The HP Chromebook 11 could have been just another low-cost container for Google’s browser-based OS. But Google stepped in to make it special—and maybe even spare it the mockery of PC snobs who can’t wrap their heads around the-Chromebook concept.
Realistically, you can’t expect much from any sub-$300 machine, and most Chromebooks reside in this underwhelming hardware space. Nonetheless, Google’s 2012 partnership with Samsung on the Chromebook 3 proved that a manufacturer could do a good job with low-level components, and then Google itself pulled-out all the stops a few months later with the launch of the gorgeous-Chromebook Pixel. If nothing else, the Pixel, replete with a beautiful touchscreen and elegant industrial design, sparked a heated (and slightly bizarre) debate about whether the Chrome ecosystem deserved a machine so high-end.
And now we have HP’s Chromebook 11, a laptop that attempts to add some industrial design finesse to the low end of the Chromebook space.
[h=Not new, but better designed]2[/h]The Chromebook 11 offers none of the premium specs and design of the Pixel, and in terms of raw performance it’s not even better than-Samsung’s Chromebook 3. Nevertheless, it shows that Google is committed to setting standards for Chrome hardware, and that it can deliver a high-quality experience at both premium and everyday prices.
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