CRN's 2019 Products Of The Year

PC-LAPTOPS

HP ELITEBOOK X360 1040 G6

WINNER: OVERALL

HP Inc.’s EliteBook x360 series is one of our favorite business notebook lineups at the CRN Test Center, but the PC maker continues to find areas for improvement with the EliteBook x360 1040 G6. The convertible notebook offers expanded battery life at up to 24 hours on a charge, along with fast-charging capabilities. The EliteBook x360 1040 G6 comes with a 14-inch display featuring optional 4K resolution and an optional outdoor viewable screen with up to 1,000 nits of brightness. The convertible is also highly portable with a weight of less than 3 pounds, and enables strong performance with up to 32 GB of RAM.

Subcategory Winner—Technology: Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon, Seventh Generation

Lenovo enhanced the ThinkPad X1 Carbon for its seventhgeneration update with a new integrated privacy screen and optional 4K/UHD resolution, with brightness of up to 500 nits. For the body, the 4K X1 Carbon model features a new woven carbon-fiber finish.

Subcategory Winner—Customer Demand: Microsoft Surface Laptop 2

For the second-generation model of the Surface Laptop— Microsoft’s clamshell notebook aimed at student users—the notebook gets a boost on performance with the inclusion of eighth-generation Intel Core processors. The Surface Laptop 2 also adds a new black model to the list of color options.

Finalist: Apple MacBook Pro 2019

Apple’s 2019 MacBook Pro update added speedier eighth-generation and ninth-generation Intel Core processor options for both the 13inch and 15-inch models with Touch Bar. Apple also changed the materials used in its MacBook Pro keyboard mechanism in an attempt to reduce user issues with sticky and unresponsive keys.

Finalist: Dell Latitude 7400 2-in-1

Dell’s Latitude 7400 2-in-1 swaps out the usual black carbon-fiber body for brushed aluminum, while a slim-bezel design around the display reduces the overall size of the notebook. Battery life can reach up to 24 hours on a charge, and the notebook offers an option for speedy LTE connectivity.