Now, you might start reading this review with a deep-rooted pessimism toward Chromebooks. Opinions have been sullied over the years with plastic-ridden, Celeron-powered devices with sub-HD screens. The truth is, Chromebooks have come a long way since their early bargain-basement days and these days are well worth considering as your only computing device second glance. HP’s latest Chromebook 13 is the latest machine to attempt to break out of the dull Chromebook mould.
Inside and out, HP’s Chromebook 13 is top-notch stuff. Its looks are bewitching, with its brushed dark grey aluminium chassis and faint flourish of black plastic, accompanied by a backlit keyboard. This sophisticated Chromebook leaves my previous favourite, Acer’s Chromebook 14, buried in the dirt.
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Standing a mere 12mm tall on the desk it’s also one of the slimmest Chromebooks around and combined with its dainty 1.2kg weight HP’s Chromebook 13 is a stylish marvel. The whole thing feels reassuringly expensive, which is just as well, given the rather steep asking price.
While Acer’s Chromebook 14 will have you handing over a mere £200, you’ll have to fork out at least £600 for this Intel Core-m3, QHD-equipped model. This isn’t your typical budget Chromebook, and should be considered a proper alternative to a Windows laptop at this point.
HP Chromebook 13 review: Display
Aside from Toshiba’s ancient IPS-equipped Chromebook 2, displays are seldom a Chromebook’s selling point. But with HP shipping its Chromebook 13 with a QHD IPS panel, there’s enough potential here to change that.
While its 13.3in, 2,560 x 1,440 display beams out at 358cd/m2, though – perfect for those sunny afternoons – the HP Chromebook 13’s display is marred by a seriously poor 474:1 contrast ratio. Images altogether looked a little flat, with an all-too grey, washed-out look. An sRGB coverage of 88% is a scant saving grace, soaring above that Acer Chromebook 14’s 54%.
Still, to the untrained eye, the screen on the Chromebook 13 isn’t bad. It’s just that it isn’t great. I’d also liked to have seen, at this price, a touchscreen. If nothing else, this would make those ported Android apps on the Chrome Web Store much easier to use.
And, while it’s hardly HP’s fault, it’s also worth pointing out that Chrome OS still struggles with resolution scaling. At any resolution higher than Full HD, it displays a laughably microscopic mouse cursor and teensy app icons you have to squint to see. I had to nudge it down a peg or two to make it usable.
Each of those individually backlit keys are nicely spaced inside that 13in chassis. The low travel took a bit of getting used to while those stiff switches made for a crisp, responsive typing experience. While a tad off-center with the keyboard, the diamond-edged touchpad is generously sized, performing swift multi-touch gestures with ease, despite Chrome OS’ limited commands.
HP Chromebook 13 review: Performance and battery life
The display might be disappointing, but it’s good to see the Chromebook 13 is crammed with nippy core components. For your £600 you get a dual-core 0.9GHz Intel Core m3-6Y30 processor, 4GB of RAM and 32GB of eMMC flash storage – a Chrome OS-powered laptop that’s well ahead of the pack.
A JetStream score of 128 is the highest we’ve seen – twice that of HP’s elderly Chromebook 14 and its 52.9 result. In general use it felt wonderfully nippy, flitting between multiple Chrome tabs without so much as breaking sweat. If you’re in need of a Chromebook that isn’t already obsolete straight out of the box, it’s a very good start.
That Core m3 is a tad more power-hungry than its Celeron alternatives, though, draining the Chromebook 13’s 5,000mAh battery in our video playback test in 7hrs 20mins. That said, you should be able to eke out a full working day from a single charge, so long as you don’t run the screen at maximum brightness.
HP Chromebook 13 review: Ports and connections
As with most Chromebooks, the port selection is a tad restrictive with only two USB 3.1 Type-C ports (with one used for charging) and a single regular USB 3.1 socket for legacy device connection.
The good news is that you can use that spare Type-C socket to connect the HP Chromebook to a variety of high-speed peripherals, including external monitors. There’s also a solitary microSD card reader embedded on the right side for expandable storage.
As for networking, you’ll either have to stick with the onboard 802.11ac Wi-Fi adapter (there’s no built-in Ethernet socket here) or buy an adapter for use over USB. Finally, there’s Bluetooth 4.2 for hooking up additional peripherals such as headphones, mice and keyboards.
HP Chromebook 13 review: Verdict
HP’s Chromebook 13 might seem like a mad idea, but in reality it’s a marvel. It’s a stand-out Chrome OS laptop with great performance and a crisp QHD display, and it’s ultra-light chassis and all-day battery life mean it’s a joy to use as a portable workhorse.
If you’re after something that can effortlessly butt heads with pricier Windows-powered laptops, there’s nothing like it. Despite its display shortcomings, this is the Chromebook to beat.
