Laptop for cyber security?
**LAPTOP QUESTIONNAIRE** * **Country** UK * **Budget** Preferably under £3000, but can stretch up to £4000 if it's genuinely worth it * **Are you open to refurbs/used options? ** No * **Screen size** 16" * **Weight limit** Don't mind * **Purpose** Cyber…
**LAPTOP QUESTIONNAIRE** * **Country** UK * **Budget** Preferably under £3000, but can stretch up to £4000 if it's genuinely worth it * **Are you open to refurbs/used options? ** No * **Screen size** 16" * **Weight limit** Don't mind * **Purpose** Cyber security, entertainment, light 3d modelling * **Form factor** Standard * **Intended usage** Don't know specific software yet, but needs to comfortably handle any cyber security work that would be done in labs at university, like nesting virtual machines, pen testing etc. Games like poly bridge, at least 60fps on medium graphics at max screen resolution. Some light 3d modelling. * **Desired battery life** No preference, more is obviously better but I'm not too bothered * **Please list, in order of most important to least important, the priority between Size, Weight, Performance, Battery life** Performance, battery life, size, weight * **Info/Requirements** I want a laptop that does everything I will need it to do well and will continue to do so for 6+ years, so I'm willing to invest a decent amount into it, but don't want to waste money. Since I'm currently learning cyber security I'm not sure how much performance I will actually need (I'm self taught/teaching so I don't have access to university computers in case someone brings that up) so I'm hoping someone experienced in that field will know. I want the screen to be at least 1440p 60hz but preferably 4k 120hz if possible and be excellent for both movies and text. I would prefer non-oled so I don't have to worry about burn-in. I'm happy to have a MacBook in spite of it being potentially more awkward for cyber security than Linux. Sorry for my rambling and for very vague requirements, and thank you in advance.
Collected discussion
That's gonna be a heavy VM usage so I'd go for 64GB RAM. The cheapest option is probably Dell XPS 16, £3449, but it has the atrocious gapless keyboard: https://www.dell.com/en-uk/shop/laptops-2-in-1-pcs/new-xps-16-laptop/spd/xps-da16260-laptop/cnda1626005cc MacBook Pro 16" M5 Pro 64GB/1TB is is imo the most reasonable option at £4000. Equally configured Thinkpad P1 would be £5475, with a cheaper CPU and smaller SSD £5115. You could get P16s configured with 64GB ram under 4000 (https://www.lenovo.com/gb/en/configurator/cto/?bundleId=21XECTO1WWGB4, you must pay for windows to have the 1800p 120Hz display option) but you're losing premium features like glass haptic trackpad, and paying this much and getting a plastic jumpboard trackpad in 2026 is nauseating. Not to mention plastic body panels.
Thank you, that's a huge help. I'll go with the MacBook then.