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The Best Laptop Deals This Week*
*Deals are selected by our commerce team
If you’re a big-picture sort of person, you need a laptop to match. You yearn for a notebook (the word “laptop” is a bit of a misnomer for these bulky thigh-crushers) that not only capably replaces a desktop PC but also gives you an easy-on-the-eyes, panoramic view of your workspace or playing field. That likely means a 17- or 18-inch model, the largest popular screen sizes in the portable universe.Most 17-inch laptops feature displays that, technically, measure 17.3 inches on the diagonal (just as many so-called 15-inch laptops usually measure 15.6 inches from corner to corner). That’s enough for a magnified view of full HD or 1080p resolution (1,920 by 1,080 pixels), or a comfortable view of higher resolutions, such as 4K (3,840 by 2,160), which can make you squint on a smaller screen.But as screens with a taller 16:10 aspect ratio have gotten popular, several 18-inch models have come to market. The resolution numbers may be slightly different—2,560 by 1,600 is the most popular option of the moment—but these screen goliaths frequently offer amped-up, maxed-out components for PC gaming and hard-charging professional work.Ready to go big? Read on for a breakdown of our current top-tested 17- and 18-inch laptops for 2024 in a variety of user categories. Our product picks are followed by a detailed guide to what to look for in a big-screen laptop, and we conclude with a spec breakout of those top picks.
Since 1982, PCMag has tested and rated thousands of products to help you make better buying decisions. See how we test.
Deeper Dive: Our Top Tested Picks
Dell XPS 17 (9730)
Best Overall 17-Inch or 18-Inch Laptop for Everyday Use
Why We Picked ItThe XPS model line is Dell’s flagship, showcasing the best the company has to offer in design, features, and innovation. The XPS 17’s build may look just like the previous model’s, but the 2023 version offers Intel 13th Gen and Nvidia GeForce RTX 40 Series silicon for performance and graphics that propel it to the top of the category. Paired with a 4K touch screen and Dell’s nearly bezel-free edge-to-edge panels, and the XPS 17 continues to reign as our top big-screen pick for everyday use.Who It’s ForFor a powerful desktop replacement that rivals the best Windows and Mac laptops on the market, the XPS 17 (9730) offers an unbeatable combination of processing and graphics power; a gorgeous, expansive screen; and capability that will satisfy everyone—from casual users to demanding professionals. The only complaints? The webcam is just 720p, and you’ll want to bring appropriate adapters to really take advantage of the laptop’s Thunderbolt 4 ports.
PROS
Superior all-around performance at its size
Punchy graphics options
Classic high-end design and metal build
Beautiful 4K touch-display option
Four Thunderbolt 4 ports, adapter for USB-A and HDMI included
CONS
Still only includes a disappointing 720p webcam
Notably higher starting price than before
Still no OLED screen option
SPECS
Name
Value
Laptop Class
Desktop Replacement
Processor
Intel Core i7-13700H
Processor Speed
RAM (as Tested)
32 GB
Boot Drive Type
SSD
Boot Drive Capacity (as Tested)
1 TB
Screen Size
17 inches
Native Display Resolution
3840 by 2400
Touch Screen
Panel Technology
IPS
Variable Refresh Support
None
Screen Refresh Rate
60 Hz
Graphics Processor
Nvidia GeForce RTX 4070 Laptop GPU
Graphics Memory
8 GB
Wireless Networking
802.11ax (Wi-Fi 6), Bluetooth
Dimensions (HWD)
0.77 by 14.7 by 9.8 inches
Weight
5.4 lbs
Operating System
Windows 11
Tested Battery Life (Hours:Minutes)
12:16
Learn More
Dell XPS 17 (9730) Review
MSI CreatorPro X17
Best 17-Inch Content Creation Laptop
Why We Picked ItMSI is best known for its gaming laptops, but it is no slouch at making mobile workstations for demanding jobs in 3D design, CGI rendering, engineering, and scientific analysis. The CreatorPro X17 is the serious sibling of MSI’s mighty GT77 Titan gaming rig, loaded with independent software vendor (ISV) certifications for professional apps and a gorgeous 4K display. Nvidia’s RTX A5500 professional GPU and Intel’s blazing Core i9-12900HX, along with up to 128GB of RAM and 8TB of storage, make this MSI laptop ready for virtually any task.Who It’s ForFactory color-calibrated for prepress work, 4K video editing, or computer-aided design or animation, the MSI CreatorPro X17 is a pricey and powerful workhorse (if not a very portable one). It’s one of the best notebook workstations we’ve tested to date, making it an excellent fit for content-creation professionals.
PROS
Category-leading performance
Delightful 17-inch 4K display
Eye-catching RGB keyboard
Huge port selection
CONS
Massive design limits portability
Expensive in every configuration
SPECS
Name
Value
Laptop Class
Workstation, Desktop Replacement
Processor
Intel Core i9-12900HX
Processor Speed
RAM (as Tested)
64 GB
Boot Drive Type
SSD
Boot Drive Capacity (as Tested)
2 TB
Screen Size
17.3 inches
Native Display Resolution
3840 by 2160
Touch Screen
Panel Technology
IPS
Variable Refresh Support
None
Screen Refresh Rate
120 Hz
Graphics Processor
Nvidia RTX A5500
Graphics Memory
16 GB
Wireless Networking
Wi-Fi 6E, Bluetooth 5.2
Dimensions (HWD)
0.91 by 15.63 by 12.99 inches
Weight
6.82 lbs
Operating System
Windows 11 Pro
Tested Battery Life (Hours:Minutes)
6:29
Learn More
MSI CreatorPro X17 Review
Asus ROG Strix G17 (2023)
Best 17-Inch Budget Gaming Laptop
Why We Picked ItFor a big-screen gaming machine that won’t require big spending, look to the Asus ROG Strix G17 (2023). It drives serious CPU performance with an AMD Ryzen 9 processor, and the Nvidia GeForce RTX 4060 GPU offers speedy performance for 1080p gaming, all for a relatively reasonable $1,399. However, the real treat for the cash-strapped gamer is the 17-inch 1440p display, which has an impressive 240Hz refresh rate, complete with Nvidia G-Sync for optimal gaming performance.Who It’s ForPerfect for gamers on a budget, the 17-inch Asus ROG Strix G17 (2023) pumps out steady entry-level performance, plus a bright and vibrant high-performance display. Of course, it does all this at a price that will leave you with a little cash left over for the next Steam Sale.
PROS
Speedy CPU
Colorful, vibrant, easy-to-see display
Decent price with Walmart offer
CONS
Pitiful battery life
No USB4 ports
SPECS
Name
Value
Laptop Class
Gaming
Processor
AMD Ryzen 9 7845HX
Processor Speed
RAM (as Tested)
16 GB
Boot Drive Type
SSD
Boot Drive Capacity (as Tested)
1 TB
Screen Size
17.3 inches
Native Display Resolution
2560 by 1440
Touch Screen
Panel Technology
IPS
Variable Refresh Support
G-Sync
Screen Refresh Rate
240 Hz
Graphics Processor
Nvidia GeForce RTX 4060
Graphics Memory
8 GB
Wireless Networking
802.11ax, Bluetooth
Dimensions (HWD)
1.21 by 15.55 by 11.1 inches
Weight
6.08 lbs
Operating System
Windows 11 Home
Tested Battery Life (Hours:Minutes)
3:41
Learn More
Asus ROG Strix G17 (2023) Review
MSI Titan GT77 (2023)
Best 17-Inch Gaming Laptop
Why We Picked ItPause while we bang our heads back and forth and yell “Extreme!” That starts with the price—our MSI Titan GT77 review unit cost $4,599—and extends to its blistering performance, thanks to an Intel Core i9-13980HX and Nvidia GeForce RTX 4090. Not to be outdone, this laptop additionally houses a glorious 4K mini LED display with 144Hz refresh rate, a hefty 64GB of memory, and a hearty 2TB of storage. You want bragging rights? You got ’em.Who It’s ForObviously, this MSI is for cost-no-object, harder-than-hardcore gamers who want to play the most demanding titles at ferocious frame rates. You also don’t mind a laptop that weighs 7.3 pounds with fans so loud they’ll drown out the robot vacuum going off in the same room. The Asus ROG Strix Scar 18 is actually a better deal among ultimate big-screen gaming rigs, but the Titan rules the 17.3-inch class.
PROS
Blistering performance
Brilliant 4K 144Hz display
Respectable battery life for its category
Understated design makes this big laptop look sleek
CONS
Prohibitively expensive
Quite heavy, especially when you add the huge power brick
Loud fans, under normal use, rise to ear-splitting under heavy load
4K gaming requires DLSS 3 and frame-generation technology
Still just a 720p webcam
SPECS
Name
Value
Laptop Class
Gaming
Processor
Intel Core i9-13980HX
Processor Speed
RAM (as Tested)
64 GB
Boot Drive Type
SSD
Boot Drive Capacity (as Tested)
2 TB
Screen Size
17.3 inches
Native Display Resolution
3840 by 2160
Touch Screen
Panel Technology
Mini LED
Variable Refresh Support
None
Screen Refresh Rate
144 Hz
Graphics Processor
Nvidia GeForce RTX 4090
Graphics Memory
16 GB
Wireless Networking
Wi-Fi 6E, Bluetooth
Dimensions (HWD)
0.9 by 15.6 by 12.9 inches
Weight
7.27 lbs
Operating System
Windows 11
Tested Battery Life (Hours:Minutes)
6:51
Learn More
MSI Titan GT77 (2023) Review
Alienware m18 R2
Best 18-Inch Gaming Laptop
Why We Picked ItIf you’re shopping for an 18-inch gaming laptop, portability is hardly your top concern, and that’s fine because the Alienware m18 R2 is a beast—both in performance and presence. You’ll get blistering processing and gaming speeds with Intel’s latest 14th Gen HX chips and Nvidia’s most up-to-date GeForce graphics, and a choice of visuals with either a QHD+ 165Hz display or an FHD+ 480Hz option. You can even add a Cherry MX mechanical keyboard for an extra premium flair. Top configurations will get pricey, but it’s the best 18-incher for most shoppers and gamers.Who It’s ForIf you’re shopping for a big-screen gaming laptop, you know that machines with top-end hardware will deliver the best performance to justify the larger display. The Alienware m18 R2 isn’t the most expensive, but top configurations drive superb performance, making it a standout in the growing 18-inch category.
PROS
Blistering processing and gaming performance
Relatively approachable starting price
QHD+ 165Hz display with FHD+ 480Hz option
Optional mechanical Cherry MX keyboard
CONS
Expensive as tested
Heavy, even for its size
Screen could be brighter
SPECS
Name
Value
Laptop Class
Gaming
Processor
Intel Core i9-14900HX
Processor Speed
RAM (as Tested)
32 GB
Boot Drive Type
SSD
Boot Drive Capacity (as Tested)
2 TB
Screen Size
18 inches
Native Display Resolution
2560 by 1600
Touch Screen
Panel Technology
IPS
Variable Refresh Support
G-Sync
Screen Refresh Rate
165 Hz
Graphics Processor
Nvidia GeForce RTX 4090 Laptop GPU
Graphics Memory
16 GB
Wireless Networking
Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth
Dimensions (HWD)
1.05 by 16.2 by 12.6 inches
Weight
8.9 lbs
Operating System
Windows 11
Tested Battery Life (Hours:Minutes)
6:45
Learn More
Alienware m18 R2 Review
MSI Titan 18 HX
Best Cost-No-Object 18-Inch Gaming Laptop
Why We Picked ItMaximum power comes at a price, and the MSI Titan 18 HX proves how true that is. Stacked with an Intel Core i9-14900HX CPU and an Nvidia GeForce RTX 4090 GPU, this 18-inch powerhouse bested the competition in benchmarks and gameplay alike, and it pushes the envelope further with a superb 4K 120Hz mini LED display and choice mechanical Cherry MX keyboard. The feature set is premium and the performance is top-notch, but the price makes it clear that this superpowered gaming laptop isn’t for everyone. If money is no object, then MSI Titan 18 HX is the big-budget gaming laptop to buy.Who It’s ForWhen power and premium features matter far more than a pesky price tag, the MSI Titan 18 HX is the 18-inch laptop to get. It may be expensive, but it’s the most powerful 18-inch gaming laptop we’ve seen, with desktop-like performance and a display that shows off the system’s unmatched frame rates.
PROS
Unmatched gaming performance
Plenty of power (and memory) for professional workloads
18-inch 4K 120Hz mini LED display
Haptic glass touchpad with customizable lighting
Mechanical Cherry MX keyboard
CONS
Prohibitively expensive
Big and heavy
Short battery life
SPECS
Name
Value
Laptop Class
Gaming, Desktop Replacement
Processor
Intel Core i9-14900HX
Processor Speed
RAM (as Tested)
128 GB
Boot Drive Type
SSD
Boot Drive Capacity (as Tested)
4 TB
Screen Size
18 inches
Native Display Resolution
3840 by 2400
Touch Screen
Panel Technology
Mini LED
Variable Refresh Support
None
Screen Refresh Rate
120 Hz
Graphics Processor
Nvidia GeForce RTX 4090 Laptop GPU
Graphics Memory
16 GB
Wireless Networking
Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth
Dimensions (HWD)
1.25 by 15.9 by 12 inches
Weight
7.93 lbs
Operating System
Windows 11
Tested Battery Life (Hours:Minutes)
2:53
Learn More
MSI Titan 18 HX Review
Acer Chromebook 317
Best 17-Inch Chromebook
Why We Picked ItThe days when most Chromebooks were dinky 11.6-inch laptops for grade-schoolers are over. But 17.3-inch desktop replacements are ultra-rare in the ChromeOS world. Acer’s Chromebook 317 is an economy model, with an Intel Celeron instead of a faster Core processor, and 64GB of eMMC flash storage instead of a 128GB or larger SSD. Regardless, the Chromebook 317 will put your favorite websites and online apps on a big screen for a low price, with a comfortable keyboard and four USB ports.Who It’s ForWeb surfing, email, YouTube or Netflix video, and Google Workspace (i.e. Google Docs) productivity are fine applications for the Chromebook 317 and exactly what we expect from it. True, the display could be brighter and there’s no HDMI port (so you’ll need a USB-C DisplayPort adapter to plug in an external monitor), but this 5.2-pound portable more than handles the basics for comfortably under $400.
PROS
Jumbo 1080p display
Comfortable-feel keyboard
Two USB-C and two USB-A ports, plus a microSD card slot
Low price
CONS
No HDMI port or backlit keyboard
Tepid performance
Screen could be brighter
Weak sound
SPECS
Name
Value
Laptop Class
Chromebook, Desktop Replacement
Processor
Intel Celeron N4500
Processor Speed
1.1 GHz
RAM (as Tested)
4 GB
Boot Drive Type
eMMC Flash Memory
Boot Drive Capacity (as Tested)
64 GB
Screen Size
17.3 inches
Native Display Resolution
1920 by 1080
Touch Screen
Panel Technology
IPS
Variable Refresh Support
None
Screen Refresh Rate
60 Hz
Graphics Processor
Intel UHD Graphics
Graphics Memory
Wireless Networking
802.11ax (Wi-Fi 6), Bluetooth
Dimensions (HWD)
0.89 by 15.8 by 10.5 inches
Weight
5.18 lbs
Operating System
Google Chrome OS
Tested Battery Life (Hours:Minutes)
9:10
Learn More
Acer Chromebook 317 Review
LG Gram Pro 17 (2023)
Best 17-Inch Laptop for Portability (Gaming or General Use)
Why We Picked ItThe LG Gram Pro 17 is an impressively lightweight 17-inch laptop with a stunning 16:10 display, speedy performance, and lengthy battery life. Despite being slightly heavier than its predecessor due to the inclusion of a discrete Nvidia GeForce graphics chip, it is still a highly portable desktop replacement laptop. The RTX 3050 may be on the low side among recent Nvidia GPUs, but it’s still suitable for light gaming and is helpful for content creators. Though its flimsy feel and higher price keep it from repeating as an Editors’ Choice winner, it remains a pleasant surprise if you seek a large-screened and lightweight laptop.Who It’s ForIf you want a powerful desktop replacement laptop with a large, beautiful display and without the usual added weight, definitely consider the LG Gram Pro 17. It’s also capable of mild gaming as well as relatively heavy content creation workloads. Overall, the LG Gram Pro 17 is the best choice for a lightweight and large-screened laptop with potent performance and long battery life.
PROS
Remarkably light for a 17-inch laptop
Big, beautiful 16:10 display with variable refresh
Long battery life
GeForce GPU suitable for light gaming
CONS
Flexible bordering on flimsy
Awkward top-row keys
Poor audio
SPECS
Name
Value
Laptop Class
Desktop Replacement
Processor
Intel Core i7-1360P
Processor Speed
RAM (as Tested)
16 GB
Boot Drive Type
SSD
Boot Drive Capacity (as Tested)
1 TB
Screen Size
17 inches
Native Display Resolution
2560 by 1600
Touch Screen
Panel Technology
IPS
Variable Refresh Support
Manual
Screen Refresh Rate
144 Hz
Graphics Processor
Nvidia GeForce RTX 3050
Graphics Memory
4 GB
Wireless Networking
Wi-Fi 6E, Bluetooth
Dimensions (HWD)
0.7 by 14.9 by 10.2 inches
Weight
3.2 lbs
Operating System
Windows 11 Home
Tested Battery Life (Hours:Minutes)
17:55
Learn More
LG Gram Pro 17 (2023) Review
Razer Blade 18
Best 18-Inch Laptop for Portability (Gaming or General Use)
Why We Picked ItTo be clear: The Razer Blade 18 didn’t take top honors for one big reason: It’s too expensive for our liking. But this is the laptop if you want an 18-inch gaming laptop with Razer’s distinct style and slim design. The Blade 18 is no slouch—you get an 18-inch QHD 240Hz display, a potent Intel Core i9-13950HX processor, and an Nvidia GeForce RTX 4080 GPU—and we praised the Blade 18’s blazing-fast gaming performance in our review. On top of that, the Blade 18 oozes premium look-and-feel. You won’t find the slim chassis, narrow display bezels, and relatively light (6.8-pound) weight on any other 18-incher we’ve reviewed.Who It’s ForFor gamers who want to game on a fast and sharp-looking 18-inch screen, but don’t want the bulk and weight of other 18-inch gaming laptops, the Razer Blade 18 is the premium gaming machine to buy. However, note that this laptop is also intended for deep-pocketed enthusiasts, costing $3,799 as tested.
PROS
Beautiful 18-inch QHD 240Hz display
Latest parts inside
Thin all-metal design retains premium feel
Robust port offering
CONS
Competitors are superior performers at a similar price
So-so battery life
Heavy, despite thin build
Condensed keyboard for the chassis size, despite lack of a numpad
SPECS
Name
Value
Laptop Class
Gaming
Processor
Intel Core i9-13950HX
Processor Speed
RAM (as Tested)
32 GB
Boot Drive Type
SSD
Boot Drive Capacity (as Tested)
1 TB
Screen Size
18 inches
Native Display Resolution
2560 by 1600
Touch Screen
Panel Technology
IPS
Variable Refresh Support
G-Sync
Screen Refresh Rate
240 Hz
Graphics Processor
Nvidia GeForce RTX 4080 Laptop GPU
Graphics Memory
12 GB
Wireless Networking
Wi-Fi 6E, Bluetooth
Dimensions (HWD)
0.86 by 15.74 by 10.83 inches
Weight
6.8 lbs
Operating System
Windows 11
Tested Battery Life (Hours:Minutes)
6:34
Learn More
Razer Blade 18 Review
Buying Guide: The Best 17-Inch and 18-Inch Laptops for 2024
If you’re a multi-window user on your laptop or your eyesight is challenged, a 17- or 18-inch screen can be a godsend. On the negative side, this screen size dictates a bulky machine—one that’s often too big for a briefcase, requiring a special laptop bag, a backpack, or a roller bag, and too heavy for more than occasional transport between home and office or cubicle and conference room.The lightest big-screen laptops, with one major exception, generally weigh in at under seven pounds. (The one big outlier, the LG Gram Pro 17, is an extraordinary case that comes in at under three pounds.) The heaviest, which are invariably gaming models, tip the scales at a back-breaking 7 pounds or more, and in some cases, that’s not counting hefty AC power bricks. Airline tray table? Forget it. More like checked baggage.
(Credit: Molly Flores)
Nor should you expect long battery life from a plus-size notebook. These machines are designed to run on AC power most of the time. If yours can endure unplugged for more than four hours, consider yourself lucky. (Just take a look at the tested runtimes of our favorites in our spec comparison table.)So, are these trade-offs too much to suffer merely for a pleasing view? Are luggables just the large-print books of the laptop world?No—they’re also the performance leaders. Their larger shells accommodate the most powerful processors and graphics cards, the strongest cooling systems, the most memory, and multiple solid-state drives (SSDs) or hard drives for ample storage. They have plenty of room for all the ports you might need, as well as spacious, near-desktop-class keyboards with full keypads for numeric data entry.Jumbo laptops aren’t for frequent fliers, but they fill a big niche. Let’s look at what they can do, and what to look for as you shop for one.Work or Play: What Is Your 17- or 18-Inch Laptop For?A few 17-inch and 18-inch laptops are general-purpose PCs for people who want an occasionally portable system with a large screen. Most, however, fall into one of two camps with opposed, but equally hardcore, audiences: mobile workstations, and serious gaming laptops.Both types can handle what many PC users think of as work: office productivity and email using Word, Excel, Outlook, Chrome, Slack, and so on. But mobile workstations, as seen in our special guide, laugh at such modest apps. Instead, they carry independent software vendor (ISV) certifications of compatibility and smooth operation with programs for way tougher computing jobs: computer-aided design (CAD) and advanced 3D modeling and rendering, crunching through huge scientific or engineering datasets, or delving into video editing and the creation of worlds for virtual reality. And they rely on state-of-the-art CPU and GPU power to do so.
(Credit: Joseph Maldonado)
With the exception that CPU muscle is a little less important while GPU strength is paramount, much the same applies to gaming laptops. They’re designed to play the latest and greatest titles at high speeds—at least 60 frames per second, double the rate recognized as providing minimally smooth gameplay—with all the visual details and eye candy turned up to 11. Onscreen stuttering or tearing just won’t cut it. Lag can be fatal during a frag fest.Whichever class of giant-screen machine you are considering, you’re likely drawn to it by the one big thing the two main types have in common: the screen. Let’s look at that.What Kind of Display Is Best in a 17-Inch or 18-Inch Laptop?In the 17-inch and emerging 18-inch laptop classes, workstations and gaming laptops alike benefit from choosing the right screen type. A solid baseline pick would be an in-plane switching (IPS) or indium gallium zinc oxide (IGZO) panel, which gives you the sharpest colors and contrast, as well as the widest off-center viewing angles. Touch screens aren’t very popular in either class, with both gamers and workstation pros preferring the pixel-by-pixel control of a mouse.Gamers often choose displays capped at 1080p resolution for high frame rates’ sake; fast gaming at 4K resolution requires a costly, top-of-the-line graphics processor (GPU), like those in the 4080 or 4090 reaches of Nvidia’s GeForce RTX 4000 series. By contrast, some workstation users enjoy the highest-resolution screen possible to mimic the desktop experience of multiple monitors or for editing 4K video. Some mobile workstations also excel at precisely matching what’s seen on screen to your finished work’s destined output, offering a choice of the web’s sRGB, print’s Adobe RGB, or cinema’s DCI-P3 palettes or color spaces. A few recent models from makers such as Asus and Gigabyte also come with validations by Pantone for color accuracy.
(Credit: Molly Flores)
Most standard laptop LCDs have a refresh rate of 60Hz, redrawing the image on the screen 60 times per second. That’s fine for the human eye—television is 30Hz and most movies are 24Hz—and for 90% or more of applications and users. But it’s not enough for fanatic gamers who’ve invested in graphics chips that can crank out more than 60 frames per second. Hence the availability of gaming laptops with so-called “high refresh” 120Hz, 144Hz, 240Hz, or even 300Hz and 360Hz displays. (See more about whether you need a high-refresh display.) Shoppers in this stratosphere will also find some screens that support Nvidia’s G-Sync technology, able to synchronize the refresh rate of the display on the fly to the GPU’s output for smoother appearances.CPU, Memory, and Storage: Which Components to Get in a 17-Inch or 18-Inch Laptop?When it comes to CPUs, Intel parts teamed with discrete Nvidia GeForce or Nvidia RTX A-series (formerly Quadro) graphics processors lead the popularity contest over AMD’s mobile Ryzen 5 and 7 chips with their integrated graphics or discrete Radeon and Radeon Pro GPU solutions. The most popular option for 17-inch and 18-inch gaming notebooks is Intel’s Core i7 and Core i9 H series, not the lighter-hitting Core i7 U- or P-series CPUs that show up in thinner, lighter laptops. The mighty—and mighty costly—Core i9 chips occupy the top of the market. (Read much more on choosing the right laptop CPU.) For mobile workstations, the Core i7 and Core i9 are joined by Intel’s Xeon processors, which offer support for server-style, error-correcting code (ECC) memory. Though outside the mainstream for ISV apps, ECC’s ability to detect and fix single-bit memory errors is a plus for scientific, architectural, or financial computing jobs intolerant of even the slightest data corruption.
(Credit: Charles Jefferies)
Regular, non-ECC RAM will serve just fine for most buyers, though. An allotment of 8GB of memory is the bare minimum for a modern Windows laptop, with 16GB really the floor for power machines like most 17- and 18-inch models are. (More than 32GB is not usually necessary, unless you have the budget to burn, or will also do heavy-duty content creation work or streaming in addition to your gaming.) Workstations have a heartier appetite for RAM, with 32GB a practical minimum; many models support a whopping 64GB or 128GB. In the case of a workstation portable, you’ll want to look into the specific RAM requirements of the applications you plan to run to gauge how much you should splurge on memory.As for storage, look for one or two M.2 solid-state drives, possibly joined by one or two 2.5-inch hard drives—the SSD for the operating system and favorite applications, the roomier hard drive for games and data. (Increasingly, though, the drives beyond the boot drive these days are SSDs, too.) Most performance-conscious portables use slightly quicker PCI Express (PCIe) rather than SATA solid-state drives; PCIe has mostly taken over the field at this point. In connection with PCIe SSDs, you’ll often see the acronym “NVMe” (for Non-Volatile Memory Express) bandied around, as well as a few proprietary monikers, such as HP mobile workstations’ Z Turbo Drives. Both indicate the fastest SSDs. (See our guide to the best PCI Express NVMe SSDs.) Some SSDs are in the M.2 form factor and upgradable; others may be soldered down, and not.Half a terabyte of storage (for an SSD-only system) is the smallest amount you should accept; 1TB or 1.5TB is more mainstream, and some workstations include up to 3TB or 4TB of capacity. If money is a limiter, a smaller SSD (say 256GB or 500GB) as the boot drive, paired with a roomy hard drive, is a fine compromise. A 17-inch or 18-inch laptop is most likely to have room for both. Some may have an empty bay to let you install an aftermarket 2.5-inch drive or an M.2 SSD yourself. This can be an economical option, though again, support for 2.5-inch hard drives is waning in new models nowadays.Choosing a GPU in a 17-Inch or 18-Inch Laptop: Gaming or Pro WorkMobile workstations’ graphics cards are divided between Nvidia’s RTX A-series (formerly Quadro, and much more common) and AMD’s Radeon Pro (far less common) brands. Their silicon is optimized for different operations than the companies’ respective GeForce and Radeon parts for gaming laptops, as well as for hard-charging, constantly-on rendering, or calculations.
(Credit: Molly Flores)
On the gaming side of the fence, too, Nvidia enjoys a big market lead in mobile GPUs. Its “Ampere” architecture defined its GeForce RTX 30-series chips. You’ll still see Ampere-based chips out there, but at the higher end of the gaming-laptop market, the newer GeForce RTX 40-series “Ada Lovelace” GPUs have all but supplanted the Ampere models.The basic story for both workstations and gaming rigs is a familiar one, though: Higher model numbers and higher prices bring you more speed and higher frame rates. All of the current GeForce RTX chips support playing and exploring VR worlds, while high-end mobile workstation parts like the Nvidia RTX A series support VR authoring or creating them. At the entry level, the mobile GeForce RTX 3050 and RTX 3050 Ti enjoyed a long life, but most new budget gaming laptops feature RTX 4050 or RTX 4060 mobile GPUs. These suffice for reasonable gaming at 1080p. As for rival AMD, Nvidia dominates laptop GPUs. But AMD’s Radeon RX mobile GPUs have made some decent inroads into gaming machines over the past year, especially with AMD’s launch of its AMD Advantage laptop program, which mandates certain performance and component requirements. So far, though, Radeon RX GPUs have tended to appear more in 15-inch-class machines, less so in 17- and 18-inchers. So, What Is the Best 17-Inch or 18-Inch Laptop to Buy for Your Needs?That’s about it for general advice, except for matters of personal preference. Keyboards, for instance: Some gaming laptops go wild with colorful, customizable RGB backlighting and feature macro keys for storing frequently used command or combat sequences, while some mobile workstations’ touchpads or pointing sticks feature the third (middle) mouse button often used in CAD and similar applications. And we don’t think you should buy a 17-inch or 18-inch laptop in either of these groups that doesn’t have at least one Thunderbolt 3 or Thunderbolt 4 port, which combines USB-C and DisplayPort functionality with daisy-chainable support for external docking and storage solutions.At any rate, you’re ready to shop for the notebook of your big-screen dreams. Get started by checking out the reviews we’ve assembled here (we’ve outlined the key specs for all of them below), and good luck: Flex those biceps and get your back-strengthening routine down pat. You’re going to go big. On the flip side, your eyes will be very, very happy.
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