Should a £2K laptop still get a 5-star rating? Let us explain ...

Should we still give top scores to products that don’t offer the best value for money? That’s a question we’re often asked here at Digital Versus. The latest product to cause a stir was a laptop, as one of readers keen to know why we gave a five-star rating to the MacBook Pro 17” when it won’t leave you much change from £2,000? Here’s our explanation with a quick reminder of how our scoring system works.

Reader e-mail:

Objet: Surprised Dear Mr Pionneau, I was surprised when I read your test of the Apple 17-inch MacBook Pro, as it seems that the price of this laptop was not even an issue for you and your team, even though it costs the best part of £2,000 (£1,889 to be precise). As you made no mention whatsoever of price, I was wondering: Whether you don’t consider the price to be excessive for this type of machine? Whether some models with equivalent spec are even more expensive? Or whether you just forgot to mention it? I hope to hear from you soon. Mr B. A.

Dear Mr B.A.,

This is a question we’re often asked when we test high-end products. Of course, we too found the price of the MacBook Pro 17" very high. The price is certainly restrictive, making it only really available to professionals or demanding (and rich) consumers. But it’s worth mentioning that this is only the case for the 17-inch model, as Apple’s smaller laptops are more affordable.

However, the price in no way affects the laptop’s technical features or performance. We always evaluate products based on the results they obtain in our various tests, and price is never taken into account in the final score. Price is only used as a criterion for filtering the products in a product survey. This system means you can find the best model for your budget. It also means that with a budget of £500, for example, it would be perfectly normal to only find laptops with a rating of four stars or lower. In such cases, you know that if you want something better, you’re going to have to pay more. In fact, this system makes it easier to compare models against one another, as you can view all the different laptops in your price range, from the good to the bad to the just plain ugly. The special filter in our product survey is designed to help you do just that.
For a better idea of value for money, take a look at our buyer’s guides. Here, we recommend the products we think offer the best value for money for different types of use.

We don’t want to mislead readers by giving a laptop a five-star rating for being good value for money, only for it to appear on a par with a five-star laptop that’s a much better, top-of-the-range model that’s still good value for money. Plus, you’ll often find that we say what we think of the price in the test’s conclusion. With our scoring system, a £500 laptop that’s less pleasant to use and which has lower performances than a £1,000 model is likely to get a lower score, even if it still offers good value for money (for two models in similar ranges and for a similar type of use).

Anyway, back to the MacBook Pro 17’’. The price may appear to be somewhat excessive, but when you look closer, this laptop’s not actually that overpriced. In fact, one of the most difficult things to evaluate is whether another computer could do just as well but for less money. If we’re just talking about its basic performances, for example, then the answer is yes, without a doubt. Laptops with Core i7 processors will perform better, and that’s a fact. However, when it comes to the finish, design, comfort of use, battery life, sound, screen quality and low noise levels when in operation, then as yet, no other 17” laptop on the market can compete – especially considering that, on top of all that, its performances are still relatively good. So, there’s no doubt that the Macbook Pro 17” has a price tag that places it at the highest end of the market, but on the other hand, we don’t know of any other laptop that offers all of the qualities this one boasts. In most cases, it’s a toss-up between performance and battery life, not to mention the rest (screen, finish, etc.). But if you know of any models out there that are likely to do as well or better than the MacBook Pro 17’’ on all of these criteria, then don’t hesitate to send us an e-mail so we can check them out.


> Product Survey: Laptops

> Buyer's Guide: Laptops




> Buyer's Guides: Our Pick of The Best Products