(Image source : Pexels.com – @vlada-karpovich)
Whether you’re still in school or already in college, being a student nowadays requires you to be tech-savvy. You do everything on computers or laptops; from writing papers, presenting your works, to editing video assignments. Hence, it is essential for students to have gadgets to support all their activities.
Yet when it comes to budget, we’re often limited to picking high-quality devices we want. As a result, it’s tricky to find a middle point between quality and price. We’re here to help you with this very issue. Read along to know how to pick the best laptop for your budget and browse through some of our recommendations.
Know what you need
Before buying a laptop, you need to know exactly what you’re going to use it for. Students in general use laptops for basic needs, like attending online classes and doing their assignments. However, college students might need their laptops to do more than that, usually depending on their majors. For instance, you’re studying architecture and you need to run 3D modelling software daily. Things like this are important to consider.
With different needs come different specifications. From here you can start choosing how big you want the laptop’s screen, power, RAM, storage, battery, and many more to be. SSDs are generally preferred for storage as they make your laptop run faster. Affordable laptops with SSD might be less spacious, but you can always add external storage whenever you need to.
You also might want to pay attention to the laptops’ weight. Having a large and heavy laptop might be bothersome if you’re regularly on the run. It’s nice to keep it compact by choosing the ideal screen size of 13 to 14 inches. If you want to go even lighter and smaller, be aware that you might need an additional standalone keyboard to type comfortably.
If you’ve been browsing cheap laptops for a while, you might see Chromebooks mentioned in the articles. Chromebooks are laptops that run on a Google Chrome-based OS. This type of laptop might suit your needs and budget if you don’t have many necessities. In addition, you may want to look into Chromebooks further as they generally cost less than regular laptops.
Set a budget range
After listing down the things you need in your future laptop, the next thing to do is to set a budget or price range. There’s a limitless number of laptops for your needs, yet they might come at an unexpected price. Decide how much you’re willing to spend to sort out your options.
We have picked some of our suggestions for laptops that cost under $800. However, if you have a tighter budget, we also put Chromebook suggestions costing under $500. These budget laptops are decent and strong enough to support your academic life.
Our picks
Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14
Our first suggestion on budget laptops for the student is Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14. It has a 14-inch screen with an okay-quality display. The battery can last around 10 hours of work, perfect for students to pull an all-nighter. Lenovo also includes some cool features to this laptop like a fingerprint scanner and USB-C port.
Being in the $500 price range, Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14 offers its users expandable 4GB DDR4 RAM and 256GB SSD storage. AMD Ryzen 5 5500U processor also complements this sturdy-built laptop. A flaw of this Lenovo piece is on the speaker; you might want to get an external one for better sound quality. Still, it’s really worth buying.
HP Pavilion Aero 3
If you’re looking for an affordable yet well-functioning laptop, HP Pavilion Aero 3 could be a great option. Powered with an eight-core Ryzen processor, this HP laptop runs quickly to support your day-to-day activities. Despite its thin and light appearance, this laptop surprisingly can stand up to 11 hours of continuous usage.
While it has some flaws like mediocre-quality audio and cheap bloatware, HP Pavilion Aero 3 is still worth considering. The laptop costs around $700, which with the price to quality ratio is definitely a win for customers.
(Image Source: HP Official Website)
HP Envy X360 13
This laptop is one of the best options if you have a budget of $800. HP Envy X360 is built with AMD’s latest Ryzen 5 4500U CPU, granting you trouble-free performance. You can even do some gaming as well as video editing with this laptop.
The 13-inch vibrant display is excellent, yet its 16:9 ratio might be a bit uncomfortable for some people. But still, if a $730 laptop comes with an 8GB RAM and 128GB SSD, do you really still want to complain? With its great quality, HP Envy X360 13 probably should cost twice that it does (but fortunately not).
Lenovo Chromebook Duet 3
The price tag comes at a quite friendly cost which stays around $260. Lenovo Chromebook Duet 3 has a fairly compact size with a 10-inch screen, perfect for taking notes and enjoying some videos online. Yet honestly, you might want to opt for laptops with bigger screens if you need a robust work device.
Despite its tiny appearance, Lenovo Chromebook Duet 3 is definitely worth the price with the support of its Chrome OS. It comes with the same-sized detachable keyboard. Pairing this with a Logitech mouse would be a nice combination for working. The laptop has a USB-C port that you can use to connect to other screens and devices. The battery is also long-lasting, making it one of the most considerable budget laptops out there.
Lenovo Flex 5 Chromebook
This is Duet 3’s newer, larger, better sibling. Lenovo Flex 5 is believed to be somewhat better than its other Chromebook counterparts. This laptop brings to you a 13.3-inch display, 10th gen Core i3 processor, and a backlit keyboard. Prepare a budget of around $400 to $550 to get one of these babies.
The long battery life of around 11 hours will support you through work and assignments. However, note that it has its flaws. The RAM and storage are sadly not expandable; they’re only 4GB and 64GB, so there’s a high chance you might need more.
(Image Source: Lenovo Official Website)
Acer Chromebook Spin 713
This Chromebook by Acer gives you a large screen of 3:2 13-inch display and 13 hours battery, ready for long, long nights of work with you. Acer Spin 713 runs on the 11th Gen Intel processor, enhancing its performance. This laptop serves 8GB RAM and 256GB SSD for memory and storage—pretty good for a Chromebook.
If you fancy a sophisticated look for your laptop, you might want to opt for other laptops as this is not Acer Spin’s strength. It’s also a bit heavier than general. The laptop costs around $699, although it might vary in different countries. A bit higher than the general Chromebook price range, but Acer Spin 713 is ready to give you the smooth experience of a premium budget laptop.