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How to pick
Three things separate a business laptop from a consumer one and none of them are on the specification sheet. The keyboard, because you will type on it every day for years. The hinge and the case, because those are what fail first on cheap machines. And parts availability, because a business line stays serviceable long after a consumer model is discontinued. A refurbished business laptop is often better value than a new consumer one.
What I recommend
The three IT departments actually buy
ThinkPad, Latitude and EliteBook exist because companies need laptops that survive being carried daily and can be repaired rather than binned. Three things separate them from consumer laptops and none are on the specification sheet: the keyboard, the hinge and the case, and parts availability years later.
Lenovo ThinkPad T14 or X1 Carbon
ThinkPads consistently rank top for durability, and the keyboard is the reason people stay with them for decades. The T14 is the value pick and the X1 Carbon is the light one. Both are tested to military durability standards, which sounds like marketing until you have seen a three year old one still working perfectly.
- Best keyboard on any laptop, by common consent
- MIL-STD durability testing
- Parts and service manuals freely available
- Holds value, and refurbished ones are excellent
- Plain looking, which some people mind
- Screens on cheaper models are dimmer than rivals
- The pointing stick divides opinion
- Configurations are confusing, there are dozens
Dell Latitude
The one most often recommended for general business use. Good balance of build, performance and dual monitor support, and Dell's on site warranty options are genuinely useful if the machine earns its living.
- Excellent warranty options including on site
- Handles two external monitors well
- Very widely deployed, so support is easy to find
- Keyboard is good but not ThinkPad good
- Cheaper models feel plasticky
- Dell's own software is worth uninstalling
HP EliteBook
The EliteBook typically runs two to four hours longer than an equivalent Latitude or ThinkPad, which matters more than raw speed if you work away from a socket. Well built, quiet, and with good security features.
- Noticeably longer battery than rivals
- Solid aluminium build
- Strong security features built in
- Heavier than an X1 Carbon
- HP's software bundle is intrusive
- Repair is slightly more awkward than a ThinkPad
Where the value actually is
The same argument as desktops. A three year old business laptop is better built than a new consumer one and costs less.
Refurbished business laptop
An off lease ThinkPad, Latitude or EliteBook is the classic value buy. Built to be repaired, drivers long since sorted, and a fraction of new. Get one with 16GB and a solid state drive, and buy from a seller offering a real warranty.
- Far better built than a new laptop at the price
- Parts still readily available
- Batteries are usually replaceable
- Kinder on the planet than buying new
- Battery will not be as good as new, budget to replace it
- Cosmetic wear is normal
- Older processor generation
- Seller quality varies enormously, check the warranty
- Look for
- ThinkPad, Latitude, EliteBook
- Why
- Built to be repaired, drivers long sorted
- Buy
- Last year's models, not the newest
- Value
- A fraction of new
Setting up a machine for work?
I can get it out of the box, onto the network and into your accounts so it is genuinely ready to use.