PC Vs Laptop: Which One To Buy When Your Budget Is Around 40K

PC For Rs. 40,000

Custom building a PC involves a lot of steps and you need to get more products. For a complete PC setup, one needs a monitor, mouse, keyboard, cabinet, RAM, CPU, motherboard, PSU, RAM, and storage.

The Dell 21.5-inch (54.6 cm) LED-Backlit Computer Monitor is currently available for Rs. 6,800 on Amazon and it offers FHD resolution. You can also get a Lenovo mouse and keyboard combo for Rs. 899 on Amazon.

For a good cabinet, you need to spend around Rs. 3,000 and we chose Corsair Carbide Series 100R CC-9011075-WW, which retails for Rs. 3,199. Then comes the PSU, and you should not skimp on this. We chose the 450W Corsair CV450, CV Series PSU, which costs Rs. 3,497.

You can get 16GB memory (8GB *2) from Crucial with 2666MHz for Rs. 4,600 and a Crucial MX500 500GB 2.5-inch SSD for Rs. 5,802. Now we just have to choose two more components motherboard and CPU and we still have a budget of Rs. 15,200.

 

The AMD Build

If you are going with an AMD processor, then the AMD Ryzen 3 3200G looks like a great option and it costs Rs. 8,699. This is a quad-core processor with a base clock speed of 3.6GHz and a boost clock speed of 4.0GHz. and it also comes with the integrated Radeon Vega 8 GPU.

This CPU can be paired with any motherboard with an AM4 socket and you can get the ASUS EX-A320M for Rs. 5,739. With this setup, you will still have around Rs. 700 spare change, which you could use to get a better keyboard.

The Intel Build

With Intel, you can go with the Intel Core i3-9100F, which is also a quad-core CPU with a boost clock speed of 4.2GHz and it costs Rs. 6,649. For this CPU, you need a 300 series motherboard and the ASUS Prime H310M-E R2.0 is our choice, which costs Rs. 5,247 on Amazon.

With the remaining amount, you can get the Zotac GeForce GT 710 2GB DDR3 graphics card for Rs. 3,400, as the Intel Core i3 9100F does not have integrated graphics. Even with this setup, you can get a full-fledged PC for less than Rs. 40,000.

So, PC Or Laptop?

A budget of Rs. 40,000 is good enough to build a PC or buying a laptop in 2020. In both options, you have some advantages or disadvantages. A laptop at this price tag might not be as powerful as that of the custom PC. However, it should be able to do most of the tasks without any issue plus it offers portability.

It is not just about the CPU. The custom PC builds that we have done has been configured to offer 16GB RAM and 512GB SSD, which makes sure that the PC will not slow down for the next few years. And it also offers an option to upgrade in the future and one can make this build into a gaming PC by just adding a GPU, which would cost around Rs. 10,000.

On the other hand, a PC is something that you can't carry around but it will be at least twice as powerful as a similarly priced laptop. If your work involves sitting in a place, then it is best to build a custom PC. However, if you travel a lot, then it is best to get a laptop, and here are some of the models.

These laptops should give you a clear idea that no matter which brand you choose, a laptop priced around Rs. 40,000 will have a similar specs sheet and performance. So, depending on the preference you can choose either of these laptops and you won't get much of a difference.

HP 15 15s-du2071TU

We researched a lot on Amazon and Flipkart to find the best possible laptop for around Rs. 40,000. We found many laptops that met our criteria and one of those models is the HP 15 15s-du2071TU, which retails for Rs. 39,200 on Amazon India.

This laptop comes with a 15.6-inch screen with FHD (1920 x 1080p) resolution and is based on the 10th Gen Intel i3-1005G1 dual-core processor with a base clock speed of 1.2GHz and a boost clock speed of 3.6GHz.

The laptop offers 8GB RAM, which is the minimum recommended amount for a modern computer and it offers 1TB 5200rpm HDD, which could slow down this machine a bit.

Overall, considering the specifications the HP 15 should be able to handle normal day-to-day tasks without any issue. However, for sure this machine cannot be used for gaming or for professional tasks like video or photo editing. For the asking money, you get a decent laptop that can work for most people and you can carry this around, as it just weighs 1.77KG.

ASUS VivoBook 14 M409DA-EK146T

The Asus VivoBook 14 is another model that fits the bill. This laptop is priced at Rs. 38,159 and is well within our budget. It is powered by the AMD Ryzen 3500U processor with Radeon Vega 8 Graphics.

Ryzen 3500U is a quad-core CPU and it offers a base clock speed of 2.1Ghz and a boost clock speed of 3.7GHz, making it a much powerful processor when compared to the 10th Gen Intel i3-1005G1.

The laptop comes with a compact 14-inch screen with a 1920 x 1080p resolution. It offers 8GB RAM and 256GB SSD based internal storage. Due to the SSD based storage, it will offer faster boot and app opening speed and the Radeon Vega 8 is also a better graphics when compared to the Intel UHD. However, none of these laptops are meant for gaming whatsoever.

Lenovo Ideapad S340

The Lenovo Ideapad S340 retails for Rs. 40,990 on Amazon, which is slightly out of our budget. This laptop is based on the Intel Core i3-1005G1, the same CPU that also powers the HP 15, so the performance will be similar.

It also offers 8GB RAM. Instead of an HDD, the IdeaPad comes with an SSD of 250GB and offers a faster boost speed. This is also a 14-inch screen laptop, offering 1920 x 1080p resolution.