As Christmas approaches, many people will turn their shopping efforts towards finding the best netbooks for under 300 dollars. There are, after all, a wide range of cheap mini notebooks for sale that may or may not meet your needs.
Since there are literally dozens of lightweight, portable laptops available on the market today, I thought I would create a quick reference list that documents what I have discovered in my research for a new netbook. This, of course, does not even address the many amazing tablet PCs available; such as the new Kindle Fire or iPad 2.
Each of the mini laptops reviewed below are currently available on sale at Amazon for less than $300. In addition to their unbeatable return policy and customer service, they also offered the widest range of laptops and netbook computers on sale. Despite the fact that each one is slightly different with respects to its weight, battery life, and design, the overall level of customer satisfaction is extremely high.
While it is true that every laptop reviewed here is less than $300, there are also a few cheap netbooks for less than 200 dollars; some are even less than 100 dollars.
Best Netbook Under $300 Dollars
Toshiba NB505-N508BL Netbook (10.1 inch)
The Toshiba NB505-N508BL is the most wished for mini laptop computer, regardless of price, according to Amazon. After checking out its features, it is not difficult to understand why! Customers universally agree that this is a great netbook available at a great price.
As it comes with 1 G of RAM and a 250 Gb hard drive it is powerful and fast enough to do most of your computing tasks. It also comes complete with 3 USB ports, an SD card slot, and VGA output. A basic camera and separate headphone and microphone jacks help round out this amazing little machine.
When it comes to cheap mini laptops, however, it is always important to check out their battery life. The Toshiba NB505 netbook sports an impressive 8 hour battery life; which is more than impressive when compared to its price.
What Makes this Netbook Stand Out
There are literally hundreds of decent, cheap netbooks for sale. What helps set this one above the rest is its keyboard. In order to make these machines as small as possible, manufacturers typically reduce the keyboard to ridiculous proportions. I do not know if you have ever tried using a tiny keyboard, but let me tell you from my own experience, it is miserable.
Perhaps this is why this Toshiba netbook is so highly rated. It comes with everything you would expect from a quality netbook and a few things you would not expect from such a low priced computer. The main keyboard is full size and which includes all of the cursor movements (so much better than having to hit two or more buttons to simply move the cursor around the screen).
Additional Product Specifications
- Intel Atom processor N455 1.66 GHz, 512KB L2 Cache
- Configured with 1GB DDR2 (works at 667MHz, max 2GB)
- 250GB (5400 RPM) Serial ATA hard disk drive
- 10.1 inch diagonal widescreen TruBrite display at 1024 x 600 native resolution (WSVGA) with a 16:9 aspect ratio and LED backlite
- Genuine Windows 7 Starter 32-bit with a 6 cell/48Wh Lithium Ion battery pack
- Battery Life (measured by MobileMark 2007): 8 hours, 21 minutes
If you are looking for a gaming computer this certainly is not what you are looking for. If, however, you are looking searching for the best netbooks for under 300 dollars, the Toshiba NB505-N508BL Netbook certainly deserves a second look.
Acer Aspire One AO722-0473 Netbook (11.3 inch)
Another cheap netbook that really stands out from my research is the Acer Aspire One. This versatile mini laptop really packs a powerful punch especially when compared to its size, and more importantly, its price. Again, the cheapest price I could find online was at Amazon, and even with the number of Black Friday sales going on, you would be hard pressed to find a lower price anywhere online.
The AMD core processor is powerful enough to play videos without having the skip, and constantly rebuffer. If stays charged for approximately 7 hours, which means that you can enjoy at least 2 movies without having to plug it in somewhere.
Another aspect that many users will appreciate is the fact that the Acer Aspire One comes with Windows 7 Home Edition; not the starter version. Unlike many desk top computers, and even some mini notebooks, this netbook loads extremely fast. On average, you can expect to have it up and running in less than a minute.
Finally, the WiFi connection is relatively stable and works extremely well with Google Chrome. One thing you will need to remember is that even though that research indicates that the battery will last up to 7 hours, it will typically last only 3 to 4 hours if you are constantly browsing the internet. This is, of course, the same with any laptop computer.
Additional Product Specifications
- AMD Dual-Core Processor C-60 with HD Internet Technology
- Windows 7 Home Premium
- Processor: 1 GHz AMD C Series
- RAM: 2 GB
Overall, this netbook has all the memory and processing power of a full sized laptop condensed into a small netbook computer. Furthermore, the additional screen size HD internet technology really helps to improve your internet experience.