Top 10 Laptop Brands on the Market

Ranked by Price, Features, Reputation, and Reliability

Christopher Reed
The laptop market is inundated with fierce competition among the manufacturers for best features, price, reputation, and reliability. Former market giants have lost reputation and credibility while new budget laptop brands try to make a dent in the ever changing industry. To further dilute the market, a new battle is brewing amongst the laptop brands for top dog in the new netbook computer industry. Depending upon your personal experience your opinion could be vastly different than this list, either way, It's time to take a look at our list of top 10 laptop brands based on reputation, reliability, and customer satisfaction.

10. Compaq

Compaq has had problems in the past with reputation in the laptop industry but has improved in recent years, specifically since the buyout by HP. The budget models are priced right and the features and prices remain affordable on the lower end systems. A good choice for a budget or entry level laptop.

9. Gateway

Gateway reliability has been questioned in the past though many customers swear by their products. Gateway produces a wide range of laptops and have a relatively large share of the laptop market. Unfortunately, Gateway has been known for their lack of support, warranty work seems to be a daunting task that can result in some serious aggravation on the customers part. Gateway receives a tarnished reputation based upon these customer support issues.

8. Asus

Asus is improving their reputation and quality on a consistent basis and is moving into a market contender quickly. One key market Asus is capitalizing on is the netbook market which continues to see impressive sales. Reliability seems to be good and customer reviews seem to be positive. No doubt in my mind they would be much higher on this list a year from now.

7. Sony Vaio

Sony laptops have been known to have premium features and components. For this reason the Sony brand of laptops usually has a premium price as well. The problem with that is there are other brands that share the same features and specs that are cheaper and rated just as high in customer satisfaction and reliability. For this reason, many times it's a better deal to choose a different manufacturer who can give you a comparative product at a lower price point.

6. HP

I had a hard time putting HP above a few of the other brands, though they are one of the major players in the laptop computer market. Hewlitt Packard is known to be novice friendly with good support and easy to use products. I believe this is one key factor that makes HP laptop's and electronics one of the best selling brands on the market. They have great looking products, though some models take a hit in the reliability segment.

5. Acer

Acer is another brand that is constantly improving and could potentially move up the list. Acer is known for their budget models and more recently their economically priced netbooks. I find they have mixed reviews among users and their reputation is so-so with varying degrees of enthusiasm and experiences, for this they hit the list mid-pack.

4. Samsung

Samsung has really improved their reputation over the years and are now known as a premium brand. Their HDTV's have shown to be well built, and their laptops and computer monitors are as well. The high end models boast impressive features for a good price.

3. Dell

Dell is one of the most popular computer companies in the world and for good reason. Their laptop's range from economical to premium with price point's to match. Most Dell laptop models have been known for good reliability and performance and overall good value for family and enterprise based clients. Impressive styling and features for the price.

2. Apple

Apple is a company you either love or hate, usually there is no middle ground. Apple have always been well built and sound with impressive features, portability, and reliability. The one area Apple has been knocked for is compatability. This is geared towards operating systems that users want the freedom to install and configure independently. Regardless, Apple is one of the top laptop brands on the market, though you will pay for the quality.

1. Toshiba

It was hard to choose a number one because for each laptop brand that you perceive as the best there are five so called industry expert reviews stating the complete opposite. One brand that has always been classified as a leader in the laptop market is Toshiba. The main boast is the reliability of their laptops regardless of classification. The lower end models boast features and prices that rival the best while their high end models give the customer what they want and more. I find they have style, features, good prices, reliability, and are recognized as a reputable brand in the consumer laptop market.

Sources:

http://www.newegg.com/Store/SubCategory.aspx?SubCategory=32&name=Laptops-Notebooks
http://www.laptopreviewsonline.com/

Published by Christopher Reed

Christopher Reed is a 25 year old located in Ocala, Fl. He holds a degree in multimedia technologies and has a passion for graphic design, writing, videography, and more.  View profile

39 Comments

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  • Kuldeep4/27/2012

    toshiba is the best...i have been using it for the last 2years...and the performance is like a dirt bike...rough and tough....no problem yet

  • shahid3/3/2011

    i think sony vaio is the best in all deppts.. great beautiful screen, designs, and ofcourse perfumance

  • Kris2/27/2011

    Toshiba is by far the best!

  • olouyi okouga wilfried12/3/2010

    i have never owned a laptop for myself but i'm a network hardware engineer and throughout my job i came computers for repairing but i randomly came across Toshiba having a big trouble..i can hop hold it saying TOSHIBA is the best brand ever..

  • its11/25/2010

    i have dell and its the best bet .. i can say sony wil be the next reliable one .. no comments about the rest

  • randy10/19/2010

    i'm sorry but i bought a brand new toshiba two years ago and it's a piece of crap, drivers were install wrong, it overheats, exterior controls work off and on, and it constantly lags, although, it's supposed to have 4gigs of ram and a duo core, this is even though i've taken cared of it not to drop it, and defragged, disk cleanups and so-on, will never buy a toshiba again, but then i again i bought it on sale, so i guess u get what u pay for, a piece of crap

  • Gina10/2/2010

    This list is so wrong and this proofs and it isnt close to reality. Lenovo or former IBM isnt even there come on...I dont need to read anything else since you can even Lenovo,one the brands that has if not THE best durable laptops in the market.

  • HP8/27/2010

    I've owned an HP Dv6000 series laptop since Oct. 2007 and its been nothing but hell. Things that went wrong: 1) Battery stopped holding charge after 6 months which was not covered by warranty, 2) Charger went out right after the warranty, 3) 1.5 years in the Hard Drive needed replacing. I finally upgraded to Windows 7 and everything was going good until 4) The internal component of the charging dock became loose. Even the lightest tug on the power cord shuts of the computer. The laptop is no longer a laptop, its a desktop now. All this=HP WORST BRAND EVER!!!

  • deanna8/23/2010

    are you kidding me toshiba is not number 1!!!! i had my toshiba for barely two years and it kept going downhill and the hardrive fried so no toshiba is not numbedr 1 sorry

  • Thomas8/12/2010

    Guys,
    I have Toshiba 14" since 4 years, really it is doing a wonderful job for me and i think Toshiba is the best. I bought a Sony for my daughter and less than one year screen is gone and they want 400US for repair. I don't recommend Sony to anyone. HP or Dell is also good PC's.

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