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How to pick
A Chromebook is worth considering more seriously than most people do. If everything you do happens in a web browser, which for a great many people is the truth, a Chromebook starts in seconds, updates itself without drama, and is very hard to infect with anything. That makes it an excellent machine for someone who finds Windows stressful. The honest limits: it will not run Windows programs, so if you need a specific desktop application it is the wrong choice, and it leans on having an internet connection. Two things to check before buying. First the Auto Update Expiration date, which is the month Google stops sending it updates, because after that it stops being safe to use online. Google publishes this per model and it is the single most important number. Second, get 8GB of memory rather than 4 if you keep a lot of tabs open.
What I recommend
Before you buy one
Two numbers decide whether a Chromebook is a good buy, and neither is the price.
Chromebook
Every Chromebook has an Auto Update Expiration date, the month Google stops sending security updates. After that it is not safe to bank or shop on. Google publishes it per model and it is the single most important thing to check.
- Starts in seconds and stays fast
- Updates itself with no drama
- Very hard to infect
- Excellent battery life
- Auto Update Expiration date is a hard end of life
- Will not run Windows or Mac programs
- Leans on an internet connection
- Cheapest models ship 4GB, which is not enough
- Check first
- Auto Update Expiration date
- Memory
- 8GB, not 4
- Screen
- 1080p rather than lower
- Not for
- Windows programs
Chromebook Plus model
The Plus badge means Google has set a minimum specification, so you are not gambling on a machine that feels slow within a year. Worth the extra if this is the only computer in the house.
- Guaranteed minimum specification
- Better screens and build than base models
- Longer useful life
- Costs closer to a budget Windows laptop
- Same software limits as any Chromebook
- Still check the expiry date
- Plus badge
- Google sets a minimum specification
- Means
- It will not feel slow in a year
- Worth it if
- This is the main computer
- Still check
- Auto Update Expiration date
Making it a proper desk machine
A Chromebook plugged into a screen and a real keyboard is a perfectly good desktop computer for most people's daily use.
SD or microSD card
Chromebooks ship with very little storage because the idea is that everything lives online. A card in the side is the cheap way to keep photos and documents on the machine itself.
- Cheap way to add storage
- Stays in the machine permanently
- Works offline, unlike cloud storage
- Slower than internal storage
- Check which slot your model has
- Easy to lose if removed
- Why
- Chromebooks ship with little storage
- Size
- 128GB is plenty
- Check
- Which slot your model has
- Use for
- Photos and documents
USB-C hub for Chromebook
Most Chromebooks have one or two USB-C sockets and little else. A small hub gives you HDMI for a monitor and USB-A for a mouse, and lets you charge at the same time.
- Adds the ports the machine lacks
- Lets you charge while connected
- Small and cheap
- Cheap ones can be unreliable
- Another thing to carry
- Some Chromebooks limit what a hub can do
- Adds
- HDMI and USB-A
- Charging
- Pass through, so you keep a port
- Size
- Small is fine here
- Brands
- Anker, UGREEN
Related reading
Wondering if a Chromebook would suit you?
Happy to talk it through honestly. For some people it is the best machine they could own and for others it is completely wrong.