Lenovo Chromebook Plus 14 Review: A Game-Changer

Amazingly, nan guidelines configuration has 12 GB of RAM. That’s not rather arsenic overmuch arsenic nan 16 GB you get successful immoderate Snapdragon X-powered Windows laptops for illustration nan forthcoming HP Omnibook 5 16—but for ChromeOS, it’s much than enough. Meanwhile, nan guidelines configuration comes pinch 128 GB of storage, and nan upgraded exemplary has a 256-GB coagulated authorities drive.

Performance is solid. Speedometer is simply a benchmark that tests capacity successful nan browser, which is important for ChromeOS since it's each built astir nan Chrome browser. The Lenovo Chromebook Plus 14 was astir 3 times faster than nan Celeron N4500, arsenic tested successful nan Asus Chromebook CX15, and astir half nan velocity of nan Apple M4 successful a MacBook Air. I besides tested a mates of heavier Android games for illustration Diablo: Immortal and PUBG Mobile, which played good pinch settings maxed out. That’s not surprising, but it shows that this spot tin grip almost thing you propulsion astatine it. Like astir ARM-powered laptops, nan Chromebook Plus 14 is conscionable arsenic accelerated connected artillery arsenic it is while plugged in.

Google and Lenovo are besides touting nan AI capabilities of this device, arsenic nan MediaTek spot is tin of 50 trillion operations per 2nd (TOPS), a modular met by astir each of its Windows and Mac competitors. Because of that, nan Chromebook Plus 14 has a fewer exclusive on-device AI features you won’t find successful different Chromebooks. One of nan astir useful is Smart Grouping, which tin place nan various apps and tabs you person unfastened and group them intelligently into abstracted desktops. It’s beautiful handy. Less absorbing to maine is Quick Insert, which gives you unnecessarily easy entree to AI-generated images. Beyond that, it besides has nan action of AI features that travel pinch each Chromebook Plus laptops, specified arsenic nan adjuvant Continue Where I Left Off.

The ratio of nan Kompanio Ultra 910 shines agleam successful artillery life tests, too. It has a 60-watt-hour battery, resulting successful immoderate awesome runtime. Lenovo and Google declare it’s nan longest-lasting Chromebook ever, and it’s nan champion I’ve tested, lasting 16 hours successful a video playback test. It mightiness not past arsenic agelong arsenic nan MacBook Air M4 aliases laptops for illustration nan Asus Zenbook S 16, powered by Intel’s latest Core Ultra Series 2 chips, but it’s successful nan ballpark. That’s important because earlier nan caller surge successful ARM-powered laptops (like nan modern MacBooks), Chromebooks were known for artillery life. That was mostly owed to really lightweight ChromeOS was to run. It’s bully to spot Chromebooks are backmost successful nan running.

Value Where It Counts

The Chromebook Plus 14 has 1 different instrumentality up its sleeve. Unlike nan janky speakers featured successful astir each Chromebook, this Lenovo has a quad-speaker setup and is nan first to usage Dolby Atmos. These are amazingly bully speakers—almost arsenic bully arsenic nan 13-inch MacBook Air’s audio, providing a well-rounded sound that moreover features hints of bass. They're nan champion speakers connected a laptop of this price.

Many of my points person been couched successful nan discourse of nan price, and there’s a logic for that. At $650 for nan guidelines configuration aliases $100 much to up nan RAM and retention (and adhd nan touchscreen), nan Lenovo Chromebook Plus 14 is hitting a value that Windows laptops person struggled to address. There are contenders, but nan Chromebook Plus 14 makes a lawsuit for Chromebooks astatine this price, offering respective features and wide build value that you won’t find successful competitors. If you’re consenting to clasp ChromeOS, this is simply nan champion nan ecosystem has to offer.