Dell Chromebook 11 11.6-inch

This computer is wicked fast, runs for 7 hours of intense internet use on a single charge, has a keyboard that is quiet, feels great, and has good key travel, has a solid multitouch touchpad, and is probably durable enough to survive a landing on the beaches of Normandy. It is one of the best computers I've owned (with a couple caveats), and it is most definitely the cheapest. If you're tempted to drop ~$1,000 on Apple's latest luxury item, think again. This computer will do everything a Mac can do for just $250, as long as you learn to be careful about the 16 GB SSD size and do a little tinkering under the hood. Dell may bill it as a cheap, durable computer for schools, but this machine is way too good to be left to the kids. HARDWARE ========== I've owned my Dell 11 for 6 months now and never once has it started lagging or dropping frames on me. I'll have 23 tabs open, one of which is playing a YouTube video, while Spotify is running in the background and I'm viewing a Javascript-heavy page like Google Maps, and the computer's fan doesn't even whirr up. The 1.4 GHz Intel i3 processor is very snappy, and if you plunk down the extra cash for 4 GB of RAM (do it!) you'll be able to run any mixture of programs with ease. The SSD means it boots into Linux Mint in <10 seconds. The build is very sturdy, clean, and simple. The computer is slim and encased in gun-metal gray plastic - a clean look that has drawn compliments more than once. The screen is covered by glass like a touchscreen (without the touch functionality), and some reviewers have complained that this limits the viewing angles and the gloss makes it hard to see the screen in bright settings. All true, but it also means the screen is impossible to damage short of taking a hammer to it. As I mentioned in the first paragraph, the keyboard is one of the nicest I've used. MacBook keys don't have enough key travel for my taste, but the Dell hits the sweet spot where the keys are just the right height, but also quiet. I used the famed Lenovo Thinkpad keyboard for a year, and I honestly prefer the Dell's keys. Unlike the Thinkpad, they don't make a clacking sound like an AK-47 when you're writing an email. The only downside of the keyboard - and it may be a significant one depending on how much of a power user you are - is that the keyboard uses the simplified (dumbed down) Chromebook keyboard layout - no Super key, no home, no end, no page up/page down, and all the function keys mapped to volume, brightness, or other commands. Sometimes this can be frustrating when you have to count up to figure out which key is F5 to refresh a page, but eventually you get used to it. Regarding other features: the speakers are LOUD and clean sounding, despite the fact that there are no speaker ports. The touchpad is smooth and clicking feels great, although it isn't quite as sensitive to fine movements as other touchpads I've used. The webcam and mic work exactly as you would want them do. Pro-tip: do yourself a favor and peel off that hideous primary-color grade-school looking "chrome" sticker on the front of the machine. It looks like a bumper sticker on a BMW, but once you peel it off you're left with the nice light grey word "chrome" and a slightly indented circle. Looks very cool. CHROME OS ========== Chrome OS is clean and sexy but very, very short on features. You're out of luck if you want to use Steam (though Shovel Knight and Risk of Rain run beautifully on this computer!), VLC, Gimp, or a host of other programs. Follow my advice, wipe Chrome OS and install Linux. I'm using Linux Mint - not even a lightweight distro, but I wanted the features and hey, it runs beautifully. Don't use Crouton to run Linux alongside Chrome OS unless you think you can survive with just 6 GB of SSD space (spoiler: you can't). But if you wipe Chrome OS, hey presto, you have a full-featured machine with just enough storage space that can edit photos, run games, play movies in VLC, or do anything else you want it to do. To wipe Chrome OS and boot from Linux have to get down and dirty with changing the firmware, unscrewing a write protect screw, changing the Bios, and fiddling with Mint to make it work with the Dell's hardware, but it isn't too difficult, and hey, if you brick your device it's easy as pie to reboot from a Chrome recovery USB. Do yourself a favor, wipe Chrome OS, and run Linux, and you have hands-down the best computer $250 can buy. CON: STORAGE SPACE =================== Only one main con to this machine: the 16 GB SSD. Chrome machines are obviously stateless and store everything in the cloud, so if you plan to keep Chrome OS the storage size should be ample. But if you follow my advice and install Linux you'll find yourself constantly monitoring your storage space, especially if you use 4 GB of the SSD for swap space like I do. But as long as you store photos and other big files in the cloud and don't try to install The Witcher 3 or something, you should be okay. I have all the programs I could ever need with about 1.5 GB of free space left over. CONCLUSION =========== This machine is a fast, unostentatious workhorse, and once you do some tinkering with it you'll have a dream computer. Buy it and laugh at all the poor suckers spending more than $1,000 for their glitzy new MacBooks.

I have been researching about Chromebooks for a while and I decided to purchase this Chromebook due to positive reviews (the Verge called it the best Chromebook), and the Intel Celeron + 4GB of RAM. This is a very fast computer, pulling up image-heavy sites within a second or less. It also looks very nice; the lid sports a clean look, and the charcoal color makes the computer look professional. Build quality is among the best I've seen on any other Chromebook; there are no creaks and there is no hollow sound when clicking the trackpad, unlike the Acer C720 Chromebook. The keyboard is wonderful, especially for a machine this size; the keys are very springy, and offer great key travel. The trackpad is great as well; it is the perfect size, and works well (especially for the touch gestures in Chrome OS). The screen is pretty standard; it isn't 1080p, but for this size, it is perfectly adequate. However, there is on thing about the display that I should mention; there is glass protecting the screen, which is great for preventing scratches from going onto your screen, but it makes for pretty poor viewing angles. I honestly don't think this matters much (the edge-to-edge glass certainly makes the computer look nicer than ones with embedded screens), but for those of you who do use your computers outdoors, it is something you might want to consider. Battery life is stellar. I was able to get 8:20 of battery life while having multiple tabs and windows open, plus several YouTube videos playing in the background. It is amazing, and when I used it casually (checking my email, watching YouTube), I actually didn't have to charge it for 2-3 days. PROS: -Very fast computer -Looks very nice -Very good build quality -Excellent trackpad and keyboard -Stellar battery life -Many ports (HDMI, full-size SD card slot, USB 3.0) CONS: -Display has poor viewing angles THE COMPETITION: There are many other Chromebooks out there, but the most notable one is undoubtedly the Acer C720 Chromebook. How do they stack up? In my opinion the Dell is better: in my experience the Dell features superior build quality, a better keyboard and trackpad, and a nicer design. However, one has to remember that the Acer C720 is $199.00, while the Dell Chromebook 11 is about $350.00 on Amazon. My recommendation is that if you can spare the extra money, you should buy the Dell, but otherwise, the Acer C720 is a great Chromebook as well. Also, if an 11.6 inch screen is too small for you (I came from a 15.6 inch Compaq computer to this and I had no issues), I would recommend the Toshiba 13.3 inch Chromebook. MY THOUGHTS ON CHROME OS Many people say that you cannot use a Chromebook as your primary laptop, but this is not true. Chrome OS has matured over the years, and for those who just want to watch some YouTube, browse the web, check their email, and occasionally type up a report, Chrome OS is perfect. For an explanation on how a Chromebook is different than a traditional Windows or Mac computer, watch this: [...] CONCLUSION This is one of the best computers I have used-including my previous Windows laptops. It is much faster than all my other laptops, boots up in 7 seconds (faster than any other Windows laptops under $500), and has a great keyboard and trackpad. I would definitely recommend this to anyone, especially those who want to buy a Chromebook.

No complaints with this chromebook except for screen quality. Unless you are looking at the screen at a precise angle, the display is very muted, not bright at all. If you are standing with the chromebook on a counter trying to look at the screen, you have to tilt it as far back as it will go, but even then it's not far enough for clarity and brightness. Overall though I like the Dell. It's fast, good battery life, and great browsing device if that's about all you want to do. Perfect for students that have google accounts. Video and audio much better than my more expensive Asus android.