The Dell XPS 15 model we evaluated is outfitted with an Intel Core i5-6300HQ quad-core processor with 8GB of RAM. While that combination offers modest overall performance, it's more than sufficient for the average household.

If you need more processing power for tasks like video editing or heavy multitasking, the XPS 15 can be upgraded to an Intel Core i7-6700HQ and up to 32GB of RAM. The system is also equipped with an Nvidia GeForce GTX 960M graphics card, so it should be able handle everything from photo editing to basic gaming.

The most exciting feature of Asus ZenBook Pro UX501, however, is the inclusion of an Nvidia GeForce GTX 960M graphics card paired with 2GB of dedicated GDDR5 memory. Most thin-and-light laptops tend to use integrated graphics, which means your machine will likely shudder and die at the first sign of a graphically intensive game.

Nvidia's dedicated Notebook-edition GPU will handle recent games with relative ease however, and you'll also be able to use it for big video rendering tasks too.

Razer Blade Pro 2015 RZ09-01171E51-R3W1 17.3" Gaming Laptop/ Notebook (i7-4720HQ, 16GB, 256GB SSD, 500GB, NV GTX960M, W8.1) The new Razer Blade Pro is the ultimate gaming machine and creative mobile studio with the latest high-performance technologies yet remains just 0.88 inches thin. Our engineers packed more power than ever before into the new Blade Pro, so you can do more with it.

With a 47 watt quad-core Intel® Core™ i7 processor, NVIDIA® GeForce® GTX 960M graphics, 16GB of RAM, and dual storage (SSD+HDD), the new Blade Pro delivers serious performance that can take on the most intensive applications with ease.

Asus has made the ZenBook Pro UX501 one of the most affordable laptops on the market, selling for much less than others when comparing laptops with similar components and features. The model we evaluated features a quad-core Intel Core i7-6700HQ processor, with 16GB of RAM.

That processor has a CPU PassMark score of 8,043 points, making it one of the best-rated laptop processors available. An Nvidia GTX 960M graphics card with 2GB of dedicated memory offers all the visual oomph required by a high-resolution display, and it even opens up the possibility of some gaming capability.

HP Spectre x360 15t. Whether you use it as a laptop or a tablet (or something in between) you'll find that the system delivers pretty good performance and a decent feature set.

The base model is outfitted with an Intel Core i5-6200U processor, which is capable enough for most day-to-day use, but if you want better, faster performance, it can also be equipped with an Intel Core i7-6560U. You can also choose between 8GB of RAM or 16GB.

As such, the Apple MacBook Pro 15 is outfitted with an Intel Core i7-4770HQ, a 4th generation processor from 2014 that nonetheless offered the highest PassMark score (8,914 points) of any system on our lineup. You can also upgrade to other Intel Core i7 processors, offering slightly faster clock speeds–up to 2.8GHz as compared to the standard 2.2GHz.

The MacBook Pro also offers better-than-average graphics processing with Intel Iris Pro Graphics.

LG offers two configurations of the LG Gram 15. The first, which was the focus of our evaluation, is outfitted with an Intel Core i5-6200U with 8GB of RAM, a 256GB solid-state drive (SSD) and Intel HD Graphics 520, Intel's current integrated graphics solution.

For a bump up in price, LG also offers a second configuration, with an Intel Core i7-6500U and a 512GB SSD, boosting both performance and storage capacity, but otherwise identical.

The Lenovo IdeaPad 510 base model is outfitted with an Intel Core i5-6200U processor with 4GB of RAM, but you can select other models with an Intel Core i7-6500U processor, a larger 8GB allotment of RAM, or both. While the standard configuration uses Intel's integrated graphics solution (Intel HD Graphics 520), you can step up to a dedicated graphics card, configuring the laptop with an Nvidia GeForce GTX 940MX.

Dell Xps 15 Processor 4th Generation Intel® Core™ i5-4200H processor 4th Generation Intel® Core™ i7-4702HQ processor (6M Cache, up to 3.2 GHz) Operating System Windows 8.1 Windows 8.1 Pro, Windows® 7 Home Premium, Windows® 7 Professional, Windows® 7 Ultimate Memory1 8GB or 16GB Dual Channel DDR3L SDRAM at 1600 MHz (2xSoDIMMs) Video Card Intel® HD 4400 (i5-4200H) Nvidia® GeForce GT 750M 2GB GDDR5 (i7-4702HQ) Display 15.6" UltraSharp™ QHD+ (3200x1800) touch display 400-nit, 72% color gamut, 1000:1 contrast ratio 160° wide viewing angle - 80° / 80° / 80° / 80° Capacitive touchscreen – 10-finger touch support Audio and Speakers High Definition Audio with Waves MaxxAudio® Pro Hard Drive 500GB w/32GB SSD Check out your self

The Dell XPS 15 laptop boasts a number of standard ports, like HDMI, two USB 3.0 ports, and an SD memory card slot, but it also features a USB-C port with Thunderbolt 3 support. Through Thunderbolt you can connect an array of devices, including a multiple port adapter (sold separately) that offers ports for HDMI, VGA, Ethernet and USB 3.0 – and you can run all of them simultaneously.

It also supports power input, letting you charge the laptop through that port. Wireless connectivity abounds with both 802.11ac Wi-Fi and Bluetooth 4.1.