Before you buy a cheap laptop

Some cheap laptops take advantage of Intel's second-generation Sandy Bridge processors, which make great strides in overall performance and battery life. However, you won't find those processors in the cheapest cheap laptops, which continue to use last-generation technology. On the lowest end, cheap laptops might be outfitted with low-powered AMD or Intel Pentium processors, which are only suited to basic computing tasks.

Such laptops have significant drawbacks, but they can be acceptable for those who only want to surf the web or send emails. Just be aware that laptops under $400 often lack common features such as webcams, and their lower-powered processors slow to a crawl when running multiple applications at once.

Almost all cheap laptops have one-year limited warranties. Often, those warranties can be extended, but the cost is usually steep compared to the purchase price. If you buy a $600 laptop, it might make more sense to forgo an extended warranty and accept the risk that you'll need to replace rather than fix it if it needs an expensive repair after the manufacturer's warranty has expired.

Purchasing a cheap laptop doesn't mean forgoing performance and features. Experts say:

  • Pick the right processor. Most users will do just fine with a first-generation Intel Core i3 processor. It provides sufficient power for everyday computing, web browsing and more, and it won't falter when multitasking, though gaming will be limited to less demanding titles. If you have the budget and the need, budget laptops with second-generation Core i5 processors are available as well, and those provide a notable performance boost. Consumer ultra-low voltage (CULV) processors don't perform quite as well as even first-generation Core processors, but they allow for long battery life and light weight. Other processors, including AMD's Turion II, Intel's Celeron and single-core Pentium CPUs, are generally less powerful and less desirable, unless you are on the tightest of budgets.
  • Get at least 2 GB of RAM. Get as much RAM as you can afford; 2 GB is essential for running Windows 7, according to experts. More RAM will allow you to work in more open applications at once without system drag. All but the cheapest cheap laptops now come with 2 GB of memory, and many budget models now boast up to 4, 6 or even 8 GB.
  • A bigger hard drive is better but not essential. Even the cheapest laptops have 320 GB hard drives, which will hold thousands of MP3s and photographs. However, if your laptop is going to be your primary computer, or if you anticipate storing large files such as videos, consider a choice with more capacity.
  • Cheap laptops aren't a good choice for 3D gaming. Though there are some exceptions, cheap laptops usually only include integrated graphics solutions or lower-end discrete graphics cards, which lack the power to adequately handle demanding 3D games. If a satisfying high-end gaming experience is a must, look for laptops with suitable discrete graphics cards and dedicated video memory. Of course, such laptops will also be more expensive than those covered here. See our report on more powerful laptop computers for more information.
  • Get the connectivity options you need. Even cheap laptops come with built-in wireless networking, which lets you connect to a Wi-Fi network without any additional hardware. If you plan to connect to the Internet with a dial-up modem, be aware that many laptops no longer include a modem. Ethernet connectors for broadband are standard, but you should verify that a laptop under consideration has one. Built-in WiMAX for connecting to broadband 4G networks (where available) is also appearing in a few cheap laptops, though you'll also need to spring for a wireless data plan to take advantage of that. A few cheap laptops include a Bluetooth radio. Some also include a Firewire port (for connecting a digital camcorder or other device), an ExpressCard port for system expansion and an HDMI output for sending video to an HDTV. A few also have Intel WiDi technology, which allows you to stream video to a TV without a connecting cable, though an adapter for the TV is needed to use it (*Est. $80).
  • Many cheap laptops lack features. One way makers cut the price of cheap laptops is by eliminating some features -- including ones that have become standards. Examples include webcams and memory-card readers, and we've seen some reviews from disappointed users who didn't realize those were missing until after they got their purchase home.

Windows 8 is on the horizon

Most cheap laptops you'll find on store shelves run the Windows 7 Home Premium operating system, but the next iteration of Windows is expected to launch in 2012. Should potential upgraders be worried that Windows 8 won't run on their budget laptop that runs on low-end components?

For the most part, the answer is no. Microsoft has said that any computer that can run Windows 7 will be able to run Windows 8 as well. The new OS requires a 1 GHz processor, 1 GB of memory and 16 GB of storage for the 32-bit version, or 2 GB of RAM and 32 GB of disk space for the 64-bit version. Even the cheapest laptops covered in this report can handle those loads, although the cheaper Toshiba Satellite models available at Walmart and Best Buy may be a bit constrained by their 1 GHz AMD processors.

For more information and up to the minute news about the upcoming operating system, visit Microsoft's "Building Windows 8" blog.

Back to top