Mobile Computing Buyer’s Guide: Entry Level Notebooks

We meet again in our Notebook Buyer’s Guide article series! In this second part, our discussion will revolve around entry-level notebooks. While the definition of “entry-level” itself may vary widely, we can simplify things by setting up some definitive price range to clearly see which notebook belongs to which class. In the case of entry level notebooks, perhaps the most sensible price range would be Rp 3.000.000-Rp 5.999.999 (US$ 350-650).

To help you find the best choice, we have selected some of the most interesting notebooks in this class and further categorized them into different price segments within the pre-defined Rp 3.000.000- Rp 5.999.999 entry-level price range. As you might have expected, most of these notebooks are equipped with 14 inch screen. However, we also picked up some 12 inch models that happen to come with attractive prices.

As for the technical specification, entry-level notebooks are usually powered with low-end dual-core processors with integrated graphics (either on the CPU or the motherboard) coupled with a gigabyte or two of main memory. You can also find some models that are equipped with discrete graphics cards, which should make them powerful enough to run 3D games under reasonable graphics detail settings.

As it turned out, this segment of the market is populated by numerous of models from many different brands. We managed to find a few that stand out from the rest of competition to make things easier to decide for you. Note that you can still find a better bargain out there, but you can always refer to our selection to learn what to expect from a notebook in each price category. Let’s move on to the next page to see our winners!