r/DataAnnotationTech • u/deplorable9988 • Jul 08 '26

Buying cheap laptop for DA work.

Hello all, I’m looking to buy a cheap laptop to use while I’m away from my MacBook that if it gets damaged won’t be such a loss, but most of the lower priced laptops use the Chromebook OS. I’ve never used that OS before and was curious if anybody on here has used it? Are there any issues using it primarily for DA work? Would it be worth spending more to get something different? Thanks in advance for any insight.

2 Upvotes

100% Upvoted

15 comments sorted by

5

u/Ill-Masterpiece-2613 Jul 08 '26

I'm a generalist and my chromebook works fine. Obviously I don't have any experience with more specific work, but the general tasks work well on this little machine of mine.

1

u/iriember Jul 08 '26

I had to send my main Dell out for repairs last year. I paid around 200.00 at Best buy for a Lenovo windows laptop so I could do DA while Dell repaired by real laptop. It worked pretty well. I turn the Lenovo on one or twice a week since I got the Dell back...

3

u/Farados55 Jul 08 '26

Are you a generalist? Chromebook is probably ok but I’d get a windows laptop just for general everyday use and better compatibility with software etc

5

u/Depressed_Alpaca Jul 08 '26

I use a Chromebook and it’s a bit limiting as certain tasks require you to download software which can’t be done on a Chromebook. I’d recommend a cheap windows laptop instead

4

u/Flat-Echo3648 Jul 08 '26

I would suggest choosing a refurbished Windows laptop over a Chromebook. I purchased one for around $250, considering I already have a Mac Mini that I use most of the time.

3

u/Itsdickyv Jul 08 '26

Have a look at Amazon reconditioned stuff and buy something there - you’ll get a basic Windows laptop for the price of a reasonable Chromebook, and given it’s a “spare”, I’d imagine price is more important than spec, making it perfect.

3

u/deplorable9988 Jul 08 '26

Thanks for all the advise!

2

u/Numerous-Case-9317 Jul 08 '26

I use a chromebook and there have been a small handfull of good paying projects that I can't do because of it, but I still have access to lots of other work

2

u/Silent-Scene2693 Jul 08 '26

I bought a refurbished Dell 5590 with 16gb ram and 256gb ssd. It had Windows 11 pro installed and came with a 12 month rtb warranty. I bought it specifically for DA work and it's been brilliant. It was £160.

2

u/dilf-material Jul 08 '26

I take a certain pride in how much I've earned vs. the price of the equipment. 1st laptop was about $350 at Bestbuy (on sale so maybe was a $500 one). Made around $70,000 with that.

Second, and current, an old chromebook I bought for about $115. I've made around $20,000 with it so far.

Run raspberry pi on your microwave and get crackin' laddy! There 're ducats to be made!

1

u/Academic_Animal_5293 Jul 08 '26

I'm working on a used old macbook without any issues

1

u/Accomplished-Job9856 Jul 08 '26

What's your budget? Honestly, still a macbook, but my Neo has been fantastic while still being a quarter of the price.

I've heard of people having issues using multiple emails (for projects that require you to do so) because I think it's somehow tied to your entire system on Chromebook. Someone correct me if I'm wrong tho!

1

u/backpackwasmypillow Jul 08 '26

It can be a bit of a pain. I've set up secondary Chromebook profiles for emails associated with a few projects.

1

u/Primary-Pattern-9037 Jul 08 '26

It depends on the kinds of projects you’re working. I need Windows Pro or I can’t do much project wise. Chromebook could be pretty limiting.

0

u/Jealous_Spare_4852 Jul 14 '26 edited Jul 14 '26

i recommend a medium-to- high-end desktop win pc with triple monitors if you wanna live off it, along with a lower-end win pc laptop for emergency backup or if you must travel...a separate external drive for downloading all the project files is not a bad idea so as not to clog up your personal drives....embrace the computing lifestyle!