I don't know if this is a good thread to post in but what the hell.
Our kid is starting kindergarten in a few weeks and his school will all be virtual learning.
I've been getting a lot of suggestions to buy a Chromebook but it seems like there are a lot of options. I don't want to get one that's so slow he gets frustrated using it (I don't even know if they sell them like that) but I don't have a ton of money to work with either. So, like, if there's some $700-1000+ model I gotta pass on that but I don't want to throw $200-300 on something that's just going to be junk.
I'm not sure if this is going to be a laptop he'll be using for a year or for a few years.
Really I'm pretty just dumb about the whole platform and hoping someone else can just tell me what to buy and make it simple for me.
Most school districts should offer a chromebook or iPad or whatever they're offically using for school curriculum to each student because they're using previous technology grants or recent CARES money to buy it.
If you still want to buy a personal chromebook for him, there's a couple I personally like. Since they're chromebooks, they don't have or need a lot of on board storage space, and it needs an internet connection to work. Your school will likely provide a school email/profile for him to log in with. So make sure you have it written down somewhere because your son/daughter will likely forget.
My school bought HP chromebooks, and they're built solidly, and the keyboard was good to type on.
https://www.amazon.com/HP-Lightweight-Chromebook-Intel-Dual-Core-Processor/dp/B07L52DDDQ/ref=sr_1_9?dchild=1&keywords=Chromebook&qid=1596562566&sr=8-9I'm also recommend Asus chromebooks. Here's a 2018 version that is $126 used.
https://www.amazon.com/Chromebook-C523NA-DH02-NanoEdge-Display-Processor/dp/B07HRZM2V4/ref=sr_1_5?dchild=1&keywords=Chromebook%2Basus&qid=1596562962&sr=8-5&th=1Personally, I'd buy a refurbished one around $200 and only expect your son to use for 2/3 years before he needs to upgrade. If you want to buy new, then I'd buy it from say, Costco instead of amazon or best buy due to Costco's better return policy vs. Amazon/Best Buy even if it's more expensive.
Costco has this HP touchscreen chromebook for $400. Probably more than you want to pay, but comes with a 2 year warranty from Costco, and with Costco's liberal return policy, you can probably return it years afterwards.
https://www.costco.com/hp-14%22-touchscreen-2-in-1-chromebook---intel-pentium-silver---1080p.product.100511759.html Edit: It's important to get something that is somewhat rugged, your son will drop the laptop more than once.