In business, time is the biggest asset of all. So getting things done fast is just basic. When you are working on financial reports, presentations for meetings, and negotiating deals, you need to get things done fast. Your laptop cannot be a reason for delays in this, so you will require the best business laptops for work.
Business laptops are usually the ones that have business smart features. They have to be slim, fast at productivity tasks and have decent battery life. So we went ahead and made a list of laptops optimized and even marketed for workplaces.
Of course, marketing is one thing but does it even have what it takes to be called a business laptop? We dug deep to find out what laptops would give the best results for a workplace setting. Something that would satisfy employees and employers alike.
When we talk about such laptops, the first thing that comes to mind is something along the lines of a MacBook. Something sleek, slim, elegant and has enough power to open tons of spreadsheets at a time.
But not everyone can afford a MacBook. Besides, when there are other budget options available, save money where you can. If there is something that business teaches us, it is not to overspend where it is not necessary.
But first, let us dive into a buyer’s guide for your consideration.
Business Laptop Buyer’s Guide
Business laptops are designed to promote work-oriented features the most. Some laptops have encryption to protect confidential company data that you might have on your device. In case of theft, the encryption will be either make the data obsolete or block access.
In the end, the laptop will become only be a laptop and your company will suffer no damage. That is one of the benefits of encryptions, where data is more valuable than assets. The data itself is an asset, so protecting it is of utmost importance.
Another feature is having a good battery life because you never know when you are on the road for a business meeting. The battery is an important aspect of not only a laptop but any device whether you are using it for business purposes or for casual use.
Privacy is also an important factor when you are working in a place where every word needs to be spoken carefully. Even minor data such as statistics can become a game-changer for a rival.
If you feel no one can track your laptop, access your webcam and mic remotely, you might need a fact check. Big names in tech business startups have tape covering their microphones and their webcams to protect privacy.
But something like a Think Shutter like in the Lenovo laptops can cover your webcam when not in use. It is always better to be safe than sorry. So these small features, which might sound like a market stunt to increase the price, are actually not bad.
Best Business Laptops For Improving Work Productivity
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Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Extreme 2nd Gen
When it comes to business laptops, no one does it better than Lenovo. And the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Extreme 2nd Generation is, just like its name suggests, an extremely powerful machine.
So the ThinkPad series from Lenovo can be seen in almost all workspaces because of its features. The ThinkPad X1 Extreme Gen 2 is somewhat the top tier laptop in the series.
We have at some point in our life worked a desk job, and even if we haven’t we have seen desk job workers. Chances are they will be holding a Lenovo ThinkPad from an older generation as their choice for work device.
The X1 Extreme Gen 2 though is something completely on another scale. It is a powerful device that has some of the best features in ThinkPad series laptops.
There is the 9th Generation Intel i7-9750H, a 6-core, 12-thread CPU. Packed with plenty of cores, this CPU can clock up to 4.50GHz at boost frequency.
Not to mention it has an NVIDIA Geforce 1650 4GB Max-Q GPU, the mobile version of the original. It consumes less power, which means more battery life but still has a pretty significant performance.
The 32GB of RAM means you can open up multiple spreadsheets without having to worry about lags. Multitask without any problems with the power of 12-threads and 32GB of memory. What could be more powerful?
Did we mention it also comes with 512GB of Solid State storage? Well, it does, so you can store, transfer, and read data at lightning-fast speeds.
Now let us talk about the security features, almost all Lenovo laptops come with a Think Shutter. This is a slider that can shut off your webcam to keep your privacy secure from any unwanted eavesdroppers.
It also has a fingerprint sensor, along with some encryption features to keep your data secure. So your laptop will keep your data secure in case of an unfortunate incident.
Of course, all these great specs and features come at a price. The ThinkPad X1 Extreme Gen 2 by Lenovo costs about 2 grand. It is not the most affordable option, but it is the best in the market.
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MacBook Pro
While we do agree Apple’s MacBook Pro is not the most affordable machine, but it is still a great work laptop. The macOS has secure file encryption that can be used to protect data.
Even though Apple is a really premium brand, you cannot deny the performance you get from it. It is because of that performance that it is the choice of so many people.
Apple’s minimalist and sleek look is one of its selling points. The minimalistic aesthetic that the brand sports is what attracts people the most. The sleek, slim, and elegant looks are exactly what make a MacBook Pro a great business laptop.
Even if a MacBook might not be packed with the best hardware, it still outperforms many other laptops. It is the preferred choice of most people businessmen and editors.
The 16″ MacBook Pro with 9th Generation Intel Core i9, an 8-core CPU that maxes out at almost 5.0GHz. You can expand the memory up to 64GB but perhaps that is a bit overkill. The one we had was only equipped with 16GB of RAM but even then it made quick work of tasks.
For storage you get a 1TB SSD for starters, you can take it all the way up to 8GB. With that much storage, your MacBook will not need any storage upgrades anytime soon.
We still have to talk about the GPU, the MacBook we received had a Radeon 5500M. Make no mistakes, this is a work GPU that helps with graphics-intensive tasks. You can perform any task on this, whether it is editing or rendering, without problems.
With macOS having security features like encryptions and security, your data is safe. Who can forget the Magic Keyboard, which is such a great improvement from the butterfly scissor-switch keys.
The Touch Bar has made a return, it seems like a permanent feature in the MacBook. By all means, this laptop is focused more on editors than businessmen. But the security features in this laptop are no short of great for people working in corporate sectors.
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Lenovo ThinkPad E15
It is not surprising that another ThinkPad would make an entry in our list. This time it’s the E15 which is a budget laptop from Lenovo ThinkPad Series which has a 10th Gen Intel CPU.
It is not easy to find a better business laptop than a ThinkPad. The E15 has all the security features which make the ThinkPad series the best business laptops.
Now we know a ThinkPad is kind of an obvious choice, but what is not to love about the E15? The sleek metallic robust build, optimum security features, and powerful specs make this laptop a worthy winner of any category.
If you jump up this laptop’s specs, you will find that it can compete with the higher-end models. But even the base model is not any less impressive, because it has more than enough power to get the job done.
Armed with an Intel 10th Generation Core i5-10210U, which is a 4-core, 8-thread CPU. This processor clocks at 4.20GHz when it turbos, while the base clock sits at 1.60GHz.
This configuration improves energy efficiency and saves battery life. While 16GB DDR4 RAM complements the CPU’s performance further, making it plenty powerful.
A 512GB SSD improves the transfer speeds considerably, helps in reading large files easily without hassles. So whether you have tons of spreadsheets, presentations, and Google Chrome tabs, your Lenovo ThinkPad E15 will handle it just fine.
All the data on this laptop is encrypted by the discrete Trusted Platform Module or dTPM for short. The Think Shutter is also present on the webcam to help protect from privacy invaders.
To even boot this laptop properly you need to use a fingerprint sensor embedded on the power button. If the device does not recognize you, you will not gain access to the laptop’s contents. Talk about security.
For just $900, you get all these features, but if you have money to spare you can always add in a discrete GPU, increase storage space and bump up the CPU specs.
Best Business Chromebook
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Google PixelBook Go i5
Google PixelBook Go might be the best Chromebook out there right now, but it is also a phenomenally sleek laptop perfect for business-oriented tasks.
The Google PixelBook Go is an amazing Chromebook with powerful specs. If you are well acquainted and like the ChromeOS better than Windows, this is the laptop for you.
While the ChromeOS does not exactly scream business, the sleek and slim design of this Chromebook appeals to many. Its portability will make anyone and everyone want to own it.
The amazing battery life, the portable and elegant build, the powerful specs, make it worth it. Not to mention it has built-in security features that will keep your data safe and secure.
The Core i5-8200Y is not the most powerful mobile CPU, but it is better than what most Chromebooks have. The CPU boosts at 3.90GHz while it sits at 1.30GHz base clock saving power where it can.
The base model has 8GB of RAM but you can extend it to 16GB if you are willing to spend money on it. We would suggest going for the i7 model if you want even more power but for a Chromebook, the i5 is more than enough.
128GB to 256GB of SSD in a Chromebook is also a very rare site as most Chromebooks have eMMC which, to be honest, is not the best storage option out there.
Lastly, Google’s own Titan C Chip for data protection and encryption keeps data safe. This makes your Google PixelBook perfectly safe for storing your office spreadsheets.