Mike Jennings

Is this affordable 15.6-in notebook an ideal option for budget creativity and student life?

The Gigabyte Aero 16 has incredible speed harnessed behind an AMOLED screen, but the battery and port selection both disappoint.

The MSI Stealth 15M is an affordable coding, gaming and lecture laptop that's cheaper than its rivals, but worse in many key areas.

Great power, aesthetics, and screen options, but the Dell XPS 13 Plus is a risky ultraportable that falls short of expectations in several key departments.

Student Tech The Acer Swift 3 outpaces rivals and looks decent, but is the price too good to be true?

It’s packed with ports and has surprising power, but the HP ZBook Firefly G9 is hindered by a poor screen and occasionally high prices.

A superb compact notebook, the Lenovo Slim 7i Pro X pairs powerful internals with a consistently slick design.

A slim, light, and capable student all-rounder with an all-day battery and surprisingly low prices.

The MSI Prestige 15 is affordable, lightweight, and long-lasting, but you should only buy the Core i7 versions if you want to get work done with this notebook.

The Alienware x14 brings impressive power and eye-catching design to gaming and programming – although its battery life does suffer as a result.

The Lenovo Legion 5i Pro scythes through games and programming apps – and its connectivity, display, and price all impress too.

The Acer Aspire Vero is proud of its eco credentials, but is it an ideal everyday machine too?

The Dell XPS 15 looks brilliant, has plenty of power and has a bold, bright display, but it’s hindered by some notable flaws too