Undecided on Chromebook

[mrr00]

I've been looking into replacing my 2 Windows laptops (one ASUS netbook and one HP that is 6 years old) with a Chromebook. I have a desktop gaming PC that can handle all of my heavy lifting, and a 7 inch tablet for lighter things like social media and basic web browsing, but I'm looking for a new laptop that I could take with me while traveling. I guess my ultimate point to this post is to ask you guys about your experiences with the Chromebook and whether or not it would fit my needs. So, what do you think?

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[B. Diddy]

I tried a Chromebook for a couple of weeks, and overall I liked the experience. It's great if you do mostly web-based activities and use a lot of Google apps. Word processing and spreadsheets with Google Drive is adequate, although if you need more bells and whistles (like a lot of different fonts or bullet points), then it might not satisfy you.

Probably the biggest problem you'd face if you wanted to use it for travel is its absolute dependence on wifi, and the fact that most wifi you'll find when travelling isn't that fast. If the wifi isn't fast, then whatever you do on the Chromebook will be slow and laggy, and it might get frustrating. You could always use your phone as a wifi tether, but that can use up data quickly on a limited data plan, and can also eat up your phone's battery.

Since Best Buy has a 14 day return policy (I believe without a restocking fee), you could always get one for a test drive, and then return it if you don't like it.

 

[estods3]

If you already have a tablet for browsing and social media, you have a chrome book without the keyboard. and the tablet has a lot more apps.

sent from my Verizon Galaxy Nexus

 

[B. Diddy]

If you already have a tablet for browsing and social media, you have a chrome book without the keyboard. and the tablet has a lot more apps.

sent from my Verizon Galaxy Nexus

To a large extent that's true, but I found that the Chrome browser on a Chromebook is still faster and more responsive than Chrome on a tablet (at least, on an average tablet like the Asus TF300).

 

[iknownothing]

Yes, but a lot of the apps that you have on your tablet are meant to replace full desk top sites that the browser isn't adequate enough to render properly, or don't make sense without a full keyboard setup. So in that sense the chromebook is superior.

If you're looking for something you can put pictures on, post to facebook from and maybe do some journaling then a chromebook is a good choice for travel. It's not the end of the world if you leave it someplace either.

My experience with Chromebook has been very positive. I don't think you want it for you only computer. But it does just about everything I want it to most of the time, and it does it very quickly. Remote desktop works really well for when I need to use a more powerful machine away from home or work, and saves having to sync files between computers. It's not perfect, but it's a cheap and elegant solution to a lot of problems.

 

[dkhmwilliams]

I have the Samsung Chromebook that came out last year. I would say that it's just ok. I rarely use it anymore. My wife uses it a lot. i have found that using my iPad with a bluetooth keyboard is a lot better and faster than using a Chromebook. I had a few gripes with the Chromebook. The first was video playback. If I was watching Google Play movies, YouTube, or any other videos on the web, the playback quality was poor. I found that in the settings if you disable flash, then playback was a lot smoother. But then you can't utilize flash. I don't know if the other Chromebooks have this problem, but the Samsung does.


Sent from my iPad Air using Tapatalk

 

[iknownothing]

I have the exact same use case as you. Good desktop, plus tablet, and I wanted a laptop for travel. I bought a chromebook and it was probably one of my best technology buying decisions. I think it will absolutely fit your needs. Happy shopping.

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