You’re a student and you want a 2-in-1 laptop which you can use conveniently for school and also within your budget of $500? I’ve got you covered. 2-in-1 are laptops with a touchscreen display and an adjustable display panel. You can set them on your table like a regular laptop but they have customized display panel hinges that can bend up to 270 degrees. These laptops are the go-to laptops for students as they can be folded to mimic a tablet. Some have detachable displays should you want to do without the keyboard.
1. Dell Inspiron 14
In Dell’s laptop lineup, the Inspiron 14 2-in-1 sits in an unexpected location. While Dell’s Inspiron line is usually reserved for the company’s cheapest and clumsiest consumer-grade computers, the Inspiron 14 2-in-1 borrows a few features from higher-end laptops, such as a metal lid, a fingerprint reader, surprisingly good speakers, and a sharp touchscreen that flips around into tablet mode. However, a closer examination reveals the compromises.
The 1080p touchscreen features a glossy surface and is edge-to-edge glass, adding to the laptop’s luxury appearance. Even so, with a peak brightness of 250 nits, this is a screen whose brightness you’ll want to keep all the way up in bright situations, and you’ll probably wish it could get a little brighter.
In the meanwhile, AMD’s integrated Radeon graphics aren’t up to the task of intense gaming. The Inspiron 14 2-in-1 features a 54,000 Whr battery, which places it in the center of the pack for thin-and-light laptops in terms of battery life. It’s a well-built laptop with good performance, a convertible touchscreen, loudspeakers, and a fingerprint reader. However, the compromises you’ll make to save money—most notably the dull display and stiff trackpad—might prevent you from falling in love with it altogether.
2. HP X360 14a Chromebook
The Chromebook x360 14a has 4GB of RAM and 64GB of eMMC storage and is finished in sleek metallic silver. In terms of memory and storage, it’s towards the bottom of the barrel, but it’ll do for the cloud-based chores that Chrome OS is known for.
It uses an Intel Pentium Silver N5000, a quad-core budget CPU common in many low-cost laptops, to work as both a tablet and a laptop. This Pentium isn’t a particularly capable processor, but it outperforms its much cheaper Celeron relatives, which are included in the cheapest Chromebooks alongside low-end chips from MediaTek.
The 1.1GHz processor in the HP x360 14a delivers surprisingly quick performance, but for only $30 more, you can upgrade to a variant with a Pentium Silver N5030 processor. You’ll be using Google’s Chrome OS and spending time with Gmail, Google Workspace, Google Play, and YouTube regardless of the chip configuration. For casual internet users, especially those who are already accustomed to Google’s software architecture, it’s more than enough.
Many popular programs have Android equivalents available as apps or extensions in the Google Play Store, so you should be able to match the capability of a budget Windows laptop with only a few downloads.
3. HP Pavilion x360
The HP Pavilion was originally released at $599, by now it would be much cheaper and worthy enough to fit into our list. Do note that there are several grades for this laptop, meaning the laptop price may vary depending on the grade you’re getting.
The HP Pavilion x360 features a mid-grade processor- an Intel 11th generation. Although, the corei3 processor is a high-end corei3 processor which can multi-task steadily and performs much better than its predecessors and older versions of its successors like the older corei5 models. It houses a single 8GB RAM with an extra slot for expansion which makes this laptop a good buy.
It also features an Intel UHD Graphics which would be able to run some mid-range games and video editing tasks. it comes with HDMI 2.0 ports, and 3 USB ports(2 Type-A ports and 1 Type C). It supports a 3.5mm Headphone jack and also comes with Bluetooth and Wi-Fi pre-installed.
The display type is not one of the best out there as it is a LED display with 1080 pixel resolution. Even though at that cost, we aren’t expecting a top-notch display on the device. It comes with 256GB SSD storage. It should be enough for regular tasks but if you need more, be reading to pay some extra dollars.
4. Acer Chromebook Spin 514
This Acer has a quad-core, 2.1GHz AMD Ryzen 5 3500C processor with Radeon Vega 8 integrated graphics, which AMD designed specifically for Chromebooks.
The laptop features an a14-inch Corning Gorilla Glass display with a 1920 x 1080 pixel resolution. The display is foldable and can be folded to mimic a tablet. Technically, it’s called a 2-in-1 laptop that was designed to feel comfortable in your hands. The display is brilliant, it boasts a decent brightness, rich contrast with saturated colors, with a nice-looking background on the interface of the OS.
On the right side of the laptop are mounted the USB 3.2 Type C-Port, a volume rocker, HDMI port, and a security lock slot which works great in tablet mode. On the left side, you find the android-feel of the laptop. Here, you find the power button, earphone jack, MicroSD card slot, and a USB 3.2 Type-A port.
The keyboard takes the form of a typical Chromebook layout giving the laptop an “Android texture” with its menu key, and volume control buttons located on the top row. On the display panel, there is also a 720p webcam which we already know isn’t going to work magic but would still be functional and reliable.
5. Asus Chromebook Flip C433
With an Intel Core m3-8100Y CPU and 8GB of RAM, the Asus Chromebook Flip C433 offers adequate power to comfortably browse the web while performing basic chores. according to a review done by difitweak.com, It can open 18 Google Chrome tabs quickly and watch a 1080p feed of BBC’s Planet Earth II in the background while three other HD videos stream. Although there is a minor slowness when switching between tabs, the Chromebook Flip C433 performs admirably overall.
Like other Chromebooks, it runs on the lightweight Operating System by Google, Chome OS. It features touch-screen capabilities, as we’ve come to expect from current Chromebooks, so you can use your fingers to navigate around online pages, documents, or play games from the Android store.
The keyboard and huge trackpad are available if you prefer more traditional methods. Using the former seems a little squishy at first, but we quickly got used to it and discovered it to be a quick and precise platform. The keys are illuminated, and you can adjust the brightness with the brightness keys while holding down the Alt key.
The C433 is powered by an Intel Core m3-8100Y processor that runs at 1.1GHz. This isn’t the quickest chip on the market, but considering the main tasks a Chromebook is designed to perform – such as generating documents, spreadsheets, accessing the web, watching Netflix, using social media, and other similar tasks – it should be sufficient for most people.
6. Lenovo Ideapad 3
Lenovo’s IdeaPad laptops are similar to Dell’s Inspiron or HP’s Pavilion series, which are intermediate to low-end computers with a wide variety of prices, sizes, and capabilities. With an AMD Ryzen 5 5500U engine, 8GB of DDR4 RAM, and 256GB of SSD storage, the IdeaPad 3 14 sits comfortably on the cusp of both worlds at roughly $500.
The memory and storage capacities are on the low side—these days, we like 16GB of RAM and 512GB of solid-state storage. However, the lower figures are standard for laptops in this price range, and the processor is the star here.
Despite being based on the older AMD Zen 2 architecture, AMD’s Ryzen mobile CPUs have become formidable in recent years, and the 5500U still performs well and is a commanding starting point in the budget-laptop market. Overall, the six-core, 12-thread CPU provides plenty of power to do simple internet and word processing chores, as well as fairly complicated jobs, without causing any perceptible lag.
It’s a solid machine with a distinctive blue finish that gives it a smooth, eye-catching appearance. Yes, it’s still made of plastic that looks like metal, but you could do a lot worse.
The keyboard is soft and comfy, with just enough give for pleasant key presses. The touchpad is snappy, and the power button has a fingerprint reader embedded into it. The speakers, which are positioned beneath the touchpad, aren’t excellent. They’re not particularly loud and have a hollow sound to them. It’s preferable to use headphones or an external speaker.
7. HP 14
The $399 HP 14 Laptop is equipped with an Intel Core i3-8130U processor, 4GB of RAM, a 128GB SSD, and an Intel UHD 620 GPU. You can find other versions available from Amazon for even less but they come with Intel’s Pentium Silver N5000 processor and an Intel GMA 3150 GPU.
On the surface, this machine lacks personality, since its plastic casing is painted a bland silver and a glossy HP logo is embossed in the centre. This laptop would be indistinguishable from the competitors if it didn’t have the logo. The inside of the HP 14 Laptop, on the other hand, has some style. The black, faux-aluminium deck looks great with the silver hinge. A lighted keyboard with beautiful lettering on the keys, as well as a speaker vent immediately above the keyboard, are included in this computer.
The 14-inch display of the HP 14 Laptop isn’t particularly bright or vivid, but its glossy screen and leveled-out contrast allow for a better viewing experience than your ordinary budget laptop. Furthermore, it has a 1920 x 1080 resolution.
The HP 14 Laptop, which is powered by an Intel Core i3-8130U processor and 4GB of RAM, was able to handle 20 Google Chrome tabs and two 1080p YouTube movies with only a small lag when loading photos in a test ran by laptopmag.com.
The HP 14 Laptop is an excellent value-for-money device, with outstanding overall performance, a comfortable keyboard, and even a 1080p display. The only drawbacks are its lackluster graphics performance and short battery life.
8. Acer Spin 311
The Chromebook Spin 311 is very basic in terms of design, with a matte black finish that’s only broken up by a diamond-shaped pattern on the notebook’s top. It would be excellent for taking notes in class or using in a business meeting because of its understated appearance.
The Acer Chromebook Spin 311’s design may make it feel a little small for certain users – this isn’t a laptop replacement – but if you’re looking for something cheap that can withstand the occasional knock and bang, this Chromebook is one to consider.
The Acer Chromebook Spin 311 always manages anything thrown at it, despite having modest hardware set hiding beneath the case. Running many Chrome tabs at a time, running and listening to YouTube – or Spotify – at the same time, and messaging on applications all at the same time never exposes any stuttering or trouble that the AMD-based technology, backed by 4GB of RAM, can’t handle. It’s a reliable little workhorse of a Chromebook that’s underrated and unassuming in performance.
Using the Acer Chromebook Spin 311’s spin mechanism to transform it from a laptop to a tablet is not only entertaining but also practical, especially when combined with the touch screen.
You can smoothly transition from using it as a regular laptop or notebook to completely browsing and touching a tablet-like computer on the couch, and back again, with minimal effort.
One cool but critical note: the keyboard is deactivated when the screen is rotated all the way around to use as a touchscreen, so you don’t accidentally enter and smudge keys into bizarre internet searches as you go. The Acer Chromebook Spin 311 has since been updated with newer components. Recent updates now boast an AMD A6-9220C processor and AMD Radeon R5 graphics, rather than the previous A4-9120C and Radeon R4.
Bottom Line
Finding a touchscreen display laptop is easy, but they are quite expensive. That’s where I come in. In this article, I have compiled a list of laptops that are not only cheap but would serve you effortlessly with your school activities. You shouldn’t worry about having to buy another in a couple of years as these laptops would serve you for some years before you need to upgrade. 2-in-1 displays are fun to use and easy to carry about, don’t just drop them or scratch their screens.
