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The Best Mini Laptop

Last updated on November 29, 2021

We looked at the top 13 Mini Laptop and dug through the reviews from 64 of the most popular review sites including and more. The result is a ranking of the best Mini Laptop.

Best Mini Laptop

Our Review Process

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If you haven’t shopped for a laptop lately, you may not realize the many options now available. You don’t have to choose between one expensive laptop or another. But if you’re just writing college papers or doing presentations, there’s an easier way. You can find a mini laptop that will do the job without the expense.

In large part, this is thanks to Google. Chromebooks have created an entire market. These lightweight laptops started out as limited, but they seem to improve with each generation. Instead of being the laptop you buy for your child or use as a backup, they now can be your main laptop. Best of all, they won’t break your budget.

But you’ll need to understand their limitations before you buy. If you’re a gamer or video editor, you may find the processors on many of these laptops lacking. That doesn’t mean you can’t find a mini laptop that will handle all your needs. You may need to shop around a little, though. As you compare more expensive laptops, are the extra features worth it?

Mini laptops are, by their very nature, smaller than other laptops. That means you may be looking at a smaller screen. Molly Thornberg, technology and parenting blogger at Digital Mom Blog, advises consumers to look closely at the screen size they’ll need before investing in a smaller laptop.

“Mini laptops typically have screen sizes ranging from six inches to 12 inches,” Thornberg says.

In some cases, a smaller screen won’t be a problem. Having a smaller screen is, after all, a trade-off for having a more portable laptop to cart around. But smaller screens can be frustrating. If you’re editing pictures or designing a PowerPoint presentation, that smaller surface area can be a challenge. Keep that in mind before making a buying decision.

You’ll also probably need to plan on relying on your headphones for sound. Mini laptops limit speaker power, so you won’t be able to set it up for background music at your next party. But if you’re like many consumers, you rely on headphones or speakers for sound anyway, so this may not be an issue.

But there are many benefits to a mini laptop. Some have a design that lets you easily switch them from laptop to tablet mode. Flip the screen around, and the switchover is instant. You can also set some mini laptops up in “tent mode,” which is best when streaming your favorite TV show or a movie.

As mini laptops have advanced, manufacturers are adding features. In fact, it’s getting harder to tell the difference. You can find mini laptops that have Windows if you prefer that over the Chrome operating system. You’ll also have access to the same apps you’d find on a standard laptop, including the Microsoft Office suite. For many people, a mini laptop will be more than sufficient to meet their daily computing needs.

Our Picks For The Top Mini Laptop

View All Recommendations
Product Overview
Our Take
Pros
Cons
 Upgrade Pick

Lenovo 11.6-Inch Flex 11 Mini Laptop

Don't Waste Your Money Seal of Approval

Lenovo

11.6-Inch Flex 11 Mini Laptop

Excessive time at the keyboard can be bad for your health. This mini laptop has an ergonomic keyboard and a responsive mousepad to keep you safe. It weighs less than 3 pounds and has a full selection of ports for added convenience.

Overall Take

Top-Notch KeyboardThe ergonomic keyboard on this mini laptop sets it apart from others.

Pros
" It weighs only 2.75 pounds, packs plenty of ports, has 64 GB of storage space (enough for apps, games, and a handful of videos), and has an 11-inch, high-resolution touch-screen display."
Cons
"Display quality is subpar."
 Best Overall

Goldengulf Lightweight Long-Life Mini Laptop

Goldengulf

Lightweight Long-Life Mini Laptop

High school and college students will find this mini laptop has everything they need to succeed. It's small enough to fit in a backpack and isn't heavy to carry back and forth to class. It's also got plenty of storage and comes with Windows 10 Home.

Overall Take

Great for StudentsYou'll find this mini laptop comes in some really fun colors, like pink, white and turquoise.

 Small Build, Big Screen

LincPlus P3 Fanless Large-Screen Mini Laptop

LincPlus

P3 Fanless Large-Screen Mini Laptop

The 14-inch screen on this mini laptop makes it easy to view presentations, movies and YouTube videos. This model is also lightweight, so you can take it to your favorite coffee shop or to a client interview. As an added bonus, the laptop features multiple expansion ports, making it easy to accomplish just about anything you need to do.

Overall Take

Sleek and StylishThis mini laptop is easy to set up and works well for both children and adults.

 Travel Pick

RCA 7-Inch Voyager Pro Mini Laptop

RCA

7-Inch Voyager Pro Mini Laptop

This mini laptop is exceptionally small in size, making it more portable than other mini laptops. The low price is its best feature, but you'll also get touchscreen functionality and a USB port. It also comes with a 720p webcam for videoconferencing.

Overall Take

Most PortableThe extra-small size of this mini laptop makes it perfect for those who need something they can use on the go.

Pros
" This tablet has a 1.2 GHz quad-core processor. That means that this tablet is as powerful as many mid-level cellphones. With 1gig of ram, there should be no issue watching videos."
Cons
"People said that the battery life is short. They are all short."
Don't just take for granted what one reviewer says. Along with our own experts, DWYM analyzes the top expert reviews of the leading products and generates a score you can actually trust.
20

Products Considered

We identified the majority of the mini laptop available to purchase.
13

Products Analyzed

We then selected the leading and most popular products for our team to review.

View All Product Rankings

64

Expert Reviews Included

In addition to our expert reviews, we also incorporate feedback and analysis of some of the most respected sources including: Review Meta, No Place Called Home, Tablet Guide, The Review Index, Business 99.

11,438

User Opinions Analyzed

We also incorporate user reviews from the leading retailers including

Our experts reviewed the top 13 Mini Laptop and also dug through the reviews from 64 of the most popular review sites including and more. The result is a ranking of the best of the best Mini Laptop.

DWYM is your trusted roduct review source. Our team reviews thousands of product reviews from the trusted top experts and combines them into one easy-to-understand score. Learn more.

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Look for the DWYM seal for products that are the best in their category.

Our Expert Consultant

Molly Thornberg   
Technology and parenting blogger

Molly Thornberg is a professional writer, creative and mom to four kids, living her best life outside of Dallas, Texas. With a love for all things tech, she is passionate about helping parents raise kids in the digital age. She writes about technology, parenting and humor on her blog Digital Mom Blog.

The Best Bang For Your Buck

RCA 7-Inch Voyager Pro Mini Laptop

Our Expert Score

9.3
4 expert reviews

User Summarized Score

7.5
3,564 user reviews

Our Take

This mini laptop is exceptionally small in size, making it more portable than other mini laptops. The low price is its best feature, but you'll also get touchscreen functionality and a USB port. It also comes with a 720p webcam for videoconferencing.

What other experts liked

This tablet has a 1.2 GHz quad-core processor. That means that this tablet is as powerful as many mid-level cellphones. With 1gig of ram, there should be no issue watching videos.
- Tablet Reviewer
October 17, 2019 | Full review
I really like this tablet. I like the keyboard. It is well integrated. I am so happy with this. It's fast. This product is a game changer in the world of tablets.
- 108 Top Reviews
A 1.3 GHz quad-core processor and 1 GB of RAM give you enough power to handle video streaming, web browsing and basic games, and the Android 5.0 Lollipop OS gives you access to some of the best apps and features that any tablet has to offer.
- Tablet Dream
August 10, 2018 | Full review
Tablet pcs are compact, ultra-portable entertainment devices that let you read email, surf the internet, read ebooks, view photos, play games, listen to music and watch video files.
- Andrew Get Best

What other experts didn't like

The battery may not be the best.
- Tablet Reviewer
October 17, 2019 | Full review
People said that the battery life is short. They are all short.
- 108 Top Reviews
Takes up too much space. The product is hard to buy because of a low number of official vendors.
- Andrew Get Best

What to Look For

  • A smaller laptop doesn’t mean you have to sacrifice too much on screen. If screen size is important to you, you’ll prefer an 11.6-inch laptop, which provides plenty of viewing space.
  • The screen on the RCA 7″ Voyager Pro also includes touchscreen functionality. If you plan to spin your screen around to use it as a tablet, that’s an especially important feature.
  • Some models also operate in something called “tent mode,” which makes streaming video much easier.
  • On any laptop, the keyboard is essential. Unlike desktop computers, you’ll be relying on the built-in keyboard. Some models have highly responsive keys, making typing a breeze.
  • Even if you rely on headphones for sound, it can be nice to have a laptop with decent speakers. Look for one that provides impressive audio, even at a low volume. With many mini laptops, you’ll likely find the audio distorts as you increase the volume.
  • Each mini-laptop comes preinstalled with software, from the operating system that runs everything to the apps you can access. Thornberg notes that software is a personal choice.

“Choose an OS that you are familiar with and enjoy using,” Thornberg advises. “Determine which programs will be installed on your computer, what files will be stored locally and how much storage the OS will require.”

  • One thing that sets some mini laptops apart is that they run Windows 10. If you aren’t a fan of the Chrome or Android operating systems, this may be a big decider. With some models, you’ll also get a full year of Office 365 for free. RCA 7″ Voyager Pro comes with Android 5.0 Lollipop, which brings its own unique set of useful apps. Others come with Google Chrome installed.
  • Consider a mini laptop that includes MediaTek SoC, which is designed to improve Android compatibility. This will give you access to the many apps available in the Google Play store.
  • Don’t forget about virus protection. This may or may not be a dealmaker, though, since you can find virus protection at little to no extra expense.
  • Laptops have always challenged consumers with battery life. They usually start out strong and dwindle with use. Mini laptops can be especially problematic in this area. Surprisingly, you can find mini laptops that bust the stereotypes by providing a more than 12-hour battery life out of the box.  Compare this to the four-hour battery power of the RCA 7″ Voyager Pro. That difference can show you how valuable all-day battery power is.
  • Look for a quick-charging feature, which can come in handy for the traveler, as long as you have access to power outlets wherever you go.
  • Although mini laptops are appealing due to their attractiveness, they do vary in price. The most affordable mini laptop you’ll find is the RCA 7″ Voyager Pro, which is smaller than other mini laptops but very inexpensive.
  • Storage doesn’t come into play as much as it used to, thanks to cloud options. But if you want to store documents, videos and images on your laptop, you’ll need to look for one that offers space for it. Some mini laptops offer 64 GB. With the RCA 7″ Voyager Pro you only get 16 GB. But the RCA 7″ Voyager Pro gives you the option of a microSD card for extra storage.
  • Since portability is one of the biggest draws of mini laptops, it’s important to pay attention to weight and size. The RCA 7″ Voyager Pro is the lightest, at only 1.1 pounds.
  • Laptop manufacturers seem to consistently look for ways to reduce the number of ports to keep things simple. Some mini laptops come with USB-C, USB-A and HDMI ports. With certain models, you get a USB, Type-C and HDMI port, as well as a 4-in-1 card reader. The RCA 7″ Voyager Pro has one USB port each.
  • Mini laptops sacrifice DVD-Rom drives for simplicity. But this isn’t unique to mini laptops. Today’s larger-size laptops also lack this feature. If you think you’ll at least occasionally need to use a CD or DVD, make sure you purchase an external optical drive that will connect to one of your USB ports.
  • You may not think about it at the time of purchase, but eventually, you might want the convenience of a webcam. The RCA 7″ Voyager Pro has a built-in 720p webcam.
  • If you’re a gamer, you may find most mini laptops limiting. But for most everything else, today’s mini laptops can easily keep up. The 1.3 GHz quad-core processor on the RCA 7″ Voyager Pro works fine for basic games and video streaming. You may want to look for a model that runs cool, which means you won’t have a cooling fan. This helps keep things nice and quiet.

Mini Laptop Rankings

1. Lenovo 11.6-Inch Flex 11 Mini Laptop

Overall Score: 9.0
Reviews Included: 5

2. Goldengulf Lightweight Long-Life Mini Laptop

Overall Score: 8.7
Reviews Included: 1

3. LincPlus P3 Fanless Large-Screen Mini Laptop

Overall Score: 8.6
Reviews Included: 1

4. Simbans TL93 TangoTab Tablet Mini Laptop, 10-Inch

Overall Score: 8.5
Reviews Included: 14

5. RCA 7-Inch Voyager Pro Mini Laptop

Overall Score: 8.4
Reviews Included: 7

6. XAMMUE One Netbook One Mix 1S Mini Laptop, 7-Inch

Overall Score: 8.2
Reviews Included: 1

7. LANRUO Intel Celeron N4100 Mini Laptop, 6-Inch

Overall Score: 8.2
Reviews Included: 1

8. Lenovo 11.6″ Chromebook C330

Overall Score: 8.2
Reviews Included: 17

9. Samsung 11.6″ Chromebook 3

Overall Score: 8.2
Reviews Included: 7

10. Lenovo 11.6″ Thinkpad Yoga

Overall Score: 8.1
Reviews Included: 6

11. Simbans TangoTab Tablet Mini Laptop, 10-Inch

Overall Score: 8.0
Reviews Included: 14

12. HP Stream 11.6″ Laptop

Overall Score: 7.8
Reviews Included: 6

13. XAMMUE 7″ One Netbook

Overall Score: 7.6
Reviews Included: 5

More to Explore

If you don’t know much about Google Chromebooks, you may not realize that the operating system is a version of Linux. The same goes for Android. Both took the Linux kernel and expanded on it to create the operating system used on many devices around the world. Linux is an open-source operating system that has been around since the ’90s. It’s used in many Internet of things-type devices, including refrigerators and thermostats. If you have a computer without an operating system, you can get Linux for free. But it’s most popular with software developers who are coming up with operating systems for devices.

More to explore