Can anyone recommend good budget laptop with reliable keyboard?

[panruru]

Hello, I'm looking for a cheap laptop/netbook and I was hoping someone could throw me a few suggestions.

All I really need it to be able to do is run a web browser and a text editor, but I'd like it to be capable of doing those things quite well. I want something with a reliable keyboard and a clear enough display that text doesn't look noticeably pixelated against a white background. I've been looking at Chromebooks because it seems like something like that might be suitable for my needs, but I hear that the cheaper ones sometimes have unresponsive keyboards.

Could anyone recommend anything? I want something that's as cheap as possible as long as it fits my other criteria. I can't spend more than $400 CND ($300 USD), but I might be willing to pay a little more for a 2-in-1 laptop/tablet hybrid because I think that'd be really useful to me.

 

[velocityg4]

Anything new for that price will be cheap and low powered with a junk keyboard and display.

If you want something nice. Get a used laptop off eBay. Sticking with business models. Prices on Newegg and Amazon for used units don't come close.

You can get Lenovo T450s (eBay Auction) The irony being. The eBay auction is from Newegg Canada but saw nothing close on Neweggs website for the price.

• i5-5300u
• 1920x1080 14" Display
• 8GB RAM
• 120GB SSD
• Windows 10 Pro
• High quality keyboard
• about $250 CAD

Another option would be to get a 2018 iPad and keyboard case. It might go a little over budget but will fulfill all your requirements. The screen and battery life will be far superior. It will have decent performance. With the upcoming iPad OS you can even use a mouse.

 

[panruru]

Thanks for the advice, I really appreciate it. A lot of those budget netbooks look good on paper, but I'm not experienced enough to guess how well the keyboards will function and that's really important to me. I'll def be taking a look at Ebay, but your suggestion of a used iPad + keyboard case might be the best option for me.

 

[velocityg4]

Thanks for the advice, I really appreciate it. A lot of those budget netbooks look good on paper, but I'm not experienced enough to guess how well the keyboards will function and that's really important to me. I'll def be taking a look at Ebay, but your suggestion of a used iPad + keyboard case might be the best option for me.

They're going to use cheap keyboards. Everything will be the cheapest they can get away with. As margins are so slim in the ultra cheap laptop market. While a mid to high end business model is going to be really well built. I listed the Thinkpad T450s because it is so highly reviewed.

From stainless steel hinges to superb battery life. It's MIL-SPEC tested for extreme temperatures, humidity, vibration, sand, shocks and fungus. It's not a toughbook but is designed to handle a lot business travel to less than ideal environments. The battery is removable. The keyboard is one of the best the reviewer has tested. The only downside is a mediocre display brightness. Which should outperform cheap displays.

https://www.laptopmag.com/reviews/laptops/lenovo-thinkpad-t450s

If you get a used iPad. Get the 2018 model. It's a sizable upgrade over the 2017.

 

[hang-the-9]

Last really good keyboard in a non-gaming laptop was in the Lenovo T430 models. After that they went to the chicklet type and lost a lot of the feel. Good news about the T models is that they will last till you break them. I have have a very very low failure rate for anything other than the standard disk drive failures which is easily fixed with a solid state drive. My main laptop was a W510 from 2011 or 2012, still runs great.