I tried this Windows laptop with a magnetic webcam — the MacBook Air’s notch has never looked more outdated

As someone who reviews laptops for a living, one of the first features I inspect, perhaps surprisingly, is the webcam. More specifically, where the sensor is placed and how it affects the design and quality. Over the last few years, manufacturers have refused to settle on one webcam position, and so far, none have felt right.

Some, like Apple, house them in a distracting phone-like notch while keeping the rest of the screen lid slim, some compromise on the quality to offer a consistent bezel look, and others, such as Microsoft, stick to a thick top bezel to accommodate a sufficiently large sensor. Few even tried to make bottom webcams, but to no one’s surprise, they gained the “nosecam” moniker. Enter Honor, a China-based laptop maker, with what it believes is the webcam sweet spot on its new MagicBook Art 14.

The case of the disappearing webcam