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Recently, I shared my opinion that Lenovo’s 13.3″ Chromebook Duet 5 is the best ChromeOS tablet on the market. I stand by that statement but at the end of the day, it’s just my opinion. There are some that may not want a tablet the size of a mid-range laptop. Others may prefer something other than a 16:9 aspect ratio in a tablet and that’s completely understandable.
For those who want something a little different, you have two solid options. Lenovo’s latest tablet, the Duet 3, is a scaled-down version of the Duet 5 with the same Snapdragon 7c Gen SoC and a price tag of only $379. My only real gripe with the Duet 3, for now, is that you can’t buy the model with 8GB of RAM. The Duet 3 is a versatile and formidable 2-in-1 but the Best Buy model comes with only 4GB of RAM and that’s a bit scant for any Chromebook that’s trying to play in the premium-ish arena.
The other tablet that’s actually worth owning is the HP Chromebook x2 11. Powered by the first-gen Snapdragon 7c, the HP is slightly less powerful than the Duet 5 but the 11″ detachable still shines in all the right places. With a 400 nit, 3:2 display, the HP Chromebook x2 11 is perfect for practically any lighting conditions and the smaller form factor gives it a true tablet feel when you snap off the keyboard.
Like the Duet 5, the HP Chromebook x2 11 sold at Best Buy is equipped with 8GB of RAM. Unlike the Duet, the HP comes with its own USI stylus that snaps magnetically to the side of the Chromebook and charges wirelessly while it’s there. That’s a very unique trick in the ChromeOS space and a very useful tool for those that frequently use a digital pen. At its retail price of $599, it’s tough to recommend the x2 11 as it’s a bit small to serve as a primary device. However, at half that price, this Chromebook is an absolute steal and the perfect secondary device for a variety of uses.
Right now, you can pick up the HP Chromebook x2 11 at Best Buy on clearance for only $299.99. I’m not sure why Best Buy is clearing out the HP but it’s possible that a new version could be headed our way in the near future. Whatever the reason, this is a killer price on a great ChromeOS tablet. Grab one before they’re gone.
HP Chromebook x2 11 Specs
- Chrome OS
- Qualcomm® Snapdragon™ 7c Compute Platform
- 8GB LPDDR4 RAM
- 11″ 2160×1440 IPS touch display @ 400 nits and 100% RGB
- 64GB eMMC storage
- Fingerprint reader
- USI stylus included
- 2 x USB-C
- MicroSD card reader
- 8MP rear camera/5MP front-facing camera
- Full-size, detachable soft cover keyboard
- Dual speakers tuned by B&O
- Bluetooth 5/Wi-Fi 5
- AUE June 2029
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