Its 1080p display looks reasonably sharp and provides plenty of room for multitasking however, it doesn't get very bright, meaning visibility can be an issue in very well-lit or sunny environments.įor media consumption, we recommend the Lenovo Chromebook Duet 5 (2021), a Chrome OS tablet with a kickstand and detachable keyboard.

The downside is that you can only get a maximum of 4GB of memory, meaning you might experience some stutters and slowdowns if you run too many things simultaneously. The Core i3 is faster, although both are powerful enough to provide a smooth experience on Chrome OS. You can get this laptop with an Intel Pentium Gold or Core i3 processor. You get a keyboard that feels comfortable to type on, and while the touchpad is on the smaller side, it's responsive to all movements and gestures. The battery lasts a little over 12 hours of light use and charges over USB-C, so you don't have to lug around a proprietary power adapter. It feels well-built, especially for a device in its price range, and it's easy to carry around, thanks to its compact design. Our best Chromebook pick is the Lenovo Chromebook C340 15 (2020), a 2-in-1 convertible with a 360-degree hinge. The downside is that you can't use the USB-C to charge the laptop or output a video signal to an external display. It has a decent port selection, including two USB-As, a full-size HDMI, and a USB-C port. The keyboard feels spacious and tactile, but the keys require a fair amount of force to actuate, so it may be a little tiring to type on for extended periods. It gets bright enough for use in most settings, and it's flicker-free, which helps reduce eye strain on long school or workdays.

Of course, you can get a better configuration with a faster CPU or more memory if you spend more, but for most people with a light workload, this Ryzen 5 model is more than adequate.Īs for the screen, it's a 15.6-inch 1080p IPS panel, so you get plenty of space for multitasking. The Ryzen 5 5500U is plenty fast and can easily handle general productivity tasks like web browsing, video playback, text processing, and spreadsheets.

At just a little over $500, you can get a model with an AMD Ryzen 5 5500U CPU, 8GB of memory, and 256GB of storage. The best laptop under $500 we've tested is the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 15 (2021), a thin and light Windows laptop with a sturdy build and a battery that lasts over nine hours of light use.

Best budget laptops 2017 under 300