Best Laptops of 2024: MacBook Air M3, XPS 14, Zephyrus G14 & More
We tested 18 laptops across categories. Here are the top picks for students, creators, gamers, and professionals.
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Our Top Picks
MacBook Air 13" M3 (16GB/512GB)
Ideal for students and mobile professionals who need all-day battery life and silent fanless performance for office apps, browsing, and light coding. It also suits light creative work such as photo editing and short 4K video clips thanks to the M3 chip and 16GB RAM, but not sustained heavy workloads.
Pro: 18h battery, fanless silence, M3 speed, 2.7 lb, 2 ext displays (lid closed) 60 Hz screen, 2 ports left side only, 8GB base insufficient Students, travelers, office workers — 90% of users
Con: Limited to two Thunderbolt/USB-C ports on the same side, with no HDMI, USB-A, or SD card slot, so most external devices require dongles or adapters.
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Dell XPS 14 (Core Ultra 7 / RTX 4050 / 3.2K OLED)
Video editors, 3D artists, Windows creative pros
Pro: Gorgeous 3.2K 120Hz OLED, RTX 4050 creator GPU, premium build 6-7h battery, zero-lattice keyboard learning curve, port poverty
Con: The RTX 4050 is severely power-limited to 30W, making it the slowest 4050 laptop in its class, while the chassis remains heavy (around 1.77 kg) for a 14-inch machine.
ASUS ROG Zephyrus G14 (2024, RTX 4070)
Gamers who travel, students needing GPU compute
Pro: RTX 4070 in 1.5kg, 3K OLED G-SYNC, full ports, AniMe Vision Soldered RAM (32GB max), single SSD, loud fans in Turbo
Con: The RAM is soldered to the motherboard and cannot be upgraded, locking you into the initial configuration for the entire lifespan of the laptop.
MacBook Pro 14" M3 Pro (18GB/512GB)
Developers, video pros, power users staying in macOS
Pro: 120Hz Mini-LED, M3 Pro/Max power, 14h battery, best speakers
Con: $1,999+, heavier (3.5lb), notch