There are a hundred or more sub-$300 laptops out there and they are nearly all crap in my opinion. The story is always the same with the cheap laptop having most of these problems:
What stands out:
I'm not going to pretend that it's perfect. There are still many compromises to keep it under $300. It's just that these compromises are far, FAR less important to me than a serious problem like a crappy screen.
Here are the compromises:
https://www.windowscentral.com/chuwi-lapbook-12-review
And to be fair, here is a very negative review article:
https://www.laptopmag.com/reviews/laptops/chuwi-lapbook-123
And a detailed article from Anandtech:
https://www.anandtech.com/show/11821/the-chuwi-lapbook-123-review-premium-feel-budget-price
If you prefer a MS Surface-like device, they actually make this laptop in a very Surface-like package. It's called the Chuwi Surbook.
FWIW, I bought mine for $289 shipped.
- Bulky case made from cheap plastic
- Tiny storage filled with malware/crapware/adware/spyware/trialware
- So little memory that Windows can barely get out of its own way
- A sub-1080p display (typically 1366x768) that makes your workspace insanely cramped
- A TN screen with washed out colors, poor viewing angles, and poor brightness
- A 16:9 ratio display meant for widescreen TV and gaming, not productivity
What stands out:
- A stiff, machined aluminum case with minimalist styling cues and premium "feel"
- Loaded with Windows 10, necessary drivers, and nothing else - I can't even begin to tell you how much better of an first impression experience that is compared to every one else's "crapware assault"
- 6GB of ram instead of the typical budget laptop's 4GB means I actually have breathing room
- An internal M.2 slot for storage expansion
- No weird off-brand chips, for example the WiFi is a well-supported Intel with dual band AC and the storage is Toshiba
- A super common 12VDC, 2A, 2.5mm barrel plug power supply, so you can buy extra power supplies for $9 on Amazon
- And most important of all, a glorious IPS display:
- Tons of room: 2736 x 1824
- Razor sharp pixel density: 267ppi
- A great aspect ratio for productivity and web browsing: 3x2
- Bright: 420nits (and evenly lit, not splotchy)
- Color accurate: 99% Adobe sRGB and 77% Adobe RGB (after calibration)
- And it's a matte screen, which all sensible people prefer
I'm not going to pretend that it's perfect. There are still many compromises to keep it under $300. It's just that these compromises are far, FAR less important to me than a serious problem like a crappy screen.
Here are the compromises:
- Slow Celeron CPU - some budget laptops have better Intel "Core" CPUs
- Slow HD500 iGPU - this is par for the course, but some have slightly better iGPU
- Slow storage (eMMC based) - some budget laptops have normal SSDs
(If you're part of the "SSD is life" crowd, keep in mind there is an M.2 slot.) - AC/DC brick adapter only has a EU or UK plug choice, so for US customers they throw in a EU-to-US plug adapter
- Everyone is going to USB-C charging to get away from power bricks altogether, so this is a step behind
- Old-school huge bezels
- Sub-par touchpad with no software, so you only get default Windows mouse adjustments and cannot customize gestures
- Power, backslash, and delete buttons are in weird locations
- The USB ports are upside down
https://www.windowscentral.com/chuwi-lapbook-12-review
And to be fair, here is a very negative review article:
https://www.laptopmag.com/reviews/laptops/chuwi-lapbook-123
And a detailed article from Anandtech:
https://www.anandtech.com/show/11821/the-chuwi-lapbook-123-review-premium-feel-budget-price
If you prefer a MS Surface-like device, they actually make this laptop in a very Surface-like package. It's called the Chuwi Surbook.
FWIW, I bought mine for $289 shipped.
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