In this review, I will provide a breakdown of the specifications of the HP Chromebook x360 14c. More precisely, this review will uncover aspects of the design, memory, GPU, battery, storage, and CPU of this Chromebook. In addition to that, I will also be rating every aspect of this Chromebook based on its specifications and performance. After reading through this review, you will have a holistic idea of what the HP Chromebook x360 14c has to offer. Thus, you’ll be equipped with enough information to make a purchasing decision.
My Initial Thoughts
Since the first appearance of HP’s convertible Chromebook in 2014, the HP Chromebook x360 has been a great educational device for its student audience. This time around, HP decided to come up with something more than just a student-friendly device. When I first saw the price tag of this Chromebook some months back, I thought to myself, “why would anyone want a $600 Chromebook?” However, its recent price drop of $431.95 (in September 2021) makes it worth considering. Furthermore, this device joins the league of pricey Chromebooks like the Google Pixelbook Go, Lenovo X5, and Acer spin 13. With all that being said, you can’t help but ask if the HP Chromebook x360 14c is worth it. Well, you’ll have to read on to find out.
HP Chromebook X360 14C Design, Dimensions & Weight Review
The build quality of the HP Chromebook x360 14c did not differ so much from its predecessor – the Chromebook x360 14a. More precisely, they both have an aluminum chassis and a plastic base. Despite being made with the same material as its predecessor, this model offers a more premium design. The plastic base of the Chromebook in particular makes you doubt that it’s even made with plastic. Anyone will doubt this plastic base because it actually feels and looks like the rest of the aluminum chassis of the Chromebook. Furthermore, the mineral silver color – which is the only color variant of this Chromebook – totally compliments the new “hp” metallic logo at the center of the lid Still on the branding, you’ll see the “Chromebook” text and cyclical logo at the top left edge of the lid. Moving to the aspect of weight and dimension, the HP Chromebook x360 14c is weightier than two other 2-in-1 convertible Chromebooks. This is surprising for a supposed “thin and light” convertible according to HP. To start with, the x360 14c has 321.5 x 206 x 17.9 mm as its dimension and weighs 1650 g. The ASUS Chromebook Flip C436, on the other hand, weighs 1088 g with its dimension as 320 x 206 x 13.8 mm. Also, the Lenovo Flex 5 weighs 1347 g and its dimensions are 310 x 212 x 17.95 mm. Despite the weight of the HP Chromebook x360, it doesn’t feel like a burden when using it in tablet or laptop mode. Meanwhile, when the laptop is closed, it has a magnet holding the lid and laptop deck together so if you want to lift up the lid, you’ll need both hands – one to hold the lid and one to hold the keyboard. The magnetic hold is probably HP’s way of making this convertible a durable one to avoid it flipping unnecessarily. Speaking of flips, this is a laptop with 360° hinges – as the name implies. Having a 360° hinges device means that this Chromebook goes all the way around. Also, you can have it in all the modes you can think of – be it in tablet, tent, or presentation mode. Still on the Chromebook’s exterior, there are sufficient ports on both sides of this Chromebook. On the right side, you’ll see the microSD card reader, headphone jack, USB Type-C port, and USB Type-A port. For clarity, the USB Type-C ports on the HP Chromebook x360 14c are all full-service ports. This means that they serve as both the charging port of this Chromebook and can still be used for data transfer. Meanwhile, on the right side of the Chromebook, there’s a USB Type-C port, a power button, a volume rocker, and the webcam privacy switch. This webcam privacy switch is one thing I love about this device. This webcam privacy switch is a little switch on the side of this Chromebook that deactivates the camera. This means that while on a video call, you can turn off the camera but the microphone will still be active. Furthermore, there’s a light indicator beside the camera that lets you know when it’s on or off. The camera, by the way, is a decent 720p camera. There’s nothing spectacular about it, it’s not the brightest so don’t expect too much. Below the camera is a 14-inch Full HD (1920 x 1080) touch screen display. This display is an IPS (in-plane switching) display screen for viewing bright colors at whatever angles a device is in. The IPS panel is particularly relevant in a convertible device like the x360 14c since it will be turned to different angles. In addition to the display, the HP Chromebook x360 14c is brighter than the previous 12-inch model. The HP Chromebook x360 12 has 220 nits of brightness while this new 14-inch model has 250 nits of brightness. 250 nits may not the best of brightness but at least that was an upgrade from HP and it’s okay for the price. With such an amount of brightness, don’t expect so much from this display when you’re outdoors, you’ll get a clearer screen under a shade than in sunlight. Also, this display is glossy so you’ll get some reflection. Even with all that, this is a pretty impressive display with its good color accuracy and color vibrancy. Moving on, we can’t talk about the display without mentioning the touchscreen. The touchscreen on this HP Chromebook x360 14c is super responsive and easy to navigate. However, for some funny reason, HP didn’t include a stylus pen in the box of this device, unlike its predecessor. This means you’ll have to get your own pen. In case you’re considering getting one, the HP USI stylus pen is a great choice. It’s easy to use by just inserting a battery and you’re good to go. Also on this display are narrow side bezels which give the Chromebook a modern and attractive look. Below the HP Chromebook x360 display is the keyboard deck. As for the keyboard and touchpad, HP pretty much maintained the same standard as its predecessor with a flawless backlit keyboard and a great touchpad. To start with, this is an optional backlit keyboard. This means you’ll only get a model of this Chromebook with a backlit keyboard when you pay a little extra. That aside, this keyboard is super comfortable to type on. The keys are soft, nicely spaced, and have a key travel of 1.5mm which is how deep a key goes in on a single press and bounces back up. Away from the keyboard, there’s a fingerprint scanner which is also optional. This fingerprint reader is located at the lower right corner of the keyboard deck. This security function of fingerprint scanner only unlocks the screen when it’s asleep, it doesn’t have additional features like being able to log into your Google account with it. Also on the keyboard deck is a responsive glass touchpad. It’s also pleasing to use because of its reasonable width. Also on the deck area are two upward-facing speakers on both sides of the keyboard layout. In brief, not having a stylus pen in the box and being slightly weightier are turn-offs of the HP Chromebook x360 14c. However, it impresses in terms of display, build quality, and responsive touchscreen. For those reasons, HP Chromebook x360 14C deserves an eight out of ten in this design review section.
HP Chromebook X360 14C Processor (CPU) Performance Review
The processor powering the HP Chromebook x360 14c is the 10th gen Intel Core i3-10110U. This is a dual-core processor with a 4 MB cache and has a base frequency of 2.10 GHz and a boost frequency of 4.10 GHz. Furthermore, this is a low-end Intel Core processor which shouldn’t surprise you, after all, it’s a Chromebook – meaning, it doesn’t need so much CPU power. Regardless of what kind of processor it is, performance is all that matters and for that, a CPU benchmark test tool will do the trick. More precisely, we used CPU benchmark test tools to analyze the processing power of the CPU and how well it can handle whatever you throw at it. For this CPU performance test, we used Geekbench 5. The HP Chromebook x360 14c did well for itself with a score of 1741, which is higher than that of the Lenovo Flex 5 Chromebook which scored 1643. However, some other convertible Chromebooks outperform the Chromebook x360 14c First is the ASUS Chromebook Flip C436 with a score of 2699 and then the Acer Chromebook Spin 713 with the highest score of 3253. Notably, all Chromebooks above have the same processor as the HP Chromebook x360 14c except for the Acer Chromebook Spin 713 which runs on an Intel Core i5. That obviously explains its higher performance. In case you’re wondering if you should go for the Spin 713 because of its higher performance – it’s not necessary. I’ll advise you to stick with the Core i3 processor than getting the core i5 that you won’t need. Instead, you can use that extra cash in picking the optional backlit keyboard model or the optional fingerprint sensor model, or even a stylus pen. What I’m saying is, you won’t need such high performance for a Chromebook! To sum up, the Intel Core i3 has great performance for a low-end processor. It’s just right for the HP Chromebook x360 14c and for that, I will be rating it a nine for processor review.
HP Chromebook X360 14C Memory (RAM) Performance Review
The HP Chromebook x360 14c has a memory size of 8 GB RAM. This memory is a single slot memory that is soldered to the Chromebook’s motherboard. What that means is, you won’t be able to replace or upgrade this memory when you want to. Nevertheless, 8 GB RAM is very sufficient to handle whatever task you intend to carry out on this Chromebook. Additionally, the HP Chromebook x360 14c performed well in my multitasking test. For this test, I wanted to know just how well the Chromebook performs in real-life situations and it didn’t disappoint. I had 16 web tabs open on Chrome. I was streaming a YouTube video on one web tab, and on another, I was downloading a 720p video. For additional memory performance tests, I made use of PC Mark for Android. The PC Mark is a benchmark test tool that analyzes how a device can handle productivity tasks such as photo editing, video streaming, and data entry. At the end of the PC Mark test, the HP Chromebook x360 14c scored 11362 points. HP’s Chromebook did better than the pricier Google Pixelbook Go which scored 10276 points. In the same test, the Acer Chromebook Spin 713 did slightly better than the HP Chromebook with a score of 11854 points. The Acer Spin 713 was about 500 points better than the HP Chromebook x360 14c which is not terribly disappointing. On the whole, the HP Chromebook x360 14c offers good memory performance for whatever you throw at it. It also gives other competitors a run for their money. All things considered, in this memory review, HP Chromebook x360 14c deserves a nine out of 10.
HP Chromebook X360 14C Storage Options & Performance Review
The storage option of the HP Chromebook x360 14c is one impressive feature to love about it. Unlike 32 GB storage we often see in Chromebooks, this device comes with 64 GB eMMC storage. 64 GB eMMC is a reasonable upgrade especially because Chromebook manufacturers have made it a habit to feature small storage sizes of 32 GB. Such a small amount of storage is annoying especially when our smartphones have as much as 128 GB or 256 GB storage. With that being said, 64 GB is enough storage for this Chromebook. This is because android apps from the Google play store are what you’ll mostly need on this device – not large video files. Just in case you’ll need more storage, the 64 GB cannot be upgraded because it is attached to the motherboard. However, there is more storage option on this Chromebook with the feature of a microSD card reader. In addition to that, using a Chromebook means you’ll have access to every Google product including Google Drive. Google Drive is a cloud storage option that lets you store files for free up to 15 GB. To sum up, the HP Chromebook x360 14c has a good storage size to suit your needs. And for that, I will be rating it a nine.
HP Chromebook X360 14C Graphics Card Performance Review
When it comes to graphics, the HP Chromebook x360 14c is shipped with Intel UHD Graphics. This graphics card has 300 MHz as its base frequency and 1000 MHz as its boost frequency. The Intel UHD graphics is an integrated graphics card and it’s able to perform by sharing memory with the CPU. This means that it doesn’t work independently with its own memory like a dedicated graphics card that has its own memory. Nonetheless, for a Chromebook, this integrated graphics card is just perfect, you won’t need a dedicated graphics card on this device. To be sure of what this GPU is capable of, I played some android games on the HP Chromebook x360 14c. Shovel knight, King’s Road, and PUBG are android games that played smoothly on this Chromebook with an average of 35 fps (frames per second). In brief, many Chromebooks are not so welcoming when it comes to graphics tasks such as gaming. However, it appears that the HP Chromebook x360 14c does not belong to that category. With that being said, the graphics performance on this Chromebook deserves a score of nine.
HP Chromebook X360 14C Battery Life & Performance Review
The HP Chromebook x360 14c is powered by a 3-cell, 60.9 Wh Li-ion polymer battery. In terms of its battery life, HP claims that this battery will last 14 hours. Well, you know what they say about seeing is believing? I had to put the battery to test just to know how true HP’s claim is. To start with, I had the Chromebook fully charged at 100%, then I set the brightness at 50%. In addition to that, volume was at 80% and I turned off Wi-Fi. Following that, I played a locally saved video repeatedly till the laptop gave up. At the end of this video playback test, the HP Chromebook x360 14c survived for 11 hours 37 minutes. HP’s Chromebook knocked out the ASUS Chromebook Flip C436 which survived 8 hours 54 minutes on the same test. However, the Google Pixelbook Go outperformed the HP Chromebook x360 with its survival of 16 hours 24 minutes on the same test. In summary, good battery life is what we see often in Chromebooks and the HP Chromebook x360 14c is no exception. For its battery performance, I will be rating it a nine.
My Final Thoughts
Apparently, the Acer Chromebook Spin 713 is a close competitor with the HP Chromebook x360 14c. Regardless, the HP Chromebook x360 14c offers good value for money. Especially the combination of its memory and CPU which makes it fast for pretty much anything you chose to do with it. I will recommend this Chromebook to anyone looking for a $400 good-performance laptop with good battery life and a convenient convertible feature. I hope you found this HP Chromebook x360 14C review helpful. If they were, we would appreciate it if you could share your experience with our community platform at Itechguides Community Forum. Apart from sharing your experience, you can also ask questions or make comments regarding this guide’s topic at Itechguides Community Forum. Our forum staff and other community members will be delighted to provide a response to your questions or comments. Finally, for more Chromebook reviews, visit our Chromebook Reviews page. You may also find our Laptop Specs page very helpful.
Reference and Further Reading
