Have you something asked yourself ‘what are the best laptops for writers on a budget?’ As a writer, you need something that can handle multiple windows and apps without crashing. You also need something with long battery life so you don’t have to worry about finding an outlet or keeping your laptop plugged in for hours at a time. Another, you need an operating system that you can work with your programs, so you can work faster. With all that reading and researching, the time you spend in front of the screen can run like an audiobook on fast-forward.
Luckily, there are plenty of options available on Amazon that can meet all of your requirements without breaking the bank. In fact, many of the laptops for writers on a budget have a great price-to-spec ratio. In this buying guide, we’ll discuss five different laptops that are great for writers on a budget.
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Apple Macbook Air (M1)
PROS
- Excellent performance
- Great specs
- Comfortable keyboard
CONS
- Expensive compared to other brands
- Specs are inferior compared to other brands
- CPU: Apple M1
- RAM: 16 GB
- Storage: 256 GB SSD
- GPU: Integrated
- Display: 13.3″
- OS: Mac OS
- Battery Life: up to 18 hours
You’ll find it hard to beat the MacBook Air for its combination of power, design, and price. Portable and sleep, it’s lightweight and has a great keyboard comfortable for hours and hours of writing. The screen is gorgeous, too, with an outer shell design with the iconic silver Apple color everyone has come to recognize. Its battery life is excellent, you can get up to 12 to 18 hours of use on one charge—depending on the programs you run.
It’s powerful enough to run all the apps you need for writing, such as Word and Google Docs (although some users say it struggles with more intensive software like Photoshop if ever you need to access those for a visual copy), though it may be worth upgrading to higher RAM if you do lots of video editing or photo editing work on your laptop or plan on running multiple heavy apps at once while writing. Though some other laptops boast better specs, the convenience and accessibility the Apple Macbook provide are exceptional.
Apple Macbook Air (M1)
ASUS VivoBook Flip 14
PROS
- Hybrid tablet/laptop
- Good specs
- Good touchscreen
CONS
- RAM not upgradeable
- Decent battery life
- CPU: Celeron N4020
- RAM: 4 GB
- Storage: 32 GB
- GPU: Intel UHD Graphics 600
- Display: 11.6″
- OS: Chrome OS
- Battery Life: up to 12.5 hours
If you like taking notes by hand, or even if you just enjoy drawing diagrams, the touchscreen laptop is a great option for writers on a budget. The ASUS Vivobook Flip 14 has touchscreens that make it easy to write in any app with an on-screen keyboard and take notes during your research time. You can also use it to draw diagrams if you need to, which is great if you’re trying to visualize something as part of your creative process.
The best part about this laptop is its 2-in-1 hybrid model. It can become a tablet that is portable and light enough to bring around. So you can write or sketch anytime, anywhere you need to.
Touchscreens are not only useful for research purposes; they’re also useful in meetings when you need a quick way to scribble down briefings and pegs from your clients without having to grab their pen and paper every time they have an idea worth writing down. The only downside to this laptop is the not upgradable RAM, due to it being a hybrid tablet. Nevertheless, it performs well and has decent battery life.
ASUS VivoBook Flip 14
Samsung Chromebook 4 (2022)
PROS
- Affordable
- Portable, lightweight
- Decent Chromebook specs
CONS
- Low-resolution display
- CPU: Celeron N4020
- RAM: 4 GB
- Storage: 32 GB
- GPU: Intel UHD Graphics 600
- Display: 11.6″
- OS: Chrome OS
- Battery Life: up to 10 hours
The first thing to know about Chromebooks is that they’re ridiculously affordable, like the Samsung Chromebook 4. While they can range in price from $200 to $800, The Samsung Chromebook 4 can sell for less than $200. Chromebooks are portable and lightweight, perfect for having a device to carry around. Functioning as a hybrid tablet and laptop, Chromebooks run on Chrome OS, for a speedy and secure operation.
Don’t expect to use this laptop for heavy-duty work though, as it suits people who need something more portable or someone on a strict budget wanting a well-functioning laptop. The display has low resolution, with unattractive bezels. But if that isn’t an issue, this Chromebook can definitely get the job done.
Samsung Chromebook 4 (2022)
Microsoft Surface Pro 8
PROS
- Good specs
- Good performance
- Decent battery life
CONS
- Keyboard and pen bought separately
- CPU: Intel® Evo Platform Core™
- RAM: 8GB – 32 GB
- Storage: 256 GB – 1 TB
- GPU: Intel Iris Xe Graphics
- Display: 13″
- OS: Windows
- Battery Life: up to 16 hours
If you want to write on your laptop and tablet at the same time, then you should think about getting a 2-in-1 laptop. You can use them as a laptop with a touch screen, a tablet with a keyboard attached, or a tablet without a keyboard attached.
Microsoft laptops have long been one of the frontrunners when it comes to 2-in-1 laptops and the Microsoft Surface Pro 8 takes it to a whole new level. With amazing specs: a potent CPU. high range of RAM and storage choices and decent average battery life. The only downside is buying the keyboard and pen separately, but they work so well for writers, that it’s well worth the purchase.
Microsoft Surface Pro 8
HP Envy x360
PROS
- Good specs
- Excellent performance
CONS
- Poor webcam and audio quality
- CPU: i7-1165G7
- RAM: 8GB
- Storage: 512 GB
- GPU: Intel Iris Xe Graphics
- Display: 13.3″
- OS: Windows 10
- Battery Life: up to 11 hours
Powerful, affordable, and portable, the HP Envy x360 takes home the crown for the best price-to-performance ratio you can get with any laptop for writers on a budget. It comes with an Intel Core i7 processor, 8GB of RAM, and a 512GB SSD—all this for just less than $1000! The Intel Iris Xe Graphics card enables decent media functioning, which makes it perfect for the hard-working writer.
The screen is 13.3 inches big with Full HD resolution (1920 x 1080). With a clear picture, reading and researching will be easy on the eyes. In addition to its excellent specs, this computer has a surprisingly long battery life, enough for a long day’s work.
HP Envy x360
You can get a good laptop as a writer without breaking the bank.
Laptops are more affordable than ever and writers like you don’t have to burn money to get your job done. You can find a laptop that suits your needs without breaking the bank. And laptops are great for writers because they offer the flexibility you need, depending on what you get.
If you’re a writer looking for a new laptop, then this list should be helpful to you. We have taken into account all of the things that are important for writers when choosing their computers, including affordability and portability. Each of these five options has been carefully chosen based on its value for money as well as its suitability for those who spend most of their time working on documents and other writing projects.
Frequently Asked Questions
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What is the best budget laptop for writers?
1. HP Envy x360 2. Acer Chromebook 314 3. Apple Macbook Air (M1) -
What are the common laptops writer use?
1. Apple Macbook Air 2. Apple Macbook Pro 3. Dell XPS 13 4. Microsoft Surface Pro 8 5. HP Envy x 360