Top 5 Laptops for College Students Under $500

As a college student myself, I know the importance of saving money and saving my parents money. A laptop is one of the bigger purchases that students make when going to college, however, many laptops under the $500 price point offer everything that most students need without breaking the bank. We made our picks for the best laptops under $500 based on the following categories: price, speed, hard drive capacity and overall value. Our picks are made off the necessities that college students need, we did not take into consideration the advanced programs required for film majors or other specialized majors, specs needed for gamers.

Asus Laptop with Intel Pentium Processor K50I-RBBGR05 $490 (Link)

This Asus laptop combines a great processor with 3GB DDR2 memory, 320GB of memory, built-in webcam, 4 USB ports, Wi-Fi, 3 hours of battery life, DVD player and much more. We liked the fact that the laptop included a webcam, although with a basic .3MP resolution. The 4 USB ports are uncommon for a laptop in this price range, likewise with the Intel Pentium processor. This laptop was built for multitasking and general use, although not as fast as some of the higher-end laptops, it poses a great value for any student on a budget.

Toshiba Satellite Laptop C655-S5068 $480 (Link)

On the higher end of our price range, this Toshiba Satellite laptop combines some great high-end features at an incredibly reasonable price. The 15.6" display laptop comes with 4GB of built in memory, 320GB hard drive space, DVD player, Intel Graphics media accelerator, 2 USB ports, Wi-Fi and Windows 7. The fast 4GB DDR3 memory is perfect for listening to music, while downloading a video and researching a paper; to put it simply, it is great for multitasking. We loved the high capacity hard drive, because it offered more memory than most other laptops at this price range. Overall, this laptop provides an amazing value, but lacks additional USB ports and a great graphics card.

Dell Inspiron I1545-3232OBK $450 (Link)

The Dell Inspiron comes fully loaded with a 250GB hard drive, 2GB RAM, 15.6" screen, 6-cell lithium-ion rechargeable battery, 2.3GHz processor speed, 3 USB ports and built in Wi-Fi. We admit this is not the fastest or most high-end of all laptops, but it is great for the price. The 250GB hard drive offers plenty of storage for college documents, movies, music and games. Most college students use their laptops for watching movies and television online, writing papers, research and music. The Inspiron offers fast speeds that suit all of these basic needs. However, the processor speed and memory is not capable of playing some of the latest video games smoothly, but for students looking for the basics, this laptop is a great value.

Toshiba Satellite Laptop L455-S5000 $430 (Link)

The value priced Toshiba Satellite laptop combines an array of great features worthy for college students. The laptop includes a DVD/CD drive for watching movies and playing music, 3GB DDR3 memory, 250GB hard drive, 3 USB ports, Wi-Fi, Windows 7 and a lightweight design. We liked the 3GB DDR3 memory for multi-tasking power, and with an upgrade to 4GB, users have a much faster laptop. Overall, this Toshiba laptop includes all the basics college students need without a hefty price tag.

Acer Aspire Laptop with AMD Athlon Single-Core Processor AS5532-5535 $380 (Link)

Acer is considered by many as a value computer manufacturer, much like the Honda, Hyundai and Toyota of the car world. The computer provides excellent features at price much lower than the competition, but does not offer all the bells and whistles of the much higher priced competitors. The laptop comes with a 160GB hard drive, 15.6 LCD screen, 3G memory (expandable to 4GB), 2 USB ports, Windows 7 and of course, Wi-Fi. The specs are basic and are best for the basic needs, such as creating documents, music, video and very limited gaming. However, we did not like the 2-hour battery life and lack of USB ports. USB ports are essential for hooking up a mouse, USB storage device, iPod connector and smartphone cable. The budget cuts are apparent, but overall the laptop offers the basics for a very low price.