Unsurprisingly, the HP Dragonfly Pro Chromebook looks to be discontinued

It’s a bit of a sad day for us here at Chrome Unboxed. The HP Dragonfly Pro Chromebook, a device we lauded as the “King of Chromebooks” in our review, has quietly disappeared from HP’s lineup. And it’s not just out of stock; according to a 9to5 Google reader who contacted HP directly, it’s been fully discontinued.

When the Dragonfly Pro launched early in 2023, it was a shining beacon of what stellar hardware running ChromeOS could achieve. We’re talking a gorgeous, high-resolution display that could blind you with its brightness, a fast processor, a fantastic RGB keyboard, haptic trackpad, 16GB of RAM and a build quality that was rigid as hell and second to none. It was as close as we’ve ever seen to a perfect Chromebook.

But now it’s gone, leaving a noticeable gap in the high-end Chromebook portfolio. Sure, HP still offers a wide array of Chromebooks, but for those who demand the absolute best, those options have taken quite a shot with this news. I do suppose it felt a bit inevitable as we never saw what this device would have been capable of had it just been on store shelves for consumers to see, touch, and hold.

HP’s strategy is likely shifting towards its Chromebook Plus lineup and we’re very hopeful that a slight update to the HP Chromebook Plus x360 14 arrives this fall. That device with a brighter screen, a return to a firm/rigid bottom half of the chassis and the latest processors inside would be an absolute delight.

At the moment, however, this move only continues the trend that sees high-end options in the Chromebook market becoming increasingly scarce. It’s disheartening to see another premium Chromebook silently fall away, but I think it’s a sign that Chromebook buyers still aren’t ready for $999 devices, regardless of how beautiful, functional, and fun to use they actually are.