It takes more than sheer power to create our list of best laptops for engineering students. It’s obvious that the best processors to handle all these computing tasks and the best graphics to handle all the graphical requirements of CAD, simulation and CAM software is an absolute necessity. But there are a number of things to check off the list here, apart from having a lot of power under the hood. The best laptops for engineering students must combine this impressive performance and graphics capabilities with portability, durability, and affordability.
They need to have a battery life that lasts a while – preferably all day at school – and a case that is slim and light. And, since engineering students have enough to spend, they must also be budget-friendly.
Best Laptops For Engineering Students
Spend less time researching and more time working on your school projects, we’re here to help you narrow down your choices. Here are our top picks for the best laptops for engineering students.
Dell G5 15 SE
Excellent performance for a budget price
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If you’re looking for an affordable but well-prepared gaming laptop, the Dell G5 15 SE 2020 is worth considering. Its un-flashy name hides a highly capable machine clad in a rather neat and modest chassis, for less than $1,000. And despite its price, it can keep up with some more expensive gambling laptops, especially at 1080p. You can expect very playable framerates in the form of Shadow of the Tomb Raider when running at maximum settings.
Dell has chosen to deal with an all AMD configuration, with a Ryzen 5 4600H or 4800H taking care of the processor tasks, and the Radeon RX 5600M taking care of the graphics. With up to 16GB RAM and 1 TB of SSD space, the Dell G5 15 SE 2020 is a highly capable gaming laptop. You will have to pay $1,049 for the best specifications, but that price also gives you a fast 144Hz refresh rate display. A plastic case may not scream ‘premium,’ but it still looks pretty sharp and can even perform double tasks as a powerful work machine when needed.
Acer Aspire 5
The best budget college laptop
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The Acer Aspire 5 proves that you don’t have to spend a lot to get a great laptop. This notebook has a full HD screen that is pretty bright, so it’s great for surfing the web, doing quick photo editing, and watching videos on Netflix, YouTube, or Disney Plus. And it has all the power you want for everyday tasks and multitasking, thanks to a 10th generation Core i5 processor, 8GB of RAM, and 256GB of SSD. It’s all packed in a pretty lightweight 3.8-pound package.
The most pleasant surprise with the Aspire 5 is battery life. This laptop lasted almost 9 hours on our web surf battery test, which is very good for a 15-inch system. There are a few things we don’t like about this budget laptop; while the lid is made of aluminum, the rest of the machine is made of plastic. You shouldn’t expect to play the latest games either. But overall, the Aspire 5 is one of the best laptops for engineering students that you can buy right now.
HP Envy 13
A budget and premium laptop
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HP has a long tradition of making PCs you can rely on, and the Envy 13 is no different – it’s one of the best choices for the best laptops for engineering students right now. We include it here because of its excellent balance between price and performance. This is a laptop that will last you a long time. The 13.3-inch, 1920 x 1080 resolution display is at the forefront here – bright and sharp and great for streaming video, surfing the web, and working on documents.
While creatives may want a little more in screen real estate, the smaller display size makes this a portable laptop, and thanks to its reliable build quality, it doesn’t feel like you have to be extra careful with it. With a choice of Intel’s Core processors inside and some compelling combinations of RAM and internal storage also available, this is a laptop ready to handle all but the most demanding tasks (don’t try to gamble on it). A special mention for the audio developed in collaboration with Bang and Olufsen, which sounds great.
HP Spectre x360
The best 2-in-1 laptop right now
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The Spectre x360 13 is the best 2-in-1 laptop ever. Updated with a 10th generation CPU and a more modern design, the Spectre x360 13 has improved almost every way over its excellent predecessor. Highlights of this laptop include a beautiful design that flaunts faceted edges and beveled corners. Those precision-cut details make the Spectre look more like a piece of jewelry than a gadget.
Along with that, stunning design is a clear 1080p display, epic 13+ hours of battery life, and fast overall performance. There’s almost nothing the Spectre x360 13 doesn’t do well, although the speakers could use some tuning. We set the Spectre x360 13 up against some of our other favorite 2-in-1 laptops, including the Dell XPS 13 2-in-1 and Lenovo Yoga C940, but none of these great competitors could dethrone the HP.
Microsoft Surface Book 3
A premium 2-in-1 detachable laptop
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The 15-inch version of Microsoft’s Surface Book 3 is a stunning technical performance that packs a powerful Nvidia GeForce GTX 1660 Ti GPU into the basics of a detachable 2-in-1. With that kind of graphics power, you can edit 4K videos or create professional 3D animations while connected to the keyboard and then turn off the screen for drawing or taking notes. Surface Book 2 also features a brilliant PixelSense screen, a powerful Intel 10th Gen Core i7 CPU, and over 11 hours of battery life in laptop mode. Overall, this is one of the best laptops for engineering students right now.
MacBook Air 2020
Cheapest MacBook for Apple fans
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It’s incredible what a difference the right keyboard makes. Since 1999 the MacBook Air 2020 has the improved Magic Keyboard, which replaces the butterfly switch with a scissor mechanism that allows you to type much more comfortably. Apple has also upgraded the Air to the 10th generation Intel Core processors (from 8th generation). It’s a Y-Series chip (which is not as powerful as the U-Series CPUs), but it turned out to be enough for everyday use and basic multitasking.
Apple not only lowered the price by $100, but it also doubled the standard MacBook Air storage, from a 128GB SSD to a 256GB drive, which still offers lightning-fast read speeds. The MacBook Air also has great endurance, with a battery that lasts all day. It took 9 hours and 31 minutes (almost 50 minutes longer than the regular system) for our web surfing test to charge the MacBook Air fully. Add to that Apple’s relatively bright and colorful Retina display and surprisingly powerful speakers, and you have one of the best laptops for engineering students.
Microsoft Surface Pro 7
The best detachable 2-in-1 laptop
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Surface Pro 7 makes an excellent laptop in last year’s Surface Pro 6 and gives it a power boost. While the battery life is a hit, the new 10th generation CPU delivers outstanding performance. The design hasn’t changed at all, but the Surface Pro 7 now has a USB-C port for charging and connecting peripherals. Microsoft still sells the comfortable Alcantara Type Cover and super-responsive Surface Pen, making it easy to draw or take notes on the tablet’s vibrant and bright 12.3-inch display. Overall, this is one of the best laptops for engineering students right now.
Dell XPS 13 2020
The best laptop in the World
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It’s hard to improve near perfection, but the XPS 13 2020 manages to make the best laptop even better – and it’s so good that the Dell XPS 13 won our title for the best laptop. Dell’s latest flagship PC features Intel’s latest 10th generation processors, making multitasking between apps and even doing some light gaming a breeze. The laptop’s Infinity Edge screen now has a screen ratio of 91.5% without getting in the way of your favorite movies and TV shows.
Some smaller improvements make the XPS 13 2020 better than its predecessors. The laptop’s comfortable keyboard is now edge-to-edge, and the touchpad is 17% larger, making it much easier to work with documents for long periods without getting cramped. With a few minor material changes, the beautiful aluminum design is even more attractive to use and hold, and the Dell XPS 13 2020 quickly catches the eye at the top of its class.
MacBook Pro 13-inch
A powerful MacBook for students
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The MacBook Pro 13-inch 2020 solves the biggest problem with Apple’s other outstanding 13-inch laptop: the keyboard. By dropping the shallow keys of the older Butterfly keyboard in favor of the fabulous Magic Keyboard, the latest MacBook Pro 13-inch delivers the comfortable and responsive typing experience we’ve longed for on Apple’s flagship laptop. However, a great new keyboard isn’t all the new MacBook 2020 has.
The new 13-inch model gets a nice power boost with a 10th generation Core i7 processor, combined with its available 3733MHz RAM, blazing-fast SSD, and Intel Iris Plus graphics, provide reliable performance for multitasking and photo and video editing. The 2560 x 1600 on the MacBook Pro is still as beautiful as ever, and the laptop lasts almost 11 hours. Apple has doubled the price for RAM on the entry-level model, and you pay for the 10th generation power, but overall the latest 13-inch MacBook Pro is an outstanding laptop.
Asus ROG Zephyrus G14
A gaming laptop with an exceptional battery life
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Asus is stepping up his game when it comes to gaming laptops. Example: the Asus ROG Zephyrus G14. Powered by AMD’s powerful Ryzen 9-4900HS processor, the laptop is a powerful multitasker. But when combined with an Nvidia RTX 2060 Max-Q GPU, the laptop is a force to be reckoned with when it comes to gaming. Equipped with a lightning-fast SSD, a bright 14-inch, 120Hz screen, a comfortable keyboard, and strong speakers in a beautiful milky white magnesium alloy, and the ROG Zephyrus G14 is a near-perfect gaming laptop.
But where the Zephyrus G14 shines is the battery life. The top laptop lasted 11 hours and 32 minutes on our Laptop Mag Battery Test, making it the longest-lasting gaming laptop ever. It’s nearly three times the average length of a 4:26 gaming laptop. Ultimately, between its murderous AMD performance and epic battery life, the Zephyrus G14 is one of the best laptops for engineering students.
