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Back when the Lenovo Chromebook Plus 14
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arrived, I quickly and confidently
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called it the best Chromebook I'd ever
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used. It's a device that gets so many
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things right. But in my review, I did
0:10
note that it's a traditional clamshell,
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and for those who love the flexibility
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of a twoin-one convertible, it might not
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be the perfect fit. Well, for those that
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have been looking for a device with all
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the power and battery life of that
0:22
Lenovo, but in a convertible form
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factor, this one's for you.
0:30
But before we get into all that, this
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Chrome Unbox sent you. So, I've spent
1:37
the last few months with the Acer
1:38
Chromebook Plus Spin 514, and I've
1:41
thoroughly enjoyed my time with it. It
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It takes the same incredible MediaTek
1:45
Companion Ultra from that awesome Lenovo
1:47
Chromebook Plus4 and puts it into this
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versatile, well-built convertible
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chassis that makes a really compelling
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case for being your next Chromebook.
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Let's start on the outside. The Spin 514
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has this really fantastic aesthetic. The
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brushed aluminum on the lid and the
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bottom feels great in the hand and does
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a really good job avoinging off
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fingerprints. The chassis is thin,
2:07
rigid, and feels premium and even brings
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back those gorgeous chamfered edges
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around the top that give this device
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just a little bit of extra class.
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There's little to no flex, and at just 3
2:18
lb, it's plenty portable for a 14-in
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convertible. And even with a thin and
2:22
light design, Acer has packed it with
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quite a few ports, including two USB
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type-C, two USB type A's, headphone
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microphone jack, and a Kensington lock.
2:31
Now, sadly, there is no HDMI port on
2:33
here, so you will need a dock or a
2:35
dongle of some sort to get connected to
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a larger display. Opening the lid,
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you're greeted with a great 14in 16x10
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WXGA 1920x 1200 IPS touchscreen. The
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1080p plus resolution is plenty sharp
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for a screen of this size. And with 340
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plus nits of brightness, it's usable in
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most environments. But the real star of
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the show here is the 120 Hz refresh
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rate. Everything from scrolling web
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pages to system animations is just
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buttery smooth and it gives the entire
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user experience this premium touch
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that's really hard to go back from.
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Above that excellent screen is a solid 5
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megapixel webcam. In my testing, it
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looks great. It's got great dynamic
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range and it gives you this nice sharp
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image that's going to serve you really
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well in any sort of video call that you
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need to take. And we can't forget about
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USI pen compatibility. Input feels very
3:22
instant whether you're sketching or
3:24
writing notes or just marking up a web
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page or PDF. And having the option of
3:28
pen input is always a great thing to
3:30
have at your disposal. And moving down
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to the keyboard and trackpad, the
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primary input methods on the Spin 514
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are just topnotch. The keyboard is one
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of the best I've ever used on an Acer
3:40
device. The keys are clicky and
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responsive and feel great for like long
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typing sessions. And it features the new
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Chromebook Plus layout with a quick
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insert key and the other helpful
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additions like the accessibility key and
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a dictation key. And it also moves the
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launcher down to the bottom row. My one
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gripe with the keyboard is backlighting.
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While it works great in the dark, the
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combination of the gray key caps and the
4:02
white backlight make key symbols
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incredibly hard to see in a well-lit
4:06
room. I found myself just leaving the
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backlight completely off during the day
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just in order to see my keys properly.
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And below that keyboard sits a huge
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smooth ocean glass trackpad that is well
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seated. It's accurate. Just been an
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absolute joy to use for gestures and
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navigations. And it continues Acer's
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excellent track record with trackpads in
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the recent years. The dual upward firing
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speakers are prominently placed on
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either side of the keyboard, but
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unfortunately their performance doesn't
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really live up to that positioning.
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They're not what I would call like
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terrible, but they're really a bit of a
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let down compared to the fantastic Dolby
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Atmas speakers you get on the Lenovo
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Chromebook plus 14. They just lack
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fullness and bass and makes them just
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mediocre for music or movies. They're
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fine for calls, though. And just like
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its Lenovo counterpart, the real magic
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of this device is what's under the hood.
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The MediaTek companial Ultra processor
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paired up with 12 gigs of RAM and 256
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gigs of storage makes this Chromebook
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just as fast and responsive as that
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Lenovo. It chews through dozens of tabs
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and multiple virtual desks without
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breaking any kind of sweat. And the
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performance boost is especially
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noticeable with Android apps, which run
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better on this chip than any other SOC
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we've ever tested in any Chromebook. The
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combination of raw power and just
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stellar ARM architecture make this
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Chromebook an absolute beast just across
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the board from a performance standpoint.
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And that power doesn't come at the
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expense of battery life either. Just
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like the Lenovo, again, I was easily
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able to get through two full work days
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before really needing to reach for a
5:35
charger. This combination of elite
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speed, thin build, lightweight, and true
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multi-day battery life feels like a bit
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of a miracle in the Chromebook space,
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and I absolutely love it. Apart from a
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few small critiques, I really do like
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the Acer Chromebook Plus Spin 514. While
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the Lenovo Chromebook Plus 14 is still
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the king of clamshells with its superior
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OLED screen and its awesome speakers,
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the Acer is the undeniable answer for
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anyone who wants that same incredible
6:01
companion ultra performance and a
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flexible 2in-1 convertible form factor
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with a high refresh rate screen and a
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chassis that's thin and that's light and
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looks great while doing it. At the MSRP
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of $6.99, Acer is set for this device.
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It's a solid value, but it drops down to
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$4.99 all the time. And I just don't see
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those sort of discounts going anywhere
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anytime soon. And at that kind of price,
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this Chromebook becomes such an easy
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recommendation. And it just gives you
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far more than what you pay for it. Even
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at $699, this Chromebook is easily one
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of the best overall values in the space
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right now. So, when it drops by 200
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bucks, it's just a no-brainer. And all
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that's to say nothing of the big move to
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the Google Book platform that this
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device will most definitely be eligible
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for. Sure, I can't say any existing
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Chromebook will 100% get the optional OS
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upgrade path, but look, the facts are
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definitely stacked in its favor. The
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Spin 514 and the Lenovo Chromebook Plus
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14 share the same internals as Lenovo's
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upcoming detachable Google Book. just
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know as Sapphire at this point. And that
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device will 100% be a centerpiece at the
7:04
Google Book launch this fall. Now, you
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can do the math pretty quickly and see
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why the Acer Chromebook Plus Spin 514
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and Lenovo Chromebook Plus 14 should be
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the first Chromebooks in line to get the
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upgrade to the new Google Book
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experience. But, as we always say around
7:18
here, don't buy hardware today based on
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software promises for tomorrow. If you
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like what you see in the Acer Chromebook
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Plus Spin 514, and you absolutely
7:27
should, buy it for all the great stuff
7:29
it does right now. We never know what
7:31
can change down the road. So, if you're
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looking for a Google Book this fall, and
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that's your first and foremost thing, it
7:37
would probably just be best to wait
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until then. If you're looking for the
7:40
best convertible Chromebook on the
7:42
market you can buy right now and use
7:44
right now, this one's it. But guys,
7:46
that's it for this one. If you enjoyed
7:47
this video, give us a thumbs up. Head
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down there, hit that subscribe button,
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and be sure to ring the notification
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icon as well if you'd like to be alerted
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this one. Until [music] next time, we'll
