What essentially is a Chromebook? A Chromebook is a laptop/tablet that uses a unique operating system developed by the masterminds at Google, more popularly known as the Chrome-OS. It is primarily based on Linux. The thing that’s so special about Chromebooks is its portability and the application of cloud storage rather than local storage.
“Since I’ve been looking into buying a new computer, should I get a Chromebook? It is cheap and portable…” Have you been asking yourself this question? If yes, then look no further as we have mustered up six things that one should consider before buying a Chromebook. Let us delve deeper into this together and find some insight!
1. Operating System Compatibility
One of the crucial things about Chromebooks at which one may raise an eyebrow is the fact that they’re only comfortable with macOS and Windows. Meaning that since they run on a particular OS designed for Chromebooks only, called the Chrome-OS, you may not be able to run and use the apps and software that you usually do every day on other Linux-based operating systems.
The default application store is the Chrome Store, where you can get MS Office Online, but the standard is still Google Drive, which provides utilities like Google Docs, that too being online. However, you may again face compatibility issues if you try to run or edit files on Google Docs, which were made on Microsoft products. On the bright side, the Chrome Store will have pretty much everything you need.
2. Hardware
I tend to believe that anyone who is looking into buying a Chromebook for personal use should acknowledge the fact that since there are various versions of Chromebooks available, all of them are not built with the same processing power and technological abilities. Accordingly, this makes it increasingly necessary to go for a Chromebook that has everything you need. Another reason for this is that updating your Chromebook to have the latest hardware in the future might not do much favor as you could still be encountering compatibility issues.
3. IPS Panels and Display Issues
It is a basic intuition of almost every tech-savvy person that smaller the screen size is in a laptop, the more compact, lighter, and portable the device is. Screen sizes for Chromebooks range from 11.5 inches to 15 inches. However, less expensive laptops often do not possess the might of high-quality displays or fancy IPS panels. Accordingly, you should only opt for those Chromebooks that offer top-notch display quality and graphics.
4. Miscellaneous Features
In this day and age of technological advancement, you cannot afford to have a laptop that doesn’t have enough USB, HDMI, headphone, microphone, etc. ports. You definitely should check that the Chromebook you’re investing your hard-earned riches in provides an adequate number and quality of mentioned ports, among other miscellaneous features that you may need.
5. Battery Life and Performance
Despite the many useful features of Chromebooks, the performance of these devices could be quite a shortcoming. Owing to the low cost of Chromebooks, it isn’t surprising that the majority of them use low-power Intel Celeron Processors. However, such processors help increase the battery timing of Chromebooks. So, it is perfect for people who put battery timing over performance. If that’s not the case with you, the market also offers a wide variety of Chromebooks with powerful processors.
6. Security and OS Updates
As it is with every other device, Chromebooks also get security and OS updates within specific time intervals. You should pull out a calculator and do some math on figuring out the annual cost of ownership of a Chromebook before you go off purchasing one.
This task is distinct for every user’s demands and expectations, and to help you with that, here is the schedule for when new updates are out for Chromebooks. Software-related updates on fixing minor bugs are released every two weeks, and significant upgrades are released every six weeks. It would only be smart of an interested buyer to do these calculations before they spend their dollar bills on a device that is enticing due to its low price.
Conclusion
It could be disappointing if you get a Chromebook, and it doesn’t turn out to satisfy all of your requirements. Considering this, you should remember the six things that we went over in this article before getting a Chromebook. Once you’re done with that, you’re more likely to have a happy and satisfying purchase.
