Asus Chromebook CM14 Review: An Uber-Cheap Laptop

The excellent news is that the keyboard and trackpad are fairly good right here. The Chromebook CM14 presents a snug typing expertise, and the trackpad is spacious, although the fabric Asus makes use of has a bit extra drag than I’d like. They’re backed up by a strong base to the laptop computer with none flex throughout regular use.

You get a full 1,920 x 1,080-pixel decision on the 14-inch display screen, although Asus has show scaling set out of the field so it seems extra like a 1,536 x 864-pixel display screen. You may alter the scaling again right down to native decision and it seems suitably crisp. Nonetheless, I can’t say the identical concerning the washed-out colours, dim max brightness, and poor viewing angles of the TN show.

If there’s one superpower the MediaTek platform brings to the CM14, it’s effectivity. I used to be impressed with the battery life I may eke out of this laptop computer, clocking in round 10 to 11 hours of combined use all through a standard workday. Asus claims you’ll be able to rise up to fifteen hours of battery life, so that you could possibly squeeze out much more relying on how you employ it.

The webcam isn’t something particular, providing you with a 720p shooter that appears OK on video calls. You get a bodily change to dam it for further privateness, which is a pleasant contact. Ports are additionally comparatively good for the value. There are two USB-C ports, one USB-A port, a 3.5-mm headphone jack, and one microSD card slot. The microSD slot is useful if you’d like further storage, because the 64 GB of built-in storage is bound to develop into restrictive.

Hunt for Gross sales

So do you have to purchase the Asus Chromebook CM14? Possibly. If you dip into the price range vary, there are at all times trade-offs, and so they’re evident within the poor show and efficiency struggles. Nonetheless, vibrant spots like nice battery life, a strong construct, and a very good keyboard make the CM14 a Chromebook price contemplating if you may get by with essentially the most fundamental of fundamentals.

What makes this a troublesome resolution is the aggressive pricing I’ve seen on extra succesful Chromebook Plus laptops, which begin at $399 however are continuously on sale for a lot much less. On the Chromebook CM14’s full $299 worth, it’s price contemplating whether or not you’ll be able to decide up a extra highly effective possibility, just like the Acer Chromebook Plus 514, by spending a bit further when it’s on sale. That stated, I’ve seen the CM14 dip to $180 when it’s on sale, and it’s completely an amazing purchase at that worth.