Verdict
Chrome OS’ speediness combined with a funky blue case makes this one fun notebook to use.
Pros
+Excellent keyboard and trackpad
+Chrome OS is speedy and responsive
+Crisp, vivid screen
Cons
-Not as powerful as some higher-end Chromebooks
-Average battery life
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Introduction and Design
In fact, with all the features and steady performance of the Chromebook 14, you might decide to make the leap. If you just need a computer to get you online, check emails, do some basic work, and binge some Netflix, this extremely affordable device is more than up to the job. Add in a great keyboard, excellent trackpad, and a beautiful 14-inch screen, and you end up with a machine that offers a lot more value than just its low price tag.
HP’s Chromebook isn’t exactly a high-end PC, but it’s a slick, streamlined piece of kit nonetheless. The tapered enclosure measures 0.7 inches (about 18mm) thick at its thickest point. At 3.74 pounds (1.7kg), it’s also reasonably light, though not as much as the 13.3-inch, 2.97-pound Toshiba Chromebook 2. That extra weight gives you a slightly larger screen, though, and the Chromebook 14 doesn’t feel at all heavy in hand.
The case itself is entirely plastic, and it does flex and creak some as you adjust the screen or pick it up one-handed. On the bright side, the case doesn’t have any exposed screws, so you don’t need to worry about a loose screen dropping out randomly.
Oh. And it’s blue. Very blue. The shade of blue, which HP calls Sky Blue, looks cool.
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Stellar keyboard and trackpad
As a writer, I’m picky when it comes to keyboards, and I was pleasantly surprised by the typing experience on the Chromebook 14. The keyboard feels responsive with clicky keys and plenty of key travel.
The keyboard flexes ever so slightly when I pound heavily on it, but under normal use, it isn’t mushy at all. My gripe is there’s no dedicated Caps Lock key; a Search key takes its place and must be triggered while holding the alt key. It isn’t a big deal, but it makes it more difficult to impulsively tweet in all caps.
The trackpad is equally excellent. It’s big and spacious, with plenty of room to mouse around. The whole trackpad is a button, so you don’t have to fiddle around to find the left- and right-click buttons.
The button itself depresses with a satisfying click, but it’s much stiffer the closer to the keyboard you go. If you’re accustomed to the trackpad on, say, a MacBook Air, you’ll feel right at home on the Chromebook 14.
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Ports and Webcam
HP’s put a security lock slot, an HDMI port, a USB 3.0 port, a headphone jack and a microSD reader on the Chromebook 14’s left side, and a pair of USB 2.0 ports on its right side.
Performance
Armed with a 1.8-GHz Intel Celeron N2940 CPU, 4GB of RAM and a 16GB eMMC drive, the HP Chromebook 14 provides enough power for multitasking. When I split my screen between a dozen tabs and a streaming YouTube video and opened Cut The Rope and Google Keep, the system stayed speedy, with no lag as I typed in a Google Doc and moved from tab to tab.
The HP Chromebook 14 did poorly on Google’s Octane 2.0 performance benchmark, which gave it a score of 7,869. The Celeron 3205U-powered Dell Chromebook 13 (14,453) and Celeron 3215U-powered Toshiba Chromebook 2 (17,044) earned better scores.
Battery Life (5/5)
The Chromebook’s battery life is impressive. I can easily go through a full day of work or classes without needing to recharge. It’s a relief not to be constantly hunting for power outlets.
Performance (5/5)
Powered by an Intel Celeron processor and 4GB of RAM, this Chromebook handles multitasking with ease. Whether I’m working on Google Docs, streaming videos, or browsing multiple tabs, it doesn’t lag or stutter. The 64GB eMMC storage is sufficient for storing documents and essential files, and you can always expand it with cloud storage if needed.
conclusion
The HP Chromebook 14 is an economical laptop with good durability and good enough performance for the usual Chrome OS productivity tasks. Thanks to AMD’s Radeon R4 GPU, it has its own edge when it comes to graphics.