Lenovo vs. HP: Which Is Better for Students in 2024?

Are you a student trying to decide between a Lenovo or HP laptop? With so many options out there, choosing the perfect laptop for your studies can be overwhelming.

In this guide, we break down the key differences between four options in the Lenovo vs. HP laptop lineup. We focused on budget and mid-range laptops that provide great performance and features without venturing into high-end pricing.

We’ll compare display quality, performance, battery life, and more to help you choose whether a Lenovo vs. HP laptop is better for you in 2024.

Table of Contents Table of Contents

1. Key Takeaways
2. Best Lenovo & HP Laptops for Students: Our Top Picks
3. Best Lenovo & HP Laptops for Students Compared
4. The Bottom Line: Is HP or Lenovo Better for Students?
5. FAQs
6. References

Show Full Guide

Table of Contents

1. Key Takeaways
2. Best Lenovo & HP Laptops for Students: Our Top Picks
3. Best Lenovo & HP Laptops for Students Compared
Show Full Guide
4. The Bottom Line: Is HP or Lenovo Better for Students?
5. FAQs
6. References

Best Lenovo & HP Laptops for Students: Our Top Picks

Best Lenovo & HP Laptops for Students Compared

Premium Segment: Lenovo Yoga Slim 7x vs. the HP Pavilion Aero 13z

Specs Comparison

Display Quality

The Lenovo Yoga Slim 7x comes with a 14.5-inch 3K OLED screen, which means it has very sharp picture quality (2944×1840 resolution) and rich colors. Its 90Hz refresh rate makes movements on the screen look smoother. Plus, its brightness can go up to 1000 nits, so it’s great for use even in bright daylight. OLED screens are also known for deep blacks and great contrast, perfect for watching movies or editing photos.

The HP Pavilion Aero 13z has a smaller 13.3-inch WQXGA IPS display (2560×1600 resolution). IPS stands for In-Plane Switching, which shows better colors from different angles. However, it doesn’t offer the same deep colors as OLED, and the brightness tops at 400 nits.

Performance

The Lenovo Yoga Slim 7x is powered by the Snapdragon® X Elite processor, which has 12 cores. It’s good for multitasking and running AI-driven tasks, like voice recognition or smart suggestions. But it’s not as fast at handling heavy tasks like gaming or video editing when compared to traditional high-performance laptop processors.

The HP Pavilion Aero 13z is equipped with an AMD Ryzen™ 7 8840HS processor, which has 8 cores and can reach up to 5.1 GHz. GHz measures the speed at which the processor works. Even though it has fewer cores, the faster speed makes it better for tasks like video editing, gaming, and running demanding software – and also making it a great laptop for coding.

Storage & RAM

The Lenovo Yoga Slim 7x comes with 16GB of LPDDR5X RAM, which is great for multitasking and running memory-heavy programs. Its 512GB SSD (solid-state drive) storage provides fast access to data but is half the size of the HP model.

The HP Pavilion Aero 13z also has 16GB of RAM, but it uses DDR4, which is slightly slower than LPDDR5X. However, it compensates by offering 1TB of SSD storage, which is double that of Lenovo’s model, giving more space for files and applications.

Graphics

For graphics in the HP vs. Lenovo premium segment, the Lenovo Yoga Slim 7x features the Qualcomm Adreno GPU, while the HP Pavilion Aero 13z comes with AMD Radeon Graphics. Both GPUs are integrated, meaning they’re good for light graphics tasks but not strong enough for heavy gaming or intensive graphic design work.

However, in the Lenovo vs. HP laptop comparison for premium devices, HP has a slight edge in graphics. This is because AMD Radeon Graphics tends to have a slight edge over Qualcomm Adreno in terms of overall performance for integrated GPUs, especially for tasks like video rendering and some gaming. This makes the HP Pavilion Aero 13z the slight winner in this category, but the difference is minimal for most everyday tasks.

Battery Life

The Lenovo Yoga Slim 7x has a major advantage in battery life, lasting up to 23.8 hours thanks to its large 70Wh battery. This makes it perfect for people who need a laptop that lasts all day without a recharge.

The HP Pavilion Aero 13z doesn’t list its battery life in detail, but it has a smaller 43Wh battery, which means it’s unlikely to last as long as Lenovo’s model.

Design

Both laptops are designed to be slim and lightweight, making them easy to carry around.

The HP Pavilion Aero 13z is lighter, weighing only 1 kg (2.2 lbs), which makes it very portable.

The Lenovo Yoga Slim 7x weighs 1.28 kg (2.82 lbs), but it has a more premium look and feel, thanks to its aluminum build and slightly larger display.

Price & Discounts

Both laptops are priced around $1,200, so they’re similar in terms of cost.

However, the two brands have different student discounts to consider.

• The HP student discount is up to 40% off select products through their Education Store without requiring student ID verification.
• Meanwhile, the Lenovo student discount is 5% year-round, in addition to their regular sales, with verification through ID.me.

Lenovo vs. HP Laptop: Which Is Better in the Premium Segment?

So, is HP or Lenovo better for students? Choosing between the Lenovo Yoga Slim 7x and the HP Pavilion Aero 13z depends on what you need most as a student.

Here’s a closer look:

• Best for display & battery life: The Lenovo Yoga Slim 7x is perfect if you want a stunning display and a laptop battery that lasts all day. The OLED display offers brilliant colors and sharp details, ideal for watching videos, editing photos, or working on creative projects. Plus, with up to 23.8 hours of battery life, you won’t need to worry about charging constantly.
• Best for performance & storage: The HP Pavilion Aero 13z is all about power and space. Its AMD Ryzen™ 7 processor makes it faster for demanding tasks like coding, video editing, or running multiple programs. With 1TB of storage, it has plenty of room for all your files, software, and projects, which is double what the Lenovo offers.

Ultimately, both laptops offer great value but cater to different needs.

If you need a laptop for coding or handling technical tasks, the HP models are better suited for that due to their processing power. If you’re more likely to use word processors, watch videos, and want to prevent any charging issues, Lenovo is the better fit. The best choice depends on your daily tasks and study requirements.

Budget Segment: Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 3 vs. the HP Pavilion 15z-eh300

Specs Comparison

Display Quality

The Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 3 features a 15.6-inch Full HD IPS display with a resolution of 1920×1080. IPS (In-Plane Switching) means it delivers clear colors and remains bright when viewed from different angles, which is great if you’re watching content or sharing your screen with others. It also has a decent brightness of 300 nits, so it’s usable in most lighting conditions.

The HP Pavilion 15z-eh300 also comes with a 15.6-inch display, but it only offers HD resolution (1366×768). While this lower resolution might be fine for basic tasks, it won’t be as crisp or clear as Lenovo’s Full HD screen. It’s also slightly dimmer, with a brightness of 250 nits, which may struggle in bright environments.

Performance

The Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 3 is powered by the AMD Ryzen™ 3 7330U processor, with 4 cores and a speed of up to 4.30 GHz. It’s a decent performer for everyday tasks like web browsing, watching videos, and working on documents.

However, when comparing which laptop is best for students in terms of performance, the HP Pavilion 15z outshines with its multitasking ability with the AMD Ryzen™ 7 7730U processor, which has 8 cores and can go up to 4.5 GHz. This makes it much better for multitasking or handling slightly more demanding programs like light editing software or multiple tabs at once.

So, for students looking for a budget-friendly laptop for coding, the HP Pavilion 15z-eh300 offers solid multitasking ability.

Storage & RAM

The Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 3 comes with 8GB of DDR4 RAM, which is soldered to the board, meaning you can’t upgrade it. However, it offers a spacious 512GB SSD for storage, giving you plenty of space to store files, documents, and even larger media files.

The HP Pavilion 15z-eh300 also has 8GB of RAM, but it comes in a dual-channel configuration (2x4GB), which can slightly improve performance. However, it only has 256GB of SSD storage, which is half of what Lenovo offers. This might fill up quickly if you plan on storing a lot of data or programs.

Graphics

Both the Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 3 and the HP Pavilion 15z-eh300 come with integrated AMD Radeon Graphics. This means they’re both suitable for basic graphics tasks like streaming videos or light photo editing, but they’re not designed for heavy gaming or demanding graphic work.

Since both laptops have the same integrated graphics, there isn’t much to differentiate them here.

Battery Life

The Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 3 boasts a solid battery life, lasting up to 12 hours thanks to its 47Wh battery. This should be enough for a full day of study, browsing, and video watching.

The HP Pavilion 15z-eh300 doesn’t provide a specific battery life estimate, but its smaller 45Wh battery suggests it won’t last as long as Lenovo’s model, especially if used for more demanding tasks.

Design

Both laptops are designed to be portable, but they do differ slightly in weight. The Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 3 weighs 1.6 kg (3.52 lbs), making it a bit lighter and easier to carry around.

The HP Pavilion 15z-eh300 is slightly heavier at 1.75 kg (3.86 lbs), which isn’t a huge difference – but if portability is key for you, this might matter.

Price

The Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 3 is more affordable, priced at $664.99, making it a budget-friendly option that offers good specs for the price.

The HP Pavilion 15z-eh300 is priced at $849.99, which is a bit higher. While you get better performance due to its stronger processor, the higher cost might not be worth it if you’re just looking for a basic, budget laptop.

However, the two brands have different student discounts to factor in.

Lenovo vs. HP Laptop: Overall Verdict for Budget Segment

So, which HP or Lenovo is better for students? Our verdict here also depends on what you value most in your laptop. Here’s a breakdown:

• Best for display & battery life: The Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 3 wins here with its Full HD display and longer battery life, making it great for students who spend a lot of time streaming, studying, or working on their laptops throughout the day. Plus, its lighter design makes it easy to carry around campus.
• Best for performance & multitasking: The HP Pavilion 15z-eh300 has a stronger processor and better multitasking capabilities, which makes it a better choice if you need to run multiple applications or handle more intensive tasks. However, the higher price and lower storage space may limit its appeal to the more budget-conscious.

In the end, when it comes to HP vs. Lenovo, Lenovo is the better choice for display quality and battery life, while HP excels in performance.

The Bottom Line: Is HP or Lenovo Better for Students?

Ultimately, when choosing which laptop is best for students, it all comes down to your study needs. For the HP vs. Lenovo debate, here’s our conclusion:

Lenovo laptops, like the Yoga Slim 7x and IdeaPad Slim 3, are ideal if you want a great display, longer battery life, and a more affordable price. These models are perfect for watching videos, working on creative projects, and using your laptop all day without needing to charge.

On the other hand, HP laptops, such as the Pavilion Aero 13z and Pavilion 15z, are better if you need more power for multitasking or running demanding programs, making them good laptops for coding. They offer faster processors, but you’ll pay a bit more.

FAQs