The Best Bargain Laptops
Every month, Notebookcheck reviews various affordable devices that have to undergo the exact same tests and identical review process as their premium siblings. The price bracket of less than 600 Euros is occupied by a number of notebooks made by various manufacturers competing for the price-conscious customer’s attention. Constant marketing emphasizing Gigahertz and Gigabytes carries the risk to lose sight of what is really important in a notebook. The following top lists might be interesting for your purchase decision as well:
The Best Cheap Notebooks For Less Than 600 Euros
The table above contains an overview over the best notebooks for less than 500 Euros reviewed by Notebookcheck over the course of the past 12 months as well as still relevant and available older products. In cases of identical score the more recent device is listed first. All prices in above table and price comparisons are updated daily and can thus differ.
Link: all devices in this class reviewed
Editors' Comments
At least we have one addition to our list in February: The Ninkear A15 Plus from China. Normally, devices from the Far East have serious shortcomings in terms of hardware equipment or workmanship in order to achieve a low price, but the Ninkear model proves to be surprisingly good in the test and therefore comes in at number 3. Due to a lack of alternatives, we are leaving both the Lenovo V14 and the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 on our list for the time being, even though their test in February is celebrating its 1-year anniversary. The review of the Lenovo IdeaPad Gaming Chromebook 16, on the other hand, dates back to January last year, and we are replacing the former number 3 with the Ninkear.
Alternatives that just did not make it into the list:
Former top ten devices up to 600 Euros:
1st – Dell Inspiron 14 7435 (R5 7530U, Vega 7)
The Dell Inspiron 14 7435 2-in-1 costs only half as much as many popular alternatives with 360-degree hinges. In terms of performance, our $550 Ryzen 5 Inspiron 14 7435 2-in-1 is just as good as the $800 Core i5 Inspiron 14 7430 2-in-1, with no compromises in battery life, display quality, speakers or other physical features.
The Ryzen 5 configuration is perfectly tuned to perform just as well as the Core i5 configuration for hundreds of dollars less. However, the costly RAM upgrades and weak touchscreen drag the model down a bit.
Currently, the Inspiron 14 7435 is now customizable via Dell's official webstore, with prices starting at $699.
Pricecompare
2nd – Huawei MateBook D 15
The Huawei MateBook D 15 office laptop convinces with a low price of 549 Euros, remains exceptionally quiet with a high system performance, offers a chic metal case and a matte IPS display with sufficient brightness. Keyboard and touchpad of the very portable 15.6-inch notebook are also convincing.
The robust Huawei MateBook D 15 (2021) is a compact and very quiet office companion with a good price-performance ratio.
Huawei devices are not available in North America. In the UK, Huawei offers the MateBook D 15 (2022) in Mystic Silver, with a Core i5-1155G7 for around £500.
Pricecompare
3rd – Ninkear A15 Plus (R7 5700U)
"Surprisingly good and inexpensive" was the title of our author's review of this Chinese banger. The Ninkear A15 Plus has more than enough power for everyday use, is quiet, has a powerful keyboard and an attractive light metal casing. Our version of the Ninkear A15 Plus is available from various retailers for a good 500 euros. In our test, the laptop is clearly a top performer in terms of price/performance, although there are some compromises to be made compared to the inexpensive device with AMD Ryzen 7.
The Ninkear A15 Plus proved to be a useful laptop for the home office in our test. Good performance meets an appealing design. The loudspeakers, WLAN and screen brightness have to be compromised.
Unfortunately, our 16+512 configuration of the Ninkear A15 Plus is currently out of stock almost everywhere. Another configuration currently costs around $615 at Tomtop with shipping from a German warehouse.
Pricecompare
4th – Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14 (R3 5300U, Vega 6)
The smooth-running Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14 AMD offers all the important core aspects of an office laptop for a low price of mostly under 500 Euros: a sufficiently bright IPS display, high CPU power, really good input devices and expandable work and mass storage. Unlike the other IdeaPad 3 further down in our list, the AMD model has a Ryzen 3 5300U installed instead of a weaker Intel Celeron 6305.
If you are looking for an inexpensive mobile companion, the Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14 AMD meets all the important criteria.
Currently, various configurations of Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14 is available on Amazon US, prices starting at $499.
Pricecompare
5th – Lenovo V14 Gen 2 (Pentium Silver N6000)
The Lenovo V14 G2 costs only €349 (~$371) and gets a passive cooling, offers a good keyboard and some expansion options, while the Intel Pentium Silver N6000 quad core is sufficient for office tasks. However, the use on the external display should be in the foreground.
The Lenovo V14 is a silent and inexpensive office machine for primarily docked use.
In the US, the Lenovo V14 Gen 2 with Pentium Silver N6000 is hard to purchase at the time of writing.
Pricecompare
6th – Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 3 CB (MediaTek Kompanio 520, Mali-G52 MP2)
For 250 euros, the Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 3 CB 14M868 can only really be a Chromebook. A Full HD display, 8-core CPU, thin and visually appealing casing sound tempting for the cheapest notebook on the market. We bought the laptop new from Amazon for an incredible 100 euros on Black Friday.
However, the long battery life and the silent and cool operation, even under load, are pleasing.
We bought the IdeaPad Slim 3 CB from Amazon for an unbeatable 100 euros on Black Friday. It currently costs 170 euros there. The 128 GB version is only listed at around 300 euros and the version with IPS touchscreen is currently not available in Germany. Depending on the price and requirements, the IdeaPad can definitely be a bargain.
At the time of writing, Amazon US offers the Lenovo IdeaPad Slim CB for $220.
Pricecompare
7th – Asus Chromebook CM14 (MediaTek Kompanio 520, Mali-G52 MP2)
The Asus CM14 is an entry-level Chromebook. However, it also has advantages such as 12 hours of battery life and a 10-year update guarantee. The Asus CM14 (CM1402C) has an RRP of 299 euros, but it has also been sold several times for 150 euros by well-known retailers. This makes the CM14 one of the cheapest notebooks, and its performance must be rated accordingly.
If you can live with the dark display and slow memory, the Asus CM14 is a durable and affordable Chromebook with long-term update support.
The Asus Chromebook CM 14 is available through the usual retail channels, including Amazon US. Alternatively, users can order the laptop via Asus's official online store.
Pricecompare
8th – ACEMAGIC Ace AX15
ACEMagician, known as a mini PC manufacturer, now has an office laptop in its portfolio with the ACEMAGIC Ace AX15, which is based on the Intel N95 with Alder Lake N genes. The ACEMAGIC Ace AX15 comes with 16 GB of working memory and 512 GB of mass storage for currently 399 Euros. Thus, the device is well equipped for simple office work.
With the Intel N95, the ACEMAGIC Ace AX15 offers a very frugal SoC with an adequate performance and surprises with a high-quality material selection.
The laptop is currently not yet available in North America.
Pricecompare
9th – HP Chromebook 15a (Celeron N4500, UHD 16 EUs)
The HP Chromebook 15a is an affordable entry into the online world for students and anyone looking for an inexpensive device for Internet access. In terms of design, the Chromebook 15a does everything right and should be able to withstand the careless handling of a young student. The 2x2 WLAN card ensures proper networking without any serious loss of speed. The input devices are sufficient for school use.
The HP Chromebook 15a brings the ease and simplicity of Chrome OS to students and casual web surfers. It tries to offer a low-cost internet journey, but takes too many detours.
Some variants of HP Chromebook 15a 2023 are available through the usual retail channels, for example Amazon US lists a Pentium N200-powered SKU for $340.
Pricecompare
10th – HP 250 G9 (i3-1215U, UHD 64EUs)
With the 250 G9, HP offers an affordable 15.6-inch office laptop that is equipped with a Core i3 processor from Intel and a matte IPS display for around 400 euros. The Core i3 processor in particular sets the laptop apart from other laptops in this price range, which are often only equipped with Celeron or Pentium chips.
An inexpensive laptop for the home office: HP 250 G9 offers sufficient performance for everyday use with the Core i3 processor and the subjective image quality of the matte IPS panel is okay. However, the fan can quickly become annoying.
Currently, the device is currently unavailable on common retailers.
Pricecompare
Test Results
Dell Inspiron 14 7435 2-in-1 | Huawei MateBook D 15 2023-53013BSJ | Ninkear A15 Plus (16+512) | Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14ALC6-82KT0077GE | Lenovo V14 G2 IJL-82QX002LGE | Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 3 CB 14M868 | Asus Chromebook CM14 CM1402CM2A-EK0048 | ACEMagician Ace AX15, N95 | HP Chromebook 15a-n0008TU | HP 250 G9 7N029ES | |
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Display | ||||||||||
Display P3 Coverage | 44.4 | 40.7 | 39.04 | 35.8 | 36.6 | 39.6 | 43.3 | |||
sRGB Coverage | 64.4 | 60.6 | 58.06 | 53.6 | 55 | 54.35 | 58.6 | 64.8 | ||
AdobeRGB 1998 Coverage | 45.8 | 42 | 40.34 | 37 | 37.8 | 37.54 | 40.9 | 44.7 | ||
Response Times | ||||||||||
Response Time Grey 50% / Grey 80% * | 19.6 ? | 10 ? | 25 ? | 34 ? | 41 ? | 39.3 ? | 37 ? | 31 ? | 38.33 ? | 31.9 ? |
Response Time Black / White * | 19.3 ? | 11 ? | 14 ? | 25 ? | 13 ? | 9.4 ? | 22.4 ? | 18 ? | 9.61 ? | 21.6 ? |
PWM Frequency | 6000 ? | 24800 ? | ||||||||
Screen | ||||||||||
Brightness middle | 231.8 | 291 | 254 | 327 | 262 | 281 | 230 | 229 | 260 | 281 |
Brightness | 216 | 271 | 244 | 313 | 231 | 259 | 204 | 219 | 233 | 257 |
Brightness Distribution | 87 | 82 | 89 | 87 | 82 | 85 | 81 | 91 | 81 | 82 |
Black Level * | 0.27 | 0.18 | 0.1587 | 0.33 | 0.415 | 0.45 | 0.433 | 0.2 | 0.5 | 0.16 |
Contrast | 859 | 1617 | 1601 | 991 | 631 | 624 | 531 | 1145 | 520 | 1756 |
Colorchecker dE 2000 * | 6.59 | 4.99 | 7.42 | 7.91 | 10.39 | 12.4 | 8.91 | 4.08 | 13.2 | 4.7 |
Colorchecker dE 2000 max. * | 16.83 | 17.99 | 19.74 | 20.73 | 20.84 | 21.9 | 19.81 | 6.67 | 21.27 | 18 |
Colorchecker dE 2000 calibrated * | 3.94 | 4.21 | 5.72 | 4.1 | 3.7 | |||||
Greyscale dE 2000 * | 4.5 | 2.98 | 5 | 5.71 | 13.22 | 13.2 | 10.3 | 1.91 | 14.1 | 3.6 |
Gamma | 2.17 101% | 2.37 93% | 1.855 119% | 2.11 104% | 2.35 94% | 2.239 98% | 2.47 89% | 2.47 89% | 2.2 100% | |
CCT | 6110 106% | 7045 92% | 6421 101% | 6437 101% | 11697 56% | 11724 55% | 6764 96% | 15924 41% | 7267 89% | |
Noise | ||||||||||
off / environment * | 22.8 | 26 | 24.78 | 26 | 25.1 | 24.3 | ||||
Idle Minimum * | 23.2 | 26 | 24.78 | 26 | 25.1 | 24.3 | ||||
Idle Average * | 23.2 | 26 | 27.6 | 26 | 25.2 | 24.3 | ||||
Idle Maximum * | 23.2 | 26 | 26.5 | 26 | 25.2 | 28.2 | ||||
Load Average * | 33 | 42.6 | 34.38 | 33 | 28.5 | 45.2 | ||||
Witcher 3 ultra * | 40.9 | 45.2 | ||||||||
Load Maximum * | 41.3 | 43 | 34.58 | 48 | 42.2 | 45.2 | ||||
Heat | ||||||||||
Maximum Upper Side * | 35.2 | 37.6 | 37 | 37.1 | 40.3 | 32 | 30.4 | 38.2 | 37.8 | 35.1 |
Maximum Bottom * | 38.2 | 38.5 | 33 | 41.9 | 46.1 | 33 | 37.1 | 37.7 | 33.6 | 44.8 |
Idle Upper Side * | 31.2 | 28.5 | 23.5 | 27.9 | 29.4 | 26 | 21.8 | 33.8 | 28 | 25.7 |
Idle Bottom * | 30.4 | 28.4 | 28.1 | 29.6 | 31.9 | 27 | 25.9 | 33.3 | 28.2 | 26.5 |
Battery Runtime | ||||||||||
Reader / Idle | 1192 | 527 | ||||||||
WiFi v1.3 | 668 | 588 | 634 | 502 | 372 | 866.6 | 725 | 344 | 490 | 361 |
Load | 120 | 94 | 89 | 118 | 120 | |||||
H.264 | 724 | 348 | ||||||||
Power Consumption | ||||||||||
Idle Minimum * | 5.3 | 4.2 | 4.8 | 4 | 8.3 | 2.9 | 3.03 | 8 | 2.82 | 3.6 |
Idle Average * | 9.1 | 7.5 | 5.4 | 6.7 | 11 | 4.6 | 5.7 | 8.5 | 6.77 | 7.8 |
Idle Maximum * | 9.4 | 8.7 | 7.7 | 8.2 | 11.3 | 5.1 | 7.7 | 8.7 | 6.67 | 8.1 |
Load Average * | 54.9 | 37 | 36.05 | 29.5 | 16.4 | 11.3 | 8.7 | 20.2 | 12.33 | 34.7 |
Witcher 3 ultra * | 45 | 35.6 | 28.9 | 16.5 | 34.9 | |||||
Load Maximum * | 55.8 | 64.6 | 62 | 48 | 32 | 14.1 | 11.1 | 35.3 | 14.11 | 44.6 |
* ... smaller is better
Benchmarks
3DMark | |
1280x720 Cloud Gate Standard Score (sort by value) | |
Dell Inspiron 14 7435 2-in-1 | |
Huawei MateBook D 15 2023-53013BSJ | |
Ninkear A15 Plus (16+512) | |
Lenovo IdeaPad 3 14ALC6-82KT0077GE | |
Lenovo V14 G2 IJL-82QX002LGE | |
ACEMagician Ace AX15, N95 | |
1280x720 Ice Storm Standard Score (sort by value) | |
ACEMagician Ace AX15, N95 |