Smartbooks

March 18th 2024

Photo: Kyle Barr / Dua Rashid / Dan Ackerman / Gizmodo

The Best Laptops for Under $1,500 You Can Buy Right Now

Sometimes, buying a budget-minded laptop can be an exercise in compromise, but there's ways to save and still end up with a powerful PC.

Reviews Kyle Barr Mar 18

October 8th 2023

Chromebook Plus Review: Better Specs Makes Google’s Cheapo Laptop Brand More Enticing

Chromebook Plus is a great standard for their price, but they don't change how you'll use Google's pared down laptops.

Laptops Kyle Barr Oct 8

September 5th 2023

Apple Could Be Making Its Own Low-Cost Chromebook Lookalike Laptops

Apple is reportedly considering ultra-cheap laptops, though educators are questioning how sustainable Chromebooks are in the long run.

Tech News Kyle Barr Sep 5

March 16th 2023

The HP Dragonfly Pro is Great, if You Don’t Get the Chromebook

HP's Dragonfly Pro is the HP Dragonfly for the rest of us.

Laptops Jackie Thomas Mar 16

November 3rd 2022

Google’s New Beta Will Let More Users Run Steam Games from a Chromebook

There are still compatibility issues with some games, and you may need a Core i5 CPU or better to get the most out of your Steam library.

Gadgets Kyle Barr Nov 3

October 11th 2022

Google’s Trying to Turn Chromebooks Into (Cloud) Gaming Laptops

Google and its OEM partners introduce three new ChromeOS laptops made specifically for cloud gaming.

Tech News Florence Ion Oct 11

September 21st 2022

Framework’s Chromebook Is Bringing Modularity to ChromeOS

The company has announced an upgradeable Chromebook developed in partnership with Google.

Gadgets Florence Ion Sep 21

August 18th 2022

The Best Back to School Gadgets For Cramped College Dorms

The gear you'll need to maximize your living space when headed back to school this fall.

Reviews Andrew Liszewski Aug 18

May 5th 2022

Acer’s New $579 Convertible Laptop Is a Big Deal for Chromebook and AMD Fans

This midrange laptop marks the debut of AMD's new Ryzen 5000 C-series CPUs.

Gadgets Phillip Tracy May 5

April 12th 2022

I Need a Cheap, Reliable Chromebook for My Kid! What Gadget Should I Buy?

We help a colleague find the best laptop for their six-year-old son.

Reviews Phillip Tracy Apr 12

January 24th 2022

Acer Just Modernized the Classroom Chromebook With a 3:2 Display

These four Chrome OS models will fight it out against Acer's new Windows 11 SE laptops.

Gadgets Phillip Tracy Jan 24

January 3rd 2022

Acer’s Chromebooks Are Pretty Awesome and Now There Are Three New Ones

The Spin 513 is the most expensive in a new trio of Chromebooks released by Acer prior to CES 2022.

Gadgets Phillip Tracy Jan 3

August 10th 2021

HP’s New Chrome OS Desktop Has a Rotating Screen

Chrome desktops are pretty rare, and HP's new $600 all-in-one can be used in portrait mode, too.

Gadgets Sam Rutherford Aug 10

July 21st 2021

The Biggest Chromebook You Can Buy Is Extremely Basic

The 17-inch laptop is underpowered, but delivers when it comes to screen size.

Laptops Florence Ion Jul 21

July 6th 2021

Don’t Update Your Chromebook Yet

A bug in the latest version of Chrome OS is reportedly causing some Chromebooks to slow to a crawl.

Gadgets Florence Ion Jul 6

May 27th 2021

Acer’s New Laptop Lineup Includes an Absolutely Giant Chromebook

Acer announced an absolute ton of new laptops today. The lineup includes a host of productivity-focused machines, with some specifically tuned for mobile creators, and there are also some new Acer Chromebooks, including the Chromebook Spin 713 with the latest Intel processors. Then there’s the industry’s first-ever 17-inch Chromebook. The Acer Chromebook 317 is a…

Gadgets Florence Ion May 27

July 9th 2020

The Best Games You Can Play on a Chromebook

Want to make a Chromebook even better, how about you play some games on it

Gadgets David Nield Jul 9

November 2nd 2010

Rumor: This Month Could See Google Chrome OS Netbooks Appear

It’s under two months until Christmas, so it figures that talk of a Chrome OS netbook should heat up again. Digitimes is claiming the first “notebook” is manufactured by Iventec, with netbooks from Acer and HP launching in December. [Digitimes] https://gizmodo.com/google-is-focusing-its-chrome-os-efforts-on-netbooks-r-5632817

Tech News Kat Hannaford Nov 2

May 28th 2010

Lenovo Delays Skylight Smartbook and U1 Hybrid Indefinitely

Lenovo’s attempt to herald a category of mobile devices has been put off—again—as they announced today that they’re ditching their custom Skylight Linux UI in favor of Android. It’s a significant blow to the already dying smartbook category. https://gizmodo.com/smartbooks-are-dying-on-the-vine-thats-dumb-5549504 Building their own UI from the ground up was always a questionable move for Lenovo, especially…

Tech News Brian Barrett May 28

Smartbooks Are Dying On the Vine. That’s Dumb.

What if I told you there was an ultralight device that put all the functionality of a powerful tablet into the thinnest, lightest laptop you ever saw? It exists. It could be great. And it’s dying before its time. In January, Lenovo unveiled that exact device to a warm—if not entirely convinced—reception. It was called…

Tech News Brian Barrett May 28

Smartbooks

The Best Laptops for Under $1,500 You Can Buy Right Now

Chromebook Plus Review: Better Specs Makes Google’s Cheapo Laptop Brand More Enticing

Apple Could Be Making Its Own Low-Cost Chromebook Lookalike Laptops

The HP Dragonfly Pro is Great, if You Don’t Get the Chromebook

Google’s New Beta Will Let More Users Run Steam Games from a Chromebook

Google’s Trying to Turn Chromebooks Into (Cloud) Gaming Laptops

Framework’s Chromebook Is Bringing Modularity to ChromeOS

The Best Back to School Gadgets For Cramped College Dorms

Acer’s New $579 Convertible Laptop Is a Big Deal for Chromebook and AMD Fans

I Need a Cheap, Reliable Chromebook for My Kid! What Gadget Should I Buy?

Acer Just Modernized the Classroom Chromebook With a 3:2 Display

Acer’s Chromebooks Are Pretty Awesome and Now There Are Three New Ones

HP’s New Chrome OS Desktop Has a Rotating Screen

The Biggest Chromebook You Can Buy Is Extremely Basic

Don’t Update Your Chromebook Yet

Acer’s New Laptop Lineup Includes an Absolutely Giant Chromebook

The Best Games You Can Play on a Chromebook

Rumor: This Month Could See Google Chrome OS Netbooks Appear

Lenovo Delays Skylight Smartbook and U1 Hybrid Indefinitely

Smartbooks Are Dying On the Vine. That’s Dumb.

This Is Supposedly the Final, Final, FINAL Look of the Foldable iPhone

Scientists Watch Brain’s Self-Cleaning Process During Sleep in Real Time

LEGO Super Mario Piranha Plant Sees 30% Off on Amazon While LEGO and Nintendo’s Official Stores Keep It at Full Price

‘No Data Centers’ Sign Found After Shooting at Indianapolis Politician’s Home

‘Dark Matter’ Season 2 Sees Joel Edgerton Forced Back Into the Multiverse

Astronomers Found the Closest Thing Yet to the Universe’s First Stars

Samsung’s 55″ 4K Smart TV (2025) Comes Without the Pricey Tag in Amazon’s Clearance Sale, Skip Smaller Budget Displays

KAMRUI’s High-Performance Hyper H2 Mini PC Hits Its Lowest Price for Amazon Prime Members Only (32GB RAM, 1TB SSD)

Aqara Thermostat Hub W200 Review: Almost Better than My Ecobee

HP Omen Max 45L Review: 4K60 Gaming Has Never Been So Easy

Ecovacs Winbot W3 Omni Review: Window Cleaning Robots Have a Long Way to Go

AirPods Max 2 vs. Bose QuietComfort Ultra Headphones (2nd Gen): Which ANC Headphones Win?

The Best Gadgets of March 2026

AirPods Max 2 Review: Still Ridiculously Expensive and Ridiculously Nice

DJI Osmo 360 Review: The Best 360 Camera for the DJI-Pilled

Aqara Smart Lock U400 Review: Hands-free Unlocking at Its Best

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