So you’re looking to buy a new laptop and all the makers in town are pushing 4K. Is a 4K screen really worth it in a 17-inch or even 15-inch laptop? For some, yes, they are.
If you’re a content creator or need to run the latest PC games in the best manner possible, then this list of the best 4K laptops in 2023 is for you. We aim to cut through the clutter and show you some of the most powerful laptops (and some of the flashiest, and some of the most affordable). Some of them we use ourselves, some of them we had in for review, but all of them are great 4K laptops you can look at if you’re looking for an upgrade.
Are 4K laptops worth it?
As with all things tech-related, the answer is both yes and no.
A 4K laptop is worth it if you want your new laptop to be the best in 2023 but that will come with a big price tag attached.
If you’re budget-conscious and want to save some money, some of the best laptops in 2023 are actually devices that came out in 2022 and even 2021 – because you can find them with a significant discount.
The answer is ultimately down to you and what you need this device to do. For example, do you really need the 1TB SSD or could you invest in an external drive, in order to save some cash?
The same question applies to graphics cards. Do you really need the latest NVIDIA GPU or could you settle for last year’s models or look into AMD? At a certain point, as with most things, you do end up paying 50% more for 10% extra power.
In our roundup of the best 4K laptops in 2023, we tried to include everything: the best laptops for the office, the best 4K gaming laptops AND the laptops that are great if you’re working remotely and want the flexibility of an extra screen.
The best laptops with 4K displays
If you’re looking for a laptop for work, at the office or at home, a 4K laptop really makes sense for one big reason: it allows you to cram even more apps into a single display. That extra resolution means that, even without an external monitor, you can multitask better. Just look at the photo below and see how much info you can cram into a single display! With a good 4K laptop, you can keep two documents or apps side by side and the text, even though the font is smaller, will still look crisp.
Asus Zenbook Duo OLED 15 4K laptop with two displays
Then again, you can always be extra and get yourself a laptop that comes with two displays.
Even though it’s from 2021, the ASUS Zenbook Duo OLED 15 is still one of the best 4K laptops in 2023. It has not just a touch 4K display great for scrolling through emails but also comes with a cool, secondary monitor that rests just above the keyboard.
In terms of specs, almost 2 years later, this laptop can still go toe to toe with high-end laptops in 2023. Under the hood, it has an Intel Core i9-10980HK 5.30 GHz CPU, 32GB of RAM, a 1TB SSD and an NVIDIA RTX 3070 8GB GPU.
While many might find the secondary display on this laptop not that useful, since it has a somewhat awkward placement, if you are a content creator you’ll love it at first sight. We loved the Zenbook Duo’s setup because when editing video or photos you can keep the timeline or the most used tools on the second display.
Lenovo 2022 Yoga 9i 2-in-1 Laptop with 14-inch 4K HDR Touchscreen
Another great choice for a work 4K laptop is the 2022 model of the Lenovo Yoga. This is another flashy laptop we love due to its versatility and great balance between a beautiful 4K screen and relatively strong specs.
For work, the 4K touchscreen is great when you use it in a tent position – you can present a deck to your coworkers more comfortably using either swipe gestures or the bundled Lenovo stylus pen.
In terms of specs, the Lenovo Yoga 9i isn’t a 4K gaming laptop but has decent enough performance to handle some games.
It has the Core i7-1185G7 mobile quad core processor paired with up to 16GB of DDR 4 RAM and up to 2TB SSD storage.
Other nifty features include the privacy shutter for the dual webcam, a rotating sound bar with Dolby Atmos speakers, and the design overall. This 4K laptop weighs just 3.17 lbs and has a sleek aluminum body.
ASUS VivoBook Pro 16X OLED 4K laptop
One of the cheapest 4K laptops that’s a great choice for the office is the ASUS Vivobook Pro 16X. Since most 4K laptops revolve around the $4000 price tag, this is one option that goes for well under $2000 and a great deal for a 16-inch 4K OLED display.
While this isn’t a 4K gaming laptop, it does come with the AMD Ryzen 7-5800H mobile processor, alongside Nvidia’s GeForce RTX 3050 graphics, 16GB RAM and a 1TB PCIe SSD, so you can also game comfortably on it. Plus, it also has a backlit keyboard for those long sessions.
Best 4K gaming laptops
Razer Blade 15, an older 4K laptop that still packs a punch
Straddling the line between a 4K laptop for work and gaming is one of the first 4K laptops to hit the market – the Razer Blade 15.
Well, even though it’s a couple of years old, the Razer Blade 15 2020 model still holds up well and, considering today’s prices, delivers bang for your buck. The build quality and specs of this 4K laptop are more than great for most work applications. The CNC aluminum body can handle a tumble in any crowded work backpack and looks sleek compared to most other gaming laptops.
Because it has just 16 GB of RAM, it might not perform all that well on video editing, but it will handle most other tasks well. The 15.6-inch 4K OLED touch display sports 100% DCI-PS color space and HDR400 True Black.
The Razer Blade 15 comes with a 10th Gen Intel Core i7-10750H processor, a GeForce RTX 2070 GPU, 16GB of RAM and 512GB of storage. Also notable are the connectivity options: Wi-Fi 6, Gigabit Ethernet, Thunderbolt 3, USB type-A and type-C ports, plus HDMI, which you wouldn’t expect to find in a laptop that’s 0.78-inch thin.
Gigabyte Aero 15, a discreet 4K laptop for gaming and the office
Once again, if you want one of the best 4K laptops in 2023 but for a discount, look towards some of the first 4K laptops to hit the market a year or two ago to snag a bigger discount.
In our tests, we loved the Gigabyte Aero OLED 15 laptop because it’s a 4K gaming laptop that looks discreet enough to use at the office as well. Unlike most gaming laptops, it doesn’t look like it could carry Captain Picard around the Universe, but keeps a pleasant low profile.
This 4K laptop comes with nVidia’s RTX 3070 series, which can handle any game out there beautifully, paired with 32GB of RAM and a 512GB Samsung NVMe SSD, plus the DTS Sound Unbound app to take audio to the next level.
The MSI Titan GT77 17.3″ 4K gaming laptop
This 4K gaming laptop does look the part, featuring an unmistakeable gaming look, with an RGB keyboard and the specs you expect from something geared towards demanding PC games.
It comes with a larger, 17.3-inch display with 120Hz or 144Hz refresh rate and 100% DCI-P3 color profile.
Depending on your budget, you can specc it with an i7 and a RTX 3070Ti combo or you can go all out to the I9-13980HX CPU with Nvidia’s RTX 4080 or RTX 4090, 64GB to 128 GB of RAM and either 2TB or 4TB of storage. Really, when it comes to the best 4K laptops, this thing is a beast.
MSI Stealth GS77 17.3-inch 4K laptop for gaming
If you really have a huge Steam library and you want to keep most of it installed, then last year’s MSI Stealth GS77 4K UHD laptop will still do the trick in 2023 – and probably in 2026 as well.
This is another 17.3-inch 4K laptop from MSI that comes with future-proof specs, including the 12th gen Alder Lake Core 19-12900H CPU, 64GB of RAM and up to 4 TB of storage via a combo of Samsung 980 Pro SSDs.
These are some of the best 4K laptops in 2023 but, since it’s still early in the year, the list will grow with more recommendations as they’re announced and tested. If you know a good 4K laptop that should be here, do share it with the community in the comments!
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