There’s a new Intel hardware platform in preparation for the end of 2015 and most of 2016, called Skylake.
In the past, I’ve provided you with comprehensive lists of all the ultraportable laptops built on the Intel Haswell and later the Broadwell platforms, and since those posts were highly appreciated, this article does pretty much the same thing for this latest Intel hardware series.
“Ultraportable” is of course a highly subjective term, but I do have a few criteria in mind when compiling this list, with the most important ones being the overall weight and the type of hardware inside each device. And that’s because for me, a laptop can only be called “portable” these days if it’s easy-enough to carry around and if it can run for an absolute minimum of 5 hours on a charge, while performing everyday activities.
We’re not going to focus on the particularities of Skylake here or how it compares to its predecessors, we have other posts on these topics. We’ll just create a complete list of all the Skylake-built ultraportables, ranging from the smallest form factors and up to full-size everyday computers; a list that will help you narrow down your options to something that’s going to best suit your needs and budget.
The selection is curated based on screen-size and contains details on the hardware, the form factor, battery-size and the weight, but also links to our reviews (the links on each unit’s name) and webstores were you can find these machines discounted (the links on the prices). The list is also a continuous work in progress, as I update it several times a week with the latest launches. Even so, there might be some devices missing, so if you notice anything that should be in here and it isn’t, please get in touch in the comments section.
This post lists all the Skylake laptops available today or soon to be launched
Anyway, here are the Skylake portable laptops that are available right now (or will be launched in the near future).
The Skylake portable laptops
This section contains all the devices built on Intel’s Skylake-U hardware, with 15W processors like the Core i3-6100U, Core i5 – 6200U/6300U , Core i7-6500U/6600U and all the other further launched iterations. Some Skylake Core M devices are also included.
We’ll start with the most portable options, with screens smaller than 13-inches in diagonal.
Sub 13-inch ultraportables
|
|||||||
| Model | Type | Screen | Hardware | Battery | Weight | Price(*) | |
| Acer Aspire Switch 12S | detachable | 12.5″ IPS touch FHD or UHD | up to Core m7 w/ Intel HD 515 | – | 1.40 kg / 3.1 lbs | $1199 | |
| Apple MacBook 12 | clamshell | 12.0″ IPS retina | up to Core m5 w/ Intel HD 515 | 41 Wh | 0.90 kg / 2.0 lbs | $1299 | |
| Asus Transformer Pro 3 T303UA | tablet + folio | 12.6″ IPS | up to Core i7 w/ Intel HD 520 | 39 Wh | 0.8 kg / 1.85 lbs | $999 | |
| Dell Inspiron 11 3000 2-in-1 (3168) | convertible | 11.6″ TN touch HD | up to Core m3 w/ Intel HD 520 | 32 Wh | 1.40 kg / 3.1 lbs | $249 | |
| Dell Latitude 12 7000 2-in-1 | tablet + folio | 12.5″ IPS FHD | up to Core m7 w/ Intel HD 515 | 30 Wh | 0.73 kg / 1.61 lbs | $1049 | |
| Dell Latitude 12 7000 | clamshell | 12.5″ TN HD or IPS FHD | up to Core i7 w/ Intel HD 520 | 37 or 55 Wh Wh | 1.26 kg / 2.77 lbs | $1079 | |
| Dell XPS 12 9250 | detachable | 12.5″ touch FHD/UHD | up to Core m7 w/ Intel HD 515 | 30 Wh | 1.27 kg / 2.8 lbs | $999 | |
| HP EliteBook Folio G1 | clamshell | 12.5″ touch FHD or UHD | up to Core m7 w/ Intel HD 515 | 10 h | 0.99 kg / 2.2 lbs | $999 | |
| HP EliteBook 820 G3 | clamshell | 12.5″ FHD or QHD | up to Core i7 w/ Intel HD 520 | 44 Wh | 1.26 kg / 2.77 lbs | $949 | |
| HP Spectre x2 12 | tablet | 12″ touch FHD | up to Core m7 w/ Intel HD 515 | 40 Wh | 1.22 kg / 2.68 lbs | $699 | |
| HP EliteBook Folio | Ultraportable | 12.5″ matte FHD or touch UHD | Skylake Core M w/ Intel HD 515 | 38 Wh | 0.97 kg / 2.13 lbs | $1099 | |
| Lenovo Miix 700 | tablet + Folio | 12″ touch FHD+ | up to Core M7 w/ Intel HD 515 | 40 Wh | 0.77 kg / 1.7 lbs | $749 | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad Yoga 260 | convertible | 12.5″ touch HD or FHD | up to Core i7 w/ Intel HD 520 | 44 Wh | 1.3 kg / 2.9 lbs | $949 | |
| Lenovo Yoga 900S | convertible | 12.5″ IPS touch QHD | up to Core m7 w/ Intel HD 515 | 10 h | 0.99 kg / 2.2 lbs | $1099 | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Tablet | tablet+Folio | 12.0″ IPS touch FHD or QHD | up to Core m7 w/ Intel HD 515 | – | 1.1 kg / 2.42 lbs | $899 | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad X260 | clamshell | 12.5″ IPS HD or FHD | up to Core i7 w/ Intel HD 520 | up to 72 Wh | 1.3 kg / 2.86 lbs | $999 | |
| Microsoft Surface Pro 4 | tablet+Folio | 12.3″ touch | up to Core i7 w/ Intel HD 520 | 39 Wh | 0.77 kg / 1.69 lbs | $899 | |
| Razer Blade Stealth | clamshell | 12.5″ touch QHD or UHD | Core i7 w/ Intel HD 520 | 45 Wh | 1.25 kg / 2.75 lbs | $999 | |
| Samsung Galaxy Tab Pro S | tablet + folio | 12.1″ IPS w/ digitizer | up to Core m7 w/ Intel HD 515 | 39.5 Wh | 0.69 kg / 1.53 lbs | $999 | |
| Toshiba Portégé Z20t | convertible | 12.5″ IPS touch FHD | Up to Core m5 w/ Intel HD 515 | 72 Wh | 1.49 kg / 3.3 lbs (w/ dock) | $999 | |
| Toshiba Satellite Radius 12 | convertible | 12″ touch UHD | up to Core i7 w/ Intel HD 520 | 43 Wh | 1.3 kg / 2.9 lbs | $1299 | |
We’ll continue with the popular 13-inchers, the devices that strike the better tradeof between performance, size, weight and battery life, but are not going to be cheap.
13 to 13.9 inch ultrabooks
|
|||||||
| Model | Type | Screen | Hardware | Battery | Weight | Price(*) | |
| Aorus X3 Plus | clamshell | 13.9″ IPS QHD+ | up to Core i7 w/ Nvidia 1060 | 73Wh | 1.9 kg / 4.0 lbs | TBA | |
| Acer Aspire R13 (R7-372T) | convertible | 13.3″ IPS touch QHD | up to Core i7 w/ Intel HD 520 | 48Wh | 1.55 kg / 3.5 lbs | $899 | |
| Acer Aspire V13 (V3-372T) | clamshell | 13.3″ FHD | up to Core i7 w/ Intel HD 520 | 48Wh | 1.55 kg / 3.3 lbs | $599 | |
| Acer Spin 5 (Aspire S13 S5-371T) |
convertible | 13.3″ IPS FHD touch | Core U w/ Intel HD 620 | 48 Wh | 1.58 kg / 3.5 lbs | $499 | |
| Alienware 13 | clamshell | 13.3″ IPS HD TN, FHD IPS or QHD+ IPS touch | up to Core HQ w/ Nvidia GTX 1060 | 76 Wh | 2.05 kg/4.53 lbs | $1199 | |
| Asus Vivobook Book Flip TP300UA / TP301UA | convertible | 13.3″ touch IPS FHD | up to Core i7 w/ Intel HD 520 | 38Wh | 1.73 kg / 3.8 lbs | $799 | |
| Asus Vivobook Flip TP301UJ | convertible | 13.3″ touch IPS FHD | up to Core i7 w/ Nvidia 920M | 55Wh | 1.5 kg / 3.5 lbs | $899 | |
| Asus Zenbook UX305UA | clamshell | 13.3″ IPS FHD | up to Core i7 w/ Intel HD 520 | 56Wh | 1.3 kg / 2.86 lbs | $799 | |
| Asus Zenbook UX303UA | clamshell | 13.3″ IPS FHD touch | up to Core i7 w/ Intel HD 520 | 48Wh | 1.5 kg / 3.3 lbs | $799 | |
| Asus Zenbook UX303UB | clamshell | 13.3″ IPS FHD or QHD+ | Core i7 w/ Nvidia 940M | 48Wh | 1.5 kg / 3.3 lbs | $1299 | |
| Asus Zenbook UX310UA | clamshell | 13.3″ FHD or IPS QHD+ | up to Core i7 w/ Intel HD 520 | 48Wh | 1.45 kg / 3.2 lbs | $799 | |
| Asus Zenbook UX310UQ | clamshell | 13.3″ FHD or IPS QHD+ | up to Core i7 w/ Nvidia 920MX or 940MX | 48Wh | 1.45 kg / 3.2 lbs | $999 | |
| Asus Zenbook UX306UA | clamshell | 13.3″ IPS FHD or QHD+ | up to Core i7 w/ Intel HD 520 | 57Wh | 1.19 kg / 2.63 lbs | $799 | |
| Asus Zenbook UX330UA | clamshell | 13.3″ IPS FHD or QHD+ | up to Core i7 w/ Intel HD 520 | 57Wh | 1.2 kg / 2.65 lbs | $899 | |
| Asus Zenbook Flip UX360CA | convertible | 13.3″ IPS FHD or QHD+ | up to Core m7 w/ Intel HD 515 | 54Wh | 1.3 kg / 2.86 lbs | $699 | |
| Asus Zenbook Flip UX360UA | convertible | 13.3″ IPS FHD or QHD+ | up to Core i7 w/ Intel HD 520 | 57Wh | 1.2 kg / 2.65 lbs | $999 | |
| Dell Inspiron 13 5000 2-in-1 (5368) | convertible | 13.3″ IPS FHD | up to Core i7 w/ Intel HD 520 | 42Wh | 1.62 kg / 3.56 lbs | $449 | |
| Dell Inspiron 13 7000 2-in-1 (7368) | convertible | 13.3″ IPS FHD | up to Core i7 w/ Intel HD 520 | 42Wh | 1.75 kg / 3.86 lbs | $649 | |
| Dell Latitude 13 7000 | clamshell | 13.3″ IPS FHD | up to Core m7 w/ Intel HD 515 | 34 Wh | 1.12 kg / 2.48 lbs | $1299 | |
| Dell XPS 13 9350 | clamshell | 13.3″ IPS FHD or touch QHD+ | up to Core i7 w/ Intel HD 520 | 52Wh | 1.18 kg / 2.6 lbs | $799 | |
| HP Pavilion 13 x360 | convertible | 13.3″ IPS touch FHD | up to Core i7 w/ Intel HD 520 | 44Wh | 1.71 kg / 3.77 lbs | $599 | |
| HP Spectre | clamshell | 13.3″ IPS FHD | up to Core i7 w/ Intel HD 520 | 38Wh | 1.11 kg / 2.45 lbs | $1169 | |
| HP Spectre x360 | convertible | 13.3″ IPS touch QHD | up to Core i7 w/ Intel HD 520 | 55Wh | 1.48 kg / 3.26 lbs | $999 | |
| HP Envy 13 | clamshell | 13.3″ IPS touch FHD | up to Core i7 w/ Intel HD 520 | 45Wh | 1.37 kg / 3.00 lbs | $849 | |
| Lenovo IdeaPad 500s 13 | clamshell | 13.3″ touch FHD | up to Core i7 w/ Nvidia 920M | 35 Wh | 1.5 kg / 3.4 lbs | tba | |
| Lenovo IdeaPad 710s 13 | clamshell | 13.3″ matte FHD or QHD+ | up to Core i7 w/ Intel HD 520 | 8h | 1.16 kg / 2.56 lbs | $799 | |
| Lenovo Yoga 900 | convertible | 13.3″ IPS touch QHD | Core i5 or i7 w/ Intel HD 520 | 66Wh | 1.27 kg / 2.8 lbs | $1199 | |
| LG Gram 13 | clamshell | 13.3″ IPS FHD | Core i5 or i7 w/ Intel HD 520 | 35 Wh | 0.98 kg / 2.16 lbs | $899 | |
| Microsoft Surface Book | detachable | 13.5″ touch | up to Core i7 w/ Nvidia graphics | 70 Wh | 1.57 kg / 3.48 lbs | $1499 | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad 13 | clamshell | 13.3″ HD or touch FHD | up to Core i7 w/ Intel HD 520 | 9 h | 1.4 kg / 3.1 lbs | $449 | |
| Samsung ATIV Book 9 Spin | convertible | 13.3″ IPS touch QHD+ | up to Core i7 HQ w/ Intel HD 520 | 39 Wh | 1.30 kg / 2.87 lbs | $1299 | |
| Samsung Notebook 9 900X3L | clamshell | 13.3″ IPS FHD | up to Core i7 HQ w/ Intel HD 520 | 12 h | 0.84kg / 1.85 lbs | tba | |
| Vaio S | clamshell | 13.3″ IPS FHD | up to Core i7 w/ Intel HD 520 | 9 h | 1.07 kg / 2.34 lbs | $1099 | |
| Toshiba Kirabook 2016 | clamshell | 13.3″ FHD or QHD | up to Core i7 w/ Intel HD 520 | 52 Wh | 1.34 kg / 2.96 lbs | $1099 | |
| Toshiba Portégé Z30 | convertible | 13.3″ IPS HD | Up to Core i7 w/ Intel HD 520 | 52 Wh | 1.22 kg / 2.7 lbs | $1299 | |
For slightly beefier specs in what would still be a fairly compact body, you’ll have to look at some of the available 14-inchers.
14 to 14.9-inch ultrabooks
|
|||||||
| Model | Type | Screen | Hardware | Battery | Weight | Price(*) | |
| Acer Aspire R14 (R5-471T) | convertible | 14.0″ IPS touch HD | up to Core i7 w/ Intel HD 520 | 48Wh | 1.9 kg / 4.2 lbs | $799 | |
| Acer Swift 3 (Aspire S3-371) |
clamshell | 14.0″ HD or IPS FHD matte | Core U w/ Intel HD 620 | 48 Wh | 1.49 kg / 3.3 lbs | $499 | |
| Dell Latitude 14 5000 | clamshell | 14.0″ TN HD or IPS FHD | up to Core i7 w/ Intel HD 520 | 47 or 62 Wh | 1.76 kg / 3.9 lbs | $769 | |
| Dell Latitude 14 7000 | clamshell | 14.0″ TN HD or IPS FHD | up to Core i7 w/ Intel HD 520 | 37 or 55 Wh | 1.42 kg / 3.13 lbs | $1079 | |
| Gigabyte P34W v5 | clamshell | 14.0″ FHD | up to Core i7 HQ w/ Nvidia 970M | 61 Wh | 1.8 kg / 3.97 lbs | $1499 | |
| HP EliteBook 840 G3 | clamshell | 14.0″ FHD or QHD | up to Core i7 w/ Intel HD 520 | 46 Wh | 1.54 kg / 3.4 lbs | $949 | |
| HP EliteBook 1040 G3 | clamshell | 14.0″ FHD or QHD | up to Core i7 w/ Intel HD 520 | 11 h | 1.36 kg / 3.0 lbs | $1149 | |
| Lenovo IdeaPad 300s 14 |
clamshell | 14.0″ FHD | up to Core i7 w/ Nvidia 940M | 5 hours | 1.8 kg / 3.9 lbs | $479 | |
| Lenovo IdeaPad 300 14 | clamshell | 14.0″ FHD | up to Intel Core i7 w/ Radeon R5 M330 | 4 hours | 2.1 kg / 4.6 lbs | $399 | |
| Lenovo IdeaPad 500s 14 | clamshell | 14.0″ touch FHD | up to Core i7 w/ Nvidia 940M | 4.5 hours | 2.1 kg / 4.6 lbs | tba | |
| Lenovo IdeaPad 500 14 | clamshell | 14.0″ FHD | up to Intel Core i7 w/ Radeon M360 or AMD Carrizo FX-8800P w/ Radeon M330 | 4 hours | 2.1 kg / 4.6 lbs | $399 (AMD), $849 (Intel) | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad Yoga 460 | convertible | 14.0″ touch FHD or QHD | up to Core i7 w/ Nvidia 940M | 10 hours | 1.8 kg / 3.9 lbs | $1049 | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon 2016 | clamshell | 14.0″ IPS FHD or OLED QHD | up to Core i7 w/ Intel HD 520 | 52 Wh | 1.17 kg / 2.6 lbs | $1199 | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Yoga | clamshell | 14.0″ IPS FHD or QHD touch | up to Core i7 w/ Intel HD 520 | 52 Wh | 1.37 kg / 3.0 lbs | $1399 | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad T460 | clamshell | 14.0″ HD, FHD or QHD | up to Core i7 w/ Nvidia 940M | 14 h | 1.7 kg / 3.8 lbs | $909 | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad T460P | clamshell | 14.0″ IPS QHD | up to Core i7 HQ w/ Nvidia 940M | 12 h | 1.81 kg / 4.0 lbs | $1249 | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad T460S | clamshell | 14.0″ QHD | up to Core i7 w/ Nvidia 930M | 49 Wh | 1.36 kg / 3.0 lbs | $1059 | |
| LG Gram 14 | clamshell | 14.0″ IPS FHD | Core i5 or i7 w/ Intel HD 520 | 35 Wh | 0.98 kg / 2.16 lbs | $1099 | |
| MSI GS40 | clamshell | 14.0″ IPS FHD | Core i7 HQ w/ Nvidia GTX 970M | 61 Wh | 1.6 kg / 3.57 lbs | $1499 | |
| MSI GS43 | clamshell | 14.0″ IPS FHD | Core i7 HQ w/ Nvidia GTX 1060 | 61 Wh | 1.7 kg / 3.75 lbs | $1499 | |
| Razer Blade 14 | clamshell | 14.0″ IPS QHD+ | up to Core i7 HQ w/ Nvidia GTX 970M or 1060 | 70 Wh | 1.93 kg / 4.25 lbs | $1999 | |
And if you’re willing to sacrifice the size and weight (to some extent) for performance and a larger screen, the 15 and 17-inchers in this category are the ones for you.
15-inch (and bigger) Skylake laptops
|
|||||||
| Model | Type | Screen | Hardware | Battery | Weight | Price(*) | |
| Aorus X5 | clamshell | 15.6″ IPS FHD or WQHD+ | up to Core i7 w/ Nvidia 1070 | 95Wh | 2.5 kg / 5.5 lbs | TBA | |
| Aorus X7 | clamshell | 17.3″ IPS FHD or WQHD+ | up to Core i7 w/ Nvidia 1070 | 95Wh | 2.9 kg / 6.4 lbs | $2400 | |
| Aorus X7 DT | clamshell | 17.3″ IPS QHD or UHD | up to Core i7 w/ Nvidia 1080 | 95Wh | 3.2 kg / 7.1 lbs | TBA | |
| Acer Aspire E5 (E5-574TG) | clamshell | 15.6″ HD | up to Core i7 w/ Intel HD 520 | – | – | tba | |
| Acer Aspire V15 V5-591G | clamshell | 15.6″ TN HD/FHD | up to Core i7 ULV w/ Nvidia 950M | 56 Wh | 2.4 kg / 5.3 lbs | tba | |
| Acer Aspire V15 Nitro (V3-575G) | clamshell | 15.6″ IPS FHD | up to Core i7 ULV w/ Nvidia 950M | 52 Wh | 2.4 kg / 5.3 lbs | $899 | |
| Acer Aspire V15 Nitro Black (VN7-592G) | clamshell | 15.6″ IPS FHD/4K | up to Core i7 HQ w/ Nvidia 960M | 52 Wh | 2.3 kg / 5.1 lbs | $999 | |
| Acer Aspire V17 Nitro Black |
clamshell | 17.3″ IPS FHD or 4K | up to Core i7 HQ w/ Nvidia 960M | 54 Wh | 3.1 kg / 6.9 lbs | $1099 | |
| Asus Vivobook Book Flip Q503UA / TP501UA | convertible | 15.6″ IPS FHD | Core i7 w/ Intel HD 520 | 48Wh | 2.07 kg / 4.6 lbs | $799 | |
| Asus Vivobook Book Flip Q553UB / TP501UB | convertible | 15.6″ IPS FHD | Core i7 w/ Nvidia 940M | 48Wh | 2.31 kg / 5.1 lbs | $799 | |
| Asus Zenbook UX510 | clamshell | 15.6″ IPS FHD or UHD | up to Core i7 U w/ Nvidia 950M or 960M | 48Wh | 1.9 kg / 4.1 lbs | $899 | |
| Asus Zenbook Flip UX560UA | convertible | 15.6″ IPS FHD | up to Core i7 w/ Intel HD 520 | 50Wh | 2.2 kg / 4.85 lbs | – | |
| Asus Zenbook Flip UX560UQ | convertible | 15.6″ IPS FHD or QHD | up to Core i7 w/ Nvidia 940MX | 52Wh | 2.2 kg / 4.85 lbs | – | |
| Asus Zenbook Flip UX560UX | convertible | 15.6″ IPS FHD or QHD | up to Core i7 w/ Nvidia 950M | 52Wh | 2.2 kg / 4.85 lbs | – | |
| Asus Zenbook Pro UX501VW | clamshell | 15.6″ IPS UHD | up to Core i7 HQ w/ Nvidia 960M | 60 or 96 Wh | 2.1 kg / 4.54 lbs | $1499 | |
| Asus ROG Strix GL502VT | clamshell | 15.6″ IPS FHD or UHD | up to Core i7 HQ w/ Nvidia 970M | 64 Wh | 2.5 kg / 5.5 lbs | $1299 | |
| Asus ROG Strix GL502VM | clamshell | 15.6″ IPS FHD or UHD | up to Core i7 HQ w/ Nvidia 1060 | 62 Wh | 2.5 kg / 5.5 lbs | $1299 | |
| Asus ROG Strix GL502VY | clamshell | 15.6″ IPS UHD | up to Core i7 HQ w/ Nvidia 980M | 64 Wh | 2.6 kg / 5.7 lbs | $1799 | |
| Asus ROG Strix GL502VS | clamshell | 15.6″ IPS UHD | up to Core i7 HQ w/ Nvidia 1070 | 62 Wh | 2.6 kg / 5.7 lbs | $1799 | |
| Dell Inspiron 15 5000 (5559) | clamshell | 15.6″ TN HD or IPS touch FHD | up to Core i7 w/ AMD R5 M335 | 40Wh | 2.45 kg / 5.4 lbs | $399 | |
| Dell Inspiron 15 7000 (7559) | clamshell | 15.6″ IPS touch FHD or UHD | up to Core i7 w/ AMD R7 M270 | 43Wh or 58 Wh | 2.17 kg / 4.8 lbs | $699 | |
| Dell Inspiron 15 5000 2-in-1 (5568) | convertible | 15.6″ IPS FHD | up to Core i7 w/ Intel HD 520 | 42Wh | 2.3 kg / 5.07 lbs | $449 | |
| Dell Inspiron 15 7000 2-in-1 (7569) | convertible | 15.6″ IPS FHD | up to Core i7 w/ Intel HD 520 | 42Wh | 2.18 kg / 4.82 lbs | $649 | |
| Dell Inspiron 17 7000 2-in-1 (7778) | convertible | 17.3″ IPS FHD | up to Core i7 w/ Intel HD 520 | 56Wh | 2.77 kg / 6.12 lbs | $899 | |
| Dell Latitude 15 5000 | clamshell | 15.6″ TN HD | up to Core i7 w/ Intel HD 520 | 47 or 62 Wh | 2.1 kg / 4.61 lbs | $769 | |
| Dell Precision 15 5510 | clamshell | 15.6″ IPS touch FHD or UHD | up to Xeon E2 w/ Nvidia Quadro M1000M | ? | 1.8 kg / 3.96 lbs | $1399 | |
| Dell XPS 15 9550 | clamshell | 15.6″ IPS FHD or touch UHD | up to Core i7 HQ w/ Nvidia 960M | 84Wh | 1.72 kg / 3.8 lbs | $1499 | |
| Gigabyte P35X | clamshell | 15.6″ FHD or WQHD+ | up to Core i7 HQ w/ Nvidia 980M or 1070 | 55 Wh | 2.3 kg / 5.07 lbs | $1799 | |
| Gigabyte P35W | clamshell | 15.6″ FHD or WQHD+ | up to Core i7 HQ w/ Nvidia 970M | 55 Wh | 2.3 kg / 5.07 lbs | $1499 | |
| Gigabyte P57X | clamshell | 17.3″ FHD | up to Core i7 HQ w/ Nvidia 980M or 1070 | 75 Wh | 3.0 kg / 6.6 lbs | $2399 | |
| HP EliteBook 850 G3 | clamshell | 15.6″ FHD or UHD | up to Core i7 w/ AMD R7 M365X | 46 Wh | 1.88 kg / 4.14 lbs | $799 | |
| HP Spectre x360 15 | convertible | 15.6″ IPS touch FHD or OLED UHD | up to Core i7 w/ Intel HD 520 | 64Wh | 1.83 kg / 4.03 lbs | $1149 | |
| HP Pavillion 15 | clamshell | 15.6″ IPS FHD or touch FHD | up to Core i7 w/ Intel HD 520 | – | – | tba | |
| HP Pavillion 17 | clamshell | 17.3″ IPS FHD | up to Core i7 w/ Intel HD 520 | – | – | tba | |
| Lenovo IdeaPad 300 15 | clamshell | 15.6″ FHD | up to Intel Core i7 w/ Radeon R5 M330 | 4 hours | 2.3 kg / 5.1 lbs | $549 | |
| Lenovo IdeaPad 300 17 | clamshell | 17.3″ HD+ | up to Intel Core i7 w/ Radeon R5 M330 | 4 hours | 3.0 kg / 6.61 lbs | $449 | |
| Lenovo IdeaPad 500s 15 | clamshell | 15.6″ FHD | up to Core i7 w/ Nvidia 940M | 4.5 hours | 2.1 kg / 4.6 lbs | tba | |
| Lenovo IdeaPad 500 15 | clamshell | 15.6″ FHD | up to Intel Core i7 w/ Radeon M360 or AMD Carrizo FX-8800P w/ Radeon M330 | 4 hours | 2.3 kg / 5.1 lbs | $599 (AMD), $849 (Intel) | |
| Lenovo IdeaPad 700 15 | clamshell | 15.6″ matte FHD | up to Core i7 SV w/ Nvidia 950M | 4h | 2.31 kg / 5.1 lbs | $799 | |
| Lenovo IdeaPad 700 17 | clamshell | 17.3″ matte FHD | up to Core i7 SV w/ Nvidia 940M | 4h | 2.67 kg / 5.8 lbs | $799 | |
| Lenovo ThinkPad T560 | clamshell | 15.6″ HD, FHD or QHD | up to Core i7 w/ Nvidia 940M | 16 h | 2.26 kg / 5.0 lbs | $969 | |
| LG Gram 15 | clamshell | 15.6″ IPS FHD | Core i5 or i7 w/ Intel HD 520 | 35 Wh | 0.98 kg / 2.16 lbs | $1099 | |
| MSI GS60 Ghost Pro | clamshell | 15.6″ UHD | up to Core i7 HQ w/ Nvidia 970M | 52 Wh | 1.96 kg / 4.32 lbs | $1799 | |
| MSI GS63 Stealth Pro | clamshell | 15.6″ FHD or UHD | up to Core i7 HQ w/ Nvidia 1060 | 57 Wh | 1.7 kg / 3.95 lbs | $1899 | |
| MSI GS70 Stealth Pro | clamshell | 17.3″ FHD | up to Core i7 HQ w/ Nvidia 970M | 52 Wh | 2.6 kg / 5.73 lbs | $1799 | |
| MSI GS73 Stealth Pro | clamshell | 17.3″ FHD or UHD | up to Core i7 HQ w/ Nvidia 1060 | 65 Wh | 2.4 kg / 5.35 lbs | $1899 | |
| Samsung ATIV Book 9 Pro | clamshell | 15.6″ IPS UHD | up to Core i7 HQ w/ Nvidia 950M | – | 2.01 kg / 4.45 lbs | $1299 | |
| Samsung Notebook 9 900X5L | clamshell | 15″ IPS FHD | up to Core i7 HQ w/ Intel HD 520 | – | 1.29kg / 2.84lbs | tba | |
| Samsung Notebook 7 Spin 2-in-1 | convertible | 15″ IPS FHD | up to Core i7 HQ w/ Nvidia GT 940MX | – | 2.26kg / 5.00lbs | $999 | |
| Toshiba Satellite Radius 15.6 | convertible | 15.6″ IPS FHD or UHD | up to Core i7 w/ Intel HD 520 | 45Wh | 2.26 kg / 5.0 lbs | $699 | |
Here’s a short glossary of the terms mentioned above:
- Types:
- clamshell: classic shaped computer whose screen closes on top of the keyboard and does not flip into any sort of tablet mode;
- convertible: 2-in-1 laptop whose screen rotates and converts to a tablet mode (or similar), but cannot be detached from the base;
- detachable: 2-in-1 laptop whose screen detaches from the base. These are mostly stand-alone tablets bundled with matching docking stations that most often include docking keyboards, ports, batteries and other features;
- slider: 2-in-1 laptop whose screen slides up and down on top of the body and usually reveals a keyboard hidden underneath.
- Resolutions: HD ( 1366 x 768 px), WXGA+ (1440 x 900 px), HD+ (1600 x 900 px), FHD (1920 x 1080 px), FHD+ (2160 x 1440 px), retina (2304 x 1440 px), QHD (2560 x 1440 px), WQXGA (2560 x 1600 px), QHD+ (3200 x 1800 px), UHD (3840 x 2160 px) – also see this post;
Anyway, that’s about it for now. If you’re interested in portable laptops though, you should also check out some of the other articles on the site, I’m sure you’ll find them useful in your search:
- my favorite 11 inch, 13 inch and 14, 15 inch and above ultrabooks;
- the best gaming ultraportables of the moment;
- my selection of 2-in-1 laptops;
- my selection of the best affordable ultrabooks.
And like I said in the beginning, don’t forget I’m continuously updating this list, so if you’re in the market for a Skylake laptop, you should bookmark the post and return from time to time for the latest updates.
You can also get in touch in the comments section if you have anything to add or any questions about these computers or Skylake in general, as I’m around and will help out if I can.
Douglas Black contributed to this report.
Disclaimer: Our content is reader-supported. If you buy through some of the links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Learn more.
alfa
November 21, 2016 at 6:52 pm
Great post Andrei,
I was wondering if you could help me looking for a cheap small hybrid tablet for running office and some economics/statistical software like SPSS,STATA,SAS, and especially R, that's it (maybe a couple of browser tabs.
For the big operations I have my powerful 17" home that can do everything.
Do you think I need a skylake CPU? Because I was now thinking about the transformer 3 mini, I know its performances are limited but I really don't need to do much on it.
Thank you in advance
Andrei Girbea
November 22, 2016 at 6:41 am
I'm not really familiar with those programs and what they're demanding in terms of resources, but I wouldn't get something like the T3 Mini for more than just basic activities. You could however give the T102HA a try, with the Z8500 processor and 4 GB of RAM. If it won't do, then perhaps something like Dell Inspiron 11 or the HP Steam 11 with Pentium processors should do better. Worth a look.
The Spectre X2 is also a nice option and it's available for cheap in the US, but I'm not sure if that's the case in Italy. Worth a look.
anon
November 25, 2016 at 10:13 am
The new dell alienware 13 has a touch screen option, i7 and gtx 1060
Andrei Girbea
November 25, 2016 at 12:22 pm
Right, thanks, I forgot to update this listing.
Mihai
June 8, 2017 at 2:37 pm
I want o buy now an MSI GL62 6QF-16929.
Specs are:
15,6 inch (1920 x 1080)
Intel Core i7-6700HQ
8 GB DDR4 2133
256 GB SSD + 1 TB HDD
NVIDIA GeForce GTX 960M (2 GB)
Price is 950 euro.
My question is:
Considering speed/reliability/price can I find something else better or comparable at this price point or I am close enough to the sweet point so it is not worth to search further ?
I need a laptop that should last 3 – years, be used for school and CSGO.