ZDNET’s reported lab test found no single Wi-Fi winner in every situation. The Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon (Gen 14) had the best average throughput across 2.4, 5, and 6 GHz, while the Apple MacBook Pro M5 led on 2.4 GHz. The results describe the specific units tested—not every configuration, router, or network.
Which laptop performed best?
ZDNET tested seven laptops and reported different leaders depending on Wi-Fi band. The ThinkPad X1 Carbon (Gen 14) had the strongest average result across the three bands. The MacBook Pro M5 was the 2.4 GHz leader, but its results were weakest on 5 GHz and last on 6 GHz after weighting.
The available article text names five of the seven tested models and does not publish raw throughput figures. This comparison therefore supports a conditional choice, not a precise ranking of every laptop or configuration.
| Laptop | Reported result | What it may mean for a buyer |
|---|---|---|
| Lenovo ThinkPad X1 Carbon (Gen 14) | Best average throughput across 2.4, 5, and 6 GHz; worst of the named comparison on 2.4 GHz, at nearly half the MacBook Pro M5’s result. | Strongest reported overall across bands, but not the leader for the tested 2.4 GHz condition. |
| Apple MacBook Pro M5 | Best on 2.4 GHz; lowest on 5 GHz; last on 6 GHz after results were weighted. | Its 2.4 GHz showing may matter more where that band is the practical option, but it did not lead across bands. |
| Microsoft Surface Laptop for Business | Close to the ThinkPad on every metric and ahead of it on 2.4 GHz. | A close result in this test; do not extend it to every processor or configuration sold under this product name. |
| Dell XPS 16 | Identified among laptops with excellent Wi-Fi throughput; no numerical ranking was provided. | The report supports a positive qualitative mention, not a rank against the other models. |
| MSI Prestige AI 16 | Described as very fast at the top end. | ZDNET framed it as suited to reliable, high-speed Wi-Fi over a limited coverage area. |
| Two unnamed tested laptops | The available article text does not identify them. | No model-specific conclusion can be drawn from the published details available here. |
ZDNET also reported that the seven laptops’ 6 GHz results were mixed and closer together than their results on 2.4 and 5 GHz. It said all seven performed very well with capable, modern connectivity hardware.
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Choose by the signal conditions you actually face
If distance and walls are the problem
ZDNET characterizes 2.4 GHz as slower but more forgiving over distance and through obstructions. If you often work far from your router, behind several walls, or on another floor, performance on that band may be more relevant than a laptop’s best result near an access point. In this test, the MacBook Pro M5 led on 2.4 GHz, and the Surface Laptop for Business was ahead of the ThinkPad X1 Carbon.
If you work close to the router
ZDNET describes 6 GHz, available on Wi-Fi 6E and Wi-Fi 7 laptops, as very fast but most useful near the router. The ThinkPad had the best average across bands, but the report does not establish a universal 6 GHz winner, and the seven results on that band were comparatively close.
Rank #2
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Why a small speed gap may not matter
ZDNET says a throughput difference within 10 Mbps does not create a noticeable impact in everyday use. Treat that as the article’s practical observation, not a universal threshold: what matters to you depends on your connection and workload. If the tested laptops are close enough for your needs, consider the rest of the purchase—such as screen, battery life, keyboard, ports, operating system, and price—rather than choosing on a small lab throughput difference alone.
How ZDNET ran the comparison
In its September 30, 2026 article, ZDNET says it measured local Wi-Fi throughput across 2.4, 5, and 6 GHz while varying distance and physical interference. A Netgear Nighthawk RS700S router stayed in a fixed lab location. An MSI Vector 16 HX AI served as the server, with each tested laptop acting as a client. Lab engineer Schylar Breitenstein used automated Python data-collection scripts and iPerf3.
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- High-End Specs, Room to Grow: This laptop comes fully equipped with a versatile port selection, Wi-Fi 7 (2x2) and Bluetooth 6.0 for blazing-fast connectivity. It supports upgrades up to 32GB DDR5 memory and 2TB SSD, so you'll never outgrow it. Pre-installed with Windows 11 Pro and a lifetime license for Microsoft Office 2021, it's ready for productivity right out of the box with massive storage to keep all your files, projects, and media in one place.
The network had no internet connection or modem-to-router Ethernet connection. That design isolated the measurements from ISP-related bottlenecks, internet traffic congestion, and jitter. These results concern local wireless throughput under the lab setup; they do not measure a laptop’s internet speed or prove how it will perform with a different router, access-point arrangement, or interference pattern.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.What the published results do not establish
- The available article text does not include raw throughput values, all seven model names, or the exact configurations tested.
- It does not give precise test distances, obstacle materials, or every setting needed to reproduce the comparison.
- The Surface Laptop for Business finding applies to the tested unit, not necessarily to every processor or configuration sold under that name.
- The ThinkPad’s best cross-band average is not proof that it will be fastest in every home, office, hotel, or public network.
ZDNET reports that the Nighthawk RS700S received its July 2026 Lab Award for widest coverage. That is the article’s report about the router, not an independent test result established by the laptop comparison.
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