Thinking about buying.. Worth it? And a couple questions

[m.vasquez009]

So I'm looking to get a new laptop for my summer classes and for the coming school year.. I need primarily Web surfing and some document creating /editing and I feel a chromebook would be a good fit.. Would u say they are worth the money? Are you guys happy with your purchases? I've heard a lot of people hating on chromebooks . I'm looking into the Toshiba chromebook 2 or the Asus chromebook 13..what are your guys opinion and I'm also wondering if the scaling on the Toshiba book is still really small because of the 1080p screen or has this been addressed? thanks! 

 

[Bwing76]

Are you interested in size with the Chromebooks? If were up to me my HP Envy laptop has proved to be a great PC that does everything you specified and for 2 years now with NO problems at all. Just saying you know.

 

[B. Diddy]

I'm a big fan of Chromebooks, and it sounds like you'd find them very useful. I have an Acer C720 (which I use for travel, because it's so lightweight) and an HP Chromebook 14 (which is my kitchen laptop), and I find that I use them for about 95% of my computing. The only thing I use my Windows desktop for these days is for remote access to my work and for local storage of photos.

The Toshiba Chromebook 2 is widely regarded as one of the best right now, due to its superior 1080p IPS screen. I don't know details about the scaling, but you can use the Zoom function to enlarge browser content to your preference. The Asus Chromebook 13 gets generally good reviews as well and is considered an all-around solid device, but usually doesn't rank above the Toshiba.

One of the great things about Chromebooks is the value--for around $200, you get a zippy, lightweight, secure laptop. I have a cheap Windows 8.1 laptop as well, and I feel that comparably priced Windows machines are too slow and clunky, with the added burden of frequent system updates and security concerns.

 

[m.vasquez009]

Would I need a virus protection on a chromebook?

 

[B. Diddy]

Nope. That's one of the advantages.

 

[m.vasquez009]

Even if I'll be frequenting porn hub and redtube fairly often?

 

[Crashdamage]

Nope. Just some lube so it doesn't get rubbed raw.

Android user since v1.0. Linux user since 2001.

 

[B. Diddy]

 

[B. Diddy]

Nothing is 100% safe from malware, but Chrome OS is probably the safest platform around, since almost everything you do is in the cloud. There isn't a lot of OS residing on local storage for viruses to mess around with.

 

[ackmondual]

So I'm looking to get a new laptop for my summer classes and for the coming school year.. I need primarily Web surfing and some document creating /editing and I feel a chromebook would be a good fit..

Sounds like a CB would have you covered there. The only things you'd need "a better office software suite" for are macros, heavy formatting, "extra fancy" formulas, and others I'm sure are out there which I never knew existed.

I've never tried taking a Google Office file and downloading the raw file itself. As somebody who likes going through file explorer utilities, I would like that flexibility, and never tried that. AFAIK, you can just right click and download the file to local drive?

Would u say they are worth the money?

I paid $190 shipped for a refurbished HP Chromebook 14. For internet, light+ level Office documents, it's impressive.

Are you guys happy with your purchases?

Yes. That said, I still spend more of my time on my desktop PC even when the CB is around. I do have ebook study materials and my notes in Google Documents, which I'm not going to bother transferring to my PC since 1) I'm lazy, 2) I have a greater tendency to goof off and not get work done there, and 3) it remains mobile, which is nice since I attend a study group for some of those materials. Great battery life, and works mostly out of the box. For mine, I had to send it in (for free, still under warranty) to fix a column of keys (8ik,]) that only worked part of the time. HP sent it back repaired within a week or so. Not too bad as I anticipated they were going to drag their feet on that.

I've heard a lot of people hating on chromebooks . I'm looking into the Toshiba chromebook 2 or the Asus chromebook 13..what are your guys opinion and I'm also wondering if the scaling on the Toshiba book is still really small because of the 1080p screen or has this been addressed? thanks! 

Hater are going to hate. Alas, this is true with a lot of things, and since folks are different, they'll be right and wrong. Note how I or any of us use our CB, and see if that fits any other requirements you may have.

No comment on those models. Somebody else will have to chime in, as I'm only on HP.