Budget gaming/general use laptop - under $500

LAPTOP QUESTIONNAIRE

• Total budget (in local currency) and country of purchase. Please do not use USD unless purchasing in the US:

  Under $500 USD, USA

• Are you open to refurbs/used?

  Yes

• How would you prioritize form factor (ultrabook, 2-in-1, etc.), build quality, performance, and battery life?

  Not sure on the technicals

• How important is weight and thinness to you?

  Prefer lighter weight/thinner, but not at the expense of performance

• Do you have a preferred screen size? If indifferent, put N/A.

  N/A. Just not massive

• Are you doing any CAD/video editing/photo editing/gaming? List which programs/games you desire to run.

  Some gaming- The Sims 4 + mods, Stardew Valley, Stepmania (I hook it up to the TV).

Some light photo editing/graphics making with The Gimp. Some light audio editing with Audacity.

• If you're gaming, do you have certain games you want to play? At what settings and FPS do you want?

  See above. Sims is probably the biggest one.

• Any specific requirements such as good keyboard, reliable build quality, touch-screen, finger-print reader, optical drive or good input devices (keyboard/touchpad)?

  No specifics. I've had issues with computers in the past running at max CPU or disk usage, so whatever isn't prone to that issue. Strongly prefer no copilot/AI. Less bloatware or at least the ability to remove bloatware.

• Leave any finishing thoughts here that you may feel are necessary and beneficial to the discussion.