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Total budget: Less than $500
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Are you open to refurbs/used?: Yes
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Form factor: 2-in-1 preferred (not required), 7+ hour battery life
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Weight/thinness: Light weight preferred.
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Preferred screen size: 13.3"
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CAD/video editing/photo editing/gaming: None
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Specific requirements: 8GB RAM, no Pentium/Celeron processors, no Chromebooks, 14" or less
I'm going back to school soon and am looking to replace my beefy PC with something more basic. I'd prefer something on the smaller side for portability. I was really interested in the Chuwi MiniBook X N100 since it checked off all my boxes, but unfortunately I read it has some pretty severe hardware issues. Hoping to find a better option
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Is a Laptop Under $500 Worth It?
Don't get too discouraged reading about specs and performance on these budget-friendly laptops. For most shoppers, a laptop serves as a web browsing machine, used more for social media and occasionally typing up some documents than it is for anything requiring a more capable model. And with the right laptop, you'll still get plenty of usability, even with lightweight processors and minimal specs.
We've reviewed plenty of budget laptops in the $600 or $700 range, along with reasonably priced laptops for kids and laptops for college students. These can be especially enticing if student discounts are available to knock off part of the expense. We find that the price range is the real sweet spot for basic Windows machines.
Plus, it doesn't cost a whole lot more to step up in power and performance. Our recommendations for Chromebooks and the best laptops for under $1,000 open up a lot of possibilities, at prices that are still quite attainable. You can even find some cheap gaming laptops for three instead of four figures.
Ready to Buy the Best Laptop Under $500 for You?
You may be on a budget, but you're not out of luck—if you look, you'll find some very serviceable Chromebooks, Windows clamshells, and 2-in-1 laptops under $500. By knowing what you want and what your cash can buy you, you can still find a decent deal on a laptop that will do the job.
We've laid out our favorite frugal options here, but you'll still need to decide whether you want a Chromebook or a Windows machine, a laptop or a 2-in-1 design, and even whether you want features, like a touch screen, that may be rare in the very cheapest laptops. The specs for all of our top picks are listed in our spec comparison, along with links to the full reviews. And if $500 is too tight a filter for what you are looking for, also check out our roundup of the best budget laptops (which includes some slightly pricier machines) and our picks for the best laptops overall.
What financing options are available for laptops under £500 at Laptop Outlet?
The one I've been looking at is the Chuwi Minibook X, I love the 10.5 inch form factor as it will easily fit in my camera bag, and the N100 chip with 12GB RAM isn't the weakest thing ever, but I probably would be happier if I found something a bit more powerful than this, with a similar form factor. The games I like to play are strategy games like Victoria 2 or Total War, so I imagine a decent CPU is a bigger priority than a dedicated GPU. I'm happy to play my games on low graphics settings, I just want them to run. I'd also really like a smaller than average device, but I'd settle for a 13 inch. I could spend closer to $700 if it opened up a particularly good option but I'd really like the cheapest thing that fits my needs, I'm fine with buying refurbished or maybe used.
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Im a nursing student ( i would need lockdown browser to take exams and some software for virtual clinicals )
who would do some gaming from time to time ( fortnite, cod etc.) not enough to get a gaming laptop BUT ITS NOT A DEALBREAKER
NEEDS WINDOWS 11 and ABLE TO LAST UNTIL 2026
I was going to get a macbook pro 2020 i5 but the reviews said the MacBook with i5 is terrible
I want something similar to a MacBook in terms of power, speed, backlit keyboard, and screen quality but under $500. the highest I could go is under $600