Best Mini Laptops 2022: (Top Portable NoteBooks)

In this article
we have talked about the powerful specifications packed in lightweight and compact laptops. Actually, this article is about the best mini laptops. Nowadays, laptops come in different sizes and shapes. Without affecting the features and performance, most manufacturers have designed lighter and thinner laptops with 11, 12, or 13 inches screens. So we have shortlisted some best picks from the variety of mini-laptops below. Also, we have added some useful information which might help you in choosing the best one.

Best Mini Laptops 2022

1. Microsoft Surface Pro 7
2. Microsoft Surface Go
3. Acer Chromebook R 11
4. ASUS VivoBook L203MA
5. Microsoft Surface Pro 4
6. Samsung Galaxy Book
7. HP Spectre Folio 13
8. Microsoft Surface Book 2
9. Asus Chromebook Flip
10. Lenovo Flex 6

You may like
Best Tablets
Best laptop for kids
Best 11 inch Laptop

Time has changed. Now laptops come in various sizes and shapes. They have become lighter, thinner, and more powerful than ever before. Most of the laptop comes with a 13.3-inch display while some gaming laptops come as big as 17 inches and weigh approximately 9 pounds.

Looking for something smaller and portable. Well, you have landed in the right place.

Our list of best mini laptops is perfectly suitable for students and travelers looking for smaller-sized laptops with a high-quality build and impressive battery life. We have collected the best laptops available on the market. Have a look!

Our Top 3 Picks

Also Read
Best Business Laptop
Best Chromebooks
Best 13 Inch Laptop

Choosing the Best Mini Laptop

Buying the right mini-laptop that meets your needs won’t be easy. You must keep in mind the features that you need. You shouldn’t just focus or keep track of features that come with the laptop. The small size means you won’t get all the features that a standard size or gaming laptop provides. For example, the keyboard will not be the same quality as other laptops. But again, mini laptops are intended to do that.

In fact, you get all the features that a mini laptop is intended to. You get the best portability you need and all the applications running you need in office or school.

Battery Life

Most of the high-end laptops with high performance and specs suffer from short battery life, but in the case of the best mini laptops, there is a certainty that the battery won’t drain too quickly or die. This is because those mini laptops use fewer resources than drain little battery and result in long-lasting battery life. This all comes at a price, having lower specs and missing a lot of features, but we all know that mini laptops aren’t intended for playing video games and running heavy software.

Keyboard Ergonomics

Given the small size of the mini laptops, the keyboard will always be a headache due to the relatively small size. It will be a significant problem at first, and you will need to get used to it. With some getting used to, it won’t be a problem as long as the keyboard is good enough rather than size.

So, it should be your absolute concern to get the best out of it. Before buying, read everything about the keyboard of the laptop. Rather than that, small keyboards always have problems, and you will need to endure that.

Operating System & Application

With such small-sized laptops, you are going to face a lot of issues related to software compatibility. This is only because some of the application is not designed for small-sized notebooks and doesn’t translate well on them. So before dusting your credit card and go for a buy, you should invest in a laptop that comes with a fair share of pre-installed software. If not, then you should go for a laptop that guarantees running all the important software. Some of the mini laptops are specially designed for office workers or students with software that they need. That will be useful if you are in that category of student or office worker.

Affordability

Most of the time, the best mini laptops are at very affordable prices. You should know that the best budget laptop doesn’t mean the worst specs or lower quality. The technology is moving forward so quickly that something you buy today is obsolete in a year, so you shouldn’t spend more than a few hundred dollars on a mini laptop.

Best Mini Laptop 2022

1. Microsoft Surface Pro 7

Powerful performance

Microsoft Surface Pro 7 REVIEW: For the last few years, Microsoft has been making a lot of buzz in the market through its surface laptop series. They are known for their powerful specification packet in a very thin aluminum chassis. Their new Microsoft Surface Pro 7 is no exception. It looks like a piece of art. You will instantly fall in low with it. It doesn’t matter whether you use it at your office or the comfort of home or take it on a trip. The Microsoft Surface Pro 7 perfectly adapts to the way you work. Furthermore, the battery life is increased, performance is boosted like never before. What more can you ask for?

Let’s look inside the laptop. Microsoft Surface Pro 7 features a very powerful 10th Gen Intel i5 Processor paired with an Intel Iris Plus Graphics. These internal specs can increase your productivity to a great extent and make your everyday work like never before. Furthermore, an 8GB RAM is included, which is, of course, upgradable, but we believe 8GB is enough to handle all the multitasking and give your boosted performance. To store your files and data, a superfast 256GB SSD is included. Thanks to all these wonderful specs, you won’t need to wait for apps to open anymore and all that at a very affordable price.

The most interesting thing about Microsoft Surface Pro 7 is the long battery life, stunning design, great performance, and portability. It starts at around 1.70 pounds which makes quite lightweight and perfect for travel. Furthermore, based on your needs, you can use it in various modes, like laptop mode, studio mode, and tablet mode. Also, it features USB type-C and USB type-A ports to connect to the dock stations, display, and more. Honestly, this is one of the best mini laptops ever to find and worth every penny you are going to spend.

2. Microsoft Surface Go

Ultraportable laptop

Microsoft Surface Go REVIEW: The Microsoft Surface Go is a gorgeous machine that brings you a next-level experience on windows 10 and all that packed inside a 10-inch tablet. The surface Go aims to be smaller, yet powerful and affordable. There aren’t any major changes but that may be a good thing. You should keep one thing in mind that the smaller size means that you have to compromise some features like a full keyboard and massive trackpad. There isn’t a half-backed operating system and works well with the operating system. Surface Go works with the word “go” which makes us love the Microsoft brand.

Inside this little chassis, a 1.6GHz Intel Pentium Gold 4415Y, Intel HD Graphics 615, and 8GB LPDDR3 RAM are housed. All these specs make it good to run multiple tasks and lag-free experience. To store your files and programs, you get a 128GB SSD. Surfaces go is powered by a 12-inch display that’s touch-enabled which is super lightweight (1.15 pounds). Furthermore, Surface Go also features a 5MP front camera and an 8MP rear camera. Overall, it’s a great laptop with respectable specs, stunning design, and super portable.

As we all know, the Surface Go comes with a stunning display that is good for watching movies and has great speakers for listening to audio. Yet with all these, it offers a reasonable price. Talking about the ports, a 3.1 USB type-C port is included to connect the external devices. Along with that, all the common ports are there, such as an SD card reader and headphones jack. The keyboard is excellent and comfortable for common use plus has a good track-pad with enough space. Overall, it’s a great choice to buy.

3. Acer Chromebook R 11

Best Chromebook

Acer Chromebook R 11 REVIEW: Chromebook R11 Convertible coming up next on the list of best mini laptops 2022 is indeed a worthy introduction by Acer. Acer was greatly inspired by the Apple MacBook Air and was looking to bring something more versatile and greatly affordable machine to assist its budget users. The Acer Chromebook R11 has elegance with design, above-average performance, and long battery backup. For multimedia purposes, the laptop has a glossy and vibrant 11.6 inches touch display.

Speaking about the design of the Acer Chromebook R11, it comes with great flexibility in terms of its 360-degree nature hinge. The R11 Chromebook mainly is made up of white plastic along with a matte finish. What makes its design more distinct than other Acer’s convertibles is its metal textured lid panel, which radiates professionalism and overall attractive design.

Coming towards the performance of Acer Chromebook R11, although the machine isn’t as powerful as it should be for its price, it offers balanced performance. The R11 comes with an Intel Celeron N3150 processor, 4GB of RAM storage for multitasking, 32GB of eMMC storage to store your essential data and files. Furthermore, the display is assisted by Intel Integrated HD graphics. As far as the ports are concerned, the Acer Chromebook R11 holds 1 x USB 2.0, 1 x USB 3.0 port, an HDMI port, an SD card reader, and an audio jack. The laptop’s other biggest selling point is its long-lasting battery backup. It provides 10 hours of continuous backup.

4. ASUS VivoBook L203MA

Good on Ports

ASUS VivoBook L203MA REVIEW: ASUS Vivo Book L203MA is a mini laptop that offers excellent features, hardware, and design at a very modest price. We won’t say that it’s the best design on the market, but it’s still quite great at this price. Further, the laptop is encased in a compact chassis, making it slim and portable. If you are a traveler, college student, or office worker who needs a good portable laptop and doesn’t have a high budget, ASUS VivoBook L203MA would be a great choice. It may not run heavy video editing, animation, or other intensive apps, but browsing, writing, presenting, and videos won’t be a problem. However, if you have a high need that involves running heavy software and intensive tasks, then you should look for a more powerful laptop.

5. Microsoft Surface Pro 4

Best Windows tablet

Microsoft Surface Pro 4 REVIEW: Microsoft Surface Pro 4 is too impressive. It packs a lot inside, it doesn’t only replace your laptop but also your notepad and desktop too. If you are searching for a tablet that has the capability to do all your work. Pro 4 will be the perfect choice with all that power inside, stunning design and enormously portable. It may be a little pricey, but we already know that. The price depends on the specs you choose from. You can always choose lower or mid-range specifications for lower prices.

The display size of the Pro 4 has been boosted by Microsoft by a few hairs from 12 inches to 12.3 inches. The thickness has been minimized from 9.1mm to 8.4mm. Apart from the size, the Microsoft Pro 4 houses a powerful 2.4GHz Intel Core i5-6300U processor, Intel HD Graphics 520 and initial 4GB RAM (Upgradable). For storage purposes, the base model comes with a 128GB SSD. You can always choose a higher-end model with more storage. The display of the Microsoft Surface Pro 4 comes with a resolution of 2,736 x 1,824 resolution. It’s clear, sharp, and touch-enabled. The specs can be chosen based on your requirement and affordability.

Talking about the ports of the Microsoft Surface Pro 4, a 3.0 USB, a mini display port, a micro SD card reader, and a headphone jack is supported. These ports may not be much, but they are enough for everyday use. It also has a rear 8MP camera and 5MP front cameras. Apart from all that, the surface pen is more impressive than the previous one. It’s more comfortable and looks more stylus than ever before. Overall, this is a great notepad to buy, filling up all your needs and purposes.

6. Samsung Galaxy Book

Best 2 in 1 notebook

Samsung Galaxy Book REVIEW: The high-end 2-in-1 detachable laptops has a new champion that will blow your mind with its amazing display and looks. The display of the Samsung Galaxy Book 2-in-1 is simply just amazing with a super bright AMOLED display that supports vivid HDR content. However, the battery life of this laptop isn’t that impressive, and also, it’s doesn’t have a comfortable lap experience. If you can live with these trade-offs. We guarantee that you are going to have the best-ever visual experience ever.

This little beast offers the latest 7th Gen Intel Dual-Core i5 that boosts up your performance. If you want to use it for routine work, you won’t be having any problems with multitasking or running heavy programs. Samsung Galaxy Book 2-in-1 has the capability to provide robust performance. Furthermore, it features Intel HD graphics, 4GB RAM, and 128GB storage(expandable to 256GB with microSD card slot available). What more would you ask from such a light and stunning laptop?

The laptop’s keyboard is good if you use it on a flat surface instead of using it on your lap. It provides key travel of around 1.3mmm, which is quite good for such a thing convertible laptop. The touchpad is a bit smaller but works fine with the tracking and gestures. Furthermore, it has got all the connection you will need and has an impressive audio system. Honestly, if you are a fan of detachable 2-in-1 laptops, there is nothing better than it.

7. HP Spectre Folio 13

Best business laptop

HP Spectre Folio 13 REVIEW: HP-Spectre Folio 13 is fully sheathed in leather. The feel is so great that you won’t be able to take off your hands. Clad in genuine leather, Spectre Folio offers a stunning design, multi-modes, battery life over 10 hours, and a very comfortable keyboard. It may not be that powerful but it’s a perfect example of having a stellar design that earns it a spot on the list of best mini laptops.

Focusing on the internals, Spectre Folio comes with an Intel Core i7-8500Y processor, an 8GB RAM, and a 256GB solid-state drive. It may not be a gamer-level powerful, but still, it’s powerful enough to run multiple tasks and normal daily work. You can watch movies on Netflix for almost 10 hours without any problem. Most of the mini laptop doesn’t have a good keyboard, but here on Spectre Folio, it’s different. Will all that convertible modes, leather-wrapped, stunning design, and powerful, you simply cannot ignore it. It is a perfect choice to buy if you are a college student or an office guy.

Along with the laptop, you get a pen that can help you in note-taking or sketching on your laptop. The same thing you can do on the finger, the screen touch is quick and responsive. Over the keyboard, you will find a speaker that’s loud enough to fill your room with brassy audio. The touchpad on Spectre Folio is fluid, accurate, and responsive. Furthermore, you don’t get a lot of ports. You get only 2 Thunderbolt 3 ports and a USB Type-C port along headphone jack. Overall, this is a great laptop with a stunning design and enough power to run your daily tasks.

8. Microsoft Surface Book 2

Best touchscreen laptop

Microsoft Surface Book 2 REVIEW: Microsoft Surface Book 2 is a very impressive 2-in-1 laptop that has the power to play games and also one of the best tablets for drawing. Despite being a 13-inch laptop, they are very lightweight. It offers a crazy level of performance in all kinds of applications, whether you are a gamer, a student, or a traveler. You will love the long-lasting battery and excellent display. To get it, you need to have a large budget because they are very expensive.

Microsoft Surface Book 2 has many variables. Gamer can go for the one with Nvidia GeForce GTX 1060, while if you want to use it for everyday use, a variable with Intel UHD Graphics 620 will be great to choose from. Book 2 comes with the latest 1.9GHz Intel Core i5 processor, 16GB RAM, and 512GB SSD. Overall, the flawless design and powerful specs make it the best choice to buy, but the high price may be a problem for users with a low budget.

When it comes to the feel of Surface Book 2, brushed in aluminum chassis. It looks so clean, decent, and beautiful. All the standard ports are there, including 1x USB 3.1 Type-C and 2x USB 3.1 Type-A, SD card reader, and Surface Connect port. For video calls and taking pictures, cameras are there. At the rear, we get an 8MP camera and a 5MP front camera. It’s lightweight for a 13-inch laptop weighing just 4.2 pounds. Overall, it’s a great mini laptop to take home.

9. Asus Chromebook Flip

Best convertible laptop

Asus Chromebook Flip REVIEW: The small size of Asus Chromebook Flip 10.1 may not be ideal for daily use but flipping this convertible laptop into a tablet mode and enjoying games on the android unlocks its real value. As it can be used as an android tablet or a hybrid Chromebook. Asus Chromebook Flip 10.1 is smaller, thinner and also lightweight. This means you will eventually come up with some features that couldn’t fit into a small chassis like a full-sized keyboard or a good cooling system. All the components are packed into aluminum brushed chassis which give a rugged look. The thinner and smaller design looks good and the aluminum touch gives a premium feel.

Asus Chromebook Flip 10.1 houses Rockchip 1.8 GHz Processor, 4GB LPDDR3 RAM, and 16GB eMMC storage. The specs may not be as impressive, and storage may feel a little less, but you can always use external storage or online space. Given a very affordable price and great design, this is something great to buy. Asus Chromebook offers a 1200×800 resolution display that’s good for watching movies and playing games.

To handle the external components, Asus Chromebook comes with all the necessary ports such as 2x USB Type-C, 1x USB Type-A ports, an SD card reader, and a headphone jack. For video calls, an HD CAM is installed. The keyboard of the Asus Chromebook isn’t that impressive; it’s smaller for adult fingers but will be suitable for children typing. Trackpad has enough space for the fingers. Also, it’s tracking accurate, and touch is responsive. Overall, looking at the lower price, it’s a good laptop to buy if you want a hybrid laptop at a budget-friendly price.

10. Lenovo Flex 6

Best budget laptop

Lenovo Flex 6 REVIEW: Lenovo Flex 6 is a 2-in-1 laptop with a great design. It’s a lightweight, low-cost simple laptop on a very budget-friendly price. It features a touchscreen and has enough power to run normal daily tasks. It can be used as a tablet to play games or drawings and also as a laptop to write an email or browse the web. If you want something with multiple modes at affordable prices, nothing can be better than this mini laptop.

Internals of Lenovo Flex 6 aren’t that impressive. It won’t do magic or run heavy tasks, but regular tasks like browsing, writing, or watching cab be performed easily. Flex 6 comes with an Intel N4000 Processor, 4GB RAM, and 64GB of eMMC storage to hold your essential files. This 11.6-inch 2-1n-1 laptop runs on Windows 10 and has a battery life of around 10 hours. Overall, if you want something for your kids at a very reasonable price, flex 6 will be a great choice.

Weighing around 2.2 pounds, it’s pretty portable to take everywhere. Having all the common ports, including USB 3.1 allowing to connect external ports. The keyboard is nice, key travel is good and comfortable. The space between keys is enough except for the small shift key. The touchpad isn’t that big, but it’s accurate and responsive. I won’t recommend this laptop for serious work, but if you are out of budget and want something to continue your work for the time being, then it can be a good choice.

What’s a mini laptop?

A mini is something that is as little as around 11 inches and a 3 pounds weight. The small size and portability make it ideal for users who travel a lot and for students. Also, a mini laptop must have a keyboard, touchpad, and all the necessary ports.

Mini Laptop vs Tablet: Which one is Right for You?

Well, each one has its own fans. Android fans and people who want to surf the web over the advanced application, play games, and do other daily basic tasks, will prefer tablets. On the other hand, people who love to enjoy movies, do office work, or do school work will prefer laptops.

There isn’t such thing as good or bad. The only thing that matters is what do you need and what for? If you are a student and use it for writing assignments and school work. A simple tablet won’t do it. While if you want to play games and watch movies, a tablet will be more convenient.

Conclusion
It’s the time where you get to decide what’s best for you. We have compiled a list that carries laptops from every category, such as budget laptops, expensive ones, portable laptops, and laptops with good display & keyboard. You should choose one that fits your budget and meet your needs.