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The Surface Go draws a lot of attention, but the HP Chromebook x2 ($ 599) is better than Microsoft's 2-in-1 cute in three main ways. You get a bigger 12.3-inch screen, a knee-grip experience and a longer battery life. Unfortunately, the performance of the Chromebook x2 leaves something to be desired, its frames are thicker and heavier than its competitors. Yet, HP has pioneered the Chromebook world with this fantastic detachable laptop.
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Design
The HP Chromebook x2 is a white anodized aluminum tablet that attaches to a textured rubber leather keyboard and attaches both as a laptop and as an inverted tablet. Although I appreciate the unique color of the tablet and its chrome HP logo, I've noticed small scratches in the last few weeks, as I pulled the x2 out of a desk drawer containing more than one. Other laptops.
Looking at YouTube videos on the Chromebook x2, I found myself wanting a larger screen, or more precisely thinner screens. This is the current trend of other manufacturers, and one that the next Google Pixelbook should adopt.
As I used the Chromebook x2 on my lap, I found it nice to type, and preferable to Surface Go, which requires you to balance the crutch on his back against your legs. The only trade-off, however, is that the x2's screen flickers a bit because it is heavier than the keyboard, and relies entirely on that connection.
With 3.2 pounds and 0.6 inches of thickness (when connected), the Chromebook x2 is heavier and thicker than the Microsoft Surface Go (1.15 pounds) and the Google Pixelbook ( 2.5 pounds 0.4 inches). (2.4 pounds, 0.6 inches).
The two USB Type-C ports on the Chromebook x2 are split between its left and right sides, and its SD memory card is on the left, while the headphone jack is on the right.
The keyboard and tablet dock with two big rubber connectors and a proprietary port.
Display
Looking at Captain Marvel's trailer on the HP Chromebook x2, I admired his 2400 x 1600 pixel panel. The colors were superb on the x2 showcase, from Captain Marvel's uniform jade to black and intense black from a dark hallway in which she passed. The details – such as the mottled pattern on the underwater masks – also clearly appeared.
The Chromebook x2 screen produces a solid 114% of the sRGB spectrum, which beats the 89% category average, but surpasses the 129% mark of Surface Go and is slightly lower than the Pixelbook (117%) and the Chromebook Pro (118%).
The colors were superb on the x2 showcase, from Captain Marvel's uniform jade to black and intense black from a dark hallway in which she passed.
The Chromebook x2 sits on the brighter side of the laptops we tested, emitting up to 403 nits, a level that exceeds the average of 246 nit mainstream notebooks and beats the Chromebook Pro 376-nit. The Surface Go (415 nits) and the Google Pixelbook (421 nits) are even brighter. This allows wide viewing angles with a color kept at 70 degrees left and right. However, its brilliant display means that light that bounces off the screen can hide your content.
PLUS: Guide to the screen
The touch screen of the Chromebook x2 provides accurate and responsive input tracking. Not only did Chrome react quickly to my taps and scrolls, but the application drawer at the bottom of the screen moved quickly when I opened and closed.
Keyboard, touchpad, active pen
Despite the shallow 0.63-millimeter touch, the HP Chromebook x2 delivers a solid, comfortable typing experience. By testing it on 10fastfingers.com's typing test, I reached a rate of 77 words per minute on the Chromebook x2, both on a desktop and on my lap, which is close to my average of 80 ml.
The x2.1 x 2.1-inch touchpad offered decent responsiveness. As I tapped and slid around the desk, I noticed that most of the time it was following me, but there was a rare stutter here and there.
I've found different levels of input speed when scribbling with Active Pen included in HP. In Google Keep, my drawing stayed as fast as possible because I annotated a screen capture. The worst behavior appeared in Microsoft OneNote, which ran via Android emulation, where my optimism stuttered. The Android based Sketch app was somewhere in between, where it was usable, but could have been better.
l & # 39; Audio
The HP Chromebook x2 provides enough volume to fill a medium-sized conference room. Listening to "Colossus" from Idles, I noticed that the drums were clear, that the bass was accurate and that the voices were clearly emitted. This beautiful audio quality can be due to Bang & Olufsen's audio B & O Play.
Performance
Armed with an Intel Core m3-7Y30 processor with 4GB of RAM, the Chromebook x2 offers a good punch. I have not seen any lag after splitting the screen between a dozen Chrome tabs (including Giphy and Google Docs) and a 1080p YouTube video. Throughout the process, everything went smoothly as I scanned GIF files and typed sentence after sentence.
On the Geekbench 4 general performance test, the Chromebook x2 scored 6,637, less than the category average of 8,988, and close to 7,927 pixels (Core i5-7Y57 with 8GB of RAM). Microsoft Surface Go (Intel Pentium Gold 4415Y with 4GB of RAM) recorded a further decline
On JetStream, the performance benchmark for Javascript, the Chromebook x2 has a score of 109.6, lower than the average of the categories 180.7 and 145.1 of the Pixelbook and 126.6 of the Chromebook Pro (Intel Core m3-6Y30 with 4GB of RAM). Surface Go did worse, with a (87.1).
Armed with an Intel Core m3-7Y30 processor with 4GB of RAM, the Chromebook x2 offers a good punch.
On the WebGL graphics test, the Chromebook is linked to the Pixelbook, with two laptops making 5000 fish at 33 frames per second. As far as gaming is concerned, the Asphalt 8 racing game was fluid enough to play, but PUBG Mobile (which now runs on Intel Chromebooks!) Had too much weight to compete seriously.
Battery life
The HP Chromebook x2 offers a very good battery life, surpassing the field.
The detachable lasted 8 hours and 50 minutes on the Battery Mag Battery Test (web browsing at 150 nits), which beats the Pixelbook's 6:50, the Surface Go 6:06 and the category 7 average: 27.
webcam
The 12.5-megapixel camera on the back of the Chromebook x2 takes pretty decent pictures, capturing a range of hues in a fern in our office.
The 4.9-megapixel selfie camera is ideal for Google Hangouts and Skype calls. However, I noticed that there was a lack of detail in my hair and in the texture of my shirt.
Heat
The HP Chromebook x2 stayed pretty cool in our tests. After delivering 15 minutes of HD video on the x2, our heat gun has captured temperatures of 75.5 to 76.5 degrees Fahrenheit on its keyboard and bottom. Its screen for tablet and its back reach a maximum of 95 degrees, which is our comfortable use threshold.
Software
Chrome OS Version 69, launched recently, brings Chrome more visual aesthetics from Material Design. Its most visible feature is the brighter Chrome browser, which has redrawn the tabs. Chrome OS has also gained a better password manager, as well as improvements to the search bar (which Google calls the Omnibox).
Price, Availability and Warranty: How much does the Chromebook x2 cost?
HP sells the Chromebook x2 – available only in the Core M, 4GB of RAM configuration that we tested – for $ 599. HP offers a one-year limited hardware warranty (with online chat that year) and 90-day hotline. Find out how HP has been successful in our battle of technology brand competition.
The Chromebook x2 includes its removable keyboard and HP Active Pen, while the $ 999 Pixelbook does not include its $ 99 Pixelbook pen and the $ 499 Surface Go does not include its $ 99 Surface Type Cover.
Bottom Line
I love the bright and colorful display of the Chromebook x2 and its long battery life which, combined, should allow you to take Chrome OS seriously. If only it was as light as its competitors, I would recommend this laptop without a break.
For a faster Core i5 processor and a lighter laptop, consider the Google Pixelbook at $ 999, although the Google Chromebook Premium is much more expensive and does not offer tablet mode only. So, if you wanted a Chromebook that is also a tablet, the HP Chromebook x2 is a fantastic option.
Credit: Laptop Mag
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