The best $500 laptops are the tip of the iceberg when it comes to moving from the lowest-end laptops on the market to the next level of laptop specifications. Most $500 laptop computers are still built with basic functionality in mind including secure and wireless internet browsing, the sending and receiving of email, the listening to and burning of CDs, the watching of DVDs, and the downloading or saving of a reasonable amount of files. The best $500 laptop computers meet the requirements of most laptop users and in some cases even go beyond what a casual internet user will need. If you're a businessperson, designer, serious video gamer, or multimedia enthusiast, then you'll still want to increase your budget to a higher level as you search for a new laptop that will meet your personal or business computing requirements. The bottom line is that at the $500 level more functionality, more features, and a greater quantity and quality of laptop computers become available.