What is a Good Small Laptop | Advantage and Disadvantages

Do you want to know what is a good small laptop and its features? You are at the right place to know the answer of this query.

No doubt, laptops have becoming lighter, more powerful and more versatile with every passing day. We can find endless solutions on the market, but here we are going to focus on the small laptop format.

We will see what they are, what features they have and the strengths and weaknesses of this type of laptop.

What is a Small Laptop?

Laptops those have a screen less than 15 inches and with a thickness, usually less than 2cm known as a small laptops. A small laptop takes most of the features of ultrabooks, but reduces the screen a bit.

See Also: Things to Consider Before Buying the Best Mini Laptop

It is a new way of categorizing laptops, differentiating it from 15-17 inch models, gaming laptops and professional laptops.

This type of laptop is characterized by being very light and compact, taking up very little space and making it easy to transport.

Usually these types of laptops use processors with very tight frequencies, since the cooling systems are usually greatly reduced.

Another aspect to take into account is that these laptops do not offer the possibility of expanding the storage capacity or expanding the RAM memory.

They offer us some advantages over other laptops, starting with offering a fairly good quality screen. But also, as the processors are quite simple and lack dedicated graphics. They also offer us a very good autonomy.

They are usually characterized by offering excellent wireless connectivity and some new ones even offer 5G connectivity.

Features of a Good Small Laptop

The first thing we must take into account is the purpose of this type of laptop. A small laptop is intended primarily for people who travel a lot for work and for students.

They offer very good performance for training and telecommuting, etc but you can’t use them for heavy tasks, such as photo retouching, video editing or gaming.

1. Model and Frequency of the Processor

Another important aspect of a small laptop that we must take into account is the model and the frequency of the processor.

The processors for this type of laptop usually have quite low frequencies to lower the TDP and thus avoid temperature problems and maximize autonomy.

They are not bad processors, for the tasks described (office automation, studies, teleworking) they are more than sufficient.

The recommended thing is processors with at least 2 cores and 4 processing threads, if they are processors with 4 cores and 8 threads, this would be better option.

See Also: How to Choose a Laptop Processor

2. Storage

We also have to take into account the ideal storage capacity is 256GB and anything below is not a good option. Indicate that a small ultrabook cut laptop will never use an HDD, they will always use SSD drives.

Be careful, because it is possible that the SSD is soldered on the PCB itself, although the usual ones are M.2 SSD drives.

3. RAM

We turn to RAM, which will always be based on the DDR4 standard. The recommended thing is 16GB DDR4, at least and to be able to be in Dual Channel configuration, to obtain the best possible performance.

In Intel processors, the frequency of the RAM is indifferent, but in AMD Ryzen processors it is important and it is recommended that it should be at least 3000MHz.

4. Screen

Let’s go now with the screen, where most are with Full HD resolution, which is a very good option, we do not need more.

Moreover, it is difficult to find a small laptop with a higher resolution screen, unless it is from Apple, of course. There are some laptops of this format with a 1440p and 2180p resolution screen, but they are very expensive.

5. Connectivity

The most important thing (practically) is connectivity. Normally these types of laptops have a limited number of physical ports, which is usually compensated with at least one Thunderbolt port.

If we have a Thunderbolt port we can connect a USB HUB with an Ethernet port and increase the capabilities of the system.

But in addition, we will need WiFi and Bluetooth. The most modern ones, based on Intel processors, offer support for WiFi 6 or WiFi 6E and Bluetooth 5.1, and some even add support for 5G.

Advantages

1. Great Autonomy

These types of laptops are characterized by making use of processors with a TDP adjusted downwards to favor autonomy.

Additionally, they eliminate the dedicated graphics, something that supposes an additional consumption and therefore, a notable reduction in autonomy.

See Also: How to Reduce Laptop Noise

These two factors allow the autonomy of this type of portable equipment to be so good. We also have the advantage that they make use of SSD units, whose consumption is much lower than HDDs, which also favors autonomy.

2. Lighter in Weight

Another characteristic of this type of portable equipment is its weight, much lower than other larger systems.

What mainly helps to reduce weight is the heat dissipation system that is simplified in a remarkable way.

They make use of simpler heat sinks than larger laptops because the processors have a very well tuned TDP.

Also lacking dedicated graphics, the heatsink can be simplified quite a bit, but yes, without generating temperature problems.

3. Less Temperature Problems

We commented that the heatsinks of these laptops are usually simpler than in larger laptops, which could lead to thermal problems.

But this is not the case here, since the processors have been adjusted downwards, to avoid precisely this problem.

In addition, they are not subjected to really stressful loads (normally) so temperature problems are quite rare. In addition, some of these laptops have an aluminum structure, which also favors heat dissipation.

4. Connectivity

Most offer WiFi 6 and Bluetooth 5.0 connectivity, but those based on Intel’s 11th Gen offer WiFi 6E and Bluetooth 5.2.

Additionally, some models offer 5G connectivity, which allows us to be connected to the internet at all, times.

These newer models implement technologies that add security to communications, although it is always convenient to use a VPN.

5. Touch Screen

Usually a small laptop does not have a touch screen, except in the case of convertibles, which are “tablets” with an integrated keyboard.

The highest-end models can integrate a touch screen, to facilitate creativity and versatility of use. Obviously, the fact that the screen is a touch screen ends up making the final product more expensive.

Disadvantages

1. SSD cannot be Expanded

There are number of laptops with these characteristics that solder the memories on the motherboard, making it impossible to expand the capacity.

See Also: Is SSD Good for Gaming

For this reason, it is necessary to choose the capacity of this type of laptops carefully. Some still offer SSD drives, but in M.2 form factor, which are more compact.

If the laptop uses this type of memory, it is possible that we still cannot update the capacity on our own, because the design prevents it.

2. RAM cannot be Expanded

Another negative point is that the amount of RAM cannot be upgraded. Let’s clarify that the update limitation is limited to certain laptops that have a module soldered on the motherboard.

This makes it very difficult to upgrade the RAM, as the new module might not be recognized by the BIOS, either because of the frequency, the memory chips, or the manufacturer. It could even be that a record of the installed module has been included in the BIOS.

3. Limited Processors

What are strengths for autonomy and temperature can be a weakness for certain cases. A student doing computer engineering could be limited by the power of this portable option.

Also a person, who works with large Excel tables or databases, could suffer limitations in their ability to afford greater load of work.

These laptops offer great power, but as modern processors based on new manufacturing processors, they may be insufficient for certain cases.

4. Dedicated Graphics

The iGPU of a processor will never offer the performance of a dedicated GPU. Additionally, the iGPU consumes part of the system’s RAM memory, something that will also affect the final performance of the system.

We will be able to play some games, especially light games, but we will not be able to do much more.

If you are an engineering student and you need CUDA programs, you have a problem, since these laptops usually lack a compatible NVIDIA GPU.

5. Small Screen Size

A 15-inch screen can be a bit small, but in a small laptop, the size of the panel also reduces. The usual are 13.3-inch and 14-inch screens, which may not a good option, suppose a downward adjustment of the size of the panel.

See Also: What is the Resolution of a Computer Screen

It assumes that we will have a small reduction in the amount of space for displaying content. It may not be relevant for many cases, but it is always something that we must take into account before buying new equipment.

6. Connectivity Issue

Usually in this type of laptop, the number of connectors is quite reduces, such as Thunderbolt port, a DisplayPort or an HDMI, a couple of USB 3.0 ports and a card reader are integrated.

The Ethernet connector is not usually added, because it would force to increase the thickness of the laptop.

Some may come with a relatively simple Thunderbolt dongle that adds a Thunderbolt port and an additional USB port.

Conclusion

Like any product, a small laptop has a fairly clear market. These are designed for people who travel regularly, such as business people, students or people who travel a lot for work.

They offer good performance and good features in a small space and with a really low weight, which makes them more comfortable to transport.

In addition, they increasingly offer better internet connection features without the need for cables, which is something worthy.

They have some negative aspects, especially in the capacity to expand and/or update and in connectivity.

These are really mitigated if we take into account that what they install are SSD drives, which offer high performance between 8GB and 16GB RAM. To reduce the heat generation, the size of the laptop offer great autonomy.

They usually pull the iGPU, the iGPU, especially in Intel processors. Although it has improved a lot in the company’s 11th Gen processors thanks to the Intel Xe architecture.

Let us know if you have a small laptop by commenting below and the reason why you chose it.