Acer Chromebook Plus 514 Review: solidly affordable [VIDEO]

There are two main things that Chromebook Plus is supposed to indicate for devices that get that new label on the lid: they need to be great devices to use overall, and they need to keep the price in check. In some ways, I’d argue that all of that falls under the same umbrella since price really has a lot of sway on how picky or not you get with a Chromebook, but you get the idea. Chromebook Plus now represents a new standard that I’ve really come to enjoy while reviewing every new model, and this final one of the initial bunch – the Acer Chromebook Plus 514 – once again shows that Google got this whole thing pretty right.

With the eighth and final Chromebook Plus model, I feel like we’re beating a dead horse a bit. With Chromebook Plus on the lid, you already know the overall experience of using this device is pretty solid. It’s not perfect, but it’s really good and it’s quite affordable for what you get, too. Most days, the 514 can be had at Costco for just $449. It doesn’t go on sale too often, but at this price it doesn’t really need to. (It is on sale for just $299.99 through this weekend, however.)

For that money, you’re getting some nice stuff, here. It’s a 14-inch Chromebook with a 16:10 FHD touchscreen to start with. Though only 250 nits, the anti-glare coating helps mitigate some of the glare and makes it workable in most indoor environments. The upward-firing speakers are loud and provide some nice stereo separation while the trackpad is large, glass-ish (it’s Acer’s Ocean Glass tech), and super comfy to use. And it’s all housed in a chassis that’s pretty rigid and meets mil-spec durability for drops, too.

The keyboard is a spot where this one falls down a bit, but it’s no deal breaker. It’s backlit – which I do prefer – and it’s fine. I find the keyframe to be a bit mushy for my taste, but I’ve typed on worse. Overall, it’s just unremarkable and probably my least favorite part of this particular Chromebook.

I/O is solid, though, with a USB Type-C on either side, a USB Type-A, full-sized HDMI port, headphone/mic jack and a Kensington lock. And the Chromebook Plus-required 1080p webcam is good, too, and it gets the expected tricks like lighting adjustments and background blur, too.

Inside, there’s the AMD Ryzen 3 7320C processor with the requisite 8GB of RAM and an upgraded 256GB of storage. As it did in the ASUS CM34 Chromebook Plus, this AMD chip performs quite well. I had a hiccup from time to time when connected to my QHD monitor running at 120Hz, but it was very infrequent. Long story short, this Chromebook is fast enough for most things you throw at it, and while I wasn’t seeing Acer’s claimed 12-hour battery life, a solid 8-10 hours is more than realistic on most days.

I’d still say the Lenovo Slim 3i is a better overall device in this 14-inch clamshell segment, but it used to also be $100 more expensive. For the past 6 weeks, however, it’s been on sale for $339, so it’s currently undercutting the Acer 514 by a solid $110. Additionally, you have devices like the Flex 5i and ASUS CM34 to compete with in this price range, too, so the Acer 514 isn’t a simple “buy it now” sort of device. If you like Acer Chromebooks and a big, smooth trackpad is high on the list, the 514 is a great option.

But let’s face it: you won’t be too mad with any Chromebook Plus purchase at this point. And that’s the point, right? I can’t say the 514 does anything exceptionally better than the competition, so it really comes down to what’s available at the time of purchase, what the prices are, and where you shop. Being available only at Costco clearly makes this one a bit less popular, but as I’ve said with all these Chromebook Plus models; if you pick one up, I think you’ll like it.