HP’s new Chromebook 14 offers 1080p on a budget

By Adrian Diaconescu Published December 22, 2014

this 14 inch hp chromebook is full hd and touch enabled — Image used with permission by copyright holder

Before Acer can diversify the high-end features offered by Chromebooks as alternatives to the popular low-cost, “bare bones” configurations, HP has pulled off a similar, never-before-seen feat. Their newest Chromebook 14, model number x050nr, is Full HD, touch-enabled and available for a fraction of Google Chromebook Pixel’s price.

While still not what we’d call luxurious, the 14-inch WLED 1080p touchscreen does make the latest HP Chromebook 14 feel more premium than virtually all its Chrome OS relatives. Various Acer and Toshiba Chromebooks sport FHD panels, but they aren’t built for touch interaction, while the Lenovo IdeaPad N20P has touch but is restricted to 1366 x 768 resolution.

Recommended Videos

Aside from the unusually gifted screen, the HP 14-x050nr doesn’t quite stand out from the crowd, with a class-mediocre 8-hour battery life and ARM-based Nvidia Tegra K1 processor. The K1, accompanied by a 192-core Kepler GPU, may thrill in the tablet landscape, but as far as serious computing goes, it’s no Intel Haswell match.

On the bright side, the Full HD HP Chromebook 14 with Touch should be a multitasking champ. It has four gigabytes of RAM and a 32 GB internal hard drive. Fairly light, at 3.77 pounds, and thin (0.7 inches), the 14 incher also wins a few bonus points with its swanky “snow white” cover and stylish smoke silver keyboard accents.

HP has your back in the ports and connectivity department too, with everything from USB 3.0 and 2.0 to HDMI, 802.11ac Wi-Fi , Bluetooth 4.0, and a microSD media card reader. Overall, it sounds like a pretty smart buy at $440, since the only Full HD, touch-enabled Chromebook alternative, the Pixel, costs $1,500 or so.

Meanwhile, a larger than 13-inch 1080p Windows laptop with touch is at least $600. Well played, HP. And kudos on launching the “premium” Chromebook in time for Christmas, although you sure cut it close.

Topics

Chromebooks

Adrian Diaconescu

Former Digital Trends Contributor

Adrian is a mobile aficionado since the days of the Nokia 3310, and a PC enthusiast since Windows 98. Later, he discovered…

Computing

Usually $390, this HP 2-in-1 Chromebook is discounted to $270

A college-aged student interacts with his HP Chromebook x360.

If you can’t decide if you need a laptop or a tablet, check out the laptop deals going on at HP today. You can buy an HP Chromebook x360 2-in-1 for just $270 meaning you’re saving $120 off the regular price of $390. It’s the perfect Chromebook for those of us who desire flexibility, and it’s even more appealing while it’s on sale. Here’s what you need to know about it while you consider tapping the buy button.

Why you should buy the HP Chromebook x360 2-in-1
As one of the best laptop brands, HP knows how to get the best out of even budget hardware. The HP Chromebook x360 2-in-1 might not feature in our look at the best Chromebooks, but it’s still great for the price.

Computing

Dell XPS 14 vs. HP Spectre x360 14: which should you buy?

The Dell XPS 14 on a table.

The HP Spectre x360 14 and Dell XPS 14 are two of the biggest new laptops announced at CES 2024.

Deliberately or not, HP and Dell rolled out significant upgrades of their premier laptops to coincide with the arrival of Intel's Core Ultra Meteor Lake chipset. The latter introduced a new manufacturing process and design, as well as several features that promise improvements in performance, battery life, and AI performance.

Computing

Usually $299, this HP Chromebook is discounted to $149 today

HP Chromebook 14b sits on a desk.

If the laptop deals that you come across are too expensive because all you need is a basic device, then you may want to check out Chromebook deals. Here's an affordable offer that may catch your attention -- the HP Chromebook 14a for only $149, following a $150 discount on its original price of $299. That's insanely cheap, and we don't think that price will hold for a long time. If you're interested in taking advantage of this bargain, it's highly recommended that you proceed with the purchase immediately because it may be gone as soon as tomorrow.

Why you should buy the HP Chromebook 14a
A Chromebook is a laptop that's powered by Google's Chrome OS, which is a web-based operating system that allows devices to run fast and smooth despite cheap components. For example, the HP Chromebook 14a is only equipped with the Intel Celeron N4120 processor, Intel UHD Graphics 600, and 4GB of RAM, but it's good enough for the basic tasks that you'll need to complete for work or school such as typing documents, doing online research, and making presentations. The HP Chromebook 14a doesn't have much built-in storage as it only comes with a 64GB eMMC, but you'll have all the space that you need for your files on Google Drive.