Dell Latitude 15.6" E6540 Black / Silver

A chunky, old-school refurb that's cheap and functional for basic tasks. The 16GB of RAM and 1080p screen are nice, but the ancient CPU is a real drag. Worth $279 if you need a beater laptop for writing and web browsing, and nothing more.

The 4th-gen Core i7 processor is the biggest letdown here, sitting in the bottom 9th percentile of our database. It'll handle Office apps and a dozen browser tabs, but it will absolutely choke on anything demanding. The 16GB of RAM is a saving grace and actually the strongest spec relative to other laptops, but the integrated graphics are a dead end for gaming or video editing. The 500GB SSD is snappy enough for booting Windows 10 and loading apps, but it's a middle-of-the-pack performer. This is a machine built for patience, not speed.

Stacked against modern budget laptops, the E6540 gets demolished in performance and portability. A new Chromebook will run circles around it for web-based tasks and last all day on a charge. Even a base model Apple MacBook Pro from a few years ago will feel like a spaceship in comparison. The only reason to pick this Dell over something like a used ThinkPad T480 is if you absolutely need the DVD drive or find it at a significantly lower price. It's a niche pick for a specific kind of buyer who values cheap, repairable hardware over modern efficiency.

At $279, it's hard to be too harsh. You're getting a complete, functional Windows 10 Pro laptop with an SSD and plenty of RAM for less than the cost of a single textbook. The value proposition is strong if you need a cheap machine for writing, email, or as a dedicated terminal for a specific task. Just know that you're buying a decade-old processor, and the performance ceiling is very real. For the price, it's a fair deal, not a steal.

This is a refurbished workhorse from a decade ago, and it knows it. The Dell Latitude E6540 packs an old Intel Core i7-4800MQ, 16GB of RAM, and a 500GB SSD into a chunky 15.6-inch frame. It's not trying to be thin, light, or pretty. It's trying to be a cheap, functional laptop for basic tasks, and at $279, it mostly succeeds at that narrow goal.

You're getting a lot of old-school ports and a built-in DVD drive, which is either a nostalgic bonus or a sign of its age depending on your outlook. The 1080p screen is a nice touch for a budget refurb, but don't expect it to be bright or color-accurate. This is a machine for spreadsheets, email, and web browsing, not for gaming or creative work. The integrated graphics are a major bottleneck, landing in the bottom 19th percentile of all laptops we've tracked.

If you need any kind of graphics performance for gaming or creative work, look elsewhere because this machine will frustrate you instantly. Also skip it if portability matters. This thing is a tank, and one reviewer pegged it at around 9 pounds. A modern Chromebook or a used business laptop from a newer generation will be a much better fit for most people.

The Dell Latitude E6540 is a no-nonsense refurb for people who need a cheap Windows machine and have very low performance expectations. It's a solid choice for a student on a tight budget who just needs to write papers and do research, or for a grandparent who wants a simple laptop for email and solitaire. If you can live with the weight and the sluggish CPU, it'll get the job done without breaking the bank.