Six of the most impressive laptops of CES 2018

CES 2018 has shown off some amazing laptops coming out this year, and we got a chance to get a close look at many of them at 2018's event.

We’ve seen incredibly thin and light laptops, powerful gaming laptops that would make some desktop PCs envious, and a new breed of laptop that can last almost an entire day on a battery.

The best laptops of CES 2018 highlight just what the humble laptop form factor is capable of, as in a show that was brimming with drones, wearables and robots, it proved that laptops are still vital devices that can seriously impress us. Read on for our pick of the best laptops of CES 2018.

The Lenovo Miix 630 impressed us so much we awarded it our best laptop of CES 2018. As the name suggests, this is a mix of devices, being both a Windows tablet and also a laptop. Thankfully, there’s none of the compromises here that other hybrid laptop/tablets often suffer from.

It has a sharp 12.3-inch touchscreen with a 1,920 x 1,280 resolution, and it’s protected by Corning Gorilla Glass and a keyboard cover that’s comfortable to type on. The Qualcomm Snapdragon 835 system-on-a-chip processor with Adreno 540 graphics powers the Lenovo Miix 630, giving it enough grunt for pretty much any day-to-day task, while also promising some seriously impressive battery life.

If the Lenovo Miix 630 is representative of what this new breed of Snapdragon-powered laptops will be like, then we’re very excited for what the future holds.

The MSI GE63 Raider RGB Edition is another award winner, bagging our Best Gaming Laptop award at this year’s CES 2018. It’s an impressive gaming laptop – inside and out. It features RGB lighting that can sometimes look a little garish, but here it works brilliantly, turning the MSI GE63 Raider RGB Edition into an eye-catching device that really stands out from the crowd.

It’s not all about the looks, either, and the MSI GE63 Raider RGB Edition promises to be a powerful gaming laptop that can run the latest games in all their graphical glory. We can’t wait to get our hands on one and give it a proper test soon.

At CES 2018 Acer showed off some wonderful laptops, including an overhauled Swift 7. The previous Swift 7 model was already impressively thin and light, but Acer has managed to make it even thinner – from just over 10mm to an exceptionally trim 8.98mm, while increasing the Full HD display size from 13.3-inch to 14-inch.

Acer has also added built-in 4G LTE connectivity to the notebook, so you can connect to mobile data services, rather than relying on Wi-Fi. By combining a slimmer and lighter design with even more features, the Acer Swift 7 is easily one of the best laptops at CES 2018.

As we expected, Asus also had a strong laptop showing at CES 2018, and the device that really impressed us was the Asus ZenBook 13. This well-designed ultrabook has an all-metal design and weighs just 985g, with Asus claiming it will be the ‘ultimate’ in portability.

We’ve always loved Asus’ ZenBook machines so we’re looking forward to seeing just how good the new Asus ZenBook 13 is when it launches in the first half of this year.

LG announced a new line of LG gram laptops at CES 2018 which promise an either lighter laptop experience, with the 13.3-inch weighing just 961g. Even with the reduced weight and size, LG has still managed to add a second solid state drive for additional speedy storage.

Even though it’s thin and light, it doesn’t mean the laptops are fragile: as LG has ensured they pass seven MIL-STD 810G durability tests for impact, temperature and pressure resistance thanks to their new nano-carbon magnesium shell.

There will also be a suite of optional upgrades available as well, so customers can customise their laptops to suit their needs.

The Dell XPS 13 has been sitting pretty atop our list of the best laptops for quite a while now, and having seen the latest version of the Dell XPS 13 at CES 2018, it looks like it’s not going to lose its top spot any time soon.

With a display that now goes up to UHD 4K on some models, as well as tweaks to the design to further refine the laptop, the best laptop in the world just got a whole lot better. The chassis is now 30% thinner, and it’s a touch lighter to carry as well. The improved keyboard is another highlight, and overall it makes the Dell XPS 13 one of the best laptops we’ve seen this year at CES.

• Check out our list of the best laptops of 2018