The 1st-gen Acer Chromebook 516 GE is $150 off and the one to get

Well, this is a bit awkward, huh? Just yesterday, the new Acer Chromebook PLUS 516 GE went on sale for the first time in its admittedly-short life, and it was an exciting thing. And for any of you who considered it or are still considering it, I give that device my full backing and though our review is yet to come out for this one, I can tell you it is 100% worth the money.

But here’s the thing: it’s predecessor is still an absolute banger of a Chromebook. The new 516 GE simply iterated on what the original got so right, and there’s no way in the world I’d tell you to ignore it when it goes on sale for this little. As of this morning, the first-gen version (which has all the Chromebook Plus upgrades, mind you) dropped down in price again to $499, a full $150 off the normal asking price for both this model and the newest Plus-branded version.

Which to choose?

So, at the moment, the two are only $80 different in price. So you simply need to ask yourself a few questions if you are thinking about picking either one up. First, do you really love the black color on the newer chassis? The original is a bit generic looking, so it may be worth the extra cash to get the newer, admittedly-better looking version.

Second, do you feel quite concerned with the RGB keyboard backlighting? The new model definitely gets that part brighter, so if you really want to enjoy those colors in more lighting scenarios, it is a better option.

And finally, does a small bump in the speaker department matter greatly to you? The speakers are fuller and louder with the newer model, so that’s a definite upgrade for sure. But that’s about it. While the internals on the newer model are technically better, the original has so much overhead in terms of performance that you’re likely not going to be able to notice.

And that’s precisely why I want to be sure anyone looking at these two devices and choosing between them knows that you should take the better deal unless the things I mentioned above are super important to you. By all means, if better RGB backlighting, better speakers, and a more attractive chassis are high on you list, right now you should consider spending the extra $80 to get the new model.

But if those things are small potatoes to you, I can confidently say you’ll still love the previous 516 GE and will likely enjoy it a bit more knowing you saved some serious money on it. The decision is tougher when they are this close in price, but for all the times we’re likely to see the original dropped by $150 or $200 in the coming weeks while the new model sits at $649, I think the choice for most of you is quite clear.