Lenovo is synonymous with great laptops, whether you’re looking for something that can handle a beefy Excel spreadsheet or you want to play the latest and greatest video game. Right now, the 2022 IdeaPad 3, a true workhorse, is on sale for just $381 — an unbelievable 60% off! I’ve recommended this deal to everyone I know, including my own mother. These are going fast, though (almost as fast as that 4.1GHz processor boost), so if you want one (and, trust us, you do), you’d better move now.

“Perfect laptop!” one customer claimed. “My husband got me this laptop for my birthday, and I absolutely love it. I had an HP laptop before this, and the battery life sucked, but with this laptop my battery lasts for hours without needing to be charged, and I’m always so happy about it.” They go on to talk about the great privacy features. “This laptop provides a slider where you can literally…hide your camera lens. I would 10/10 recommend this laptop to anyone.”

Enough power and memory for any workday

The 3.0GHz Intel Core i3 processor means the IdeaPad 3 can pull a lot of power when it needs it, especially for more work-intensive projects like a large Excel spreadsheet. It can also be boosted up to 4.1GHz, which puts it on par with a lot of gaming machines. The 8GB of RAM lets you take full advantage of resource-hungry applications like Google Suites while also maintaining a solid level of speed and performance for day-to-day tasks.

Here’s an example. When you have multiple programs running at once — like Microsoft Word, Outlook, Slack and Spotify (because who doesn’t listen to music while they work?) — your computer is under strain. Each task requires a certain amount of power. The faster your processor and the more RAM you have, the better your computer will operate, even under strain.

“Easy to set up, processes fast with good battery life, and nice-looking. All positives so far and no negatives,” one shopper shared.

Plenty of ports

One problem presented by a lot of modern laptops is a lack of accessory ports, but not this Lenovo! Not only does it have two high-speed USB 3.2 ports, but it also has a standard USB 2.0 port, an HDMI port, an SD card reader and even a 3.5mm audio jack (something you won’t find even on a much more expensive Macbook). The Wi-Fi and Bluetooth functionality are also built-in, so you don’t need a separate adapter for those.

This means you’ll be able to plug in a keyboard and/or mouse if you want, or use an external monitor to extend your screen. Of course, the 3.5mm jack means you can use traditional, wired headphones instead of relying on Bluetooth.

“I really like it. I use it for online teaching. It is great, the HDMI access is so much easier,” said one educator.

Okay for a little bit of gaming

This isn’t a gaming PC, but it can play a few games. It lacks a powerful GPU, and the battery life isn’t designed to sustain intensive processes, but it will let you play lighter games just fine. It can probably even stand up to a bit of Counter-Strike: GO or Factorio, but you might run into trouble with something that needs more graphical power, like Cyberpunk 2077.

But if you want to use it to play Solitaire on your break? You’re golden.

“Bought this for my son to use for his academics, and it is a solid machine. No hang-ups, quite fast, smooth action, crystal clear screen resolution…this machine is good!” reported a parent. “I will be ordering this for the people in my office for field and desk use…we’ve struck gold with this machine!”

If you have Amazon Prime, you’ll get free shipping, of course. Not yet a member? No problem. You can sign up for your free 30-day trial here. (And by the way, those without Prime still get free shipping on orders of $25 or more.)

You can also see the Engadget experts’ picks for best laptop of 2023.

The reviews quoted above reflect the most recent versions at the time of publication.

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