3 Best Laptops Under $700 in 2022 — Study and Business, Gaming, 2-in-1 Convertible

So you’ve decided to buy a new laptop for $700. Great, because in this price range, we have a lot to choose from. But with so many features, it’s easy to get lost with the options. Let’s figure it out!

What to expect from a laptop for under $700? Great multitasking and portability. These laptops are suitable for a wide variety of tasks aka business, study, content creation, and even games. You can also expect lightweight and a full day of battery life. 

What trade-offs to expect? You will not be able to play resource-intensive games or make professional photo/video editing on these laptops. You also won’t get a very vivid display (compared to more expensive models) to work comfortably outdoors in bright light, but how many people do that?

Our special research methodology — How do we pick the best laptops

We spent +40 hours researching, made +100 tests, and involved 2 experts to pick 3 Best Laptops Under $700 which will last a long time. We are not sponsored by any brand, therefore we are completely unbiased. Our research and based on a systematic approach to collecting accurate data about tech specifications, analysis of user experience, and real-world testing.

Every year we analyze hundreds of laptops and focus on value propositions in terms of features and user experience. Our goal is to make it easier for ordinary people to choose the best laptop so that they don’t have to do thorough research and waste time.

3 Best Laptops Under $700 — Study and Business, Gaming, 2-in-1 Convertible

Below is our list of best laptops under $700, choose yours depending on whether you need a traditional, gaming, or 2-in-1 convertible.

We narrowed the list down to only 3 laptops to give you the most accurate solution. Because it still could be tricky to choose one from the Top-10🤯.

Key specs to consider when looking for a laptop under $700:

Every laptop on our list meets these requirements and is the most valuable proposition in its category. Choose yours based on the tasks for which it’ll be used. 

Acer Swift 3 — Best Overall Laptop Under $700 (with the most powerful Ryzen 7 CPU)

Tech Specs

AMD Ryzen 7 4700U Octa-Core CPU | AMD Radeon RX Vega 7 Integrated Graphics | 8 GB LPDDR4 RAM | 512GB NVMe SSD Storage | 14″ Full HD IPS 60Hz IPS Display | 0.63″ thin | 2.65 pounds | up to 11.5 hours of battery life | Backlit Keyboard

Acer Swift 3 is our top pick as it combines great performance with an ultraportable design and all-day battery life. Its performance is truly unheard of for the $700 price range. With the most powerful Octa-core Ryzen 7 4700U processor, it easily overtakes all the competitors and its own Intel version. Moreover, it sits on par with even more expensive laptops like the Dell XPS 13.

8GB RAM ensures fast work and multitasking, especially given its dual-channel mode (almost doubles performance compared to a single-channel mode). Unfortunately, RAM isn’t upgradable. Here used LPDDR4LPDDR (Low-Power Double Data Rate) RAM type, which is more energy efficient and consumes less power, though slightly reduces performance. which is soldered directly to the motherboard. 

8GB RAM is the minimum for a $700 laptop. In no case settle for less, otherwise, you will overpay for a slow machine.

As for the battery, our test showed up to 11,5 hours on a single charge. And it is an excellent result compared to the category average of 7-8 hours. LPDDR4LPDDR (Low-Power Double Data Rate) RAM type, which is more energy efficient and consumes less power, though slightly reduces performance. memory type plays an important role in this. It consumes less power compared to DDR4, though slightly reduces performance. But the plus to autonomy is obvious and you can count on all-day battery life. 

Acer Swift 3 is equipped with the largest on our list 512GB SSD which works fast and gives you enough storage space. This is a good deal as most laptops in this price range have half the SSD memory (don’t even consider HDD as it works many times slower).

With all its power Swift 3 offers the most lightweight and compact design — just 0.63-inch thin and 2.65 pounds which is noticeably lighter than its rivals. 

Acer Swift 3 has minimalist aluminum chassis, backlight keyboard, fingerprint scanner, and a wide port selection ideal for all your peripherals.

14-inch FHD IPS display with good color gamut. Of course, it is not capable of tasks such as professional graphic design or photo/video editing, but it is perfect for everyday use. Its max brightness is 250 nits, which allows you to work comfortably indoors, but not outdoors on a sunny day. So given the price, there’s nothing to complain about. 

Acer Swift 3 is almost entirely about benefits. Perhaps the main drawback is the lack of a discrete graphics card, so if you need a gaming laptop, consider our next pick Acer Nitro 5.

Verdict

The best choice for those looking for the lightest and thinnest ultrabook with outstanding battery life at a reasonable price without sacrificing performance.

Acer Swift 3 SF314-42-R9YN
Source: acer.com

Acer Nitro 5 — Best Gaming Laptop under $700 with Dedicated Video Card

Tech Specs

Intel Core i5-9300H Quad-Core CPU | NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1650 Dedicated Video Card | 8 GB DDR4 RAM | 256GB NVMe SSD Storage | 15,6″ Full HD 60Hz IPS Display | 0.96″ thin | 5,07 pounds | up to 8 hours of battery life | Backlit Keyboard

Acer Nitro’s main feature is its discrete GTX-1650 video card. It is an entry-level video card, and it’s the best we can get in our price range. Even so, it boosts laptop’s gaming power over ones with integrated graphics. Just compare, the Acer Nitro 5 performs several times better in games than laptops with a more powerful processor but integrated graphics only (like our top pick Acer Swift 3).

As to gaming performance, it can run the most popular games like Fortnite, and get over 60 FPS at 1080p. It is willing to run even such graphically demanding games as GTA V, but you’ll need to lower the settings. 

Its 15.6-inch screen provides ample room for the gamer. In terms of brightness and color accuracy, it is mediocre, like all screens in laptops under $ 700. But it has an indisputable plus — the absence of PWM (Screen flickering)Pulse Width Modulation (PWM) - used to control the brightness of a monitor by flickering instead of actually dimming the backlight. This method is harmful to eye health. which is harmful to the eyes.

We liked the full-size keyboard with Numpad. It has responsive deep-travel keys, red backlighting, and an additionally outlined WASD zone WASD (WSAD) — 4 keys on the keyboard, most often used by players in computer games. The W and S keys are used to move forward/backward/up/down. The A and D keys are used to move or turn right/left..

As for autonomy, in the casual mode, you can expect about 8 hours of work, but in gaming mode, it drops to 3-4 hours and even less depending on the game intensity. However, this is an excellent result for a gaming laptop, since even in twice as expensive models you will not get better battery.

Verdict

The Acer Nitro 5  is a great value proposition. It comes with dedicated graphics, fast SSD storage, and 8GB of RAM which is capable of satisfying most entry to mid-range gaming needs. Moreover, if you want to add some fire, you can easily upgrade its RAM (up to 32GB) as well as the storage. 

Acer Nitro 5 AN515-54-5812
Source: acer.com

Lenovo Flex 5 14″ — Best 2 in 1 Convertible Laptop under $700

Tech Specs

AMD Ryzen 5 4500U CPU | AMD Radeon RX Vega Integrated Graphics | 16 GB DDR4 RAM | 256GB SSD Storage | 14″ Full HD IPS Touchscreen Display | 0.82″ thin | 3,63 pounds | Backlit Keyboard

AMD Ryzen 4000 mobile CPU paired with 16 GB RAM makes the Lenovo Flex 5 14″ amazingly fast and productive. It’s the most powerful laptop from convertibles that we can buy for under $700 in 2021. 

16 GB RAM — the largest we can expect in the price range under $700

Its battery lasts up to 8 hours on average which is not outstanding but allows you to work a full day without charging. The case is all soft-touch plastic and feels very pleasant and there is no creaking while opening it. Besides, the laptop looks more expensive than it costs.

The Flex 5 is equipped with an HD webcam that shoots 720p video, the quality is quite washed, which is common with laptop webcams. It lacks IR sensors for facial recognition, but instead, you can use a fingerprint reader and not bother with passwords anymore.

We cannot but mention such an important detail as the webcam privacy shutter. It’s just a mega handy feature, especially now with so many Zoom calls and other video conferences. You just need to manually close the shutter and be completely sure that the camera is turned off.

The touchscreen works fine. You can use fingers or a Digital Pen which is included. We liked this, as in most laptops the pen needs to be purchased separately. 

We liked Lenovo’s keyboard, as it provides a comfortable typing experience with stable switches and good key travel, and the touchpad tracks accurately.

The laptop weighs 3.63 pounds which is not super lightweight (like 2,65 pounds Acer Swift 3) but still doesn’t make it bulky, except that it’s a bit heavy for tablet mode.

The only compromise is the display. The Lenovo Flex is no exception, and like most laptops under $700, its display isn’t perfect. Don’t consider this if you are into a professional photo or video work. However, it is good for everyday use, video playback, light gaming, business, or study. And if you use it indoors (as most of us usually do), there are no complaints at all.

Verdict

Lenovo Flex 5 14″ is undoubtedly the fastest multitasker from 2-in-1 convertible laptops for under $700. And all the power thanks to its AMD Ryzen 5 4500U processor paired with 16GB RAM. It is perfect for daily use, but if you are into professional tasks consider increasing your budget to get a better display option.

Lenovo Flex 5 14″
Source: lenovo.com

Bottom Line

We can conclude that there are quite powerful laptops at the $700 price. These laptops are perfect for everyday tasks, working remotely, school, and even light gaming. They are lightweight, provide all-day battery life, good port selection, and connectivity. The only compromise you’ll have to make is the display. But that doesn’t mean it’s bad, it just isn’t suitable for professional image and video work. So, if you are not a professional designer or a hardcore gamer, you can easily find a suitable laptop for under $700 with great performance and portability.

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