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I am going to be buying a new laptop but I am stuck between the following three choices. I would appreciate any advice that would help me make the best decision.

Laptop Use:

  • Heavy Programming: VS Code, Intellij IDEA, Android Studio, Pycharm (Memory Hogs).
  • Graphic Designing or Editings (very minor, would not used regularly): Adobe Illustrator, Photoshop, Wondershare Filmora.
  • Browsing: Chrome
  • (Student's) Assignments: Microsoft Office

Ideally, I would like to choose the best of the following three systems but I am not sure which of them would fit me the best.

1. System 1: HP Envy 13-aq1020TX

  • CPU: Intel Core i7-10510U (1.8GHz to 4.9GHz, 14nm Tech)
  • RAM: 16GB LPDDR4 2400MHz
  • Storage: 512GB PCIe (Gen not specified) + 32GB Intel Optane
  • Graphics: Nvidia MX250 (2 GB)
  • Battery: 53Wh
  • Audio: Bang & Olufsen, quad speakers, HP Audio Boost
  • Display: 13.3-inch Full HD (1920x1080) IPS micro-edge WLED-backlit touchscreen display
  • Wireless: Wifi5, Bluetooth 5.0
  • OS: Win 10 Home
  • Apps: Office Home & Student

2. System 2: ASUS ZenBook 14 UX433FA

  • CPU: Intel Core i7-10510U (1.8GHz to 4.9GHz, 14nm Tech)
  • RAM: 16GB LPDDR3 2133MHz
  • Storage: 1TB PCIe 3.0 x4 NvMe SSD
  • Graphics: Intel UHD Graphics 620
  • Battery: 50Wh
  • Audio: Audio by ICEpower®, Bang & Olufsen, harmon/ kardon
  • Display: 14" LED-backlit FHD (1920x1080) 100% sRGB color gamut, 178° wide-view technology
  • Wireless: Wifi6 (3x faster), Bluetooth 5.0
  • OS: Win 10 Home
  • Apps: Office Home & Student

3. System 3: Acer Swift 5 SF514-54T

  • CPU: Intel Core i7-1065G7 (1.3GHz to 3.9GHz, 10nm Tech, Accelarated Integrated Graphics)
  • RAM: 16GB LPDDR4 2133MHz
  • Storage: 512GB PCIe 3.0 x4 NvMe SSD
  • Graphics: Intel Iris Plus Graphics
  • Battery: 56Wh
  • Audio: (Not specified)
  • Display: 14" 1920x180 FHD CineCrystal technology Anti-glare touch IPS panel.
  • Another features: Wifi6 (3x faster), Bluetooth 5.0
  • OS: Win 10 Home
  • Apps: N/A

All of them have something better other having some other thing better, I am just not able to choose from.

Any comments are & other laptop recommendation is highly appreciated. A Google Sheets comparison chart follows.

Comparison chart

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2 Answers 2

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Excellent question, includes all the specs. You didn't include price, so I will not consider that. I suspect they are all similar in that respect.

CPU: Both the i7-1065G7 and i7-10510U have 4 cores, 8 threads, and 15W typical TDP. Despite the i7-10510U higher boost clock, the i7-1065G7's newer architecture offers some improvements that make it's overall performance better.

RAM: With the same size and speed, the only difference from DDR3 to DDR4 is the voltage. On the scale of 2 sticks in a laptop, 0.3V will not noticeably affect your battery life.

Storage: A perk of the architecture of NVMe SSDs is that larger sizes typically operate a little faster. Accelerating an NVMe drive with Optane will not give you much benefit, I'm not sure why they would do this...

Graphics: MX250 vs Intel Iris Plus vs UHD 620 These are all somewhat comparable and unless you get into Graphic design or gaming regularly, you may not notice much difference.

WiFi: While you will not see a difference now (in the early stages), as Wifi6 becomes mainstream, you will be glad you have it.

Thunderbolt 3: I believe this will only become more common and more useful over time. The Acer Swift 5 is the only one with it.

I would recommend System 3: Acer Swift 5 SF514-54T It has the longest battery life and may be extended further by the processor; Thunderbolt3; Wifi6; middle range in graphics of the three. All three laptops are good choices but if I had to choose one, this is it.

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  • Thanks for a detailed answer. I have another question, what do you think about theur build quality, and which one will last more (years).
    – Animesh Sahu
    May 29, 2020 at 3:21
  • The only one I can speak to on that is the ENVY. I had one that lasted me several years. Although it did eventually have screen problems, it was otherwise very good. All three are Aluminum construction so they will all likely be very sturdy. As the base specs are all similar, the biggest thing you will notice after a few years will be features like Wifi6 and Thunderbolt3.
    – Alphy13
    May 29, 2020 at 15:16
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Would your budget reach up to a Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Extreme 2nd Gen, superior in every way to the other three except in audio? (See the comparison chart added to the question.) It's what I have, and I love it; the extra two cores help, and Windows 10 Pro allows me to connect to domains in networks. Over two years in, battery life still > 3 hours.

You will appreciate the faster RAM in the Lenovos.

If not, I would suggest a Thinkpad Legion Y540 (also six-core) or other ThinkPads in the ₹90,000-₹149,999 bucket. ThinkPad documentation is the best in the industry, and the IBM Global field service included in the warranty is excellent. These are machines which likely will last through your school years and beyond without repair; I write this on a 2010 ThinkPad T420 still in service a decade later.

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  • Actually it is superior but due to heavy import duties (specially with Dell and Lenovo), its price becomes so huge, for instance its price in USA is 2,254$ equivalent to 1,70,684 INR. but it becomes 2,58,542 INR. And another reason I'm not favouring it is because it is bulky (1.7kg), because I'm going college next year I want my laptop to get into lectures and everywhere I need later. As always thanks for the valueable suggesstion I appreciate it, upvoted.
    – Animesh Sahu
    May 29, 2020 at 2:51
  • One another reason could be because it has high end GPU of TDP 35-50W, it might drain the battery in first few years. That's also not favourable in college life. Specially if one would bring laptop for some presentations (not sure, but if any).
    – Animesh Sahu
    May 29, 2020 at 3:02
  • The battery value shown in the spec sheets is the battery capacity not the power consumption. It's the size of the gas tank, not how rapidly it consumes it.
    – K7AAY
    May 29, 2020 at 22:55

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