An Updated Guide to Buying a New Computer on a Budget

 

An Updated Guide to Buying a New Computer on a Budget

This article was updated on 12/6/2024

One of the most frequent questions we are asked is: “What should I look for in a new computer?” And we know all too well that if you don’t have a lot of money to spend, computer shopping can be a daunting task… almost as bad as buying a car from a surly smiling salesman chomping on a cigar.

Buying a new computer can quickly turn into a deep money pit if you go to a computer store and run into a 20-something salesperson who is hyper-selling and bombarding you with technical terms you don’t understand (and he or she probably doesn’t either). And telling you that you won’t be happy with the computer model “A” for $499… but for an extra $250, the computer model “B” is what you need. Then they’ll try to sell you a service package for another couple hundred that you don’t need.

No e-cig-puffing-20-something-geek-speaking salespeople here! Just old TC and Darcy trying to save you money and give you some good advice.

We prepared this guide for those of you thinking about buying a new Windows 10 computer. Computer prices are still down a bit right now – so it’s a good time to buy.  But you have to know in advance what you’re looking for – and what you need – if you want to avoid being “upsold” by a yammering pseudo-techie salesperson.

This guide is for average computer users – those of you who use your computer mainly for browsing the Web, emailing, having fun with graphics, using Facebook, Zoom or Teams, Tik-Tokking, YouTubing., chatting, emailing, browsing the web, etc. That is this is a guide for most of you. 

If you’re into very high-end gaming or high-resolution 3D rendering or if you work with exceptionally large databases or CAD drawings, your needs will certainly be different.

Here’s our updated computer shopping guide

1.) Consider a laptop Instead of a desktop or an all-in-one computer

At one time laptops were expensive and underpowered, but not anymore. Laptops have the same features and as much or more power as desktops and all-in-ones, with one big advantage: You’re not tethered to one spot in your home.  And right now, you can get great deals on fast, reliable laptops. You can generally get a laptop for less than an equivalent desktop or all-in-one.

2.) RAM RAM RAM (aka Memory)

In real estate, it’s location, location, location. And with computers, it’s RAM, RAM, RAM!

Generally speaking, and forgoing the geek-speak, the more memory your computer has, the faster it will run. OK, we’re generalizing. But the more RAM your computer has, the more you can do with your computer – and the more responsive your PC will be. You’ll see a lot of low-end computers with 4 GB of RAM, but unless you’re planning on doing very little or no multitasking at all, you’re not going to be happy with a computer with only 4 GB of RAM.

We suggest that you look for a computer with at least 8 GB of RAM, if you can afford it, 12 or 16GB of RAM will give you much better performance.

3.) Three computers with 16 GB of under $500

Here are 3 laptops, all with 16 GB of RAM, 15″ (or larger) displays, good processors, and at least a 512 GB solid-state hard drive with price tags under $500. I would be happy with any of these computers and I do this for a living.

HP Laptop, 15.6″ screen, 16 GB of RAM AMD Ryzen 5 5500U (Beats i7-11370H), 16GB RAM, 512GB PCIe NVMe M.2 SSD, Thin & Portable, Micro-Edge & Anti-Glare Screen, Long Battery Life, Windows 11 $425.00 as of 12/6/2024.

Lenovo Ideapad 3i 15.6″ FHD Touchscreen Business Laptop Computer, 11th Intel Dual-Core i3-1115G4, Intel UHD Graphics, 16GB RAM, 512GB PCIe SSD, Wi-Fi 6, Bluetooth, HDMI, Windows 11 Pro $390 (as of 12/6/2024).

Dell 2023 Newest Inspiron 15 3525 Laptop, 15.6″ FHD Display, AMD Ryzen 5 5500U Processor up to 4GHz, 16GB RAM, 1TB SSD, AMD Radeon Graphics, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Windows 11 Home $520 (as of 12/6/2024).

These laptops would have been in the $650-$800 price range just a few years ago. If you have to cut corners to meet your budget, cut corners on hard drive size or processor type, not RAM. The amount of RAM your new computer has is your most important consideration.

4.) Hard drive: SSD or HDD?

Solid-state drives (SSDs) are getting cheaper. It’s getting harder to find new computers with older HDD drives. SSDs last longer and are faster than HHDs. Because SSDs have no moving parts, they should last longer than HDDs. All the laptops listed above have solid-state hard drives.

5.) Processor

Your processor is the brain and heart of your PC. But suppose you’re an average computer user, and just using your computer to do the things we mentioned at the beginning of this article. In that case, the kind of processor or the speed of your processor, will not be a major consideration for you.

Most lower-priced computers will have AMD processors, and there’s nothing wrong with that. If that new computer you’re looking at doesn’t say “Intel inside,” don’t worry about it. Most of us would never know the difference between an AMD and an Intel processor unless you are a benchmarking freak—but you’re not, are you? Intel or AMD?

If you’re a typical PC user, the processor brand won’t matter to you. Any computer you buy running Windows 11 will have a processor that is adequate to run Windows 11. You’re going to want at least a dual-core processor that runs at 1.6 GHz or faster. But when it comes down to buying a PC by brand or type of processor or the amount of RAM it has — always choose the one with the most RAM.

6.) Screen size (display size)

Size matters? Yes, it does – kind of. We have laptops with 15.6″ screens. They work great for all the things we do. The laptops with smaller screens are easier to tote around, they’re smaller and lighter. So, if you’re going to be traveling or moving around with your laptop, you might want to opt for the smaller screen.

Screen size, though, is a personal choice. Choose the screen size that you like best and that suits the way you use your computer. You probably won’t want anything smaller than a 15″ display.

If you’re going for an all-in-one or desktop PC, the same applies. Get the screen size that works best for you.  Most often the smaller the screen size the less expensive the computer.

Touchscreens: Touchscreens are nice. I have a 15.6″ touchscreen laptop and a laptop without a touchscreen  I like both.  Computers with touchscreens are usually more expensive than computers without touchscreens. If you want a touchscreen it will cost you a bit more.

7.) Computer brands

The brand name of the computer you buy is not one of the most important considerations. Most brands you recognize should be fine. Some people hate certain brands because they have had trouble with that particular brand in the past. However, all brands have good and bad reviews.  HP, Dell, Acer, ASUS, and Lenovo all have their fans and their detractors.

We’re not going to recommend one brand over another. All brands can be good, and all brands can be bad. It depends on who you ask. If you have used a brand in the past that you’ve been happy with, then buy that brand again – but only if the price fits your budget. Try to be “brand-blind”.  Don’t be afraid to try any of the other major brands.

8.) Windows 11 Home or Professional?

Very few home users are going to need the additional features of Windows 11 Professional. Besides the fact that computers that come with Windows 11 Pro cost, on average, at least $100 more. But not always. Do your research and compare prices. Don’t be tempted to buy something from BestBuy because you think they’ll take care of you after the sale – they will after they stick you with a service agreement that you don’t need.

Do you want a computer that runs fast, or do you want a computer that has BitLocker and GPE (Group Policy Editor) and other features you’ll probably never use? Windows 11 Home will be just fine for most of you.

9.) A lot of choices

If you’re on a budget, you’ll have to make choices.  That’s OK – there are a lot of computers to choose from.  You’re going to have to choose between screen sizes and touchscreens or now. You’re going to have to choose between SSD (Solid State Drives) or HDD (regular hard drives). You’re going to have to choose between the faster SSD drives with (generally) less space or HDD, which are slower but have (usually) more space.SSDs are getting less expensive so if you have a choice between HDD and SSD, choose the SSD.

You’ll have choices to make: Intel or AMD processors, processors, speeds, computer brands, and memory or RAM. In our opinion, RAM is the most important consideration.  If you buy a computer with inadequate RAM, your computer will be slow and multi-tasking difficult, and none of the other things will matter. And the only way you can make a computer that has inadequate RAM faster is by adding more RAM.

Get a computer with as much RAM as you can afford!  

We have been using Windows for 27 years and remember the days of 540 MB (MB not GB!) hard drives and RAM that was measured in megabytes, not gigabytes.

A typical PC in the year that the much-exalted Windows XP was released had a 2 GB hard drive and 1 GB or less of RAM. And let’s talk price. Even cheap, low-end PCs in those days cost $700 or more. And laptops cost well over $1000.

We’ve come a long way since then. Shop around. You’ll find great deals if you spend some time and look around. Most of you would find any of the computers we listed above more than adequate for your needs. If you take your time and shop carefully, you can find a PC that does everything you need it to do at a price that fits your budget.

And finally, you should know…

Nope… we don’t make a commission on any of the computers mentioned in this article. We listed computers we would consider buying if we were shopping for a laptop that we knew would perform well.

And this is why we’re broke 😉 And we’re always on a budget, right EB?