Best laptops under $300 for everyday use

Top pick: the ASUS Chromebook CX15. For everyday browsing, email, video and docs, a Chromebook is the least fussy way to spend this little — this one has a 1080p screen, a current Intel N50 chip and 128GB of storage, and shoppers rate it well. It's the one I'd hand to most people.

Who the others suit:

• Acer Chromebook 315 — same idea, bigger 15.6" full-HD screen, if you mostly watch video or work with two windows side by side.
• HP 15.6" Windows laptop — pick this if you need Windows-only software (Office desktop, older work apps) and a familiar desktop.
• Acer Aspire Lite 15 — the Windows option with the most memory and an SSD, for smoother multitasking.
• HP 14" Everyday Value — a compact, light Windows machine for basic tasks.

Avoid the 4GB/64GB Windows models if you keep many tabs open; Chrome OS stretches 4GB much further than Windows does.