Do you want a tablet? Or a laptop?Well, the good news is that you don’t have to choose! You can get yourself a 2-in-1 laptop-tablet, which is essentially a tablet that you can attach a keyboard to.
You can either use it as a tablet when you don’t need a keyboard, or you can use it as a touchscreen laptop.
You get the best of both worlds, and you only pay once – how cool is that! Plus they tend to be more lightweight than a generic laptop, and are more affordable to boot.
It’s worth noting, before we carry on, that detachable and 2-in-1 laptops are also referred to as hybrids. We will use all these terms interchangeably.
Not to be confused with convertible laptops, which simply have a keyboard that can be rotated all the way around.
The tricky thing is, there are loads of detachable laptops out on the market at the moment, so it can be hard to pick one. But don’t worry, that’s where we come in.
We’ve been checking out some of the best detachable laptops around, and after much deliberation, we were able to handpick our top 5 favorites!
Our reviews on our top 5 picks are coming up very shortly,
And after that, we’ve also got a buying guide for you. You don’t need to have any prior tech knowledge to understand the buying guide, and it makes for a handy checklist, to check that you’ve thought of everything before you buy.
So without further ado…
Best Detachable Laptops Reviews
1. Microsoft Surface Book 2
If you’re looking for a detachable laptop with a screen size to rival a traditional laptop – then this is the one to go for.
Its screen is an impressive 15 inches wide, and it also has an equally impressive display resolution, coming in at 3240 x 2160.
You know what, there’s a lot of other impressive features about this laptop too. Like the 17-hour battery life. You could have the laptop on in the evening, forget to switch it off, and it would still be running fine the next morning.
You get a whopping 16GB of RAM so you can multitask to your heart’s content. Plus there’s a staggering 256 GB of solid-state drive storage, so you can go ahead and download anything you like.
And if that’s not enough storage for you, there’s also an SDXC media card slot.
The detachable keyboard comes included in the price, as does the accompanying stylus.
And there’s even a top of the range graphics card to boot.
We thought that with so much included it must be a little heavier than the others in our top 5 picks, but we were pleasantly surprised to learn that it weighs just 1 pound – super portable.
Pros
- Huge very high-resolution screen
- Fantastic specs all round
- Top integrated graphics card
Cons
- Premium product at a premium price
- 1.9GHz 8th Generation Intel Core i7-8650U Quad-Core (Up to 4.2GHz)
- 16GB of RAM, 256GB SSD Storage, Detachable Screen Design, 17 Hour Battery Life
- 15 Inch (3240 x 2160 Resolution) TouchScreen Display, NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060 GPU (6GB GDDR5)
- SDXC Media Card Slot, USB Type-C, USB 3.0 Type-A, 802.11ac Wi-F,| Bluetooth 4.1,Windows 10 Pro (64-Bit)
- Included in Surface Book 2 15 Inch 256GB i7 Bundle: Microsoft Surface Pen Platinum, USB Type-C to HDMI / VGA / DVI Adapter
2. Microsoft Surface Pro FJR-00001 Laptop
This is a great quality laptop, and when you want to use it as a tablet, you can either fold the keyboard around or detach it all together.
And when you want to swap from tablet to laptop, you simply open the built-in kickstand and add the Surface Pro Signature Type Cover, which features a working keyboard.
It also has what it refers to as a Studio mode, which is when it’s in tablet mode but is slightly raised.
It has a good screen size, coming in at 12.3 inches, and has a fantastic screen resolution of 2736 x 1824!
But despite its size, it’s one of Microsoft’s most lightweight laptops, weigh a mere 1.69 pounds. So it’s very portable and great for when you’re on the go.
And the battery life is incredible – it offers 50% more battery life than previous models in this series, coming in at a very impressive 13.5 hours – even when being used for graphic-intense apps like movie streaming.
The rest of the specs are really good too. You get an Intel brand processor – and a multi-core one at that, all the power you need.
If you follow the link provided, it will take you to the version which has a full 4 GB of RAM for multitasking, and that has a really good 128 GB of file storage for your downloads.
But there are several upgraded versions you can choose from on the Amazon page if you’re prepared to pay a bit more money.
There are also several accessories you can buy to go with it, such as a special cover, a Bluetooth mouse, a Surface Pen for drawing and writing on the laptop, and more.
Pros
- 3 modes of use
- Excellent screen size and resolution
- Excellent battery life
- Weighs less than 2 pounds
Cons
- The keyboard cover is sold separately
3. HP Elite X2 1012 G1
Here’s another great detachable laptop, and while it does not come directly from Microsoft, we can assure you that it does run on Windows, specifically Windows 10 Professional 64-bit.
It has a nice size, smaller than most traditional laptops, but very large for a tablet. And the screen resolution is also good, coming in at 1920 x 1280, which is good enough to stream movies in HD.
It comes with a 3-position kickstand, a stylus, and a removable keyboard with TouchPad. But the stand out feature of this beauty has to be its webcam facilities for video calling etc. It has a 2 MP camera at the front, AND a 5 MP camera at the back.
The rest of the specs are really good too. You get an Intel brand processor – and a multi-core one at that, all the power you need.
The RAM is very generous, coming in at 8 GB, so you can have music running and have several other apps running at the same time perfectly seamlessly.
And that’s not all – it also comes with a whopping 256 GB of solid-state drive storage, which is perfect for those who like to download music and games.
It doesn’t say so on the product description, but we’ve found the battery life on this beauty to be about 9 hours, which is very good.
Pros
- 3 position kickstand
- 2 cameras, front and back
- Loads of storage space
- Very generous RAM
Cons
- Doesn’t come directly from Amazon
4. HP Envy x2 12-inch Detachable Laptop
This detachable laptop features a keyboard case design, and when the screen is attached, it rests on the case’s kickstand, and the keyboard is raised to the perfect angle. And the tablet can be removed from the case whenever you like.
The screen is a nice 12 inches, which is small for a laptop but huge for a tablet. And better yet it gives you High Definition viewing thanks to its 1920 x 1280 display resolution.
It runs on Windows 10 (in S mode), so you’ll probably be familiar with how to use it and the main apps you can get.
What impressed us the most with this laptop was the exceptional battery life, coming in at a whopping 22 hours! And it only takes an hour and a half to go from dead to full charge.
It has both a front and a rear camera, so it’s great for video calling. And it comes complete with a stylus, which you can secure in place inside the keyboard case.
The rest of the specs are very good. You’ve got a Qualcomm Snapdragon CPU, which is the new processor on the block to give your laptop all the power it needs.
Then there’s 4 GB of RAM for your multitasking, and 128 GB of flash storage for anything you want to save to the system.
Amazon occasionally has deals on this laptop – worth a look.
Pros
- Large high definition screen
- Exceptional battery performance
- Both a front and a rear camera
- Comes complete with a stylus
Cons
- Although it has been tested to prove it works like new, it is not strictly brand new, but renewed
- It’s heavier than the other detachable laptops in our top 5 picks
5. Latest Lenovo Chromebook Duet
If you’re more familiar with Android tablets than with Windows laptops, then this laptop should appeal to you, because it uses Google’s Chrome operating system, and all the apps available are the ones you’ll find on Google Play.
It’s built for the age where most apps are run on a browser and files are typically stored in the cloud rather than directly onto the laptop. Which is fine for most people, but can present problems for people who like to download large files, such as movies.
But it’s not entirely without storage facilities, and better yet the storage is in SSD form (more on that in our buying guide).
The screen is 10.1 inches, which is small for a laptop but big for a tablet. And it has a great resolution, coming in at 1920 x 1200, and better yet it has an IPS display for viewing at any angle.
It has a good processor, the MediaTek P60T, which has a nice maximum speed of 2 GHz, so has all the power you need. There’s a good 4 GB of RAM for your multitasking.
It has a built-in webcam and microphone, so it’s great for video calling, and it offers plenty of connectivity including both wifi and Bluetooth. And has plenty of ports if you wanted to plug in a mouse or charge your smartphone.
It also has a very long battery life, coming in at up to a whopping 10 hours on a full charge. And the other feature that makes it great for when you’re on the go, is that only weighs a measly 1 pound.
Pros
- Chrome operating system
- Excellent screen resolution
- Very long battery life
- Weighs a measly 1 pound
Cons
- Not well suited for downloading large files such as movies
- Remember you will need a Google log-in to use it
- This ultraportable 2-in-1 Chromebook includes a fast and stable plug-and-play detachable keyboard enabled with 5-point pogo pin and magnet design
- Take it with you everywhere! Thin and lightweight the Chromebook Duet offers up to 10 hours of battery life
- The unique dual-tone design with aluminum alloy on the tablet is a standout design With sophisticated fabric texture on the stand cover you’ll be stylish productive and practical
- Fast secure and easy to use This touchscreen Chromebook boots up quickly with just your Google login to give you access to all of your cloud-based documents email and more
- With the 10 1″ FHD (1920 x 1200) IPS display and stunning colorful details you won’t sacrifice for great visuals! The 10-point multitouch touchscreen is also USI pen compatible (pen sold separately)
Best Detachable Laptops: A Buyer’s Guide
As promised, here’s your buying guide. It may be fairly brief but you can be sure that it covers all the main points.
What to look for in a detachable laptop
Shopping for a detachable laptop is pretty much like shopping for any laptop, and you will be looking at the same sort of specs, which we will come onto later.
The only difference being in the screens kickstand, which traditional laptops don’t have.
The other thing to point out is that the stylus and keyboard case or keyboard docking station don’t always come included in the box and you might have to pay separately for them.
Operating System
The two main players in detachable laptop operating systems are Microsoft’s Windows, and Google’s ChromeOS.
Some people have attempted to add a keyboard to Apple’s iPad, but a detachable laptop is still not part of Apple’s official remit at the time this article was written.
Just about anyone who’s ever worked in an office is familiar with Microsoft’s Windows, and perhaps because of this, it is also the most popular operating system for home use.
For this reason, most of the detachable laptops in our top 5 picks come with a Windows operating system.
That said, Google is quickly making progress and becoming a worthy competitor to Windows, which is why we also included a laptop that runs on Google’s ChromeOS in our top 5 picks.
Screen
Detachable laptops often tend to have a noticeably smaller screen than your more traditional laptops. But we would argue that screen resolution is more important than screen size.
If you want to enjoy streaming movies on your laptop, then we would recommend a screen with a resolution of 1920 x 1080 or higher. And ideally with an IPS display.
Other Specs
The other specs generally follow very similar lines to regular laptops. To make the most of the kind of software that’s around at the moment, you’ll need a laptop with up to date components.
You’re unlikely to find one with THE most up-to-date components, however, since detachable laptops are generally designed for cool and quiet operation, that you’ll be likely to use them in your hand or lap.
While gamers’ laptops need to have special cooling technology because the processors are working so hard.
CPU
Speaking of processors, we recommend that you go for a processor (CPU) that is dual-core or multi-core. Intel is still one of the best brands for CPUs, but now they face equally good competition.
RAM
You should also look for a laptop that has about 4 GB or more so that you can sufficiently multitask and have multiple apps running at the same time.
File Storage
How much space you need to save your files is kind of down to you and how you like to store your files. If you like to download a lot of media, whether it’s photos, music, or movies, then the more space you have the better.
But if you carry out most of your tasks on a browser, stream all your media, and save everything in the cloud, then this doesn’t matter as much.
The thing to look out for in storage space is to go for a laptop with a solid-state drive (SSD), rather than an old fashioned hard disk drive (HDD)
Graphics Card
Most detachable laptops feature an integrated graphics card, able to run most of the less graphically intense games.
Battery Life
How long a laptop battery will last on a full charge depends very much on what apps you’re using. But broadly speaking, you should be looking for a laptop that offers at least 3 hours of battery life. But of course, 6 or 7 hours would be much better.
About the author
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Laptop Review Team
At LinuxHint we have a specialized team focused on studying the Laptop Computer market and writing about this space, providing reviews and insights to users to both make the right decisions about which laptops to purchase and also show tips and tricks on how to get the most value from your machine
