Each operating system has its own advantages and drawbacks, but while MacOS and Windows fail to stray from a traditional desktop experience, ChromeOS is only growing more relevant and appealing in this connected, mobile-centric world. Since most of a Chromebook’s power is externally tied up in the cloud, you can’t natively run powerful AAA games like you would on a Windows machine or render 4K footage edits on a MacBook without an internet connection.Ĭompared to well-established operating systems like Windows and MacOS, ChromeOS is a lightweight alternative that seamlessly switches between a laptop and mobile tablet experience. Just a handful of essentials like Google Drive, Polarr photo editor, and installed Android apps like games are available offline. The majority of ChromeOS software is made up of Progressive Web Apps (PWAs) that rely on a constant internet connection. With that said, this speed sacrifices onboard power. That leaves Chromebooks with a less-intense workload and plenty of onboard memory, which translates to a snappy, modern operating system that runs atop a version of Linux. Chromebooks stream tasks which frees up resources that tax computing power, onboard graphics, and battery. This is the fancy way of saying that the software and services are powered by the internet on a Chromebook versus laptops which use local applications. These battery, performance, and touchscreen feats are possible because Chromebooks are laptops and desktop computers that run on ChromeOS, which is a cloud-based operating system. Best Windows Laptop: Microsoft Surface Pro 8.Best Desktop Chromebook: HP Chromebase AIO.Best 2-in-1 Chromebook: Lenovo Duet 5 OLED.Take a look below at quick info on the best Chromebooks versus laptops from our testing, then scroll down for buying advice and in-depth reviews. So we put Chromebooks versus laptops in everyday testing to find the best-performing models and the respective strengths of each type of computer.

However, it’s these factors that help Chromebooks offer all-day battery life, smooth performance, and touchscreen displays at a fraction of the price of their Mac and Windows counterparts. Google’s Chromebooks have always been looked down upon due to their less powerful hardware and ChromeOS’s heavy reliance on the internet. I’ve spent the last half of the decade reviewing the best laptops, from Windows to Apple computers.

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