Intel still controls the laptop CPU market, and most laptops come equipped with Intel processors. But AMD has begun to challenge Intel’s dominance here too. Both companies offer great laptop CPUs with similar performance levels.
The best processor for your new laptop may end up coming from either company, and it’s fairly easy to get a laptop with their latest generation of CPUs. Everyday users are fine with mid-level Intel or AMD CPUs — for example, the i5s and Ryzen 5s — which will suit anyone who doesn’t use demanding or specialist software. Those who live their lives in a video editing suite or Assassin’s Creed: Valhalla would do well to go for a Ryzen 7 or i7.
Both companies’ highest-end chips are more powerful than most people would ever need their processor to be. When you compare the difference in performance and price tag of the i7 and i9, for example, ask yourself: Is it worth spending a few hundred dollars more for just a dozen more FPS?
But if you’re determined to get the very best processor for your laptop, you’re more likely to find an off-the-shelf machine with a high-end Intel CPU. You can’t go wrong with a whopping 24 cores in your brand new notebook, and that’s exactly what the i9 13900ks offers.