What parameters should you use to choose a laptop for work? How to choose the perfect laptop: from office to gaming

Rostislav Kuzmin

Good afternoon, dear readers of my blog! Do you feel the need for a decent laptop for work, but don’t know what criteria to choose? Yes, and the budget let us down a little? Don't get upset in advance! There are a number of models that can cover the needs of a novice user at a reasonable price. Are you surprised? Then sit down more comfortably, I’ll tell you how to choose an inexpensive but good laptop.

How to choose the right laptop?

A budget laptop doesn't mean it's bad. The main thing in choosing a laptop of this kind is to determine for what purposes it will be used most often. Which company doesn't really matter. Size is more important when choosing since all laptops are portable devices. The purchase diagonal depends on how often the laptop computer will leave the house.

The default size grid adopted by manufacturers divides all laptops into the following size groups:

• 8-11 inches - netbooks, i.e. small devices. Who buys them? Fidgets and avid travelers, whose life and work are directly connected to the global network.
• 12-13 inches is the most favorite form factor of business people. The screen is already larger than that of netbooks, but the ease of transportation is still noticeable. Long business trips are your way of life? I recommend buying a model in this size group.
• 14-15 inches - the so-called household laptop computer. For home use, consumers choose laptops with this diagonal the most. It’s good and convenient to watch a movie or surf the Internet from the screen. As additional luggage on the road is somewhat large.
• 17-20 inches - a model range for video content creators, architects, accountants. These people work with large amounts of visual information. A high-quality screen with good characteristics is a necessity for them, not a whim.

Note! The screen coating can be matte or glossy. These indicators affect the contrast of the picture. Color rendition and brightness of colors on a glossy screen will be much better, but a matte screen will save your eyes.

Functional content

Have you decided on the size? Let's go through the other parameters to understand which laptop is the best in terms of price-quality ratio.

Pay attention to:

1. Laptop PC processor. You can only expect a quick response to your desires from a processor with serious performance. Ask yourself: are you willing to pay for faster speeds for standard use? No? Then a laptop with the maximum number of cores for this price will suit you. You don’t really have to choose between Intel and AMD; the second is much more accessible for the low-cost segment.
2. RAM. You shouldn’t pay too much attention to RAM when choosing an inexpensive laptop. To run the simplest games at minimum settings, you need a high processor speed with a good clock speed. At the same time, 4 GB of memory is enough to fit standard programs for a laptop. An AMD-based laptop for home has enough memory to handle simple tasks with 6 GB of memory.
3. HDD. All devices on SSD drives work much faster than on HDD. But the second one is more affordable and the most common among laptops of this class. The answer, I think, is obvious.
4. Video card. The power of a video card is extremely important in computers for gaming. Don't expect good performance from the budget segment. You simply won't find them for that price.
5. Peripherals. Any modern laptop almost always has Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, a camera and a microphone. With the proliferation of flash drives, the DVD-RW drive has sunk into oblivion; inexpensive laptops do not have it by default. I recommend paying attention to a sufficient number of connectors for connecting third-party devices and increasing functionality. That's all!
6. Brand. I categorically do not recommend purchasing an “unnamed” Chinese laptop. Why, you ask? I’ll answer: you simply won’t find spare parts if necessary. I advise you to choose from inexpensive laptops from well-known manufacturers. They have service centers at every step and care about reputation, whatever one may say, is present.

Remember! An inexpensive laptop will last for the next 5-7 years of work. Further, it will simply become obsolete and will not support new versions of the software. For watching movies and browsing the Internet, it will be quite enough; you won’t have to count on more.

Top budget laptops

• Dell Inspiron 3552-0514. A popular cheap model from a Chinese manufacturer with a deservedly good reputation. The device has a traditionally strong plastic body with a diagonal of 15.6 inches and a glossy TFT TN screen with excellent color rendition and a good viewing angle. Intel Celeron processor with a clock frequency of 1600 MHz, integrated video card. Disk capacity 512 GB, RAM capacity 4 GB. In terms of peripheral connection characteristics, it surpassed many competitors in this device. Judge for yourself: DVD-RW optical drive, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth. Traditional one year service warranty + Windows 10 Home. (2 store, 4 store, 6 store— Russia, Belarus, Kazakhstan, 7 store, 8 store, 9 store).
  
• ASUS Intel Celeron N3060. A good machine from a well-known manufacturer, very inexpensive. Convenient 15.6-inch screen on a matrix The heart of the device is an Intel Celeron processor with a frequency of 1600 MHz, an integrated video card. The hard drive capacity is 500 GB, the RAM holds 2 GB. Unlike the previous rating model, there is no optical drive. The rest of the peripheral expansion is exactly the same - Wi-Fi + Bluetooth. For ardent fans of Microsoft products, a small warning: the pre-installed operating system of the device is DOS, not Windows (that is, you have the opportunity to set it to seven, since ten with any program will simply slow down with 2 GB of RAM). It is under warranty for a year.
  
• Asus X751SA. For Asus fans, for whom there is no question of which manufacturer to choose, this is the second copy in a row. The 4 GB storage capacity is a little more serious. The characteristics of the processor are exactly the same - Intel Celeron at a clock frequency of 1600 MHz, hard drive capacity 500 GB. The WXGA matrix type is well suited for fans of widescreen presentations; the screen size is 17.3 inches. You can connect to third-party devices using Bluetooth technology. Internet access is easily provided via a Wi-Fi connection. There is no optical drive slot. Traditional Windows 10 OS. The price is a little higher than its previous brother, but the cost is quite justified.
  
• . A small netbook in blue and white will be a great birthday gift for a girl or girl! Quite powerful for its price category - Intel Celeron processor at 1600 MHz and 2GB of RAM. The TFT TN matrix and the optimal diagonal size, 11.6 inches, are perfect for ultra-mobile teenagers. You can communicate with friends via social networks in a cafe using free Wi-Fi access, and transfer excellent photos using Bluetooth technology. Firmware for Windows 10. Guaranteed free service at service centers for a period of one year.
  
• . A small netbook for travelers that's responsive even when multitasking. The quad-core Intel Celeron processor operates at a clock frequency of 2160 MHz, all necessary files and software content are stored on a 500 GB disk. The amount of RAM is 4 GB. The ten-inch baby will fit perfectly in a travel backpack and will help out during a deadline on the road. The battery lasts a claimed 4.5 hours when working with office applications. A distinctive feature is a touch display with a screen rotation angle of 300°. The case is made of high-quality dark plastic and leaves virtually no fingerprints.
  
• . It features an individual design with a bold statement on the image segment. Of course, the body is made of plastic, but the texture and color successfully imitate aluminum. Screen rotation 180°, diagonal 15.6 inches, with Full HD resolution. The frames around the screen are a bit wide, but the camera for Skype communication is securely built-in. Excellent super-fast SSD drive, but dual-core processor. Expect a device with a range of standard features. Surf the Internet and you won’t play much cutting-edge games. For this price, an excellent option for home use. It works quite quietly and has not been noticed overheating. Battery life is at least 3 hours. ( 2 store, 3 store, 5 store, 6 store).
  
• HP Stream 14-ax005ur(black). The seventh budget representative of the rating with an original design in an unusual ultramarine color. A distinctive feature of the model is its ultra-efficient processor, which makes it possible to work away from a direct power source! - 10 hours. In addition, the device is very thin and weighs insignificantly, some 1.6 kg. Unfortunately, there is no additional numeric keypad, but the comfortable recessed keyboard perfectly masks this drawback. The optimal set of necessary outputs to expand functionality. The 14-inch display has a resolution of 1366 x 768 pixels and a glossy finish. The webcam is quite decent, for such a price, it transmits the image very realistically. ( 2 store- black).
  

Purchasing any equipment requires a serious approach, because it will serve us for many years. When choosing a laptop, it is not enough to be guided only by its physical characteristics

(size, weight and ergonomics), it is important to pay attention to technical parameters.

Depending on the purpose for which you are purchasing a laptop, these indicators may vary, thereby narrowing the range of suitable models. Let's move on to considering specific indicators that will play a decisive role when choosing a model.

The most important parameters of laptops:

Screen size and matrix

Obviously, working on a laptop with a large screen will be quite convenient. The display with a diagonal of 15.4 - 17 inches is perfect for watching movies and working with text documents. But if you often have to take a laptop with you on trips, then a bulky model will create a lot of inconvenience. In this case, a model with a 10-12-inch display would be much more convenient. In this case, you need to pay attention to the screen resolution. For office models, the XGA extension will be sufficient, but if you plan to work with graphics or spend a lot of time playing games, then the WUXGA extension will be most preferable.

Speaking about the characteristics of the display, we should mention the properties and purpose of the matrix. It is the matrix that is responsible for image quality; at the moment the matrix can be manufactured using one of three technologies. The most accessible, low-cost technology is TN (Twisted Nematic). A display made using the TN principle will have low power consumption and good response time, but the overall picture quality leaves much to be desired. Due to low color rendering and contrast, watching movies or working with graphics will be very difficult. Most suitable parameters for a home laptop has a display made using MVA (Multi-Domain Vertical Alignment) technology. In this case, the contrast will be at the level, the color rendition will be excellent, and the viewing angle will be quite suitable for working with video and graphics. The best matrices are those made using IPS (In Plane Switching) technology. Due to their rather high cost and high energy consumption, they have not received due popularity and are used mainly for professional purposes.

Regardless of the type of matrix, manufacturers can use additional coatings to improve picture quality. They not only increase image brightness, but also protect against glare. If the monitor is matte and has a purple tint, it means that it has a reliable anti-glare coating and can be considered completely safe and comfortable for work.

Battery

Since one of the main advantages of a laptop is its portability, battery life becomes one of the most important factors when choosing. Most models are designed for 2 hours of operation under average load, and the most common type of battery is Li-Ion. For some models, an operating time of 8 hours is indicated, but it is worth understanding that in this case we are talking about a load below the average. If you want to insure yourself in case your laptop suddenly turns off, it is better to immediately purchase an additional battery.

CPU

The most important part of any PC, including a laptop. The main indicator of a processor is the clock frequency; it determines the number of operations that the processor can perform per unit of time. The higher the clock frequency, the faster the computer will perform. For an office, a model with a frequency of 1 GHz is suitable, but to run games and graphic editors, the clock frequency must be at least 2 GHz. The undisputed leaders among processors remain Intel models, which, along with a high clock frequency, provide low energy consumption. AMD processors are not far behind them, attracting buyers with their low cost compared to Intel.

Undoubtedly, you should give preference to a model with a high processor clock speed. After all, software development does not stand still, and after a couple of years the frequency indicator, which was considered optimal at the time of purchase, may not meet the requirements of modern programs.

Motherboard

The fact is that this is one of the few devices that eliminates the replacement procedure. The motherboard is built into the laptop during assembly, and you cannot replace it. Therefore, it is worth paying attention to the presence of additional slots that allow you to expand RAM. If the motherboard provides at least one slot (it is better to have two), then you will have enough options for upgrading.

Winchester (hard drive)

This is the main storage medium, the volume of which directly determines the amount of data that can fit in your laptop. If a 40 GB hard drive is sufficient for office computers, then for a home laptop the volume should be at least 200 GB. The parameters of the hard drive also affect the cost of the model, but a large hard drive will save you from additional expenses in the future. You don't have to buy additional removable drives or spend money on flash drives in order to save an archive of photos or record your favorite movies. Changing a hard drive is not always possible, since the hard drives that come with laptops have different characteristics than hard drives for PCs.

RAM

This is another indicator characterizing the performance of the model. For comfortable full-fledged work, the laptop’s RAM must be at least 256 MB. If you plan to run resource-intensive applications (new games or graphics programs), then the minimum RAM should be 512 MB. If the motherboard has slots for memory cards, then in the future you can easily upgrade your laptop and install as much RAM as you need.

Video adapter

Absolutely all laptops are equipped with a built-in video card, options which affects both the cost and capabilities of the model. The more powerful the video adapter, the higher the image quality, and the more opportunities for working with video and photo resources. It is worth noting that video card parameters are one of the most important indicators for fans of computer games.

Sound card

As for the sound adapter, there are no specific differences. Absolutely all laptops are equipped with a standard sound card that allows you to play any audio files. Sometimes a laptop may have built-in speakers, but they have very little power and cannot replace a full-fledged audio system. If the sound card provides an audio output, then you can connect speakers or headphones to the laptop.

Keyboard and touchpad

If you work a lot with text documents, then your laptop keyboard should be as comfortable as possible. Here it is worth paying attention to the size of the keys, which may be smaller than on a standard keyboard due to the compactness of the laptop. Sometimes part of the keyboard can be full-size, and the other part has a reduced key format, which is also not very convenient.

Instead of the usual “mouse” manipulator, laptops have a special touch panel; when purchasing, you need to test it for sensitivity. Some models may have a small joystick, which is also quite convenient to use. But if these devices seem unusual to you, you can always buy a regular mouse and work with a familiar pointing device.

Communication capabilities

Modern laptop models certainly have a built-in modem, a standard network card, and a Wi-Fi module. Thanks to these components, you will be able to connect to the Internet (including using wireless technologies), connect your laptop to a local network and, if necessary, expand its capabilities.

I/O Ports

The presence of ports allows you to connect additional devices to the laptop. Naturally, the more ports, the more devices you can connect. There must be a USB port (it is better if there are at least three). This is a universal port used to connect a wide variety of devices: keyboard and mouse, printer, scanner, flash drives, and removable memory media. If the laptop is equipped with a Bluetooth module, you can easily connect a cell phone, wireless keyboard and mouse, which are very popular. The PCMCIA port allows the connection of a number of peripheral devices: additional RAM, fax, modem, hard drive and other devices.

Case parameters and weight

The weight and size of a laptop is influenced by the set of components, display parameters and the material from which the body is made. If you plan to use a laptop at home, then weight will not play a decisive role in your choice. But if you often have to take it with you on trips, then you should think about purchasing a mobile lightweight model, the weight of which should not exceed 5 kg. It should be understood that a metal case is much more reliable than a plastic one. Only he can ensure the safety of internal devices.

These are the main points that you should pay attention to when choosing a laptop model. If you have any doubts about a particular indicator, you should seek advice from specialists. Only they can help you understand the variety of computer innovations and make the right choice.

It is best to purchase a laptop depending on what tasks you plan to perform with its help: for computer games and working with graphics programs, you will need a powerful device; for surfing the Internet, as well as for text documentation, you can take a cheaper machine. The cooling system plays a very important role in laptops; you should definitely pay attention to it when choosing. If it is weak, the equipment will quickly overheat or fail altogether. Battery capacity is another important factor that will have to be taken into account. It is advisable to purchase a laptop with a battery that can work in autonomous mode for about 6-7 hours.

In the ranking of the best laptops, we tried to combine both expensive and relatively cheap models that have an excellent price-quality ratio. The top 10 includes the best devices designed for both work and entertainment. In the process of compiling the rating, we relied heavily on the opinions of customers.

This is a transforming model - its thickness is 14 mm and its weight is about one and a half kilograms. The device has good performance. The device has 16 GB DDR3 RAM, the motherboard contains an Intel Core i7 processor with a clock frequency of 2.7 GHz, and the internal hard drive has a capacity of 512 GB. The battery is quite powerful; when fully charged, it can work in autonomous mode for about 4-5 hours.

There is nothing superfluous in the device - only everything you need: one USB 3.0 port, providing high-speed data transfer from external media. This is not very convenient, since if you need to connect several external devices at once, you will have to additionally purchase an adapter. There is no port for an HDMI cable and a slot for SD memory cards; there is a socket for an Ethernet connection. It works quietly and practically does not heat up, although this device is very fast, it is not possible to increase the processor temperature even when using powerful games. The monitor is touch-sensitive and has high definition.

Advantages:

• Light weight;
• High performance;
• Fast battery charge.

Flaws:

• High price;
• Thick bottom frame;
• Insufficient number of ports for connection.

The device has a streamlined aluminum body with no backlash. The housing will not loosen or creak over time. The screen diagonal is 15.6 inches, it is touchscreen with a resolution of over 1080 pixels. The display is connected to the main unit and keyboard using one hinge. The weight is not too large - a little more than 2 kg, with dimensions of 355.6 * 256.54 * 20.32 mm this is quite acceptable. On the sides of the main unit there is a significant number of connectors - a socket for the power cord, a port for HDMI, Ethernet, USB 3.0 and audio output, there are also two USB 2.0 ports and a slot for a memory card. In addition, there is an original latch that functions as a security lock.

The laptop has an integrated video card of the latest model, which allows you to simultaneously work with several graphic resources at once. The standard package, like all other best laptops of 2018, comes with a webcam with a resolution of 480 pixels. It’s not suitable for shooting videos, but it’s quite enough for chatting on Skype. The battery is not very reliable - even a new one, when fully charged, will last no more than 5.5 hours, and only if not all of the device’s resources are used.

Advantages:

• Beautiful appearance;
• Good multitasking;
• High performance;
• Reliability.

Flaws:

• The keyboard is small and sometimes creates inconvenience;
• Battery life leaves much to be desired;
• The sensor is not very sensitive.

This is a fairly well-known premium model, characterized by its compact size and the latest display technology. The laptop is very interesting not only for fans of computer games, but also for photo or video processors, especially since the display allows you to fully cover the Adobe RGB color space. The appearance of the device is strict, the body is made of an alloy of magnesium and aluminum, and is quite durable. The thickness is insignificant considering that the diagonal of the laptop is 15.6 inches. The display is touch-sensitive and is additionally protected from damage using a special protective glass, Gorilla Glass, coated with olephobic compounds that are highly resistant to various types of scratches.

The hinges of the laptop are quite tight and do not become loose during use, which prevents any backlash from occurring. There are no decorative elements, but there are rubberized legs, about 8 mm high. On the right side of the device there is a memory card port, a USB 3.0 slot and a security lock, while on the left side of the case there is another USB 3.0 connector, HDMI and several other outputs for peripheral devices. The buttons are backlit, which can be turned off if necessary, and make virtually no noise during operation.

The battery will last for about 7 hours when browsing the Internet and working with text documents, 2 hours while playing games and 12 hours without much load. The cooling system is powerful and reliably removes heat. It has two fans and several copper tubes. The latest generation processor is installed, there is a combination of two Pascal-GTX 1050 and HD Graphics 630 video cards. The RAM is 16 GB, if necessary, it can be expanded to 32 GB, and the operating speed is in no way inferior to models from Apple.

Advantages:

• Good performance;
• Ability to use several graphics programs at once;
• Convenient screen, resistant to damage;
• Small dimensions.

Flaws:

• Webcam location;
• There is no additional numeric keypad;
• The speakers start to hiss at maximum volume;
• The headphones do not fit into the jack too tightly, which is why the sound is completely lost;
• The speakers are located at the bottom.

It has a beautiful appearance, the display diagonal is 15.6 inches, the screen itself is matte. The case is made of reliable plastic with a matte finish; dust will not accumulate on it and fingerprints will not be visible. The keyboard is comfortable, backlit, the keys are a little hard. The screen has a resolution of 1920*1080 pixels – quite high for this budget model. The laptop has three USB connectors, one of which is with accelerated data transfer format 3.0.

RAM is not enough for graphics or games - only 4 GB, but it can be increased by installing additional dies. Internal memory – 1 TB. This is enough for documents and media files. The processor does not require a lot of current power: 15 W is enough for it to work, but its clock frequency is 2000 GHz.

Advantages:

• Excellent value for money;
• Good display resolution;
• Capacious hard drive;
• If necessary, you can upgrade the device - replace the hard drive, RAM, sound card, and so on.

Flaws:

• The plastic case becomes loose over time;
• Low battery capacity;
• There is a high probability of breaking the plastic hatch covering the RAM slots.

This is one of the best gaming laptops presented in the ranking. The basis here is a powerful quad-core Intel Core i7-7700H processor with a clock frequency of 2.8 GHz; when turbo mode is activated, this figure increases to 3.8 GHz. In addition, this processor has Turbo-Boost technology, providing 8 threads with 4 cores. The laptop has a powerful Intel HD Graphics 630 graphics card, and also has an integrated Nvidia GeForce GTX 1050 Ti graphics card with 4 GB of memory.

RAM format DDR4 - its capacity is 8 GB, there is another slot for installing an additional module. The laptop supports a maximum of 32 GB of RAM. The hard drive is designed to store 1 TB of data. The case has all the necessary volumes for connecting various external devices. The battery is non-removable; a full charge will be enough for 4.5 hours of continuous operation with an average processor load. The cooling system is powerful - this is very important for a gaming laptop; it is possible to regulate the fan speed.

Advantages:

• High build quality;
• Performance;
• When a mouse is connected, the touchpad is automatically disabled;
• Doesn't overheat;
• It runs all modern games well at the highest levels.

Flaws:

• Low battery capacity - you have to constantly charge it or even work from the network.

It is one of the best models in the inexpensive price segment. It won't handle powerful games, but it's perfect for work. The body is made of metal, with small plastic inserts, which ensures high durability of the product. The hinges are not very tight, the laptop can be opened even with one hand. The weight is small - 2.2 kg with overall dimensions of 378 * 260 * 229 mm. The keyboard is full-size, has an additional block, is assembled very neatly, does not make any extraneous sounds, and is equipped with a switchable backlight.

The basis is a dual-core Intel Core i5 processor with a clock frequency of 2.25 GHz, in turbo mode it accelerates to 3.1 GHz. There is a GeForce 940 MX graphics card with 2 GB of memory, DDR3 RAM - quite suitable for not too demanding games, and shows its capabilities well in graphics editors. 1 TB hard drive. The device practically does not heat up and makes minimal noise during operation.

Advantages:

• Metal body;
• Insignificant mass;
• Solid State Hard Drive;
• Articulated stand.

Flaws:

• There is no protective glass for the display;
• Not every user will find the keyboard comfortable;
• The body has sharp corners.

Beautiful design, like any product from an American company, low weight - only 920 g, which is very small for a laptop. The buttons on the keyboard are located almost at the same level as the panel and have a decent area, which will be convenient for users with large hands. There is only one USB port, so you will have to additionally buy a special adapter. The body is made of thin aluminum, the display diagonal is 12 inches with a resolution of 2304*1440 pixels, and has an oleophobic coating that protects against damage and repels dirt.

The central element of the laptop is the Intel Core M-5Y70 processor, the hard drive is designed for 512 GB, RAM is 8 GB. When the equipment is fully loaded, the bottom becomes very hot, which is why you will have to purchase a ventilating stand. It charges quickly: when turned off - in an hour and a half, when turned on - about two hours. In offline mode it can work up to 10 hours with active use.

Advantages:

• Appearance;
• High build quality;
• Ease of use;
• Insignificant mass.

Flaws:

• Cost (like all Apple brand products);
• An operating system that is different from what most Windows users are used to.

This is one of the best universal laptops - it is perfect for both work and play, it has a low cost and an attractive design - the plastic cover has two raised lines and red reflective stripes that create an imitation of backlighting. There are all the necessary connectors for connecting peripheral devices.

The display has a diagonal of 15.6 inches with a resolution of 1920x1080 pixels. It has a wide viewing angle and a matte coating that prevents glare - it's enough for games and movies, but its capabilities are not enough for color correction. Processor 4-core Intel Core i7 with a clock frequency of 2.8 GHz, in turbo mode it accelerates to 3.8 GHz. There are several model options depending on the amount of RAM - 8, 12 or 16 GB. The maximum hard drive capacity is 256 GB, which is not too much for a gaming model.

Advantages:

• The price is quite reasonable for its characteristics;
• Supports all modern games;
• Attractive appearance;
• Reliable cooling system;
• Light weight.

Flaws:

• Low battery capacity;
• Small hard drive capacity;
• Weak microphone and quiet speakers.

Excellent performance, elegance, slim shape, aluminum body - this is what characterizes this model, which took an honorable second place in the ranking of the best laptops for home and work. Weighs only one and a half kilograms, the display diagonal is 13.3 inches with a wide viewing angle. The device will cope perfectly with any task. It supports any application well, even those that require a significant amount of resources. The device has a sixth-generation Intel Core processor, up to 16 GB of RAM, and an integrated Nvidia GeForce 940 MX graphics card.

There are all the necessary connectors for connecting peripherals. The display has excellent color reproduction: it is able to reproduce 72% of NTSC colors, fully supports SRGB and 74% of Adobe RGB, making the device perfect for working with any format of graphic editors. The viewing angle is almost 180 degrees, there is an Eye Care mode that reduces eye fatigue when working on a laptop for long periods of time.

Advantages:

• Small size and weight;
• There are additional slots for installing additional RAM;
• Discrete graphics;
• Good sound quality;
• Beautiful appearance.

Flaws:

• Small hard drive capacity;
• The touchpad does not turn off when a mouse is connected.

This is a recognized leader among the most powerful laptops sold at a fairly reasonable price. In terms of performance, it is practically in no way inferior to modern gaming-type personal computers. Display diagonal 15.6 inches with a resolution of 1920*1080 pixels, quad-core processor with eight threads.

Nvidia GeForcce GTX 1050 Ti video card model, 8 GB of RAM, expandable up to 16 GB. 1 TB SSHD format hard drive with operating speed of 6 Gbit/s. The battery is reliable - even at maximum load, the device will work for about 2.5 hours in autonomous mode.

Advantages:

• High-quality assembly, without backlash;
• Beautiful appearance;
• Good hardware, works stably even at maximum load.

Flaws:

• Apart from the high price, no.

In order to choose the perfect inexpensive laptop, we spent around 100 hours analyzing and comparing various models. For our top cheap laptops of 2016, we evaluated almost 100 models. It's always difficult to find a decent cheap laptop, but in this article we will tell you about inexpensive models that exceeded all our expectations. We have compiled our rating that will help you make the right choice.

It's hard to definitively recommend just one cheap Windows laptop because manufacturers release new models and discontinue every week and prices can change overnight. We hope that the laptop we've chosen is still on sale when you read this article, but if not, we've found a few other inexpensive Windows laptops that we like. And since we can't guarantee that these specific models will always be cheap (or in stock), we've also put together some tips on what to look for when purchasing.

Are you sure that a budget laptop is right for you?

If you're shopping for a new computer, looking for a lower price is a smart move, but please don't try to buy a laptop for £15,000 (or less!), it's unlikely to give you what you want and will only frustrate you. you exactly from the moment you take it out of the box. Better spend another 5-10 thousand on a fairly powerful laptop that will be capable of almost everything, at least for the next couple of years. A decent laptop for RUB 35,000 is good for general web browsing and working with simple documents and spreadsheets, while a more expensive laptop will be able to handle more complex tasks, such as photo editing.

A budget laptop is a great choice if you're a student, for example, and need one device that can handle everything from running multiple web applications at once to basic video editing programs. Yes, it will be a little heavy to carry around, and the charge won’t last as long as expensive ultrabooks, but you can still use it in class if necessary.

What options do you have besides a laptop?

We still recommend saving up for a laptop like our favorite cheap ultrabook, the Asus ZenbookUX305UA, if you want a faster, much more portable laptop with longer battery life. On the other hand, a great budget laptop will have good performance and very good performance, and you'll save a lot of money.

Another device—a Chromebook, tablet, Ultrabook, or cheap gaming laptop—may be better for you than a budget laptop. Which one you choose depends on what apps and games you use, what you want from your device, how portable you want it to be, and how much you can afford to spend on it. A budget laptop is a great general-purpose device that does a lot of different things, but it's worth taking a few minutes to read our Which Laptop Should I Buy? guide, even if you think a budget laptop is totally right for you - just to make sure that you buy the device you need before you spend tens of thousands of rubles on it.

What makes a good budget laptop (minimum specs)

A great budget laptop combines the best benefits with the fewest drawbacks. Getting down to specifics, here are some minimum requirements where you should never compromise on your purchase. Go higher if you can, but never settle for less.

Without taking into account large discounts and rare exceptions, you must understand that choosing a budget Windows laptop with such characteristics and paying 35 thousand rubles is almost impossible. If it is cheaper, then the processor will not be powerful enough, and the RAM will be too small, in which case your laptop will seem slow now, and in a few years - simply unbearable. Weaker specs are not good enough for a primary computer that you want to use for a long period of time.

You will never be able to find the perfect budget laptop because if it had the perfect specs, it wouldn't be a budget laptop.

Read more about the required characteristics

Intel Skylake: the most advanced processor system to date

Laptops running on the latest Intel processors - Skylake - also provide maximum battery life. Last year they were rare and overpriced. Lots of laptops still use older Broadwell processors, and while these models offer slightly worse performance and higher power consumption, they work absolutely fine and you probably won't notice the difference. Laptops with AMD processors may be cheaper than laptops with Intel chips, but when we tested them last year, we found that laptops with AMD A8 Kaveri are not able to keep up with laptops based on Intel Broadwell processors. The A10 Kaveri series processors are better, but still slower than Broadwell (and they are not much cheaper either). For more information about top processors and what to choose, read the corresponding article.

How much RAM will be enough

This happens often. In fact, we encountered these problems with two laptops we wanted to recommend in our rankings last year: the Dell Inspiron 15 5000 disappeared without warning while we were writing our guide, and the Toshiba L50-CBT2N22 jumped from 30 thousand to 40 thousand rubles, and then dropped to 28 thousand right before we published this version of the guide. For now, Toshiba has completely stopped selling non-commercial computers in the United States. A depressing experience.. All this turns the purchase of an excellent budget laptop more into “waiting for the weather by the sea” than an impulse purchase. But we have some tips for making smart trades.

Once you've selected a few models that look promising, stop by your local M-Video, Media-Markt, Know-How or other store to get your hands on the devices. It is very important: a laptop may have brilliant specs, but a lousy trackpad or keyboard that can ruin everything. You should also pay attention to the quality of the screen. Most cheap laptops have low-quality screens with poor color reproduction and narrow viewing angles. Make sure you can live with such a screen.

Once your laptop arrives, carefully open the box, don't throw away any parts or components, and give it a thorough test drive. If you notice anything you don't like, return it to the manufacturer or store as soon as possible. If you wait, you won't be able to return it - some manufacturers only accept returns within two weeks.

Top budget laptops at the moment

In order to simplify your choice, we have compiled our own rating for you. So our Top 5 inexpensive but good laptops.

Lenovo IdeaPad 100S

Over the next few years of use, periodically check and install the latest drivers for all internal components of your laptop. Some manufacturers pre-install update utilities that automatically check for new drivers. If your laptop can’t do this and starts to glitch - the screen flickers, the speakers crunch, or other mysterious things happen - take a look at the technical section. Contact your laptop manufacturer's support website to find the latest versions of your laptop's drivers and utilities.

If a Windows update or new driver unexpectedly causes problems, say if you can no longer connect to a Wi-Fi network, or if your laptop won't log out, you'll want to hunt down the specific driver component that's causing it. If possible, you should use the drivers provided by the laptop manufacturer, but contacting the component manufacturer is a good troubleshooting method if Plan A fails.

What else will we update in this review in the near future?

So far, based on our research, the HP Pavilion x360 13 seems to be the best cheap convertible laptop (with a 360-degree rotation so it can function as both a laptop and a tablet) - it has an Intel Core i3-6100U processor. 6 GB of RAM, Wi-Fi 802.11ac, and the choice of a 500 GB hard drive or a 128 GB SSD and a 1366x768 or 1920x1080 screen. We spent some time with it in the store and found the keyboard, touchscreen, and build quality to be quite satisfactory, but the trackpad was a bit laggy. This could be a problem for both the laptop and just a worn-out display sample, so we'll need to tinker with it a little longer before making a firm recommendation. We will update this guide as more information becomes available.

Choosing a laptop is quite a difficult task for the average user. When choosing a laptop, you must proceed from the conditions in which you will use it. Which characteristics can be neglected, and which ones need special attention? Let's take a closer look at how to choose a laptop for home use.

Manufacturer selection

You shouldn't expect too high quality from Chinese crafts and nameless companies. Although some models really deserve attention, they are an order of magnitude behind the products of corporate “monsters”.

In order to decide on a brand, check out.

What should the technical specifications be?

If everything is quite simple with the brand, then with various internal components it is more complicated. The most important points to pay attention to:

• CPU
• video card
• RAM
• hard drive capacity (hard drive)
• hard drive memory type

Processor parameters

The processor is the central device of a laptop, on which its performance largely depends, so it is important to choose it carefully. When choosing a processor, you need to rely on the following parameters:

• Manufacturer
• Number of Cores
• Frequency

Which manufacturer is better?

In the world of processors, there is an eternal confrontation between two giants - Intel and Amd. You could talk for a very long time about the difference between the processors of these two manufacturers, but it would take several more pages, so we have prepared a special one for you.

How many cores should there be?

Processors with two cores (the most common of them are Intel Pentium and AMD (model A4 and A6)) are ideal for watching movies, surfing the Internet and office documents.

If the laptop will be used as a gaming laptop, then you need to choose models with 4 cores or more.

You should not opt ​​for a laptop with an Intel Atom or AMD E-series processor, since even the most ordinary browser will slow down. These types were specifically created for netbooks that were released a few years ago.

Intel Core series processors deserve special attention, namely the Core i3, Core i5, Core i7 models. There are models with two and four cores. Their advantage is multi-threaded data processing, which means higher operating speed.

What should the processor frequency be?

The frequency, depending on the exact model, ranges from 2.1 to 4 GHz. High frequency and multi-threading create optimal conditions for working with various photo and video editors, as well as for games. In order to decide on the parameter you need, read the following.

Video card

The choice of video card manufacturers for laptops is small:

• Nvidia GeForce;
• ATI (from AMD);
• Intel.

Here it is worth paying attention to what type of video card it is: integrated (part of the processor and has low performance) or discrete (a separate board that works independently and can easily handle 3D graphics processing). For games and working with video editors, the second type is more suitable.

Video memory capacity

The choice of video memory will directly depend on how you will use the laptop. To work with office documents and the Internet, up to 1 gigabyte of memory inclusive will be enough.

If you like to play, then you need at least 2 GB. This volume is due to the fact that, with the same model, desktop PCs and laptops differ significantly in performance. In the latter they are much inferior.

Hard disk memory capacity

The volume of the internal storage will determine how many movies, photos, music, documents and various files you can store on your laptop.

You also need to pay attention to the presence of a solid state drive (SSD). It significantly increases the cost of the laptop, but having such a disk will help significantly speed up the operation of the laptop.

RAM

Each open tab in Google Chrome consumes about 50 megabytes of RAM, not to mention programs and games that can take up 1.5-2 GB of RAM in a matter of minutes. For a laptop used for work, 2-4 GB is enough, for gaming – from 6 GB.

External interfaces

There is no point in talking about the presence of a USB port, since at least one connector is present on any laptop, but it is worth paying attention to the presence of an HDMI output. It allows you to display an image from a laptop monitor to a TV, or connect another device with an HDMI input (monitor, projector, etc.)

Choosing a laptop for work and home is a rather difficult task, since it is worth considering not only external data, but also the internal characteristics of the device.