Introduction and design
Chromebooks have come a long way since their budget-priced beginnings. In the last few years, we’ve seen devices push boundaries for this class of laptop with Full HD displays, faster processors and better build quality. Now, HP is going one step farther to introduce its take on the Chromebook 13, an arguably luxury device.
From top to bottom, this is a high-brow, 13-inch clamshell designed to be the thinnest in its class. What’s more, HP is pushing it as the first Chromebook with a high-resolution, QHD+ screen and an Intel Core M processor.
However, with a starting price of $499 or £638 (about AU$670) for a Pentium-powered model, the HP Chromebook 13 is a bit too luxurious for its own good.
Design
The HP Chromebook 13 pulls off being the thinnest device of its kind yet in style, with a brushed aluminum panels covering the screen lid and keyboard deck. Measuring in at a scant 0.5 inches thick, it’s even slicker than the 0.7-inch Samsung Chromebook 3 and 0.6-inch Chromebook Pixel 2.
Beyond measurements, HP has designed a stylish, cloud-powered notebook that pulls from its own and Google’s best designs. The austere, silver and gray aesthetic ties back to the Chromebook Pixel.
Meanwhile, at the laptop’s rear, you’ll find a mirrored hinge similar to the HP EliteBook Folio. Though, this time around, the mechanism is limited to only tilting back 135-degrees rather pulling off an 180-degree split.
Of course, that’s not to say this 13-inch Chromebook doesn’t establish an identity of its own. The slight off-angle front edge and sharp corners affords it a futuristic slant. HP also pays close attention to little details, like making the Chrome logo monochromatic and the HP logo chrome (teehee) to keep in line with the unit’s silvered exterior.
Another neat element is that the lefthand edge droops down – HP calls this its ‘chin design’ – to accommodate a full-sized USB 3.0 port. We wished HP would have done the same thing on the right side, so it would come with a full-sized SD card reader rather than a slot large enough for only a microSD card.
As if looks weren’t enough to captivate us, the HP Chromebook 13 also comes with one of the crispest typing experiences we’ve had on a laptop. Key travel isn’t especially deep, but stiff switches and the thinness of the notebook combine into a satisfying thump when you bottom out the keys – so yes, we love thumping the keyboard.
Likewise, the trackpad feels delightfully tight without making clicking too hard. However, we wish HP would have moved the touchpad over a few millimeters over to the left, so it would line up with the center of the keyboard rather than being planted in the middle.
Beyond high-resolution
The HP Chromebook 13 comes with the sharpest screen ever put on a Chromebook, with a stunning resolution of 3,200 x 1,800 pixels. The QHD+ panel easily tops everyone else, including the Acer Chromebook 14 for Work and Chromebook Pixel – both of which come with 2,560 x 1,700 touchscreen displays.
While the 3,200 x 1,800 screen looks fantastic, this signature feature is the only available screen option for the Chromebook 13. We wish there were also a Full HD screen panel. It might not have the same pizzazz as 3,200 x 1,800 pixels, but it would help lower the entry price and prolong battery life as well.
That said, the QHD+ display has some undeniable benefits as it brings out the full beauty of full-resolution images and video while smoothing out text. Vibrant colors and deep contrast are also well represented, and HP has created a display finish that’s just glossy enough to accentuate picture quality without reflecting a ton of glare.
Unfortunately, there’s no option for a touchscreen, which is becoming all too crucial as Android apps are integrated into Chrome OS.
Specifications, performance and features
For the longest time, we’ve felt like Intel Core M processors would be a shoo-in for Chromebooks as they offer more performance and better energy efficiency than Pentium processors. The good news is Intel’s power-sipping have made their debut with this 13-inch laptop, the bad news is it’ll end up costing you quite a bit.
An Intel Core m3-equipped Chromebook 13 comes priced at $599 or £730 (about AU$800), while our mid-range Intel Core m5 and 8GB of RAM configuration comes at an even steeper $819 or AU$1,288 (about £620). Even the Pentium-powered base model comes at with a considerable $499 or £638 (about AU$670) price tag.
Compared to other premium options, like the $429 or £513 (about AU$570) Dell Chromebook 13 and $599 (about £460, AU$790) Acer Chromebook 14 for Work, HP offers an arguably good deal for the super high-resolution screen.
Spec Sheet
Here is the HP Chromebook 13 configuration sent to techradar for review:
- CPU: 1.1GHz Intel Core m5-6Y57 (dual-core, 4 MB cache, up to 2.8 GHz with Intel Turbo Boost)
- Graphics: Intel HD Graphics 515
- RAM: 8GB DDR3 RAM (1,866MHz)
- Screen: 13.3-inch QHD+ (3,200 x 1,800) UWVA WLED eDP BrightView
- Storage: 32GB eMMC
- Ports: 2 x USB 3.1 Type-C, 1 x USB 3.0, headset jack
- Connectivity: Intel Dual Band Wireless-AC 7265 802.11ac (2×2) WiFi and Bluetooth 4.2
- Camera: HD webcam
- Weight: 2.86 pounds
- Size: 12.59 x 8.64 x 0.50 inches (W x D x H)
Performance
It’s fair to say an Intel Core m5 processor is overkill for a Chromebook, but we can’t argue that it doesn’t produce results. This 13-inch machine didn’t buckle under the load of having keep several dozen web browsing tabs open with another half dozen Google documents, Google Music streaming, Slack’s web client and playing a handful of streaming videos.
Benchmarks
Here’s how the HP Chromebook 13 performed in our suite of benchmark tests:
- Octane: 27,976
- Mozilla Kraken: 1,025ms
- Battery Life (techradar movie test): 8 hours and 1 minutes
The HP Chromebook 13 is only a quarter step behind the Intel Core i5-powered Acer Chromebook 14 for Work. It’s also performs twice as fast as the Pentium-equipped Dell Chromebook 13.
Of course, unless you visit the most media rich websites all the time, all this performance won’t really matter. The real benchmark for all Chromebooks is how long they can last you through the day, and this premium machine does pretty well for itself.
In our video playback benchmark test – which involves playing Guardians of the Galaxy on a continuous loop at 50% screen brightness and volume until the battery is exhausted – the HP Chromebook 13 ran for 8 hours and a minute.
By comparison, the Acer Chromebook 14 for Work lasted 9 hours and 36 minutes, while the Dell Chromebook 13 turned in after 14 hours and 30 minutes.
It’s clear the QHD+ screen is chipping away from the all day battery life we’ve come to expect from Chromebooks. Nine to 10 hours of usage is still exceptional compared to most Windows 10 laptops and more than enough to get you through the work day, but expect to plug this cloud-connected notebook into the wall more often than others.
Verdict
We’ve seen Chromebooks steadily rise from their humble beginnings to inherit Full HD displays and more capable processors. HP Chromebook 13 takes the series to even greater heights with the Intel Core M processors and the highest-resolution display ever put on a Chrome OS machine while being the thinnest yet.
We liked
The HP Chromebook 13 is an absolute thing of beauty. Every element of its design works together to create a sharp, monochromatic aesthetic. Beyond the attractive exterior, this Chromebook is a jewel of engineering considering how thin it is.
The 3,200 x 1,800 resolution display is a treat for looking through full resolution photos. Meanwhile, the Intel Core M processor can easily get you through a strenuous day at work with nine hours of battery life.
We disliked
While we’re fans of the sharp display on the Chromebook 13, it ends up ruining battery life. All those pixels also end up bringing up the price to an unreasonable level for most interested buyers. For these reasons, we would have much rather preferred if HP offered the Chromebook 13 with a 1080p touchscreen display.
Final verdict
Ultimately, the decision to buy the HP Chromebook comes down price and whether you’re ready to spend at least 500 bucks for it. This is, without a doubt, the Chromebook you want – not the one you need.
If you’re in need of a professional-looking Chromebook for work, you won’t find HP’s QHD+ screen and ultra-slim form factor on the Acer Chromebook 14 for Work or Dell Chromebook 13. That said, these two features aren’t essential for working in Google Docs and web browsing throughout the day.
If you’ve been pining after the Chromebook Pixel, but weren’t jazzed about the squarish 3:2 screen, this is the Chromebook for you. It comes in a more traditional laptop form factor and an even higher-res screen for half the price. However, the lack of a touchscreen, and the fact that it costs twice that of most Chromebooks, are two factors you’ll have to carefully weigh when purchasing this luxury machine.
Source: techradar.com
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I think the Acers are definitely sturdier. HP laptops in general are rubbish, now I can see why they have that reputation. Never again will I buy an HP product. The Samsung Chromebook 3 is made of cheap, thin and brittle plastic, though that is the one that lasted the longest surprisingly. But even if you buy a pixel, which is very well made, you are facing huge issues in terms of usability. You would need to go the linux route if you wanted to actually use a chromebook for more serious stuff, but then you'd be severely limited in terms of storage space. No matter how I look at it there are too many compromises here to make any chromebook a really worthwhile purchase. When I bought the first one in 2012, promises were made about imminent Skype compatibility and a wide range of apps. That was 4 years ago almost, and it turned about to be hot air. My smartphone can do a lot more than my chromebooks ever could, so in my eyes the whole chromebook project is a failure.
For torrents use JS Torrent extension for Chrome, and have the files sent straight to Google Drive…
I bought an Acer C720 for $100 on Craigslist 3 years ago and it's been used daily without issue ever since. Are Chromebooks usually cheap? You bet. Can someone happily use it for years without breaking it? Absolutely. Your experience is not typical. The large majority of folks don't go through 3 laptops in 4 years, regardless of the brand/type.
Just bought the Dell 13 and it is a beauty. I expect this one to be similar or even better. Anyone knows if and when this is going to be released in the UK?
the beauty of chromebook lies in its elegant simplicity and speediness, instead of windows' unneccessary, bloaty, heavy, boring, and not to say expensive lagginess. Mac is fine if you do publishing/rendering, and like its sense of showy luxury. Linux is perfect for anything if you know how. Otherwise, go for a chromebook, which can do 90%+ of your things much better!
I purchased an Asus Chromebook Flip (4gb) 11 months ago. At least one of it's possible configurations is used daily. I've noticed no degradation in performance or construction. We're purchasing a second Chromebook the HP described above and will continue to use the Asus device as well.
The review article is incorrect in stating that "16GB of DDR3 memory comes standard across all configurations". According to the HP website, the lower-end models (e.g. the $499 version) comes with only 4GB of DDR3 memory, and the mid-tier version comes with only 8GB of DDR3 memory.
Thankfully I don't have to, since I still have my old Windows laptop. I upgraded to Windows 10 and it chugs around just fine even though it is six years old. My chromebooks failed within a couple of years and are collecting dust in a drawer.
Mine has been absolutely fine. In fact it was so good that despite owning a Macbook Air and none retina Pro I bought a second hand Pixel 2013 the other day based on how much I loved the 11 and how few other Chromebooks are better then it. I have it with Crouton installed running ubuntu and I love it. I can do 90% of what i want on Chrome and I love it is just open and go. I still use my HP 11 and still think it is one of the best Chromebooks. I also own a HP Stream 11 and a HP Slate 14 android laptop. All three have been solid as a rock and I would 100% recommend HP laptops to anyone.
I don't consider that to be a cheap Chromebook $500 a lot for Chromebook especially considering the fact that it has a slower chip I'd rather have core i3 for 100 less and also have a plastic body instead of aluminum one
Didn't your micro-usb charging port fail? I was ultra careful, but it still stopped charging after around 18 months, after the warranty had expired of course. The HP14 suffered a fatal software error after about 2 years and it cannot be fixed. I'm never buying HP or for that matter a Chromebook again. Should have bought a macbook air, it would still be running just fine. You get what you pay for.
the screen is overkill, the cpu is underpowered and the price is ridiculous. the dell chromebook is closest to what i want but i wish it were cheaper. 1080p, cheaper plastic casing is fine, an i3 (no atom based junk), 8 gb and at a price of about $300 or less. i also wish dell still made the 11 inch chromebooks with 1200×768 , i have one and that form factor is much easier to carry around
The old HP11 Chromebook remains a favourite years later. With the spec and materials ramped up I look forward to seeing this, despite the unChromebook-like price.
I perfectly happy with my Asus C201 Chromebook, so this would probably blow my mind:) One thing to note is since Android apps are coming then having a bigger hardrive becomes an issue and rather have a real SSD, plus minimal should be 128gig-256gig if they going to charge over $300 IMO.
With all that said, if I catch it on Slickdeals on sale or open boxed, refurbished etc for around $300 then I'm buying.
This one will apparently come with an optional three year warranty for cheap (around £20).
Please, for the love of God, do not buy a chromebook, they're cheaply made disposable laptops that invariably fail once the warranty expires. I've had 3 in the last 4 years and all of them are toast (Samsung series 3, HP 14 and HP11). Not to mention that you can't do any serious computing on them and are super limited. Forget Skype, serious photo/video editing, torrenting (wouldn't have the space anyway), or anything other than very, very basic word processing and spreadsheet editing. If I'd spent the money the 3 chromebooks cost to buy a macbook air, i would have had a hassle-free experience and a machine that would still be chugging along just fine. You get what you pay for so don't expect miracles at that price level.
Are you really serious when you want to do 'serious' things on any kind of laptop on the go, when more and more serious things are done in the cloud nowadays? Video rendering can be called serious, but you called 'skyping' and 'torrenting' serious? come on! Chromebooks are perfectly fine for any kind of video communications, and for torrenting, you can hook up a huge but compact external drive without any limit. But now that most of the contents are available onlnie, I'm not sure why you are that crazy for torrenting…