NotebookReview.com
Most Popular Laptops: Readers' Picks
by Jerry Jackson -  9/9/2012

Each month we compile data for the number of times a particular notebook is viewed on this site's product pages to get an idea for what mainstream consumers are looking at and thinking about buying. Take a closer look at the notebooks that our visitors wanted to see the most during the month of March.

In that sense, think of this list as the "most clickable laptops of the month" ... the notebooks that most of the people visiting this site are interested in learning about. Keep in mind that clicks directly on the "Most Viewed Laptops" list do not count toward the total - keeping the list as fair as possible each month. The only clicks that count toward the monthly totals come from web searches like Google or from visitors who have clicked on a laptop after visiting our "Notebook Database" or inside our forums.

The aging-yet-affordable HP Pavilion g6 held onto the top spot in our list followed by the Apple MacBook Pro with Retina Display and HP ENVY dv7 in distant second and third places respectively. HP also made a surprising push into the top 10 this week by taking four of the top 10 spots and pushing the popular Lenovo models down on the list.

1. HP Pavilion g6 (Previously #1)- The Pavilion g6 is a budget-priced laptop that tries to balance great design, solid performance, and affordability. The Pavilion g6t series with 15.6-inch LED display features a range of available Intel Pentium and Core i series processors, Windows 7, multiple graphics options, and a 6-cell battery with more than four hours of battery life while browsing the web. (31,128 unique views)

View the NotebookReview.com Review for the HP Pavilion g6

2. Apple MacBook Pro with Retina Display (Previously #2) - The Apple MacBook Pro with Retina Display features a 15.4-inch display with 5.1 million pixels; an all-flash architecture; quad-core Intel Core i7 processors; all in a design that's just 0.7-inch thick and 4.5 pounds. It's not just the most advanced notebook Apple has ever made, it's the most advanced Mac. At a price of $2,199 it's not cheap, but if you are willing to sacrifice the amazing display you can buy a similar MacBook Pro for just $1,799. (13,395 unique views)

View the NotebookReview.com Review for the Apple MacBook Pro with Retina Display

3. HP ENVY dv7 (Previously #3) - The replacement for the Pavilion dv7, the new ENVY dv7, offers a good balance of configuration options and cost. This desktop-replacement notebook features a 17.3-inch screen and comes in a wide variety configurations to suit almost any budget or performance needs. We tested the dv7 with Intel Core i5-3210M processor, Intel graphics, 8GB of system memory and a 750GB hard drive with a retail price of $819.99 ... not bad for a family PC. (12,698 unique views)

View the NotebookReview.com Review for the HP ENVY dv7

4. Dell XPS 13 (Back in the Top 10) - The Dell XPS 13 Ultrabook packs a great screen and equally great keyboard inside an attractive shell with fantastic build quality while keeping the weight at just three pounds. Originally available with only a lower-resolution screen, Dell recently updated the XPS 13 with a full HD (1920 x 1080 resolution) IPS display and the latest Intel hardware. In short this is a great 13-inch Ultrabook for home or business use. (11,260 unique views)

View the NotebookReview.com Review for the Dell XPS 13

5. Lenovo ThinkPad T430 (Previously #4) - The Lenovo ThinkPad T430 is the replacement for the popular T420 business notebook. This 14-inch "business rugged" laptop features a lightweight carbon-fiber reinforced exterior with a metal roll cage supporting the inside of the chassis. Equipped with the latest 3rd generation Intel Core series processors, a wide selection of ports, and up to 15 hours of real-world battery life, the T430 is one of the best business notebooks of 2012. (10,730 unique views)

View the NotebookReview.com Review for the Lenovo ThinkPad T430

6. HP ENVY 4 (Previously #5) - The HP ENVY 4 is a 14-inch premium multimedia notebook available either with a standard 14-inch display or a "TouchSmart" touch screen display for use with Windows 8. The HP ENVY 4 TouchSmart Ultrabook might not be the least expensive Windows 8 laptop (priced around $950 with touch screen) but it is one of the most affordable Windows 8 notebooks that offers a great Windows 8 experience complete with a touch screen. (8,474 unique views)

View the NotebookReview.com Review for the HP ENVY 4

7. Asus ZenBook UX51V (New to the Top 10) - The ASUS UX51VZ is a well-rounded 15.6-inch notebook with excellent multimedia features ... but it is ultimately a bit too expensive. This 15.6" thin-and-light notebook features an IPS display, Core i7 quad-core processor, dedicated graphics and makes for a great multimedia experience. If you aren't bothered by the lack of a touchscreen for Windows 8 this is a very good notebook. (8,048 unique views)

View the NotebookReview.com Review for the Asus ZenBook UX51V

8. HP ENVY X2 (New to the Top 10) - The HP ENVY x2 is an attractive laptop/tablet hybrid with Windows 8 and great battery but limited performance. The ENVY x2 uses a rather ingenious magnetic connector that firmly holds the screen in place, to remove the screen you simply slide a latch and out it pops. If you want both a tablet and laptop, and don't need best-in-class performance the HP ENVY x2 is a compelling offering. (7,851 unique views)

View the NotebookReview.com Review for the HP ENVY X2

9. Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon (Previously #7) - The X1 Carbon is the 14-inch business-class Ultrabook that replaces the old 13-inch ThinkPad X1. Loaded with third generation Intel Core processors, and high-speed solid state drives for storage, the X1 Carbon gets its name from the carbon fiber used in both the exterior and in the interior roll-cage construction. Carbon fiber allows the X1 Carbon to weigh just three pounds but it passes eight separate MIL spec tests for humidity, low temperature, high temperature, extreme temperatures, sand, altitude, vibration and mechanical shock. (6,478 unique views)

View the NotebookReview.com Review for the Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon

10. Acer Aspire V5 (Previously #8) - The Acer Aspire V5 series is designed to provide and thin and light computing experience at an affordable price. Despite being relatively thin, the $600 Aspire V5-571 packs an Intel Core i5 processor, 6GB of RAM and a 500GB hard drive. The specs might not be as impressive as the latest Ultrabooks, but the V5 delivers some decent hardware for the price. This notebook features a 15-inch display with 1366x768 resolution and a range of Intel processors and graphics options. (6,468 unique views)

View the NotebookReview.com Review for the Acer Aspire V5

And here's the rest of 'em rounding out the top 20 most viewed and popular on NotebookReview.com for the month of March:

11. Lenovo IdeaPad Yoga 13 - 6,347 unique views
12. Asus ZENBOOK UX32VD - 6,247 unique views
13. Lenovo ThinkPad Tablet 2 - 6,039 unique views
14. Dell XPS 12 - 5,837 unique views
15. Lenovo IdeaPad Z580 - 5,658 unique views
16. Lenovo ThinkPad X230 - 5,568 unique views
17. Samsung Series 9 - 5,449 unique views
18. Lenovo IdeaPad Y580 - 5,412 unique views
19. Asus G75VW - 4,999 unique views
20. HP EliteBook 8770w - 3,550 unique views

Remember, to get advice on which notebook to buy, don't just go with what's popular... try visiting our What Notebook Should I Buy? forum to ask advice on what you should buy based on your needs. And also check out the current standings for this week's most popular notebooks.

Top 20 Threads for March

While we're on the subject of top 20, to give an idea of what the hot topics were in the forums last month, here's a list of the most viewed forum threads posted in March:

  1. New details regarding upcoming GTX 780M (poster Cloudfire, posted 3/1/2013, 20688 views, 258 replies)
  2. 2013 Series 7 chronos / Ativ Book 8 15" owner's lounge (NP770Z5E / NP780Z5E / NP870Z5E / NP880Z5E) (poster pranktank, posted 3/24/2013, 18556 views, 240 replies)
  3. New samsung series 7 with 8870m review / test (poster pranktank, posted 3/23/2013, 13270 views, 128 replies)
  4. Battlefield 3 peformance? (poster Ghost Warrior, posted 3/7/2013, 12010 views, 67 replies)
  5. New 8970m/8990m Coming SOON!! (poster trikolpona, posted 3/2/2013, 8158 views, 140 replies)
  6. Yeah, Windows 8's on fire... (poster Pirx, posted 3/4/2013, 8086 views, 166 replies)
  7. What game would you like to see remade and why? (poster HTWingNut, posted 3/1/2013, 6766 views, 216 replies)
  8. Sneak peek on the upcoming M17x and M14x (poster Cloudfire, posted 3/22/2013, 6627 views, 97 replies)
  9. The NON-POLITICAL firearms thread (poster Mitlov, posted 3/4/2013, 5119 views, 249 replies)
  10. Gaming Performance of the new Series 7 Chronos with 8870m (poster delpiero223, posted 3/26/2013, 4446 views, 63 replies)
  11. AMD Radeon HD 8970M Unveiled (poster Albake21, posted 3/30/2013, 4369 views, 67 replies)
  12. Battlefield 3 system specs (poster serialsid, posted 3/7/2013, 4236 views, 43 replies)
  13. "680m sli" Got yours? where is a single review or benchmark? (poster trackem1, posted 3/30/2013, 3498 views, 20 replies)
  14. Your M18x's habitat (poster Radi324, posted 3/15/2013, 3375 views, 74 replies)
  15. M18x and Tomb Raider Performance Thread (poster Throbin, posted 3/5/2013, 3223 views, 64 replies)
  16. Lenovo | Think Brand Split: Future Product Lines Discussion (poster w_km, posted 3/14/2013, 3196 views, 66 replies)
  17. 680M SLI Impressions for Me. (poster trackem1, posted 3/30/2013, 2356 views, 35 replies)
  18. Yoga or X1 Carbon Touch or Zenbook Prime Touch? (poster Qadri, posted 3/16/2013, 2355 views, 41 replies)
  19. $799 Lenovo Y500 15.6": i7-3630QM, 1080p, 8GB, 1TB HDD, 2GB GeForce GT 650M (poster tetsussaiga, posted 3/24/2013, 2238 views, 44 replies)
  20. 13/ 14" with 16 GB RAM and High Res Screen - Preferably Thin & Light with Long Battery Life (poster crashnburn, posted 3/2/2013, 2237 views, 46 replies)