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Do you want to become a data scientist? If so, you’re going to need a powerful laptop that can handle the intense computational and graphical requirements of the job.

In this blog post, we will rank and review the 5 best laptops for data science.

We’ll also provide some of their specifications and unique features for each laptop to help you make your decision.

So without further ado, let’s get started!

What is The Best Laptop For Data Science?

If you’re looking for the best laptop for data science, you’ll need powerful machines with fast processors, plenty of RAM, and large storage capacity.

They should also have good battery life and be able to run the software you need for your work.

With that said, let’s look at the best laptops for data science!

1. Apple M2 MacBook Pro (16-inch, 2023)

best laptop for data science

Overview:

For the first in this list, we have the Apple Macbook Pro with M2 Chip!

The Apple Macbook Pro laptop is no stranger to us. And many data scientists use it for a really good reason.

The Pro lineup of Macbooks produced by Apple has been trusted by all kinds of programmers for its reliability.

As the next-gen chip designed specifically for Mac, the M2 Macbook Pro laptops are made to be blazingly fast.

And the new 16-inch M2 MacBook Pro (2023) is the best one yet!

It runs on the macOS operating system, which is really reliable when it comes to having a good machine to store all your important project files without having to worry about crashes.

It’s powered by Apple’s M2 processor and has 16GB of RAM, with possible upgrades up to 32GB. For storage, it comes with a standard 512GB SSD but can be upgraded to a whopping 1TB SSD!

This basically means that you’ll have sufficient RAM for data science work, especially when running those machine learning algorithms!

The M2 Macbook Pro is also known to have a very good battery life, lasting up to 11 hours on a single charge. The only drawback is that it’s quite expensive, with high starting costs.

Technical Specifications:

  • Processor: Apple M2
  • RAM: 16GB (upgradable up to 32GB)
  • Storage: 512GB SSD (upgradable to 4096GB)
  • Battery Life: Up to 11 hours

Unique Features:

  • Fast (Powered by Apple’s M1 processor)
  • Very good battery life
  • Reliable

My Take:

The M2 Macbook Pro is the best laptop for data science for Mac users. It’s powerful, has a lot of storage space, and has good battery life. However, it is pretty expensive.

If you’re looking for a powerful and durable laptop that can handle data science demands, the M2 MacBook Pro is a great choice. However, if you’re on a budget, there are other laptops that may be more suitable for you.

2. ASUS ROG Strix G17

asus rog strix

Overview:

Another laptop you can consider for your data analysis work is the ASUS ROG Strix G17.

Originally made for gaming, this laptop is definitely able to pack a punch with its processing power. This makes it better to run heavy-duty data analysis on your data science projects.

If you’re a data scientist looking for a laptop for data science work, you’re probably looking for a power-packed machine!

With this laptop you’ll have no problems with that since its equipped with an AMD Ryzen 7 4800H 8-Core. You’ll be sure to have better processing speeds compared to the Intel Core i7 laptops.

Technical Specifications:

  • Operating System: Windows 11 Home
  • CPU: AMD Ryzen 7 4800H 8-Core
  • GPU: NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3060 6GB GDDR6
  • RAM: 16GB (upgradable to 64GB)
  • Storage: 1TB PCIe SSD
  • Battery Life: Up to 6 hours

Unique Features:

  • Fast processor
  • Can also be used for gaming
  • High SSD storage
  • Wi-Fi 6 Supported

My Take:

The ASUS ROG Strix G17 is a reliable laptop for data science. It’s powerful enough for running any machine learning algorithms, has a lot of storage space, and has decent battery life.

However, it can be quite expensive since it is a gaming laptop as well.

If you’re looking for a powerful and durable data science laptop that can handle massive datasets, the ASUS ROG Strix G17 is a great choice.

However, if you’re on a budget, you might want to have a look at the next one on the list instead!

3. Legion 5 Gen 6 (17″ AMD) Gaming Laptop

lenovo legion 5

Overview:

Up next on this list is something that I personally own myself – the Legion 5 Gen 6 (17″ AMD) Gaming Laptop!

Data science laptops are usually hidden behind really well-made gaming laptops!

This laptop is a hidden gem that I chanced upon while researching for the best laptop for data science.

Here’s why this laptop made the list: It’s really affordable for the amount of good processing power you’ll get from this machine.

I personally found it to be able to run smoothly while running my data science tasks across several of my IDEs like Anaconda, RStudio/Posit, SQLite, and more!

Don’t let the gaming laptop label fool you, it’s a great laptop that has a concealed look that can easily pass off as a work laptop.

Of course, you’ll be treated to great processing power due to its new Gen 6 series which includes the AMD Ryzen™ 5 5600H Processor (upgradable to the 5800H version).

These days, having an Intel Core i7 isn’t good enough and getting a laptop with an AMD processor is key to running essential data analysis.

The high SSD storage space on this laptop makes it an excellent choice for storing large datasets too.

Technical Specifications:

  • Operating System: Windows 11 Home/Windows 11 Pro
  • CPU: AMD Ryzen™ 5 5600H Processor
  • GPU: NVIDIA® GeForce® RTX™ 3050 4GB
  • RAM: 8 GB DDR4 3200MHz (upgradable to 16GB)
  • Storage: 256 GB PCIe SSD
  • Battery Life: Up to 8 hours

Unique Features:

  • Fast AMD CPU
  • Can also be used for gaming
  • High SSD storage

My Take: 

The Legion 5 Gen 6 (17″ AMD) Gaming Laptop is the best overall laptop for data science.

As I’ve had the chance to test it out as my personal laptop, I’ve found it amazing for running my machine learning models or data analysis.

If you’re a data science student on a tighter budget, I’d recommend going for this laptop for data science.

4. Alienware x14 Gaming Laptop

Alienware x14 r1

Overview:

If you’re looking for a laptop that will let you do some gaming on the side while still being able to handle data science workloads, then the Alienware x14 Gaming Laptop is a great choice.

The Alienware brand is known for its gaming laptops which means that this particular model is equipped with great features for an immersive gaming experience.

One of these features includes the NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050 graphics card for great graphics while you’re playing games.

But don’t worry, this doesn’t mean that your data science tasks will suffer. The Alienware x14 is also able to handle any data analysis or machine learning algorithm you throw at it.

Data scientists prefer to use a gaming laptop for data analysis, too, anyway!

If you’re going to handle your own personal data science projects, you’ll most definitely do fine.

Technical Specifications:

  • Operating System: Windows 11 Home
  • CPU: 12th Gen Intel® Core™ i5-12500H (18 MB cache, 12 cores, 16 threads, up to 4.50 GHz Turbo)
  • GPU: NVIDIA GeForce RTX 3050
  • RAM: 16 GB up to 32GB (customizable)
  • Storage: Up to 4TB PCIe M.2 NVMe Solid State Drive (customizable)
  • Battery Life: Up to 6 hours

Unique Features:

  • Highly customizable RAM and storage options
  • Can have high storage of up to 4TB (good to store data)
  • Renowned and trusted gaming brand
  • Immersive gaming experience with great graphics
  • Sleek design

My Take: 

The Alienware x14 Gaming Laptop is the best laptop with a balance between data science and gaming.

Don’t let this branding of being a gaming computer brand fool you! The Alienware x14 Gaming Laptop is an exceptional machine for all your data science needs.

If you’re looking for a laptop that can do both, this is the one I recommend. Just keep in mind that it can be quite expensive.

5. M2 MacBook Air (2022)

Overview:

The M2 Macbook Air launched in 2022 is another highly-anticipated machine for your data analysis and data science projects.

Named after the new M2 series chip it houses, the M2 MacBook Air is said to be Apple’s fastest laptop yet.

This new M2 16-core Neural Engine chip is optimized for Mac and is a step up from its predecessor, the M1 chip.

What does this mean for you?

You’ll be sure to have smooth processing for all your data science tasks such as:

Basically, if you’re ok with spending a little more, having the M2 chip would solve all your problems with computing power!

As for storage, the M2 MacBook Air is equipped with, 8GB of RAM, and a 512GB SSD.

Based on my personal experience with this laptop, the extended battery life of the Macbook Air made it really useful when running data science software like R and Python on the go.

Technical Specifications:

  • Operating System: macOS Big Sur
  • CPU: Apple M2 chip with 8-core CPU
  • GPU: Apple M2 chip with 10-core CPU
  • RAM: 8GB
  • Storage: 512GB SSD

Unique Features:

  • New M2 Apple silicon chip
  • Trusted laptop brand
  • Reliable macOS
  • Sleek design
  • Lightweight

My Take:

Designed for Mac, the M2 MacBook Air is a great laptop if you’re willing to spend a bit more.

The new M2 chip it houses makes it one of the fastest laptops on this list and would be perfect for data science tasks that require a lot of computing power.

If you’re a data scientist, you’ll agree that any Apple laptops are more reliable than Windows laptops. This is why the reliability of the M2 Macbook Air can’t be won by any other!

Related Questions

What type of laptop do I need for data science?

 You will need a powerful laptop to run data science applications and software. Some of the recommended specs include a good processor, plenty of RAM, and a large storage drive.

A gaming laptop would be a great choice as they are designed to handle heavy-duty tasks.

Do I need a graphics card for data science?

A graphics card is needed for data science. Data science requires large computational power for running algorithms. A graphics card helps with speeding up processing. However, any latest advanced graphics cards used for high-end gaming are not fully required.

Is i5 enough for data science?

An Intel CPU with i5 is enough for data science. Data science work typically involves machine learning tasks that are only highly dependent on GPU and RAM. Any differences in CPU like i5 are unlikely to have any large differences in data science processing speeds except for some minor file read/write times.

Which Is the Best Laptop for Data Science for Mac Users?

The Apple M1 MacBook Pro (16-inch, 2021) is the best laptop for data science for Mac users. It features a strong battery life, powerful M1 processing chip and reliable hardware.

Is Macbook good for data science?

An Apple Macbook is good for data science. Macbooks typically come with good processing power, long battery life, high storage capacity, and good hardware reliability. However, some Microsoft applications used in data science, such as Power BI, are not supported natively on all Mac devices.

How much RAM does the best data analysis laptop need?

The best data analysis laptop needs 8 to 16 GB of Random Access Memory (RAM). Doing data analysis work is demanding computing power. 8 GB is sufficient for most data analysis work but 16 GB is more than sufficient for heavy use of machine learning models. However, a remote server can be used when RAM is limited.

How much RAM do the best data science laptops need?

The best data science laptops need 8 to 16 GB of Random Access Memory (RAM). Data science requires relatively good computing power. 8 GB is sufficient for most data analysis work but 16 GB is more than sufficient for heavy use of machine learning models. However, cloud computing can be used when RAM is limited.

Wrapping Up

No matter which laptop you choose, you’ll be able to do data science work with ease. So, pick the one that’s best for you and get to work!

Remember to keep in mind your budget, what data science tasks you’ll be using the laptop for, and any other specific needs you may have.

This concludes our blog post on the best laptops for data science.

We hope you found it helpful in your search for the perfect machine for your needs.

Happy computing!

My Favorite Learning Resources:

Here are some of the learning resources I’ve personally found to be useful as a data analyst and I hope you find them useful too!

These may contain affiliate links and I earn a commission from them if you use them.

However, I’d honestly recommend them to my juniors, friends, or even my family!

My Recommended Learning Platforms!

Learning PlatformWhat’s Good About the Platform?
1CourseraCertificates are offered by popular learning institutes and companies like Google & IBM
2DataCampComes with an integrated coding platform, great for beginners!
3PluralsightStrong focus on data skills, taught by industry experts
4StratascratchLearn faster by doing real interview coding practices for data science
5UdacityHigh-quality, comprehensive courses

My Recommended Online Courses + Books!

TopicOnline CoursesBooks
1Data AnalyticsGoogle Data Analytics Professional Certificate
2Data ScienceIBM Data Science Professional Certificate
3ExcelExcel Skills for Business Specialization
4PythonPython for Everybody SpecializationPython for Data Analysis
5SQLIntroduction to SQLSQL: The Ultimate Beginners Guide: Learn SQL Today
6TableauData Visualization with TableauPractical Tableau
7Power BIGetting Started with Power BI DesktopBeginning Microsoft Power BI
8R ProgrammingData Science: Foundations using R SpecializationLearning R
9Data VisualizationBig Book of Dashboards

To see all of my most up-to-date recommendations, check out this resource I’ve put together for you here.

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