TOP-9. The best 15 inch laptops. August 2021. Rating!

If a few years ago, when buying a mobile computer, the weight of the laptop was the last thing people paid attention to, now the situation has changed dramatically. The choice of these devices is so large that to better navigate among the many models, we have to make a separate review of the lightest laptops with the ideal combination of price and quality. In this way, you can help an inexperienced buyer understand what he needs and choose the most suitable model for his purposes. In this case, it is absolutely not necessary to choose one of the specified devices, but the list will help you understand what configurations are available on the laptop market and choose the optimal one. However, first of all, it is recommended to pay attention to the models from the following TOP 10.

HP 15s-eq0005ur

• Display diagonal: 15.6″
• Display resolution: 1920×1080
• Matrix type: IPS
• Processor: AMD Ryzen 5 3500U
• Video card: AMD Radeon Vega 8
• RAM: 16 GB
• Storage device: 512 GB, SSD NVMe
• Connection interfaces: HDMI, USB Type-C, USB 3.1 x 2
• Battery: 41 Wh
• Weight: 1.7 kg

The next model is also based on an APU processor from AMD. The design is homely, with a silver plastic matte finish. There are no metal elements. A good display with an IPS matrix, resolution, of course, Full HD. The frames are the same as most mid-budget models.

The processor has four cores and eight threads, a maximum frequency of 3.7 GHz. Model AMD Ryzen 5 3500U. The integrated Vega 8 graphics is more powerful, as it has eight cores and a frequency of 1200 MHz. There are very few modern games you can play; the maximum you can hope for is 40-70 FPS in HD resolution and at the lowest settings, depending on the game. But older projects can be played in Full HD and on a medium graphics preset.

16 GB of RAM at a not very high frequency for AMD, 2400 MHz. This is the maximum capacity for this laptop.

There are three USB ports, including Type-C. Apparently there is no RJ45 connector, but there is Wi-Fi 5. The battery capacity is average, but in operation with constant loads this may not be enough, as the cTDP of the processor reaches 35 W.

Pleasantly pleased with the weight, just over 1.7 kg. Overall, the model is good, but buyers note the lack of keyboard backlighting and not the best build quality. The manufacturer probably had to save money to meet the average budget without giving up more important components.

Decide on a goal

You need to determine for what purposes you need a laptop. For work, for study or for play. Will you use the device as a desktop computer or will you need to take your laptop with you on trips and business trips? For each purpose, a specific line of models with parameters and functions is recommended. The price of the device also varies depending on the purpose of purchase.

Which manufacturer to choose? Popular laptop manufacturing companies are Apple, DELL, HP, MSI, Acer, Lenovo, Asus.

Xiaomi Mi Notebook Pro 15.6 GTX (Intel Core i7,16GB/1000GB SSD, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1050)

• Display diagonal: 15.6″
• Display resolution: 1920×1080
• Matrix type: IPS
• Processor: Intel Core I7-8550U
• Video card: NVIDIA GeForce 1050 Max-Q
• RAM: 16 GB
• Storage device: 1 TB, SSD NVMe
• Connection interfaces: HDMI, USB Type-C x 2, USB 3.0 x 2
• Battery: 60 Wh
• Weight: 2 kg

Xiaomi laptops occupy a certain niche in the market. In part, they could be called the Chinese analogue of Apple, but of course without their own operating system. The difference from other competitors is noticeable at first glance, especially in terms of design. Of course, there are no unusual solutions here, but at least the case looks expensive and solid. I would say the same about the keyboard. It doesn't have a pad, so there's no need to save space or fidget around, all the keys are the correct width and length, and the touchpad has a large area, which makes it easier to handle.

But iron may seem controversial to some. The processor is a top-end one, model Core I7-8550U, with four threads and eight cores at a maximum frequency of 4 GHz. However, as the name might suggest, this is an older model, eighth generation, with a release date sometime in early 2021. However, this will not make the stone less productive.

The video card is also not new. The release date of NVIDIA GeForce 1050 Max-Q was at the beginning of 2021, however, some still manage to buy the desktop version of this card in stores, so the product is in demand, which is not always justified. Core frequencies are 1,151, 1,290 and 1,417 MHz depending on the operating mode. This is a good indicator for a laptop system. But the memory frequency is low for our days, only 7,000 MHz. For example, for the NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 Ti video card this figure is almost twice as high.

RAM 16 GB. Considering the general configuration of the laptop, an upgrade is not required here. The drive is for a whole terabyte, and you don’t have to change anything here either, unless you have an array of data that needs to be stored somewhere. Overall, the laptop is good, although the hardware is not the newest, but it is productive and time-tested.

Rating of the TOP 15 best 15-inch laptops of 2021

No. 11 - HP Pavilion 15-eh1017ur 3E3V0EA

Price: 57,000 rubles

Another laptop from HP. It has an attractive design and a very comfortable keyboard with tactile feedback, making it easy to type large amounts of text. The touchpad is sensitive to the owner's commands, so you can do without a mouse. If something happens, there will be no problems connecting it - the laptop has three USB ports.

In terms of performance, the model is slightly inferior to the device from the Chinese company - the processor here is weaker than the Ryzen 5 5500U. But the screen is better - due to the 15.6-inch diagonal, it is much more convenient to work on. After analyzing owner reviews, we did not find any significant shortcomings. So, the device deservedly made it into the article where we tell you which laptops are best to buy based on their characteristics in 2021.

HP Pavilion 15-eh1017ur 3E3V0EA

How to choose a 15.6 inch laptop?

When choosing a laptop, you should take into account not only its design and advertising indicators, but also real technical characteristics.

• Processor . There are currently 2 types of processors being produced - Intel or AMD, each of which has its fans and opponents and, in general, is distinguished by a combination of great advantages and some disadvantages. Processors aimed at increased performance are labeled “HQ” and are often characterized by the presence of a turbo mode, that is, very high clock frequencies. Such devices perform well in multitasking mode and usually meet the highest requirements for the applications they use. These are the chips that are preferred for gaming and professional multimedia laptops. Mid-range devices, as a rule, are equipped with chips whose names contain the letter “U”, which indicates an “average” performance, relatively energy-efficient processor, which is quite sufficient not only for solving everyday work tasks, but also for entertainment that does not require excessively high requirements for technical equipment: for watching movies, searching for information, communicating on social networks and playing games at relatively low graphics settings. Extremely economical processors, which are equipped with highly mobile laptops, are marked with the letter “Y” and are characterized by fairly low clock speeds. However, often such processors also have a turbo mode available, which significantly increases the clock frequency when fully loaded.
• Video card . As a rule, classic laptops intended for everyday Internet surfing, traditional games and solving work issues are equipped with a built-in graphics chip, the characteristics of which are quite sufficient to solve the daily tasks of the vast majority of users related to games, watching movies, communicating in instant messengers and working in standard office applications. Gaming, multimedia and professional laptops that require the use of “heavy” applications are often equipped with a separate video card (discrete), which is already capable of handling very high loads and can easily provide both fast plot rendering and high-quality work for a web designer or 3D animator. Traditionally, these are NVIDIA GeForce or AMD Radeon video cards. At the same time, game lovers who would not like to overpay for overly “gaming” laptop models are advised by professionals to opt for devices equipped with a GTX 1050 Ti or MX150 video card.
• Amount of RAM . The amount of RAM quite significantly affects the cost of a laptop. Thus, models with a cost not exceeding 30-40 thousand rubles are almost never equipped with more than 4 GB of RAM, while among more expensive models you can also find devices with 8 GB or more of RAM, which is already enough for comfortable multitasking work in standard applications, browser and instant messengers. For non-professional work in a photo editor, 6 GB of memory is enough. But for serious work with video, photography, and 3D graphics, you should choose at least 8-16 GB of RAM. It is worth keeping in mind that almost all modern laptops work with cloud services and do not require their own large storage device. At the same time, if there is still not enough memory, in most cases you can increase it yourself.
• Screen matrix . The brightness of the display determines how easy it is to use under different lighting levels. So, if you plan to turn on the laptop outdoors, then the brightness of the display should not be lower than 200 cd/sq.m, and it is desirable that the screen have an anti-reflective coating that does not reflect the sun's readings. To edit the finest designs and images, you need to choose a display with an IPS matrix, which provides ideal display of a variety of colors and the ability to view the screen from any angle. Models with a TN matrix are still found on the market, however, this matrix is ​​considered outdated and does not have such good viewing angles and less detailed colors. In this case, you should give preference to screens with a resolution of at least 1920 x 1080 or 1600 x 900, since at lower resolutions the pictures will be less clear, which is not very comfortable for daily use of the device.
• SSD or HDD . HDD is a traditional type of drive that is currently equipped in inexpensive or office laptops that do not have high requirements for performance and speed. In general, this is an acceptable solution, although not as fast, but very affordable and familiar. However, if you have a choice, you should still give preference to a configuration with an SSD drive, which provides fast flash memory and, as a result, increased device performance, as well as fast boot times and instantly launching applications. Also, good performance is provided by a mixed configuration, where a small SSD drive and a hard drive of at least 1 TB are used simultaneously.

No. 7 - Lenovo IdeaPad 5 15ARE05

Price: 63,990 rubles

The article in which we tell you which laptop is best to buy for home use has come to the equator. Lenovo IdeaPad 5 15ARE05 is a stylish device with a 15.6-inch IPS matrix and thin frames. The device looks cool even in the photo, things are even better in real life. There are no complaints about performance.

Thanks to the AMD Ryzen 5 4600U processor and 8 GB of RAM on the laptop, you can easily render high-quality videos, let alone simpler tasks. The keyboard, according to reviews, is comfortable. This has made the model a favorite choice of programmers. It also has a high-quality microphone that allows you to communicate with colleagues via Skype or Discord without connecting third-party devices. The icing on the cake of the device’s advantages is 11.5 hours of battery life.

Lenovo IdeaPad 5 15ARE05

#1 - Microsoft Surface Laptop 3 13.5

Price: 137,990 rubles

The article answering the question of which laptop manufacturer is better and more reliable has come to an end. The optimal offer on the market for work is Microsoft Surface Laptop 3 13.5. This is a miniature device with an attractive design and a symmetrical frame around the perimeter of a 13.5-inch screen with a resolution of 2256 by 1504 pixels. The image on such a matrix looks detailed and realistic due to IPS panel manufacturing technology.

Inside the metal case is an AMD Ryzen 7 3780U processor, 16 GB of RAM and a 512 GB SSD drive. The battery lasts for 12 hours, and the touchpad is the best you'll find in a laptop. It is sensitive, nimble and does not lag at all. The situation is similar with the keyboard - owners literally praise it in reviews. The main disadvantage of the model, besides the price, is the presence of only two USB ports. In this matter, Microsoft decided to follow Apple.

Microsoft Surface Laptop 3 13.5
We told you which company's laptop is the best in 2021. Do you disagree with our opinion or have something to add? Write in the comments.