Best Budget PC For College Students – Cheap Desktops

best budget pc for students

Student life is full of workloads, a high-performance cheap PC is the best solution for them.

The best budget PC for students could be a great relief for many exceptional problems. Sounds familiar? Besides studies, you would get all in one solution at a cheap price.

Especially if you are searching out a devoted media middle to move TV, films, and YouTube films immediately to the TV?

Or, you need to provide expensive backups for your PCs and want to get as much power as possible with as little money as possible.

Whether it’s a thin and light word processor or a powerful design and engineering center, students can be sure that PCs will make your courses easier.

However, figuring out how to buy a PC suitable for four years of university study can be stressful. There are many models to choose from.

After all, this is the machine that keeps Netflix running at night, taking notes, writing essays, and performing programs such as video editing or 3D modeling based on your college degree. A best 500 dollar gaming PC can also do the same job where the gaming edge is also added to a student’s bucket list.

For example, those who use complex software (such as design, video production, or architecture) need more powerful PCs. In contrast, those who study art or design may prefer to use touch-screen PCs for digital sketching, regardless of whether they recommend other platforms (such as Windows or Mac).

The Best Budget Pcs For College Students

1. Mac Mini M1 by Apple
2. Acer Aspire TC-895-UA91
3. Lenovo IdeaCenter
4. Asrock Desk Mini X 300
5. Dell Inspiron Small Desktop
6. HP Slim Desktop (S01-aF0020)
7. HP Envy Desktop (TE01-014)
8. Intel NUC Kit NUC8i7BEH
9. Lenovo Idea Center 510 A

Also Read: Best Gaming PC Under 500

Katie Schrock of the School of Education said: “Universities usually don’t need a specific brand model, but they want students to work with campus technicians certified for certain computer brands to repair computers quickly.

Expensive PCs cannot be saved at a favorable price. You can combine the functions of several different devices at the same price:

the best intelligent home game consoles, tablets, hubs/digital assistants, and even your stereo. Replace with a system with a suitable desktop computer.

If the price of the finished car becomes more reasonable, you can get excellent performance at an attractive price.

Or, if you have more space in your budget and need a more powerful computer, check out our list of the best desktops in general, or find the cheapest desktops available today.

The Best Budget PCs For Students Reviews

1. Apple Mac Mini

pc for students
Brand Apple 
RAM8GB RAM
Storage256GB SSD

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Like Apple’s Silicon MacBook models, the Mac mini M1 has more power per pound. If you want a small and fast PC, there are many options available.

However, not all software has been migrated to the new architecture. M1 chip plays the main role with the features to covert all of Apple’s creative business and professional applications.

You can also run some iOS applications, which should lay a good foundation for most Mini users as desktops. Already on the way to native M1 apps elsewhere.

Taking a quick look at the applications we use every day, we can see that Adobe has released the public Beta of M1 Photoshop (with limited functionality).

Black magic Design is providing free Beta for its video editing/color grading software DaVinci. Like Microsoft Edge and Firefox browsers, Google Chrome can also be used as a local M1 application.

Similar to Affinity Photo and Adobe Lightroom. If you have your version of the M1 application, you can simulate it on the Rosetta 2 runtime.

Most of the software that runs in this way worked well, and the process was similar. However, many applications contain errors in Rosetta 2 or are unusable at all.

Therefore, you should check before moving to the M1 platform. Its cost starts from $500. Assuming that the software you need is running, you can expect high performance.

The M1 Mac mini has the exact specifications as the 13-inch MacBook Pro M1. It has the same active cooling M1 processor, 8-core M1 GPU, 8 GB RAM, and 256 GB SSD.

AdvantagesDisadvantages
Excellent battery lifeOnly two connection ports
Intel chip shifted to M1limited input and output
Fast speed with effortless use
Low power consumption

You Might Be Interested In Reading: Best Gaming Monitor Under 200

2. Acer Aspire TC-895-UA91

best pc for college students
BrandAcer
CPU10th Gen Intel Core i3-10100
RAM8GB
Storage512GB NVMe M.2 SSD

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This beautiful black chassis design is supported by the 10th generation Intel Core i3 processor and 8GB storage,

which provides speed, performance, and storage, allowing you to enjoy, create, create and enjoy more fun every day!

Acer Aspire TC series desktops can quickly expand and perform well, making them an ideal companion for complex tasks.

The Acer Aspire TC-895-UA91 ($429.99) is what most budget desktop buyers need in many ways.

Its affordable, compact, and fully functional entry-level mini-tower has everything you need and some other features at a similar price.

The competition uses a “real” tenth-generation Intel Core i3 desktop processor with actual performance, a 512GB solid-state drive, and supports USB Type-C, SD card, Wi-Fi, and Bluetooth.

Nothing matters with this entry-level PC. (Some discounted devices use lower-quality PC processors.)

This combination of processing power and feature set beats competitors in terms of value and won the first edition of Aspire’s budget desktop computer “Editor’s Choice” prize”.

AdvantagesDisadvantages
It has high performanceIt is loud than standard computers.
It has excellent connectivityOverheating problem
Great Storage

Also Read: Best PC For Office Work

3. Lenovo IdeaCenter budget PC

budget desktop for students
Brand Lenovo 
RAM4GB DDR4
CPUAMD Athlon Silver 3050U
Storage256GB SSD

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Explore a world full of methods that can improve your life and bring you solutions for all of your work tasks.

In this guide and Lenovo IdeaCenter review, we will help you answer the key questions you need to know about choosing the suitable Raspberry Pi 4 model. And, if you already have it, take it out.

Lenovo IdeaCenter has long been the gold standard for low-cost single-board computing, supporting everything from robots to smart home devices to digital kiosks.

When Lenovo IdeaCenter was launched in 2019, it took the Pi to a new level with outstanding performance. Enough to use. The latest desktop option also has the function of outputting 4K 60 Hz video or powering dual monitors.

Lenovo IdeaCenter (8 GB) was recently released and provided enough RAM for desktop, performance, and database. If you don’t have a Lenovo IdeaCenter, it will be added to your technology toolbox.

The Lenovo IdeaCenter model starts at $35 and can be used as a children’s educational PC, media center, web server, and game simulator, or as a robot’s brain or device.

AdvantagesDisadvantages
USB ports (USB 3.0)limited power compatibility
Faster CPU processing and more built-in RAM optionsHeat dissipation issues

Also Read: How To Upgrade Your Gaming PC

4. Asrock Desk Mini X 300

best budget desktop for student
Brand ASRock
RAM4 GB
CPUAMD Ryzen
Storage64 GB

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At first glance, the Asrock DeskMini X300 ($169.99) appearance terribly like the company’s alternative mini PCs, though the front panel looks a lot of complicated.

However, for X300, this is another matter. X300 is based on AMD technology and offers completely different advantages.

In addition to the cost of the Windows.10 license, if the DeskMini X300 you build is similar to the parts we use, you can also find 16GB of SO-DIMM RAM and a large M.2 SSD each for about $70.

Advantages and disadvantages Since this is a primary system (you provide CPU, RAM, memory, and operating system), the performance will vary greatly depending on the processor with AMD graphics (up to 65 W) and compatible components installed.

Compared with the integrated graphics in similar Intel desktop processors, the integrated AMD Radeon graphics can slightly improve the X300’s graphics performance.

The total cost of ownership is also very low. Its processor price is now higher than usual, so the price of Ryzen 5 3400G is $225.

However, this will add a total of more than $500 to the total cost (if the processor is sold at the recommended retail price, or if a smaller SSD or only 8GB RAM is selected, the total cost may be lower).

It is not bad, and the powerful can still use the mini-a desktop with gaming functions for less than $500.

AdvantagesDisadvantages
Best Performance Lower Storage
Best Graphics quality

Also Read: Best Gaming PC Under 700

5. Dell Inspiron Small Desktop (3471)

best college student pc
BrandDell 
RAM8GB RAM
CPU9th Gen Intel Core i3
Storage256GB SSD + 1 TB

The design of the Inspiron 3471 is as simple as possible a compact black rectangle with no frills. Its front panel is slightly curved and has silver edges.

Inspiron is made of shiny black plastic, not of other people’s black metal. Otherwise, as can be seen from the photos, there is nothing to say—Dell Inspiron (3471) small desktop computer, front view.

Since cheap desktops do not need to include the Inspiron 3471, some compact towers appear larger. It measures only 11.5 x 3.75 x 12.25 inches (HWD).

It saves Dell space. The Dell Core i3-9100 processor is a quad-core processor that does not support super processing. It looks like it fits your configuration environment.

Therefore, only four processing threads can be processed in multi-threaded software (Cinebench and Handbrake). You would find Core i5 processors in Acer Aspire and HP Envy are six-core processors.

The older Core i3 and Ryzen 3 processors in HP Pavilion and Lenovo are quad-core processors with four threads, such as Core i3-9100.

AdvantagesDisadvantages
It is minimal and compactcan’t compete with high-end PCs
1 TB hard disk drive
Best Performance

Also Read: How To Choose A Prebuilt Gaming PC

6. HP Slim Desktop (S01-aF0020)

best desktop for college students
Brand HP
CPUAMD Athlon Gold 3150U
RAM 8GB RAM
Storage256 GB SSD

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Despite the relatively simple processor, HP small desktops with 8 GB of RAM and 256 GB of storage on a fast PCI Express NVMe SSD have relatively high memory and storage capacity.

They are more expensive, including the Apple Mac mini. They are also much better than the 4GB eMMC flash memory of Lenovo Idea Center 3 or Access4 that we just tested for $319.99 ($319.99).

Knowing the way to the desktop means you can easily update storage and storage at any time. It can be easily detached by fixing the side of the box with a screw.

After opening the case, you can directly access the motherboard. There is an available M.2 SSD slot and an additional SO-DIMM memory slot (for portable memory modules) on the motherboard.

The size is small so that you can add a spacious, intelligent, hard drive. Since there is no internal power supply or additional PCI Express slot, HP Slim Desktop Open View cannot add a single graphics card to HP Slim Desktop.

Fierce competition and we don’t expect such a high price.

AdvantagesDisadvantages
inexpensive and cheapNo additional USB ports
multiple memory storage slotsIt has a bit flimsy processor

7. HP Envy Desktop (TE01-014)

best desktop for college students
BrandHP
CPUIntel Core i7-9700
RAM16GB RAM
Storage1TB Hard Drive, 512 GB SSD

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The desktop version of Envy tested here contains an Intel Core i5 processor with six cores and integrated Intel UHD 630 graphics, 12 GB DDR4-2666 memory; and 512 GB SSD.

Other configuration options include an eight-core Core i7 processor, Nvidia GeForce GTX 1660 graphics card, and 16 GB of memory. You can still find chips with 8th generation chips in our test module, such as Core i5-8400.

We compared the performance of the Envy desktop with other desktops at similar prices (such as HP Pavilion, Acer Aspire, Lenovo Idea Centre 510A, and Apple Mac mini).

Envys’ six-core processors have achieved impressive results in multimedia tasks (such as photo editing and video encoding) involving basic tasks such as word processing, spreadsheets, and games.

You are still one step ahead in your daily life. Rib shell Although the Envy desktop has a box-like shape like the PC tower, and HP has improved the appearance to accommodate ultra-thin, ultra-portable, and all-in-one computers.

The rib façade exudes the uncertain beauty of the Sydney Opera House (if the opera is rectangular).

When you see the front, you might still hide this computer under the desk, but at least it doesn’t look boring. (TE01-014)-04

The front port of the Envy desktop is in a column on the right edge of the power button, including a Headphone jack, four USB Type-A ports, a full-size SD card reader, and a USB Type-C port.

Because of the wide variety of ports, you don’t need to find a place to connect external storage or charge multiple portable devices simultaneously.

Too many companies have placed a set of iconic connectors in a small area in front of the desktop, and it is great to see HP reverse this trend.

AdvantagesDisadvantages
Impressive data speed and processing powerSimple Design
Best Budget Desktop

8. Intel NUC Kit NUC8i7BEH (Bean Canyon)

Best PC for college students
BrandIntel
CPU‎2.7 GHz core_i7
RAM6 GB
Storage256 GB

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Like the previous generations of NUC, this series (starting at $275; according to the test price is $430) is controlled by an essential SKU that adds storage, storage, and operating system.

These next-generation models are equipped with Core i3, i5, and i7 chips and dual-drive memory. They come in a tiny package and provide surprisingly reliable charging options for applications that require the smallest desktop PC.

NUC promotes the development of modern technology. Pre-configuration or simple configuration, you have to pay more for any small items.

Bean Canyon NUC is a model of Intel’s NUC kit NUC8i7BEH, which is the powerful Intel entry-level version of the series.

Intel also provides a fully configured Windows 10 configuration called “Intel NUC 8 Home” for US$840, with an operating system, U-series Core i5 chip, 256 GB Intel NVMe M.2 SSD, and 8 GB DDR4 memory.

This model’s grayscale color scheme is not particularly interesting, but it is easy to assemble and has no memory, RAM, or operating system.

On the other hand, it contains an improved Core i7-8559U, which is a robust quad-core/eight-thread processor with a base clock speed of 2.7 GHz. On such a large PC, going back to the early days of NUC is an achievement.

When considering a NUC or similar entry-level PC made by Zotac or Shuttle, it is essential to consider the cost of the required parts.

If you want a brand new copy of Windows 10, add $100. The size of RAM is the same as the cost of DDR4 SO-DIMM (current 8GB is about $45), and the size of RAM can only be adjusted according to your needs.

Mainly because this NUC is more flexible than most PCs. You can install two types of dual drives here. There is an M.2 slot on the motherboard that supports SATA or PCI Express NVMe drives.

The M.2 slot also supports Intel Optane memory modules for caching complicated purposes.

AdvantagesDisadvantages
DDR 4 RAMLess Storage
Ovell all best Performance

9. Lenovo Idea Center 510 A

best pc for college students
Brand Lenovo
CPUAMD 6-Core Ryzen 5
RAM16GB DDR4
Storage 512GB NVMe SSD

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Lenovo 510 A is a simple box-shaped grey beast. The lines are vertical, and the panels are unevenly separated, although this is not just beautiful.

You would have a wide range of ports and options to choose from. Type-A ports, an SD card slot, and microphone and headset connections. On the other side of the panel is the DVD+R optical drive.

Eliminating this interfering relationship should be annoying because you have to squeeze some clips together and then pull the board to vibrate the board. Otherwise, the situation seems simple.

It took me a few minutes to figure this out, and I found it very detailed. Fortunately, you will most likely never need or at least not need to open such a desktop often, but one day you can add or change space.

Two memory slots can hold up to 16 GB of RAM, and there is only one M.2 slot, but it can hold a hard drive. Which components are hidden on the metal plate?

Moderate, including AMD Ryzen 3s.3200G quad-core processor, built-in Radeon Vega 8 graphics card, 8 GB storage space, and 256 GB SSD.

Depending on your needs, this may be sufficient. In this price range, you can usually find components of the same caliber.

However, there are some differences between the participants. Therefore, please read the next section to understand its behavior.

It comes at less price, so you should not complain about its shortcomings or speed. For many casual gamers who want to gamble without spending any money on graphics cards, this is a fascinating form of entertainment.

However, in comparison, it does not look excellent. Suitable for machines with better performance or more products at comparable prices.

Idea Center may be the cheapest, but not the best choice. Don’t you have the purchasing power to pay for Aspire? Please consider purchasing an affordable HP Envy desktop computer (TE01-014). Prices start at US$439.

AdvantagesDisadvantages
lowe price No c type USB ports
8 GB of RAM storage

Conclusion

This year’s university, university, and school life are very different. many students learn distance or communication for the second year in a row, and their time is much less than before.

One of the best student PCs for creating documents and participating in online courses.

With so many online courses, video conferencing, and virtual collaborations, students spend more time on PCs than ever before.

We hope our “Student PC Guide” is invaluable to anyone who purchases a good performance, values for money, and can improve your productivity.

We will continue to update this list with new models and updated information. Therefore, please check regularly. We also provide some tips on buying clutches to help you narrow the learning curve in school. Tool.

Today’s computers must have more functions than yesterday’s original digital processors. As some courses have specific requirements, you will need to support various software, such as B. Microsoft office suite.

In terms of software, students can use the Microsoft Office 365 suite for free. There is also a Google Chromebook and related Google Docs suite that can also be used for free.

These PCs should, of course, be able to conduct high-definition video conferences without jitter. When the university provides something, a set of excellent speakers will always come in handy.

Considering the high cost of education worldwide, these machines should also be affordable. The built-in webcam is also essential for web conferencing and media-related courses.

but it has become a standard configuration for all PCs. It may be challenging to find a model without it.

Some Other Relevant Post You May like:
Best Portable Monitor
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