Windows 11 capable laptop or 2-in-1

[urbanhusky]

Hi,

 

I'm searching for a laptop to replace my slow Thinkpad R400 and even slower and broken ASUS T100 2-in-1.

The main features I'm looking for are:

• Somewhere around 12"-14"
• Windows 11 capable, does not need to have it installed yet, preferably Pro because that's what I've been (power) using.
• 1920x1080 or better
• Headphone jack
• German keyboard layout

I want to use it primarily for Youtube, Netflix or other streaming services, mostly for something in the background while I'm tinkering with hardware or painting minis.
Occasional multi-tasking with Firefox and many tabs as well as chatting (Discord, IRC). Playing Jackbox once or twice a year.

Nice to have:

• touchscreen
• semi-decent screen
• USB port(s)
• Keyboard buttons being arranged similar to a regular keyboard. Some laptops have weird offsets that shift entire rows

Stretch goals (both feature and budget):

• Digitizer & pen
• Fast enough for painting applications (amateur level)
• Robust and will keep running for many years to come
• Full size enter key (seems like a 50/50 chance on German laptop keyboards)

Irrelevant to me:

• Long lasting battery (mostly powered use)

It does not have to be a 2-in-1, I merely enjoyed the tablet + keyboard functionality.

My budget is ~1000€ (including 20% VAT) though I wouldn't mind paying (much) less for a non-digitizer/no touchscreen laptop. I can also go a bit over that budget.

[jaslion]

Hp envy x360 with the ryzen 5000 series chips?

[R3dbullDrinker]

1 minute ago, urbanhusky said:

Hi,

 

I'm searching for a laptop to replace my slow Thinkpad R400 and even slower and broken ASUS T100 2-in-1.

The main features I'm looking for are:

• Somewhere around 12"-14"
• Windows 11 capable, does not need to have it installed yet, preferably Pro because that's what I've been (power) using.
• 1920x1080 or better
• Headphone jack
• German keyboard layout

I want to use it primarily for Youtube, Netflix or other streaming services, mostly for something in the background while I'm tinkering with hardware or painting minis.
Occasional multi-tasking with Firefox and many tabs as well as chatting (Discord, IRC). Playing Jackbox once or twice a year.

Nice to have:

• touchscreen
• semi-decent screen
• USB port(s)
• Keyboard buttons being arranged similar to a regular keyboard. Some laptops have weird offsets that shift entire rows

Stretch goals (both feature and budget):

• Digitizer & pen
• Fast enough for painting applications (amateur level)
• Robust and will keep running for many years to come
• Full size enter key (seems like a 50/50 chance on German laptop keyboards)

Irrelevant to me:

• Long lasting battery (mostly powered use)

It does not have to be a 2-in-1, I merely enjoyed the tablet + keyboard functionality.

My budget is ~1000€ (including 20% VAT) though I wouldn't mind paying (much) less for a non-digitizer/no touchscreen laptop. I can also go a bit over that budget.

wait for a deal on a dell xps 13 that is the best in your price bracket a pretty damn good keyboard, its small, light orrrr get a recently modern zenbook

[R3dbullDrinker]

1 minute ago, jaslion said:

Hp envy x360 with the ryzen 5000 series chips?

Hp has bad customer Service and Poor quality laptops if it isn't high end.

[jaslion]

4 minutes ago, R3dbullDrinker said:

Hp has bad customer Service and Poor quality laptops if it isn't high end.

Except this envy series has proven to be a quality device. Yeah customer service is bad but this is Germany you basically don't interact with customer service since you just give it back to the store you bought it from if it's broken.

[urbanhusky]

13 minutes ago, jaslion said:

Except this envy series has proven to be a quality device. Yeah customer service is bad but this is Germany you basically don't interact with customer service since you just give it back to the store you bought it from if it's broken.

Only if it breaks within the first 6 months, otherwise it's on you to prove that it wasn't defective from the start, and even then that's often quite a hassle.

 

Generally, would you have any suggestions for a more "dumb" and cheaper laptop without touchscreen?
I might consider going up to ~1500€ if it's a robust and long-lasting device with a decent pen, though I'm leaning more towards the cheaper options because it is not going to be a daily driver and spending that much cash on something that just gets used like ever other weekend or so doesn't feel like the best idea.

I could get a decent graphics tablet later anyway and even use that on my main PC. I just thought that it would be neat to scribble notes or do quick sketches with it (though I could also just get something like a Galaxy Tab S6 or S7 lite for that)

[jaslion]

33 minutes ago, urbanhusky said:

Only if it breaks within the first 6 months, otherwise it's on you to prove that it wasn't defective from the start, and even then that's often quite a hassle.

 

Generally, would you have any suggestions for a more "dumb" and cheaper laptop without touchscreen?
I might consider going up to ~1500€ if it's a robust and long-lasting device with a decent pen, though I'm leaning more towards the cheaper options because it is not going to be a daily driver and spending that much cash on something that just gets used like ever other weekend or so doesn't feel like the best idea.

I could get a decent graphics tablet later anyway and even use that on my main PC. I just thought that it would be neat to scribble notes or do quick sketches with it (though I could also just get something like a Galaxy Tab S6 or S7 lite for that)

But the envy is a robust and good device. Their spectre is a more expensive version but it's objectively worse in all ways. Build quality is a little nicer but everything else is just worse.

 

So I'd just go with that. The design has been around since 2016 and those devices are still going.

 

If you want even cheaper the lenovo flex ryzen series is pretty good or you just get a last gen ryzen 4000 envy x360 they are about 600-650€ for the base model 13" with the 4500u and 8gb ram and you can't really find a much higher quality 2in1 for that price. The new ones start at around 750-800.

 

If you want a tablet SKIP android tablets like the plague. Android just kinda sucks on a tablet rn. Legit get a normal modern ipad + the pen the experience is just beyond extremely better. I can tell you that much I've tried and used all of them surface pro 3 and 5 (not the weak versions but the upper tier ones), vaio tap 11, Tab s3 and s5, wacom companion 2, ipad pro (the first one not one I recommend) and then finally the ipad 6th gen. Which hands down is the superior tablet of em all. It beats the old pro because it doesn't bend when you use it :p. I've owned or borrowed these devices and apple simply put has the only worthwhile tablet experience part from the surface or vaio with windows 8(.1) on it that was also a good tablet time but since it was windows it was still no where near as good in other places.

[urbanhusky]

What if I would like to take this in a different direction:
Cheap, small, YouTube/streaming 2-in-1 that will run Windows 11 and has a headphone jack.

I have a hard time justifying my budget for something that I'll rarely use.