Like anything the higher priced models tend to get better reviews. I mistakenly crossed that line where I spent too little and had got a laptop with too many compromises. I bought a Dell Inspiron 3520 with a core i3 Intel 1215u CPU, 8Gb RAM and a 256Gb SSD. It probably is the lowest anyone should go in hardware specs running Windows 11 and expect to be at least somewhat satisfied with performance. The hardware is actually fine, the rest of the laptop is of poor quality. Dell has started using recycled plastics in their chassis and it does not feel study with a lot of flexing and creaking. The touchpad was also cheap and difficult to click requiring too much pressure. Keyboard was OK, and speakers were bad as typical with cheaper laptops. Screen quality was a VA quality FHD type with a non-glare screen which made colors less pronounced. I do feel like I bought a throwaway laptop as many have reported the hinges breaking early. No surprised given the quality I have experienced. Yes, I would be warry about not spending enough on a laptop to better guarantee a longer life.