Top 10 laptops of 2015

Do you need a computing device that gives you easy usability of a desktop along with the mobility of a tablet? If your answer is in the affirmative, we recommend a few.

Nowadays, laptops are powerful beasts with super-charged processors that can be the real workhorses that help you bundle your workplace on your lap. The ten popular laptops of 2015 listed below do not follow any particular sequence.

Apple MacBook Air 13

Photograph: Courtesy, Apple

The beautifully crafted Apple MacBook Air is encased in an all-metal casing with a 13.3-inch LED backlit glossy widescreen display that supports 1440 x 900 pixels resolution. The laptop has been made available in 128GB and 256GB storage options.

To run this device smoothly, it has been bestowed with a 1.6GHz dual-core Intel Core i5 (Turbo Boost up to 2.7GHz) processor with 3MB shared L3 cache and 4GB of 1600MHz LPDDR3 onboard memory. The overall weight of this laptop is 1.35 kg making it easy to lug around.

For running games or carrying out multimedia activities, the user can depend on the Intel HD Graphics 6000 GPU. For conducting video chat, the laptop features a 720p Face Time camera.

Other elements of this laptop include, two USB 3 ports (up to 5 Gbps), Thunderbolt 2 port (up to 20 Gbps), MagSafe 2 power port, a SDXC card slot, stereo speakers, dual microphones, a headphone port and support for the Apple iPhone headset with remote as well as microphone. Additionally, it supports Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 4.0. The laptop runs on the OS X EL Capitan and is powered by a 54-watt hour Lithium polymer battery.

Dell XPS 13

Photograph: Courtesy, Dell

The new Dell XPS 13 has overall dimensions of 9-15mm x 304mm x 200mm along with a weight of 1.18 kg. The casing of this laptop is machined aluminum that is precision-cut from a single block of aluminum to get a sturdy and durable chassis. Other features include carbon fibres to improve the strength further. The display is a big 13.3-inch infinity+ QHD+ display that supports 3200 x 1800 pixels resolution. This laptop runs on 1.6GHz Intel Core i5-2467M processor coupled with 4 GB of DDR3 RAM, 128 GB SSD, and an onboard Intel HD 3000 GPU.

It runs on the latest Windows 10 OS. Dell has provided it with a lot of ports including a USB 3.0 (2) with PowerShare, one mini display port, one headset jack, one noble lock and one 3-in-1 card reader (SD, SDHC, SDXC). It has a price tag of Rs 124,000.

Dell Inspiron 3000 series

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This mid range laptop from Dell has some powerful features including a 15.6-inch HD (1366 x 768) Truelife LED-backlit display, a non backlit keyboard, a 4th generation Intel Core i3-4005U processor (3M Cache, 1.70 GHz) coupled to an Intel HD 4400 Graphics Processor Unit and 4GB of single channel 1600MHz (4GBx1) DDR3L RAM. For storage, it houses a 1TB 5400-rpm SATA hard drive.

Additionally, it also includes one HDMI port, one USB 3.0 port, two USB 2.0 ports, a security slot and a Media Card (SD, SDHC, SDXC) port. For powering this laptop, it depends on a removable 40 Watt-Hour 4-cell battery. For a good audio experience, it comes with two tuned speakers with Waves MaxxAudio processing and one combo headphone/microphone jack. The company has priced Dell Inspiron 3000 series at Rs 35,390.

HP Specter 360

Photograph: Courtesy, HP

This product from HP is one of the top sellers of 2015. It has overall dimensions of 12.79 x 8.6 x 0.63 inches and weighs around 1.47 kg. The casing of the laptop is made with CNC-cut aluminum and has a unibody design. It sports a 13.3-inch display that supports 1920 x 1080 pixels resolution. HP has equipped this laptop with an Intel Core i7-5500U processor integrated with an Intel HD graphics 5500 unit to give users an amazing performance.

The storage options of this laptop include 8GB DDR3-1600 RAM and 256GB SSD hard drive. This device runs on Windows 8.1 OS with guaranteed Windows 10 update. Other features include three USB 3.0 ports, a mini display, a HDMI slot, and a headphone/mic combo. The Specter 360 is powered by a 56 WH Li-Ion 3-cell battery and is priced at Rs 129,999.

Lenovo B5070

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This product from Lenovo has dimensions of 56cm x 35.6cm x 12.4 cm and weighs only 2.3 kg. It is blessed with a 15.6-inch LED backlit anti glare display that supports 1366 x 768 pixels resolution. The company has equipped this laptop with a 1.9 GHz Intel Core i3-4030U 4th Gen processor integrated with 1GB of ATI Radeon graphics unit to deliver a superior performance.

For storage, it has 4GB of RAM and 500GB of hard drive. This device runs on the DOS operating system. Other features include two USB 3.0 ports, one USB 2.0 port, a HDMI slot, one Ethernet port and a headphone/mic combo. This laptop is powered by a 32WH Li-Ion 4-cell battery and is priced at Rs 33,186.

Dell Vostro 3558

Photograph: Courtesy, Dell

Dell Vostro is a well-known model of Dell, which allows users to access top end features of a laptop in a mid range device, and Dell Vostro 3558 is no exception to that, for it houses a 15.6-inch HD LED backlit display with Truelife feature. The company has packed in a 1.7GHz Intel core i3 processor along with 4GB of DDR3L RAM (1600MHz), Intel HD graphics 4400 GPU and 1TB of HDD SATA Hard Drive (5400RPM).

Other features include DVDrw, HD (720p) capable webcam and microphone/stereo speakers with Waves MaxxAudio 4. This laptop runs on the DOS operating system to keep its price down. Dell has also provided it with several connectivity features including one USB 3.0 port, two USB 2.0 ports, a security slot, and a media card (SD, SDHC, SDXC).

HP 15-AC053TX

Photograph: Courtesy, HP

This model from HP has overall dimensions of 46cm x 32cm x 26cm and a weight of 2.7Kg. The display of this laptop measures 15.6-inch and supports 1366 x 768 pixels resolution, and the device runs on Windows 8.1 OS (free upgradable to Windows 10). The engine that runs this laptop consists of a 2.4GHz Intel core i7-5500U processor coupled with 8GB of DDR3L RAM and an ATI Radeon GPU.

For storage, it has 1TB of 5400rpm Serial ATA hard drive and for connectivity has one USB 3.0 port, two USB 2.0 ports, a security slot, and a media card (SD, SDHC, SDXC). Additional features include a microphone, speakers, a camera and a DVD drive. It is priced at Rs 53,599.

Lenovo G50-80

Photograph: Courtesy, Lenovo

This high-end laptop from Lenovo has an all metal casing and features a 15.6 WLED backlit TN Glare Flat eDP display. To run this powerful device effectively, it has been provided with a 2.2 GHz Intel Core i5 (fifth Gen) processor, which can be turbo boosted up to 2.7 GHz to run heavy applications. This processor is integrated with an ATI EXO PRO R5 M330 GPU with 2 GB of dedicated graphics memory.

For storage, it has 8GB of DDR3 RAM expandable up to 16 GB and 1TB of hard drive. It comes out of the box with Windows 8.1 OS and has several additional features like dual 1.5W speakers, a microphone, a camera, 3 USB ports, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth connectivity. A four-cell battery powers it and quotes a price tag of Rs 45,490.

Apple MacBook Pro 2015

Photograph: Courtesy, Apple

This beauty from Apple with a small compact design and an all metal casing sports a 13.7 LED-backlit display with IPS technology that can support images at a resolution of 2560 x 1600 pixels. It hides a powerful 2.7 GHz dual-core Intel Core i5 processor under its hood, which can be turbo boosted up to 3.1GHz to take care of high end games you want to play on its bright display. The processor in turn is supported by 8GB of DDR3 RAM and Intel Iris Graphics 6100 unit. It runs on the latest X Yosemite OS that gives users an amazing experience.

For storing audio or video files, it has 128GB of hard drive built into it. Other features of this MacBook include two Thunderbolt ports (up to 20 Gbps), two USB 3 ports (up to 5 Gbps), Bluetooth v4.0 and Wi-Fi 802.11ac support. To provide power, Apple has provided this device with a 74.9-watt-hour lithium-polymer battery, which gives it 10 hours of web surfing backup and 30 days of standby time. It is available at a price tag of Rs 98,999.

Dell Inspiron 3551

Photograph: Courtesy, Dell

This is a budget laptop from Dell with a 15.6-inch HD LED-backlit display. To keep the price down, the device comes with pre-installed Ubuntu OS. Other features of this laptop include a HD webcam, 500GB of hard drive, an HDMI port, a SD card reader, two USB ports, Bluetooth, and Wi-Fi.

To run this slick device, it has a 2.16GHz Pentium quad-core processor coupled with 4GB DDR3 RAM and Intel HD Graphics processor. This laptop draws its power from a 4-cell battery that gives 8 hour of backup for moderate usage. It is priced at Rs18, 990.