Comparison: 4 Chromebooks with touchscreen up to 500 euros

Whether you need a new Chromebook for school, work, or just as a laptop for the home, there are plenty to compare. We have made a selection of four Chromebooks in which we compare all similarities and differences. Which one is most suitable for you?

4 Chromebooks up to 500 euros

Chromebooks are incredibly useful devices for a variety of usage scenarios. Chrome OS is an operating system from Google that is based on Linux, and one of its advantages is that it is very energy efficient. In addition, you need less powerful and expensive hardware on Chromebooks to make the devices work quickly. That makes them a good buy for students.

Another important aspect is the focus on cloud storage. The devices are well integrated with Google Drive and therefore come without a hard drive. In contrast, they have a smaller emmc memory that is also used for mobile devices and that runs faster than a traditional hard drive. Chromebooks work with Android apps and enjoy a strong, update policy with monthly updates and support for up to 9 years after a model launch.

In this article, we’ve compared four Chromebooks that could be ideal for college students. All devices cost less than 500 euros. Discover the similarities and differences here, and find out which model suits you.

We have compared these Chromebooks

Acer Chromebook Spin 513 CP513-1H-S75P

• 8GB – coolblue – approx. 419 euros
• 4GB – coolblue, Media market – approx. 349 euros

HP Chromebook x360 14b

• bol.com, Media market – 399 euros

Lenovo IdeaPad Flex 5 82B8000SMH

• bol.com – 429 euros

ASUS Chromebook Flip (CM5500FDA-E60094)

• bol.com – 449 euros

Chromebook comparison

Agreements

A few years ago with the introduction of Google’s own Chromebook, the Pixel Slate, Chrome OS was optimized for touchscreens, which is why we see more and more devices with a touchscreen that you can rotate 360 ​​degrees so that you can basically use the Chromebook as a tablet. All these Chromebooks from the comparison have such a screen. all Chromebooks also have a glossy finish LCD panel with Full HD resolution.

As mentioned, Chromebooks traditionally come with limited internal memory. Three of these devices have only 64 GB of storage, and only the HP Chromebook x360 14b has 128 GB under its chassis. You can also expand the storage of most of these Chromebooks via a microSD card, only the Acer Chromebook Spin 513 comes without such a slot. This means that you must use a USB stick if you want to expand the physical storage, or you must use an external microSD reader if you want to read microSD cards with this device.

If we look further at connections, we see that all devices have two USB-C ports, one USB-A connection and a headphone input. The ASUS Chromebook Flip comes with another extra, as it can also connect an external monitor through its HDMI port. If you want to do the same with these other laptops, you’ll need an external dongle again.

If we look at the keyboards, we notice that all these models have a QWERTY layout. Most of these Chromebooks come with an all-aluminium housing, but the Acer Chromebook Spin 513 only used metal on the back of the screen. The rest is finished with plastic.

Unlike Android phones, Chrome OS devices that are still supported receive a new operating system update at about the same time. All these Chromebooks are about the same age and can count on updates until June 2029, only the Lenovo IdeaPad Flex 5 will receive updates until 2028.

Differ

While the LCD screens on this selection of Chromebooks are all touch-sensitive and have a Full HD resolution, the screen size varies. The Acer Chromebook Spin 513 and the Lenovo IdeaPad Flex 5 have a 13.3-inch panel. The HP Chromebook x360 14b puts it with a slightly larger 14-inch size and the largest device is the 16.6-inch ASUS Chromebook Flip.

A larger screen makes you work more smoothly, but the more compact Chromebooks also come with more weight and that makes the devices less convenient to move or use as a tablet. The Acer Chromebook Spin 513 is the lightest at 1.29 kg, while the ASUS Chromebook Flip is the heavyweight at 1.89 kg.

The same can be said about the battery capacity of these devices, which is also proportional to the size. An exception to that rule is the Lenovo IdeaPad Flex 5, as it is the second lightest with a 13.3-inch screen size, but it has a battery capacity of 51 wH. That is more than the 47wH of the 14-inch HP Chromebook x360 14b, although the processor is more economical with that Chromebook from HP.

The processor is also an important point of difference with these devices, because they are four completely different units, although they all have integrated graphics. Only benchmarks can really provide a definitive answer about the performance of these Chromebooks, but we do expect the Lenovo IdeaPad Flex 5 with its Intel Core i3 processor to be the fastest. It is followed by the ASUS Chromebook Flip and the HP Chromebook x360. The Acer Chromebook Spin 513 is expected to perform the least fast.

Although of course you still have to make a distinction between fast performance on the one hand and possibilities for multistasking on the other. The HP Chromebook x360 14b and Acer Chromebook Spin 513 are available with 8 GB of RAM while the other models have 4 GB under the hood. That is, if you use a lot of apps side by side, there can be a faster slowdown. The Acer Chromebook Spin 513 is the only one that uses the faster LPDDR4X memory.

And then of course you have the extras. The ASUS Chromebook Flip and Acer Chromebook Spin 513 have a keyboard with backlit keys, which is of course useful when you are working at night. Of course they all have speakers, but ASUS partnered up with Harman Kardon for that, while HP teamed up with B&O.

Conclusion

All of these Chromebooks have their own strengths and weaknesses, and it depends on what you’re looking for in a Chromebook when deciding which device is best for you.

The Acer Chromebook Spin 513 is the lightest of the four, comes with a small screen and is partly made of plastic. It doesn’t have the fastest processor and comes without micrSD, but you can find it in a variant with 8 GB of RAM. The backlit keyboard is also handy, and it has the lowest suggested retail price. Also read our review of this device.

The HP Chromebook x360 14b comes standard with 8 GB of RAM and a solid 128 GB of storage that you can also expand. A solid base and it has a somewhat larger 14-inch screen, which is often a pleasant middle size.

If you’re looking for a device with a smaller screen, there are a number of notable differences between the 13.3-inch Lenovo IdeaPad Flex 5 and the Acer device. This Lenovo has a higher quality aluminum housing and does come with a micro SD slot. The device also has more raw power and will run significantly smoother, unless you really want to put the 4 GB of RAM to the test with multistasking.

The ASUS Chromebook Flip literally gives the most Chromebook in exchange for your money. It is a larger 15.6-inch unit and comes with some interesting benefits such as the extra HDMI port, the backlit keyboard and the good performance of the AMD Ryzen 3 3250C. Its appearance is also distinctive and should appeal to gamers.

Which Chromebook appeals to you the most? Have you decided to buy one of these models for the upcoming school year or do you already own one of these? Let us know in the comments at the bottom of this article.

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