Alex Mott 17/01/2017 - 4:39pm

Want a Windows 10 laptop but don’t want to spend a fortune? Check out are pick for the BEST Cheap Windows 10 Laptops (And Hybrids)

With laptops getting more advanced and with evermore updates - it may seem hard to believe, but you don’t have to spend a shedload of money to get a good one these days. Despite what some manufacturers may want you to think, there are some fantastic budget laptop devices out there right now.

But what type of laptop is going to be best for your needs? Chromebooks are great lightweight and long lasting devices. MacBooks are celebrated for their fashionable aesthetic and lightweight body - but don’t exactly fit into the ‘budget’ category. So when it comes down to simple, no-frills computing that’s easy to use, then nothing beats a good Windows laptop.

Windows laptops are known to be reliable, much more long-lasting than their competitors and what’s more, they still often have the lead with many more business applications. More recently, Microsoft fundamentally changed the way its desktop Operating System worked with Windows 8.1, ushering in a new age of touchscreens and tablets - which certainly had its detractors.

But whilst that early step was fraught with problems, Windows 10 has refined the touch-based formula while bringing some major desktop improvements including better multitasking and a new voice-controlled digital assistant called Cortana.

Below, we run down what’s new on Windows 10 laptops, so you’ll be completely up to date. And we’ve also highlighted our five favourite budget Windows 10 laptops you can pick up right now. If you've got an old laptop then now might be just the time to upgrade it to enjoy Windows 10 to its fullest. All the laptops and tablets in our round-up are leading devices that have all right features to enjoy what Windows 10 has to offer. If you want a shiny new device to go with Microsoft's shiny new operating system, these certainly won’t let you down.

Start Menu

Yes, the Start Menu is back. It went away for a while, but Microsoft realised that if there’s one thing their users love it’s the Start Menu.

After leaving it out of Windows 8 and bringing a watered down version of it back with Windows 8.1, the company has admitted it made a mistake. It’s decided to bring it back to life – and it resides in its classic position at the bottom-left corner of the screen.

It’s not the same as the Start Menu of old, of course. The revamped Start Menu is wider than before, but you can resize it if you wish. It also comes complete with Metro-style live tiles, blending the old with the new and simultaneously becoming more touch-friendly.

Cortana

Microsoft’s answer to Siri is one of the most prominent new features you’ll find on the Start Menu. It’s been available on Windows phones for a while, but now the digital assistant has made the jump to desktop.

You have the choice of instructing Cortana through either written commands or simply by speaking to her - and there’s a whole host of things she can do. She’ll trawl your PC for specific content and programmes - like photos or Word documents.

She’ll perform tasks like setting up calendar alerts and searching the web, and even, if you’re that way inclined, make pretty awkward small talk.

Microsoft Edge

When was the last time you used Internet Explorer? Exactly. That’s why Microsoft has decided to create a new browser from scratch. Formerly known as Project Spartan, Microsoft Edge is the default Windows 10 browser - but of course you can change that if you wish.

One of the most noticeable differences is that Edge has been optimised for use on touchscreens, featuring a chunkier navigation bar and a finger-friendly button layout.

It’s designed to be quicker than Internet Explorer too, and offers a selection of advanced capabilities, such as a reading mode and the option to annotate web pages.

Click on over to PAGE 2 for our pick of the best cheap Windows 10 machines you can buy right now...


The BEST Cheap Windows 10 Laptops (And Hybrids)

Asus Transformer Book Flip TP200SA: The best 2-in-1 Price when reviewed: £199

Whilst you can’t consider this Asus Transformer Book Flip as the leader of the pack when it comes to processing power, for under £200 this is a great choice for a laptop/tablet 2-in-1 hybrid that can be used on the go.

Being able to flip the screen around 360 degrees to use it as a tablet may seem like a gimmick, but this Book Flip works well and is keenly-priced for those who want to bridge the gap between tablet and laptop.

The long battery life of just over nine hours is also a great selling point. If you want something cheap to use on the go, you can’t do much better than this from Asus.

Key Specs: Size: 11.69 x 7.93 x 0.73 inches; Weight: 2.16lbs; RAM: 4GB; Hard Drive Size: 64GB

Acer Aspire One Cloudbook 14: The best for under £250 Price when reviewed: £249

The Acer Aspire One Cloudbook 14 has essentially redefined what you can get from a budget laptop. At £249, its build quality is far better than most of its rivals and its 14-inch, 1,366 x 768 screen makes this a proper laptop, with just about enough pixels to run applications side by side.

If you're looking for a secondary laptop, or one that's predominantly going to be used for productivity, the Acer Aspire One Cloudbook 14 is a fantastic choice.

Key Specs: 13.4 x 9.2 x 0.7 inches; Weight: 3.52lbs; RAM: 2GB; Hard Drive Size: 64GB

ASUS X205TA Laptop: The Best For Travelling Price when reviewed: £170

Again, for a machine that comes in at such a low price-point this really is superb when it comes to build quality, weight and performance. At under 1kg, it's perfect as a secondary laptop to take with you on the road with you.

Its quad-core Atom processor is hardly quick, but if you moderate your expectations and don't open too many web browser tabs at a time, you shouldn't have many issues.

Asus has done a very impressive job to make such a capable machine costing so little. If you’re happy to take your work to the cloud and don’t mind paying a yearly fee of £60 for Office365, the Asus EeeBook X205TA is a terrific buy.

Key Specs: Size: 11.2 x 7.6 x 0.6 inches; Weight: 2.16lbs; RAM: 2GB; Hard Drive Size: 32GB

Lenovo ideapad 100S 11.6-Inch Laptop: The best for beginners Price when reviewed: £150

Lenovo gets a lot of credit for its flagship products, but that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t ignore its entry-level, budget range. The Ideapad 100S is priced from just £150, a tiny amount for an 11-inch full Windows 10 notebook. For that you get an Intel Atom processor, 2GB of RAM, up to 32GB of eMMC storage and a 1366x768 resolution LED display.

The USB ports are only of the 2.0 variety, but there are two of them, along with HDMI and a microSD card slot, so we think that more than makes up for it. Weighing just over 2lbs, this should keep you going for around 8 hours and comes in a few different colours.

We found the keyboard did stick, so it may be worth buying one of Lenovo’s external ones - but other than that iny quibble this is a greta laptop for those who want to keep things simple.

Key Specs: Size: 11.5 x 7.95 x 0.9 inches Weight: 2.2lbs; RAM: 2GB; Hard Drive Size: 32GB

HP Stream 11-r000na 11.6-Inch HD Laptop: The best for students Price when reviewed: £179

Clocking in at £179, the Stream 11 is a small, but fully-formed Windows 10 notebook that comes with a year of Office 365 Personal to boot. When it comes to hardware the Stream 11 is on par with the Acer Cloudbook.

You get an 11.6-inch 1366x768 resolution display and an Intel Celeron N3050 processor with 2GB of RAM and 32GB of eMMC storage. The Stream 11 also has USB 2.0, USB 3.0 and HDMI-out, and boasts a battery life of around 8 hours.

With full Windows 10 on board and a body that only weighs 2.5lbs, the Stream 11 is a great choice for the frequent traveller or student who needs to get some light work, a bit of web browsing or some media consumption going on.

Key specs: Size: 12 x 8.1 x 0.78inches; Weight: 2.74lbs; RAM: 2GB; Hard Drive Size: 32GB