Best Laptop Group Test: May 2025

Our laptop reviews use of an exhaustive scoring system that mathematically compares every new laptop with everything that’s come before it. However, price and availability change all the time and, consequently, so does the value proposition and overall rank. That’s why we regularly update our monthly Best Laptop Group Test – to produce the definitive Australian laptop buying guide. In May, we’re at a time of the year where it’s out with the old models and in with the new. This means availability can be an issue but also that there are some bargains to be had. Here’s how the laptop market looks in May 2025.

Australia’s Best Laptop in May 2025

Perfect portable PCs possess an excellent combination of general-computing power, 3D and gaming performance, useful features, plus intuitive and comfortable ergonomics. They are built well enough to survive being carried around, they shouldn’t be be too heavy, they should have a small power brick and their battery should last for days. Ideally they’ll look great in every setting and not cost too much either. Naturally, all high performance laptops come with at multiple compromises in these regards, but these are the best overall laptops in Australia in 2025 according to our exhaustive calculations.

1. Asus Zenbook S 14 (Lunar Lake)

Price: $2,497 | Our first Lunar Lake laptop is back on top in May 2025

We’d already been impressed by previous Zenbooks, but combining it with the long-awaited Lunar Lake processor from Intel (aka Core Ultra Series 2) elevated this into a new breed of laptop. The Ai chops enable it to fully run all the CoPilot+ features; the new stripped-down processor is more-responsive and has much-better integrated graphics; the battery life surpassed 24 hours; and, to top everything off, it’s fantastic to interact with.

This 14-inch, 1.19KG ultraportable is, deservedly won our Laptop of the Year Award in 2024 and it’s still one of the very best around. It’s dropped by $500 in May.

2. Pioneer DreamBook Power X56 RTX 5090

Price: $7,114 | Our first, next-gen Gaming Laptop is the best of it’s kind. But, it’s not cheap

Pioneer is, once again, first in with a next-gen gaming laptop. It features an Intel Arrow Lake Core Ultra 9 275HX processor and Nvidia’s new, top-tier, RTX GeForce RTX 5090 graphics. There’s also a 240Hz screen, very good speakers, an impressive keyboard and plenty of RGB goodness.

It’s certainly not cheap but, from what we’re hearing, it might be considered so when the big brands finally land. Everyone is still waiting for those but you can buy this DreamBook right now. It’s our new Best Gaming Laptop and I suspect that, like its predecessor, it will stand it’s ground impressively when it’s no longer alone in the market.

3. Asus ProArt PX13

Price: $3,799 | A 13-inch, super-solid, portable powerhouse that’s great for travelling Creators

Asus’ ProArt PX13 has one of the smallest footprints of any laptop we’ve tested in the past year and yet it’s the most feature-packed of all. It’s a convertible that comes with a stylus; it has a sumptuous screen and brilliant multimedia capabilities; it’s dust proof and tough enough to exceed military-grade testing standards; it’s laden with genuinely useful bespoke software (and attractive offers from third parties); and there’s even Nvidia 4070 graphics, to boot!

Just note that the 60Hz screen doesn’t lend itself to gaming and the power brick is large for a little laptop. If you can afford it, it’s brilliant for creative types on the move, though. It can be found on sale for $200 off in May.

4. Aorus 16X ASG

Price: $2,399 | A former Number 2 on this list – the 16X gaming laptop doesn’t have many weak points

The 16-inch Aorus 16X ASG gaming laptop has got it where it counts. There might be more-luxurious models on the market, but you can pay through the nose for those and still get similar (or worse) performance and features.

The 16X looks good, is good to interact with, is reasonably portable and it has top-notch connectivity. Gaming laptops are a mess at the moment as hardly anyone’s new-generation stock has arrived in the country. As such, being able to find this on sale in May is remarkable.

5. MSI Prestige 14 AI Evo C1MG

Price: $1,599 | A business-grade ultraportable notebook with 24-battery life and an amazing price

We had our doubts about MSI’s larger-than-usual, 14-inch laptop. But, this Core Ultra 5-powered machine is more powerful for tasks like rendering than the newer, Lunar Lake laptops. It’s got a huge, 90Wh battery that ran our PCMark 10 Modern office test for 24 hours flat. Plus, there’s that reflection-free, bright, colourful screen.

It’s also been tested to a higher standard than regular consumer laptops, so it will survive a life of being lugged around for work or school etc. While other contenders have seen their prices rise again recently, the Prestige can still be had for just $1,599 in May. Get one before it sells out.

6. MSI Vector 16 HX A14

Price: $4,899 | MSI’s Clark Kent powerhouse gaming laptop is very attractive

MSI’s 16-inch sleeper laptop is a discreet powerhouse. Its Core i9-14900HX provides the power platform and it’s backed up with a high-end Nvidia RTX 4080 GPU. It’s great to interact with, laden with ports and the matte, 240Hz screen keeps fast-moving games looking sharp and blur free. It might not be the quietest, or the most portable machine, but if you want a gaming laptop that can hide inside an office, this is it.

7. Lenovo Yoga Slim 7i Aura Edition

Price: $2,239 | An excellent Lunar Lake-based ultraportable laptop that’s on sale in May

Late last year, our top laptops were all within a whisker of one another and the Aura Edition was our Number 1. But, after a few months, this great example of an Intel Core Ultra (Series 2) laptop, is back on top thanks to a $900 price drop!

The consumer-oriented Yoga Slim 7i Aura Edition has a slew of smart features which have been added in close partnership with Intel. While they’re not all the most useful, some certainly are. More importantly, this well-built, 15.3-inch ultraportable has 26-and-a-half-hour battery life, a great (glossy) touchscreen and fantastic speakers. The price seems to change every few days but look for it here to find a potential bargain.

8. Acer Swift Go Ai

Price $998 | It’s a Snapdragon Windows ultraportable (with all the issues). But, look at that price!

I’ve been extremely wary about recommending Snapdragon-based laptops. While they have impressive, 20+ hour battery lives and were the first to support Microsoft’s CoPilot+ Ai features, they came in at a hefty premium when they should have been securing some market share, from Intel and AMD rivals, by costing less.

When Intel’s Lunar Lake laptops appeared shortly afterwards, they had similar Ai chops, similar battery lives, cost the same and had none of the huge software-compatibility issues that Snapdragon brings with it. And now here’s one that, in May, costs just $998! That’s stunning for a high-quality ultraportable, regardless of its software issues. (Note: If you want a model with an Intel chip, various, older versions of the impressive Acer Swift Go 16 are still available at bargain prices.)

9. Acer Swift Edge 16

Price: $1,798 | One of the best laptops we’ve ever used and it’s finally back in Australia

We just straight-up love the Acer Swift Edge 16 and we still occasionally use it as a daily driver. But, it’s been so hard to find for so many months that it actually dropped out of this list. However, it’s now back on these shores and has been updated with a new AMD Ryzen 7 8840U CPU.

That’s not the best part. While the processor makes it fast for an ultraportable, the fast, 120Hz, UHD, OLED, HDR screen is one of the very best we’ve ever seen. It also weighs only 1.25KG despite being 16-inches. It’s a magnificent ultraportable.

10. Asus ROG Strix SCAR 17

Price: $4,749 | Adding AMD makes this superb desktop replacement more powerful and cheaper

The 17-inch Asus ROG Strix SCAR 17 didn’t have had long to wear the regal robes that it won in 2023(!) But it remains a phenomenal buy even in May 2025. It has a boosted Nvidia RTX 4090 graphics chip (that’s actually faster than a stock 5090!) and its AMD Ryzen 9 7945HX CPU is still highly competitive at the spiky end of the high-performance laptop spectrum.

Best of all, it’s collapsed in price and you can save almost $900 on the RRP. That’s mighty tempting for one of the best desktop replacement gaming laptops on the market – especially when the new generation of rivals is coming-in at a premium.

Note too that we subsequently reviewed the ‘special edition’ Asus ROG Strix SCAR 17 X3D. This is identical but for the update processor which features AMD’s 3D V-Cache technology – making it even faster.

I suspect there won’t be many of these left to buy right now, so you can pick-up a bargain if you want a powerful, desktop-replacement gaming laptop like this.

11. Asus ROG Strix SCAR 18

Price: $7,699 | Superlative performance and ergonomics make this monster gaming laptop one of the best

The gargantuan, 18-inch SCAR 18 features the desktop-grade, Raptor Lake (non-NPU) version of Intel’s 14th-Gen processor – the Core i9-14900HX. We were perhaps a little disappointed that it didn’t blitz our 2D and general-computing tests like we’d hoped, but it’s still the opposite of slow.

It, once again, features Nvidia’s top-tier RTX 4090 GPU but, it’s well worth noting, that dropping down to an RTX 4080 will save you $1,500! It weighs over 3KG and pushes four, with the cables and power brick – which you’ll need due to the poor battery life. But, as desktop replacements go, there are few bigger, better built, better featured or more powerful.

12. Acer Nitro V 16

Price $1,497 | Acer’s popular, budget-gaming, Nitro brand returns to form

Acer has overhauled its popular, wallet-friendly Nitro laptop brand and come up with a winner in the Nitro V. That said, you should still check out the 2023 Acer Nitro 5 older siblings in case there’s a good deal to be had.

Many people will be better-off spending the extra, as the AMD processor is considerably more powerful and you get more RAM. The battery life still ain’t great, though. Nonetheless, the Nvidia RTX 4060 graphics mean that it’s got it where it counts and the build quality belies its budget designation. It’s dropped in price again in May and this wins it our Best Budget Gaming Laptop award.

13. Aorus 17 BSG

Price: $2,599 | A quality Desktop Replacement gaming laptop that won’t break the bank

While there aren’t as many Aorus laptops as there used to be, Gigabyte is still releasing, high-value, quality models like the Aorus 17. This 17-inch beast is well-made; it has a fast, 240Hz, 2,560 x 1,440 game-friendly screen; it’s powered by an Intel Core Ultra processor; and it has Nvidia 4070 graphics. It’s (understandably) not light at 2.8KG but its battery powered it for over 13 hours in our tests. It’s a great-value gaming machine that’s got it where it counts.

14. MSI Raider GE68HX 14V

Price: $6,099 | The 2024 Raider doesn’t disappoint – but availability is drying up

MSI’s Raider was everything that we hoped it would be: it was our fastest gaming laptop and it’s still packed with great features and the ergonomics that make it a joy to use. The mini-LED screen supports Windows HDR which makes multimedia look fantastic without the blight of reflections that come with OLED panels.

The 14th-Gen Core 19-14900HX processor is only a polished version of the 13th-Gen version but it’s still incredibly fast. Be aware, though, that the review spec of this laptop is now (even more) difficult to find and the price above reflects one with an Nvidia 4080 chip – instead of the 4090. We hope that the imminent 2025 Raider will be just as good.

15. Asus ROG Zephyrus G14 (2024)

Price: $3,699 | The 2024 version won our Best Laptop award and is still a great gaming ultraportable

While we lamented the lack of ostentatious styling (compared to its predecessors) this solidly built, 14-inch, ultraportable, gaming laptop is hugely desirable. The CNC-milled, aluminium chassis weighs just 1.49KG and yet it crams in a powerful AMD Ryzen 9 8945HS and Nvidia RTX 4600 graphics. It’s great to interact with and it even has an impressive 12-and-a-half-hour battery life, to boot.

Its forbears could get volcanically hot, but this now runs warm at best. The striking stripe might not match the ostentatious dot-matrix LED lids of yore but it will also fit in an office much more discreetly. It’s a near perfect, all-rounder, unicorn laptop which was a worthy winner of our Best Laptop award when it first hit the market and it’s great value now. Still, if you want more size, check out the similar, 16-inch version in our Asus ROG Zephyrus G16 review – it can sometimes be found even cheaper!

16. HP OmniBook X Flip 14

Price: $2,598 | A high-quality ultraportable convertible tablet with almost 30 hours of battery life

HP has been impressing us with its ultraportables lately. The (very) new, Intel Core Ultra (Series 2) based OmniBook X Flip 14 only landed in May (note, there are similar SKUs but they have SnapDragon and AMD processors – so pick the right one). It’s an ultraportable convertible with a touchscreen and it’s generally a joy to use. It’s a little heavier than other 14-inch rivals, but it makes up for this with an incredible 28-and-a-half-hour battery life! Our only gripe is the slightly stiff keyboard. Also, be sure to check-out its premium sibling, the HP OmniBook Ultra Flip 14 (below) which offers uncompromising design for more money.

17. Acer TravelMate P4 Spin 14

Price: $2,503 | A business-grade, ultraportable convertible that’s on sale in May

We’re suckers for ultraportable business laptops as they’re incredibly well built and have reflection-free, matte screens; long battery lives; and plenty of ports. They often cost a lot because of all the additional torture testing that they undergo, but it’s often worth it for a laptop that’s going to be lugged around and treated poorly.

This 14-inch TravelMate is worthy of being a no-nonsense daily driver and the fact it can transform into a matte-screened convertible tablet – with a stylus that stows inside the chassis – makes it almost unique. It’s on sale in May and will prove attractive to many people wanting a laptop for work and education.

18. Asus ExpertBook P5

Price: $2,899 | A premium, Lunar Lake-based, business-grade laptop with great features

We’re not supposed to have favourites, but Asus’ Lunar Lake business laptop is fantastic. The ergonomics are great, the 14-inch, matte screen is excellent, the speakers are excellent, it only weighs 1.27KG and it’s got a battery life of almost 20 hours. It’s been fully torture tested for living life on the road and Asus will even compensate you $500 if it breaks.

Add to that CoPilot+ functionality and some amazing web-conferencing features, and you’ve one of the best work notebooks going. Business laptops often cost a fortune, so the fact you can get this for under three grand is the cherry on top. It should last a very long time.

19. Acer Predator Triton 17X

Price: $7,999 | Acer succeeded in making one of the best laptops ever, but don’t look at the price tag

We were massively impressed by the 17-inch Acer Predator Triton 17X whose combination of power, features and ergonomics made it one of the very best laptops we’ve ever tested. Our review model had a powerful Intel Core i9-13900HX processor and Nvidia’s top-tier GeForce RTX 4090 GPU. However, the real star of the show was the mini-LED screen which offers amazing HDR performance that’s arguably better than OLED, thanks to the matte (non-reflective) screen.

Downsides are that this screen technology seems to pulverise battery life and, at 3.05KG, it ain’t light. If portability isn’t a problem then the colossal $7,999 price tag may well be. But, my word it’s good.

20. Asus Zenbook 14 OLED (AMD | 2024)

Price: $2,399 | The AMD version of this popular ultraportable can be cheap and highly attractive

There’s heaps to like about the AMD version of the 14-inch Zenbook 14 OLED. The AMD Ryzen 7 7730U processor is relatively powerful – especially for a 1.4KG ultraportable. Battery life is more-than 17 hours, there’s plenty of connectivity and the OLED screen has a faster-than-usual 90Hz refresh rate (not that you can play many games on it).

If you can’t justify the Lunar Lake update, this is not far behind in terms of performance and will save you a heap of money. Also, check out the updated brand new 16-inch Asus Zenbook S 16 with its Ryzen Ai 9 CPU which has more power and Ai. It would also be in the Top 30 but there are only so many Zenbooks we can have on this list. Note that the 14-inch version rose in price recently so, we don’t expect it to be available much longer.

21. Asus Zenbook A14

Price: $2,599 | Yet another Zenbook. And it’s SnapDragon based. Why is it here?

I really did not want to recommend this laptop as it’s got a SnapDragon processor that severely limits software compatibility. However, we decided to make our Best Portable Laptop group test all about portability (instead of value) to make it more interesting and this went came first! Its plastic chassis isn’t as tough as its metal-made siblings, but it’s still sturdy and robust.

Importantly, it’s got a 20+hour battery life and a lightweight phone-style charger (that you can also use with USB-C phones). But, best of all, it only weighs 980g! Personally, I think many people would be better-off getting a sibling which weighs a few hundred grams more, but there’s no denying that SnapDragon laptops are selling and so, forget my prejudices, the numbers demonstrate that it deserves its award. (Note: If you like these laptops, also be sure to check out the 15-inch Asus Vivobook S 15)

22. Lenovo Legion Pro 5i (Gen 9)

Price: $3,663 | The latest Legion Pro 5i might be Lenovo’s tier 2 but it can be a bargain

The 16-inch Lenovo Legion Pro 5i might be Lenovo’s second-tier gaming laptop, but, historically, it’s had it where it counts. The new version is a bit of a mixed bag, though. It’s still a sleeper laptop that can play games while fitting into an office but, the superb, Mini-LED screen is now gone and, while the replacement is very good, it’s a noticeable retrograde step.

Still, battery life has been pushed to 8 hours – which is a significant improvement. The keyboard is excellent but the speakers seem to be made mediocre on purpose, which is a shame. Our review sample also wielded a tidy Intel Core i9-14900HX CPU and an Nvidia 4070 GPU. Unfortunately, it heads into May 2025 much lower down this list because it’s still avoiding Lenovo’s current sales, but check here as it can plummet in price.

23. Asus ROG Zephyrus M16

Price: $5,099 | Asus’ other other flagship laptop looks unbelievable

April 2023 delivered a slew of amazing (then) new-generation laptops. If the Zephyrus had arrived first it would have hit our Number 1 spot. It looks like a gaming laptop thanks to the Matrix display on the lid but, if you turn all the RGB (and Matrix lights off) it can still fit into an office. It might have been around for a while, but it’s still an attractive purchase (even though our review SKU never actually landed on these shores) thanks to it’s top-tier Core i9-13900H processor and Nvidia RTX 4080 graphics. It’s still excellent in 2025, but the price has ballooned and availability dropped in May.

24. Asus Vivobook Pro 16X

Price: $3,399 | This former Best Creator Laptop is still a brilliant buy

Even though it’s getting on a bit, the 16-inch Asus Vivobook Pro 16X is too good not to have on this list. It’s got a full set-of Creator credentials, including an OLED screen that supports 100 per cent of the difficult DCI-P3 colour space plus Asus’ DialPad shortcut technology for design productivity.

On top of that there’s a hugely powerful processor (Core i9-13980HX) for 2D rendering tasks and an Nvidia RTX 4060 GPU for 3D rendering tasks. Did we mention the 120Hz screen facilitates gaming? Just note that it’s not very portable. On paper, it might be looking a little long in the tooth, but the performance is still competitive and the price has dropped considerably. We’ll be reviewing its successor, soon.

25. HP Pavilion 16

Price: $2,299 | A high-quality daily driver laptop that will suit most casual tasks

HP’s Pavilion 16 has a Core Ultra 7 processor is punchy enough for most casual and work-based tasks, but it’s worth underscoring the point that it’s not great for anything but the most basic gaming. It’s not the lightest 16-inch laptop we’ve seen, but the battery did last over 13 hours in our tests.

The features and ergonomics punch well above their weight (and it has a reflection-free, matte screen). As such, as middle-of-the-road, decent quality, daily driver laptops go, it makes an attractive proposition. Just be aware that the price can fluctuate massively. It’s dropped down the list because it rose almost $1,000 recently. However, it could plummet again tomorrow.

26. HP ZBook Ultra G1a 14

Price: $6,455 | An extraordinary new ultraportable workstation

HP’s new 14-inch ultraportable redefines portable power. It’s a fully certified workstation and so has all of the bells and whistles (including up to 128GB of adjustable RAM) that professionals might need. It only weighs 1.5KG but its new AMD Ryzen AI MAX PRO 390 processor (with new, heavily boosted NPU and GPU) push mobile performance well beyond anything that the market has seen before. It’s unaffordable for most, but this extraordinary feat of engineering should be at the top of the list for workers whose laptop is life.

27. MSI Creator 16 AI Studio A1VHG

Price: $7,299 | A laptop that does it all but it’s exploded in price in May

MSI’s Creator 16 AI Studio A1VHG is, not surprisingly targeted at creators but its dazzling, 120Hz, 16-inch, 1000-nit, matte, Mini-LED screen, Core Ultra 9 processor and Nvidia GeForce RTX 4080 graphics will appeal to gamers and anyone who wants a souped-up, powerful, portable PC.

The Mini-LED display didn’t stop it managing almost 10 hours in our battery-life test. It’s also quite light for a solidly built, stacked laptop, at 2.12KG. Just note that it tends to run very warm. It’s a great choice if you need a Creator laptop with a larger, gaming-friendly screen but it just exploded in price, so maybe wait until it drops again.

28. MSI Sword 16 HX B13V

Price: $2,624 | MSI’s super-popular budget gaming laptop returns

For a budget gaming laptop, the new MSI Sword sure looks like it costs a lot more. That’s largely down to the well-featured, 24-zone RGB keyboard which will appeal to many gamers. It comes with a beefy, Intel Core i7-13700HX processor and, more importantly, Nvidia GeForce RTX 4070 graphics, so it can handle most of the latest and greatest games. It’s got good connectivity, features and cooling technology and only the tinny (but loud) speakers let the side down. It’s a good buy. (Note, if you want to save even more money, check out its MSI Katana 15 sibling.)

29. HP OmniBook Ultra Flip 14

Price: $3,999 | A fantastic, Lunar Lake-based consumer tablet convertible

HP’s new, 14-inch top-end consumer convertible is highly portable thanks to its 1.32KG chassis and 19+ hour battery life. The touchscreen folds back to turn it into a tablet (the optional stylus isn’t supplied, though). It’s got some great Ai features, including an onboard version of ChatGPT and a brilliant, on-screen, configurable ring light for excellent web-conferencing. It’s another great option in the world of Lunar Lake ultraportables and it’s on sale right now. Be aware that you can also still find its impressive, recent predecessor, the very similar HP Spectre x360 2-in-1, on sale in many places.

30. Venom BlackBook Zero 14 Phantom

Price: $3,699 | One of the Best Business Laptops

It’s a bit harsh for the Venom to be this far down our list, but business laptops are judged by different criteria. Venom’s BlackBook Zero 14 Phantom was recently a Number 1 Best Business Laptop meaning it (still) excels in harder-to-quantify areas than consumer laptops.

Facets include durability, reliability, support and the ability to be comfortably used, all-day, by workers. It’s also very portable and yet offers enough power and RAM to handle Microsoft Teams, a gazillion Chrome Tabs and even some rendering tasks. It has a matte (reflection-free), 14-inch screen and an SKU that will remain consistent for three years. It’s highly configurable via Venom’s configurator.

There’s no NPU (which will be a boon to some) plus, it’s got excellent green credentials which includes a guaranteed $500 cashback after seven years to combat eWaste! It’s great for office workers and heavy users who want reliability and no distractions.

Please discuss these results, or just let us know what you think, in the comments below or on this Reddit thread.

Last Updated on 23 July 2025 by Nick Ross