Chromebook 15 Preview – The largest Chromebook yet

Even before CES in Las Vegas has properly started, Acer has already presented two new monitors , two new smartphones and five new laptops. With four out of five laptops , however, ‘new’ is a big word and it mainly concerns upgrades. For example, the top models R13 and S7 will be available with a Broadwell processor from Intel. This is not a variant of the Core M processor introduced in September, but an as yet unannounced successor to the i3, i5 and i7 processors that we have seen in many an ultrabook in recent years.

Broadwell is also the beating heart of Acer’s only really new laptop, which has been christened ‘Chromebook 15’. That naming is not difficult to explain; the laptop runs Google’s Chrome OS and has a screen diagonal of fifteen inches. This also makes it the first Chromebook with that screen size. Virtually all Chromebooks to date, including Acer’s, have had 11.6″ or 13.3″ screens, with HP’s Chromebook 14 being the exception. By adding a third screen size, Acer shows that it takes Chrome OS seriously. We got a little time to play with the Chromebook 15 and see how Chrome OS works on a big screen.

Screen: matte and tn

Acer has indicated that it will deliver two variants of the screen: one with a resolution of 1366×768 pixels, and one with 1920×1080 pixels. The one we were able to get to work with unfortunately contained that first panel and that resolution is a bit coarse for a 15″ screen. You can almost count the pixels and that does not lead to the best display. The viewing angles are also tight, because Acer has used a tn panel. The vertical viewing angles in particular are mediocre, although you can’t expect an ips panel for a $ 250 laptop. The good news is that the screen has a matte finish, which hardly reflects, and that the readability was not disappointing, even when we worked with it outside.

Hardware: Broadwell Celeron

Not only is Acer the first with a 15″ Chromebook, the company is also the first with a Chromebook with a Broadwell processor. The choice for Broadwell is interesting, because most Chromebook manufacturers have recently switched to cheaper processors such as Intel’s. Bay Trail or Nvidia’s Tegra processor, the latter having the advantage of being passively cooled, but not nearly as powerful as the Celeron processor in the Chromebook 15. The processor in question was built within Chrome OS listed as the as-yet-unannounced Celeron 3205U clocked at 1.5GHz We haven’t been able to run any benchmarks, but it’s a safe bet that performance will surpass that of the widely used Celeron 2955U in Chromebooks.

Better performance comes with more heat production. That’s why you’ll find a ventilation grille on the back of the Chromebook 15. Although Broadwell is baked at 14nm and should be even more economical than Haswell, the Celeron processor cannot do with passive cooling. During our short test, the fan did not run, but it will in warmer environments and under heavier loads. For those who think that a Celeron processor is not enough, a Core i3 processor is available as an option.

Sturdy Casing

Acer has housed the new hardware of the Chromebook 15 in an equally new casing, which is extra solidly built. The casing must be able to withstand a weight of sixty kilograms and the corners of the casing must survive a fall of forty-five centimeters. We weren’t allowed to throw the Chromebook ourselves, but of course we did hold the laptop and the casing did indeed feel quite sturdy. The plastic is not flat, but has a kind of ridges that cross each other, creating a diamond pattern. When pressure is applied to the casing, the diamond-shaped structure must ensure that the plastic bends slightly, but does not crack or break.

Because no unnecessary lights or buttons have been added, the Chromebook 15 looks tidy. The keyboard has the simple layout we’ve come to expect from Chromebooks, and the single mouse key is obscured by the surface of the touchpad. The touchpad is quite large, especially compared to other Chromebooks, which also have smaller touchpads thanks to their smaller casings. The single mouse key gives good and clear feedback, with which the touchpad left a good first impression. The opposite was the case with the keyboard. Because the keys have very little travel, the typing comfort, as far as we could test it in a short time, is not high.

Preliminary conclusion

Whether the Chromebook with a 15.6″ screen is a gap in the market remains to be seen. We can imagine that the smaller Chromebooks are a practical alternative to heavier laptops for simple tasks, especially where mobility is important. In practice, however, screens are often in a fixed place indoors and Acer’s Chromebook 15 with its weight of 2.2 kilograms will probably not be an exception. The question then arises whether Chrome OS is sufficient to claim that place on the kitchen table or whether a role as a secondary computer suits the Chromebook 15 better.

As far as Acer is concerned, the answer to that question is undoubtedly ‘yes’. The company takes Chromebooks very seriously. After all, it was the first to opt for the latest generation Celeron and Core i3 processors for its latest laptop with Chrome OS, and for a (full) HD screen of 15.6″. At first glance, the Chromebook 15 seems therefore be a solution for people who work seriously with Chrome OS themselves, but until recently had to make do with small screens and slow processors.