(intro)
Hey how's it going guys, this is Dave2D,
so school is just around the corner,
and people are looking for some inexpensive laptop options,
so I thought I'd go through a list of some devices that
I think are some of the better valued options
In this space right now.
So first up is the Acer R11 Chromebook -
it's the cheapest device
in this video, so if you just need something portable
that will get you through the school year,
this might do it - it only runs chrome.
If you need to run a specific windows application
for your course or something,
that's not going to work, but
if you're just looking for email, word processing,
spreadsheets or media consumption,
Chromebooks can be great.
There are some cheap Windows laptops out there,
like the HP stream,
but at this price point I prefer Chromebooks
for just overall usability and performance.
The R11 has a good keyboard and trackpad,
good performance,
a fully rotating hinge a touchscreen, so
it can be used as a tablet, and it has a 7 hour battery.
There is no keyboard backlighting,
and keep in mind it is an 11.6 inch screen,
so it is a little small, but
overall, it's a pretty good device for the money.
Next up is the Dell Chromebook 13.
Functionally, it's the same idea as the Acer R11,
it is a chromebook so it's focused on productivity and media consumption again,
but this one costs a hundred dollars more.
and for the extra money,
you get a really nice 13 inch screen,
excellent build quality,
it has the same carbon fibre finish as the XPS systems,
the backlit keyboard and the trackpad are surprisingly good,
but this time, there is no rotating hinge and no touchscreens, so
there's no tablet mode,
but it has a crazy long battery life -
you can comfortably hit 10 hours of regular use
One thing to keep in mind about both of these Chromebooks
is if you want to store a lot of files locally,
pick up a microSD card because
the internal storage is very small.
Ok, the next device I want to talk about is the Acer E15.
It's a full blown Windows laptop,
and I think it's the best device on this list
for someone who want a cheap gaming laptop.
So this thing has a Skylake i5, an SSD, a GTX 950M,
for 600 dollars.
There is a cheaper model at 500 dollars, but
that one is running the noticeably smaller 940M
and it's got a slower hard drive.
I'd try to get this one, it's just a better value overall.
It also has lots of ports, even USB-C,
a decent keyboard and trackpad,
but there are a couple things I don't love about it.
The screen isn't super bright and it has limited viewing angles,
and the battery life is pretty short.
I can get around 3 hours of regular use,
but for 600 dollars you're getting very good performance.
So, if you're on a tighter budget and you want to play games or edit videos,
check out the E15.
(gunfire)
If you're looking for a light-weight ultra-poortable,
The Lenovo 710S is a really good option.
It's thin and light with good performance.
It's not as good as an XPS 13, the drive is slower,
but it's a more affordable option without sacrificing too much on performance.
The build quality is good, not amazing,
but the screen has thin bezels,
if thin and light performance is something you really want,
you should check that one out.
There's also the ASUS UX360,
This was also priced at 700 dollars,
but it's running a core m3 chip, so
it's not as powerful.
it's got good build quality, lots of ports,
and a nice screen.
This one has no fan because it's running the core m,
so it's silent and it gets you 6 and a half hours of battery life.
But, the most important feature of this thing is itherotating hinge.
It adds some extra functionality. And, because it's a relatively light device,
it's surprisingly comfortable to use as a tablet.
The Dell Inspiron 7559 is also a good laptop for students,
it's 800 dollars though,
so quite a bit lot more expensive than the Acer E15
I mentioned earlier,
but for the extra money you're getting better performance,
better build quality and much better battery life.
You'll get around 5 or 6 hours of regular use.
If you want to learn more about the 7559
or any of the devices I've listed in this video,
check the video description below,
I've done reviews for most of them so I'll post them there.
I do want to mention a few things about some other devices.
Okay, the Surface Pro 4 -
it's a really nice 2-in-1,
but it's expensive.
So, if you're a college or a grad student
and your budget is a little higher,
go for it - I still think it's one of the best all round devices -
it's just pricey and overkill for a lot of students
There's also the cheaper Surface 3 -
it has a 10 inch screen, and
the kickstand has set positions.
So, you might be able to make it work,
but in general it's tough to use a device with a 10 inch screen
as your daily driver in school.
And then there's the Razer Blade Stealth.
You can try to con your parents into getting you one for school,
It's not a bad option for what you're getting,
it's actually a pretty good value.
But, remember it's an ultrabook
without a dedicated graphics chip,
so, you can't really play games without the Razer Core.
And that's it, hope you guys enjoyed this video,
thumbs if you liked it, subs if you loved it,
it's been nice,
see you guys next time.
(outro)