The 8 Best 14- to 16-Inch Laptops to Buy in 2017

Released at the tail end of 2016, Lenovo’s ThinkPad X1 Ultrabook is a shining example of everything you can want in a 14-inch laptop. Powered by a 2.6GHz Core i7 processor, 8GB of RAM and a 256GB SSD, there’s plenty of power under the hood for business tasks during the day and personal ones at night. The 14-inch 1920 x 1800 FHD IPS display offers excellent colors and great viewing angles for both browsing and videos. At just 2.6 pounds, the combination of fantastic performance and great display all make for a frame that’s easily portable.

The carbon fiber reinforced plastic lid and super magnesium body feel sturdy and solid in the hand and offer plenty of peace of mind that the X1 will stand up to some wear and tear. For the business user, the durable frame is complemented by added security options like a single-touch fingerprint reader that’s best utilized with Microsoft’s built-in Windows hello login. To the left of the fingerprint reader is the ultra-responsive touchpad that pairs fantastically with Lenovo’s spill-resistant world-class keyboard. Add in nine hours of battery life and the X1 is the total package for laptop buyers looking for the best experience on the market today. 

Apple’s release of their newest MacBook Pro line in late 2016 introduced one of the most dramatic changes to the series in recent memory. The introduction of the Touch Bar replaced the staple function keys with a touch-based menu that changes depending on the task you’re performing. It also includes Apple’s Touch ID “Apple-pay” system for a more secure online shopping experience, as well as 10 hours of battery life and speakers that are 58 percent louder than the previous generation.

Featuring a 2.6GHz quad-core Core i7 processor, 16GB of RAM and a 256GB SSD, there’s more than enough horsepower to tackle just about every task you can throw at the MacBook Pro. The 2880 x 1800 Retina display is so gorgeous that watching Netflix will be a whole new experience. All that power and performance come together in a single piece of aluminum that weighs just four pounds, which tips the 15.4-inch MacBook Pro into the slightly “heavier” category while being just 15.5mm thin. 

The Acer Aspire E features a 2.4GHz 7th generation Core i3 processor, 4GB RAM and a 1TB hard drive that all make for a performance that outpaces the wallet-friendly price tag. Add in a precision touchpad, 802.11ac connectivity featuring MU-MIMO technology and 12-hour battery life and the Acer feels very much like a computer that’s priced well below its true worth.

The 15.6-inch Full HD ComfyView LED-backlit LCD display offers an optimal viewing experience for movies, browsing and more. Additionally, Acer built in two proprietary technologies, including BluelightShield, which reduces eye strain and prevents fatigue when using the PC for lengthy periods of time. A built-in DVD drive is paired with Acer’s TrueHarmony speaker system, which Acer delightfully describes as “bringing movies to life.”

Released in late 2016 and featuring a 360-degree flip-and-fold design, Samsung’s Notebook 7 Spin is an outstanding choice and the best money spent on a 2-in-1 in today’s market. The 15.6-inch Full HD 1920 x 1080 touchscreen display offers great viewing angles and is responsive to the touch whether you're in laptop or tablet mode. Samsung has even included a new special labeled “HDR mode” that supports specialized content with better picture contrast and clarity.

The inclusion of a 2.5GHz Core i7 processor, 12GB RAM, 1TB of hard drive space and NVIDIA GeForce 940MX graphics mean superb day-to-day performance for both work and play. Additionally, the inclusion of the GeForce graphics card allows some mainstream games to work well at medium settings and full HD resolution. Finally, the Samsung Notebook 7 Spin has eight hours of battery life and weighs five pounds.

If it’s battery life you want, take a look at the Acer Swift 5 14-inch laptop, which has a long 13-hour battery life. It's powered by a 7th generation 2.7GHz Core i7 processor, 8GB of RAM and 256GBs of storage space. The 14-inch Full HD IPS Widescreen 1920 x 1080 display offers excellent viewing angles along with Acer’s TrueHarmony technology that adds stereo speakers for boosted sound. Additionally, the inclusion of 802.11ac connectivity with MU-MIMO technology offers a future-proofed network experience three times the wireless performance of previous generation technology.

The all-aluminum body is cool to the touch and just .57 inches thin, making it one of the thinnest notebooks in its class. Fortunately, the Swift 5 weighs just 2.87 pounds which make, the incredible 13 hours of battery life worth the price tag. An embedded fingerprint reader adds an extra layer of security that works with Windows Hello, so you can verify and log into your Windows 10 account within a few seconds.

At just 2.8 pounds, the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Yoga 2-in-1 is an outstanding choice for business travelers that offers both laptop and tablet mode in a 14-inch package that’s just .67 inches thin. The full-size back-lit keyboard is spill resistant and retracts automatically into the hardware when not in use as a laptop, so it remains unexposed to any desk or desktop surface. Additionally, the X1 Yoga is tested against military specifications, which make it the world’s most durable, thinnest and lightest business-focused laptop.

Powered by a 2.6GHz Core i7 processor, 8GB of RAM and 256GB of storage space, the X1 Yoga offers four different usage modes for work, presenting, creating and connecting. The 14-inch 2K (2560 x 1440) touchscreen display pairs with OLED technology for accurate colors and sharper contrast. A dockable stylus pen can recharge in just 15 seconds and offers 100 minutes of use for drawing and annotating notes or documents. Lightweight, powerful and with more than eight hours of battery life, the X1 Yoga is a business-focused dream machine.

Released in 2015, the Acer Chromebook 15 remains an outstanding choice for PC buyers who don’t want the burden of either Windows or Mac but still want the laptop-like experience. As the first Chromebook to offer a 1920 x 1080 15.6 inch Full HD display with wide viewing angles, the Chromebook 15 remains an excellent choice for laptop shoppers looking for something basic while still getting the full web experience you can’t easily duplicate on a tablet.

Powered by an Intel Celeron 1.5GHz processor, 4GB of RAM and a 32GB SSD, the Chromebook 15 performs well even with multiple tabs open. Plus, you can even install and run Linux on a Chromebook.

Ultimately, the entire Chromebook experience is based on the Chrome browser and it’s here that the Chromebook 15 shines. At nearly five pounds, the overall experience remains like its Windows and Mac counterparts, with a large and responsive touchpad that’s compliant with all of Chrome’s multitouch commands. The only slight downsides might be the seven hours of battery life and the fact that there’s a learning curve to living without a full application suite ala Windows 10 and MacOS Sierra.

Razer’s attempt to dominate the PC gaming market is in full swing and the 14-inch Razer Blade laptop is a stellar look at the company’s future. Featuring a .7 inch thin CNC aluminum chassis weighing just 4.16 pounds, the Razer Blade is arguably the world’s most advanced gaming notebook. Powered by a Core i7 processor, 16GB of RAM and 512GB of SSD storage space, the Blade is ready for the latest game releases. The advanced GeForce GTX 1060 GPU supports DirectX 12 features, which allows for high-definition and VR-ready performance that’s up to 3x faster than previous generation gaming machines.

Of course, playing games all comes down to the screen and the 14-inch IPS QHD+ touchscreen display does not disappoint, thanks to excellent wide viewing angles and an ultra-responsive touch display. Featuring 16.8-million colors per key, the Razer Chroma keyboard represents ground-breaking technology offering one of the best and fastest-responding keyboards on the market.