In this video we’re breaking down the five best laptops for college in 2021. I’ve included options for every type of student. If you’re looking for a budget laptop that offers two in one versatility or a more powerful laptop with packed specs under the hood for more intensive projects, I’ll have the product for you.
The fifth product on our list is the Lenovo Chromebook Duet. This is our best budget laptop for college. If you’re looking for a new laptop companion to help you through college then the Lenovo Chromebook Duet is a great affordable option for you. Priced around 250 this 10-inch Chromebook comes loaded with a 64-gigabyte solid state drive.
Chrome OS is great because it runs perfectly well with minimal amounts of memory so the four gigs of ram included with the Duet will be more than enough for note taking and watching recorded lectures. Even better, the Duet comes with a detachable keyboard adding to its great value. Battery life is good for a full day of classes and more with up to 10 hours, but mileage will vary depending on how it’s used.
You get an 8-megapixel shooter on the back and a 2 megapixel in the front that’s decent for video calls or in class sessions. The small 10-inch form factor makes this Chromebook perfectly portable. Combining its size with the strong hinge stand on the back of the keyboard you can feasibly work anywhere from a cramped bus bench to your couch or your desk at home.
The key features are: under the hood you get a MediaTek Helio p60t processor with an arm g72 mp3 graphics, 4 gigabytes of ram and 64 gigabytes of SSD storage. Two in one, the Duet flows seamlessly between tablet and laptop and the strong hinge means you can work comfortably with the device on your lap. Display, 16 to 10 aspect ratio gives you more height to work with than the standard 16 to 9. Keyboard, the detachable keyboard makes it versatile as a standalone tablet.
If you’re looking for a two in one with great portability, solid battery life, a 16 to 10 display and a tiny price tag then the Lenovo Chromebook Duet is a great option for classes at college or online.
The fourth product on our list is the Acer Aspire 5. This is our best value laptop for college. Taking a step up from the Duet but still homing in on value for the price we have the Acer Aspire 5. Currently priced at a light 550, the acer Aspire 5 represents a laptop of great value especially for the frugal scholar. Packing an intel core i5 8 gigs of ram and a 256-gigabyte solid state drive the Aspire 5 has everything you need in a laptop for most college students.
The battery can consistently last around 8 hours on a single charge and with wi-fi 6 its future proof. The 15.6-inch screen is enhanced with acer’s color intelligence and acer blue light shield protects your eyes from prolonged use. The full HD IPS display is ideal for multi-tasking which is a staple for college students. The keyboard is comfortable to type on with nice key travel it also happens to be backlit which is perfect for working in any lighting conditions.
Acer purified voice with two built-in microphones ensures all communications are clear and filters out typing noise while the HD webcam ensures crisp images with rich color and detail. Acer’s inclusion of true harmony improves the laptop’s speakers with deeper bass and more volume through its innovative design. All that to say with most classes being held online you shouldn’t have any issues with the webcam, microphone, or speakers while using zoom or google meet.
If you want to get in some gaming in between classes without investing in a premium gaming laptop stick around for the Acer Nitro 5 coming up next.
The key features are: under the hood you get a 10th generation intel core i5 with intel UHD graphics 8 gigabytes of ram and 256 gigabytes NVME SSD storage. Blue light shield protects your eyes from harm caused by prolonged use. Zoom ready acer’s purified voice and HD webcam are ideal for students who will be pursuing their courses online through zoom or google meet. Display, Acer’s color intelligence and the large full HD IPS display make the screen pop with great color accuracy.
For the frugal scholar looking for more power than a Chromebook without stepping too high in price, the Acer Aspire 5 is the perfect choice for you.
The third product on our list is the Acer Nitro 5. This is our best budget gaming laptop for college. If you’re looking for a laptop that’s capable of both work and play, then the Acer Nitro 5 might be the right choice for you. Starting in a budget-friendly 700 the 15.6-inch full HD Acer Nitro 5 incorporates everything you need for college and plenty more for some casual gaming between classes.
Packing an intel core i5 9300 h processor, eight gigs of ram, a 256-gig solid state drive and NVidia GeForce GTX 1650 you should be able to handle most of today’s games at medium to high settings with little to no stutter. Throw in wi-fi 6 and the nitro 5 is effectively future proof.
While gaming laptops are notorious for overheating under load Acer has gone through the effort of including impressive thermals with custom engineered cooling, twin fans, and their patented cool boost technology into the nitro 5. You can even set your fan speed for the CPU and GPU independently to maximize cooling with the nitro sense fan control app. The keyboard has RGB backlighting which gives it a nice gamer feel but can be a little difficult to read depending at times.
The key features are: under the hood you’ll find an intel core i5 with NVidia GeForce GTX 1650 graphics, 8 gigabytes of ram and 256 gigabytes SSD for storage. Ports, you get one USB 3.1 type C, two USB 3.1 with one for power off charging, one USB 2.0 and one HDMI 2.0 port with HDCP support. Battery life, you’ll get about five hours depending on your settings which is pretty good for a gaming laptop at this price point. Acer’s cool boost technology good thermals two fans with custom engineered cooling and the nitro sense fan control app keeps the laptop cool under load.
If you’re looking for a laptop that’s capable of both work and play the acer nitro 5 is a great entry level option and hits the sweet spot for gaming performance and price with a large 15.6-inch display that can handle most of your favorite games on and off campus.
The second product on our list is the Lenovo IdeaPad Flex 5. This is our best two-in-one laptop for college. Being a student requires a lot of notetaking, moving around and a ton of productivity. Two-in-one laptops are a great fit for college and there are few better overall two-in-one laptops for students than the Lenovo IdeaPad Flex 5.
Outfitted with a powerful Ryzen 5 4500u, a massive 16 gigs of ram and a 256 gigabyte SSD this 690-dollar two-in-one has more than enough horsepower to meet the needs of even the most demanding students. This laptop boasts up to 10-hour battery life and can quick charge up to 80 in just one hour so it’s a perfect companion for those long days on campus.
The Flex 5 is lightweight as far as two in ones go weighing just over three and a half pounds and measuring less than an inch thick it is perfectly suited to follow you around from lecture to the library and back again. The 14-inch laptop even comes with its own digital pen included in the price letting you take notes faster and more conveniently.
If you need even more performance for your heavier demanding projects, stay tuned for the Dell XPS 13 with a brand-new 11th generation intel core i5 and integrated iris XE graphics coming up next.
The key features are: under the hood you get an AMD Ryzen 5 4500 U processor with AMD Radeon graphics, 16 gigabytes of ram and 256 gigabytes SSD for storage. Thin and light this two in one laptop weighs just 3.64 pounds and is only 0.82 inches thick meaning you’ll hardly notice carrying it around with you all day on campus. Two in one the 360-degree hinge lets you use this device in laptop, tent and tablet mode meaning you’re ready for whatever situation college might throw at you. Lenovo active pen comes included for taking quick notes and easy markups for added versatility.
If you’re looking for a great note-taking companion with excellent battery life and a powerful Ryzen chip under the hood, then the Lenovo IdeaPad Flex 5 has everything you’re after for college.
The first product on our list is the Dell XPS 13. This is our best overall laptop for college. Dell’s XPS laptops have been touted as the holy grail for Windows users and it’s easy to see why. Priced at a reasonable 1030 the 13-inch 9310 comes loaded with a brand-new 11th generation intel core i5, 8 gigs of ram, an integrated iris XE graphics card and 256 gigabytes of memory that you can upgrade down the line.
Dell’s infinity edge FHD plus 500 nit screen is perfect for students. The Razer thin bezels and 16 to 10 aspect ratio mean you see more information on your device from spreadsheets to articles to lines of code. They even included gorilla glass 6 meaning that the screen is tough even if there’s hardly any bezels to reinforce it.
Even more impressively the aspect ratio and lack of bezels mean that dell was able to shrink the XPS 13 into an 11-inch form factor making it even more portable. The XPS is housed in machined aluminum resulting in no screen wobble. The carbon fiber deck is soft on the palms and the keyboard is a joy to use with its satisfying key travel and sturdy build.
The key features are: under the hood you get an 11th generation intel core i5 processor with intel iris xc graphics, 8 gigabytes of ram and 256 gigabytes m.2 PCIE NVME SSD for storage. Display an infinity edge FHD plus display a 16 to 10 aspect ratio and practically non-existent bezels make this arguably the most gorgeous laptop screen available today. Portability, the aspect ratio, and bezel size give the 13-inch XPS an 11-inch form factor making it even smaller than traditional 13-inch laptops. Tiger lake, the brand-new 11th gen chips are powerful, and you should have no issues running most programs for school.
If you’re looking for one of the best laptops available for college the Dell XPS 13 is extremely portable with a gorgeous screen, powerful interiors and sturdy exteriors making it ideal for students.
