Best bang for buck in the $350-400 range (15" i3/i5)?

[alkemyst]

Looking for a laptop for a 14 year old. Mostly school work and gearing them up for the responsibility of taking care of a simple laptop prior to getting them something nicer. They don't game on the PC, they are use their X-box only.

Hard to go wrong with the Inspiron 15" at $350-399, but what else is out there that may be a better bang for buck?

Thanks

 

[Puppies04]

You could certainly do a lot worse than the Inspiron 15, nothing really springs to mind at that budget level as massively better choice However If you can stretch to it would the 17" model be better for him. It doesn't seem like they are massively more expensive and he gains a useful amount of screen real estate for working on. Also as far as I am aware he could also then upgrade to a SSD in the second drive bay at a later stage which would make the laptop a hell of a lot more responsive.

 

[alkemyst]

You could certainly do a lot worse than the Inspiron 15, nothing really springs to mind at that budget level as massively better choice However If you can stretch to it would the 17" model be better for him. It doesn't seem like they are massively more expensive and he gains a useful amount of screen real estate for working on. Also as far as I am aware he could also then upgrade to a SSD in the second drive bay at a later stage which would make the laptop a hell of a lot more responsive.

I'd buy a monitor to go with this and external keyboard. It's about being able to bring it to school. For me a 12-13" is awesome for daily carry equipped with high resolution....many want the larger screen.

 

[fralexandr]

lenovo s400 (14") $400 + $8 shipping
http://www.tigerdirect.com/applicati...uWBwWNvWiXXRpg

the s300 (13") is currently $350, might be just what you're looking for
http://shop.lenovo.com/SEUILibrary/c...30B36CF11868CE
you can even fit the accidental damage warranty if you think something's going to happen to it

no optical drives on these guys though

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i think dealnews is one of the easiest places to look for good laptop deals
http://dealnews.com/c49/Computers/Laptops/

 

[RossMAN]

http://slickdeals.net/f/5898566-HP-...-Cell-Win-8-275-after-50-Rebate-Free-Shipping

 

[OhBoy88]

How about a $250 Samsung Chromebook?

 

[alkemyst]

bought the I15-2728BK

 

[Torn Mind]

Dell laptops probably have the ExpressCharge feature, which allows for faster charging of the battery. Of course, that means a sooner death for the battery and hence it is best to disable it if you don't need it.