Customers commend the Chromebook Spin 714's stylus, battery life, screen size, and lightweight design, frequently praising its portability and responsiveness. Positive feedback also highlights the ample SSD storage. However, some users express dissatisfaction with the speaker quality, noting that the sound could be improved. The overall impression suggests a device with many strengths, balanced by one notable area for potential enhancement.
This summary was generated by AI based on customer reviews.
The vast majority of our reviews come from verified purchases. Reviews from customers may include My Best Buy members, employees, and Tech Insider Network members (as tagged). Select reviewers may receive discounted products, promotional considerations or entries into drawings for honest, helpful reviews.
Page 1 Showing 1-20 of 226 reviews
Pros mentioned:
Battery life, Processor speed, Stylus
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
A nice computer package, with value & versatility
|
Posted .
This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
Verdict. This is my first Chromebook… And Chromebooks are great! Who knew?! This Acer laptop provides a lot of value and versatility into an affordable system, with a great operating system (OS). There is a lot to love here.
First impressions. It is sleek, light, with a nice display, a comfortable backlit keyboard, and a large touchpad. It comes with a power adapter, a mouse, and a stylus (neatly tucked away in the lower-front-right of the laptop).
Features. This is where the laptop shines. The laptop has a very responsive touchscreen that can fold all the way back so you can use the laptop as a tablet. Yes, many laptops do that, but the vast majority do not come with a stylus, and most are much more expensive. Additionally, the high-definition screen is gorilla glass! With convertible laptops, I am always worried about the screen. In this case, I feel much better when hauling around this computer all day, on commutes, to class, and at home. The laptop uses the 12th gen i5 processor and 256GB of SSD memory. While 256GB is not a lot, the SSD paired with the i5 provides a zippy experience and great performance for most daily tasks. The laptop has ample ports too: regular USB, USB-C (x2), and and HDMI port. The computer has a built-in dock that stores and charges the stylus... this is great, because styluses get lost or damaged easily, and you have to remember to charge them. This laptop makes owning a stylus super easy.
Chromebook benefits. This is my first Chromebook, coming from the other two main OS. I was concerned about the potential learning curve… and I was pleased to find out that there really isn’t one. The OS is very intuitive for the most part, it is very fast, it has built-in virus protection, and it makes all google tools accessible directly from the desktop. I am very impressed with having access to all of my google things as soon as I login with my google credentials. Native or built-in access to google tools is very very nice since I use many of their tools on a daily basis to email, store documents, watch videos, and create/edit documents. I prefer another suite of document creator in general, and I was able to use my subscription on the Chromebook without any issues, so the Chromebook aspect doesn’t limit the use of your favorite software. In fact, access to the playstore will give me added functionality I think because I haven’t really considered apps on the OS I normally use. Perhaps, I have been stuck in an old paradigm, until now.
For students. I used this laptop for a couple days a week when going to class for grad school. The laptop is great for typing notes, accessing stored documents, and communicating with others by messenger or video (with HD webcam!). It is light, so it’s easy to cary around, and I don’t bring the mouse to class. I could access Blackboard normally and login to classes online when needed. While the tablet mode is neat, taking notes with the stylus took some time to adjust. I normally use a different tablet and stylus pencil to write notes, and the feel is different, so it will take some time to get used to this system. Additionally, I had a bit of a hard time to save written notes, then finding where I saved them, and then trying to send them out by email. This is a small learning curve, and the only part of the experience I didn’t find intuitive. Once I figured it out, the workflow was faster on the next try. My daughter, a high school student, absolutely loves this laptop because she uses all google tools, especially all the document creating tools, and her school uses google classroom, so the integration is complete and perfect. Also, the fact this laptop comes with a stylus and mouse adds even more value for students who want a versatile and capable system. Finally, the extended battery life means that you don’t even have to take the charging cable to class! The laptop can go up to 10 hours on a full charge, and in a pinch, you can get four hours of battery on just a 30 minute charge. I haven’t actually tried to go the full 10 hours, but we regularly use it for 4 to 5 hours without charging, it still has more than 50% battery life.
Things I love:
- Sleek and compact
- Sufficient ports
- The screen folds all the way back so you can use the laptop as a tablet
- It comes with a mouse AND a stylus!!
- The stylus has a built-in dock that stores it and charges it
- Easy access to apps in the playstore
- All-day battery life! 10 hours without a charge, and quick-charge option to get 4 hours in just 30 minutes of charging
- HD webcam
- i5 processor and SSD provide a fast experience
- Wifi 6
- Anti-microbial Gorilla glass screen!!
Things I don’t love:
- 8GB of RAM and 256GB of storage may not be enough for some people. On the other hand, at the price point of this laptop, this is a fair offering. Moreover, if you are using the google ecosystem, you may already have access to substantial cloud storage, so storage may not be a concern at all. If you don’t run heavy apps and keep tons of tabs open at once, 8GB should be enough
Overall, this is great laptop, offering lots of value and versatility in general, and more specifically, it’s a very compelling package for students. The Chromebook OS performs well and enables access to all google tools right from the desktop… I really like this aspect. It’s simple, convenient, and powerful. I will now consider Chromebooks for all future laptop purchases. For students who use google classroom, the utility is even better. I highly recommend this laptop.
I would recommend this to a friend
Pros mentioned:
Battery life, Processor speed, Screen size
Cons mentioned:
Speaker quality
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
A Fine Notebook Computer For Students
|
Posted .
This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
Acer Chromebook Spin 714 8GB Ram 256 Disk
I have not had a lot of experience with Chromebooks as I have almost exclusively used another operating system for a very long time. Students use these devices and seem to function very well in performing their tasks in school. My daughter uses a Chromebook in school and she has an older model for use at home. I wanted to be familiar with these devices to offer support to my daughter and the students who come to me for help.
This Acer Chromebook 714 seems to me to be well built. I’ve looked at these devices since they started to come out and for the most part my impression was that the build and construction were on the cheap side. I was impressed with the construction overall. I did think it seemed a little bulky but not overly so.
The keyboard and mouse functioned adequately though it did take me a while to get used to the feel.
I was mildly and positively surprised to learn that this computer was equipped with an Intel I-5 processor. I was able to run various applications with no noticeable lag whatsoever. The computer is equipped with a 14 inch touch enabled display which was bright and clear. I thought the display was adequate.
The unit that I received came with a generous 8 gigabytes of RAM and a very generous 256 gigabyte hard disk drive. For a Chromebook, it would seem to me that it would be more than sufficient for years to come.
As far as ports are concerned, the computer I received came with two USB-C ports (one would be used for charging and running off electricity. The computer also contained a USB port, a HDMI port, a headphone jack. In my opinion, a glaring absence of a micro-SD card slot or a SD card slot was noticeable. Another aspect of this device is that the sound from the speakers is not very good. Its tough listening to music on the computer but I don’t buy computers to listen to music
As far as battery life, I averaged about eleven hours on a single charge. That is stellar in my book. You could work all day and still have battery life left over. I would estimate that my use was light so battery life may less or more depending on use.
I suppose there is much documentation and evaluating on the Google Chrome operating system. My previous, limited experience with a Google Chromebook made me realize that this is a viable computer, with good specifications and an easy to learn operating system. Without doing too much digging there were a sufficient number of downloadable apps from the Play Store. I still have a lot to learn about what this machine is capable of doing and the apps that are available for it.
Overall, I was impressed with the quality of the build of the hardware. Acer has manufactured a very usable, functional computer with and coupled it with an operating system that students find easy to use.
I would recommend this to a friend
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
Got an Acer Chromebook Spin714 instead of the iPad
|
|
Posted . Owned for 1 week when reviewed.
This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
Even though my grand daughter has all Apple products, my wife and I found the Acer Chromebook Spin 714 to be superior in many ways. It is a combination of a Laptop and a Notebook as is the case with the iPad. But it differs in the following ways: 14" vs 13" monitor, Touch Screen, Electronic Pen, and many other features at far less the cost. It was a no brainer. So we bought it for our granddaughter who will be starting college. We just gave it to her and she was thrilled. Check it out.
I would recommend this to a friend
Pros mentioned:
Battery life, Screen size, Stylus
Rated 4 out of 5 stars
Fantastic Battery Life
|
Posted .
This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
For the last few days, I've been testing the ACER - Chromebook Spin 714 as my daily driver. I've used it for completing my cybersecurity coursework which required the use of emulators, web apps and google docs. I've also used it for work, virtual meetings, and even recreationally to watch movies. In every scenario the Chromebook exceeded my expectations for comfort, performance and battery life.
On day one, I immediately fell in love with the Spin 714. The first reason is because the keyboard is so comfortable to type on. All the keys have an excellent amount of feedback and are perfectly spaced. This made typing and completing writing assignments a breeze. Also, since it is thin and light, I was easily able to transport it in my bag and could barely tell it was in there. Another thing I love is the battery life and charging speeds. I was able to get 10 hours of screen-on time. Which is fantastic. This is the first computer I have ever used that can consistently provide me with that much use time. And while using a 65-watt charger I was able to reach 100% state of charge in a little over an hour.
The Spin 714 has some other great features that also come with some quirks. The 14-inch screen is bright, has tiny bezels and is a great size for productivity. I just wish it was a little less reflective. The speakers are decent. However, in the first few days I heard a random pop or crackle but that hasn't happened since. Maybe I got an update that fixed it. There is also a stylus built-in which is an accessory that you really don't find on other computers. It worked well but for some reason I was not able to use it to take notes in tablet mode. Maybe that will be fixed in a future update.
With that said, Overall, I think this is a great Chromebook that performs well and even with its quirks I still love it. Great Job ACER.
I would recommend this to a friend
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
Best chromebook
|
|
Posted . Owned for 7 months when reviewed.
This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
Excellent laptop, fast and perfect for work. I love it
I would recommend this to a friend
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
Great chromebook
|
|
Posted . Owned for 3 weeks when reviewed.
This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
It's an excellent chromebook that more than meets my needs.
I would recommend this to a friend
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
Great ACER portable laptop to use on for work.
|
|
Posted . Owned for 1 month when reviewed.
This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
Great ACER portable laptop to use on for work and on the road/go. Excellent as for professionals and for students. It’s easy to use and it’s easy to use as a tablet too.
I would recommend this to a friend
Pros mentioned:
Processor speed, Stylus
Cons mentioned:
Speaker quality
Rated 4 out of 5 stars
Ultimately, a good purchase, especially at $499
|
|
Posted . Owned for less than 1 week when reviewed.
This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
I'll start with the bad part. There may be a QC issue of some kind with the Spin 714. Forums are filled with complaints of a "crackling/popping" speaker, usually on the right. I bought and returned more than one of these in order to get on e that didn't have this problem. On the last go around, I figured out that this may be a combo of hardware and software issue. In one final experiment, I found that my initial update seemed and move to the Beta channel seemed to *cause* the problem or make it waaaayyy worse rolling back to the Stable reduced or eliminated if. This has the feel or a software workaround for what could be a hardware problem, as now there is a single "pop" which seems to come with initializing the hardware when the speaker is first used to make a sound after boot. But there is no constant crackling as before.
People also complain about the trackpad, and I can confirm that it "feels" loose. There is an accompanying loss of sensitivity on that taps are often missed. I haven't tried it yet, but I read that tightening chassis screws can alleviate this issue.
Why did I keep trying to buy this machine tho, you ask? At $499 there is *nothing* that touches it for overall build, features and specs. The machine is solid - some will call it heavy - and on the thicker side. I have an old Pixelbook I can dust off if I really want to be ultra portable, though. This thing is portable and solid enough that I'm good with using it as my daily driver, with commute.
Coming from the 2020 Spin 713, this was a bit of a change. But the 12th gen i5 balances performance and efficiency - power is there when necessary and the rest of the time, the thing is silent. 8GB of RAM is a sweet spot right now and the 256GB of SSD is more than adequate, especially if you're making use of cloud services. All of this is plenty to make efficient use of Linux apps as well (which I do). Then there's the garaged, automatically recharging USI stylus that comes with it.
So again, I know some would buy this at $729 and think it's a decent price for a fairly premium machine from the standpoint of specs. That may be true, but for under $500 it is an automatic buy if you're in the market for a *good* Chromebook.
4/5 because I'm just not sure what to make of the well documented sound issues
I would recommend this to a friend
Pros mentioned:
Battery life, Processor speed, Stylus
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
A Good Entry in the Chromebook Market
|
Posted .
This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
As many people know, there's basically two big players in the competition for schools and technology, and Google with Chromebooks, such as the Acer Chromebook Spin 714, is one of them. In recent years we've seen Chromebooks go from the poorly specced barely-better-than-a-netbook type performance to machines that actually have some chops.
The Acer Chromebook Spin 714 is just one such entry. As with most laptops, it's packed in a nondescript rectangular laptop box without much to write home about, but upon removing it, you can already start to feel the quality in the device. Decent specs or not, it's rare to find a Chromebook that has metal construction as the price point of most of them just doesn't lend itself to anything better than plastic. The 714 is another story, the device is all metal and feels like quality in the hand. The hinge action is smooth, the screen is clear, the keyboard is tactile and responsive. A lot more than you'd expect out of most in this category. Top off that it's running a 12th gen Intel processor and you really have something worth talking about.
In use, the device is snappy, there have been zero issues with setup or functionality of it in any way. My daughter uses it regularly for her school work as it is a requirement of her school to have a Chromebook, they have even listed out specific hardware requirements that this handily beats. She has used the stylus for handwritten math problems and other such tasks and it is responsive. The fact that the screen fully flips around is a great thing particularly when attempting to write on it. In writing papers with the keyboard, both she and I have tested and it's got quite a nice feel to it. Just in general the construction of this device is very solid. Battery life lasts a whole school day and has plenty leftover in the evening for homework if she doesn't want to be tethered to her desk by a charging cable.
All in all, it's quite a good laptop, a step up when compared to most Chromebooks, well constructed and very good to use. I easily recommend this.
I would recommend this to a friend
Pros mentioned:
Battery life, Processor speed, Stylus
Cons mentioned:
Speaker quality
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
My 7th Chromebook and I love it.
|
|
Posted . Owned for less than 1 week when reviewed.
This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
This is my 7th Chromebook and it has been the best yet (Samsung, Dell, HP, Acer). The processor in this unit is amazingly quick, tethered to 8 gig it is fantastically productive and eliminates delays seen in other Chromebooks. I have had an Acer CB in the past and this unit shows how far they have come in the past decade.
OK, the pop issue, it does not bother me as I know what is likely occurring, however if you are an audiophile or a Misophonia person (you may not be aware that you have this) that every tiny noise accumulates to you pop off this may not be the unit for you.
Let's say I am a "Maturing", lol, adult who recalls the analog days and that how the slight low volume pop sounds, like an amp engaging a speaker. Likely causes were last minute amp changes and someone mismatched inductance or forgot to add a bleed resister or missed adding a cap to their circuit causing the pop when the amp energizes it engages the speakers which drain the pre-charge voltage. It's not often, however its not only on the boot-up as these devices are heavy power economizers to extend battery life and amps are big drain, maybe even more than the screen, so power management switches the amp off, then when you hit a page or an app with sound, the circuit re-energizes and you hear the tiny pop in both speakers. Nothing is perfect and that is the only tiny imperfection that doesn't bother me. Given this, the sound is far loud enough to go over most public background noise situations and it does sound high in fidelity.
The screen is low power, but you will not realize it, its a beautiful 1080p IPS, not the old LCD, I see not difference in this from my last QHD Samsung IPS, however if one is heavy into image editing 4k maybe the way to go if your resolution needs are at that level.
The keyboard is awesome and back lit, best I have had and so is the gorilla glass IPS screen and glass touch pad.
Battery life seems amazing, more than 8 hours of typical mixed work, not certain if you can do 8 hours of heavy video editing or not, however it is amazing quick in every regard during video editing, I am impressed with this new match of the intel i5 Evo.
Oh, there is a fan, only every now and then when i am in a quiet area can I barely hear the fan, could not say it's silent, however I believe most people will not even hear it.
I would recommend this to a friend
Pros mentioned:
Screen size, Stylus
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
As fast as I can remember, maybe better
|
Posted .
This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
I have always been a fan of Google Chromebooks but this has just sent me over the edge. The internal memory, the fact that it's SSD and the attachment ports that go with it make this the coolest thing ever. The flipping back and making it a handheld tablet is just that much cooler. The apps on the Chromebook are reflective of the apps you get on your Android phone so I was able to download all my entertainment apps and watch football in the kitchen while I cooked comfortably on it and it's a big screen with okay sound. That would be the one knock I have to give. Is that the sound is not everything. It gets the job done but I do wish it was a little louder. I'm going to pair it with a Bluetooth speaker and that will fix it. The sleekness is aesthetically pleasing and very beautiful. I can't wait to take it to class as well because the functionality will allow me to do my class work, I'm in cybersecurity, and enjoy myself during down time. Time. Quick access to the apps on the toolbar at the bottom along with the stylus is amazing. I've played around with a few of the stylus apps and have to say that the one to one draw quality pin to touch is very on point and just beautiful. The biggest selling piece to the pin and the screen is the super gorilla Glass that they put on this thing. It doesn't seem to cut or bend or break any and you can be a little rough with the pen and as heavy handed as you want to be. I'm not trying to make a habit out of it because I like to pin and the screen to last but it seems to be ready to take your best shot.
I would recommend this to a friend
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
Best Chromebook
|
|
Posted .
This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
This Chromebook is the best and fastest Chromebook ever.
I would recommend this to a friend
Pros mentioned:
Battery life, Screen size
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
School must have
|
Posted .
This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
This laptop is exactly what I wanted as a portable, yet functional, option for school workload. I wanted something I could take notes on and was not too heavy or bulky. At first I was a bit hesitant to use the OS, as most of my laptop experience has been with windows. I found the software easy to use and exceptionally smooth. The interface is very intuitive too. I really enjoy the built in stylus and touch screen capabilities for note taking in class. The majority of my school classes have a requirement for me to be able to upload assignments etc. and this laptop has no issues doing so. The screen is also a great size and looks nice without much glare. It fits into my backpack easily & I really like the camera shutter feature too. Gone are the days of needing an ever present post-it note or tape and your grasp. Having access to the play store is also a plus for all of the useful apps that can make my schooling easier. I was able to easily download an ECG app to use in my anatomy class, very slick. Battery life has been great so far, but verdict long term is still out.
All in all, this is a great little machine and has solid build quality. Scratches both the laptop & tablet itches, and I do recommend the purchase especially if you are looking for a great schooling companion.
I would recommend this to a friend
Pros mentioned:
Battery life, Processor speed, Screen size
Cons mentioned:
Speaker quality
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
Nice Chromebook
|
|
Posted . Owned for 1 week when reviewed.
This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
Acer Chromebook Spin 714. Got this on sale, and for the money, it is excellent.
The machine is very fast, much faster than my old chromebook. The screen is bright enough, although maybe not bright enough for direct sunlight. I really like the slightly taller aspect ratio. The speakers aren't super loud, but are OK. The battery life has been great, lasting all day with battery to spare, and it charges fast. The keyboard feels good. Some say the trackpad isn't large enough but it has been fine and is exactly the same size as the pad on my old HP chromebook. The internal stylus storage is a nice touch. I was very worried about the fan coming on and being noisy, but after a week of using the machine the fan has only come on twice when I had the laptop sitting on something that covered the vents, and the fan is quiet so that proved to not be a concern.
Some slight nitpicking: In my opinion, the design is kind of meh. I was not even aware that there was any Blue in the color until I looked at my receipt, it is really a dull dark gray and generic chromebook appearance. I would like to have seen an SD card slot. I don't like having vents, it seems like just having vents is going to pick up dirt, and my old chromebook was fanless. There just isn't much choice about having a fan with faster processors though. The speakers could be louder and are kind of muffled, but I mostly use this for browsing. When the machine is in tablet mode, it sits with a small bouncy gap between the screen and keyboard that is kind of annoying; they could have maybe designed the hinge differently, but it still works fine.
I would recommend this to a friend
Pros mentioned:
Processor speed
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
Great School Or Productivity Machine
|
Posted .
This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
I never thought i would see the day where a Chromebook impressed me, but as I sit here typing on the Chromebook I am extremely impressed. Every since I got this it has been used pretty much non stop in my house. My kids use it for their school, zoom works great and they are able to do all of their assignments that are web based anyways. I have also been using the Chromebook for work as my company uses a lot of web based programs and this computer is perfect for that. the device is extremely fast and very responsive. everything I use boots up quickly and being integrated with google make it a breeze to access my docs or sheets i am working on. It is also a great machine to use for streaming. the screen looks really great only downside for the screen is that its' not the brightest and is very glossy so it can be a bit reflective if a light or the sun is shining on it.
I have not used the pen as much as i would like but I do like using the pen when I flip it into the tablet mode. That is helpful as I do not get the screen dirty and smudged up. The pen is very responsive and works great.
Overall this is an incredible device, it serves me extremely well for school and work. it is incredibly fast and overall a very good looking machine, and a surprisingly fun machine to use.
I would recommend this to a friend
Pros mentioned:
Processor speed, Stylus
Cons mentioned:
Speaker quality
Rated 4 out of 5 stars
A Polished Package with Plenty of Power
|
|
Posted . Owned for 2 weeks when reviewed.
This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
I bought the Acer Chromebook Spin 714 because of the 12th generation i5 processor and ThunderBolt 4 support.
The chromebook is fast and handles any task with ease. I have owned a low end celeron and even a 10th gen i3 chromebook, the Spin 714 runs circles around them. Opening android apps is fast. Web pages update quickly. It boots fast. It is barely done displaying the black and white chromeos logo before the login is displayed.
Running Linux is also much snappier that previous chromebooks I have owned.
Some might disparage the screen resolution. I have plans to use my new chromebook with Steam when the token becomes available. The screen resolution will work just fine for Steam. Just waiting for the token to become available. There are higher end models of the 714 coming. If the 1900 x 1200 is not enough for you.
I can connect nearly any peripheral to my new Spin 714 thanks to ThunderBolt 4 support. I have a 4K monitor that supports displayport over USB-C and it just works.
I have yet to seriously use the stylus but the first PDF that I need to sign I know I have a stylus ready to use.
As for the popping sounds reported here I have not experienced that. I have watched YT TV and other video and not had any popping or clicking noises. Perhaps I am fortunate. Time will tell.
Is this the end all chromebook? No. But it does everything I need and more very quickly. It integrates with my phone neatly and makes me more productive.
I have owned and used other brands of laptops including Asus, Apple, Dell, HP, and IBM. The fit and finish of the Spin 714 chromebook is very high end. I no longer feel like I'm using a starter laptop I did with my first celeron chromebook.
I would recommend this to a friend
Pros mentioned:
Battery life, Stylus
Cons mentioned:
Speaker quality
Rated 4 out of 5 stars
The best, but with some flaws
|
|
Posted . Owned for 2 weeks when reviewed.
This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
This is a fast, attractive, highly capable Chromebook to do 'real work." However, it has some flaws that may or may not be a concern depending on your use.
Pros:
The 12th gen Intel CPU is very fast and yet runs much cooler most of the time than a typical Windows laptop. As a result, the fans are almost never audible, the bottom stays cool, and the system never feels strained. Battery life is generally excellent but if you use a CPU heavy app like Google Meet expect battery life to drop dramatically as the Intel chip starts to pull power. The screen is clear and bright, as good color saturation and contrast, and has wide viewing angles. The webcam is very good, among the best I have seen. Keyboard is nice to type on and the backlight works well. Having USB-A, USB-C, HDMI, and headphone is great (no mini-SD though). 256GB storage is more than enough for a chromebook. The blue color is attractive and the metal shell is generally high quality with a few rough areas where panels meet together. The hinge is rock solid, no flexing of the screen while typing, and the speakers get loud enough for video calls. Of course, the garaged stylus is a huge benefit if you want a pen as it is always within reach and charges in the case. Love that!
Cons:
Not many but there are a few. This laptop can get really confused when connecting to an external USB-C monitor. The screen starts to rotate and then freezes for 10-15 seconds and sometimes the whole OS crashes. There is a speaker pop quite regularly when opening a new app or triggering an audio effect (I assume this is software problem but it is annoying). The touchpad is pretty bad - it is physically loose and sloppy yet it takes quite a bit of force to press. The speakers are really terrible, no bass at all and just sound like a cheap 1990s speakerphone. The unit is on the chunky side, both in thickness and weight.
Overall - I really like and almost love this Chromebook. The hardware on offer, especially if you can get a sale price, is really strong, the screen and webcam make for a great video calling machine, and the keyboard is comfy. Its held back by a mediocre trackpad, mediocre speakers, and speaker popping. In spite of all that, for the sale price in the $500-$600 range, I'd still buy it and recommend it.
I would recommend this to a friend
Pros mentioned:
Battery life, Processor speed, Stylus
Cons mentioned:
Speaker quality
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
Wonderful chromebook
|
|
Posted .
This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
Cons:
- Speaker pop - this is described in a few reviews here and on other forums. It's present at almost all times, except when connected to external speakers, and is noticeable. I am generally able to drown it out with the noise from my TV, so it's not a dealbreaker for me.
- Touchpad - it is a bit on the small side and isn't super sensitive, so some of my lighter taps don't register.
- Bluetooth turning off - this is again mentioned on a few reviews here and on other forums. It's a small annoyance that it turns off and I instead have to use my pin instead of just unlocking with my phone nearby.
Pros:
- Pretty much everything else. It's very fast, the screen is crisp & responsive, the keyboard is great to use, the stylus is a nice addition & works well, battery life is great & charges quickly, and it has good integration with my Android phone.
Overall, I love this chromebook and it's exactly what I needed to replace an aging laptop and should last me quite a while and do exactly what I need.
I would recommend this to a friend
Rated 5 out of 5 stars
A+
|
Posted .
This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
This is my second Acer and first Chromebook. The ports are the first thing I check when buying a laptop. The Acer Chromebook Spin Laptop comes with (1) USB type A, (2) USB type C, (1) HDMI, and (1) headphone port. I would have liked one more USB type A and a SD card port, but I'll use a docking station to solve that issue when it arises.
I have used this for about a week now and the battery life has been impressive. To test the battery’s capabilities, I ran the Chromebook for 8 hours before my 3 hour lecture and I still had plenty of charge left. The next day, I ran it some more and it lasted about half way through the day. I got down to 3% battery life and plugged it in. It took a little less than 2.5 hours to charge back up to 100%. It may have been a skosh faster because I wasn't watching it too closely. That is really fast though!! The other thing I like about the battery life indicator is that it tells you how much longer it will run until it dies (see picture). That is helpful. On the keyboard, there is no 'Delete' button. What to do? Apparently on a Chromebook all you have to do is press 'alt' and 'backspace' at the same time, viola.
This week I used the Chromebook for my college course lecture. Up until now, I always used the university’s PC set
up which is a touch-screen all-in-one PC. The picture is provided showing my Chromebook in front of the PC. The University also has a Creston docking and presentation system that is tied to an overhead projector thru connection ports. The connection that I used to dock my Chromebook was the HDMI connection. I did not perform a dry run with the Chromebook and just went into my lecture cold.
This was risky, but I felt it was the only way to truly test the Chromebook. When providing lectures to my class, I not only provide a PowerPoint presentation, but I also run the University’s web-based Blackboard system which connects to a Zoom call for students that cannot attend in person. Therefore, during my lecture, I have to weave in and out of shared screens, PowerPoint, Whiteboard, and sometimes YouTube in situations (when I want to show videos as examples.) I have been using this system with the College’s PC since 2011.
My Chromebook performed outstanding. First the functionality for the Zoom call was almost identical to the PC set up. I did notice something cool. I noticed that the Chromebook identified the display screen as a Creston screen which I had not seen come up on the University’s PC. (Picture shown.)
When going into my applications, I did not notice coming across PowerPoint and only saw Word. Yet when I
uploaded my PowerPoint file from Blackboard, the file showed up ready for presentation. I did notice, however, that the menu features on PowerPoint were different than a Windows based system,
but that is due to the Chromebook. The functionality was similar enough for me to get my presentation done without any issues.
One of the coolest things that I picked up on was speed of uploading video and web-based applications. During my lecture, I had to switch over to YouTube to show an example of
a foundation collapse and the sound menus somehow set themselves up. When using the University’s
PC on the Creston docking system, I have to sometimes go in manually and set up the sound because
the settings are changed from the docking system sound to the PC sound. The Chromebook did this on its own. That saved me time from having to pause my lecture to trouble shoot audio issues. Also, I ran a web base USDA Soil Survey application which is a database of soil properties across the US. The
Chromebook ran this database FAST. That was nice because sometimes I have to wait on the University’s PC to upload the data depending on the size of the report that I am running. Overall, I am
pleased with the Chromebook's performance as a get up and go system.
One more observation: my kids think it is a great laptop and want to use it when I am not busy with it. One of them downloaded a free art app. I then paid about 10$ to unlock better art features. See picture of on of the art doodles. Art skills being developed = bonus!
I would recommend this to a friend
Pros mentioned:
Processor speed, Screen size
Rated 4 out of 5 stars
Love the Chromebook...hate the Norton popups
|
|
Posted . Owned for 3 weeks when reviewed.
This reviewer received promo considerations or sweepstakes entry for writing a review.
I got this to replace my old and ailing apple notebook. I love this Chromebook! Zippy, lots of storage, great graphics and screen that pivots to create a notepad. The only negative are the pesty constant built in --NORTON-- that I don't want but am constantly bombarded w reminders. What a nuisance!