There has perhaps never been a better time to buy a laptop, as the quality and performance improves the prices remain very competitive. Here is a list of the best budget laptops. All are priced between £250-400 at the time of writing. So although these aren’t the absolute cheapest ones on the market you get a very good piece of equipment for your money. Definitely worth the extra 50 or 100 pounds over the cheapest.
Acer Aspire 5336
3GB of RAM, 250GB hard drive and Windows 7 Edition Home Premium, this is nicely specced laptop for this amount of money. If you are looking for a fairly speedy laptop, but at a cheap price, this is a great one for you. It is a popular selling unit and the customer reviews shower it in high praise.
Compaq CQ56-253
This one has an even better spec, although it does cost quite a bit more, this lappy packs a healthy 4GB of RAM, 500GB hard drive and an AMD Dual core P360 Processor. It has a simple but smart black design. Compaq tout one of its biggest features as being great for watching videos and DVDs, may be good if you’re a YouTube regular. It is also an ENERGY STAR qualified product so should save you a few pennies on the house bills if that’s what bothers you.
HP G62-B27SA
Next up is this handsome little fella from HP. Not too dissimilar in spec from the above Compaq, as you would expect at this price point. It has been praised for its light weight and great design. A few negative comments have mentioned the keyboard isn’t the easiest to use, so if you’re a heavy typer perhaps go for another model.
Lenovo Ideapad S205
Only a tiddler with an 11.6″ screen. This does have a more funky design then those previously covered above. Featuring the AccuType keyboard which has individual rounded keys this gets high praise from customers. Being small and light, yet still with a decent battery life, it is good if you like to carry yours around on your travels and to friends.
Acer Aspire 5742
Similar to the very laptop I am using to write this article, in my experience these are fantastic laptops! Well-built, and good specs at excellent prices. They may not be the most special to use (I don’t like the 2 buttons below the touchpad) but the value for money on these things is fantastic – hence why I felt the need to include 2 Acers in this 1 article!
Final Thoughts
As with all computers, it is good practice to assess your needs, budget, and what is available before parting with your hard earned cash. All these laptops have their uses, and it is fairly straight forward as to what machine is suited to what task.
Perhaps the biggest problem in this range is that the machines capabilities and specifications tend to merge into one and become very similar. In this instance, perhaps it is simply a question of what features come with the laptop. Warranty agreements would be a good example of a good feature to look at.
We have based the list on research into consumer reviews and features for your money. But nothing can replace having a go on them yourself, so if possible take a look at them in a retailers shop, or try out friends if they have one of these.
Got an opinion or question about any of these products? You are welcome to post them below.
About Author: Richard is an experienced freelance writer.