Gadgetory

I love Chromebooks they're these complete back to basics computers that show how much you can get without actually spending that much if you're looking for a cheap computer right now this is the first place you should look but not all Chromebooks are created equal and some are pretty bad so we tried out a ton of them to figure out which is the best here's the deal a great Chromebook is three things first it has to have a good screen something you'd be okay with working on for hours second has to be relatively cheap you want to spend right around $300 and third has to be able to handle a lot of tabs without choking up there's one phone book that hits all three of those marks it's the one that I'd recommend to most people looking to buy one that's the Acer Chromebook or 11 I really like the r11 it has this white chunky body that almost looks like a kid's toy but it's pretty light and sturdy so you're not going to have a problem throwing this in your bag and toting it around to a coffee shop it has an 11.6 inch touchscreen display which is bright and clear and it's not going to hurt your eyes which is legitimately an issue on other Chromebooks it also has a great keyboard solid trackpad and enough battery life to get through most of my workday plus the price is spot-on at 279 there are 11 has been a pretty great performer for me too I've been able to handle well over a dozen tabs on this thing without any issue it doesn't get the regular lock ups that other Chromebooks seem to have all the time here's the other big thing the r11 is one of the first Chromebooks to support Android apps the screen flips around so you can use it like a tablet or you can prop it up I sort of just like to use it as a normal laptop and then tap on the screen every now and then when it makes sense but it's really nice having the option there now you may have noticed that I didn't say the r11 has the best screen or the best performance or the best price or size that's because it's not the best in any one particular area but does have the best combination of all of those things every other Chromebook has one or two serious flaws but the r11 is the only one that does a great job all across the board now if you don't think you're going to need a touchscreen there's one other Chromebook you should know about it's a little bit bigger a little bit more powerful and a little bit more expensive that's the Dell Chromebook 13 this is one heck of a Chromebook it is one of the best screens out there excellent battery life and great performance it's better than our eleven on all of those counts and with this 13-inch display I actually think would be great for someone who wants a Chromebook primarily for use around the house but there are a few big downsides the first is its price its 429 dollars which is a little expensive for a Chromebook second is it's kind of big and bulky I definitely wouldn't want to carry us around all the time and the third thing is if you do want a touchscreen upgrading this gets way too expensive to bother with it's just not worth it now not having a touchscreen might not be a problem for you especially if you're just gonna be browsing the web but keep in mind that for Android apps it's a really great option to have of course there are a lot of other Chromebooks out there including some other good ones if you want something a little bit smaller and more portable I really like the asou scrum book flip if you want something a bit bigger Acer's chromebook 15 is a really great option it's just a little too big for me personally you might also be wondering about more expensive Chromebooks like Google's Chromebook pixel it is phenomenal but no one no one should pay that much for a Chromebook maybe in the future with Android apps but not yet there are some stylish cheaper options like Samsung's Chromebook 3 and Acer Chromebook 14 but neither quite hit the mark for me now that I didn't have touch screens and performance just wasn't quite there and then there's the stuff you should just never buy like the asou c300 which has a disqualifying lee disgusting a screen or the HP Chromebook 14 which has a display that actually made my head hurt very wrong I think some of these Chromebooks are the right Chromebooks for certain people but you want to make sure that they're not missing any of the core functionality that you'll need there's no perfect Chromebook yet but it's still surprising how far three or four hundred dollars can get you if you want a cheap laptop that can get the job done look no further than these two because they are absolutely your best bet you