Pentesting is something used in Ethical Hacking. So, when you are looking for Laptops for Pentesting, you need to make sure that requirements are fulfilled well so that you can carry out the Pentesting work easily.
You must have heard about Ethical Hacking. Basically, Ethical hacking is done to protect a computer system or network of systems from hacking.
[toc]Pentesting also known as Penetration Testing is an attempt to test your defenses which can be interchangeable terms for ethical hacking. It is done by bypassing the security of your own application/website by bypassing the web application firewall or WAF. WAF penetration leads to altering the code written to perform interface work that gets manipulated. Your front-end and back-end servers also get severely affected.
In this laptop buying guide, I will help you find the best 10 laptops which are extremely good for Pentesting. Before we move ahead to the list of laptops, let’s discuss a bit more about Pentesting.
Pentesting and Its Stages
Pentesting is ethical hacking, a process that’s done to check how defensive your own application/web portal is in case a cyber attack happens. Pentesting has various stages, let us know about them.
Pentesting Stages
Planning and Reconnaissance
Planning and Reconnaissance is the first stage where you plan out your tests and also make a tally of the tools you will be using to run the test. You become more in tune with the functions and controls you will apply to run the test. The 2nd aspect of the stage comes from gathering intelligence for the entire test to know what kind of observations became apparent on the test. The implications of the mail servers, and network servers as How did they get affected?
Scanning
Scanning is another typical stage where the system of code analysis is used. It can be static and check how the application reacts to coding in a stable system. Similarly, another practical solution is to see How the application reacts to changing of code while running at the existing time. This is a much more dynamic analytical process.
Gaining access
After all the prior attempts, the last bastion remains to gain access. Access is obtained through backdoor penetration, SQL injection, and cross-site scripting. The hackers escalate website privileges making it more vulnerable and susceptible to attacks. They steal confidential data. They also try their best to intercept the current traffic and gain access to potential source points in the large web of connectivity.
Maintain the access
Data changes with time and penetrating a very sensitive server requires a bit of stay time or halt time for it to fruition into impactful stealing and gaining access to much-needed sensitive information. Here Ethical hackers try to understand, How long the threat can exist in the system and remain there for a long time without anyone knowing.
Analysis
The backbone of the analysis hinges on three primary assessments.
- Nature of the breach done.
- Level of manipulation, altercation, and changing in code done to the servers, frontend, and backend. It can be all the factors or one single factor that will be kept in mind by a malicious hacker.
- Time is taken for the vulnerability to exist in the system without getting detected.
Factors to Consider While Buying the Laptop for Pentesting
Battery Life
Battery life is a very important aspect when considering a laptop for pentesting use. You never know how long you need to try and attempt to understand the nature, scope, and vulnerability of your system.
Processor
The processor should be at least higher than i3, as with the later versions it becomes easier to use various tools and do multiple things on the system without getting memory clogged or suffering from storage stalling. Hence the ability to power your cores to run tasks efficiently requires a bit of processing power. I would suggest for optimal results i7 is the ideal choice.
High Memory Demands
RAM should be optimal and at least should be 8 GB. Why this is important you may ask, well anything beyond 8 GB is a great choice because it assists in running multiple tasks to understand underlying impacts laying out on the system. These implications are important to decode hence solidifying the need to have better RAM.
Storage
HDD and SSD are the two main types of storage that come with your laptop. As compared to HDD, SSD is fast and agile in its time frame and can provide access to files in a much quicker fashion which in the long term helps tremendously.
Best Laptops for Pentesting [Ethical Hacking] Comparison Table
| Product Name | RAM | Storage | Processor | Display | Check Prices |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| HP Newest FHD IPS Flagship Laptop | 16 GB | 256 GB | Intel Core i5-1135G7 | 15.6” diagonal FHD Brightview display | Check Price |
| ASUS VivoBook S14 | 8 GB | 512 GB | Intel Core i5-1135G7 | 14” Full HD NanoEdge bezel display | Check Price |
| Lenovo 2022 IdeaPad 3i |
8 GB | 512 GB | Intel Core i5 12th gen | 15.6″ FHD IPS display | Check Price |
| HP Pavilion FHD IPS Laptop | 16 GB | 1 TB | Intel Core i5-1135G7 | 17.3″ diagonal, FHD (1920 x 1080), IPS, anti-glare | Check Price |
| HP 2023 Newest HD Thin Laptop |
16 GB | 1 TB | Intel Core i5-1235U | 17.3″ HD (1600 x 900) widescreen LED backlit IPS non-touch Display | Check Price |
| ASUS TUF F15 Gaming Laptop | 8 GB | 512 GB | Intel Core i5-10300H | 15.6” Full HD (1920 x 1080) IPS Type Display | Check Price |
| Dell Inspiron FHD Touchscreen Laptop | 16 GB | 512 GB | Intel Core i5-10300H | 15.6” Full HD 144HZ(1920 x 1080) IPS Type Display | Check Price |
| HP Touch-Screen Laptops for College Students & Business |
32 GB | 1 TB | Intel Core i5-1135G7 | 15.6″ HD Touchscreen Display | Check Price |
| HP 2022 Flagship Touchscreen IPS Laptop | 16 GB | 1 TB | Intel Core i5-1135G7 | 1366 x 768 HD resolution, SVA, anti-glare, micro-edge display | Check Price |
| Apple 2021 MacBook Pro | 16 GB | 512 GB | Apple M1 Pro chip | 14-inch Liquid Retina XDR display | Check Price |
Top 10 Laptops for Pentesting
1. HP Newest 15.6 FHD IPS Flagship Laptop
HP Newest Laptop is ideal for Pentesting because of its superior features. It is priced at $599. It runs on 2.4 to 4.2 GHz technology, comes with an i5-1135G7 processor, and also has a boost feature from intel making it a fast laptop. It comes with a heavy 16 GB DDR4 RAM making it substantially better in terms of the pentesting requirement. The display is not actually a fundamental requirement to consider in hacking but this laptop has an impressive 15.6” IPS display. This is great for a reality-driven video viewing experience. And for low-end games, this laptop will be great without any doubt.
Features
- Comes with 15.6” IPS display
- 256GB Fast SSD installed
- Includes Ultra Fest processor i5-1135G7
- CPU can attain a maximum speed of 4.2 GHZ
- Intel Iris XE Graphics included
- Has a strong DDR4 16GB RAM
- Comes with Windows 11 OS
HP Newest Laptop is a great buy for Pentesting as HP is known for its products worldwide and it has a repute to maintain. You can purchase this laptop without a doubt, it completes all minimum requirements needed to do ethical hacking. Its better graphics is another feather in a cap which will keep you more charged and alive while venturing long hack sessions.
2. ASUS VivoBook S14
ASUS Vivobook S14 has great specifications for Pentesting and ethical hacking. Its CPU processing speed stands at 4.7 GHZ, which is impressive. It comes at a little higher cost than the previous HP laptop at $534.99. The processor here is a quad-core i5-1135G7. It has a good 8gb DDR4 RAM. Thus maintaining the minimum requirement for the testing process. It has a fingerprint sensor activated via windows hello and also has backlit keys. If you need extra files at the forefront to carry out ethical hacking you will require a good USB. This laptop has the best USB listing such as Thunderbolt 3 models, USB Type-C, USB 3.2 Type-A (Gen 1), USB 2.0, and HDMI.
Features
- Comes with 14” Full HD NanoEdge bezel display
- Includes 11th generation Intel Core i5-1135G7
- Has an 8GB DDR4 Ram as well as 512 GB SSD
- Has Thunderbolt USB
- Has AI noise cancellation feature when attached to Mic
- It’s 16mm tall
- Comes with a fingerprint sensor and backlit keys
- Has an installed Windows 10 copy
ASUS Vivobook is a great laptop, it has many other facilities that you get and it has better connectivity whether USB or WiFi. It is priced at a decent price and it meets the minimum requirements for Pentesting. Security is very important while Pentesting and that’s where this laptop really throws the ball out of the park with its fingerprint login via Windows Hello.
3. Lenovo 2022 IdeaPad 3i
Lenovo Ideapad 3i is actually an amazing laptop, its features definitely stand out.It has 12th gen i5 processor making it a powerful laptop in terms of the ability to multitask. Its ports are fast and have Type-C ports for faster data transfer, power delivery, and 4K display connectivity; USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-A, USB 2.0 Type-A as well. It has a 250 GB SSD in terms of storage as well. You will get a Windows 11 Pro copy with the PC. It has Iris Graphics embedded in the PC.
Features:
- Comes with Intel i5 Processor
- Has a processing speed of 1.3 to 4.4 GHz with turbo activation
- Has 250GB storage and 8GB DDR4 RAM
- Comes with Intel Iris Graphics
- Has a 15.6” HD screen
- USB 3.2 embedded port for file exchange
- Comes with Windows 11 pro installed
I personally recommend you consider the laptop because its processor is an upgraded one. It offers the i5 12th gen processor which is great. Personally, Intel graphics stand out more compared to AMD Ryzen so that’s a plus. In terms of ethical hacking this laptop fit the requirement chain.
4. HP Pavilion 17.3″ FHD IPS Laptop
HP Pavilion’s new laptop obviously stands out because it is gigantic with its 17.3” screen. This wonderful HP pavilion laptop stands at $669. Its processor is i5 11th gen. Its storage capacity is 1TB SSD. The CPU strength is 4.2GHZ with turbo boost included.
Features
- Comes with i5 11th gen
- Has 16 GB RAM included
- Has DDR3 1TB RAM
- Has intel iris SE graphics
- Has 300 nits 17.6” beautiful display
- Runs on 4.2 GHZ CPU speed
- Includes Windows 11 Home
This is a great laptop and definitely stands out in terms of ethical hacking. The best thing about this laptop is, it does appear to be costly, but one has to also remember that with incrementality in cost, you get better features, for instance, 1TB SSD is a great deal. Its display shall be the best one among all the laptops reviewed.
5. HP 2023 Newest 17.3 inch HD Thin Laptop
This is HP's latest product and is out on the market for you to buy. This laptop is great, it comes with 10 cores, it has an upgraded i5. It has a speed of 4.4GHZ which is the CPU strength. It has a 1 TB storage capacity. It is priced at $749. The graphics that come with the laptop are Iris Xe. It has 16 GB Memory making it a fast laptop. 12 MB Smart cache inclusion is also available. Overall, a decent laptop.
Features
- Wide screen of 17.3”
- LED Backlit IPS Display included
- Iris Xe Graphics embedded
- CPU strength maximizes to 4.4GHZ with Turbo boost
- Uses an Intel Core i5-1235U processor
- Comes with a 1TB storage capacity
The standout thing about this laptop is that it's a new launch. New launches do have an edge especially with a brand like HP. There is no doubt that this laptop will do your PenTest work. You can also make videos and do high-level graphic editing here.
6. ASUS TUF F15 Gaming Laptop
ASUS TUF F15 Laptop is a gaming laptop because of its upgraded graphics. However, the price for this is around $599. This price is actually very less comparatively if we look at the specifications. Its price is very cheap comparatively as well as other gaming laptops that are there presently in the market. This model of ASUS stands out because of its sturdy condition. And if you require a lot of graphic-related work done along with engaging in a Pentest. Believe me, this can be the best pick.
Features
- It has i5-10300H 8M cache processor.
- It has 8 GB DDR4 RAM.
- It has NVIDIA’s GEFORCE GTX 1650 4GB GDDR6 Graphics.
- Comes with a power-packed 4.5 GHZ CPU strength.
- Best-in-class military TUF line MIL-STD-810H included.
- 512 SSD storage included.
Asus TUF F15 is a great laptop, especially for graphics purposes. But its fantastic processor and strong CPU make it also an amicable computer even for doing multiple task-oriented works like Pentesting. If you are someone who likes gaming and wants to perform high-processing ethical hacking this is a great option for you.
7. Dell Inspiron 15.6" FHD Touchscreen Laptop
Dell Inspiron 15.6” FHD Touchscreen Laptop definitely meets the needs of ethical hacking. It's a proud i5 10th gen laptop. Has an impressive 512 GB SSD making it a fast storage laptop. Its CPU speed can go 3.5 GHZ. It comes with a touchscreen display which makes the accessibility of apps much easier.
Features
- Comes with a finger-touch navigation screen
- The screen size is 15.6”
- Attached is 16.4 GB DDR4 RAM
- Includes 512 GB PCIe SSD
- Windows 11 (S) OS Included
According to me, the pricing is a tad bit higher for this laptop. It does meet the needs excellently for any pen-testing work. In case, you need a hands-on laptop that supports fingerprint navigation then this has to be your ideal choice.
8. HP Touch-Screen Laptops for College Students & Business
HP Touchscreen Laptops are the newest versions of laptops launched in 2022. It is packed with amazing features. It is priced at $689.99. However, the range of abilities it demonstrates is just impeccable. It comes with a massive 32 GB RAM. It has a massive 1TB of storage capacity. The speed of the CPU can start at a base of 2.4 GHz, but it can reach 4.2 GHz.
Features
- Runs in i5 1135G7.
- CPU strength can reach 4.2 GHz.
- Has a massive storage capacity of 1 TB.
- Comes with USB 3.0 HDMI ports.
- 15.6” screen with sleep touchscreen accessibility.
This laptop is great given its enormous RAM and storage capacity. Choose this if you need to keep or back a lot of files in your computer.
9. HP 2022 Flagship 15.6 HD Touchscreen IPS Laptop
This model of HP is actually an IPS touchscreen version. Apart from that this will be great for pentesting because everything looks the same . It has i5 1135G7. It has a CPU speed of 4.2GHZ. It has 16 GB DDR4 RAM. A mega storage of 1 TB SSD.
Features
- Comes with Windows OS 11 (S)
- 1366 x 768 HD resolution, SVA, and the anti-glare display included.
- Embedded 16 GB RAM.
- CPU speed of 4.2 GHz.
- I5 1135G7 included.
- Smooth and sleek touchscreen.
- Iris Xe Graphics installed.
This is one of HPs touchscreen laptops and FHD IPS’ group of touchscreen laptops. It suffices enough system requirements to pentest.
10. Apple 2021 MacBook Pro
Best PickThe Apple MacBook Pro is a great PC and it's important to save the best for the last right. This is dynamite. But so is its price, this PC costs you $1,909.57. It comes with the M1 pro chip which competes with the likes of the i7. It's an 8-core processor. Its GPU speed can run to 32 cores with its strength.
Features
- Fast processor with M1 pro, comparable to the likes of i7 of intel
- Has 512 GB SSD
- It has 16 GB RAM
- Screen size is good in terms of apple with 14.2 inches
- 17 hours battery life
- Six speaker sound system included with force canceling woofers included
- Includes 14-inch liquid XDR Retina display
- 1080p Fast HD camera
Apple MacBook Pro is like the next-gen laptop where the technology only gets pushed ahead. You get a good narrow ethical hacking net here. Apple Laptops are very hard to break in. Hence, it's hardly impenetrable. In terms of security, Apple is the boss.
FAQs
Q. Is pentesting a crime?
Q. Can you lose data from the system if hackers enter?
Q. Can threats exist in your system undetected?
Conclusion
Pentesting obviously is a demanding job. You need a multi purpose, multi operation laptop to carry out the job. I have listed all the best laptops there are as of now in the market that provides the best pentesting experience. You can choose anyone as per your additional priorities.
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