Simon is a Computer Science BSc graduate who has been writing about technology since 2014, and using Windows machines since 3.1. After working for an indie game studio and acting as the family's go-to technician for all computer issues, he found his passion for writing and decided to use his skill set to write about all things tech.
Since beginning his writing career, he has written for many different publications such as WorldStart, Listverse, and MakeTechEasier. However, after finding his home at MakeUseOf in February 2019, he would eventually move on to its sister site, XDA, to bring the latest and greatest in Windows, Linux, and DIY electronics.
Someone hands you $300, with one caveat: you have to spend it on a computer. You get two choices: either a Linux desktop that was released back in 2016, or a Windows laptop that was released this year. Which one are you picking?
Personally, I'm going with the Linux machine. And it's not just because I'm a huge Linux fanboy, either; once you see how far $300 gets you with a new Windows 11 machine, you may find it hard to justify sticking with Windows, too.
$300 for a Windows laptop gets you less than the bare minimum
I feel pain just reading what specs it has
For the sake of this article, I went to Amazon and picked out a ~$300 laptop. I settled on this HP Everyday Slim Laptop, which clocks in at $309, slightly over budget. So, what's in it?
Well, first of all, it sports an Intel N150. Despite being released in 2024, it puts up a lower PassMark score than the 10-year-old Intel Core i5-6500. Sure, the 6th generation CPU isn't leagues above the N150, but it is still better.
For storage, you get 128GB of SSD space, plus an extra 1TB from OneDrive. So, if you want your storage on your PC, you've got 128GB to play with. The most painful spec is the RAM: a woeful 4GB, compared to the 8GB you could get from the 10-year-old PC. 8GB on Windows 11 is the minimum, and some people swear to never use Microsoft's OS on it ever again. 4GB just feels like it would run at a crawl.
The Linux machine would be far more usable
And I have the machine to prove it
You may have noticed that I was strangely specific when I referred to specific hardware parts for comparison to 10 years ago in the previous section. There's a good reason for that; it's the same hardware I'm using right now to write this article!
What I'm using right now is a refurbished HP ProDesk 600 G2 SFF. It comes with an Intel Core i5-6500 CPU, 8GB of RAM, and no dedicated GPU. It runs Fedora Kinoite, and most importantly, I would prefer to use this PC over the $300 Windows laptop. In fact, if my PC blew up right now and I had the choice to re-buy this same hardware or buy that $300 laptop, I'd pick this one again.
A huge part of why my 10-year-old PC is still usable to this day, and why it's still usable, is thanks to Linux. Windows 11 does not play nicely with it (and trust me, I tried), but Linux is built for hardware like this. It's lightweight, easy on the RAM, and Linux maintainers are still finding ways to squeeze more performance out of hardware Microsoft has long abandoned. I'd take that over trying to squeeze Windows 11 onto 4GB of RAM any day of the week.
Linux can make old machines really sing
It gives them a second chance at being your daily driver
So, what's the point of this article? Is this yet another "Linux rules, Windows is bad, Microsoft is evil" piece? Well, no. See, when your PC dies and you need to grab a new one, I'd argue that $300 would go further on old hardware running Linux than it would trying to squish Windows 11 on half the minimum amount of RAM it needs.
And that's actually really good. One of my biggest gripes with Windows 11 is how it forced all computers running it to have TPM 2.0 CPUs. That means a lot of old PCs simply can't get it. However, instead of throwing it in the landfill, you can either install Linux on it or sell it to someone who can install Linux on it. You can then buy a shiny new Windows 11 PC, and your old computer ends up running Arch Linux with a brand new lease on life.
If we didn't have Linux's ability to revive old hardware, we'd have no choice but to throw out old hardware as the times change. Fortunately, we do have it, meaning that getting yourself back up and running after your PC blows up can include a couple hundred bucks and a pledge to Team Tux. It may not be as mighty as a top-of-the-line Windows PC, but it sure beats that $300 laptop.
I'd use Linux on a decade-old PC over a $300 Windows laptop
The next time you're thinking about buying new hardware, but you don't need the latest and greatest in CPU and GPU power, don't cheap out on a new Windows 11 laptop. Give an older machine some love and install Linux on it instead.