The 10 Best Chromebooks for Programming in 2020

To find the best Chromebook for programming, you have to consider processing power, speed, and storage. RAM is also an extremely crucial factor. Moreover, you will also be looking for a Chromebook with an excellent keyboard, as you do not want something that is fatiguing or uncomfortable. As you might be coding for hours on end, you will be looking for a model with a high-resolution display that is easy on your eyes.

That may sound like a lot of things to check off the list, but you will have to find the best combination of all these features to indeed have the best Chromebook for programming in 2020. Chromebooks are mostly lightweight and run on Chrome OS. The latest models can handle just about anything you can throw at them. You will also have to find one that is best suited according to your budget. Here we have rounded off the ten best Chromebooks in 2020 for programmers.

Best Chromebooks for Programming

1) Google Pixelbook Go

Google Pixelbook Go

The Pixelbook Go is a 13.3-inch Chromebook with a clean and minimalistic design. It weighs 2.3 pounds and feels sturdy because of its magnesium chassis. Pixelbook is gently curved around the edges and is intentionally made ridged at the bottom for a better grip. It comes with a backlit keyboard and two high-quality speakers. It features a relatively quieter keyboard with the keys providing the right amount of springy resistance.

The trackpad on Pixelbook Go comes with a palm rejection so that you do not accidentally move your cursor as you are coding. It comes with a resolution of 1920 x 1080 with an LCD touchscreen. Moreover, all Pixelbook Go models are fanless because they use Intel Y-series chips. It can also provide great battery life with Google itself, claiming that you can use this for 12 hours straight. When it comes to premium Chromebook, the Pixelbook Go is mostly unmatched because of the particular benefits and features it offers.

2) Lenovo Chromebook Duet

Lenovo Chromebook Duet

The Chromebook Duet’s base model has 4 GB of RAM and 64 GB of storage. Other than its head-turning price, this Chromebook can be particularly comfortable to use due to its small size. It comes with a detachable keyboard that helps programmers code for extended periods without getting tired or fatigued. Like other high-quality Chromebooks in the market, its battery packs an amazingly long life of around 22 hours.

This Chromebook comes with an extremely affordable price tag. At such a low cost, it is ideal for a programmer who is buying a laptop only for programming applications. Duet manages to provide the perfect balance between tablet portability and Chromebook utility to its customers. It also comes with a vast library of available software. It comes with a downloadable beta version of a Linux virtual machine so that you can use an actual terminal interface and all the Linux software through it.

3) Asus Chromebook Flip C436

Asus Chromebook Flip C436

Just like its predecessor, the Flip C436 comes with small bezels and a 14-inch screen. It has a magnesium alloy body and stable 360 degrees hinge. With a weight of 2.4 pounds and a thickness of only 13.7 mm, this Chromebook is relatively portable. It has a snappy and comfortable keyboard. This laptop also features a fingerprint reader in the top right corner for logging into Chrome OS.

The touchpad that comes with Flip C436 is smooth and responsive. The base model of this laptop has a 10^th generation Intel Core i3 processor coupled with 8 GB RAM and 128 GB storage. You can also get a configuration with 16 GB RAM and 512 GB SSD along with a Core i5 processor. The strongest argument in favor of the C436 is its impressively compact body. With an elegant design and fast performance, Asus Chromebook Flip C436 is an excellent choice for programmers.

4) HP Chromebook 14

HP Chromebook 14

HP Chromebook 14 is one of the best Chromebooks available in 2020, thanks to its sharp 14-inch display, snappy keyboard, and attractive chassis. It has a long battery life, which enables you to use it for lengthy projects without worrying about the battery percentage. The Chromebook 14 has an attractive design highlighted by a fresh white color variant that looks exceptionally pleasing.

The left side of this laptop has a USB Type-C port, a USB 3.0 port, and a lock slot. There is a microSD card slot, a headphone jack, and another pair of USB ports on the right side. The white, chiclet-style keys on its keyboard are well-spaced and large. They feel quite bouncy because of their above-average actuation force. Armed with an Intel Celeron N3350 CPU and 4 GB of RAM, the Chromebook 14 has enough power to tackle all of your programming tasks easily.

5) Acer Chromebook 714

Acer Chromebook 714

Chromebook 814 is one of Acer’s latest Chrome OS-powered laptops. It features a 14-inch Full HD IPS touch display, an Intel Core i3-8130U processor, 8 GB of DDR4 RAM, and 64 GB of storage. It comes with two USB-C ports, one USB Type-A port, a headphone jack, and a microSD card slot.

Acer rates its battery for up to 12 hours of use. The minimal design and darker aluminum give this Chromebook a professional and classy look. The keyboard deck barely flexes, and the hinge lets you open the laptop’s lid with one finger. Moreover, its trackpad has a Gorilla Glass-covered surface, which helps you to glide your fingers across it smoothly. Acer Chromebook 714 is rated for military-grade durability and has the potential to withstand rain, humidity, extreme temperatures, vibrations, and shock.

6) Lenovo Yoga Chromebook C630

Lenovo Yoga Chromebook C630

Lenovo Yoga Chromebook comes with an excellent 4K display and a durable all-aluminum chassis. This Chromebook further expands the boundaries of what you can expect from a Chromebook in 2020. Like most Chromebooks, it costs much less than a similarly configured Windows counterpart.

On the left are USB 3.0 Type-A and USB-C ports along with an audio jack. The other side has a USB-C port, a microSD card slot, a volume rocker, and the power button. The low overhead of Chrome OS means that the C630’s Core i3 processor is more than capable of handling any programming software.

7) HP Chromebook x2

HP Chromebook x2

With HP Chromebook x2, you get a 12.3-inch display, an in-lap typing experience, and longer battery life. It comes with the HP Active Pen and an easily detachable keyboard. Armed with an Intel Core m3-7Y30 CPU with 4 GB of RAM, this laptop can quickly fulfill all of your programming requirements. Its Intel chip helps you to get the best possible combination of outstanding performance and extended battery life.

The x2 is built using the finest materials and packed with better internals than most Chromebooks. It is not the lightest Chromebook, but it is still comfortably portable with and without its keyboard attachment. It has two USB-C ports, one microSD card slot that can be used to expand the internal storage, and one headphone jack. Its keyboard is full-sized and perfectly fine to use, as is its trackpad. Overall, its elegant design, supportive keyboard, and exceptional performance make it stand out from other Chromebooks available in the market.

8) Google Pixel Slate

Google Pixel Slate

The pixel slate has a beautiful display, solid construction, and a great-feeling keyboard. It comes with a 12.3-inch, 3000 x 2000 resolution touchscreen surrounded by decently sized bezels. This is known as a molecular display because it uses a different kind of substrate for the LCD. Pixel Slate has an aluminum body and a folio-style keyboard. You can slide the keyboard flap down on a system of magnets to hold up the display at any viewing angle.

The keyboard attaches through a magnetic connector, which makes it pretty easy to toggle between laptop and tablet modes. Google Pixel slate features an elegant design, a sharp screen, and around 10 hours of battery life. All of these aspects work in favor of enabling it to fall in the list of 10 best Chromebooks for programmers.

9) Acer Chromebook Spin 11

Acer Chromebook Spin 11

With this laptop, Acer has packed solid hardware into a compact design. Acer Chromebook Spin 11 offers an attractive design with some respectable Intel Celeron horsepower. It sports a stylish, silver cross-hairline pattern on a silky-textured plastic cover. Each side of this Chromebook has a USB Type-C port and a USB 3.0 port. The left side also features a microSD card slot and a headphone jack.

The 11.6-inch display on the Chromebook Spin 11 comes with a 10-point capacitive touch panel. It makes it capable of accurately tracking finger movements and commands. Its keyboard has a 1.1 mm of key travel and an actuation value of 70 grams. With a dual-core Intel Celeron N3350 processor, 4 GB of RAM, and 32 GB of eMMC flash memory, it can provide a seamless experience for a range of applications.

10) Samsung Chromebook 3

Samsung Chromebook 3

This 11.6-inch Chromebook boasts a fantastic display and 10 hours of battery life. It features a 1.6-GHz Intel Celeron N3060 processor and 32 GB of eMMC flash storage. This enables you to expect a solid performance even under enormously high loads. For a low range device, the Chromebook 3’s build quality is surprisingly good.

It has a flexible and robust hinge, with up to 180 degrees of available rotation. There is no flexing around its keyboard, which can be an annoying problem in other laptops falling in this range. Typing on its spill-resistant keyboard feels exceptionally comfortable, as its keys are ever so slightly curved to keep your fingers oriented. The keys are well-sized and take full advantage of the width on offer.

Conclusion

Chromebooks have evolved so much since they first appeared in 2011. Programmers always need an easily deployable, flexible, and secure laptop. This makes Chromebooks the perfect choice in several varied programming applications. Right now, multiple vendors are manufacturing Chromebooks, including Google, HP, Acer, Samsung, and Lenovo. Powered by Chrome OS, they provide an extremely affordable choice even in the highly competitive market of 2020.