Laptops come in many shapes and sizes. From classic clamshells to convertibles capable of switching into tablet mode, and running Apple’s macOS or Microsoft Windows or Google’s Chrome OS.

This year, there are numerous exciting options such as the Samsung Galaxy Book 3 Ultra that offers powerful day-to-day performance in an attractive design. Other choices like Alienware M16 R2 and ZenBook Duo provide dual screen functionality.

1. Dell XPS 13 Plus

Dell recently revamped its XPS 13 lineup by making it smaller, giving it futuristic aesthetics, and upgrading it with Intel Raptor Lake CPUs, among the fastest ultraportable processors available today. Furthermore, this 2023 model also adds an enhanced OLED display designed for media consumption as well as offering full DCI P3 and Adobe RGB coverage.

This sleek machine is truly impressive, boasting one of the thinnest bezels around its 13.4-inch display: just 0.7 inch. Additionally, its keyboard has no spaces between keys and its haptic touchpad is virtually undetectable – yet feels premium and sturdy with very minimal flex when using all aluminum construction.

This ultraportable comes equipped with two Thunderbolt 4 connectors on either side, leaving only enough ports for adapters or docking stations if you want to connect any USB-A devices that don’t meet specific standards like Windows Hello logins without passwords. There’s also no USB-C charging port – something often neglected on these slim ultraportables.

2. Samsung Galaxy Book 3 Ultra

Samsung’s latest laptop incorporates many of the technologies found on its Galaxy smartphones. A stunning, high-resolution 120Hz 3K AMOLED display and powerful Intel and Nvidia processors help make this laptop an excellent tool for content creation and gaming, with the machined aluminum frame feeling more luxurious than plastic Dell machines and ecosystem tie-ins with Galaxy Buds, Watches or SmartThings devices making this laptop more appealing than rival models.

Even the entry-level model equipped with a 13th Generation Intel Core i9 CPU, Nvidia RTX 4070 laptop GPU and 32GB of RAM is capable of playing PC games at full HD resolution with ease, making this an excellent option for content creators who also own Samsung phones, tablets or appliances.

The Book 3 Ultra is an elegant, slim and lightweight alternative to MacBook Pro 16, Dell XPS 15 OLED, HP Envy 16 and Asus Zenbook Pro 16X OLED laptops. With its subdued graphite finish and hidden Samsung logo, this notebook blends in well at work or school without raising eyebrows – it weighs less than half that of its counterparts and even comes in at half its size and weight! Compared to MacBook Pro 16, its weight and size is reduced considerably and it is one pound lighter than its rival XPS 15.

3. Alienware m16 r2

This laptop is ideal for gaming as well as productivity work, boasting up to a 14th-Gen Intel Core i9-14900HX CPU and NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 laptop GPUs – as well as up to 64GB LPDDR5X memory capacity. Furthermore, Intel’s new Meteor Lake processor has also been included which excels at AI workloads.

The M16 R2 laptop is an excellent choice for engineering and design due to its powerful processor and high-resolution display. While heavier than average gaming laptops at 5.62 pounds, its battery drains faster when video editing; nonetheless it still performed very well during our video-editing benchmark tests. Furthermore, its island-style keyboard boasts excellent key travel and per-key RGB lighting features for an exceptional experience.

The Alienware M16 R2 features plenty of ports, such as two USB-A 3.2 Gen 1 ports, an RJ45 Ethernet port and headphone jacks. Furthermore, “Stealth Mode” quiets fans while dimming down its gamer aesthetic when necessary.

4. ZenBook Duo

Asus really nailed the dual-screen laptop concept with this machine from their brand Asus, boasting two beautiful OLED displays, a kickstand, multiple laptop and desktop modes and an extensive set of ports. Furthermore, there’s an outstanding keyboard and some cool software features; unfortunately its battery life may limit gaming sessions.

Contrasting most dual-screen machines that ship with their keyboard tucked snugly between screens for transport, this all-in-one design feels extremely sturdy. While thicker than some competing models such as Lenovo Yoga Book 9i, this doesn’t feel flimsy or cheap.

Inside, the Zenbook Duo features an Intel Core Ultra processor and Neural Processing Unit (NPU) for AI acceleration. When tested using Geekbench 5, its performance was comparable to Dell XPS 16 and Lenovo Yoga Book laptops; though not quite up to par with an Apple MacBook Air.

5. Acer Aspire 5

The Aspire 5 is an ideal entry-level laptop for everyday office tasks, featuring an Intel processor that’s both cost-efficient and functional. While its display may be subpar, it still manages to do its job effectively. Furthermore, there are multiple ports such as two USB-A 3.2 Gen 1 ports, Gigabit RJ45 Ethernet connectivity, Thunderbolt 4 specs Type C ports.

SK Hynix SSD storage offers good transfer speeds; however, due to only running in single-channel mode it leaves much computing power unused compared to competing machines for demanding applications like web browsing and productivity tasks. It may not meet all requirements but may easily handle them.

It’s also suitable for light gaming. It can play popular esports titles smoothly at medium settings and 30 FPS or lower with ease, and more performance can be extracted by upgrading RAM if necessary – especially useful if starting an intensive major like filmmaking, which might require adding RAM later. Unfortunately, this laptop comes cluttered with Norton pop-ups and alerts from time to time – though this software can easily be uninstalled quickly.