Best laptops

Toshiba Qosmio X870

July 9th, 2012 - The Qosmio is a fine gaming laptop. Choosing between this and Asus' G75VW is going to come down to personal preference and your wallet. 2

Sony Vaio E Series (SVE14A15FGB)

August 23rd, 2012 - Sony's managed to produce a laptop under AU$1000 that not only doesn't sacrifice on quality, but manages to trickle down some premium features, like a backlit keyboard. Within its means, this is one of the best budget laptops you can get. 3

Toshiba Satellite U840W

September 7th, 2012 - It's a little bit different, and we'd hazard a guess that only a few people will be sold by Toshiba's extra-wide display. For those who do get the appeal, they'll also find a well-built, well-featured laptop, with better than usual audio. 1

Acer Aspire S7 (13.3 inch)

November 12th, 2012 - The 13.3-inch version of Acer's Aspire S7 laptop is gorgeous. There are a few minor niggles, it's expensive and battery life isn't the best, but despite all this, this is one of the better Windows 8 solutions out there at this point in time. 1

Asus ZenBook Prime UX31A

June 25th, 2012 - The ZenBook Prime UX31A is everything the ZenBook UX31E should have been, and more. We have no hesitation in recommending this laptop if you truly want no-compromise performance in an ultrabook. 18

• Where to buy? $1499 to $1999 at 2 stores

HP Envy 6 (1010TU)

August 2nd, 2012 - For less than AU$1000, the Envy 6 is quite a good deal, with an excellent build quality and attractive design. To get there, though, the company had to use last-generation specs. 4

Samsung Series 9 (13-inch, 2012)

October 2nd, 2012 - There are some small concerns, but the new Samsung Series 9 is an absolute pleasure to use. 7

Apple MacBook Pro with Retina display

September 14th, 2012 - It's not cheap, and it'll take some time for the software world to catch up, but great battery life, good sound, impeccable build and a screen that'll blow you away means that the MacBook Pro with Retina Display has set a new standard for the rest to follow. 10

Apple MacBook Air 11 (mid-2012)

October 5th, 2012 - The MacBook Air 11 continues to be a wonderfully portable laptop, suiting travel or those who are constantly on the move. While an IPS screen would be nice and the default storage sizes need to be raised, this is a lovely piece of engineering that has well and truly carved its niche.

Alienware m14x (early 2012)

May 29th, 2012 - The m14x is now the smallest Alienware laptop you can get. It's a mid-range gaming device both in spec and performance, although, at the price involved, it will come up against stiff competition with Asus' G55VW.