Can you get a good laptop for just a few hundred dollars? The entry-level Asus VivoBook 15 with the AMD Ryzen 3 3200U retails for about $100 less than the Intel Core i3 version without being all that much slower.
https://www.notebookcheck.net/Asus-Vivobook-15-F512DA-Laptop-Review-AMD-Ryzen-3-for-400.461969.0.html
QuoteThese visually identical Intel variants are marketed as the VivoBook X512 series instead to contrast our AMD-powered VivoBook F512 series.
i bought x512 for my coworker in december. 3500u+radeon 540x.