A Guide To The Top Intel Core i5 Laptops
If you’re currently looking for a laptop but have no idea where to begin, we’ve got you covered. Purchasing a laptop for learning doesn’t always need to be costly, yet going for the cheapest options may not be ideal as well. Over time, those cheaper, entry-level laptops you purchased will only become slower and eventually require an upgrade. If that’s the case, why not purchase something of standard earlier?Â
We recommend purchasing a laptop fitted with Intel Core i5 as it is not only able to handle large projects, but is equally fast enough to tide you through college and university. In our guide, we’ll be breaking down some of the best-performing Intel Core i5 laptops and the pros and cons of each.
Why Choose Intel Core i5 Laptops?
There’s a multitude of reasons for choosing an Intel Core i5 laptop, but the main reason is usually to balance the performance with the cost price. As a student, it generally would not be necessary to have the extra power that an expensive Intel Core i7 provides. On the contrary, the Intel Core i3 laptops, though cheap and affordable, are slower and best suited for simple daily use such as watching videos. In that case, getting the Intel Core i5 would be the best option for a regular student as it has good performance whilst remaining affordable.
If you’re concerned about whether the Intel Core i5 would be fast enough to handle all your assignments, let me alleviate your worries. It is powerful enough to handle digital content creation, such as photo editing, video editing, and graphic design. The Intel Core i5 processor is also fitted with sufficient memory and has a super-fast SSD storage system, which helps you to toggle through the many applications and tasks that you would be doing. Plus, it’s also powerful enough for larger projects such as complex spreadsheets, CAD applications, animation, and 3D modeling.
The Best Intel Core i5 Laptops
We will begin with the three best 15.6-inch laptops, followed by five of the best 14-inch laptops.
Best Overall: Huawei Matebook D 15.6 Inch Laptop
Amongst the 15.6 inch laptops, this is the slimmest and lightest that we have here in this article, weighing just a mere 1.5kg and a width of 17mm. When it comes to the Matebook, Huawei takes great pride in balancing a laptop with amazing quality and a high-end design fitted with sturdy aluminum chassis.
Plus, did you know that it has one of the smallest bezels? This is done by embedding a webcam into the laptop through a pop-up key on the keyboard (located within the top-most row, middle of function keys). This might not be favored by everyone as the viewing angle will be situated from the bottom up. If you want to change this, angle the display backward and look down at the screen when talking face-to-face. The display also uses IPS treatments to obtain maximum brightness regardless of the angle you are looking from. Lastly, it includes an exclusive fingerprint sensor and has fast charging times –– bringing up a flat battery to 53% in just one hour.
ASUS VivoBook X509 15.6 Inch Laptop
The ASUS’s X509 comes with a full backlit keyboard that includes a number pad on the right and boasts of a 1.4mm key travel. It also contains a spacious touchpad that has a built-in fingerprint scanner located at the top right corner. This laptop is also able to charge quickly, going from a flat battery to 60% in a mere 49 minutes.
The display is fitted with a Full HD panel with a 178 degree wide viewing angle and an anti-glare coating, meaning that others cannot see what you are looking at from other angles. The entire display is surrounded by small NanoEdge bezels that keep it in the top and center. Lastly, the casing is cleverly designed with reinforced lids with side impact protection beams. It also comes with a reinforced support brace under the keyboard to ensure that your typing is stabilized.
ACER Aspire 3 15.6 Inch Laptop
The last 15.6-inch laptop on our list is the ACER Aspire 3 15.6 Inch Laptop. Similarly, the Acer Aspire 3 is equally as fast and responsive as the two aforementioned laptops and shares a similar battery life as the Huawei featured above. Although it comes with a full-size keyboard and number pad, the keys are not back-lit which may pose as a disappointment for some. Interestingly, this display supports BlueLightShield which can help alleviate strain from prolonged laptop usage by minimizing the blue light emitted.
Slimmest And Lightest: Huawei MateBook D 14-inch Laptop
To those who don’t fancy lugging around a heavy laptop, this one’s for you. If we look solely at the size, this laptop is on par with its counterpart, the Lenovo ThinkPad to become the slimmest and lightest of all our 14-inch laptop options. Unfortunately, this does not mean that it comes at a cheap cost; in fact, it is around similar price ranges to the bigger Matebook D15. However, it holds a longer battery life (a whole 4 hours more) to an impressive 12 hours on a full charge. Both the Matebook D15 and D14 use the same processing software, memory, and storage functions, and share the same physical appearance –– the slimline framework in space grey. In fact, it resembles closely to the Macbook Pro, except for the fact that it has slimmer top and side bezels, as its webcam is stored directly on the keyboard.
Best Lightweight Design: LENOVO IdeaPad 5i 14-inch laptop
This is the most expensive laptop on our list –– even including the 15.6-inch ones. However, what makes this laptop different is that it houses the webcam within the top bezel, which provides a better viewing angle. It also includes a privacy shutter for the webcam as well. This laptop comes with a full HD display and is fitted with Dolby Audio speakers, which provide you with the perfect movie night after a long day of work. Although it is not as thin as the Huawei laptops, it weighs a mere 1.38kg, which places it as one of the lightest laptops on our list.
Best For Storage: HP Pavilion 14-ce3510sa 14-inch Laptop
In a similar price range, we have the HP Pavilion 14. What sets it apart from the other Intel Core i5 Laptops is its vast storage and memory capacities –– it starts off with an 8GB RAM capacity and adds a large 32GB of Intel Optane memory on top. Because of its sheer memory power, it uses the Intel Core i5 512 GB, instead of the usual 526 GB like the rest of the laptops. Furthermore, its 14-inch Full HD IPS display provides vivid and sharp visuals and boasts of a ten-hour long battery life with Fast Charge support. Lastly, it supports the Amazon Alexa voice assistant that allows you to use your smartphone, set timers, and reminders –– all without having to lift a finger.
LENOVO IdeaPad 3i 14-inch Laptop
Conversely, we have the Lenovo IdeaPad 3i 14-inch Laptop, which is one of the more affordable options on our list. This laptop has a battery life of seven and a half hours per charge but is fitted with the Intel Core i5 processor, 8GB DDR4 memory, and 256GB SSD storage. Similar to its counterpart, the IdeaPad 5i, this laptop comes with Dolby Audio speakers and a privacy shutter for the webcam.
HP 14-cf2504sa 14-inch Laptop
The last on our list and the most affordable option is the HP 14-inch laptop. It includes a slightly laggier Intel Core i5-10210U, which places it at 8% slower than the other laptops fitted with Intel Core i5-1035G. Some of its notable features include combining both the 16GB Intel Optane with the 4GB Ram memory, which aids in increasing quicker application loading and system booting times. This laptop has a battery life of 10 hours per charge –– a full day’s use that can replenish 50% of its battery level in a mere 45 minutes of charging.
Conclusion
With that in mind, we hope that we’ve provided you with sufficient information in choosing the top Intel Core i5 laptop that’s best suited to your needs.