How to Choose the Right Laptop for Your Business Needs

Whether your business is successful or not doesn’t depend on what kind of laptop you have, but the tools you use have a role in how productive you are and how easy it is to get things done. 

Imagine if you were late for a meeting and when you finally get there, you pull your laptop out, ready to make your presentation. But it takes forever to boot up. You manage to get the presentation started and all of a sudden, your screen freezes. Now everyone is annoyed, the meeting is all but ruined, and all because you have an inefficient laptop. 

We won’t try to sell you a laptop in this article. Instead, we’ll help YOU make the right choice. 

Key Features

You can’t just go out and grab the first laptop you see because it may not work well for your type of business.

Of course, price is a factor, and the good news is, you don’t need thousands of dollars to get a good laptop. But the region you’re buying the laptop from will surely have an impact on the price tag, even if you’re looking at the same exact laptop.

If you’re in the US or Europe, you can get a good laptop for as little as $800, while a high-end one will cost you upwards of a thousand dollars. If you’re going for an Apple laptop (MacBook Air/Pro), then you can expect to spend a lot more. In South Africa, the prices are pretty much the same as in the US/Europe, but you can often stumble upon some great laptop specials. The best laptop deals will often offer a great device for as low as $600-$700. Prices are the lowest in East Asia because of how many (most) are manufactured there, so you can get a quality laptop for about $600. Also, look for deals/promotions and coupons because retailers often utilize these as part of their marketing campaign.

If you’re in the US or Europe, you can get a good laptop for as little as $800, while a high-end one will cost you upwards of a thousand dollars. If you’re going for an Apple laptop (MacBook Air/Pro), then you can expect to spend a lot more. In South Africa, the prices are pretty much the same as in the US/Europe, but you can often stumble upon laptop specials where you can get a great device for $600-$700. Prices are the lowest in East Asia because of how many (most) are manufactured there, so you can get a quality laptop for about $600. Also, look for deals/promotions and coupons because retailers often utilize these as part of their marketing campaign. 

Other than the price, here’s what to pay attention to. 

Processor (CPU)

This is the heart of your laptop and it plays a big role in its performance. For business tasks like running software, managing spreadsheets, or multitasking, you won’t go wrong with Intel’s Core i5 or i7. AMD’s Ryzen 5 and 7 are good choices, too. 

If your business needs heavy multitasking or you do graphic design and data analysis, you simply have to get a multi-core processor. Quad-core CPUs will work for standard tasks, but for something more serious, go for 6 or 8 cores. 

Memory (RAM)

RAM is the temporary storage. Your laptop uses it to keep apps running smoothly, so when it comes to productivity, this is a critical component. 

The amount of RAM your laptop has impacts how many programs you can have running at once without lagging and slowing down. For things like emails, creating documents, and browsing the Internet, 8GB of RAM is okay. But for something more intense like creating content, analyzing data, or running complex software, you’ll need at least 16GB. 

Without enough RAM, you won’t be able to work properly because your laptop won’t be able to handle the workload. 

Storage

The type and capacity of the storage influences how speedy and usable your laptop is. For a business, a solid-state drive (SSD) is your best bet because they’re fast, reliable, and lightweight compared to traditional hard disk drives (HDDs). 

An SSD will allow the laptop to boot faster, access files quickly, and easily handle apps. The size depends on what you need. Machines used just for work and basic tasks will do fine with 265GB, but for video editors and data analysts, or if you plan on downloading a lot of data, 512GB will be far better. 

Also, if you’re planning on storing a lot of data, it is always a good idea to have an extra disk for storage. For storage, it’s usually better to use HDDs instead of SSDs because they (usually) have better longevity and are more resilient to damage. You’ll have a hard time recovering data from a faulty/damaged SSD, while there are many ways to recover lost data from an HDD. 

Display and Graphics

If you spend a lot of time on your laptop, you’ll need a good-quality display and graphics. You want the screen to be high definition, and it can’t be too small so that your eyes aren’t strained after longer working sessions. For most people, a screen size of 14 to 15.6 inches with a Full HD resolution (1920×1080) is clear enough and still very portable. 

For graphic design and editing videos, you’ll need a bigger display with 4K resolution. Graphics performance also matters depending on your tasks. Integrated GPUs (like Intel Iris or AMD Vega) are enough for general use, but for those that need advanced visual rendering, it’s better to go for dedicated GPUs like NVIDIA GeForce or AMD Radeon. 

Battery Life

If you’re constantly on the go, this factor is a big deal. A strong battery life will make sure you don’t get interrupted while you work. However, even though manufacturers usually advertise long battery durations, the reality is usually different. 

This is because factors like screen brightness, app usage, and connectivity settings impact battery duration. 8-10 hours of real-world battery life is ideal, so keep that in mind. 

Connectivity

Another big factor! That’s because connectivity is what makes the laptop compatible with other devices and networks. Every business laptop should have versatile ports – USB-C, Thunderbolt, and HDMI to support external monitors, peripherals, and data transfer. 

Also, Wi-Fi 6 will give you faster, more reliable internet connections, which is exactly what you need for virtual meetings and cloud-based apps.

Conclusion

Choosing a laptop isn’t rocket science and you shouldn’t get too obsessed with it. But you also shouldn’t get the first one you see or the one that’s the cheapest. A good laptop will make your work easier; a wonky one will frustrate you to no end.

So, think about what you need, what kind of work you do, what you’ll use the laptop for, and after that, go shopping.