Anika Begay
For our full take on what to look for in a laptop, check out our guide How to choose the right laptop. The short version (even if you’re on a tight budget) is to try to get at least an Intel i5 processor and at least 8GB of RAM. 16GB is even better. Recent versions of Windows (both 10 and 11) use an astronomical amount of RAM (sometimes up to 6GB in my tests). If you only have 8GB total, that doesn’t leave much RAM for applications and the result is a slower laptop.
Aim for these specifications: Try to get a laptop with at least a 10th Gen Intel Core i5 processor, 16GB of RAM, and 128GB of solid-state drive storage. You’ll want a 13- or 14-inch display that’s close to FHD (1080p resolution). If you plan on using it to watch movies, consider a 2-in-1 model (although these tend to cost more). If you’re on a tight budget and want the most bang for your buck, or just want to keep something from ending up in a landfill, consider the used or refurbished laptop market. I’ve had great luck buying used laptops on eBay from all sorts of sellers (both professionals and regular folks).
To get the best deal, make sure you know the market. Do some research to figure out what kind of machine will suit your needs. The easiest to find, and therefore (usually) the best deals, tend to be the more boring, business-oriented models. I like ThinkPads, which are used (and then abandoned all at once) by large companies, which means there’s a lot to choose from and they’re cheap.
Finding Used Laptops on eBay: Once you know what you want, search for it on eBay. Scroll down and select the option to only see “Sold Listings.” Now take the 10 most recent sales, add the prices together, and divide by 10. That’s the average price; don’t pay more. Keep the lowest price in mind; that’s the bargain price. Now, uncheck the Sold Listings option. Look at what’s between the lowest price and the average price. Those are the offers you can consider. I recommend looking at a few of them. Don’t bid or participate at all. Watch them all the way to the end and see how high the auctions end up.
Once you have a sense of the market and how much you should pay, you’ll know you’ve found a bargain. When you find one, wait. Don’t bid until the last few minutes of the auction. You don’t want other bidders to have a chance to react. Remember that if you miss something, it’s not the end of the world. There’s always something new for sale on eBay.
