Subnotebook & Ultraportable laptops are amazing, with a 2nd gen i5, 4GB RAM, maybe an SSD, at most you would spend $240 on a solid machine. These laptops are not for everyone, as they are smaller in screen size and may be too tiny for people’s vision. Also a lot of these are stuck at 720p screens… so have fun typing a document with pixel quality made for ants. ヽ༼ຈل͜ຈ༽ﾉ︵┻━┻
As usual the first three laptops will be Dell, Lenovo, HP, Apple in that order unless they didn’t make a laptop for that category, ‘xxxx’ be posted to signify that there wasn’t one.
On some models, I may post the Manufacturer name of that laptop at the end.
The market can drop because of advancing technology, or bad PR, so you yourself check sold listings before pulling the trigger because prices vary! 🙂
Disclaimer: I did not research extensively about reliability, build quality, parts prices, reviews or common problems on these laptops! Laptops at the lowest price point may/may not come with an OS, BIOS locks, or AC adapter, so you might need to put some time and more money into them if buying the lower priced units!
LISTING FORMAT (colored text emphasizes whats new)
E.G E6420 – $120 – 260 // 370 ~ 1000 v 2900
$120 signifies the starting price I see of a laptop that has been sold with an AC adapter, HDD/OS and (hopefully) good battery.
– 260 signifies the max price you should pay for a used fully working machine that has a good battery, OS installed, OEM AC adapter and not banged up.
// 370 signifies the price I’ve seen that should be sold with at least one of the following
Any italicized number will be a guesstimate, as in there isn’t a solid number for the price but I will base it from other competitors and previous/successors as well.
- Recognized seller, Microsoft Authorized Refurbishers, Enthusiast, or Original owner w/ original box, manual and/or recovery discs.
- Top spec’d machines: upgraded/new components, modded, comes with a dock, a badass bag, or extra swag like batteries, hard drives, AC adapters, etc.
- Manufacturer refurbished or seller refurbished – Your warranty should start the day you bought it.
- Comes with software that is guaranteed NOT pirated (price can be more if it has $500+ software loaded)
- Overnight shipping, local store/ local owner price (just an educated guess)
- Not gonna lie, I shoot for this price when I list as seller refurbished if I got a damn great machine.
Mainstream Ultraportable
E6220 – $110 – 250 // 300 ~ 120 v 284
X220 – $100 – 270 // 320 ~ 223 v 909?
2560p – $100 – 200 // 270 ~ 243 v 407
MC968LL/A – $275 – 420 // 550 ~24 v 216 (1.6GHz i5-2467m, Mid 2011, MBA 4,1 A1370)
MC969LL/A – $320 – 460 // 600 ~ 30 v 141 (1.8GHz i7-2677m, Mid 2011, MBA 4,1, A1370)
CF-C1 MK2 – $115 – 220 // 320 ~ 12 v 53 (Panasonic)
- Quite a few E6220’s were seen at a lower price but I don’t know if they are of buying quality for a new buyer.
- X220 may have a higher price because IPS screens, also some tablet models are not differentiated, my sold number may be off because of it
- Only an i7 X220 will have a USB 3.0 port in this laptop category.
- 7mm hard drives are required for these models – Just make sure you buy the ‘thinner’ drive if you decide on upgrading storage space
- mSATA SSD availability – Only the X220 can accept an mSATA SSD
- USB 3.0? – Only an i7 X220 has USB 3.0 built in, but all can add USB 3.0 with expresscards!
- Media Bays – Only the 2560p has one built in, E6220 will need an external USB unit versus the X220 having an ultrabay, sometimes ‘new’ units do not include a DVD drive.
- 2560p looks to be the most bang for your buck. Lower price, DVD standard, plenty available, these are all basically similar in hardware spec. I personally have tried all three of these and I’d recommend the 2560p if you just want something to work and have no need for an IPS panel.
♡(ŐωŐ人)
Tablet
XT3 – $140 – 240 // 280 ~ 23 v 78 (13″ Screen)
X220T – $120 – 320 // 450 ~ 73 v 313?
2760p – $106 – 220 // 280 ~ v 280
T731 – $130 – 180? // 280 ~ 24 v 26 (Fujitsu)
T901 – $120 – 290 // 500 ~ 13 v 38 (Fujitsu 13″ Screen)
CF-19 MK5 – $280 – 600 // 1200 ~ 25 v 55 (ToughBook 12″ 4:3 Screen)
CF-H2 MK1 – $160 – 280 // 350 ~ 42 v 60 (Toughbook 10″ Slate/No keyboard)
- Technically the XT3 is a 13″ laptop but YOLO, its going to be part of these tablets, similar design to the E6320.
- Not many people list the X220 Tablet as “X220T”, additionally, some sellers sometimes don’t write ‘tablet’ on the listing either so you can find one under searching for an X220.
- Again HP’s Elitebooks are cheaper, you can get a pair or lot of these Elitebooks for $75.
- USB 3.0 is only available on the Fujitsus, though these systems seem a bit prosumer than business, oddly enough, Lenovo didn’t add USB 3.0 to the i7 X220T.
- Despite the optional i7 X220 having USB 3.0, Lenovo didn’t offer the same on the i7 X220T
- No Fujitsu tablets have trackpoints, but the T901 has an independent scroll circle near the touchpad, neat.
- Not many T731’s available, price jumps from $160 to $260, pricey imo, the T901 is a much more expensive machine but is regarded as better built… will def need to try one.
- The CF-19 is a cheaper toughbook than the 14″ CF-31, both have XGA olutdoor displays.
Netbook & Budget
X120e – $65 – 160 // 200 ~ 59 v 128
DM1z – $80 – 140 // 180 ~ 8 v 10 (HP AMD)
Q200E – $140 – 200 // 240 ~ 2 v 43 (Asus Q200E-BHI3T45)
- Some X120e come equipped with 4GB RAM and SSD, 1.6GHz AMD CPU is fair enough.
- Think REAL hard on buying the DM1z, a consumer HP laptop netbook, trifecta of PC repair hell.
- Q300E is an i3 only and has a glossy touchscreen, max price is a guess, none had warranty.
Not much Netbooks, I know… I really don’t know any of ‘quality’ so I cant say. I mean for what chromebooks can do, I don’t recommend netbooks really, unless internet is an option for you.