Chromebook vs Laptop: How They're Different, How to Choose

Chromebook vs Laptop: How They're Different, How to Choose

Chromebook vs Laptop: How They're Different, How to Choose

We’ve encountered a good many folks trying to decide whether to buy, as they say it, a “Chromebook or a laptop.” Therein lies a bit of confusion. Our laptop expert Kimber Streams breaks down what makes a Chromebook a Chromebook, how they compare to similarly priced Windows laptops, and who will be served well by these puzzling machines.

Read our in-depth guide to the best chromebooks here: https://nyti.ms/2GMdT3N

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Content

0.5 -> - I don't know, I think it's like an important thing
2.3 -> to explain to people like what the difference is.
4.56 -> No, they're absolutely not the same thing.
6.515 -> (bright music)
11.77 -> Chromebooks and Windows laptops and Mac laptops
14.75 -> are all physically laptops, they all have screens
17.05 -> and keyboards and they do things that laptops do.
19.14 -> But Chromebooks run Chrome OS, which is an operating system
22.76 -> that's built on the Chrome browser, so it means
24.56 -> that you can do anything that you can do on a browser.
27.01 -> You can check your email, you can check social media,
29.11 -> you can work in Google docs and spreadsheets,
31.4 -> PowerPoints, watch Netflix, you can take Zoom calls.
33.66 -> You can do all of those sorts of things on a Chromebook.
35.82 -> So Chromebooks first started coming out in 2011
38.55 -> and they got a reputation very early on for being crappy
41.06 -> and not being able to do very much.
42.85 -> And around 2014,
44.2 -> they actually stopped being super cheap and super crappy,
47.1 -> manufacturers started making ones that were fast enough.
49.36 -> Most of the things that you wanted to do
50.88 -> could be done in a browser.
51.96 -> And then a couple of years ago actually,
53.89 -> Google added Android apps into Chromebooks
56.18 -> so that kind of fills a bunch of holes of very specific
58.574 -> things that you weren't able to do on Chrome OS before.
61.399 -> (bright music)
65.54 -> So some of the limitations of Chromebooks
67.3 -> are that you can't run specific programs
69.2 -> that you can run on Windows or Mac.
71.44 -> For example, iTunes, Photoshop, or specific Windows games,
75.08 -> you're not going to be able to run those.
76.57 -> Chromebooks do have Chrome extensions and Android equivalent
80.2 -> that fill some of these holes,
81.44 -> but there are definitely certain apps
82.73 -> that you straight up cannot run on a Chromebook.
84.43 -> Chromebooks also tend to have little local storage
86.539 -> and they rely on cloud storage provided by Google
88.515 -> and they work best with an internet connection.
91.02 -> Even though there are some offline,
92.47 -> both for Gmail and Google docs.
94.11 -> Chromebooks tend to be cheaper than Windows laptops
96.76 -> for similar specs, and whenever you have a similarly priced
99.8 -> Chromebook and a similarly priced Windows laptop,
102.07 -> the Chromebook is typically going to be faster.
104.48 -> It's gonna be better made, it's gonna have longer
106.31 -> battery life, and it's typically gonna be more portable
108.45 -> than these cheap Windows laptops.
110.312 -> (jazzy music)
113.95 -> I would say most people are solidly served
116.72 -> by a Chromebook, it'll do everything that you need it to do,
119.67 -> but if you play a lot of games,
121.22 -> you probably don't want a Chromebook unless you're willing
123.01 -> to stream them through one of the games streaming services
125.51 -> that are becoming more popular right now.
126.92 -> If you need a specific app that your school requires
129.81 -> and they don't recommend that you use a Chromebook,
131.88 -> then you probably want a Windows laptop or a Mac.
134.36 -> And if you're like a heavy video or photo editor,
136.9 -> you probably don't want a Chromebook.
138.16 -> (upbeat music)
142.55 -> So you're looking at a $500 Chromebook,
144.81 -> and you're looking at a $500 Windows laptop.
147 -> That Chromebook is probably going to be faster,
149.1 -> in the things that you use it for.
150.49 -> Cheap Windows laptops tend to only have 4GB of memory.
153.53 -> And that's a huge limitation on Windows,
155.33 -> Whereas Chrome OS is a lighter operating system
157.41 -> and it runs better on less ram.
159.33 -> And those Chromebooks also tend to be better made,
161.64 -> they have better build quality,
162.77 -> they have longer battery life,
164.18 -> and they tend to be smaller and more affordable.
166.456 -> (bright music)
170.53 -> The Lenovo Chromebook Flex 5 is our top pick
172.49 -> for Chromebooks because it's inexpensive at around $400.
175.75 -> It's fast enough for the things that most people
177.55 -> need to use a laptop for,
179.21 -> it has a great keyboard and track pad,
180.76 -> and it also has a handy touchscreen.
182.35 -> Small and light, and the battery life is decent,
184.58 -> but it's not the best compared to some of our other picks.
186.76 -> So our upgrade pick is the Google Pixelbook Go,
188.87 -> and it costs around $650.
190.9 -> Chromebooks have historically a terrible rep
193.31 -> as being cheap and slow.
195.27 -> This one however, is smaller and lighter
197.72 -> than pretty much every other Chromebook I've ever tested.
200.47 -> It has an excellent keyboard and track pad, and it's about
203.05 -> as well-made as a Macbook Air or a Windows Ultrabook,
205.35 -> but it cost hundreds of dollars less.
206.91 -> It's my personal favorite Chromebook that I tested,
208.79 -> and it's actually what I used to cover the consumer
210.68 -> electronics show earlier this year.
212.13 -> So the Acer Chromebook 712 is our more durable pick
215.25 -> for kids, costs around $300.
217.23 -> It's fast enough which is a really big deal
219.13 -> for such a cheap Chromebook, most Chromebooks
221.03 -> in this price range are miserably slow,
222.75 -> and it's extra durable.
223.85 -> It has bumpers and a spill resistant keyboard.
225.83 -> It can handle up to about
226.663 -> 1.5 cups of water dumped into it.
229.16 -> Wirecutter Editor Thorin Klosowski has actually seen
231.56 -> the kids that he tutors dump water into the previous version
234.17 -> of this laptop, and we did the same thing for photos
236.31 -> for our guide, and it's still working.
238.04 -> But it does have a terrible low resolution screen
240.53 -> that looks faded and washed out.
242.18 -> So that's the trade off for such a cheap option.
245.366 -> If you have any questions about Chromebooks
246.48 -> or laptops in general,
247.52 -> please leave them in the comments below
248.76 -> and we'll get to them when we can.
249.93 -> Like, and subscribe.

Source: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=c-1zMFp1iCY