Best Laptops For Zoom Meetings and Video Conferencing in 2023

Video conferencing and zoom meetings are becoming more and more popular due to the pandemic.

If you are working remotely and you have to attend an important meeting, then you would need a good laptop that perfectly suits your requirement, you should go for the one that has high performance, HD camera, a good amount of storage space, long battery life, and most importantly it’s cost-effective

We have compiled some of the best laptops for zoom meetings.

Top 5 Best Laptops For Zoom Meetings

We have chosen laptops that have enough horsepower for decent multitasking and a smooth video conferencing experience.

Microsoft Surface Pro 7:

Specs and Features:

Specs and Features	Microsoft Surface Pro 7
Weight	1.70 lb
Dimensions	11.5” x 7.9” x 0.33”
Display	Screen: 12.3” PixelSense™ DisplayResolution: 2736 x 1824 (267 PPI)
Webcam	5.0MP front-facing camera with 1080p full HD video8.0MP rear-facing autofocus camera with 1080p full HD video
Processor	Quad-core 10th Gen Intel® Core™ i5-1035G4 Processor
RAM, Storage	8GB LPDDR4x RAM | Solid-state drive (SSD) options: 256GB
Speaker, Microphone	Dual far-field Studio Mics1.6W stereo speakers with Dolby® Audio™
Battery Life	Up to 10.5 hours of typical device usage
Build quality	Aluminum
Wifi 6 support	Yes

Two Minutes Review:

Microsoft Surface Pro 7 and 7 Plus are quite popular 2-in-1 detachable laptops that hit the sweet spot of price and performance.

From the design, one thing is quite obvious, Microsoft has built this device with professionals and students in mind. Take for example the cameras. These laptops (can be called tablets) have a great 1080p front-facing webcam and a high-resolution rear-facing camera.

Where the front camera ensures that your colleagues get a noise-free, stable video of you during zoom meetings, the rear camera helps you to take snapshots of the whiteboard and scan documents. You can make adjustments during live calls such as tweaking the white balance, exposure, and even focus. However, the laptop doesn’t offer a privacy shutter lock.

Apart from the excellent Webcam, the laptop features a decent pair of stereo speakers with Dolby Audio controls to ensure the sound is crisp. But you will be using the headsets most of the time. For that, it comes with a solid set of connectivity options including one USB-C port, a standard USB 3.1 Type-A, an audio jack, and the proprietary charging connector.

Surface Pro 7 and 7 Plus are essentially the same devices except for the latest generation CPU and built-in LTE and removable SSDs support in the latter.  There are many configurations of these laptops are available, and the one under discussion has a 10th Generation Core i5 processor, 8 GB RAM, and 256 GB SSD storage. These specs meet the baseline but if are in habit of opening multiple tabs and running Microsoft Office Suite in the background as you attend zoom calls, the Surface Pro 7 with 16 GB RAM and 512 GB SSD suits you more.

Both the Surface Pro 7 and Pro 7 Plus measure 11.5 x 7.9 x 0.33 inches (292 x 201 x 8.5mm) and weigh 1.7 pounds (770g). The small size and huge bezel dictate a small 12.3-inch display. Its crisp touchscreen display helps you to navigate faster, but the small screen makes it difficult to multitask. Worst still, you can’t attach it to an external monitor.

The battery performance is quite acceptable for a convertible laptop but is not ideal. On a full charge, Surface Pro 7 delivers 6 hours of performance.

Acer Chromebook R 11:

Specs and Features:

Specs and Features	Acer Chromebook R 11
Weight	2.76 lbs.
Dimensions	11.57 x 8.03 x 0.76 inches
Display	11.6 HD, 1,366 x 768 touchscreen, LED-backlit IPS.
Webcam	HDR webcam 720p
Processor	1.6GHz quad-core Intel Celeron N3150 (quad-core, 3MB cache, up to 2.08GHz with Turbo Boost)
RAM, Storage	4GB DDR3, 32GB
Speaker, Microphone	Built-in Speaker and Microphone (YES)
Battery Life	Around 10 hours
Build quality	Premium Aluminum Top Panel
Wifi 6 support	No (5Ghz)

Two Minutes Review:

The Acer Chromebook R11 is a lightweight and compact Chromebook weighing 2.76lbs that offers a beautiful HD display. This is an affordable Chromebook for people who want a tablet-like experience with a touchscreen because it is convertible and can be used as both a laptop and tablet which makes it very versatile for its users.

Apart from it, R11 comes with a Built-in 720 HDR webcam which will be just enough for personal video chat but if you are going to use it for zoom meetings or video conferencing the video quality got some visual noise.

The Acer Chromebook R11 delivers smooth performance for everyday tasks like web browsing, social media, streaming video, and teleconferencing. The R11 has a 1.6GHz Intel Quad-Core Processor with Intel Burst Technology up to 2.08GHz which makes multitasking easy for its users. It also features 4GB DDR3 of RAM which makes switching between tabs run smoothly without any lag and 32GB of storage that makes your files easily retrievable whenever you need them. As it’s a Chromebook, you would have to rely more on cloud storage.

In the connectivity, Chromebook is equipped with 2 USB ports(2.0/3.0), an HDMI port, and a headphone/speaker jack which are all great options to have on your Chromebook if you want to use it for zoom meetings and video conferencing.

It comes with a widescreen 11.6-inch HD touch screen that offers a 1,366 x 768 resolution and LED backlighting which makes the color appear more vibrant and crisp.

The only downside of the device is that it does not offer 5GHz WiFi support, but instead has 2.4GHz WiFi support which can be significantly slower in some cases, but still offers a good connection to the internet.

R11 comes with a battery life of around 10 hours which is enough to sustain long zoom meetings.

HP ENVY x360 Laptop:

Specs and Features:

Specs and Features	HP ENVY x360 Laptop
Weight	4.53 lbs
Dimensions	14.13 x 9.68 x 0.67 inches
Display	15.6″ FHD IPS micro-edge WLED-backlit multitouch-enabled edge-to-edge glass (1920 x 1080)(TS),
Webcam	HP Wide Vision HD Webcam
Processor	Intel i7-10510U(1.8 GHz base frequency, up to 4.90 GHz, 8 MB cache, 4 cores)
RAM, Storage	16 GB DDR4-2666 SDRAM |1TB PCIe NVMe M.2 SSD
Speaker, Microphone	Audio by Bang & Olufsen; HP Audio Boost; Three speakers | integrated dual array digital microphone
Battery Life	11 hours and 23 minutes
Build quality	Aluminum
Wifi 6 support	No (2.4Ghz & 5.0Ghz)

Two Minutes Review:

Hp Envy x360 is another 2-in-1 touchscreen laptop/tablet with a multi-touch enabled edge-to-edge glass HD Display on the list. It weighs 4.53pounds which is quite heavier for a convertible laptop.

Let’s discuss the key spec that pertains to the zoom meeting and video conferencing: Webcam. HP Envy is equipped with a 720p Wide Vision HD Webcam which is specially designed for professional web conferencing. It can take photos and live stream videos with a little noise. But there is an extra tool to help you here: HP Enhanced Lighting utility. This puts white borders around the screen to help make it brighter and easier to see your face in the photo. Also, there are manual kill switches for both the webcam and microphone.

In the hardware department, ENVY is equipped with a Core i7 10 Gen processor and 16 GB of RAM which is more valuable for heavy users. It is available in 1TB SSD which will be best for those who are obsessed with storing things on their laptop.

Moreover, in the connectivity section, this laptop features a LAN port for those who want to connect cable internet to the laptop. In addition, it has a smart card reader, 1 USB 3.1 Gen Type-C port, 1 USB 3.1 Gen Type-A port for data transferring. It also includes 1 headphone/microphone jack.

There are a few things that this laptop is lacking: there isn’t Thunderbolt 3 support and Wifi 6 compatibility. But in this budget, we weren’t expecting these features anyway.

Lastly, the battery life is around 10 hours which is quite impressive for those users who love to work all day long. The laptop has a beautiful design and the best hardware features. However, it is a little heavy and lacks some connectivity features which would be best for zoom.

HP Pavilion x360 Convertible

Specs and Features:

Specs and Features	HP Pavilion x360 Convertible
Weight	3.50 lb
Dimensions	12.76 x 8.78 x 0.81 inches
Display	14″ diagonal FHD, multitouch-enabled, IPS, edge-to-edge glass, micro-edge, 250 nits (1920 x 1080)
Webcam	HP True Vision 720p HD camera
Processor	Intel Quad-Core i5-1035G1, 1 GHz base frequency up to 3.6 GHz
RAM, Storage	8 GB DDR4 (1 x 8 GB), 512 GB PCIe NVMe M.2 solid-state drive
Speaker, Microphone	Audio by B&O; Dual speakers; HP Audio Boost, integrated dual array digital microphones
Battery Life	9 hours
Build quality	Plastic
Wifi 6 support	Yes

Two Minutes Review:

The HP Pavilion x360 Convertible 14 is an affordable convertible laptop with a 360-degree hinge. It is intended for the Enterprise and Educational sectors.

As the name suggests, you can use the laptop in different styles: tablet, tent, and easel configurations. With a lightweight design and slim form factor,  this laptop is highly portable and convenient to use.

Starting with the most important features for Zoom Meetings, the HP Pavilion x360 has an average Webcam – neither good nor bad. The 720p camera offers decent color fidelity with passable color and clarity, but it lacks the Window Hello capability that works the same as the Face ID in the Apple. However, for Zoom Calls, you won’t find any better option in this budget.

Though the webcam is still passable for Zoom calls, the tiny speakers fail to meet our expectations. You would have to pair your headsets or earbuds with the laptop or buy a separate microphone and speakers.

As far as the hardware specs are concerned, the laptops come packed with tenth generation Intel Core i5 chip with 8 GB of DDR4 RAM, 512 GB SSD Storage. The RAM  should have been 16 GB for the smooth running of all the important programs like Microsoft Word/Google Docs, Microsoft Powerpoint as you attend the extended Zoom Calls.

In the connectivity department, the laptop scores high marks with a USB-C port, HDMI ports, SD card slot, SIM Slot, and a headphone/microphone combo jack.

As far as the display is concerned, the low refresh rate can be a problem for those who have sensitive eyes. There is nothing exceptional about the screen though. It is the same FHD display you find in other mid-range laptops with enough brightness (250 nits) and color vibrancy to make it suitable for indoor work.

Lastly, the battery performance is enough to get you through a full workday. However, you would have to be conservative in the choice of programs and features to run (turn down the screen brightness, Airplane mode when Wi-Fi isn’t in use).

Lenovo Flex 5:

Specs and Features:

Specs and Features	Lenovo Flex 5
Weight	3.3 lbs
Dimensions	12.91″ x 9.01″ x 0.7″
Display	14.0″ FHD (1920 x 1080) IPS, glossy, touchscreen, 250 nits
Webcam	720p HD
Processor	11ᵗʰ Generation Intel® Core™ i3-1115G4 Processor (3.00 GHz, up to 4.10 GHz with Turbo Boost, 2 Cores, 4 Threads, 6 MB Cache)
RAM, Storage	8 GB DDR4 3200MHz (Soldered), 256 GB PCIe SSD
Speaker, Microphone	2 x 2W speakers Dolby Audio™, Yes
Battery Life	Up to 10 hours, with Rapid Charge Up to 11 hours 1080p video playback
Build quality	Made Of Plastic
Wifi 6 support	No (5.0Ghz)

Two Minutes Review :

Lenovo Flex 5 hits the sweet spot between price and performance. It is yet another powerful convertible laptop that punches far above its weight.

Its hybrid design makes it popular among both professionals and students. There has been a lot of upgrades from the previous generation as the company has fixed the heating problem and poor battery performance. For a 2-in-1 laptop, it has a decent connectivity option, a sturdy build, and powerful hardware.

Let’s not digress, and discuss key features here.

The 720p webcam on the IdeaPad Flex 5 is decent. It does well in most lighting conditions, but there were times when the image look grainy. In our test, we took multiple selfies with solid contrast and color saturation. However, we have noticed a lot of blooming which can be addressed by better light settings. Also, there is a physical webcam shutter that ensures you are protected.

Next, the laptop has wide connectivity options. You will get two USB 3.0 Type-A ports, a USB Type-C port, an HDMI, an AC power jack, and a full SD card reader. Also, you get the standard  3.5mm headphone jack to plug in the headsets.

To handle both web and windows applications that you might run in the background of Zoom Calls, it supports AMD Ryzen 5 4500U Processor, 16GB DDR4 RAM, and 256GB SSD. With this configuration, it can easily take on advanced graphic editing software like Photoshop and Illustrator, however, the specs are just not enough for high-level video editing and animations.

Also, it features two front-facing speakers with a keyboard cramped in between. For the price, they delivered rich sounds with enough max. volume to hear across the room. Surely, you can easily take Zoom calls without pairing external hardware (headphones, earbuds).

Another advantage it has over other laptops is its portability. The size (12.7 x 8.6 x 0.8 inches) is perfect for backpacks with only 3.3 pounds overall weight. However, the 1080p screen has disappointed us a little. The resolution is great with nice contrast, but the maximum brightness hits only 200 nits. Practically speaking, you will have a hard time using this laptop in outdoor conditions.

Though it boasts all-day battery performance, in our test with setting brightness at 150 nits and taking a long Zoom meeting (with Microsoft Word opened in the background), the laptop lasts only 10 hours. So the performance is decent but not as great as Lenovo claims.

Apple Macbook Air (2020)

Specs and Features:

Specs and Features	Apple Macbook Air (2020)
Weight	2.8 pounds
Dimensions	11.97 x 8.36 x 0.16-0.63 Inches
Display	13.3-inch (diagonal) LED-backlit display with IPS technology; 2560-by-1600 native resolution at 227 pixels per inch 400 nits brightness
Webcam	720p FaceTime HD camera
Processor	Apple M1 chip
RAM, Storage	8GB, 256GB
Speaker, Microphone	Wide stereo sound Speakers support Dolby Atmos Playback, a Three-mic array with directional beamforming
Battery Life	Up to 15 hours wireless web
Build quality	100% recycled aluminum in the enclosure100% recycled tin in the solder of the main logic board35% or more recycled plastic in multiple components
Wifi 6 support	Yes

Lenovo Idea pad 3

Specs and Features:

Specs and Features	Lenovo Idea pad 3
Weight	3.74 lbs
Dimensions	14.25″ x 9.98″ x 0.79″
Display	15.6″ FHD (1920 x 1080) anti-glare, 220 nits
Webcam	720p HD
Processor	10th Generation Intel® Core™ i3-10110U Processor (2.10 GHz, up to 4.10 GHz with Turbo Boost, 2 Cores, 4 Threads, 4 MB Cache)
RAM, Storage	8 GB DDR4 2667MHz, 512 GB PCle SSD
Speaker, Microphone	2 x 1.5W speakers Dolby Audio™, Yes
Battery Life	Up to 7 hours
Build quality	Outer Plastic Casing
Wifi 6 support	No (5.0Ghz)

Razer Blade 15

Specs and Features:

Specs and Features	Razer Blade 15
Weight	4.5 lbs
Dimensions	0.81″ x 9.25″ x 13.98″
Display	15.6″ Full HD 120Hz (6GB VRAM)
Webcam	IR HD webcam
Processor	10th Gen Intel® Core™ i7-10750H 6 Core (2.6GHz/5.0GHz)
RAM, Storage	16GB RAM, 256GB SSDExtra M.2 PCIe Slot
Speaker, Microphone	Stereo speakers THX® Spatial Audio, Built-in microphone
Battery Life	Up to 4 hours on high-resolution gaming
Build quality	Metal Chassis (CNC Aluminium)
Wifi 6 support	No (5.0Ghz)

HP Chromebook X360

Specs and Features:

Specs and Features	HP Chromebook X360
Weight	3.13 lb
Dimensions	11.61 x 8.08 x 0.82 in
Display	11.6″ diagonal, HD (1366 x 768), touch, IPS,
Webcam	720p HD
Processor	MediaTek MT8183 (2.0 GHz base frequency, 2 MB L2 cache, 8 cores)
RAM, Storage	8 GB LPDDR4x-4266 MHz RAM,64 GB eMMC
Speaker, Microphone	HD audio, dual speakers, integrated microphone
Battery Life	Up to 16 hours
Build quality	Aluminum  Casing
Wifi 6 support	No (5.0Ghz)

Lenovo Yoga 7i

Specs and Features:

Specs and Features	Lenovo Yoga 7i
Weight	4.19 lbs
Dimensions	0.71-0.76″ x 14.03″ x 9.28″
Display	15.6″ FHD (1920 x 1080) IPS, glossy, touchscreen, 250 nits
Webcam	720p HD
Processor	11th Generation Intel® Core™ i7-1165G7 Processor (2.80 GHz, up to 4.70 GHz with Turbo Boost, 4 Cores, 8 Threads, 12 MB Cache)
RAM, Storage	Up to 16 GB DDR4 3200MHz, Up to 1 TB PCIe SSD
Speaker, Microphone	Front-facing Dolby Atmos® speakers (located above keyboard), Yes
Battery Life	Up to 15 hours
Build quality	Aluminum chassis
Wifi 6 support	No (5.0Ghz)

Buying guide: Laptops for Zoom meetings

Zoom isn’t a strictly browser-based platform as it is overstretched and uses the resources of the laptop. CPU, RAM, and GPU handle a lot of audio and video processing and therefore we observe loud whirring of fans and sometimes heating of laptop during extended Zoom calls.

Here we would help you to narrow down the key hardware specs (as well as other aspects) that you must expect in the best laptop for zoom meetings.

Budget:

As per our research, laptops between $500-$800 will do the work just fine. With a premium screen and superior hardware, the price can jump well above $1000, but we won’t advise you to go for the bells and whistles.

However, laptops with higher configurations can also be considered if you want to use them for video editing or gaming.

Build Quality:

Laptops for video conferencing should be firm and hardy enough to handle the dynamic environment of Zoom meetings with ease. Durable laptops usually have a metallic chassis or a black or brushed aluminum finish on them.

Memory and Storage:

RAM should be your top priority as it ensures the seamlessly running of multiple applications in the background without freezing the video or disrupting the audio.

If you have a habit of opening multiple Chrome Tabs, and if your work involves running word processing software like Microsoft Word and Google Docs as you attend the Zoom Calls, 16 GB RAM is a must.

If you work only on Microsoft Office suite and web browsers like Google Chrome, a 4 GB RAM laptop should be sufficient. But if your work involves heavy photo editing and video processing using Adobe Creative suites, opt for laptops that can accommodate up to 32GB.

Within storage, you have two types of drives. While SSD-type storage delivers optimal speed and responsive experience, it tends to be on the expensive side. Nevertheless, you should prefer it. 256 GB SSD storage is the minimum you should expect in the laptop.

CPU and GPU:

CPU being the brain of the laptop is responsible for handling all the tasks in the background such as opening and closing tabs, processing your voice and video calling, sending or receiving messages, and syncing data with multiple applications.

Intel Core i5 processor is an excellent choice for laptops for video conferencing software like Microsoft Team and Zoom. Its performance in ensuring seamless multitasking and smooth streaming and recording of video calls makes it a preferred option over Core i7 which pulls up the overall price by at least $200 or so.

AMD Ryzen 5 lineup is the alternative you should look for, but keep in mind, it does not match the raw power provided by Intel.

We are not looking for high-end GPUs as even the integrated GPU and the processor can handle the calling quite well. However, if you want the features like ‘Virtual Background image’ to run smoothly, a low-end dedicated GPU should be preferred. And if you are a video editing professional or a game developer, a dedicated GPU from NVIDIA GeForce is a must-have.

Camera, Microphone, and Speaker:

Laptops on a budget scrimp on the webcam. And the few that have a dedicated Webcam can only deliver SD or HD quality, which in most cases is more than enough. However, for the best video meeting experience, we would recommend you to go for the Full High Definition (FHD) camera. Or, you can always buy a third-party webcam specifically for Zoom Meetings.

Though we prefer to use headphones or earbuds when teleconferencing via laptop, premium quality speakers and microphones integrated should be there as a backup.

Screen and Ports:

While the screen resolution and size should match your preferences, one particular feature you must look for is the Low Blue Light (LBL) level of the screen. If your work involves long hours of Zoom calling in which you have to be glued to the screens, features anti-glare technology and LBL level screen should be preferred.

You shouldn’t compromise on portability. Make sure you have all the connection options like USB, audio and video inputs, and Ethernet port. The last one is important, as the ethernet connection provides stable and high bandwidth when using collaboration software like Zoom, Microsoft Teams, or Slack.

Portability and Type:

Two important factors decide the portability of the laptop: Weight and thickness. As you intend to work from home, the laptop would most probably sit on the table most of the time so even if it has considerable heft, it doesn’t matter.

As far as thickness is concerned, it should be in the range of 6-8-inch. However, the thickness should not be a deal-breaker, as it mainly has to do with the aesthetic appeal of the laptop and not the functionality.

In addition to this, you should pay close attention to the format of the laptop. Convertible laptops are flourishing in the market, and a 2-in-1 laptop these days can give you the best of both worlds.

You can use the laptop in traditional style when doing chores or intensive work, and when attending long Zoom meetings, can switch to Tent or Tablet mode. The touchscreen can be an added bonus.

Battery Performance:

As the laptop would always be plugged into the connection, you don’t have to fret over the battery performance. Laptops with the best battery life are typically pricey, so you can save a lot here. Even though it should not be a deal-breaker, the battery should deliver at least 3 hours of video conferencing.