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While you might think that buying a new laptop is a big investment, you don’t always need to spend thousands of dollars on a new model. In fact, for around $500 or less, you can find plenty of options to choose from. Before purchasing one, you need to know what you will use the laptop for. These more budget-friendly laptops aren’t for professionals who need a ton of processing power, but they’re sufficient for those who mainly use the device for browsing the internet, streaming movies or shows, and writing documents. These laptops don’t have the most advanced CPUs or GPUs and usually have low RAM and storage. Many affordable laptops are Chromebooks, which run on Chrome OS, and have a hybrid design. Hybrid laptops feature a touchscreen display and flexible hinge, allowing you to use them as a tablet whenever convenient. Various tech companies release newer, more advanced models yearly. At the same time, prices for older models decrease, giving you many more affordable choices to consider. You’ve come to the right place if you’re in the market for a new budget-friendly laptop. In this guide, we’ll go through some of the best laptops you can find that cost $500 or less. We’ll also tell you about all the specs these devices offer, so you’ll see if it’s powerful enough for your day-to-day tasks.
The Acer Aspire 5 has plenty of features that make it a great find for less than $500, and it has the capacity to meet all your requirements. The best thing about this laptop is its powerful snappy performance. With the 11th Gen Intel Core i3-1115G4 processor, you can finish all your daily computing tasks with no issues. The Acer Aspire 5 offers a 15.6-inch full HD display with a resolution of 1920 x 1080 pixels. Due to its narrow bezels, the display has an aspect ratio of 16:9 (82.58% screen-to-body ratio), giving you more space to work. The display also features a blue light filter, preventing eye strain and increase productivity. Voice-activated Alexa is built-in, so you’ll be able to use voice control to get things finished quicker. The laptop comes with 8GB RAM and 128GB of SSD storage, which are decent for the price you’re paying. Regarding connectivity, this laptop has one USB 2.0 port, two USB 3.2 Gen 1 (Type-A) ports, one USB 3.2 Gen 1 (Type-C) port, an HDMI 2.0 port, a DC-in AC adapter jack, and a headphone/microphone jack. It also comes with an HP TrueVision HD Camera, which is beneficial for those who regularly hop on video calls. The Acer Aspire 5 has a battery life of 8 hours, so you won’t need to charge it for a whole day. While it is portable, this device is somewhat heavy, as it almost weighs four pounds.
Powerful performance for its price15.6-inch 1080p displayGreat battery lifeAffordableLots of portsAlexa built-in
HeavyWebcam quality could be betterUnderwhelming graphicsNot the best build quality 
For $401, there’s no denying that the HP 14 laptop is a bang for the buck. This laptop features a 14-inch Full HD display, which looks modern and premium thanks to its micro-edge bezels. It’s a perfect laptop to have if you plan to bring it with you to different places during the day because of its thin and light design. Users will be satisfied with the performance and graphics they’ll get from the device compared to other affordable rivals because it has an AMD Ryzen 5 5500U processor and AMD Radeon graphics. The laptop comes with 8GB RAM and 256GB SSD storage, which is impressive for a laptop in its price range. HP says the laptop will last an entire work or school day without needing to be charged because its battery life lasts around 9 hours and 45 minutes. The HP 14 features HP Fast Charge Technology, so it will only take about 45 minutes to get 50% of juice back. You can expect it to have an excellent network performance because it supports Wi-Fi 6, and its Bluetooth 5.0 technology promises an effortless experience when connecting wireless accessories. The laptop has the HP True Vision 720p HD camera and dual-array digital microphones, so you can use it for convenient Zoom calls. The HP 14 offers excellent value for money, but it’s still not ideal for those who need to use demanding programs daily.
Lightweight and portableAMD Ryzen 5 5500U processor and AMD Radeon graphics8GB RAM and 256GB SSD storageDecent battery lifeWi-Fi 6 and Bluetooth 5.0 technologyHP Fast Charge Technology
Not ideal for those who use demanding programs regularlyTouchpad needs to be improved
If you’re the type who likes larger screens on laptops, the Lenovo Ideapad 3 would be a suitable option for you. It features a 15.6-inch HD touchscreen display, which will be excellent for multitasking, watching movies, browsing the internet, etc. Despite its large size, its slim and lightweight design still makes it easy to carry around. This budget-friendly laptop is more than capable of helping you with work or school because it has an 11th Gen Intel Core i3-1115G4 processor with a maximum speed of 3.0GHz. It doesn’t have a dedicated GPU and only comes with integrated Intel UHD Graphics, so it’s not an ideal model for those who play games. The laptop comes with 8GB of RAM, which is decent for an affordable device, but what makes it an attractive deal for its price is its 256GB SSD storage. The Lenovo Ideapad 3 is pretty behind when it comes to the latest internet technology because it only has Wi-Fi 5, while many laptops already use Wi-Fi 6. Those who often plug external drives or accessories into their laptops will love this device because you get two USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-A ports, an HDMI port, a USB 2.0 Type-A port, a multi-format SD card reader, and a headphone/microphone combo jack. It also has a decent webcam, but its quality is still way behind those of premium laptops. In terms of battery life, users can get up to nine hours of light productivity work per charge.
Large 15.6-inch touchscreen displayDecent CPU performanceUp to 9 hours of usage per chargeExcellent buildDecent webcamFantastic port selection
Not powerful enough for heavy workloadsNo USB Type-C portNot the best keyboard and touchpad
The Lenovo Chromebook Flex 5 is designed to provide optimal comfort with its flip-and-fold mechanism. You can quickly flip it into tablet mode and use the display as a touchscreen. This laptop has narrow bezels and IPS (in-plane switching) technology that allows you to use it with a wider viewing angle. Aside from its 360° convertible design, its 13.3-inch screen has a 1920 × 1080 resolution. Another great thing about this laptop is its fast performance, thanks to its Intel Core i3-10110U processor. You’ll be able to stream movies and TV shows, browse the web, and make video calls simultaneously. When you have several tabs open, this laptop can work just as fast as any bigger Windows laptop. With a battery life of 10 hours, it’s bound to last through the whole day without needing the charger. In addition, it weighs 2.97 pounds, which makes it portable too. You can also use the Lenovo digital pen to make working on this laptop even easier. However, this accessory is usually sold separately from the laptop. What’s pretty disappointing about this laptop is its 4GB of RAM, so it won’t be the best for those who regularly multitask. It only has 64GB of internal storage, but at least you can sign in to your Google account and store more of your files on the Google Drive cloud storage. Not to mention that over two million apps will be available to you, all on Google Play. This laptop also features a built-in webcam and two user-facing stereo speakers. If you want a compact laptop that delivers a speedy performance that fits your price range, then the Lenovo Chromebook Flex 5 might be what you’ve been looking for.
2-in-1 laptopComfortable keyboard 360° convertible designDecent performance1080p resolution
Only 4GB of RAM64GB storageDisplay and touchpad could be better
If you travel all the time and like to take your laptop with you, you need a device that’s both portable and long-lasting. That’s precisely where the Lenovo Chromebook Duet comes in handy. Not only does it weigh only 0.99 pounds (2.03 pounds with the keyboard), but it also has an impressive battery life of 10 hours. That’s not even the best thing about this laptop. It’s a 2-in-1 laptop, which means you can detach the keyboard and use it in tablet mode. While you usually need to pay for the keyboard separately, that’s not the case with the Lenovo Chromebook Duet. It also comes with an adjustable kickstand, which you can use to position the tablet into tent mode. It features a 10.1-inch display, which might not be enough for some users, and the keyboard and touchpad feel cramped because of how small the device is. With a resolution of 1920 x 1200 pixels, the IPS screen can produce amazing visuals and vibrant colors. It takes the Lenovo Chromebook duet about 10 seconds to boot. All the apps and programs are automatically updated in the background. Since this laptop is not that large, it only comes with one USB-C port. This device has only 4GB of RAM, but you get a generous 128GB of SSD storage. The device’s MediaTek Helio P60T processor provides decent performance for basic tasks, but it won’t be sufficient if you’re the type who has a heavy workload daily. The Lenovo Chromebook Duet falls short when it comes to its port selection because you only get a single USB Type-C port.
2-in-1 laptop and tabletColorful and high-definition screenLong battery lifeIt comes with a keyboard and a kickstandPortable and lightweight
Cramped keyboardOnly one USB port
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