HDR 600 True Black, 100%DCI-P3, 400 nits, 120Hz, Glass, Camera Under Display
Storage:	1TB SSD	1TB SSD
Ports:	2x USB-C Thunderbolt 4	2x USB-C Thunderbolt 4
Wireless:	Wi-Fi 7 2x2 BE 320MHz & Bluetooth 5.4	Wi-Fi 7 2x2 BE 320MHz & Bluetooth 5.4
Camera:	32MP camera-under-display with e-privacy shutter	32MP camera-under-display with e-privacy shutter
Weight:	Starting at 1.25kg / 2.76lbs	Starting at 1.25kg / 2.76lbs
Dimensions:	312.93mm x 203.5mm x as thin as 14.55mm / 12.32 x 8.01 x as thin as 0.57 inches	312.93mm x 203.5mm x as thin as 14.55mm / 12.32 x 8.01 x as thin as 0.57 inches

Outside of the internal upgrades to CPU and RAM, there are no other upgrades. Both configurations come in one color, Tidal Teal, which is admittedly beautiful.

And there’s just the one display available. Thankfully, it’s also very nice with high-resolution and responsive touchscreen capabilities.

Lenovo Yoga Slim 9i: Design

Attractive and slim
Gorgeous and impressive display
Limited ports, including a lack of an audio jack

Available in Tidal Teal, a shimmery blue with hints of green, the Lenovo Yoga Slim 9i is a beautiful laptop even before opening it up. It’s slim and light, even for a laptop of this size, and is about as portable as it gets.

In terms of form factor, the one unusual thing I noticed is that there is a raised bar near the top of the lid. This houses the 32-megapixel webcam that’s hidden under the display and pops up near the top-middle of the screen when in use. Though there’s no physical shutter for the webcam, it does have an effective e-privacy toggle next to the right USB-C port.

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An angled view of the Lenovo Yoga Slim 9i sitting on a picnic table outside — (Image credit: Future / James Holland)

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A Lenovo Yoga Slim 9i sitting on a picnic table outside at an angle — (Image credit: Future / James Holland)

It’s also worth noting that, despite having a touchscreen, this is not a 2-in-1, so don’t expect to be able to fold it to use as a tablet. That said, the touchscreen is very responsive and very sensitive, enough so that I’ve accidentally closed my browser multiple times when lightly touching the corner of the screen without thinking.

The screen is pretty remarkable beyond its touch capabilities. This 14-inch OLED panel has a 4K or 3840 x 2400 resolution (that’s a 16:10 aspect ratio) with a 120Hz refresh rate, along with 100% sRGB and DCI-P3 color coverage, which is ideal for photo editing. It also has a Vesa Certified DisplayHDR True Black 600 rating. It even supports Dolby Vision. You get the idea – the display is pretty spectacular.

The keyboard on the Lenovo Yoga Slim 9i — (Image credit: Future / James Holland)

The keyboard is a bit shallow, so it's not the most comfortable one I’ve used, but that’s to be expected with a laptop this slim. It’s otherwise accurate and responsive, and I had no trouble pounding out a couple of articles on it.

The touchpad is just as snappy and accurate. While a lot of newer laptops seem to increase the size of the touchpad, that’s not the case here. If you want a really big touchpad, you’re not going to get it here.

Finally, the port selection is very, very minimal. There are just two USB-C ports, one on each side. They’re both Thunderbolt 4, so there’s plenty of throughput if you want to use a dongle. Still, it’s very limited. What I’m most upset about is the fact that Lenovo has done away with any kind of audio jack. As ubiquitous as wireless earbuds are, some of us still use wired headphones from time to time.

Design: 4.5 / 5

Lenovo Yoga Slim 9i: Performance

A Lenovo Yoga Slim 9i playing a game — (Image credit: Future / James Holland)

Snappy, responsive performance
Copilot+
Great audio quality with spatial audio

The Lenovo Yoga Slim 9i is quite powerful. It can handle day-to-day work easily. Opening, scrolling, clicking links, typing, photo editing: all the sorts of things most people want from an Ultrabook. For example, I was able to open 20 browser windows very quickly, just by pressing the Plus sign in Microsoft Edge.

Each window, which opens the MSN homepage filled with different news stories and information, loaded up almost immediately. Of course, I reviewed the 32GB configuration, but the CPU and RAM still do quite a bit of heavy lifting.

Even the camera behind the screen pops up promptly. Speaking of which, the webcam performs smoothly and looks good, though it does struggle with noise in low light.

Lenovo Yoga Slim 9i CPU / System Benchmarks
Benchmark		Score
Geekbench 6.4 Single Core		2,755
Geekbench 6.4 Single Core		11,186
Crossmark Overall		1,689
Crossmark Productivity		1,638
Crossmark Creativity		1,934
Crossmark Responsiveness		1,234
25GB File Copy Transfer Rate (MB/s)		1,032.87

Now, it’s not a gaming laptop, but I was able to run some less demanding or older games without any trouble, like Sable and Alan Wake. For those games, the action was crisp, clear, and smooth. That gorgeous OLED screen really helps. Still, there were some games I tried to run that wouldn’t even open.

As this is a newer laptop, it comes with Copilot+. Using the app is quick and responsive, though I still don’t find it to be a game-changer in my computing experience.

Lenovo Yoga Slim 9i GPU / Gaming Benchmarks
Benchmark	Score
3DMark Fire Strike	9,107
3DMark Time Spy	4,436
3DMark Speed Way	6,094
3DMark Steel Nomad	823
3DMark Night Raid	35,326
Borderlands 3 (Badass, 1080p)	27fps
Shadow of the Tomb Raider (Highest, 1080p)	46fps
Sid Meier's Civilization VI: Gathering Storm (Max impact, 1080p)	67fps
Total War: Warhammer III (Ultra, 1080p)	37fps

I’ve rarely been impressed by the audio from a laptop. I was when I reviewed the Lenovo Yoga Book 9i, and I am here. That’s probably because there are more than two speakers in the Lenovo Yoga Slom 9i. Specifically, there are two 2-watt tweeters and two 3-watt woofers. There’s also some virtual spatial audio since the laptop supports Dolby Atmos.

Lenovo Yoga Slim 9i: Battery life

Decent if disappointing battery life
Doesn’t seem to do fast charging

Laptops with OLED displays aren’t always the most efficient, so the Lenovo Yoga Slim 9i’s just under 10 hours of battery life in the PCMark 10 Battery benchmark is not surprising, though it is a bit disappointing. It did manage a better showing in our Web Surfing test, where it managed to get just over 11 hours of battery life.

While not the best results we've seen, this isn't terrible battery life. However, we’re seeing a few laptops, particularly ones that this one competes with, hitting up to double those numbers. To be fair, I turned off the laptop’s battery-saver feature, which makes the laptop run more efficiently when the battery is low, so you might manage to squeeze more juice from the battery depending on the settings.

On the bright side, it was very good at maintaining battery life when the lid was closed. I’ve used and tested some laptops where the battery would continue to run down when idling, and that’s not an issue here.

Battery life: 3 / 5

Should you buy the Lenovo Yoga Slim 9i?

Lenovo Yoga Slim 9i scorecard
Category	Notes	Rating
Value	While pricey, this laptop is thin, powerful, and comes with a wonderful OLED screen.	4 / 5
Design	It’s not only thin and light, but it is gorgeous. Too bad it lacks an audio jack and only comes with two USB-C ports.	4.5 / 5
Performance	The performance (and audio quality) is excellent, especially for productivity work.	4.5 / 5
Battery Life	The battery life is decent, but compared to the competition is lower than expected.	4 / 5
Final score	It’s gorgeous, light, and comes with robust performance. Plus, it has that OLED screen.	4.25 / 5

Buy the Lenovo Yoga Slim 9i if...

You want a thin, light laptop
At under three pounds (and with a 14-inch screen), this laptop is about as portable as it gets.

You want a gorgeous screen
Not only is the Lenovo Yoga Slim 9i a looker, but it comes with a high-resolution OLED display that might be the centerpiece.

You want responsive performance
This might not be a gaming laptop, but its performance is snappy and responsive, exactly what one needs for most productivity work.

Don't buy it if...

You want more ports
Only two USB-C Thunderbolt ports are limiting enough. The fact that there’s no audio jack is pretty disappointing.

You have limited funds
While worth the cost, this is not a cheap machine. If you’re limited on funds, there are some great laptops out there without an OLED screen that are probably within reach.

Also consider

If my Lenovo Yoga Slim 9i review has you considering other options, here are two laptops to consider...

Dell XPS 13
Between the long-lasting battery life, strong performance, and gorgeous OLED screen, the Intel Core Ultra 2nd Gen version of the Dell XPS 13 is the ideal Ultrabook. That is, if you’re game for an innovative design change that some will love and others not so much – essentially a haptic-only touch bar and touchpad.

Read our full Dell XPS 13 review

Apple MacBook Pro 14-inch (M4)
The Apple MacBook Pro 14-inch (M4) may not have WiFi 7 or any major physical design upgrades, but it’s an almost perfect laptop otherwise. It has powerful and incredibly efficient performance (meaning it also has a very long battery life) and comes with some unique features such as the centerstage camera and optional nano-texture screen.

Read our full Apple MacBook Pro 14-inch (M4) review

How I tested the Lenovo Yoga Slim 9i

Tested for a month
Used it for work, gaming, and streaming
Tested its various features

I used the Lenovo Yoga Slim 9i for a month, testing it for work, including this review (along with the requisite online research). I used it to stream video. I even did some light gaming. I played with the webcam, the audio, and the AI features as well.

After spending time with the Lenovo Yoga Slim 9i, it’s clear that this is perfect for those who want a premium experience (and can pay for it) in a gorgeous wrapping.

I’ve spent the last few years reviewing tech gear for gaming and otherwise, where I’ve gotten a feel for what to look for and how to put a piece of kit through its paces to see whether it’s worth the recommendation.

First reviewed August 2025

I’ve been reviewing Dell XPS laptops for half a decade, and the Dell 14 Premium is as close as they’ve ever come to dethroning the MacBook Pro

5:49 pm | August 8, 2025

Author: admin | Category: Computers Computing Gadgets Laptops Windows Laptops | Tags: Battery Life, CPU, GPU, RTX | Comments: Off

Dell 14 Premium: One-minute review

The Dell 14 Premium is finally here, and it is definitely worth the wait.

The 14 Premium is the latest Dell laptop to launch as part of its rebranding, replacing the fan-favorite Dell XPS lineup of laptops, which ranked among the best laptops year after year for as long as I've been reviewing laptops for TechRadar.

Like the Dell 16 Premium, the Dell 14 Premium essentially carries on the XPS formula with little changed beyond the branding, but that's not a bad thing at all. The Dell XPS 14 (2024) was one of the best Dell laptops I've ever reviewed, and the 14 Premium is even better still.

Starting at $1,499.99 / £1,499 / AU$2,798.40, the 14 Premium matches the starting price of the Apple MacBook Pro 14-inch (M4) that it is competing with, though the 14 Premium does max out a bit cheaper than the MacBook Pro 14.

Obviously, you won't get the same kind of performance from the base-spec 14 Premium as you do if you go the discrete graphics, non-OLED route, which starts at $1,999.99 / £1,999 / AU$$3,297.8. Content creators, or those who want one of the best displays you're going to find on a laptop right now, will want to check out the RTX 4050/OLED configurations, which start at $2,199.99 / £2,199 / AU$3,598.10.

The Dell 14 Premium is on sale right now, with configurations starting as low as $1,499.99 in the US, with higher-tier configurations marked down more than $250 at Dell's website.View Deal

If performance is what you're after, the Dell 14 Premium beats out the MacBook Pro 14-inch, overall, in my testing, but it's not a total knockout. Given the performance I've seen from the MacBook Pro 14-inch base-spec, the 14 Premium really can't keep up on the low-end, and those looking to keep things within a tighter budget will likely be better off with a MacBook Pro (as much as it pains me to say it as a diehard Windows user).

If you're looking for high-end performance, however, the MacBook Pro 14-inch's M4 just can't keep up with the 14 Premium's RTX 4050 discrete graphics. It makes a huge difference in some workloads, like 3D modeling, and especially when it comes to gaming.

One other thing the 14 Premium has over the MacBook Pro 14-inch is the option for an OLED display, which looks gorgeous. The rest of the laptop is solid and has a much more premium feel to it than the 14 Plus, but there are some design quirks that keep it from truly laying out its competition on the mat.

While the discrete graphics and OLED upgrades do push the price considerably higher, there's no question that the upgrade is worth it, especially the upgrade to the RTX 4050 GPU, which unlocks a lot of power necessary for high-end applications.

This, of course, considerably impacts the device's battery life, dragging it down below nine hours in my testing. But for a laptop this compact with a high-end display and discrete graphics, it's definitely a worthwhile compromise.

So, bottom line: does the Dell 14 Premium defeat the current MacBook Pro 14-inch with M4? Yes, but it's down to the judges rather than a KO, and so your mileage may vary depending on your needs and budget. If you're going with high-end specs, the Dell 14 Premium is probably the best Windows laptop going right now, but if you're not going to go with the RTX 4050 GPU, the MacBook Pro 14-inch is probably the better bet for those looking to stay on budget.

Dell 14 Premium: Price & availability

A Dell 14 Premium sitting on a desk — (Image credit: Future / John Loeffler)

How much does it cost? Starts at $1,499.99 / £1,499 / AU$2,798.40
When is it available? It's available now
Where can you get it? You can buy it in the US, UK, and Australia through Dell’s website and other retailers.

The Dell 14 Premium is available now in the US, UK, and Australia, starting at $1,499.99 / £1,499 / AU$2,798.40, respectively.

This puts it in line with the starting price of the MacBook Pro 14-inch (M4), and is roughly in line with where the XPS 14 (2024) launched last year, though the 14 Premium is cheaper to start in the UK and Australia than its predecessor.

Given its premium status, this isn't really that bad a price for a laptop like this, and its high-end configurations are cheaper than a comparable MacBook Pro 14-inch, which definitely can't be overlooked. Still, it's expensive, especially in an era where everyone is a bit less free with their spending than they were even a year ago.

Value: 4 / 5

Dell 14 Premium: Specs

Up to RTX 4050 GPU
Wi-Fi 7
Only Thunderbolt 4

The specs for the Dell 14 Premium are pretty much identical to the Dell XPS 14 that preceded it, with some important differences.

This is not an Intel Lunar Lake laptop; it's an Arrow Lake H laptop, so while the processor model numbers might look very similar, they are two different architectures.

This allows the Intel Core Ultra 255H chip to be paired with an Nvidia RTX 4050 GPU, something last year's model wasn't capable of due to the limitations of the Lunar Lake chip design.

The 14 Premium is also configured with Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 5.4 connectivity, though it only has Thunderbolt 4 ports rather than the newer Thunderbolt 5 that the top-spec Dell 16 Premium has.

Dell 14 Premium Base Specs
	US	UK	Australia
Price	$1,499.99 at Dell.com	£1,499 at Dell.com	AU$2,798.40 at Dell.com
CPU	Intel Core Ultra 7 255H	Intel Core Ultra 7 255H	Intel Core Ultra 7 255H
GPU	Integrated Intel Arc 140T	Integrated Intel Arc 140T	Integrated Intel Arc 140T
Memory	16GB LPDDR5x - 7467MT/s	16GB LPDDR5x - 7467MT/s	16GB LPDDR5x - 7467MT/s
Storage	512GB PCIe NVMe	512GB PCIe NVMe	512GB PCIe NVMe
Display	14.5-inch non-touch 2K IPS 120Hz	14.5-inch non-touch 2K IPS 120Hz	14.5-inch non-touch 2K IPS 120Hz
Ports	1 x 3.5mm combo jack, 3 x Thunderbolt 4 Gen 2 (DP 2.1, Power Delivery), 1 x microSDXC 7.1	1 x 3.5mm combo jack, 3 x Thunderbolt 4 Gen 2 (DP 2.1, Power Delivery), 1 x microSDXC 7.1	1 x 3.5mm combo jack, 3 x Thunderbolt 4 Gen 2 (DP 2.1, Power Delivery), 1 x microSDXC 7.1
Battery	69.5WHr	69.5WHr	69.5WHr
Wireless	Wi-Fi 7, BT 5.4	Wi-Fi 7, BT 5.4	Wi-Fi 7, BT 5.4
Camera	1080p IR camera	1080p IR camera	1080p IR camera
Weight	3.66 lbs \| 1.66kg	3.66 lbs \| 1.66kg	3.66 lbs \| 1.66kg
Dimensions	12.6 x 8.5 x 0.71 ins \| 320 x 215.97 x 18mm	12.6 x 8.5 x 0.71 ins \| 320 x 215.97 x 18mm	12.6 x 8.5 x 0.71 ins \| 320 x 215.97 x 18mm

The base specs are fairly modest, though you do start out with at least 16GB LPDDR5x RAM and a 512GB SSD, which is necessary if you're planning on using Windows 11's Copilot+ AI features. There's also no difference in starting configuration between the US, UK, and Australia.

Dell 14 Premium Top Specs
	US	UK	Australia
Price	$2,399.99 at Dell.com	£2,364.59 at Dell.com	AU$4,207.50 at Dell.com
CPU	Intel Core Ultra 7 255H	Intel Core Ultra 7 265H	Intel Core Ultra 7 255H
GPU	Nvidia RTX 4050	Nvidia RTX 4050	Nvidia RTX 4050
Memory	32GB LPDDR5x - 8400MT/s	32GB LPDDR5x - 8400MT/s	32GB LPDDR5x - 8400MT/s
Storage	2TB M.2 PCIe NVMe	2TB M.2 PCIe NVMe	2TB M.2 PCIe NVMe
Display	14.5-inch Touch 3.2K OLED, 400 nit, 120Hz	14.5-inch Touch 3.2K OLED, 400 nit, 120Hz	14.5-inch Touch 3.2K OLED, 400 nit, 120Hz
Ports	1 x 3.5mm combo jack, 3 x Thunderbolt 5, 1 x microSDXC 7.1	1 x 3.5mm combo jack, 3 x Thunderbolt 4 Gen 2 (DP 2.1, Power Delivery), 1 x microSDXC 7.1	1 x 3.5mm combo jack, 3 x Thunderbolt 4 Gen 2 (DP 2.1, Power Delivery), 1 x microSDXC 7.1
Battery	69.5WHr	69.5WHr	69.5WHr
Wireless	Wi-Fi 7, BT 5.4	Wi-Fi 7, BT 5.4	Wi-Fi 7, BT 5.4
Camera	1080p IR camera	1080p IR camera	1080p IR camera
Weight	3.79 lbs \| 1.72kg	3.79 lbs \| 1.72kg	3.79 lbs \| 1.72kg
Dimensions	12.6 x 8.5 x 0.71 ins \| 320 x 215.97 x 18mm	12.6 x 8.5 x 0.71 ins \| 320 x 215.97 x 18mm	12.6 x 8.5 x 0.71 ins \| 320 x 215.97 x 18mm

On the top-end, the Dell 14 Premium configurations are nearly identical, save that in the UK, you can opt for a slightly more powerful Core Ultra 7 265H chip rather than the Core Ultra 7 255H in every other configuration.

For this review, I tested out the top US configuration listed above.

Specs: 4.5 / 5

Dell 14 Premium: Design

Gorgeous OLED display
Excellent port selection
Trackpad and function key row still controversial

From the outside, the Dell 14 Premium is identical to last year's XPS 14 (save for the new logo on the lid), and that's not a bad thing. The 14 Premium's construction and minimalist aesthetic definitely make it look like it's all business, something you'd expect from a company like Dell, renowned as it is for its business and enterprise market dominance.

That doesn't make it ugly, though. It's a good-looking laptop, somewhat undercut by its two colorways, Graphite and Platinum, which are honestly rather boring at this point.

With the new Surface Laptop 7 coming in a gorgeous Sapphire colorway and even Apple adding a Sky Blue option for this year's MacBook Air models (not to mention my beloved Microsoft Surface Laptop 13-inch having a Violet option), laptops are starting to finally have more personality than the design deadend that Apple pushed us all into with its MacBook Silver and Space Gray colorways in the 2010s.

In this regard, I hope Dell catches up next year, but one thing at a time, I guess. Dropping the XPS branding and introducing a splash of color in one release might have pushed some Dell fans over the edge, so steady as she goes, design-wise.

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I've spilled enough ink over the past couple of years about my mixed feelings when it comes to the borderless trackpad (and loss of the delightful carbon-fibery palm rests), so I'll let that critique go. Finally.

I've yet to fully embrace the solid strip beneath the keyboard, as it does take some getting used to for finding out exactly how to right click on something, but it's easy enough to pick up and soon becomes second nature. It's still an accessibility nightmare, as is the lack of physical function keys along the top of the keydeck. On the plus side, there are top-firing speakers, which isn't always a sure thing on a 14-inch laptop.

The keyboard itself is decent enough, though these aren't my favorite keys to type on. I'm very used to mechanical keyboards, so the travel and tactile responsiveness of the 14 Premium's take getting used to, and I'm not sure I ever will. If this is going to be your only or even just your primary laptop, however, you'll get used to it just fine.

Some are going to complain about the lack of USB Type-A ports on the 14 Premium, but frankly, it's 2025. At some point, older, slower interfaces will be retired, and it's time, honestly. There are plenty of adapters out there to convert USB-A to USB-C, and you can even add the option for a mini-hub dongle with USB-A and HDMI ports that can plug into one of the three Thunderbolt 4 ports on the device. All three provide power delivery and DisplayPort out, with up to 4 monitors supported overall.

You also get a microSD slot, which is great for creative pros who work with SD cards alot, and a dedicated 3.5mm combo jack. All in all, a solid port selection for a device this small.

One other knock I have to give the 14 Premium though is its webcam. The 1080p IR webcam itself is perfectly good, and gets up to 30 FPS 1080p video, which is great for video calls and meetings. My problem, though, is the lack of a privacy shutter. It's 2025, and this should be the default on a 'premium' laptop.

The overall aesthetics of the 14 Premium are as good as its XPS pedigree, but it could use some freshening up in the next couple of years, in my opinion. It's built solid and won't be embarrassing to whip out in the office in five year's time, but we are kind of coming up against this design's shelf life, and I hope we see something new next year.

Design: 4 / 5

Dell 14 Premium: Performance

Powerful creative chops
Decent 1080p gaming
Falls a good bit behind Apple's MacBook Pro 14-inch (M4) on some benchmarks

So, when it comes down to it, performance really is the most important factor in a laptop like the Dell 14 Premium. It's competing against one of the best MacBooks ever made in the recent MacBook Pro 14-inch, and given its pricing, the 14 Premium has to deliver on something other than cost.

It's a bit of a mixed bag, ultimately. The CPU performance for the M4 chip outperforms the Intel Core Ultra 255H in all tests but Geekbench 6.4 multicore performance, where they are very close, with the Dell 14 Premium in the lead.

That said, the Intel Core Ultra 255H is mostly competitive with the M4 in CPU computing tasks, and the difference is such that you'd be very hard-pressed to notice the M4's faster performance in actual use. The 14 Premium falls behind quite a bit on single-core performance, which is important for running some high-impact creative apps like Adobe Photoshop or Pro Tools, but that's only part of the story.

The very strong single-core performance for the MacBook Pro 14-inch is offset quite a bit by the relatively slow SSD performance I saw in my Blackmagic Disk Speed Test benchmark. The Dell 14 Premium clocked in with an impressive 4,235 MB/s read speed to the MacBook Pro 14-inch's 2,900 MB/s. That's a nearly 50% faster read speed for the 14 Premium, and that translates directly into faster load times for programs and opening files.

The MacBook Pro 14-inch might beat the 14 Premium in single-core performance, but when it comes to system and app startup, downloads, and other file operations, that extra sluggishness on Apple's part will noticeably cut into its advantage here. That doesn't mean the 14 Premium will somehow eek out a win when it comes to video encoding or processing photos in Photoshop. What it does do, however, is help keep the 14 Premium in the hunt when its Intel chip is being outclassed by the M4's processing power (ironically, last year's Dell XPS 14 scored the highest in my storage benchmark tests).

Swing things around to GPU performance, though, and things fall apart for Apple pretty quick. There just isn't a way for an integrated GPU to compete with even a budget discrete Nvidia GPU like the RTX 4050.

There are only a few cross-platform GPU tests that I can use for both the Dell 14 Premium and the MacBook Pro 14-inch, but in all cases, the RTX 4050 just outclasses the M4 10-core GPU, especially in ray-tracing workloads like Solar Bay

Meanwhile, in areas like video and photo editing, the MacBook Pro 14-inch might have an advantage over the 14 Premium, but it's not earth-shattering.

The 14 Premium encoded a 4K video into 1080p about 22% slower than the MacBook Pro 14-inch, which is definitely something for video editors to consider (who are we kidding, we know y'all are just going to buy a MacBook Pro. Your entire industry is built around macOS). In my PugetBench for Creators-Adobe Photoshop tests, the Dell 14 Premium came in about 29% slower. For video and photography pros, this will absolutely be a dealbreaker and push you firmly back into the Apple camp, and that's understandable if that's what you're looking to use your next laptop for.

However, compare those results to the MacBook Pro 14-inch's Blender Benchmark 4.3.0 performance, which is about 60% slower, overall, than the 14 Premium's.

When it comes to machine learning workloads, the situation will be similar, since Pytorch, the software framework that drives pretty much all AI development right now, is deeply tied to Nvidia's tensor core hardware. We don't have any good cross-platform AI benchmarks right now to give quantitative numbers, so giving a percentage of which laptop is better isn't really possible yet (I'm working on it, I promise).

That said, I've spent the better part of a decade studying computer science to earn my Master's degree in the field, and I can tell you that not a single person I know uses anything other than Nvidia hardware for this kind of work, and the Dell 14 Premium will be able to run AI inference and GAN workloads far better than the MacBook Pro 14-inch.

Finally, when it comes to gaming, none of these laptops are making it onto our best gaming laptop list, but the RTX 4050 GPU in the 14 Premium I tested made it much easier to play modern AAA PC games, with reasonable adjustments made to settings.

At 1080p on the highest settings in those games where I can compare results across devices, the Dell 14 Premium averaged about 75% faster FPS on average overall compared to the MacBook Pro 14-inch.

Of course, there's also the issue with whether or not the game you want can run on a Mac, which isn't a guarantee, while Windows is the default for all PC games on major platforms like Steam or GOG. I wouldn't go out of your way to buy the 14 Premium to play games on, but it's nice to know that you can effectively game if you're on the road for work and you're tired of writing up reports or designing work presentations in your hotel room.

Performance: 4.5 / 5

Dell 14 Premium: Battery Life

How long does it last on a single charge? 8 hours, 16 minutes
How long does it take to charge from empty to full? It takes about 2 hours and 20 minutes to charge to full with a 100W AC adapter

For battery life, the Dell 14 Premium doesn't have spectacular longevity, especially compared to something like the Apple MacBook Pro 14-inch, which run about 55% longer than the 14 Premium, but there are costs involved in using discrete graphics and more power hungry OLED displays.

Overall, I think the tradeoff is worth it, but if batter life is a major concern for you, sticking with an LCD display and integrated graphics are the way to go here, and should get you a good bit more juice on a single charge.

Battery Life: 3.5 / 5

Should you buy the Dell 14 Premium?

Dell 14 Premium Scorecard
Category	Notes	Rating
Value	The 14 Premium is not totally out of line price-wise for its market. This is still a premium device, so budget-conscious buyers might be better off looking elsewhere. That said, for the level of performance and portability, it will likely offer a better value than a similarly specced MacBook Pro 14-inch.	4 / 5
Specs	There aren't a whole lot of configuration options available, you do get three Thunderbolt 4 ports, Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 5.4, and options for an RTX 4050 GPU and a gorgeous OLED display.	4.5 / 5
Design	The 14 Premium is a good looking device that is well-made and portable. Its 'virtual' function keys, borderless trackpad, and lack of webcam privacy shutter knocks some points off though.	4 / 5
Performance	While it doesn't dethrone the MacBook Pro 14-inch as the go-to device for creative pros, it more than holds its own against Apple's popular laptop and even outperforms it in key areas.	4.5 / 5
Battery Life	At just over 8 hours of battery life on a charge, this isn't the longest-lasting laptop going. If batter life is a concern, skip the RTX 4050 GPU and OLED display to reduce strain on the 69.5WHr battery.	3.5 / 5
Final Score	The Dell 14 Premium outperforms the MacBook Pro 14-inch when every score is averaged, but there's enough nuance here that it's not a laptop I can unconditionally recommend to everybody. Most people? Yes; but creatives will still want to look at the MacBook Pro 14-inch.	4.10 / 5

Buy the Dell 14 Premium if...

You want a high-performance 14-inch ultrabook
The highly portable form factor belies some seriously powerful hardware inside.

You need an Nvidia GPU for on-the-go work
There are some tasks that simply require an Nvidia GPU, and this is one of the most portable laptops you'll find that offers one.

You want to do some moderate PC gaming
The RTX 4050 GPU in the 14 Premium has 1080p gaming chops, just keep your graphics settings reasonable.

Don't buy it if...

You're on a tight budget
As the name suggests, the 14 Premium doesn't come cheap. You might be better off with the Dell 14 Plus if money's tight.

You plan on doing heavy-duty video editing
While the 14 Premium can handle serious video editing tasks, the MacBook Pro 14-inch is simply better suited for that workload.

You need all-day battery life
The battery life on the 14 Premium isn't terrible, but you will need to bring a charger with you in you plan on working on it all day.

Also consider

Apple MacBook Pro 14-inch (M4)
The Dell 14 Premium is directly competing with the MacBook Pro 14-inch, and both are pretty evenly matched in the end.

Read our full Apple MacBook Pro 14-inch (M4) review

Dell 14 Plus
If you're looking for a cheap Windows 11 laptop, the Dell 14 Premium is fairly pricey, so check out the 14 Plus if you're on a budget.

Read our full Dell 14 Plus review

How I tested the Dell 14 Premium

I spent about two weeks with the Dell 14 Premium
I used it for everyday work and creative tasks
I ran it through our standard battery of benchmark tests

I spent about two weeks working with the Dell 14 Premium, putting it through my typical battery of benchmark tests, and using it for everyday productivity and creative work.

I used standard benchmarking tools like 3DMark, Geekbench, PugetBench for Creators, and in-game benchmarks for PC gaming performance analysis.

I also used the laptop as my everyday device, including some light gaming in addition to working with Adobe Lightroom and Photoshop.

I've been reviewing laptops for Techradar for more than five years, and I've tested more than a hundred laptops in that time, both for reviews and for investigative testing to support special computing features and content in that time, so I know better than most when a laptop is hitting the mark and when and where it misses.

First reviewed August 2025

The Asus Zenbook S 16 is built from a mysterious new material – but does this space-age laptop live up to the hype?

11:00 am | August 6, 2025

Author: admin | Category: Computers Computing Gadgets Laptops Windows Laptops | Tags: AI | Comments: Off

Asus Zenbook S 16: Two-minute review

The Zenbook S 16 photographed on a dark marble surface with potted plants in the background. — (Image credit: Future)

The Asus Zenbook laptop line has long been one of my favorites, sitting among the best ultrabooks alongside rivals like Dell's XPS series and the LG Gram collection. Now, Asus has given its premium laptop lineup a fresh lease on life, thanks to AMD's mighty new Ryzen AI chips and the magic of something called 'ceraluminum'.

I'll get further into that mysterious new material further down in this review, but here's the short version: the lid of the new Asus Zenbook S 16 is made from a futuristic composite of aluminum and ceramic, giving it a soft matte feel while also being more durable, lighter, and fingerprint-resistant than the traditional aluminum and plastic used in the construction of most modern laptops.

Of course, a fancy outer casing doesn't guarantee you're getting a high-quality product. But the Zenbook S 16 delivers a premium experience in other areas too, with great performance across a variety of workloads and a generally very comfortable user experience.

Although I always spend at least a full workweek using any laptop I review in lieu of my regular daily driver (the ever-faithful HP Spectre x360), I was actually forced to use this laptop for a few days. See, my boiler needed replacing, and unfortunately, it's situated in my home office - meaning that for two days, I was jettisoned from my desktop setup to the breakfast bar downstairs while the installation engineer resolved my lack of hot water.

I'll be the first to admit that I'm a creature of habit, and was initially unhappy to be displaced from my usual workstation. But honestly, I'm beginning to wonder if I shouldn't drop Asus a line politely asking (read: begging) to keep this Zenbook. The 16-inch OLED touchscreen is gorgeous, and the large touchpad and keyboard make for a very comfortable user experience. It's perhaps the closest I've felt to using a MacBook Pro while actually on a Windows laptop - and while I'm a known macOS hater, I've always maintained that Apple's Mac products are very well-designed devices.

Starting at $1,599 / £1,499 / AU$2,999, the Zenbook S 16 isn't exactly cheap, but for that price tag, you're getting some pretty impressive performance and a really, really nice piece of physical hardware. I'll dig into the details more in the Price and Availability section, but the key takeaway here is that the value proposition is solid.

There's only one real drawback here, in my opinion: the battery life. It's perfectly serviceable, don't get me wrong, but it's nothing spectacular within the current market space. Still, it'll last you through a full day's work and then some - so as long as you don't mind putting it on charge overnight.

Asus Zenbook S 16: Price and availability

How much does it cost? Starts at $1,599 / £1,599 / AU$2,999
When is it available? Available now
Where can you get it? Available in the US, UK, and Australia

With a price tag starting at $1,599 / £1,499 / AU$2,999, the Asus Zenbook S 16 certainly leans towards the premium end of the market, but you're getting plenty of bang for your buck here.

There are a few different configurations, with the main difference being the Ryzen processor model and the amount of RAM. Every model comes with the same 3K OLED display and 1TB of storage - a 2TB model would've been nice, but at least the SSD is user-upgradable. The base configuration, priced as above, comes with a Ryzen AI 7 350 chip and 24GB of RAM (an unusual amount, but still better than the more commonplace 16GB industry standard).

My review unit is a higher-end model, featuring a Ryzen AI 9 HX 370 processor and 32GB of RAM, and it will cost you $1,799 / £1,599 - and at the time of writing, this model unfortunately isn't available in Australia. I say 'unfortunately' here because for my money, that extra $200 / £100 is well worth it for the internal hardware upgrade.

For comparison, a 16-inch MacBook Pro will cost you $2,499 / £2,499 / AU$3,999 - and that's just for the base M4 Pro model. Granted, there's no denying that Apple's pro-grade laptop can offer better performance in many areas than this Zenbook, but the point stands that the Zenbook S 16 is very good value for money.

Price score: 4.5/5

Asus Zenbook S 16: Specs

	Asus Zenbook S 16
CPU	Up to AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 370
GPU	Up to AMD Radeon 890M
RAM	Up to 32GB LPDDR5X
Display	16-inch 3K (2880 x 1800) OLED, 120Hz
Storage	Up to 1TB SSD
Ports	2x Thunderbolt 4 USB-C, 1x USB 3.2 Type-A, 1x HDMI 2.1, 1x SD card reader, 1x 3,5mm combi audio jack
Wireless	Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 5.4
Weight	1.5kg / 3.31lbs
Dimension	35.4 x 24.3 x 1.29cm / 13.9 x 9.6 x 0.51 inches

Asus Zenbook S 16: Design

Super comfortable keyboard and trackpad
Ceraluminum casing is impressive
Surprisingly lightweight

Aesthetically speaking, this is undeniably one gorgeous laptop. With the 'Scandinavian White' colorway, it feels as clean and striking as any of the best laptops. The back of the screen is not only made from Asus's fancy ceraluminum material, but it also has a kintsugi-inspired pattern of sharp lines inlaid in silver, which strikes the perfect balance between eye-catching and minimalist.

A little more about that revolutionary new material, though: you can read about my first time encountering ceraluminum right here, but I'll give you a quick breakdown in case you don't feel like reading a whole different article. It's created by electrochemically bonding aluminum with a ceramic component, producing a strong plated material with a matte surface that feels like unglazed pottery to the touch.

The best thing about this is that it brings the lightweight, durable nature of aluminum - a popular choice among manufacturers when it comes to laptop construction - while also providing a grippier surface that is more resilient against both damage and smudging from fingerprints. I've criticized more than a few laptops over the years for being 'fingerprint magnets', and happily that doesn't apply here. The whole thing feels impressively sturdy despite being very thin and light for a 16-inch laptop.

Opening up the lid, you're met with a more conventionally constructed aluminum keyboard housing, with a large glass touchpad and nicely spaced keys that make it very comfortable to type on. I also found the touchpad to be sensitive and responsive, with a firm click, although I typically prefer to connect a wireless mouse when using laptops.

Above the keyboard, a wide cooling grille sits with a subtle Asus logo in the corner. The keys are backlit with white LEDs, which can be set to three different brightness levels; it's not often I take much time to comment on keyboard backlighting, but the Zenbook S 16's is particularly vibrant.

Speaking of vibrancy, the display on this laptop is fantastic, offering rich color and sharp contrast thanks to its 3K OLED panel. While the maximum brightness isn't quite as high as I've seen on some other OLED laptops, it's certainly bright enough to use in well-lit environments, and it's also a touchscreen. Somewhat surprisingly, this display has a 120Hz refresh rate, a pleasing upgrade from the 60Hz panels you see on most non-gaming laptops.

In terms of physical connectivity, we've got a good selection of ports here, including USB-C, USB-A, HDMI, and even an SD card reader - the latter of which may be a boon for photographers when combined with the excellent display. Lastly, the speakers are quite good, providing detailed audio for both music and dialogue - it's perhaps lacking a tiny bit of kick in the bass department compared to some laptops I've seen, but overall I really can't complain about the speaker quality.

Design score: 5/5

Asus Zenbook S 16: Performance

Solid all-rounder performance
NPU provides support for AI features in Windows
Playing games is certainly an option, though it's no gaming laptop

The AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 370 is a powerful chip backed with 32GB of RAM in my review unit, and I'm pleased to say it performs admirably. General responsiveness is great and everyday tasks run smoothly, to the point where anyone who just wants a laptop for office work could probably consider downgrading to a Ryzen AI 7 model.

When it comes to more demanding workloads, the Zenbook S 16 offers good performance across a variety of areas, including 3D rendering, AI functionality, and gaming. Sure, it's not going to beat out an actual gaming laptop with a dedicated GPU, but the AMD Radeon 890M integrated graphics are surprisingly competent even in more demanding games, provided you're willing to dial back the graphical settings a bit and turn on AMD's FSR 3.0 resolution upscaling mode.

Asus Zenbook S 16 review: Benchmarks

Here's how the Asus Zenbook S 16 (AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 370) performed in our suite of benchmark tests:
3DMark: Night Raid: 34,618; Fire Strike: 8,516; Time Spy: 4,407; Steel Nomad: 889
Cinebench R23: Multi-core: 13,441; Single-core: 1,953
Geekbench 6.4: Multicore: 14,102; Single-core: 2,845
Geekbench AI: Single Precision Score: 2,359; Half Precision Score: 1,217; Quantized Score: 4,811
PCMark 10: 6,827
Crossmark: Overall: 1,744; Productivity: 1,637; Creativity: 1,940; Responsiveness: 1,537
Sid Meier's Civilization VII: (1080p, Medium, No Upscaling): 45fps; (1800p, High, No Upscaling): 16fps; (1800p, High, Balanced FSR 3 Upscaling): 22fps
Cyberpunk 2077: (1080p, Medium, No Upscaling): 22fps; (1800p, Ultra, No Upscaling): 6fps; (1800p, Ultra, Balanced FSR 3 Upscaling): 10fps
Battery Life (TechRadar movie test): 14 hours, 55 minutes

In real-world testing, I had no issues whatsoever with the performance of the Zenbook S 16. Running Spotify in the background while working across 20+ open Chrome tabs didn't cause the slightest bit of slowdown, and image editing in GIMP 3.0 was smooth and effective - a far cry from the rather sluggish experience I get when trying to edit images on my usual laptop.

AI performance is also reasonably good; again, you're ideally going to want to spring for a laptop with a dedicated Nvidia GPU if you want to be running serious AI workloads locally, like producing your own language models, but for running the local aspects of something like Microsoft's Copilot+ AI assistant, the average user will have no problems.

To dig into that gaming performance a little more (there's overlap here with other 3D rendering and modeling software), I needed to drop the resolution to FHD+ rather than the native 3K and enable AMD's FSR 3 upscaling to make most games playable - this machine isn't coming close to any of the best gaming laptops - but for anyone who just wants to play casual titles or indie games on their off-time, the Zenbook S 16 is more capable than I had expected. I used it for a spot of Stardew Valley after work on multiple occasions, which unsurprisingly ran great.

In Civilization VII, I was easily able to get a decent framerate at 1200p, while the infamously hardware-demanding Cyberpunk 2077 was completely unplayable at native 1800p but produced an fps of 35 at 1200p with Low settings and FSR 3's Performance mode enabled (and frankly, even with those settings, this game still looks bloody fantastic). It's a true testament to the power of AMD's resolution upscaling tech for integrated GPUs; I'm quietly awed by the fact that a game like Cyberpunk is playable at all on an ultrabook like this.

I will note that the fans on the Zenbook S 16 get a tad noisy when you're running more intensive software - it's nothing too onerous, and I found it ran quietly during regular tasks like web browsing, but be aware that you might want headphones to play games on it. It's worth adding that the laptop didn't get uncomfortably hot at any point (aside from directly on the vent above the keyboard), even during stress testing.

Performance score: 4.5/5

Asus Zenbook S 16: Battery

The battery life on the Zenbook S 16 is pretty good. That's almost all I can really say about it; it's not mind-blowing, beaten out by several competitors, but it's still sufficient for a full day's work (or two) without needing to plug in provided you turn off the keyboard backlight and don't work at maximum brightness.

In our battery life test, which involves running a looped video file at 50% brightness, the Zenbook S 16 ran out of juice just shy of the 15-hour mark, which for a 16-inch OLED laptop is respectable, if unspectacular. In real-world use situations, I was getting between 10 and 12 hours out of it at a time on average, and it holds its charge remarkably well when not in use.

Since it charges via USB-C, you can easily make use of other charging cables, though the supplied 65W adapter provides fast-charging capabilities that provide 50% battery charge in a little over half an hour.

Battery score: 4/5

Should you buy the Asus Zenbook S 16?

	Notes	Rating
Value	It's no budget machine, but the price-to-performance ratio here is great.	4.5/5
Design	A stylish and robust design combined with a comfortable user experience makes for a truly premium-feeling laptop.	5/5
Performance	Performance is solid across productivity, creative, and gaming workloads, with good responsiveness and fans that only kick in when you're running demanding programs.	4.5/5
Battery	The battery can comfortably run for more than an 8-hour workday, though it is beaten out by some competing laptops.	4/5
Total	While the pre-installed Asus software is a bit annoying, this is a fantastic laptop that delivers a great aesthetic and strong performance at a sensible price point.	4.5/5

Buy it if...

You want a laptop that looks great
Between its sleek shell, excellent display, and pleasantly understated keyboard backlighting, the Zenbook S 16 is certainly an aesthetically pleasing laptop.

You want something thin but powerful
Despite its relatively light overall weight (for a 16-inch laptop) and thin chassis, the next-gen Ryzen chip inside this Zenbook is fantastic for productivity workloads and can even handle some light gaming.

You want to use Windows 11's AI features
Since this is a 'Copilot+ PC' with a built-in NPU and a dedicated button for summoning Microsoft's AI assistant, it's a solid pick for anyone who wants an AI laptop.

Don't buy it if...

You’re on a tight budget
The price tag on the Zenbook S 16 is actually very reasonable for the specs, but it's certainly not a cheap laptop.

You want the best in battery life
While this Zenbook's battery is alright, there are competitors that do a better job - and if you really want ridiculously good battery life, a smaller laptop is usually the way to go.

Also Consider

Apple MacBook Pro 16-inch (M4 Pro)
Beating the Zenbook S 16 in both performance and battery life, Apple's latest MacBook Pro 16-inch is a staunch competitor - though bear in mind that it'll cost you more, and macOS isn't for everyone.

Read our full Apple MacBook Pro 16-inch review

Dell XPS 17
If you're looking for a similar premium-feeling laptop but with an even larger screen, the Dell XPS 17 is arguably the best 17-inch laptop out there right now.

Read our full Dell XPS 17 review

How I tested the Asus Zenbook S 16

Replaced my regular laptop with the Zenbook S 16 for several weeks
Used the laptop both for day-to-day work and personal projects
Ran it through our full suite of benchmarks, plus some extra tests

As is typical for my laptop review process, I swapped out my daily driver for the Asus Zenbook S 16 - and actually ended up liking it so much that I kept using it after my usual week or two of real-world testing. Asus, if I could keep this one, that would be great...

This involved all my day-to-day work, which is mostly emailing, word processing, web research, and image editing, plus some work on personal projects and a bit of gaming in my off hours. I also ran our suite of benchmarking and battery tests to provide a clearer image of the Zenbook S 16's overall performance.

Asus Zenbook S 16: Two-minute review

Asus Zenbook S 16: Price and availability

How much does it cost? Starts at $1,599 / £1,599 / AU$2,999
When is it available? Available now
Where can you get it? Available in the US, UK, and Australia

With a price tag starting at $1,599 / £1,499 / AU$2,999, the Asus Zenbook S 16 certainly leans towards the premium end of the market, but you're getting plenty of bang for your buck here.

Price score: 4.5/5

Asus Zenbook S 16: Specs

	Asus Zenbook S 16
CPU	Up to AMD Ryzen AI 9 HX 370
GPU	Up to AMD Radeon 890M
RAM	Up to 32GB LPDDR5X
Display	16-inch 3K (2880 x 1800) OLED, 120Hz
Storage	Up to 1TB SSD
Ports	2x Thunderbolt 4 USB-C, 1x USB 3.2 Type-A, 1x HDMI 2.1, 1x SD card reader, 1x 3,5mm combi audio jack
Wireless	Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth 5.4
Weight	1.5kg / 3.31lbs
Dimension	35.4 x 24.3 x 1.29cm / 13.9 x 9.6 x 0.51 inches

Asus Zenbook S 16: Design

Super comfortable keyboard and trackpad
Ceraluminum casing is impressive
Surprisingly lightweight

Design score: 5/5

Asus Zenbook S 16: Performance

Solid all-rounder performance
NPU provides support for AI features in Windows
Playing games is certainly an option, though it's no gaming laptop

Asus Zenbook S 16 review: Benchmarks

Performance score: 4.5/5

Asus Zenbook S 16: Battery

Battery score: 4/5

Should you buy the Asus Zenbook S 16?

	Notes	Rating
Value	It's no budget machine, but the price-to-performance ratio here is great.	4.5/5
Design	A stylish and robust design combined with a comfortable user experience makes for a truly premium-feeling laptop.	5/5
Performance	Performance is solid across productivity, creative, and gaming workloads, with good responsiveness and fans that only kick in when you're running demanding programs.	4.5/5
Battery	The battery can comfortably run for more than an 8-hour workday, though it is beaten out by some competing laptops.	4/5
Total	While the pre-installed Asus software is a bit annoying, this is a fantastic laptop that delivers a great aesthetic and strong performance at a sensible price point.	4.5/5

Buy it if...

You want a laptop that looks great
Between its sleek shell, excellent display, and pleasantly understated keyboard backlighting, the Zenbook S 16 is certainly an aesthetically pleasing laptop.

Don't buy it if...

You’re on a tight budget
The price tag on the Zenbook S 16 is actually very reasonable for the specs, but it's certainly not a cheap laptop.

Also Consider

Read our full Apple MacBook Pro 16-inch review

Dell XPS 17
If you're looking for a similar premium-feeling laptop but with an even larger screen, the Dell XPS 17 is arguably the best 17-inch laptop out there right now.

Read our full Dell XPS 17 review

How I tested the Asus Zenbook S 16

Replaced my regular laptop with the Zenbook S 16 for several weeks
Used the laptop both for day-to-day work and personal projects
Ran it through our full suite of benchmarks, plus some extra tests

Dell 16 Premium: One-minute review

The Dell 16 Premium is Dell’s newest flagship machine for professionals, creatives, and developers who demand a blend of portability, performance, and polish, and it has a pretty high bar to clear.

Its predecessor, the Dell XPS 16, was consistently one of the best laptops produced in every year it was available, and a lot of XPS fans were disappointed to hear about its rebranding. But, at the end of the day, that’s really all it is, as the 16 Premium is everything people loved about the XPS 16 in recent years along with some fancy new tricks.

Starting at $1,799.99 / £1,699 / AU$4,379.10, the Dell 16 Premium isn’t necessarily cheap, but it is fairly in line with similar creative-focused laptops like the MacBook Pro, and given how often Dell has sales on its laptops, you can often find it for much cheaper than the competition.

There are a few configuration options available, but you do start off with an Intel Core Ultra 7 255H CPU with Intel Arc 140V graphics, 16GB LPDDR5x RAM, a 512GB SSD, and a 16.3-inch non-touch 2K display. From there, you can add in RTX 5050, RTX 5060, and RTX 5070 GPUs, depending on the region, and configure it up to 64GB memory and 4TB SSD storage (though these options will limit which GPU you can pick).

Right now, the Dell 16 Premium is on sale starting at $1,549.99 in the US, while the review configuration is available for $2,799.99, a $400 discount.View Deal

What truly sets it apart, though, is the outstanding 16.3-inch 4K OLED touchscreen with 120Hz refresh rate, perfect for high-res content creation, editing, and media consumption, though the OLED display will substantially cut into the device’s battery life.

With premium build quality, great speakers, and modern I/O, this laptop nails almost everything it sets out to do, though its borderless touchpad and keyless function bar design remain controversial.

All that said, chances are you’re really looking for performance with this laptop, and here, the unit I reviewed often ran circles around the competing MacBook Pro 16-inch with M4 Pro, especially in creative workloads where the MacBook Pro’s strong industry reputation does a lot of heavy lifting. In this regard, the Dell 16 Premium is easily the best laptop for creative pros who want MacBook Pro performance on a Windows 11 device.

Dell 16 Premium: Price & availability

A Dell 16 Premium on a table — (Image credit: Future / John Loeffler)

How much does it cost? Starts at $1,799.99 / £1,699 / AU$4,379.10
When is it available? It's available now
Where can you get it? You can buy it in the US, UK, and Australia through Dell’s website and other retailers.

The Dell 16 Premium is available now in the US, UK, and Australia through Dell’s official website and major retailers. Prices start at $1,799 in the US, £1,699 in the UK, and AU$4,379.10 in Australia.

Upgrading the configuration can significantly increase the price, but even when the price is maxed out, the highest level configuration is still substantially less than a competing MacBook Pro 16-inch with M4 Pro, much less one with an M4 Max chip.

Value: 4 / 5

Dell 16 Premium: Specs

Up to RTX 5070 GPU
Up to Thunderbolt 5
Wi-Fi 7

Dell offers multiple configurations of the Dell 16 Premium laptop across different regions. The starting models include a Core Ultra 7 processor, 16GB of LPDDR5X RAM, 512GB SSD, and integrated Intel Arc graphics (Australia starts with an RTX 5050 GPU), as well as a 2K IPS non-touch display.

Dell 16 Premium Base Specs
	US	UK	Australia
Price	$1,799.99 at Dell.com	£1,699 at Dell.com	AU$5,353.60 at Dell.com
CPU	Intel Core Ultra 7 255H	Intel Core Ultra 7 255H	Intel Core Ultra 7 255H
GPU	Integrated Intel Arc 140T	Integrated Intel Arc 140T	Nvidia RTX 5050
Memory	16GB LPDDR5x - 7467MT/s	16GB LPDDR5x - 7467MT/s	16GB LPDDR5x - 7467MT/s
Storage	512GB PCIe NVMe	512GB PCIe NVMe	512GB PCIe NVMe
Display	16.3-inch non-touch 2K IPS 120Hz	16.3-inch non-touch 2K IPS 120Hz	16.3-inch non-touch 2K IPS 120Hz
Ports	1 x 3.5mm combo jack, 3 x Thunderbolt 4 Gen 2 (DP 2.1, Power Delivery), 1 x microSDXC 7.1	1 x 3.5mm combo jack, 3 x Thunderbolt 4 Gen 2 (DP 2.1, Power Delivery), 1 x microSDXC 7.1	1 x 3.5mm combo jack, 3 x Thunderbolt 4 Gen 2 (DP 2.1, Power Delivery), 1 x microSDXC 7.1
Battery	99.5WHr	99.5WHr	99.5WHr
Wireless	Wi-Fi 7, BT 5.4	Wi-Fi 7, BT 5.4	Wi-Fi 7, BT 5.4
Camera	1080p IR camera	1080p IR camera	1080p IR camera
Weight	4.56 lbs \| 2.06kg	4.56 lbs \| 2.06kg	4.56 lbs \| 2.06kg
Dimensions	14.1 x 9.4 x 0.75 ins \| 358.1 x 240 x 19mm	14.1 x 9.4 x 0.75 ins \| 358.1 x 240 x 19mm	14.1 x 9.4 x 0.75 ins \| 358.1 x 240 x 19mm

The max spec on the 16 Premium vary by region, with the US topping out at an RTX 5070 GPU, which also comes with three Thunderbolt 5 ports rather than the three Thunderbolt 4 ports on RTX 5060 models and lower. In the UK and Australia, there are no RTX 5070 configurations available yet, but they do max out with a 4TB PCIe SSD. All models max out at a UHD+ (2400p) OLED panel with 100% DCI-P3 color coverage.

Dell 16 Premium Max Specs
	US	UK	Australia
Price	$3,199.99 at Dell.com	£2,899 at Dell.com	AU$7,089.50 at Dell.com
CPU	Intel Core Ultra 7 255H	Intel Core Ultra 7 255H	Intel Core Ultra 7 255H
GPU	Nvidia RTX 5070	Nvidia RTX 5060	Nvidia RTX 5060
Memory	32GB LPDDR5x - 8400MT/s	32GB LPDDR5x - 7467MT/s	32GB LPDDR5x - 7467MT/s
Storage	1TB M.2 PCIe NVMe	4TB M.2 PCIe NVMe	4TB M.2 PCIe NVMe
Display	16.3-inch Touch 4K OLED 120Hz	16.3-inch Touch 4K OLED 120Hz	16.3-inch Touch 4K OLED 120Hz
Ports	1 x 3.5mm combo jack, 3 x Thunderbolt 5 (DP 2.1, Power Delivery), 1 x microSDXC 7.1	1 x 3.5mm combo jack, 3 x Thunderbolt 4 Gen 2 (DP 2.1, Power Delivery), 1 x microSDXC 7.1	1 x 3.5mm combo jack, 3 x Thunderbolt 4 Gen 2 (DP 2.1, Power Delivery), 1 x microSDXC 7.1
Battery	99.5WHr	99.5WHr	99.5WHr
Wireless	Wi-Fi 7, BT 5.4	Wi-Fi 7, BT 5.4	Wi-Fi 7, BT 5.4
Camera	1080p IR camera	1080p IR camera	1080p IR camera
Weight	4.65 lbs \| 2.11kg	4.65 lbs \| 2.11kg	4.65 lbs \| 2.11kg
Dimensions	14.1 x 9.4 x 0.75 ins \| 358.1 x 240 x 19mm	14.1 x 9.4 x 0.75 ins \| 358.1 x 240 x 19mm	14.1 x 9.4 x 0.75 ins \| 358.1 x 240 x 19mm

All configurations come with Wi-Fi 7 and Bluetooth 5.4, a substantial boost over the rival MacBook Pro 16-inch, as well as a microSDXC 7.1 slot.

The configuration I tested for review is the maximum configuration available in the US.

Specs: 5 / 5

Dell 16 Premium: Design

Gorgeous OLED display
Excellent port selection
Trackpad and function key row still controversial

Design-wise, there is little difference between the Dell 16 Premium and the Dell XPS 16 it replaces. The same borderless trackpad and keyless function bar remain from the XPS, and for the most part, the form factor is essentially unchanged.

The touchbar is definitely one of the more controversial design choices of the Dell 16 Premium, held over from the earlier XPS redesign from 2023. It's a bit of an accessibility challenge for those who struggle with low vision, as the only thing that indicates where a given function key is is a backlit label on a completely smooth and flat glossy surface.

Even if you don't have limited vision though, if there's an especially bright light (say, a sunny day outside), finding any given F-key might be challenging.

Likewise, the borderless trackpad isn't great either, and for similar reasons. It takes some time to learn and figure out where exactly the trackpad is, but once you do, it works pretty well.

The keyboard is ok. It's never been the best feature on the Dell XPS line, but it's not terrible and functions well enough.

For ports, you get at least three Thunderbolt 4 Gen 2 ports, a MicroSD card slot, and a 3.5mm combo jack. This is about as much as you can expect on a chassis this size, and while it would be nice to have a USB-A port, there is an adapter dongle that you can buy while configuring your laptop (about $35) that lets you get HDMI 2.0 and USB-A 3.0 connectivity if your have a mouse and monitor that require it.

The audio is pretty good on the 16 Premium, largely thanks to the top-firing speakers, but it's not spectacular. If you plan on working on audio projects, a headset would be advised.

The webcam is a 1080p IR camera, meaning that it's compatible with Windows Hello, and it's fairly good for video conferencing and the like. That said, it lacks a physical privacy shutter, which isn't really acceptable in 2025, so I have to take some points off for that.

While it might seem like I have a lot of complaints about the design of the 16 Premium, I only highlight the above issues because they are somewhat controversial in some corners, as is the rebranding away from XPS to Premium.

I get those concerns, but in my estimation, this is an exceptionally built laptop, and the issues I have with it don't detract that much from the overall quality of the device. If you opt for the OLED panel rather than the base IPS, pretty much every other consideration feels like nitpicking for a device that looks and feels great—better than the MacBook Pro in many ways.

Design: 4 / 5

Dell 16 Premium: Performance

Often outperforms the MacBook Pro 16-inch with M4 Pro
Discrete RTX GPU embarrasses the MacBook Pro in several workloads
Not a bad gaming laptop either

Ultimately, if you're paying this much for this laptop, performance is going to be front of mind, especially since this is really targeted toward the MacBook Pro creative crowd.

In that regard, the 16 Premium might even be a better creative laptop than the MacBook Pro 16-inch, despite the strong performance of the MacBook Pro 16-inch in some areas.

In terms of synthetic CPU performance, the MacBook Pro 16-inch with M4 Pro greatly outperforms the Dell 16 Premium in workloads like GeekBench 6.4.

However, once you start adding in real-world tests that actually test its performance in workloads creatives and gamers are actually interested in, the MacBook Pro only wins out in our PugetBench Photoshop benchmarks. Otherwise, the RTX 5070 GPU in the 16 Premium wrecks the MacBook Pro 16-inch just about everywhere else.

Now, the MacBook Pro 16-inch can be configured with an M4 Max chip, which might substantially change the comparative assessment, but it would add more than a grand to the price you'd pay compared to the best Dell 16 Premium.

Plus, even though the MacBook Pro 16 can now play Cyberpunk 2077 natively, Macs just aren't serious PC gaming devices. They've come a long way in recent years, but you simply don't have anything concerns about that with the Dell 16 Premium. If a game is on Steam, the Dell 16 Premium will be able to play it, something that even the best MacBook will never be able to claim.

Performance: 5 / 5

Dell 16 Premium: Battery Life

How long does it last on a single charge? 5 hours, 18 minutes

So, there is a major caveat when it comes to battery life on the 16 Premium unit I tested. OLED displays are notoriously unforgiving toward battery life. Add in the power-hungry RTX 5070 GPU, and we are really talking about battery life that is just slightly better than you'd find with the best gaming laptops.

With a max battery life of about 9 hours, according to Dell, the OLED configuration cannot keep pace with the MacBook Pro 16-inch, which can make it about 20 hours on a charge in our testing. In my testing, the Dell 16 Premium only gets about 5 hours in mixed use, and at best, about 2.5 hours under heavy load.

Of course, the MacBook Pro 16-inch isn't going to make it 20 hours if it's playing Shadow of the Tomb Raider or rendering a 4K video overnight on battery power, so the difference between the two laptops is probably closer than my tests show. But there's no getting around the fact that the MacBook Pro 16-inch is going to last far longer than the Dell 16 Premium, and that's something to consider.

Battery Life: 3 / 5

Should you buy the Dell 16 Premium?

Dell 16 Premium Scorecard
Category	Notes	Rating
Value	Premium priced, but delivers excellent performance and features	4 / 5
Specs	Lots of options, including powerful GPUs with Thunderbolt 5 and a gorgeous OLED display.	5 / 5
Design	Though it has great port selection, display, and aesthetics, there are legacy issues from its XPS heritage.	4.5 / 5
Performance	Simply outstanding performance across every workload, beating out the MacBook Pro 16-inch in all but a few cases.	5 / 5
Battery Life	Not great if you get an OLED panel, but better than other similar laptops with its specs.	3 / 5
Final Score	On balance, if the Dell 16 Premium fixed some of its design issues, it would be a true MacBook Pro killer, but it does battle Apple's best to a draw.	4.3 / 5

Buy the Dell 16 Premium if...

You want a high-performance laptop with discrete graphics
With up to an RTX 5070, the Dell 16 Premium has outstanding configuration options for top-tier performance.

You need a stunning OLED display for creative work
The OLED display option is simply gorgeous and fantastic for creative pros.

Don't buy it if...

You need long battery life
The battery life on the 16 Premium is not great, but it's in line with what you'd expect for an OLED laptop.

You're on a tight budget
The base spec for this laptop starts out expensive and only gets pricier the better you configure it.

Also consider

Apple MacBook Pro 16-inch
If you're considering the Dell 16 Premium, the only other laptop worth considering is the MacBook Pro 16-inch, especially if you're a creative pro.

Read our full Apple MacBook Pro 16-inch (M4 Pro) review

How I tested the Dell 16 Premium

I spent about two weeks with the Dell 16 Premium
I used it for everyday work and creative tasks
I ran it through our standard battery of benchmark tests

I used the Dell 16 Premium for everyday work and creative tasks for about two weeks, including writing this review and editing all the photos therein on the device.

I put it through our standard battery of benchmark tests, as well as used it for everything from creative work to gaming to really push it to its limits.

I've tested several dozen laptops for TechRadar over the past several years, so I am very familiar with what makes a laptop a great value for its market, and my extensive experience gives me insight that lets me better assess its benchmark results.

First reviewed August 2025

I finally got the Purple MacBook I’ve been begging for, it just turned out to be the 13-inch Microsoft Surface Laptop

6:06 pm | June 13, 2025

Author: admin | Category: Computers Computing Gadgets Laptops Windows Laptops | Tags: Battery Life, CPU, GPU, HDR | Comments: Off

Microsoft Surface Laptop 13-inch: Two-minute review

I have been begging Apple to release a purple MacBook for a few years now and have been repeatedly disappointed year after year, so when I found out that the Microsoft Surface Laptop 13-inch was going to sport a pastel purple colorway, it really was Microsoft's game to lose here.

And while it doesn't quite come close enough to dethroning the Apple MacBook Air 13-inch, performance-wise, it's a very solid everyday laptop that looks undeniably superior to Apple's rather boring MacBook Air design over the past couple of years.

The Surface Laptop 13-inch starts at $899.99 / £1,099 / AU$1,699 on Microsoft's website, which is roughly the same price as the MacBook Air 13-inch (which starts at $999 / £999 / AU$1,699), but its performance, at times, is substantially slower than Apple's best laptop, making it an iffy value proposition for those who could go either way as far as operating systems go.

Had the Surface Laptop 13-inch shipped with an Intel Lunar Lake chip rather than the underpowered Qualcomm Snapdragon X Plus 8-core SoC, this would be an entirely different review, as I'd be giving this laptop six-out-of-five stars, because in just about every other way than its performance and minor compatibility issues, this is the best ultrabook I've ever put my hands on.

Aesthetically, it's an upgrade over its larger Surface Laptop 7 sibling that launched last year, with a tighter form factor that is exceptionally lightweight and sleek. It's 3:2 display offers plenty of real estate for a laptop this small, and its keyboard and trackpad are a dream to type on.

Best of all, it comes in purple (technically 'Violet'), though you will pay slightly more for this color option than the base platinum colorway as it is only available on the higher capacity configuration.

Meanwhile, the ARM-based Snapdragon X Plus is an incredibly efficient chip, getting just over 17 hours of battery life on a single charge in my testing, which easily translates into two full workdays or more without recharging, outlasting even the latest MacBook Air 13-inch models.

If all you're looking for is a gorgeous-looking laptop that is great for everyday computing tasks, school work, and general productivity—while liberating you from having to keep a constant eye out for power outlets to recharge day after day—then the Microsoft Surface Laptop 13-inch is one of the best Windows laptops you can buy. It just isn't the knockout blow against the MacBook Air that Windows fans might be hoping for.

Microsoft Surface Laptop 13-inch: Price & availability

A Microsoft Surface Laptop 13-inch on a desk — (Image credit: Future / John Loeffler)

How much does it cost? Starts at $899.99 / £1,039 / AU$1,699
When is it available? It's available now
Where can you get it? You can buy it in the US, UK, and Australia

The Microsoft Surface Laptop 13-inch is available now, starting at $899.99 / £899 / AU$1,699 directly from Microsoft or at retail partners. It comes in slightly cheaper than the Microsoft Surface Laptop 7 in the US and UK, (starting at $1,099.99 and £1,039, respectively). In Australia, however, the larger Surface Laptop 7 13.8-inch starts out cheaper at AU$1,597 (and it comes with more powerful hardware to boot).

The Surface Laptop 7 13.8-inch also features a more powerful Qualcomm chip, a sharper screen, and better port support (though no Violet colorway, you'll have to settle for the equally gorgeous Sapphire option).

The Microsoft Surface Laptop 13-inch starts with an 8-core Qualcomm Snapdragon X Plus SoC, 16GB LPDDR5x RAM, 256GB storage, and a Platinum colorway. You can increase the storage by 256GB for an additional $100, which also gives you the option of picking either the Violet or Ocean colorway.View Deal

Similarly, the Surface Laptop 13-inch is also slightly cheaper than the MacBook Air 13-inch with M4 in the US (starting at $999), while being slightly more expensive in the UK (the base MacBook Air 13-inch start at £999), while there is no difference in starting price between the two in Australia.

Compare this, however, with a similar memory-and-storage-specced Dell 14 Plus, starting at $799.99 / £999 / AU$1,298, but which comes with more powerful x86 processors from AMD and Intel, meaning that you get better performance without any compatibility worries that comes with ARM-based chips.

Granted, none of these competing laptops look anywhere near as good as the Surface Laptop 13-inch, but if your main interest is performance, there are cheaper options that will get you what you want.

All that said, however, this is the best-looking laptop you're going to find at this price, in my opinion, and yes, that includes the entire MacBook lineup. If you want to look good at a cafe while reading emails, or streaming Netflix in an airport lounge while waiting for a flight, this laptop will turn heads (at least in Violet) without totally breaking the bank.

The only real knock I can point to is that the long-term value of the Surface Laptop 13-inch is lower than a MacBook Air 13-inch with M4. The latter is much more performant and it will stay 'current' for a few years longer than the Surface Laptop 13-inch, in all likelihood.

Value: 3.5 / 5

Microsoft Surface Laptop 13-inch: Specs

The ports on the Microsoft Surface Laptop 13-inch — (Image credit: Future / John Loeffler)

Qualcomm Snapdragon X Plus 8-core SoC
16GB LPDDR5x
The display could be better

There isn't a whole lot of variation in terms of spec configurations for the Surface Laptop 13-inch, with the biggest difference being some extra storage and two additional colorway options.

Microsoft Surface Laptop 13-inch Base Specs
Price:		$899.99 at Microsoft.com \| £899 at Microsoft.com\| AU$1,699 at Microsoft.com
Colorways:		Platinum
CPU:		Qualcomm Snapdragon X Plus 8-core
GPU:		Qualcomm Adreno X1-45
Memory:		16GB LPDDR5X-4300
Storage:		256GB SSD
Screen:		13-inch, 3:2, 1920x1280p 60Hz, 400-nit, Touch PixelSense
Ports:		2 x USB-C 3.2 Gen 2 w/ DP and Power Delivery, 1 x USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-A, 1 x combo jack
Battery (WHr):		50WHr
Wireless:		WiFi 7, BT 5.4
Camera:		1080p
Weight:		2.7 lbs (1.22 kg)
Dimensions:		11.25 x 8.43 x 0.61 ins \| (285.65 x 214.14 x 15.6mm)

For $100 / £100 / AU$200 more, you can upgrade the storage on the Surface Laptop 13-inch to 512GB and get additional Violet and Ocean colorway options, but otherwise the more expensive configuration (which I tested out for this review) is identical to the base configuration.

Microsoft Surface Laptop 13-inch Max Specs
Price:		$999.99 at Microsoft.com \| £999 at Microsoft.com\| AU$1,899 at Microsoft.com
Colorways:		Platinum, Violet, Ocean
CPU:		Qualcomm Snapdragon X Plus 8-core
GPU:		Qualcomm Adreno X1-45
Memory:		16GB LPDDR5X-4300
Storage:		512GB SSD
Screen:		13-inch, 3:2, 1920x1280p 60Hz, 400-nit, Touch PixelSense display
Ports:		2 x USB-C 3.2 Gen 2 w/ DP and Power Delivery, 1 x USB Type-A 3.1, 1 x 3.5mm combo jack
Battery (WHr):		50WHr
Wireless:		WiFi 7, BT 5.4
Camera:		1080p
Weight:		2.7 lbs (1.22 kg)
Dimensions:		11.25 x 8.43 x 0.61 ins \| (285.65 x 214.14 x 15.6mm)

There's no option to upgrade the memory or storage on any of these models beyond the configuration options at the time of purchase, which does make the longevity of the Surface Laptop 13-inch's specs more limited than laptops like the Dell 14 Plus, where you can at least upgrade the storage if you'd like.

And while the specs on the MacBook Air 13-inch with M4 might not be upgradable either, they are simply better overall for a relatively small increase in price, meaning the long-term value of the MacBook Air 13-inch (M4) is superior overall.

Specs: 3.5 / 5

Microsoft Surface Laptop 13-inch: Design

A masculing hand holding the Microsoft Surface Laptop 13-inch at an angle — (Image credit: Future / John Loeffler)

Beautiful color options and fantastic aesthetics
Light and portable
Display resolution is only 1280p with no HDR

The design of the Microsoft Surface Laptop 13-inch is simply stunning. There's no other way to describe it. Starting with the exterior aesthetics, the Surface Laptop 13-inch is as close to a MacBook Air for Windows as you're going to find on the market, and in my opinion, it's even better looking thanks to the additional Violet and Ocean colorways alongside the default Platinum look of the base model. You pay extra for the splash of color, but it's a worthwhile investment. The machined aluminum finish of the laptop chassis, along with the pastel-ish hue of the chassis and the darker, more matte color of the keycaps and trackpad.

The keyboard on a Microsoft Surface Laptop 13-inch — (Image credit: Future / John Loeffler)

The display on the Surface Laptop 13-inch is a step down from the larger 13.8-inch Surface Laptop 7 from 2024, which had a maximum resolution of 2,304x1,536p (a PPI of 201, compared to the 1,920x1,280p Surface Laptop 13-inch's 178 PPI) and 120Hz refresh compared to just 60Hz for the Surface Laptop 13-inch.

It also has a lower contrast ratio of 1,000:1 compared to the larger version's 1,400:1. The Surface Laptop 7's display is also made of Corning Gorilla Glass 5. In contrast, the Surface Laptop 13-inch's display is only "Strengthened glass" according to Microsoft's official spec sheet for the Surface Laptop lineup.

The display does max out at 400-nits, though, which is nice and bright enough for most people and situations, but you might struggle to see the screen properly if you're using the laptop outside on a bright sunny day.

I found that carrying the Surface Laptop 13-inch around was very easy, as it fit in pretty much any bag and was thin and compact enough that I was able to use it sitting in an airplane seat during my 15-hour flight to Computex 2025 last month with almost no issue.

Speaking of using the laptop, the key switches are quiet and have good travel and responsiveness, and everything is well-spaced, so you don't feel cramped despite the laptop's smaller size. The trackpad is likewise responsive and smooth, making navigation and clicking around the desktop a breeze.

A Microsoft Surface Laptop 13-inch next to a dime to show its thinness — (Image credit: Future / John Loeffler)

One thing that's not that great is the port selection, which is limited to two USB-C Gen 3.2 ports, a USB-A Gen 3.1 port, and a 3.5mm jack for a headset. It'd have been nice to get some USB4 ports in there like you get with the larger Surface Laptop 7 models, but both USB-C ports do support power delivery and DP 1.4 output (though if you're trying to connect to more than one monitor, you need one port per monitor, rather than being able to daisy-chain them to just a single port).

The webcam of the Microsoft Surface Laptop 13-inch — (Image credit: Future / John Loeffler)

The webcam, meanwhile, is a 1080p Surface Studio Camera that is crisp enough, but unlike the larger Surface Laptop models from last year, it does not support Windows Hello authentication, and it doesn't have a physical privacy shutter, which in 2025 should be pretty much mandatory, so along with the port and display downgrades, I've got to ding what is otherwise a nearly perfect design.

Design: 4.5 / 5

Microsoft Surface Laptop 13-inch: Performance

A Microsoft Surface Laptop 13-inch on a bed — (Image credit: Future / John Loeffler)

A performance downgrade from last year's Surface Laptop
Some compatibility issues with ARM architecture still linger
Gaming is functionally a no-go

What holds the Microsoft Surface Laptop 13-inch from really being the fierce MacBook Air competitor that many of us hoped it would be is the 8-core Qualcomm Snapdragon X Plus SoC.

When I reviewed the Microsoft Surface Pro 11 last year, I was genuinely impressed by the performance of the Snapdragon X Elite chip, despite the compatibility challenges that Windows-on-Arm is still working through. That was a much more powerful chip, though, and even the 10-core Snapdragon X Plus SoC offers noticeably better performance than what the Surface Laptop 13-inch is packing.

The 8-core chip isn't awful, to be clear. It's perfectly good for general computing tasks like streaming, school work, and office productivity, and it's probably one of the best student laptops out there for those who want a little bit of style to go along with their studies.

But if you need this laptop to do anything other than writing up papers and reports, streaming movies, or using web-based cloud software, you will likely be unhappy with what you're getting here for the price.

The most direct and obvious comparisons I can make with this laptop is the Apple MacBook Air 13-inch with Apple Silicon (starting with the Apple M2), the larger 13.8-inch Surface Laptop 7, the recently released Dell 14 Plus, last year's Dell XPS 13 (with both Intel and Qualcomm SoCs), and the Asus Zenbook A14 with the entry-level Snapdragon X SoC.

Only the M2 MacBook Air 13-inch and Dell 14 Plus are cheaper than the Surface Laptop 13-inch (at least at the time of review), and all of these laptops start around the same price, give or take a hundred bucks or so.

The models I've tested and that TechRadar has reviewed in the past vary by spec, so it's not entirely an apples-to-apples comparison laid out in the charts above, as some of the Dell and Apple notebooks' advantages can be easily chalked up to more expensive processors.

If you go with any of those systems at the same price as the Surface Laptop 13-inch I tested, the performance difference might not be nearly as dramatic on paper, and almost certainly won't be all that noticeable.

Still, it's pretty clear that the Surface Laptop 13-inch either lands somewhere in the middle of its competition, or comes in second or third from the bottom. Add to that some performance issues stemming from Microsoft's Prism software layer that translates x86-architecture-designed programs, which is pretty much every Windows program, to be ARM-compatible.

Generally, this works rather well, but it does introduce system overhead that will slow things down. In short, unless you're running a piece of rare ARM-native software, you will almost never get as good an experience with Windows software on ARM as you would with the x86 architecture powering Intel and AMD chips.

The question really comes down to whether or not the performance is good enough, and I think that for most people, it will be (unless you want to load up Steam and get into PC gaming. The best gaming laptop, this is not).

A masculine hand typing on a Microsoft Surface Laptop 13-inch — (Image credit: Future / John Loeffler)

Much like the MacBook Air 13-inch, the Surface Laptop 13-inch is more geared toward casual computing needs and productivity work, and it excels at these tasks.

So, even though the MacBook Air 13-inch with M4 gets roughly twice as many FPS as the Surface Laptop 13-inch, the MacBook Air 13-inch still struggles to maintain playable frame rates unless you seriously scale back your graphics settings.

The MacBook's gaming advantage, then, only really looks intimidating as a percentage, but in practice, none of the laptops I tested were suitable for the task of playing, say, Cyberpunk 2077 at max settings and native resolution.

What it really boils down to, then, is whether you're just looking for a new laptop to keep up with friends and family, maybe do some office work, or write that Sci-Fi novel at the local coffee shop that you've been meaning to finally get around to this year.

If those are the boxes that need ticking, any of the laptops listed above will get the job done, but none will look as good as the Violet Surface Laptop 13-inch.

Performance: 3.5 / 5

Microsoft Surface Laptop 13-inch: Battery Life

The battery life indicator on a Microsoft Surface Laptop 13-inch — (Image credit: Future / John Loeffler)

How long does it last on a single charge? 17 hours and 14 minutes
How long to recharge from empty to full? With the included 45W charger, it takes about two and a half hours to charge to full.

One other key area where the Microsoft Surface Laptop 13-inch shines is its stellar battery life. In my testing, it ran about 17 hours and 14 minutes on average in my battery test, thanks to the super efficient ARM architecture. This puts it in fourth place overall in my 10 laptop test group, but it does outlast all three MacBook Air 13-inch models in the group by an hour or more.

So even though it's not officially in the battery life winner's circle, you can't ask for much more from a laptop this thin and light.

Battery Life: 5 / 5

Should you buy the Microsoft Surface Laptop 13-inch?

A masculine hand holding the Microsoft Surface Laptop 13-inch — (Image credit: Future / John Loeffler)

Microsoft Surface Laptop 13 Scorecard
Category	Notes	Rating
Value	While not as cheap as something like the Dell 14 Plus, it is on par or cheaper than similar offerings from Dell and Apple.	3.5 / 5
Specs	There aren't a whole lot of configuration options, and the lack of USB4 is unfortunate.	3.5 / 5
Design	It's simply gorgeous and a joy to type on. If it had a physical camera privacy shutter, better ports, and a better display, it'd be a 6 out of 5.	4.5 / 5
Performance	For a casual use notebook, it's in line with similarly specced Windows laptops, but the MacBook Air 13-inch with M4 runs circles around it.	3.5 / 5
Battery Life	At just over 17 hours of battery life in my testing, this is one of the longest lasting Windows laptops around.	5 / 5
Final Score	It's not perfect, and had Microsoft flexed some muscle to get a 10-core chip in this laptop without raising its price, it'd truly be the Windows MacBook Air we've been waiting for, but it'll be more than close enough for most people and looks better than anything Apple has put out in years.	4 / 5

Buy the Microsoft Surface Laptop 13-inch if...

You want a truly eye-catching laptop
This is the look we should have gotten on the M2 MacBook Air redesign, rather than the dull, uninteresting colors we got. Apple's mistep is Microsoft's advantage.

You want an all-day laptop
At 17+ hours of battery life in my testing—including using it throughout an almost 15-hour flight to Taipei—this laptop has the juice.

Don't buy it if...

You want a high-performance laptop
If you want a laptop for serious professional workloads like video editing or for PC gaming, you're going to want to opt for a beefier device.

You want worry-free app compatibility
While most Windows apps will work on this device thanks to Microsoft's Prism compatibility layer, you will still occasionally run into some apps that won't work on ARM devices.

Also consider

If my Microsoft Surface Laptop 13-inch review has you looking at other options, here are three other laptops you should consider instead...

Apple MacBook Air 13-inch (M4)
The most recent Apple MacBook Air 13-inch offers substantially better performance than the Microsoft Surface Laptop 13, making it a much better value.

Read our full Apple MacBook Air 13-inch (M4) review

Dell XPS 13 9350
If you don't want to hassle with the quirks of Qualcomm's ARM-based chips, the Intel Lunar Lake-powered XPS 13 is a fantastic alternative.

Read our full Dell XPS 13 9350 review

How I tested the Microsoft Surface Laptop 13-inch

I spent about a month with the device
I used our standard suite of benchmarking tools and performance tests
I used it as my primary work laptop, including taking it on an international work trip

I spent about a month with the Surface Laptop 13-inch, far longer than I usually spend with a device under review. While this was mostly due to circumstance (Computex and WWDC, in particular), this did allow me to do a much deeper dive.

In addition to my normal benchmarking process, I took extra time to retest some competing laptops we had in the office to come up with a more thorough comparison against the Surface Laptop 13-inch's competitors.

First reviewed June 2025

The Dell 14 Plus 2-in-1 is a very affordable 2-in-1, with some compromises

12:33 pm | June 6, 2025

Author: admin | Category: Computers Computing Gadgets Laptops Windows Laptops | Tags: Battery Life, CPU, GPU, UK | Comments: Off

Dell 14 Plus 2-in-1: One-minute review

The Dell 14 Plus 2-in-1 is the latest hybrid laptop from the venerable Windows laptop maker, marking its first 2-in-1 since the company's major rebranding earlier this year, which replaced the Dell Inspiron 14 Plus 2-in-1.

Fortunately, as with the clamshell Dell 14 Plus, Dell's latest 2-in-1 offers very solid performance at a fantastic price. But given that this is a 2-in-1, typically a form factor where the display takes center stage, the dim, lackluster panel makes this a less attractive option as a 2-in-1 than its clamshell sibling.

Starting at $649.99 / £849 / AU$1,498.20, the Dell 14 Plus 2-in-1 does earn its place among the best 2-in-1 laptops this year thanks to its affordable starting price, especially in the US and Australia where the AMD Ryzen AI 300 configurations are available. When these configurations make it to the UK, the prices there ought to be much cheaper to start as well.

Performance-wise, the 14 Plus 2-in-1 isn't much different than the standard 14 Plus, so what you're really looking for here is the versatility that comes with a 2-in-1.

Unfortunately, this versatility is undermined by the display quality, which is much more important on a 2-in-1. So while I found the rather dim FHD+ display on the 14 Plus to be an acceptable compromise to keep the price down, it's a much bigger negative on the 14 Plus 2-in-1.

That's not to say the Dell 14 Plus 2-in-1 is necessarily bad, or even that its display is an absolute dealbreaker. Given its price and level of performance, the display doesn't keep it from being one of the best student laptops on the market right now, and it also remains one of the best Dell laptops on offer currently. Just be prepared to look past a couple of flaws if you decide to pick one up.

Dell 14 Plus: Price & availability

A Dell 14 Plus 2-in-1 in clamshell mode — (Image credit: Future / John Loeffler)

How much does it cost? Starts at $649.99 / £849 / AU$1,498.20
When is it available? It's available now
Where can you get it? You can buy it in the US, UK, and Australia through Dell’s website and other retailers.

Easily the best feature of the Dell 14 Plus 2-in-1 is its excellent pricing. Starting at $649.99 / £849 / AU$1,498.20, there aren't going to be many Windows laptops with solid entry-level specs at this price point. For those who are more price-sensitive (such as students, general users, and enterprise fleet managers), the 14 Plus 2-in-1 really should be at the top of your list if you're in the market for a 2-in-1.

Even better, of course, is that Dell regularly runs sales on its products, so it should be fairly easy to find this laptop for even cheaper (especially around holidays or other major sales events like Amazon Prime Day).

Value: 5 / 5

Dell 14 Plus 2-in-1: Specs

The Intel Core Ultra 7 and Intel Arc Graphics badges on the Dell 14 Plus 2-in-1 — (Image credit: Future / John Loeffler)

Configurations vary considerably between the US, UK, and Australia
Options for both Intel Core Ultra 200V and AMD Ryzen AI 300 processors
No discrete graphics options

The starting specs for the Dell 14 Plus 2-in-1 feature 16GB DDR5 RAM, 512GB PCIe SSD storage, and a 16:10 FHD+ (1200p) IPS touchscreen display with 300-nit max brightness. The only difference between the US, UK, and Australia is that the US and Aussies start off with an AMD Ryzen 5 AI 340 processor with Radeon 840M graphics, and the UK starting configuration comes with an Intel Core Ultra 5 226V chip.

This also means that while the US and Australian starting configuration only has two USB-C Gen 3.2 ports, the UK swaps one of these out for a full Thunderbolt 4 port.

Dell 14 Plus 2-in-1 Base Specs
Region	US	UK	Australia
Price:	$649.99 at Dell.com	£849 at Dell.com	AU$1,498.20 at Dell.com
CPU:	AMD Ryzen AI 5 340	Intel Core Ultra 5 226V	AMD Ryzen AI 5 340
GPU:	AMD Radeon 840M Graphics	Intel Arc Xe2 (140V)	AMD Radeon 840M Graphics
Memory:	16GB LPDDR5X-7500	16GB LPDDR5X-8533	16GB LPDDR5X-7500
Storage:	512GB SSD	512GB SSD	512GB SSD
Screen:	14-inch 16:10 FHD+ (1200p), 300-nit, touch IPS	14-inch 16:10 FHD+ (1200p), 300-nit, touch IPS	14-inch 16:10 FHD+ (1200p), 300-nit, touch IPS
Ports:	2 x USB-C 3.2 Gen 2 w/ DP and Power Delivery, 1 x USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-A, 1 x HDMI 1.4, 1 x combo jack	1 x USB 3.2 Gen 1, 1 x USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-C w/ DP 1.4 and Power Delivery, 1 x Thunderbolt 4 w/ DP 2.1 and Power Delivery, 1 x HDMI 2.1, 1 x combo jack	2 x USB-C 3.2 Gen 2 w/ DP and Power Delivery, 1 x USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-A, 1 x HDMI 1.4, 1 x combo jack
Battery (WHr):	64 WHr	64 WHr	64 WHr
Wireless:	WiFi 7, BT 5.4	WiFi 7, BT 5.4	WiFi 7, BT 5.4
Camera:	1080p@30fps	1080p@30fps	1080p@30fps
Weight:	3.35 lb (1.52 kg)	3.42 lbs (1.55kg)	3.35 lbs (1.52kg)
Dimensions:	12.36 x 8.9 x 0.65 ins \| (314 x 226.15 x 16.39mm)	12.36 x 8.9 x 0.65 ins \| (314 x 226.15 x 16.39mm)	12.36 x 8.9 x 0.65 ins \| (314 x 226.15 x 16.39mm)

For the max spec, the US and UK can configure the 14 Plus 2-in-1 with an Intel Core Ultra 9 288V processor with Intel Arc Xe2 (140V) graphics, while Australia tops out at an AMD Ryzen AI 7 350 processor with Radeon 840M graphics. The US config also maxes out at 32GB DDR5 RAM and 1TB storage, while the UK and Australia max out at 16GB DDR5 RAM, and 512GB and 1TB storage, respectively.

Dell 14 Plus 2-in-1 Top Specs
Region	US	UK	Australia
Price:	$1,499.99 at Dell.com	£1,299 at Dell.com	AU$1,498.20 at Dell.com
CPU:	Intel Core Ultra 9 288V	Intel Core Ultra 9 288V	AMD Ryzen AI 7 350
GPU:	Intel Arc Xe2 (140V) Graphics	Intel Arc Xe2 (140V) Graphics	AMD Radeon 840M Graphics
Memory:	32GB LPDDR5X-8533	16GB LPDDR5X-7500	16GB LPDDR5X-7500
Storage:	1TB NVMe SSD	512GB NVMe SSD	1TB NVMe SSD
Screen:	14-inch 16:10 FHD+ (1200p), 300-nit, touch IPS	14-inch 16:10 FHD+ (1200p), 300-nit, touch IPS	14-inch 16:10 FHD+ (1200p), 300-nit, touch IPS
Ports:	1 x USB 3.2 Gen 1, 1 x USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-C w/ DP 1.4 and Power Delivery, 1 x Thunderbolt 4 w/ DP 2.1 and Power Delivery, 1 x HDMI 2.1, 1 x combo jack	1 x USB 3.2 Gen 1, 1 x USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-C w/ DP 1.4 and Power Delivery, 1 x Thunderbolt 4 w/ DP 2.1 and Power Delivery, 1 x HDMI 2.1, 1 x combo jack	2 x USB-C 3.2 Gen 2 w/ DP and Power Delivery, 1 x USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-A, 1 x HDMI 1.4, 1 x combo jack
Battery (WHr):	64 WHr	64 WHr	64 WHr
Wireless:	WiFi 7, BT 5.4	WiFi 7, BT 5.4	WiFi 7, BT 5.4
Camera:	1080p@30fps	1080p@30fps	1080p@30fps
Weight:	3.42 lbs (1.55kg)	3.42 lbs (1.55kg)	3.35 lb (1.52 kg)
Dimensions:	12.36 x 8.9 x 0.65 ins \| (314 x 226.15 x 16.39mm)	12.36 x 8.9 x 0.65 ins \| (314 x 226.15 x 16.39mm)	12.36 x 8.9 x 0.65 ins \| (314 x 226.15 x 16.39mm)

The configuration I reviewed is much more in the middle of the pack, featuring an Intel Core Ultra 7 256V chip, 16GB LPDDR5x RAM, and a 1TB SSD. This specific configuration isn't available in the UK and Australia, but the UK can get close enough (though with half the storage capacity).

Dell 14 Plus Review Unit Specs
Price:	$1,099.99 / £999 / (about AU$1,650, but Intel systems not yet available in Australia)
CPU:	Intel Core Ultra 7 256V
GPU:	Intel Arc Xe2 (140V) Graphics
Memory:	16GB LPDDR5X-8533
Storage:	1TB NVMe SSD (512GB in the UK)
Screen:	14-inch 16:10 FHD+ (1200p), 300 nit, touch IPS
Ports:	1 x USB 3.2 Gen 1, 1 x USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-C w/ DP 1.4 and Power Delivery, 1 x Thunderbolt 4 w/ DP 2.1 and Power Delivery, 1 x HDMI 2.1, 1 x combo jack
Battery (WHr):	64 WHr
Wireless:	WiFi 7, BT 5.4
Camera:	1080p@30fps
Weight:	3.42 lbs (1.55kg)
Dimensions:	12.36 x 8.9 x 0.67 ins \| (314 x 226.15 x 16.95mm)

Specs: 4 / 5

Dell 14 Plus 2-in-1: Design

A Dell 14 Plus 2-in-1 in tent mode — (Image credit: Future / John Loeffler)

Thin and light
Trackpad can feel 'sticky'
Display isn't great for a 2-in-1

The design of the Dell 14 Plus 2-in-1 is nearly identical to the standard 14 Plus, with the major difference being its 360-degree hinge. Otherwise, it sports a functional design language that, while not premium, doesn't necessarily look or feel cheap either.

The keyboard of the Dell 14 Plus 2-in-1 — (Image credit: Future / John Loeffler)

The keyboard on the 14 Plus 2-in-1 is functional, if not incredible, but for most people it'll do the job just fine. The trackpad occassionally felt somewhat 'sticky' to me, however, and it's something that kind of gives away the laptop's price point, if I'm being honest. I've felt similar trackpads on much cheaper Chromebooks in the past.

A side-by-side image of the Dell 14 Plus 2-in-1's webcam with and without its privacy shutter engaged — (Image credit: Future / John Loeffler)

The webcam is a solid 1080p at 30 frames per second, which is pretty much standard nowadays. It does feature a physical privacy shutter though, which is excellent.

The ports on the Dell 14 Plus 2-in-1 — (Image credit: Future / John Loeffler)

For ports, you have a good mix, especially for a laptop this thin, and if you're using an Intel-based configuration, you get a Thunderbolt 4 port, which is very handy. Regardless of the processor brand, though, with USB-C Gen 3.2 ports available, you can display out using DisplayPort 1.4, and all USB-C ports support power delivery.

Where this laptop was more of a letdown than its clamshell cousin is the display. At 300 nits peak brightness and just 67.5% of the sRGB color gamut and only 47.8% DCI-P3 (according to my testing), the color quality and brightness on the display just isn't very good.

It's one thing when the display on a cheap clamshell isn't great, but if you plan on taking notes or maybe even do some sketch work on your 2-in-1, this display is not going to give you the best experience. If you plan on using this laptop for school, try to avoid using it outside on a sunny day, or else you're really going to struggle to see things clearly.

Design: 3 / 5

Dell 14 Plus 2-in-1: Performance

A Dell 14 Plus 2-in-1 in clamshell mode visiting TechRadar.com — (Image credit: Future / John Loeffler)

Solid performance
Can do some modest gaming
Not the best for creative work

Here's how the Dell 14 Plus 2-in-1 performed in our suite of benchmark tests:

Geekbench 6.4 (Single): 2,673; (Multi): 10,880
Crossmark (Overall): 1,708; (Productivity): 1,655; (Creativity): 1,934; (Responsiveness): 1,293
3DMark (Night Raid): 31,074; (Fire Strike): 8,462; (Time Spy): 3,896; (Steel Nomad): 601
Civilization VI Gathering Storm (1080p, Max Graphics, Avg): 53 fps
Civilization VII (1080p, Medium, Avg): 59 fps; (High): 34 fps
Web Surfing Battery Test: 15 hours, 14 minutes

The performance of the Dell 14 Plus 2-in-1 is going to vary quite a bit depending on your configuration, but like the clamshell 14 Plus, the 14 Plus 2-in-1 is a very solid performer when it comes to everyday computing and general productivity tasks that are typical of laptops at this price point.

To be clear, this isn't a professional mobile workstation like the MacBook Pro 14, and definitely isn't one of the best gaming laptops, but if what you're looking for is a laptop that does its job, does it reasonably well, and doesn't try to do too much beyond the everyday, then the 14 Plus 2-in-1 is a very solid pick (especially if you're on a budget).

Thanks to the integrated Intel Arc Xe2 or Radeon 840M graphics (depending on your configuration), you'll also be able to get some casual to moderate gaming out of this laptop, though you'll definitely want to keep things at or below 1080p and reasonable graphics settings.

In my testing, Civilization VII (one of the more graphically demanding sim games out there) managed to get close to 60 FPS on average on medium settings, which is more than enough for a thin and light laptop like this.

This is a 2-in-1, though, and the focus really is on note-taking, drawing, and the like, and for that the responsiveness of the display was good enough for the price, though nothing spectacular.

Performance: 4 / 5

Dell 14 Plus 2-in-1: Battery Life

How long does it last on a single charge? 15 hours and 14 minutes
How long to fully charge it to 100%? 2 hours and 36 minutes

I haven't tested one of the AMD Ryzen AI 300 models of this laptop, but the Intel Core Ultra 256V in my review unit is a very energy-efficient chip, so this laptop's battery life is good enough to rival many of the best laptops of the past few years, though it's not in the top five or anything like that.

It ran for just over 15 hours in my battery test, which involves using a script and custom server to simulate typical web browsing behavior. This is more than enough for a typical work or school day, and with the included 65W charger, it took about two and a half hours to recharge the 64WHr battery to full from empty (though higher wattage chargers will likely get you there faster).

Battery Life: 4 / 5

Should you buy the Dell 14 Plus 2-in-1?

A Dell 14 Plus 2-in-1 with its lid facing outward — (Image credit: Future / John Loeffler)

Dell 14 Plus 2-in-1 Scorecard
Category	Notes	Rating
Value	The Dell 14 Plus 2-in-1 offers great value for its price.	5 / 5
Specs	Available configurations are generally very good.	4 / 5
Design	The 14 Plus 2-in-1 looks good on the outside, but its display really brings its design down.	3 / 5
Performance	Everyday computing and productivity performance are solid, but it can't hold up to intense workloads like gaming at high settings.	4 / 5
Battery Life	Solid battery life capable of many hours of use on one charge.	4 / 5

Buy the Dell 14 Plus 2-in-1 if...

You want solid productivity and general computing performance
The Dell 14 Plus 2-in-1 offers solid performance for most users, especially for the price.

You want a laptop that doesn’t look too cheap
While it isn't going to win any major design awards, it's still a pretty good-looking laptop for its price.

Don't buy it if...

You need a high-performance laptop
While its general performance is very good, you're not going to be able to push it much further than general use and casual PC gaming.

You need a quality display
While the clamshell 14 Plus might have been able to skate by with this display, it's not really good enough for a 2-in-1.

First reviewed June 2025

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