Samsung Chromebook (Wi-Fi, 11.6-Inch) Reviews
My goal: a light laptop computer for basic surfing from the living room. I don't need a tablet, or ereader, or full desktop computer, or even full travel laptop. This chromebook meets my expectations very well indeed.
Things I like: It's quiet, boots fast, light weight, and holds a good charge. Chrome remote desktop works very well, so I can even do things on my desktop from my comfy livingroom chair. HDMI output works well, so it can be used as a video player for my TV. Copied my favorite chrome settings from my main computer as soon as I started it.
Things I don't like: No right click on the trackpad (two-finger click alternative is very awkward). SD card sticks out when installed. Can't disable the fullscreen reminder when you get too close to the top of the screen. A few of the chrome tools don't work on the ARM processor, yet. Downward facing speakers don't work well in my lap.
Things I don't worry about: Doesn't run windows, mac, or linux programs. Webcam is so-so. Screen viewing angle is not very wide. Not much of a system for organizing files.
This arrived yesterday, came well packaged and secure (though only paper was used by amazon to secure the chromebook box within the main package). After unboxing and turning on (for some reason it would only turn on the first time when it was connected to the mains power supply despite it then being at 98%, it's been on and off since then, I think it could have been a user problem?) the setup couldn't be simpler, just log in using your google account...and that's it.
The build quality for the price is excelled, nothing felt 'hollow' or unsupported, the keyboard is very satisfying to use, as is the trackpad and multi touch. I thought that the screen wouldn't be very bright having read some of the other reviews but at max brightness it was definitely bright enough for me! I happened to find 1/2 to 2/3 brightness better to work at. The keys looks nice and the dedicated browsing buttons are great and take the place of F1-F12 etc.(as you no longer need F keys). my only turn off is that after typing for a few hours there was already a patina of grease on the space bar from my thumb (I was my hands, honestly!) that I'm going to keep on top of with chlorox wipes (I guess it's good for hygiene) but that surprised me as it took a 'long' time for my last laptop to show this shine on its keys (mostly because I was wearing the plastic away from use).
All the 'apps' work as you would expect and look basically like their online counterparts (most of the apps are just links to the online versions) though you can use documents offline and they will be uploaded next time you connect to the internet, you can also choose to sync your google documents and download your files for use offline (not sure how this will work if I go over the storage limit of the chromebook...or where they're kept when they can be used offline as they're not in the "files" folder.
Connectability seems good, USB ports, AV out, SD card slots etc. all present, the power supply seems a weak spot in the back if you knock it off a table or drop it, looks like it's waiting to snap off due to it being very thin. I heard that the bottom scratches easily so assumed that it had no support pads but it does...so I can only assume people are resting it on their laps on ... zips or something, it seems fine to me.
Battery length...is awesome. I sat and types for 3 hours + online last night on 2/3 brightness and the adaptive battery monitor but me at around 55-60% with 4 hours left at that useage level so it definitely does what I need it to in that aspect.
As we all know, Netflix is not working at the moment on this due to the ARM processor but it looks like it's in the works, hulu works as does pandora etc. and crunchyroll for those who like anime so that's nice.
You can easily customize the background etc. and the in built camera/mic is nice for vid chatting though you're currently limited to google vid etc. having the guest option is a nice touch, I can just hold the power button once, log off and someone else is on instantly to browse around (basically puts it into incognito mode so nothing is saved). Startup time is around 9-10 seconds to the desktop depending on how fast you can type your password but it's about 7-8 seconds to the main login screen as promised.
Google drive is easily upgraded and adds onto whatever google drive is associated with the first account you log in with. I'm still not sure how to get my internet passes but I'll worry about that when I actually a) need them b) go on an airline where I can use them. I don't think I could ever use my 5gb so 105gb is a massive amount. I haven't tried streaming video from google drive (not sure if that's even possible) but if it is that could be a nice compromise from movies on a flash drive/SD card.
Google remote looks promising if you don't mind keeping your main pc on at home as you could theoretically load programs on that and remote control it to display on the chromebook (correct me if I'm wrong).
Once I've used it more regularly I'll update this with any problems I've found but so far Samsung appear to have hit it out of the park and I have zero actual complaints (no start errors requiring reloads that other users seem to have). Would definitely recommend.
My Toshiba notebook crashed beyond repair prior to my buying the Chromebook. I mainly chose it for the price, couldn't beat it. All I really used my Toshiba for was browsing, researching and the occasional need to create a document.
I have had the chromebook now for about a month, and it is BY FAR, my most favorite device to use amongst a Lenovo laptop, HP laptop, and my Android phone. I will NEVER use Microsoft Office again unless I am forced to. Google Docs is so much easier and more fun to use, and I have played around and done spreadsheets and a power point with Googles programs---so much easier and functional than Microsoft. My friend and I were just talking last night, why aren't more people making these Google programs their go to for this stuff???
Love that is saves everything in the cloud and that I will not have to worry about losing things anymore if I don't get a chance to back up. Love that I have zero trouble printing anything from my Wi fi printer. LOVE the web store! Battery life is incredible. First day I played on it for about an hour to get familiar and 2 days later went back to 3/4 battery life without the machine being completely shut down. Doesn't get hot at ALL, and the keyboard is awesome..identical to the mac keyboard and soooo comfortable to type on.
My new favorite device, can't imagine going back to any other notebook after this. If you are still trying to decide, just buy it. Can't beat the price and I PROMISE you will love it!
I've had the Samsung Chromebook for about a week now, and it continues to impress me every day. I have always been a Windows user, and never thought that I would switch, but I'm glad I did, For starters, this laptop is extremely light weight and very portable.The battery life lasts me over 6 hours, with the screen brightness all the way up. It powers on faster than a Windows machine turns off when you pull the plug from the wall, and when you wake it from sleep mode, it is ready to use in about 2 seconds. The screen is very clear and the keyboard is comfortable and easily usable. The track-pad is also pretty cool because it offers a variety of features and is very responsive. I was a little confused before I bout the Chromebook because of the idea of saving everything "in the cloud." This is actually very easy, and is no different than saving to a hard drive; except now, all of your files are password protected, can never be lost, and are accessible from any computer or smartphone. With the Chromebook, you also have the ability to work offline; meaning creating and saving files and documents offline. Even if you do not have an internet connection available, you are still able to create a full document, and save it locally on the hard drive of the computer. The Samsung also easily connected to and detected my 500 Gigabyte external hard drive, an SD card, a flash drive, and my wireless mouse and keyboard (for when I use my laptop like a desktop when working on large projects.) The transition from windows to Chrome was surprisingly easy. The Chrome system is incredibly simple to use, and doesn't have all the clutter that windows has. Another great benefit is that Google Doc's, Sheets, and Slides (the equivalent of Microsoft Word, Excel, and PowerPoint) all come pre-installed and are completely free, for life. The Samsung Chromebook is also extremely fast, and I mean in every aspect possible: Starting, waking from sleep, powering off, opening web pages, multi-tasking, opening app's, and anything else you want to do. With the purchase you also get 100 Gigabytes of free online storage for 2 years, and you always get 5 Gigabytes free.This Laptop has become the only computer I use, totally eliminating the need for a tablet, and almost eliminating the need for a desktop. The only downfall is that there is no disk drive, and I am not sure if an external disk drive will work or not (I intend to order one and try it out.) There are also many (probably thousands) of App's available to download to expand the power of the CHromebook to endless possibilities.
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