Gaming Laptop, 15.6 Inch Laptop Computer with N150 Review
With a CPU in the 9th percentile, this $300 laptop's decent RAM and storage can't save it from being painfully slow. Look elsewhere.
Overview
Let's be real upfront. This is a $300 laptop with an Intel N150 processor, and that 0.1GHz clock speed isn't a typo. It puts the CPU performance in the 9th percentile, which is basically the bottom of the barrel. For the price, you do get 16GB of RAM and a 512GB SSD, which are decent numbers on paper. But the overall score of 29.6/100 tells you everything you need to know. It's not built for anything demanding. Its best scores are for being compact (38.2/100) and entertainment (30.5/100), which means it might handle basic web browsing and video streaming. That's about it.
Performance
Performance is where this thing falls apart. That Intel N150 CPU is a 2-core chip with a base clock of 0.1GHz. In the 9th percentile, it's one of the slowest modern laptop processors you can find. It will struggle with more than a couple of browser tabs. The GPU is listed as '16 GB VRAM,' which is highly suspect and likely a misprint or misunderstanding. Even if it had dedicated graphics, the CPU would bottleneck it completely. The gaming score of 12.8/100 is brutally honest. Don't even think about it for games. The 16GB of DDR4 RAM is its strongest hardware point, landing in the 32nd percentile, but it's paired with a CPU that can't use it effectively.
Pros & Cons
Pros
- Price is very low at $300. 87th
- Includes 16GB of RAM, which is good for basic multitasking at this price. 76th
- Comes with a 512GB SSD for decent storage space.
- Weighs only 1.54kg, making it fairly portable.
- Includes a backlit keyboard, a nice touch for a budget machine.
Cons
- CPU performance is in the 9th percentile. The Intel N150 is extremely weak. 3th
- Gaming capability scores a dismal 12.8/100. It's not a gaming laptop. 7th
- Reliability percentile is a concerning 3rd percentile. 17th
- Screen quality is in the 16th percentile, so expect a mediocre display. 24th
- Uses older WiFi 5 instead of WiFi 6.
Specifications
Full Specifications
Processor
| CPU | Intel Processor N150 |
| Cores | 2 |
| Frequency | 100 MHz |
| L3 Cache | 6 MB |
Graphics
| GPU | 16 GB |
| VRAM | 16 GB |
Memory & Storage
| RAM | 16 GB |
| RAM Generation | DDR4 |
| Storage | 512 GB |
| Storage Type | SSD |
Display
| Size | 15.6" |
| Resolution | 1920 (Full HD) |
Connectivity
| Wi-Fi | WiFi 5 |
| Bluetooth | Bluetooth 4.2 |
Physical
| Weight | 1.5 kg / 3.4 lbs |
| OS | Windows 11 Pro |
Value & Pricing
At $300, the value proposition is simple. You're paying for a basic Windows 11 Pro machine that can handle web browsing, documents, and video streaming. The 16GB of RAM and 512GB SSD are better than you'd typically find at this price, but they're attached to a severely underpowered CPU. You get what you pay for, and here you're paying for the bare minimum. If your budget is absolutely fixed at $300, it exists. But saving a little more opens up much better options.
vs Competition
Compared to anything on the competitor list, this laptop isn't in the same universe. The Apple MacBook Pro M4 Max, Lenovo Legion Pro 7i, or MSI Vector 16 are high-performance machines costing over ten times as much. A more relevant comparison would be against other budget Windows laptops or Chromebooks. Even there, the abysmal CPU and reliability scores are major red flags. For similar money, you could find a used business laptop or a new Chromebook that would feel faster and likely last longer. This machine's specs look okay on a list, but the CPU cripples everything.
| Spec | Gaming Laptop, 15.6 Inch Laptop Computer with N150 | Apple MacBook Pro Apple 14" MacBook Pro (M5, Silver) | ASUS ROG Zephyrus ASUS - ROG Zephyrus G14 14" 3K OLED 120Hz Gaming | Lenovo Legion Lenovo Legion Pro 5i Gen 10 Intel Laptop, | MSI Creator MSI Creator M14 A13V A13VF-081US 14" 2.8K Laptop, | HP ZBook HP 14" ZBook Ultra G1a Multi-Touch Mobile |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| CPU | Intel Processor N150 | Apple M5 | AMD Ryzen AI 300 Series | Intel Core Ultra 7 255HX | Intel Core i7 13620H | AMD Ryzen AI Max Pro 385 |
| RAM (GB) | 16 | 32 | 32 | 16 | 32 | 32 |
| Storage (GB) | 512 | 4096 | 1000 | 1024 | 2048 | 1024 |
| Screen | 15.6" 1920x1080 | 14.2" 3024x1964 | 14" 2880x1800 | 16" 2560x1600 | 14" 2880x1800 | 14" 2880x1800 |
| GPU | 16 GB | Apple (10-Core) | NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5070 Ti | NVIDIA GeForce RTX 5060 | NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4060 | AMD Radeon |
| OS | Windows 11 Pro | macOS | Windows 11 Home | Windows 11 Home | Windows 11 Home (MSI recommends Windows 11 Pro for business) | Windows 11 Pro |
| Weight (kg) | 1.5 | 1.5 | 1.6 | 0.5 | 1.6 | 2.6 |
| Battery (Wh) | - | 72 | - | 80 | - | 74 |
Verdict
I can't recommend this for anyone who needs a reliable, capable laptop. The 9th percentile CPU and 3rd percentile reliability are deal-breakers. It might work as a disposable web terminal for a very specific, undemanding task where the $300 price is the only factor. For students, general use, or even basic office work, its sluggish performance will be frustrating quickly. Spend a bit more, buy used, or look at a Chromebook. The decent amount of RAM and storage can't save it from its fundamentally weak core components.