A 2-in-1 laptop can provide 2 devices in 1 – a computer and a tablet. $500 is a fair budget price for a 2 1, especially for a college student, considering that high-quality laptops and tablets cost around 500 dollars, including a Pen.
A laptop should also be of considerable value, especially because it allows you to do much more with your computer, including as a source of income.
List of best 2-in-1 laptops under $500 with Pen in 2024
1. ASUS VivoBook Flip 14 with Pen
This laptop has a sleek and affordable configuration for a cheap 2-in-1 laptop under $500 with a Pen. Slim and lightweight features are essential to its success.
The device sports a 2.3GHz Intel Premium Gold N5000 processor with 4GB of DDR4 RAM and 128GB of SSD storage. The aluminum design makes the laptop look like a premium range.
Inspired by the MacBook, the Asus VivoBook Flip 14’s keyboard features straight edges and smooth, rounded edges. A display hinge that supports up to 360-degree screen rotation ensures the stability of your laptop screen.
It feels light and comfortable even when used as a tablet, even with a 14-inch display size. Another notable feature of the keyboard is its structure, significantly reducing noise. However, the keys do not have a backlight.
The VivoBook Flip 14’s responsiveness is smooth, but the touchpad clicks may be louder than usual for a quiet keyboard. There is a fingerprint in the upper left corner of the touchpad.
The Intel HD 620 GPU features a full HD touch screen with 1920 x 1280 pixels for vivid and clear viewing. Although the touch may feel stiff, the bezels at the top and bottom of the screen are designed to be large enough to prevent unintentional touch.
The VivoBook Flip 14 speakers are excellent for a 2-in-1 laptop for just $500. The highest level of audio clarity makes the stealing deal. It also has a USB 3.1 Type-C port and a rarely used micro-USB 2 port.
It also has a decent-sized non-standard micro HDMI, a full-size SD card slot, an audio jack, and a charging point. The average battery life is 9 hours, which is good for a 2-in-1 laptop under $500.
Overall, the Asus VivoBook Flip 14 can perform well on Windows 10 and is suitable if you use online media more than heavy tasks like creating audiovisual content.
2. Microsoft Surface Go 3
When it comes to Microsoft, it’s a well-known brand for making good laptops, PCs, and other gadgets. This laptop is ultra-super-portable. This form factor gives you tremendous flexibility to work almost anywhere.
The Microsoft Surface Go laptop has an unusual resolution. Most laptops in this range have a 1920 x 1080 resolution, but this laptop has an 1800 x 1200 resolution, which is very interesting.
Keep in mind that this is not a power plant. The proposition for this laptop is that you don’t edit many videos here or throw in some hardcore work.
It’s more suitable for everyday features and entry-level price points. This laptop is best for students because it is a very nice device.
Whether traveling somewhere, meeting, or in a coffee shop, this laptop won’t make you uncomfortable.
It doesn’t need a case, no folio, and it’s a slim size that can be used upright. Microsoft Surface Go has a fragile keyboard cover and clicks just as well as plastic keyboard buttons, but not much of a form factor.
The keyboard cover is thinner than the iPad’s double-sided folio. So you can flatten it or fold it at an angle to the deck.
The keyboard is not big. Nevertheless, it is still the way, in my opinion, compared to the Folio keyboard. This laptop has an Intel Pentium Gold processor with 128GB of storage and 8GB of RAM, which is quite nice.
Most people can use this system to email someone, watch a movie online, chat with someone, or do some random daily tasks.
The cool thing about this laptop is that it has a face unlock feature on the front head of the computer and a camera on the back.
It also includes a USB Type-C port with a faster-charging surface connector and a headphone jack on a laptop that can be used in tablet or studio mode.
There’s a slim Microsoft magnetic charging connector instead of stinging too many ants. The laptop has amazing black bars on the top and bottom that look realistic and cool.
3. Acer Spin 3
The sub-$500 price point is disappointing if you want to experience a decent enough convertible. But 2024 has been pretty friendly for budget seekers, and we’ve finally got our hands on the Acer Spin 3, especially for potential buyers who prefer an entry-level 2-in-1 laptop.
The Acer Spin 3 can be a good choice for those looking for the best 2-in-1 laptop under $500 and looking for the best specs. This laptop weighs 0.78 inches and only 3.75 pounds.
It is fairly well made and feels solid in hand. Let’s say we’re talking about a nice design since it has a black textured top bezel and a glossy silver bottom. The silver finish does a great job of preventing stains and scratches.
If you use this laptop daily, it will handle your daily tasks well. This laptop has a 360-degree hinge mechanism that allows two hinges to hold the screen in various arrangements;
So, from a traditional clamshell laptop lying flat on a table, the convertible is so much better. It gives you a chill feeling while you watch movies, play games, or do whatever else you want. It’s amazing.
Tablet mode is an easy-to-use stylus that lets you draw beautiful designs, sketch cartoons, and more. Acer Spin three laptop has a 14-inch, 1920 x 1080 widescreen display and an LED-backlit IPS panel and can support a multi-touch screen with thin bezels measuring a 038-inch screen.
The screen provides 240 nits of brightness, so using this laptop in bright light may not be a problem. It has an amazing rechargeable active stylus, so you can use units of any design, take an angle or sketch something similar. This gives you the best performance, which is cool.
Now, let’s talk about performance. This laptop is equipped with a 10th-generation Core i5 processor. Most laptops in this price range use sleeve processors, so I salute Acer for choosing a high-end Core i5 processor.
It has 8GB DDR4 RAM and 256 PCIe NVMe SSD memory, which is better than the HP Spectra x360 or Asus.
Acer claims that this laptop offers 12 hours of battery life, but some users have found 8-9 hours. It may depend on their usage.
You’ll find an amazing island-style keyboard with a backlight enabled on this laptop. The keys are responsive and good.
This laptop also has a fingerprint sensor, so you can easily protect sensitive data.
4. Dell Inspiron 14 5481
The Dell Inspiron 14 5481 is a 2-in-1 convertible laptop that is the best choice for a convertible laptop on a budget. It will impress you with its stylish design and unique features.
It boasts an i3-8145U processor, perfect for budget laptops and Chromebooks. Thanks to Intel UHD 620 Graphics, it can fully perform everyday tasks without any hassle.
It has 4GB of RAM and a 128GB SSD. It offers decent storage space and fast speed. You can also open the case and upgrade/replace the components yourself.
The touch screen responds well to pokes and taps. It features a 14-inch screen with an HD resolution of 1366 × 768 pixels. The resolution is not very good, but it is one of the things that should be thrown away, so the price is not cheap.
The Dell Inspiron 14 5481 features an accessible keyboard. The integrated touchpad is wide enough and well-balanced to support multi-gesture use, giving it an edge over traditional laptops.
The tablet mode is handheld, the standing mode has the keyboard face down, and the tent mode has the hinge and keyboard facing opposite. The touch is also centered in all these modes, making it easy to interact with Windows 10.
That is one USB 2.0 port, headphone jack, HDMI port, two USB 3.0 ports, and SD card reader. This model supports 802.11ac Wi-Fi and Bluetooth version 4.2. The battery life of this variant is better than what you would expect from a traditional laptop. Lasts about 8 hours.
The Dell Inspiron 14 5481 2-in-1 Convertible Laptop outperforms the market’s competition regarding price. However, it cuts down on some features to reach that price.
5. Microsoft Surface Go 2
The amazing Surface Go from Microsoft ensures a compact and convenient user experience. With a 1.6GHz Intel Premium Gold CPU, this convertible, for under $500, gets you the Windows 10S operating system. Also, you don’t have to deal with compatibility issues.
At just £1.15, the Microsoft Surface Go is a champion ultra-compact laptop with a great kickstand. Its design focuses on rounded corners, which makes this affordable 2-in-1 laptop stand out from its predecessors on the Surface.
It has also become a preferred choice for medical students, nursing students, and physicians. The design also makes the Surface Go used for drawing or writing purposes. It comes with a USB-C port and microSD on the body, making it a better choice than a tablet like the iPad.
This laptop’s 8 GB RAM, 128 GB of expandable storage, and a Surface Connect port set it apart. The keyboard has full-size curved keys and a glass trackpad, an improved version of the Surface Pro.
However, the reduced space between the keys can only slightly interfere with the typing experience. With 1800 x 1200 pixels, this 10-inch display delivers a highly valued viewing experience with color fidelity and fair picture quality.
A large bezel around the screen helps to handle the laptop. And what’s interesting is the speakers placed inside the left and right bezels around the screen. They also provide high-quality sound. And the battery lasts up to 9 hours on this device.
Overall, this 2-in-1 laptop is a win-win in the affordable range. The Microsoft Surface Go competes well within this range and provides users with satisfactory performance.
In addition to this 8GB/128Gb version of the Microsoft Surface Go, two variants are available on Amazon: 4GB/128GB and 4GB/64Gb – with some price fluctuations but still under budget.
6. HP Pavilion X360
The 14-inch touchscreen display is one of the key attributes of the HP Pavilion x360. Although we lowered the display resolution to 1366 x 768 pixels to justify the price tag, the viewing angles are still very sharp.
The SVA LCD panel also offers a widescreen viewing experience, making it a good buy for streaming fanatics.
Regarding productivity, the HP Pavilion x360 is an excellent budget-based purchase, driven by a Chiclet-style keyboard with a numeric keypad and decent key travel for writers and copywriters.
However, the HP ImagePad with gesture support appears to be one of the most obscure characteristics. It also has a functional webcam, dual microphones, powerful front speakers, and a 360-degree collapsible layout that weighs around 3.55 pounds.
The HP Pavilion x360 starts with a reliable and efficient Intel Core i3-1005G1 processor. Despite being an entry-level mobile SoC, it can reach up to 3.4 GHz turbo clock speeds.
It only has two cores. Still, I tested the device for some relatively heavy accounting tasks, and the HP Pavilion x360 delivers brilliant colors and excels thanks to HyperThreading technology.
You can’t get a discrete graphics card at this price point, but Intel UHD graphics support is still good enough for certain casual games.
Regarding system memory, 8GB of RAM is commendable for a given price. However, system memory’s high bandwidth stands out, allowing complex workloads to be managed in the smallest possible timeframe.
Regarding storage support, you can get a 128GB solid-state drive with PCIe support. Despite limited storage space, file retrieval and Windows 10 OS boot speed are among the best attributes.
The operating system can use Windows 10 in S mode. More precisely, it is a power-efficient and touch-friendly addition to an HDMI output, a Type-C data transfer port, two USB 3.0 Type-A slots, and standard Wireless 5 compatible; the connectivity suite is versatile and functional.
Regarding autonomy, this convertible produces up to 9 hours of battery backup under moderate use.
If you’re looking for a budget-friendly business laptop under $500 with a high overall portability index, the new and improved HP Pavilion x360 is one of the best options to invest in.
7. Lenovo Flex 5
The Lenovo Flex 5 comes in a design that falls between a budget and a premium laptop. The 14-inch thick Lenovo Flex 5 Convertible is sleek and has a wedge-shaped bottom speaker that makes it hard to hear when placed on a surface.
The Onyx Black offers a luxurious finish, and the laptop comes with a durable and sturdy chassis. On the right are two USB slots, an SD card reader, and a power button, and on the left are a charging port, HDMI, one USB, and a 3.5mm jack.
The 2-in-1 laptop is perfect for everyday productivity under $500 without a backlit keypad and precision touchpad.
Regarding displays, the Flex 5 doesn’t provide users with a balanced display experience due to budgets. The color quality is average and doesn’t quite cover brightness levels when using the device outdoors.
There is a provision to add a Windows Ink pen while touch works very well. Moreover, this 2-in-1 laptop has a Full HD display at an affordable price.
The 2.7GHz AMD quad-core Ryzen 3 4300U processor delivers decent performance paired with 4GB DDR4 RAM and 256GB SSD storage.
Responsiveness is respectable on a budget, and up to 10 hours of battery life isn’t bad for everyday use. However, a single fan can be noisy and distracting.
The Lenovo Flex 5 Convertible is a decent convertible for under $500. While the keyboard provides a smooth typing experience, the touch function works well, and the sleek design makes it worthwhile.
What to expect from $500 2-in-1 laptops?
For this budget, you can expect:
1. Display Screen
A 13-inch to 15-inch screen on this budget will feel like a pro. If your office specializes in customer service, it’s worth investing in a good resolution to handle all these calls.
2. RAM
Most of these budgets use 4GB to 8GB of RAM to speed up your computer and make it more responsive for a smoother experience.
3. Storage
Within a $500 budget, you’ll find a 256GB memory card that will take your photos and videos to the next level! 256GB of memory provides the perfect balance between work and leisure, ensuring that all activities are not sacrificed for each other.
4. Operating System
Windows 8 to 10 come with under 500 dollars budget. Microsoft designs these operating systems to provide you with a great user experience!
5. Battery
For those on the go, this is great news! The new budget will give you 5-6 hours of battery life.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is a 2-in-1 Laptop?
A 2-in-1 laptop, 2-in-1 notebook PC, convertible laptop, 2-in-1 tablet, or 2-in-1 detachable is a portable computer that can function as both a tablet and a laptop.
What is the history of 2 in 1 Laptop?
Before the 2-in-1 and its names appeared, tech journalists used convertible and hybrid words to name the pre-2-in-1 portable computer.
A hybrid keyboard features a complementary physical keyboard that rotates behind the chassis or is hot-pluggable.
Both the pre-2-in-1 convertible and hybrid were crossover devices that combined the capabilities of a tablet and a laptop.
Subsequent 2-in-1 PCs constitute the sibling category of pre-2-in-1 convertibles and hybrids.
The 2-in-1 PC models were similarly named 2-in-1 convertibles or 2-in-1 detachable, respectively, and, despite borrowing the term pre-2-in-1 PCs, there were two types of 2-in-1 PCs. A 2-in-1 PC is distinct from the two types of pre-2-in-1 PCs because one PC has the additional features of a traditional notebook.
The 2-in-1 PC consists of portable computer components inside a lightweight and thin chassis and is an example of technology convergence. Tablet mode is convenient for media consumption and non-intensive work, while laptop mode is useful for content creation.
Is it worth buying a 2-in-1 convertible laptop?
A key feature of a 2-in-1 laptop is its flexibility. It can be used as a laptop, tablet, or both. This is useful for those who commute frequently and do not want the burden of a heavy laptop. You can use it from the comfort of your home or office for documentation or watching videos while surfing the web. The touchscreen is a blessing in the form of a 2-in-1 laptop. So, considering these points, the 2-in-1 laptop is completely worth it.
What is the difference between a touchscreen and a 2-in-1 laptop?
Touchscreen laptops conveniently come with a keyboard, but the screen has the functionality of a touchscreen. The 2-in-1 Hybrid Convertible Technology laptop has a detachable keyboard that can be removed when converting a computer to a tablet.
Can all 2-in-1 laptops use a stylus/pen?
Not necessarily. 2-in-1 laptops have touchscreen displays, but not all touch screens are stylus/pet-friendly. 2-in-1 laptops that support external devices may have a built-in Corning Glass screen or require a tempered glass screen to protect the display.
Who can get the most out of a cheap 2-in-1 laptop?
College students who need a laptop for assignments, presentations, and everyday document work will find 2-in-1 laptops more useful than traditional laptops in terms of affordability, portability, and a comfortable transition from laptop to tablet mode.
Young professionals who prioritize their budgets and only need to do standard tasks at home, such as report typing and recreation, may want to consider these machines.
Verdict: Best 2-in-1 Laptops Under $500
These are some of the best-rated 2-in-1s under $500 that have been reviewed and carefully selected for your benefit. Some of these laptops come with Pen. You can review all the specs, pros, and cons and find a good machine.
