How 3:2 Chromebooks like the Acer Spin 713 could make an epic comeback

You know what we haven’t seen in a good, long while? A Chromebook with a 3:2 aspect ratio. A few years ago, this screen layout was a hot commodity, and users seemed to love it. With the web organizing things in a more vertical orientation these days (just look at all the open space on the left and right of most websites – including this one), 3:2 screens and their boxier layout make a ton of sense.

And that’s to say nothing of the benefits in tablet mode. An 11 or 12-inch convertible or detachable gains tons of utility from this sort of screen when used without a keyboard. Web contents and apps fit a lot better on-screen and with a 3:2 aspect ratio, and both landscape and portrait modes feel usable when the tablet side of the OS is in play.

3:2 Chromebooks have generally vanished

Though devices like the Pixelbook, Pixel Slate, HP Chromebook x2, Acer Chromebook Spin 713 and quite a few more all benefited from this screen layout, the current trend for Chromebook screens has completely turned its back on the more-square setups in recent years.

Why is that? On the surface, I’m unsure. We have users clamoring for the return of the beloved Spin 713 line from Acer and even more wishing for a 3:2 Pixelbook to make a return one day. The utility of the taller screen ratio was a feature many enjoyed, and at this point, there’s not a single new Chromebook that employs this screen style. For whatever reason, this popular screen aspect ratio has simply disappeared in the modern Chromebook landscape, and I wish that wasn’t the case.

A cursory look at Best Buy’s inventory shows that this isn’t a uniquely Chromebook problem, but a wider issue with laptops across the board. Go look for a 3:2 Windows laptop. Good luck.

Apple has stuck with the usable 16:10 aspect ratio for years, and now it seems everyone is just happy to follow suit. Maybe it’s all an effort to more closely match up with what Apple is doing in the space, much like we see with smartphones. I’m really not sure. But the reason doesn’t actually matter; it’s clear that real users aren’t OK with 3:2 screens disappearing from laptops across the board.

New 3:2 Chromebooks could make a splash

With all that in mind, I think the return of something like the Acer Chromebook Spin 713 could really have a massive impact at this stage in the game. Let’s face it: Chromebooks are a bit stale right now. We have lots of great options, but we need some fresh thinking to invade the space in a bad way; and 3:2 screens could be the way to do it.

After years of the admittedly-great Spin 714 on the market, imagine what it would look like to have the Spin 713 return as a new Chromebook Plus. For current consumers, there’d literally be nothing else like it on shelves, and it would have a superlative that nothing else could match right now.

I also think the market is ripe for another 12-inch tablet (like the Pixel Slate) that is thin, light, and comes with a 3:2 screen. It would be incredible at that size for all sorts of handheld tasks, and once again, the 3:2 screen would help it truly stand out as unique and special in a world crammed full with 16:10 devices.

From just our comment sections alone on this site and on YouTube, I can tell you there is a real desire for these types of Chromebooks. Is it enough to sway any manufacturer to jump back into those taller-screen waters? Right now, I have no idea, but I’m hopeful. For a feature like this to all but disappear is strange, and it becomes even more so when there’s a clear audience asking for it to return.

So, my hope is someone at Google, Acer, ASUS, Lenovo, or HP see this (and perhaps your comments here and on social media) and re-think a return to the 3:2 era. It wasn’t that long ago and, at least in my opinion, it wasn’t that wild of a feature to consider. We all took it for granted, I suppose, and now that it is gone, I’m left wondering right along with many of you whether or not it could return in the future. I sure hope so.