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When the clamshell Lenovo Chromebook
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Plus 14 arrived last year, I confidently
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called it the best Chromebook I had ever
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used. And when the newer two-in-one
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version arrived at Best Buy a bit out of
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the blue, I was pretty eager to see if
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Lenovo was capable of building a cheaper
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convertible version of the same
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Chromebook I absolutely loved that still
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possess some of the good stuff from the
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more expensive clamshell only version.
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And after spending some time with the
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new Lenovo Chromebook Plus two-in-one,
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there's a lot to love about this device
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for sure, but there's also a lot of
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uncertainty I still have about
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recommending it above a few other
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specific devices it's clearly competing
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with. So, let's just get into it.
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>> On the outside, Lenovo once again nailed
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the aesthetic. The cosmic blue, it's
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navy but whatever, color is gorgeous and
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the build quality feels every bit as
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rigid as the clamshell Lenovo Chromebook
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Plus 14. And they even managed to snag a
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MIL-SPEC rating certification for the
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chassis, meaning it's officially tough
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enough to handle like drops and bumps
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and dust and just the daily rigors of
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being thrown in and out of a backpack.
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It is a bit heavier than its sibling at
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3.3 lb and because it houses an Intel
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processor instead of an ARM processor,
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it does require cooling fans. That means
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you're going to see fan vents that you
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won't find on the ARM-powered clamshell
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version. Overall though, the build
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quality of this rivals literally
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anything in the entire Chromebook market
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and that both impressed me and kind of
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surprised me. Now, if there's one area
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where this two-in-one absolutely dunks
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on the clamshell version, it's in the IO
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category. Now, if you hate carrying
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dongles, you're going to love this port
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selection. Lenovo packed in an absolute
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massive array of ports on the side and
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they include two USB 3.2 type C's, two
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USB 3.0 type A's, a full-size HDMI 1.4 B
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port, a microSD card slot, Kensington
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lock, and a headphone microphone jack.
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Simply put, you won't need to carry any
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extra accessories to get connected to
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whatever you want to connect this
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Chromebook to. Opening up the lid,
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you're greeted with a 14-in 16x10 full
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HD plus IPS touchscreen. It's rated at
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300 nits and it's been plenty bright and
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punchy enough for any indoor situation
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that I've been in, like near a window or
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even with harsh overhead lighting. The
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very subtle rounded corners of the
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display look a bit more modern than, you
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know, plain squared-off panels and the
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touch and pen input that this thing has
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are super responsive and they're clearly
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good things to have for a device that
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leans into the 360Ā° convertible form
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factor. Right above that screen is a
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solid 5 MP webcam that will serve you
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well for, you know, video calls,
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selfies, document scanning, all that
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kind of stuff when you need it.
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Additionally, Lenovo's keyboard DNA
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really shines pretty brightly here as
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well. The keys are all very solid and
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clicky, the backlighting is excellent in
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all lighting conditions without a ton of
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bleed, and the trackpad is perfectly
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smooth and clicky. And they even
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included a fingerprint scanner right
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there that works flawlessly and is an
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addition that we just don't normally see
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outside of, you know, really higher-end
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Chromebooks. The audio, unfortunately,
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is the first major letdown. The
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upward-firing speakers use Lenovo's
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Waves Maxx Audio and they're just kind
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of mediocre. They don't have any of the
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richness or the punch that comes in the
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standard Chromebook Plus 14 model and I
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was a bit let down by this, honestly.
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With the build quality of this device
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being so close to this other Chromebook
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that I hold in such high regard, I was
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really hoping for some really solid
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Just not the case here. And one of the
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biggest differences comes under the hood
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with this device where we have the Intel
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Core 3 N3505 paired up with 8 gigs of
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RAM and 128 gigs of UFS 2.2 storage. In
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a vacuum, it's fine. It handles standard
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multitasking and the built-in Google AI
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features without much fuss and I've
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really only seen a few small performance
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hiccups here and there. It's honestly
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been pretty solid from a performance
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standpoint. But compared to the MediaTek
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Kompanio Ultra found in the clamshell
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version of this device and in the Acer
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Chromebook Plus Spin 514, it feels like
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a pretty big downgrade. First, you lose
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the fanless dead silent operation and
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second, the battery life takes a
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noticeable hit. I was able to squeeze
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about 7 hours of real-world use out of
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it, but nowhere near the multi-day
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battery life we see on modern ARM
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Chromebooks like the Lenovo Chromebook
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Plus 14. And all of that leads me to the
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main rub of this device. At an MSRP of
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$579, the Lenovo Chromebook Plus
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two-in-one finds itself in a really
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tough spot in the midst of its current
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competition, namely Lenovo's own
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Chromebook Plus 14 I've referenced many
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times already, along with the Acer
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Chromebook Plus Spin 514. Again, in a
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vacuum, this device is pretty stellar
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across the board, but we just can't
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ignore the very direct competition that
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it faces. When the Lenovo Chromebook
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Plus 14 goes on sale for like $599 like
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it does a lot, you're choosing now
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between a really solid convertible and
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what is arguably the best Chromebook
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ever made at almost the exact same
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price. And in that situation, unless you
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absolutely must have a convertible, the
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purchase decision really becomes a
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no-brainer. Now, in the event that you
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do need the flexibility of a
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convertible, the Acer Chromebook Plus
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Spin 514 offers the superior MediaTek
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Kompanio Ultra and gets you a 120 Hz
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screen for even less money on most days.
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Now, its MSRP is $699, but it's
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available for $499 right now as we're
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filming this review. Now, as you can
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tell, the price makes all the difference
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here. So, when this Lenovo two-in-one
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has dropped to $429 a couple of times
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since launch, the logic shifts quite a
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bit. At that sort of price, now you're
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saving 170 bucks over the clamshell
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Lenovo's best price and $70 over the
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Acer's current really low sale price.
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And when this happens, I can easily
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recommend this device all day long. For
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a bit over 400 bucks, you're getting a
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high-end build quality, great screen, 5
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MP camera, fantastic keyboard and
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trackpad, fingerprint scanner, huge port
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selection, and a convertible form
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factor. That's a lot to like for 429
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bucks and I'll happily tell you to
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consider it at that price. At MSRP
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though, I'd definitely take a look
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around at the current deals available.
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But guys, that's it for this one. If you
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