1 00:00:00,160 --> 00:00:06,480 There are so many things to consider when choosing a laptop. Performance and 2 00:00:04,400 --> 00:00:11,360 battery life, the brightness and clarity of the screen, the durability and the 3 00:00:08,800 --> 00:00:15,200 feel of the materials. Though, if Amazon's best sellers list is anything 4 00:00:13,120 --> 00:00:21,160 to go by, the main thing people care about is the price. Meet the topelling 5 00:00:19,039 --> 00:00:28,720 laptop, the HP14 laptop. a $169 machine that is so 6 00:00:26,160 --> 00:00:34,200 forgettably mediocre that HP couldn't even be arked to give it a real name. So 7 00:00:31,359 --> 00:00:39,920 with that in mind, why the shuck is everybody buying this thing? 8 00:00:37,520 --> 00:00:45,840 Well, maybe because it's not that bad. With a 4.1 star rating, maybe buyers 9 00:00:42,960 --> 00:00:49,760 know that the 14 laptop will at best be suitably adequate. So, to more 10 00:00:48,079 --> 00:00:56,000 thoroughly answer our question and find out what it is that you guys care about, 11 00:00:52,079 --> 00:00:58,879 we also picked up the second and third 12 00:00:56,000 --> 00:01:03,640 most popular laptops on Amazon. Can we trust the wisdom of the crowd? Or should 13 00:01:01,359 --> 00:01:08,560 they have watched a bit more LT before hitting buy now? What you definitely 14 00:01:06,720 --> 00:01:14,720 should buy now is whatever comes after this segue to our sponsor UPDF. Edit, 15 00:01:12,479 --> 00:01:19,759 sign, combine, and even convert scanned text into an editable format. Manage 16 00:01:17,360 --> 00:01:24,400 your PDFs, all with one license that you can use on virtually any platform. It's 17 00:01:22,320 --> 00:01:29,720 already priced super competitively, but you can get 38% off using our link 18 00:01:26,720 --> 00:01:29,720 today. 19 00:01:37,119 --> 00:01:45,040 Right out of the gate, my impressions for the HP14 laptop were not terrible, 20 00:01:42,720 --> 00:01:50,320 which is a big surprise because every other time we've looked at a sub $200 21 00:01:47,360 --> 00:01:55,119 laptop, it has been comically bad. I mean, yeah, the chassis is plastic and 22 00:01:52,640 --> 00:01:59,680 it feels the part, but it looks decent enough with a white color scheme and a 23 00:01:57,280 --> 00:02:05,840 brushed texture on the palm rest. And to HP's credit, the rigidity is okay. I 24 00:02:03,280 --> 00:02:10,560 mean, yeah, it's a little flexible, but it's no worse than laptops we've seen 25 00:02:07,680 --> 00:02:16,000 that are three or four times the price. And it even has better IO than many of 26 00:02:13,200 --> 00:02:22,080 those laptops. And the good news keeps coming. The keyboard on the 14 is 27 00:02:19,040 --> 00:02:24,480 shockingly usable. I mean, it bounces 28 00:02:22,080 --> 00:02:29,200 like a trampoline if you push on it, but not in a way that actually impacted use 29 00:02:26,800 --> 00:02:33,920 much. It took me just seconds to get up to full speed. And if I'm being honest, 30 00:02:31,599 --> 00:02:38,959 I think I would choose this over the trendier zero lattice keyboard on the 31 00:02:36,319 --> 00:02:44,239 much more expensive Dell XPS. The trackpad also has excellent tracking and 32 00:02:41,599 --> 00:02:50,720 click feel, but there are times where size matters more than how you use it, 33 00:02:46,959 --> 00:02:53,599 and this is one of them. The screen also 34 00:02:50,720 --> 00:03:00,080 isn't great, but at least it's in ways that align with my expectations for a 35 00:02:55,879 --> 00:03:02,640 $169 laptop. It's only 768p, which 36 00:03:00,080 --> 00:03:07,519 leaves text noticeably blocky, and you can adjust the contrast ratio by simply 37 00:03:05,440 --> 00:03:11,760 tilting the screen. But if all you plan to do is write in Google Docs and watch 38 00:03:09,360 --> 00:03:17,200 YouTube videos, it really isn't too bad for that. In fact, this video was 39 00:03:13,840 --> 00:03:19,239 largely written on the HP14 laptop. 40 00:03:17,200 --> 00:03:25,360 Where things fall apart, though, is performance. We've got 4 GB of RAM at a 41 00:03:22,720 --> 00:03:33,040 time when 8 really isn't enough anymore. We get 64 gigs of very slow eMMC storage 42 00:03:29,280 --> 00:03:35,000 to go with our even worse than that dual 43 00:03:33,040 --> 00:03:39,440 core Intel Celeron N4020. Now, if that model number doesn't 44 00:03:37,280 --> 00:03:42,640 mean anything to you, I don't blame you. That's on purpose so you won't realize 45 00:03:41,280 --> 00:03:48,400 that this thing was built using technology from 46 00:03:44,360 --> 00:03:51,280 2016. Want to open a folder? Hope you're 47 00:03:48,400 --> 00:03:55,519 ready to wait. Want to watch a video? You get to wait for that, too. There 48 00:03:53,519 --> 00:03:59,360 were times in our testing where we could write out an entire sentence before the 49 00:03:57,680 --> 00:04:03,680 first letters would start appearing on the screen. Not always, but catch it 50 00:04:02,159 --> 00:04:09,280 during a background Windows update or something like that. And it really is 51 00:04:05,920 --> 00:04:10,959 that slow and forget about any sort of 52 00:04:09,280 --> 00:04:14,720 gaming. So, with that in mind, what happens if you pony up for the second 53 00:04:12,799 --> 00:04:21,280 most purchased laptop on Amazon, the Lenovo Idea Pad 1? Well, right out of 54 00:04:17,919 --> 00:04:23,919 the gate, the $280 Idea Pad fixes some 55 00:04:21,280 --> 00:04:30,560 of the key failings of the HP. You get 12 GB of RAM and enough storage for more 56 00:04:27,600 --> 00:04:35,360 than half of one modern video game. And while the description of the TN display 57 00:04:32,960 --> 00:04:40,720 might border on false advertising, at least it's 1080p now, which helps a lot 58 00:04:38,400 --> 00:04:45,440 with text readability. Like with the HP, we actually get a very decent assortment 59 00:04:42,720 --> 00:04:50,240 of ports. And as a cherry on top, we even get Wi-Fi 6, which 60 00:04:47,800 --> 00:04:55,919 um unfortunately is where the nice things I can say about this hot pile of 61 00:04:52,720 --> 00:04:59,040 ass end. Unlike the HP, the typing 62 00:04:55,919 --> 00:05:01,199 experience suffers badly from the flex 63 00:04:59,040 --> 00:05:05,600 in the all plastic chassis. And while the trackpad itself is quite decent, big 64 00:05:03,840 --> 00:05:10,000 enough to be usable with adequate tracking and click feel, the second you 65 00:05:07,840 --> 00:05:14,960 put your palm on the palm rest, you know, the place for resting your palm, 66 00:05:12,880 --> 00:05:19,360 the trackpad gets noticeably more difficult to click, turning the Idea Pad 67 00:05:16,880 --> 00:05:23,199 1 into this constant, irritating reminder that you didn't choose a better 68 00:05:21,360 --> 00:05:30,479 laptop. And you know what the worst part is? It isn't even noticeably faster than 69 00:05:26,320 --> 00:05:33,199 the HP. Yep. In episode 5, the Celeron 70 00:05:30,479 --> 00:05:39,039 Strikes Back, we get another dual core 2.8 GHz Abacus emulator. Now, this one's 71 00:05:36,560 --> 00:05:43,680 a bit more modern at 4 years young, but in practice, it doesn't really matter. 72 00:05:41,280 --> 00:05:47,039 It's so slow that even the extra RAM can't improve the experience. Here, look 73 00:05:45,360 --> 00:05:51,479 at this. I'm going to show you how to max out this processor. You start by 74 00:05:49,360 --> 00:05:55,199 opening task manager 75 00:05:53,400 --> 00:06:00,960 eventually. Okay, let's go to the performance tab. And 76 00:05:58,360 --> 00:06:06,720 tada. Okay, in fairness, it's only at 20% right now. But to exceed that, we 77 00:06:03,840 --> 00:06:12,080 merely need to open an explorer window. Or to generate another spike, just 78 00:06:09,280 --> 00:06:15,840 rightclick to open a context menu. To really drive home how slow this thing 79 00:06:13,600 --> 00:06:21,120 is, we need something to compare it to. How about the third most purchased 80 00:06:18,160 --> 00:06:28,759 laptop on Amazon, the MacBook Air 13-in M3 with 16 gigs of RAM? I immediately 81 00:06:25,360 --> 00:06:32,160 love this thing by comparison. Watch. 82 00:06:28,759 --> 00:06:34,280 Finder. No available Windows. Well, yes, 83 00:06:32,160 --> 00:06:38,160 I know. It's macOS. Here we are side by 84 00:06:39,400 --> 00:06:45,520 side. Okay. Wait, wait, wait, wait. Web browser. Web browser. Okay. 85 00:06:48,759 --> 00:06:55,880 Uh, anytime now, buddy. Anytime now, buddy. Okay. Okay, in fairness, this 86 00:06:53,680 --> 00:07:01,440 didn't actually have to load a page, but uh yeah, I think you get the point. Even 87 00:06:59,360 --> 00:07:06,319 if it didn't fit perfectly in our off-site laptop bag, 88 00:07:03,880 --> 00:07:10,800 ltstore.com, using this after those other machines is like drawing your 89 00:07:08,880 --> 00:07:15,280 first breath of fresh air after smelling nothing but farts for the last 6 90 00:07:12,800 --> 00:07:20,000 minutes. I mean, sure, the Air might not have a cooling fan for its wimpy 10 watt 91 00:07:17,919 --> 00:07:24,479 processor, but thanks to the magic of Apple silicon, it completely destroys 92 00:07:22,800 --> 00:07:29,199 our other two options on the track. Like, by an amount that is not even 93 00:07:26,800 --> 00:07:35,440 funny and not even proportional to how much more it costs. I am talking about a 94 00:07:32,680 --> 00:07:41,680 73% increase in speedometer versus the HP, 11 times the speed in Cinebench. Uh, 95 00:07:39,360 --> 00:07:45,199 Jetream and Web Expert 4 are more enormous leads for Apple. And you might 96 00:07:43,599 --> 00:07:49,440 be thinking, "Sure, Linus, I I get the point. I get the point." But no, you 97 00:07:47,039 --> 00:07:55,680 don't. Look at this result for Motion Mark. The MacBook Air, which I remind 98 00:07:52,720 --> 00:08:02,479 you is not a particularly fast machine, posts a score that is 55 times faster 99 00:07:59,039 --> 00:08:05,759 than the Celeron. Incredible. Now, we 100 00:08:02,479 --> 00:08:07,840 paid $850 for this, which is a lot more 101 00:08:05,759 --> 00:08:13,280 than these other machines, but at that price, it is just an awesome all-around 102 00:08:10,720 --> 00:08:18,560 experience. You get Apple tier material quality, so exceptional with the 103 00:08:15,919 --> 00:08:23,840 aluminum chassis exhibiting basically no flex, even when you're pushing hard or 104 00:08:20,960 --> 00:08:27,759 twisting it. The screen hit 500 nits in our testing while being color accurate 105 00:08:25,599 --> 00:08:34,080 enough to not only consume content, but even create it. And the keyboard would 106 00:08:31,120 --> 00:08:38,640 stand out as pretty great if it wasn't next to a giant force touch trackpad 107 00:08:36,479 --> 00:08:42,159 that is one of the absolute best on the market. I mean, look, I don't need to 108 00:08:40,240 --> 00:08:45,519 continue praising the MacBook Air. We've already made multiple videos about it. 109 00:08:44,000 --> 00:08:50,800 So, instead, I want to talk about something else. I want to talk about why 110 00:08:48,000 --> 00:08:55,600 Apple stands out so much here next to the competition. Looking down the rest 111 00:08:53,360 --> 00:09:00,560 of the best sellers list, there wasn't a single Windows machine that came even 112 00:08:57,519 --> 00:09:02,560 close to the $850 price of the MacBook 113 00:09:00,560 --> 00:09:08,560 until we got all the way down to number 32, the Asus G16. And that might not 114 00:09:06,240 --> 00:09:13,120 seem like a huge problem, but I think it does a lot to explain the perception 115 00:09:10,320 --> 00:09:18,720 that many people have that Macs are just plain better than PCs. Like seriously, I 116 00:09:16,560 --> 00:09:23,480 know so many people in my life that will swear up and down that MacBooks are just 117 00:09:21,120 --> 00:09:28,160 faster and better quality than Windows laptops. But this often comes from 118 00:09:25,760 --> 00:09:32,000 people who spend two to four times as much on their MacBooks. Of course 119 00:09:29,920 --> 00:09:36,880 though, we have to give Apple some of the credit here. By simply refusing 120 00:09:34,880 --> 00:09:41,600 outright to sell you a laptop that will be shite, they protect the perception of 121 00:09:39,440 --> 00:09:47,440 their brand in a way that companies like Dell, HP, Lenovo, and Asus could all 122 00:09:45,200 --> 00:09:52,240 learn from. And they're especially doing this now that all Macs ship with at 123 00:09:49,440 --> 00:09:56,959 least 16 gigs of RAM. Cuz that's the thing, right? Your brand is judged not 124 00:09:54,640 --> 00:10:00,880 only on your flagship performance, but also on your entry level. Let's come 125 00:09:59,200 --> 00:10:05,600 back to the bestselling laptop on Amazon, which isn't this one. and see if 126 00:10:03,440 --> 00:10:10,800 it has some more redeeming qualities. Maybe it's super repairable. Framework 127 00:10:07,680 --> 00:10:13,640 investment disclosure. Not really. Oh, 128 00:10:10,800 --> 00:10:18,760 there are eight screws. No, we have to take off the feet to 129 00:10:16,560 --> 00:10:23,279 Wait, I don't The screw is only on this side. 130 00:10:21,360 --> 00:10:27,360 This side doesn't have a screw. Yep. They're not even symmetrical. And then 131 00:10:25,200 --> 00:10:31,920 what about the back? Is it both sides or is it one side or what are we talking 132 00:10:28,800 --> 00:10:34,480 about here? Both sides. Oh, no. all the 133 00:10:31,920 --> 00:10:40,320 way up to the Oh, what? So, there there's one on this side and two on that 134 00:10:36,720 --> 00:10:43,440 side. Yep. It's very logical. There's 135 00:10:40,320 --> 00:10:45,839 also Is this three different screws? 136 00:10:43,440 --> 00:10:50,640 Yes. What the heck? Who knows? Maybe once we get inside it, we'll be really 137 00:10:47,600 --> 00:10:52,640 impressed. Uh, not a ton going on here. 138 00:10:50,640 --> 00:10:59,440 They don't have soldered memory or Wi-Fi, so that's something. Where the 139 00:10:55,360 --> 00:11:02,000 devil is the SSD, though? Oh, wait. Shut 140 00:10:59,440 --> 00:11:08,480 up. It's soldered 141 00:11:03,480 --> 00:11:10,399 eMMC with no M.2 slot. And look at this. 142 00:11:08,480 --> 00:11:14,880 They've even got a spot where a 2 and 1/2 in drive probably went at some 143 00:11:12,560 --> 00:11:18,880 point. But there's nowhere to put one of those either. 144 00:11:17,040 --> 00:11:24,560 But did No. Did you see where the SSD could go? Oh, right here. Yeah, right 145 00:11:21,279 --> 00:11:26,760 there. Wait, but they have the they have 146 00:11:24,560 --> 00:11:31,440 the solder pads for it. Yeah. 147 00:11:28,480 --> 00:11:36,560 I mean, at least we were able to get 6 hours of battery life out of the 41wh 148 00:11:33,760 --> 00:11:41,600 hour battery. That's way behind the MacBook, but it's a lot better than the 149 00:11:38,640 --> 00:11:47,040 Lenovo. Oh, no. There's also a spot for Oh, yeah. Look at that. There's a spot 150 00:11:44,079 --> 00:11:51,839 for a cooler, but instead of actually having a fin stack, it's just got this 151 00:11:49,519 --> 00:11:57,279 like piece of stamped sheet aluminum. With all of that said, I don't hate the 152 00:11:54,480 --> 00:12:00,640 HP. If your goal is just to get a laptop for your kids so that they can do 153 00:11:58,720 --> 00:12:03,720 homework or watch videos in the back seat, it's going to get the job done for 154 00:12:02,720 --> 00:12:08,000 just $170. But if you're going to spend more 155 00:12:05,920 --> 00:12:12,480 for something better, I would absolutely skip over the Lenovo and get something 156 00:12:09,839 --> 00:12:17,240 with at least a Core i3 or a Ryzen 3 processor. 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