For laptops, PCs, Macs, chips, peripherals, and other hardware, 2024 was the best of times, and 2024 was the worst of times. And in prepping my year-end wrap-ups for 2024, I found that it was a big enough year that I needed to expand on the collection of articles I usually write. And so this article, which began as a "best laptop of 2024"-type post, now highlights the best and worst hardware moments I experienced in 2024, some personally and some industry-wide.
Note that hardware in this case is limited only to those devices one uses personally. Sorry, Nvidia.
✍️ Reviews, I've made a few
I may as well start with the laptop and PC reviews. I typically estimate that I write about 12 laptop reviews each year. But I've already written 19 laptop and PC reviews this year, and will likely get a few more done before New Years: I have six new hardware devices in-house as I write this, including four laptops and one all-in-one PC, plus one tablet and one e-reader.
My 2024 laptop and PC reviews are, in chronological order:
HP Spectre x360 14
Lenovo IdeaPad Flex 5i Chromebook Plus
HP Envy Move
Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Fold 16
Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon Gen 12
Lenovo Yoga Pro 9i 16 Gen 9
Lenovo Yoga 9i 2-in-1 14 Gen 9
HP ZBook Firefly 14 G11
Lenovo Yoga Slim 7x 14 Gen 9
Microsoft Surface Laptop 7
HP EliteBook Ultra
HP EliteBook 1040 G11
Lenovo ThinkPad T14s Gen 6 Snapdragon
Lenovo IdeaPad 5 2-in-1
Lenovo ThinkBook x13 Gen 4
Lenovo ThinkPad X12 Detachable Gen 2
HP OmniBook Ultra
Lenovo Yoga Slim 7i 15 Aura Edition
Lenovo ThinkBook Plus Gen 5 Hybrid
👍 No regrets: Microsoft Surface Laptop 7
Surface Laptop 7 isn't perfect: It lacks a fingerprint reader and presence sensing capabilities, for example. But with this laptop, Microsoft delivered exactly what I wanted: A MacBook Air-alike with a large display, Snapdragon X/Arm internals, killer performance, battery life, compatibility, efficiency, and reliability, a terrific keyboard with a near-perfect typing experience, and the clean software experience I hope to see on all PCs. I spent way too much on this PC and I couldn't be happier: It's the best laptop of 2024, and my best purchase of the year too. I only wish I could have gotten it sooner.
👎 Nothing but regrets: Apple iPad Air 13-Inch M2
Looking back on this, I'm having trouble reconciling my decision to purchase an Apple iPad Air 13-inch M2 to replace my aging 11-inch iPad Air 4th generation (2020). I mean, I can rationalize it. I had to keep resetting my old iPad Air because it kept slowing down. Between 2023 and 2024, I'd really started preferring larger-screen 15-16 inch laptops, so maybe a larger iPad made sense too. And while Apple had dashed my hopes of a more sophisticated iPadOS at WWDC 2024 in the wake of releasing new M-based iPad Pro and iPad Air models, it would have to come around to reality at some point, right?
Maybe it will happen someday. But this was a mistake t...
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