You might not be thinking about heading off to start at a new school this year, but upgrading your current device in time for the new term may well be on your mind right now. For many students, a laptop is an essential tool for their education, used for getting work done and keeping entertained during downtime. But with so many models to choose from, which one is best for you?
Chromebooks offer an alternative to Windows and Mac devices, and have certain advantages over these long-running staples. They’re generally much cheaper for one thing, which is an especially pressing concern for younger buyers.
For this and other reasons, they’ve virtually become synonymous with student laptops. But are even the best Chromebooks cut out for your school work? We’re here to answer this and other questions surrounding their suitability for education.
Chromebook advantages
As mentioned, perhaps the biggest draw of Chromebooks is their cost. Of course, prices vary from model to model, but in general, Chromebooks are much cheaper than their Windows and MacBook counterparts.
Take the Asus Chromebook CM14, for example. This costs $299 / £299 (about AU$473) and although its performance isn’t in the same league as the best laptops, it still suffices for more basic tasking. It also features a tactile keyboard and great battery life – both important considerations when taking notes in class. For this reason, we think it’s one of the best student Chromebooks around for those on a budget.
Another advantage of Chromebooks is their form factors. Again, sizes are diverse in the sector, but there aren’t many other types of laptop devices that run below 13 inches in today’s market, whereas you’ll find plenty of Chromebooks that do. They’re also thin and light, which makes them even easier to ferry around between lectures.
This small size makes them better suited for convertibility as well. There are many hybrid Chromebooks around, featuring touchscreens and 360-degree hinges for keyboard-free use.
While this functionality is welcome, in my experience, even the best 2-in-1 Chromebooks fail to achieve the same usability as the best tablets, owing to their relative bulk, which makes them awkward to hold. These models perform better when flipped upside down and tented on a desk, allowing you to use the touchscreen with both hands for a more tactile approach.
On the other hand, tablets can be equipped with folio cases featuring a keyboard and trackpad to turn them into laptop-style devices. Tablets are often similarly priced to Chromebooks – and that even includes some of the best iPads, which can also offer better performance. For these reasons, tablets are perhaps Chromebooks’ biggest competition.
However, if you’re already in the Google / Android ecosystem, a Chromebook might make more sense for integration purposes than an iPad. What’s more, if you like working on your sofa or bed, you might prefer the stable typing surface a solid Chromebook chassis gives you, rather than the somewhat flimsy tablet keyboards.
Lacking power?
One of the biggest drawbacks of Chromebooks is their relative lack of power compared to the best Windows and best MacBook offerings. You won’t find powerhouse CPUs or dedicated GPUs in your typical Chromebook, and RAM figures don’t usually exceed 8GB.
This isn’t a problem if your demands are limited to light browsing, document editing, and video streaming, but for more intensive workloads and multitasking, they’ll struggle. But with the recent advent of the Chromebook Plus, the tables have started to turn.
These beefier machines are much more capable, and some models can even be used for gaming, such as the HP Chromebook Plus 15.6-inch I reviewed. Their performance won’t come close to rivaling the best gaming laptops, but that’s to be expected given how much more expensive those devices are.
Chromebook Plus models also feature the handy Quick Insert key, which can help with various productivity tasks by revealing a pop-up menu to add links, open recent files, and get writing advice in an instant. It’s perhaps the closest to an AI feature the platform currently has, and it’s certainly useful for speeding up those common actions.
Despite the extra power of these machines, though, one problem still remains: the operating system. ChromeOS has improved over the years, but it still isn’t in the same league as Windows or macOS. It’s far more limited in scope, and power users wishing for more tweaks and access to the inner workings of their system will be disappointed with ChomeOS.
What’s more, ChromeOS is further hampered by the lack of app support. High-end software isn’t compatible with the platform, so if you require specialist apps for creative subjects, say, chances are there won’t be a ChromeOS version.
Even current Chrome Apps are being phased out, with end of life slated for October 2028, as Android and ChromeOS are set to merge into one ecosystem. Many Android apps already work on Chromebooks, but the hope is that as the two environments merge, optimization will improve.
Closing thoughts
In essence, then, whether you should get a Chromebook for your studies comes down to how much power and versatility you require. If you only need a device for note taking, word processing, doodling and light entertainment, they make for a good companion.
They might not be able to compete with the best laptops in terms of power and versatility, but if you want a more budget-friendly device, a Chromebook might just see you through your studies.
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lewis.maddison@futurenet.com (Lewis Maddison)
