By Robin Owens 13 days ago, Hardware
The best laptops for data science available on the market.
Laptops are extremely useful devices, as they provide the portability missing in PCs while offering a lot more power and functionality than a smartphone or tablet. Regardless if you’re in the comfort of your house, traveling, or in a lecture hall, a quality laptop will help you always stay productive.
Despite many people relying on phones and tablets for all of their technological needs, research work, data science and analysis, content creation, and gaming demand a more serious and convenient machine. If that’s what you’re looking for as well, then this article covering the 9 best laptops for data science is exactly what you need.
CPU: Intel Core i5 | GPU: Radeon Pro | RAM: 16 GB | Storage: 512 GB | Display: 16-inch | Weight: 8.23 pounds
There are many reasons why the MacBook Pro is one of the best laptops for data science, but one aspect that makes it stand above all other options is the display quality. Nothing can compare to the image produced by the 13” Retina screen included in the smaller version of the laptop.
Moreover, if you’re ready to carry around a larger laptop, then you can get the 15” display version, which allows you to enjoy the quality of this high-res screen in its full glory. Apple also offers the MacBook Air for users who are interested in something more portable and don’t prioritize resolution and screen size. Regardless of which option you choose, you’ll get to enjoy a beautifully-designed laptop that provides fantastic performance and a user-friendly interface.
CPU: Intel Core | GPU: Nvidia | RAM: 16 GB | Storage: 256 GB | Display: 13.5 -inch | Weight: 2.8 pounds
Surface 3 is just about the perfect laptop for data science. It comes in a stylish, lightweight chassis, offers increased performance, a comfortable keyboard, and can be easily traveled with, allowing you to stay productive wherever you are.
Moreover, Microsoft now lets you choose between 2 size options, 2 keyboard finishes, and multiple color solutions, which is a level of personalization that you won’t find anywhere else. The battery included in the Surface has also been reworked and now lasts a lot longer than in most other options on this list.
CPU: Intel Core | GPU: NVIDIA | RAM: 16 GB | Storage: 512GB | Display: 13.3 -inch | Weight: 2.80 lbs
Even though it’s not the latest entry in the series, the ZenBook 13 fully deserves to be among the best laptops for data science. It’s pleasantly portable, has a touchscreen display, and is surprisingly lightweight.
It also comes with the Pad 2.0 display, which is a small touchscreen that can be used for conveniently accessing several popular features and tools. Pad 2.0 has a user-friendly interface that allows you to manage your activities and organize your workflow with minimum effort. You can further enhance this secondary display by installing some Asus applications like handwriting, doc Xpert, slide Xpert, and sheet Xpert.
CPU: Intel® Core | GPU: NVIDIA | RAM: 16 GB | Storage: 256 GB | Display: 14 -inch | Weight: 3.63 lbs
This laptop for statistical analysis comes with a high-quality display surrounded by thin bezels on all sides, allowing you to enjoy a larger viewing area than most other options. The screen is built on an IPS panel and offers a Full-HD resolution. Another interesting addition is the shutter you can use to close the laptop’s webcam whenever you want to be 100% certain your privacy can’t be endangered.
Other than being a fantastic tool for analysts and researchers, the Flex is also extremely versatile in terms of use, as it can be set to 4 different modes. Laptop is the go-to choice for your everyday work, Tent is great if you want to share something, Stand is designed for binge-watching movies, YouTube or Netflix series, and Tablet is great whenever you need that extra bit of portability.
CPU: Intel® | GPU: NVIDIA® | RAM: 8 GB | Storage: 512GB | Display: 14 -inch | Weight: 2.65 lbs
Swift comes with all the specs necessary to be considered among the best laptops for data science and some additional features on top of that. This model has 2 integrated microphones that capture clear audio and an HD webcam that ensures you look your best whether you’re participating in a conference call or chatting with your friends and family.
The included fingerprint detector adds another layer of security thanks to Windows Hello and allows you to enter the system without having to type in a password. The Cortana AI is also a fantastic addition that lets you use Windows Hello as a smart assistant.
CPU: Intel® | GPU: NVIDIA® | RAM: 16GB | Storage: 1TB | Display: 15.6 -inch | Weight: 8.93 pounds
The latest entry in the Blade series offers even better performance than before, as it’s supplied with an 8-core 10-gen Intel i7 CPU and the GeForce RTX 2080 Super graphics card while allowing you to enjoy the increased graphical fidelity on its beautiful OLED 4K touchscreen.
All of that hardware is included in a robust, aluminum body that is surprisingly small, being only 0.7"" thick. This fast processing laptop is also incredibly sturdy thanks to the CNC uniform frame and the electrochemically applied color that reinforces the finish and protects it from small scratches and collisions.
CPU: Intel| GPU: NVIDIA | RAM: 16 GB | Storage: 1TB | Display: 15.6 -inch | Weight: 4.39 lbs
If you’re looking for a laptop for data science, you’ll be impressed with what the Zephyrus M has to offer. Great performance, a pre-installed copy of Windows 10, a 240Hz Pantone-certified screen with extra-slim bezels, a reliable NVMe SSD, and a 9-gen Intel Core i7 CPU – are just some of the features that make this product one of the most powerful and portable options on the market.
It comes with a solid selection of ports as well, such as USB 3.0 and Type-C inputs, and is capable of handling data science utilities as well as graphic design software and even the latest games.
CPU: Intel® Core™ | GPU: NVIDIA® | RAM: 16GB | Storage: 512GB | Display: 13.5-inch | Weight: 2.65 lbs
Spin 5 just might be the best laptop for bioinformatics, as it offers a stylish look, a lightweight build, and a magnesium-aluminum alloy chassis. Moreover, this model comes with a 360-degree dual-torque hinge that lets you use the laptop in 4 modes.
Created because of the collaboration between Intel and Acer, the Spin 5 comes with a 10-gen Core i7 CPU and built-in Wi-Fi 6 support, offering fantastic performance and versatility. The laptop also features a dedicated stylus storage compartment that can be used as a charger, which allows you to use the stylus for about 90 minutes after just 20 seconds of charging.
| IMAGE | NAME | FEATURES | |
|---|---|---|---|
|
MacBook Pro
Our Choice
|
CHECK PRICE → | |
|
Microsoft Surface Laptop
Compact
|
CHECK PRICE → | |
|
Asus ZenBook
Durable
|
CHECK PRICE → |
If you’re looking for a scientific laptop, it means you will inevitably spend countless hours each day looking at the display, which is why you need to ensure it’s convenient and pleasant to look at.
One of the first things you have to decide is whether you need touchscreen functionality from your laptop. The current market offers plenty of such options and touch controls make many tasks significantly simpler to complete. The downside of such models is the glossiness that is added to the screen. A glossy display is prone to reflections, which are especially detrimental if you’re playing games, watching a movie, or editing visual content. If you plan to use it for those purposes, then you should probably skip on touchscreen models.
The next aspect you have to keep in mind is resolution. The current golden standard is Full-HD (1920 by 1080), as it gives you more than enough real estate to have multiple windows opened simultaneously when working in various software. Some of the latest laptops come with a 4K definition, but such products typically cost a lot more while not providing many benefits for anyone except content creators like graphic designers and video editors.
If you’ll do a lot of typing, you should prioritize laptops for data analysis that have a convenient, user-friendly keyboard. Avoid bloated keyboards that try to include every key in existence while sacrificing their size and layout quality since you will end up looking for keys longer, pressing the wrong key by accident, and having to deal with a cramped Numpad. Full-size keys are a must for any serious typist, and try to get a model that has responsive, snappy keys that also have a bit of space between them. A backlight is also a welcomed inclusion since it will allow you to type comfortably even in poorly lit workspaces.
When looking at the best laptops for data science, you’ll notice that pretty much all of them are supplied with Intel processors. Whether it’s an i3, i5, or i7, it’s hard to match the processing power provided by Intel products. Typically, Core i3 CPUs are included in budget laptops while midrange options are supplied with i5 models.
If your goal is to enjoy the best performance possible regardless of what you’re doing, then go with a laptop that has a Core i7 CPU. However, be ready to pay for that luxury as such products come at a premium price and can suffer from minor overheating issues.
Anything less than 4GB of RAM is unacceptable by current standards, and it’s highly recommended to get a laptop with at least 8GB to enjoy a smooth performance in most modern software. If you want to use the device for gaming and multitasking as well, consider investing in a laptop that is supplied with 16GB of RAM or even more.
Such models typically have smaller screens and less powerful CPUs, but you get to enjoy superior portability due to their detachable screens, as you can walk around with them and use the device as a tablet.
High-end laptops come with CPUs that offer a clock speed in the 3.5GHz to 4.0GHz range, but when it comes to data science, you might go a bit below those figures. It’s also vital to ensure the processor you select provides solid single-thread performance, meaning it efficiently processes and completes individual tasks.
The answer depends on what specific laptop for statisticians you have in mind since not all options allow you to upgrade their hardware. If it is possible, then you’ll be able to add an 8GB module to your system, but the increase in performance won't be as noticeable as you might think since the laptop won't utilize the added RAM to the max.
