Dell Inspiron 11 3000 Series 2-in-1 (3147)

A convertible hybrid laptop like the Dell Inspiron 11 3000 Series 2-in-1 (3147) ($ 449 as tested) bridge the gap between a traditional clamshell laptop and a slate tablet. The screen flips around to give you the functionality of both types of devices, but it Detach from the keyboard. The Inspiron 11 3000 Series 2-in-1 takes the concept and refines it while still delivering a sub-$ 500 price tag. With long battery life, sturdy hinges, and a chassis that is comfortable to use, it earns Choice award our first editor for the entry-level, hybrid convertible laptop.

Design and Features
The compact Inspiron 11 3000 Series 2-in-1 is built around a 11.6-inch, 1366-by-768 resolution, 10-point touch screen. The laptop chassis measures about 0.83 by 12 by 8 inches (HWD), and weighs a relatively light 2.99 pounds. It is smaller and about a quarter-pound lighter than the HP Pavilion 11T x360-n000, but a smidge heavier and larger than the Lenovo Yoga 2 11 This feeling of delicate hand, and balanced for one using hand-slate-tablet mode. The system will fit fine in most commuter bags, including messenger bags and backpacks made ​​to hold the tablet full-size and compact laptop.

The In-Plane Switching (IP) screen is bright and clear, but you'll have to disable screen dimming somewhat aggressive. Thankfully, the dimming is not as dark as it is in business-oriented Dell Venue Pro 11 (7139) tablet, because you can still see what's on the screen in a common lit room. The 1366-by-768 resolution is common for sub-$ 500 laptop and is capable of displaying 720p HD video at full resolution, 1080p HD video but will have to be scaled down. Screen taps and swipes registered quickly, and there is a multipoint touchpad below the full-size keyboard. Key feel is the average for a compact laptop, but there's a hint of keyboard flex.

You can flip the screen around four modes: Laptop, Stand, Tablet, and Tent. Modes of Laptop and Tablet is exactly what you think of them. Stand mode with the screen facing you with the keyboard upside down on the table, while Tent mode with the screen facing you and facing up the keyboard away from you. Both stand and Tent mode, you use the touch screen without access to the physical keyboard, but can not work better Tent mode when you have limited desk space, such as when you work in an airline tray table.

Although the chassis is slim, it has a good selection of I / O ports, including an HDMI port, an SD card reader, two USB 2.0 ports, and a USB 3.0 port. Note that the USB port is all the same black color, so you'll have to figure out which one is the USB 3.0 port by searching for small USB icon SS (hint, it's on the left, next to HDMI port). The full-size HDMI port is more convenient than the micro-HDMI port you get the Lenovo Yoga 2 11.

The system has 4GB of memory and a 500GB hard drive. The hard drive is slower than flash memory or solid-state drives (SSDs) found in slate tablet, but much more space for your files. While this will make very few users, Dell offers instructions on how to replace the hard drive and memory in a speedier SSD or higher memory capacity, respectively. The hard drive has plenty of free space on it, and with the Start screen associated with some pre-loaded apps: Adobe cheer (for photo sharing), Amazon, Shop Dell, Dropbox, eBay, Kindle, Testing Office, OneNote , and Pocket Cloud. The system has a one-year warranty.