Budget laptop for programming

[cstehreem]

Hi,

I want to buy a laptop which I would use for programming.

I need to be able to run android emulator (genymotion or visual studio emulators) which requires hyper-v and vt-x enabled processor. Other than that I would like to be able to use Android studio occasionally (I am not a native developer I work with React Native mostly). My work is not graphics intensive so I can live without a dedicated graphics card.

I have been using dell inspiron i5 till now which is malfunctioning so I need a new laptop but I am low on budget. I don't want to spend any more that $400 on it. I am gettig a Lenovo Ideapad 110 with 4GB RAM and 500GB HDD for $300. My concern is that it has a celeron N3060 processor which according to intel has vt-x but since it's a celeron I am a little skeptic about it's performance. I was thinking I could get 128GB SSD for OS and use my HDD as external drive. I would also have my spare 8GB RAM from my old i5 so I can upgrade that too. Would this arrangement improve on performance? Or should I look for a different laptop? I am also not sure if N3060 supports 8GB RAM? Intel says it does but I have heard celeron processors are only good for 4GB.

Any suggestions are welcome.
Thankyou

 

[justin.m.beauvais]

My advice is to head over to Best Buy. They regularly run deals on lower end laptops. It is entirely possible to get an i3 with 8GB of RAM in your price range if you take advantage of their deals. I'm even seeing i5 possibilities close to your price range if you are ok with an open box or a refurbished device. It is also a good idea to get hands on a laptop before you buy it. It gives you a real idea of build quality and it helps to see the screen you are going to spend a lot of your time looking at.