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7 of the best laptop brands of 2019

To survive in today’s world, a laptop is almost a necessity. Whether you’re a contractor using a 2-in-1 to show off floor plans or a college student who needs a Chromebook for class, they make life that much easier.  But with all the name brands offering every laptop you could possibly imagine, how could you…


To survive in today’s world, a laptop is almost a necessity. Whether you’re a contractor using a 2-in-1 to show off floor plans or a college student who needs a Chromebook for class, they make life that much easier. 

But with all the name brands offering every laptop you could possibly imagine, how could you possibly know the best ones to shop from?

At first glance, that’s not an easy question to answer since there are laptops capable of doing everything you could possibly want or need. It can be even harder when trying to separate them by brand and trying to find out what advantages some companies offer over others.

Luckily, we’re here to help make that search a little easier. From reviews, body design, brand alternatives, and more, we’ve figured out the best laptop brands to shop from in 2019. 

Best reviewed

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Image: Lenovo
The Good

Excellent reviews across the board • Wide selection of laptops

The Bad

Poor customer support

The Bottom Line

With a huge selection of laptops, Lenovo is the brand to lean on for consistently positive reviews.

1. Lenovo

While you wouldn’t think it, Lenovo is the brand to check out if you’re looking for some of the best reviewed laptops out there.

  • Popular line:ThinkPad
  • Chromebooks available:No
  • 2-in-1s available:Yes
  • Available at:Amazon, Walmart, Target, Best Buy
$1,759 from Amazon
A laptop could look like the best thing ever on paper, but if it’s poorly reviewed, that could be the kiss of death. Positive reviews, especially when it comes to laptops, are still the best barometer to go by when looking for a new device. And for 2019, no brand has been as well reviewed as Lenovo.
At first glance, you may find it surprising that Lenovo is the best reviewed laptop brand, especially when put up against other names like Apple or HP. While these aren’t poorly reviewed, it’s simply the fact that, laptop to laptop, Lenovo keeps a level of consistency across its products that contribute to those positive reviews.
The ThinkPad line is Lenovo’s go-to line of laptops for anyone looking for an excellent, well-rounded laptop like the T470. The biggest reasons for this is a sturdy design and build quality, fast performance under the hood, and an excellent battery life. The X1 Carbon reviewed extremely well across the board, too, from the likes of CNET, PCMag, and LaptopMag. Common praises went to the Carbon’s thin design and battery life, among other features.
Those are just two examples of the positive reviews Lenovo laptops have received in 2018. On the whole, Lenovo has kept a level consistency that has been reflected in those positive reviews, and if that matters in finding your perfect laptop in 2019, Lenovo is a go to choice.

Best customer support

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Image: apple
The Good

Excellent customer service • macOS offers smooth performance

The Bad

No major changes to hardware • Limited choice

The Bottom Line

Customer support can make or break someone’s experience, and no one does it better with laptops than Apple.

2. Apple

Apple doesn’t just offer premium laptops, but premium customer service as well to ensure those MacBooks keep going.

  • Popular line:MacBook
  • Chromebooks available:No
  • 2-in-1s available:No
  • Available at:Amazon, Best Buy
$2,799 from Amazon
As great as modern technology is, we still haven’t reached a point where everything works 100% of the time (and we probably never will). That’s why it’s important to have good customer support to keep the user base happy. And no company does that better right now than Apple.
In a way, it’s almost a necessity for Apple to invest in its customer support given the quality of their products. That doesn’t mean the 2018 MacBook is low quality, it’s the opposite. Because Apple products are of a certain quality, it only makes sense customers would expect the same of its customer support.
Thankfully, Apple consistently lives up to its user’ expectations. Agents respond quickly to questions about functions or possible difficulties, whether it be on the Apple website or social media. If you need to get your MacBook serviced, you can take it to the closest Apple store to get it  checked out. That kind of boots on the ground support is practically unrivaled in this space.
And if you have AppleCare+, accidental damage is covered for those drops and cracks. There will be repair fees, but it’s still better than dropping another $2,800 on a new MacBook Pro.
Customer support can make or break most people’s experiences with a company, though it’s true you tend to hear more about negative experiences than positive ones. Thankfully, Apple has been able to stay on the opposite side of that, so if you need your MacBook checked out, you’ll be in good hands.

Best for gaming

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Image: razer
The Good

High-end gaming on the go • Surprisingly thin design

The Bad

Extremely limited choice

The Bottom Line

Razer offers desktop power in a thin, laptop body for any gamers on the go.

3. Razer

When it comes to PC gaming, Razer is a premiere name offering premium laptops.

  • Popular line:Blade
  • Chromebooks available:No
  • 2-in-1s available:No
  • Available at:Amazon, Best Buy
$1,499 from Amazon
When it comes to PC gaming, the right name does make a difference. Sure, companies like Asus might offer their own gaming laptops, but in this space, there might be no better name than Razer.
Started in 2005, Razer broke into PC gaming with the Boomslang mouse and it was off to the races. Today, Razer peripherals are among the best products you can get to fill out a gaming setup. Whether it’s a mouse with high DPI for movement, a mechanical keyboard with mechanical switches for faster input, or a THX-infused surround sound headset, you can find some of the best accessories on the market from this company.
In the last few years, Razer also expanded into gaming laptops with the Razer Blade line. As opposed to other gaming laptops that lean on the bulkier side, Razer has been able to pack plenty of power into extremely slim bodies. 
The model that captures this best is the 4K version of Razer Blade Pro 17. Packing a GeForce GTX 1080 and Intel Core i7 processor, it isn’t lacking for power in any way. And since it’s VR ready, you’ll finally be able to get yourself an Oculus Rift or HTC Vive. There’s also the Razer Blade Stealth for anyone who doesn’t have the dime to drop on the Blade Pro 17. Just keep in mind, af

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Microsoft China denied it would cease operations in the country, after a screenshot of an internal email from Wicresoft, a Microsoft outsourcing partner, fueled speculation about a potential exit. On Monday, several employees of Wicresoft shared screenshots of layoff emails on social media. The email cites geopolitical tensions and shifts in the global business landscape [……
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How Microsoft’s AI chief measures consumer inroads for Copilot

Advertisement Business How Microsoft’s AI chief measures consumer inroads for Copilot Microsoft AI CEO Mustafa Suleyman speaks at the company’s 50th anniversary celebration in Redmond, Washington, U.S., April 4, 2025. REUTERS/Jeffrey Dastin Microsoft AI CEO Mustafa Suleyman speaks at the company’s 50th anniversary celebration in Redmond, Washington, U.S., April 4, 2025. REUTERS/Jeffrey Dastin Microsoft co-founder

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How Microsoft’s AI chief measures consumer inroads for Copilot

05 Apr 2025 08:13AM
(Updated: 05 Apr 2025 08:28AM)



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REDMOND, Washington : As Microsoft CEOs past and present gathered here to celebrate the company’s 50th birthday, one leader said he is targeting a particular metric’s improvement to guide his strategy on artificial intelligence.

Mustafa Suleyman, chief executive of Microsoft AI, said his consumer and research division is tracking the usual measures of adoption for the company’s AI assistant called Copilot. These include daily and weekly active users, distribution, and usage intensity for Copilot’s consumer offering, he said.

But Suleyman’s interest lies elsewhere.

“I really, really focus the team on SSR, the rate of successful sessions,” he said in an interview.

In an older era when consumers gave less real-time feedback on software, the time they spent with a product – on social media, for instance – or the problems they could solve represented crude “proxies for quality,” he said.

“Now, we actually get to learn from the anonymized logs and extract the sentiment,” said Suleyman, who joined Microsoft about a year ago after leading the startup Inflection AI. Suleyman was one of the only Microsoft executives other than former CEOs Bill Gates and Steve Ballmer and current CEO Satya Nadella to speak on stage at Microsoft’s Friday event at its Redmond, Washington, headquarters.

Suleyman said Microsoft has tasked an AI model itself to assess such sentiment and help determine Copilot chats’ SSR.

“Over the last four months, it’s gone up dramatically, and that’s what we optimize for,” he said.

Suleyman declined to state the rate in absolute terms or disclose other Copilot metrics.

The company last fall announced a more amiable voice for its consumer Copilot and the ability to analyze web pages for users as they browse.

On Friday, Microsoft demonstrated further features for Copilot: personalized podcasts, a tool to help consumers research complex queries, and eventually a look for Copilot that can be custom to each user and conversation.

“I would definitely go for something that was cutesy,” said Suleyman, “like a little Furby-type thing.”

Source: Reuters

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Microsoft Raises Alarm of Malware Targeting Coinbase, MetaMask Wallets

Tech Share Share this article Copy link X icon X (Twitter) LinkedIn Facebook Email Microsoft Raises Alarm of Malware Targeting Coinbase, MetaMask Wallets A new report from Microsoft researchers warned of malware that could steal and decrypt users’ information from 20 of some of the most popular cryptocurrency wallets. By Margaux Nijkerk| Edited by Stephen

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Microsoft Raises Alarm of Malware Targeting Coinbase, MetaMask Wallets

A new report from Microsoft researchers warned of malware that could steal and decrypt users’ information from 20 of some of the most popular cryptocurrency wallets.

Microsoft shareholders voted against adding bitcoin to its company's treasury. (Photo by Craig T Fruchtman/Getty Images)

What to know:

  • Tech giant Microsoft shared a new report warning of malware that targets 20 of the most popular cryptocurrency wallets used with the Google Chrome extension.
  • The malware, dubbed StilachiRAT, could deploy “sophisticated techniques to evade detection, persist in the target environment, and exfiltrate sensitive data.”
  • While the malware has not been distributed widely, Microsoft did share that it has not been able to identify what entity is behind the threat.

Tech giant Microsoft shared a new report warning of malware that targets 20 of the most popular cryptocurrency wallets used with the Google Chrome extension.

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Microsoft’s Incident Response researchers raised alarms of a new remote access trojan (RAT), dubbed StilachiRAT, which could deploy “sophisticated techniques to evade detection, persist in the target environment, and exfiltrate sensitive data,” the team shared in a blog post.

According to the team, the malware was discovered in November 2024, and it could steal users’ wallet information, and any credentials, including usernames and passwords, stored in their Google Chrome browser. StilachiRAT targets 20 crypto wallets including some of the most widely-used ones like MetaMask, Coinbase Wallet, Phantom, OKX Wallet, and BNB Chain Wallet.

While the malware has not been distributed widely, Microsoft did share that it has not been able to identify what entity is behind the threat and laid out some mitigation guidelines for current targets including installing antivirus software.

“Due to its stealth capabilities and the rapid changes within the malware ecosystem, we are sharing these findings as part of our ongoing efforts to monitor, analyze, and report on the evolving threat landscape,” the team wrote.

Read more: Microsoft Shareholders Vote Down Bitcoin Treasury Proposal

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Margaux Nijkerk

Margaux Nijkerk reports on the Ethereum protocol and L2s. A graduate of Johns Hopkins and Emory universities, she has a masters in International Affairs & Economics. She holds BTC and ETH above CoinDesk’s disclosure threshold of $1,000.

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