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3 laptops under $300 you can (and should) buy today

You could say that it’s fall, with winter on the horizon, but you could also call it “laptop season.” Now, more than ever — with many months inside ahead of us  — we need a laptop that can move with us, from room to room and beyond. A laptop lets you get mobile with your computing, which, in these times of isolation and quarantine, can be a lifesaver.  And it’s a great time to buy one. Right now, Amazon has some amazing deals on Chromebooks and other affordable PC laptops that can not only add a necessary laptop to your life, they could save it.

Asus Chromebook 11.6 — $220, was $270

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This Asus Chromebook is a basic approach to work and play, and the price reflects it, but that doesn’t mean it’s without some fantastic features. This is a perfect little workhouse if you, or your kids, just need a machine to get the job done. It has an Intel Celeron N3350 chip, which means it can handle the workload and it’s backed up by 4GB RAM with 16GB of storage space. Now, that’s not enough room to stash all your movies and music, but it’s plenty to store work files (the rest you can place on the cloud). This Chromebook is only 2.2 pounds and has a battery that lasts 10 hours, which means it’s the perfect machine to toss in your bag on the way to work or school and will carry you throughout the day without a charge.

Lenovo IdeaPad 14 — $235, was $309

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Unlike the Lenovo Flex, this laptop’s hinge only folds one way, but it’s also half the price of a Flex and can handle much the same workload. This is a great laptop if a bigger screen is what you need for work projects, or for gaming or watching your favorite shows. We don’t see 14-inch laptops for this cheap very often, but it boasts brilliant 1366 x 768 HD resolution, as well as an energy-efficient LED backlight. There’s some muscle, too, including dual-core processing in the AMD A6-9220e accelerated processor, 4GB of RAM backing it up, and a 64GB storage drive. Important here: That storage drive is a flash drive, which means that accessing files will be quicker, and the storage more reliable. You’ll be surprised by the multitasking and the size of the apps and games this machine can handle. It’s loaded with Windows 10, as well, so it comes ready to work.

HP Chromebook 14 — $270, was $298

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HP Chromebooks are sleek, look fantastic, and carry all the legendary performance qualities that HP’s name brings. First of all, it looks great; it’s sleek, thin, and subtle. It’s powered by an Intel Celeron N4000 processor, backed up by 4GB RAM and has 32GB storage, which are all pretty standard for a laptop this size and price. What’s neat here are the special little adds that HP has provided, like its super-sensitive touchpad that has gesture capabilities. And then there’s the screen, which is a micro-edge 1080 HD display. But what’s really awesome is the sound: The audio boasts dual speakers produced from Bang & Olufsen. Finally, the battery lasts an impressive 13 hours — that’s as long as we’ve seen on a Chromebook.

We’ve also found Black Friday laptop deals for those that want to be saving money on some of the best laptops out there.

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Jacob Silver
An avid cook, boxer, reader, and binger of Netflix (and Hulu, HBO Max, Amazon and more) Jacob Silver writes deals posts about…
Should you buy a laptop on Black Friday or wait for Cyber Monday?
The Dell XPS 13, open on a table in front of a window.

If you're not sure if Black Friday laptop deals are the time for you to consider making a purchase, we're here to help. We've picked out some of the best deals as well as looked at whether Black Friday is the time for you to buy a laptop or if you should wait until Cyber Monday.
Should you buy a laptop on Black Friday?
Simply put, yes. Black Friday is the best time to buy a laptop. Typically, deals are for a strictly limited time with a set amount of stock set aside. If you wait until Cyber Monday, there's no guarantee that the price will get lower and you might miss out on the deal altogether. If you see something that's the right fit for you, buy it now before you miss out.

It's worth remembering that Cyber Monday often tends to offer the same deals as Black Friday but with lower stock levels. In the unlikely case you do see a cheaper price on Cyber Monday, you can always cancel your Black Friday offer after committing to a purchase on Cyber Monday. This won't happen though so you can be confident that Black Friday deals are your best option.
Our 5 favorite Black Friday laptop deals
Gateway 14.1-inch Ultra Slim Notebook -- $99, was $229

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You can buy a laptop for $99 for Black Friday, but it’s selling fast
The Gateway 14-inch Notebook in a range of colors against a white background.

Thanks to the awesome Walmart Black Friday deals going on right now, you can save big on a basic but useful laptop. Normally priced at $229, you can buy a Gateway 14.1-inch ultra-slim notebook for only $99. A considerable saving of $130, the laptop is well suited for anyone who's on a tight budget such as a student or someone that just needs a laptop for occasional use. Selling fast, you'll need to be quick to snag this bargain. We've taken a look at why it's worth it.

Why you should buy a Gateway 14.1-inch ultra-slim notebook
The best Black Friday laptop deals mean you can buy something you might not have ordinarily been able to afford. That's certainly the case with the Gateway 14.1-inch ultra-slim notebook. It's just made laptop ownership more accessible. While the system may not be from one of the best laptop brands, it's still worth checking out at this price. You get an Intel Celeron processor along with 4GB of memory and 64GB of eMMC storage. It's slight on storage space but still means there's room for it to have Windows 11 in S mode installed on it, proving useful for anyone that relies on Windows-based apps.

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Best Buy Black Friday Chromebook Deals: What to buy now
A young woman has a video chat on her HP 14-inch Chromebook.

Even though Black Friday doesn’t officially take place until November 25, Best Buy Black Friday deals are not only taking place, but going quickly. This is good news if you’re in the market for a new Chromebook, as Best Buy’s Black Friday Chromebook deals are a great opportunity to shop early and still get a great Black Friday price. Deals available include Chromebooks from some of the best laptop brands, and as mentioned previously, these deals are moving quickly. Many have already sold out during the early Black Friday rush, so read on for more details on what’s available and act quickly if you see a Chromebook you like. There are also many Black Friday laptop deals available if you don’t find what you’re looking for here.
Asus 14-inch Chromebook -- $179, was $329

Like all of the best Chromebooks, the point of the Asus 14-inch Chromebook is simplicity. It’s powered by Google ChromeOS, an operating system designed for the way many people interact with the digital world. It comes with thousands of apps and built-in virus protection, as well as cloud backups. It’s secure, fast, and versatile, with an Intel Core M3 processor and 4GB of system RAM. This is plenty of power for everyday uses such as emailing and web browsing, and for taking in digital content. It has a Full HD screen and built-in HD webcam, which makes it a great alternative to many of the best laptops for videoconferencing, and can compete with some of the best budget laptops.

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