Here are the best 4G laptops you can buy in August 2021: Lenovo, Dell, Microsoft, & more!
Nowadays, the market is flooded with fantastic laptops that can do everything you want and then some. There are lots of devices out there, and you’re usually spoiled for choice. However, if you want a laptop that can stay connected on the road, your options are a bit more limited. Laptops with 4G or even 5G are starting to become more prominent, but they’re still not that common. That doesn’t mean you don’t have options, and we’ve rounded up some of the best 4G laptops you can buy.
Having a laptop with 4G is a bigger deal than you might think initially. First, of course, you can stay connected pretty much anywhere you go. If you’re on a train or the back of a car, you can still get work done with 4G connectivity. But even if you’re more stationary, like at a train station, 4G can help you browse the internet more securely. Public Wi-Fi networks are prime targets for security risks, so you really don’t want your personal data flowing through them.
4G connectivity in a laptop usually comes at a premium though, so you have to be ready to spend a little extra money. However, there are some affordable options that include 4G support, and you should still be able to find something that fits your budget.
Navigate this article:
- Best overall: Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Titanium Yoga
- Best workstation: HP ZBook Fury 15 G8
- Best business clamshell: Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon
- Bust business convertible: HP Elite Dragonfly Max
- Best 15-inch laptop: Dell Latitude 7520
- Best tablet: Surface Pro X
- Best budget tablet: Surface Go 2
- Best Chromebook: Acer Chromebook Spin 513
Best overall 4G laptop: Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Titanium Yoga
Lenovo’s ThinkPad family has been a mainstay for business users for years, but with ThinkPad X1 Titanium Yoga, the company tried to do something different. This convertible comes with a 13.5-inch display, and it comes in a very sharp 2256 x 1504 resolution. That high resolution makes it a pleasure to look at, and it gives it a 3:2 aspect ratio, which is great for productivity. Tall displays like this are increasingly common because they give you more vertical space for text. It’s great if you’re reading or writing documents or articles. Of course, since it’s a convertible, it has a touchscreen and supports pen input.
And of course, that’s to say nothing of the specs inside. It has Intel’s Tiger Lake processors, including vPro options, 16GB of RAM, and up to 1TB of storage. That gives you everything you need to work for years to come. You also get awesome features like an IR camera and fingerprint reader for Windows Hello, plus the option for human presence detection. That means you can just walk up to your laptop and it will wake up, ready to be used. Plus, it retains classic elements of the Lenovo ThinkPad family, like the little nub for controlling the mouse cursor if you happen to prefer it.
Of course, the highlight of this article is 4G support, so naturally this laptop offers the option. In fact, you can also add 5G if you’re willing to spend the extra money. Plus, starting at 2.54lbs, this is a pretty lightweight laptop you can easily take anywhere.
- The Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Titanium Yoga offers a stellar combination of high-end specs, lightweight design, and a convertible form factor. You can outfit it with 4G or even 5G to work wherever you want.
Best 4G laptop workstation: HP ZBook Fury 15 G8
Need absolutely all the power you can get? The HP ZBook Fury G8 is a powerhouse of a laptop, to the point where you can hardly say it’s portable. But it technically is, and if for some reason you need 4G connectivity on a machine like this, it’s the perfect solution. It comes with Intel’s 11th-generation H-series Core processors, up to a Core i9-11950H, or you can go with a Xeon W-11955M if that’s not enough. It also comes with workstation graphics from NVIDIA, up to an RTX A5000 GPU with 16GB of GDDR6 memory. That makes this an unbelievably powerful laptop.
That’s not all. You can configure this beast with up to 128GB of RAM, and it has 4 M.2 slots for SSDs, each available with 2TB configurations. Plus there’s space for an HDD, too. Of course, maxing out all the specs here will make this a very expensive laptop, but it’s nice to have the option. Plus, you get other nice features like an optional fingerprint reader, IR camera, up to a 4K display, and a large 94Whr battery, which you’ll definitely need for a powerful machine like this.
Starting at just under $3,000, the ZBook Fury 15 G8 is not for everyone, but if you have very specific needs, this is a beastly laptop with 4G support. You can configure your own below.
- The HP ZBook Fury 15 G8 is an absolute beast of a laptop. It's big and heavy, but it can still stay connected wherever you take it with optional 4G.
Best business clamshell: Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 9
As far as business laptops go, the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon is an absolute classic. The latest refresh stays true to its roots with the all-black carbon fiber design and elements like the red nub for controlling the mouse. Of course, it’s packing modern hardware on the inside, with up to an Intel Core i7-185G7, 1TB of storage, and a whopping 32GB of RAM. It also comes with a large 57Whr battery that promises up to 17 hours of battery life, which is great if you need to be out and about for a long time.
The display is also great, featuring a 16:10 aspect ratio and Full HD+ resolution. You can add a privacy guard to it, a touchscreen, or go all-out and make it a 4K display. It includes mainstay features of Lenovo’s business laptops like a fingerprint reader, optional IR camera, and human presence detection. There are options for both 4G and 5G connectivity, so you can choose whatever fits your needs and budget the best. Either way, you’re getting a fantastic laptop for work, even if it doesn’t do a lot to stand out visually.
- Lenovo's ThinkPad X1 Carbon is a classic business laptop packed with modern specs. It has high-end Intel processors, up to 32GB of RAM, and options for either 4G or 5G connectivity.
Best business convertible: HP Elite Dragonfly Max
The HP Elite Dragonfly Max is a fantastic thin-and-light convertible, starting at just 2.49lbs of weight. Despite being light, it leaves little to be desired in terms of power. You can get it with a Tiger Lake Intel Core i7 vPro, 32GB of RAM, and 2TB of storage. With a configuration like that, this convertible can be your work computer for years to come, storing almost any project you could ever need. And of course, it’ll handle all those projects gracefully thanks to the high-performance processor and RAM.
But even that’s not all. The Elite Dragonfly Max has a 13.3-inch display at Full HD resolution. That’s not mind-blowing, but what’s impressive about it is that its brightness goes up to 1,000 nits, which is just incredible compared to just about any other laptop. That brightness ensures you can use this laptop on the road with no issues, even in broad daylight. Plus, it’s protected by Gorilla Glass 5 and has HP’s Sure View Reflect privacy screen, meaning people around you can’t snoop on what you’re doing. There’s also a quad-speaker stereo system for sound, so consuming media or taking calls should also work great.
Like other laptops on this list, you can get the Elite Dragonfly Max with either 4G or 5G connectivity, depending on your needs. You can configure it below if you need a convertible that you can use while you’re out and about.
- Lightweight, but versatile, the HP Elite Dragonfly Max can handle almost anything you throw at it, while also being easy to carry anywhere. You can use it on the road whenever you want with its bright display and 4G or 5G connectivity.
Best 15-inch 4G laptop: Dell Latitude 7520
Most laptops that come with cellular connectivity seem to have 13- or 14-inch displays, but for some of us, that’s just too small. Personally, I always want to use laptops with at least a 15-inch display, and if you’re like me, then the Dell Latitude 7520 might be for you. This powerful laptop comes with Intel’s Tiger Lake processors (up to a Core i7-1185G7 vPro), 32GB of RAM, and 1TB of storage. And if we’re talking portability, you can equip this laptop with a 63Whr battery to get longer battery life, too.
You also get a solid array of security features, with an optional IR camera and fingerprint reader for Windows Hello and a proximity sensor that can wake up the laptop when you’re nearby. Potentially the biggest downside of this laptop is that its screen only reaches 250 nits of brightness, so outdoor use will always be less than ideal. On the other hand, the lower brightness lets the battery last you that much longer. For cellular connectivity, you can get the Latitude 7520 with a Snapdragon X20 modem, though there’s no 5G option.
- The Dell Latitude 7520 is one of the few 15-inch laptops that offer 4G connectivity. If you need a big screen in a laptop you cna use anywhere, this is the one for you.
Best 4G tablet: Surface Pro X
If we’re talking portability, tablets are hard to match, and the Surface Pro X is a fantastic option if you need LTE. Unlike most devices on this list, it’s based on an ARM processor, and while performance may not be on par with the best Intel or AMD processors, this allows for an incredibly thin and light design. It weighs just 1.7lbs and 7.3mm thick, but still promises 13 hours of battery life. Performance may not be the best, but it’s still good enough for most day-to-day work tasks. Plus, you can get it with 16GB of RAM and 512GB of storage.
The Surface Pro X has a lot going for it. The 13-inch display comes in at a 2880 x 1920 resolution, making it incredibly sharp, on top of using the typical 3:2 aspect ratio of Surface devices. Brightness goes up to 450 nits, which is pretty solid if you want to use it outdoors, and it supports touch, the Surface Pen, and Surface Dial. There are other niceties with the Pro X, like a Windows Hello-capable camera, and one of the best webcams you can find on Windows laptops. The front-facing camera is a 5MP camera capable of Full HD video, and the rear camera is 10MP and it can record up to 4K. That’s not something you see almost anywhere in the Windows space.
If you want to use the Surface Pro X like a regular PC, you can also add a Type Cover to get a keyboard and trackpad, too. A bonus with this device is that 4G support is there by default, so you don’t have to think about paying extra for it. However, there’s no option for 5G if that’s something you’re interested in.
- The Surface Pro X is one of the few premium Windows ARM tablets out there, and it's great. It has a high-resolution and bright display, great performance, and as a bonus, 4G support is included by default.
Best budget 4G tablet: Surface Go 2
Need something that stays connected anywhere you go, but you don’t need all the other high-end specs? The Surface Go 2 is one of the cheapest Windows tablets you can buy with LTE support, so if you’re on tight budget, this might be what you’re looking for. To get LTE support, you need to get the model with an Intel Core m3-8100Y processor, 8GB of RAM, and 128GB of storage, but that’s what we would recommend either way. With that combination of specs, you’re getting solid performance for school tasks and browsing the web, which you wouldn’t really get with just 4GB of RAM or a Pentium processor.
Despite being affordable, the Surface Go 2 still has some premium features. It’s made of magnesium, and combined with its small size, it weighs just 1.21 pounds by itself, which is incredibly light. Plus, the 10.5-inch display has a 1920 x 1280 resolution, which is sharp enough for this size and offers the typical 3:2 aspect ratio of the Surface line. That’s not something you really see in laptops this cheap. And speaking of things you don’t see in PCs this cheap — two 5MP cameras, one at the front and one at the back, both capable of Full HD video. If you’re planning on taking video calls, this is one of your best bets in this price range. You even get an IR camera at the front for Windows Hello facial recognition.
You’ll have to spend some extra money if you want to expand your possibilities. The Surface Go Type Cover is sold separately for $99.99, and you can also get a Surface Pen if you enjoy taking handwritten notes. Still, this is a fantastic 4G laptop all on its own.
- The Surface Go 2 is one of the best budget Windows devices out there. It has a wealth of premium features and offers solid performance for day-to-day tasks, plus 4G connectivity to keep you connected wherever you go.
Best 4G Chromebook: Acer Chromebook Spin 513
Finally, for the Chromebook fans out there, we have the Acer Chromebook Spin 513. Acer makes some of the best Chromebooks out there, and the Chromebook Spin 513 is an excellent ARM-based option. For a convertible starting at just $399, it offers a bright, sharp display — with touch support, of course — and long-lasting battery in a very lightweight package. Performance on the Qualcomm Snapdragon 7c processor isn’t amazing, but for school work and occasional use, it should be fine. It also comes with up to 8GB of RAM and 128GB of storage, though the options Acer offers right now only come with 4GB of RAM and 64GB of storage.
You also get some nice features you can’t take for granted at this price, like a backlit keyboard and a glass trackpad. 4G support on this model is optional, so you’ll need to make sure you’re getting the right model. Still, this is one of the most affordable 4G-enabled devices out there, and it’s got some other benefits to boot.
- The Acer Chromebook Spin 513 is an affordable ARM-based Chromebook that has a great display and battery life. With optional 4G support, you can more easily stay connected anywhere you go.
If you value 4G connectivity, all of these laptops are fantastic choices, and they accommodate different budgets. If you want something ultra-premium, the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Titanium Yoga is a fantastic option, as is the HP Elite Dragonfly Max. On the other end of the spectrum, the Surface Go 2 is an excellent affordable option that still gets you 4G support and solid performance for day-to-day tasks. We even have the rare 15-inch laptop in the form of the Latitude 7520.
There truly is something for everyone here. However, if you want to go even further and get 5G support, we also have a roundup of the best 5G-enabled laptops you can take a look at.
The post Here are the best 4G laptops you can buy in August 2021: Lenovo, Dell, Microsoft, & more! appeared first on xda-developers.
from xda-developers https://ift.tt/3kJneYH
via IFTTT
No comments: