Acer Launching Chromebooks with Core i3 Processor
Acer America announced on Thursday that it is the first company to offer Chromebooks with an Intel Core i3 processor. The company actually updated its popular Acer C720 Chromebook, producing two new models with starting prices of $349.99 and $379.99.
According to the specs, the difference between the two models is in the memory. The cheaper Acer C720-3871 will have 2 GB of memory; the slightly more expensive Acer C720-3404 will have 4 GB of memory. Both will pack the fourth-generation Intel Core i3-40005U dual-core processor (1.7 GHz, 3 MB L3 cache), and a 3950 mAh battery promising up to 8.5 hours on a single charge.
"This is an incredibly exciting time to be a leader in the Chromebook market, since customers are responding with tremendous enthusiasm for the product's performance, capabilities and value," said Eric Ackerson, senior product marketing and brand manager, Acer America. "We've been breaking new ground with our Chromebooks since 2011, and our new Intel Core i3 model will deliver more of what our customers love about our Chromebooks, including excellent performance and all-day battery life."
The specs also show that the Chromebooks will have an 11.6-inch ComfyView LED-lit screen with a resolution of 1366 x 768. They will also include 32 GB of internal storage, an SD card slot for even more storage, embedded Intel HD 4400 graphics, and Wireless N and Bluetooth 4.0 connectivity. There is also a built-in webcam, microphone, two USB 2.0 ports, one USB 3.0 port, and HDMI output.
Looking for a cheaper Chromebook? Acer has plenty right here in its C720 Chromebook family. Except for the two new models, this lineup is based on Intel's Celeron 2955U processor (2.40 GHz, 2M Cache). They all also have 11.6-inch screens (some have touch), 2 GB or 4 GB of memory, and 16 GB to 32 GB of internal storage. Pricing starts at $199.
"Acer has been a leader in the Chromebook space and the new C720 based on 4th generation Intel Core i3 processors marks a new class of Chromebook with enhanced performance and battery life," said Navin Shenoy, vice president and general manager of Intel Mobile Client Platforms Group. "Students, families and business users will recognize the difference in how snappy the new Acer C720 is with Intel Core i3."
Both C720 Chromebooks introduced on Thursday will be made available later this month in North America.
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Kevin Parrish has over a decade of experience as a writer, editor, and product tester. His work focused on computer hardware, networking equipment, smartphones, tablets, gaming consoles, and other internet-connected devices. His work has appeared in Tom's Hardware, Tom's Guide, Maximum PC, Digital Trends, Android Authority, How-To Geek, Lifewire, and others.
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kelfox "...based on Intel's Celeron 2955U processor (2.40 GHz, 2M Cache)" Typo, the 2995U is a 1.4ghz cpu, not 2.4Reply -
Sparksx I have a $250 Acer C720 with the 2955U and 4GB ram. Its nice. Now I really wished they made a mid range chromebook with 4gb ram, i3 processor, larger battery, 32gb-64gb ssd option and ips screen.Reply -
CPU Fan I was researching Chromebooks to replace my aging laptop just yesterday. This is exciting news for me since I don't want to go with a Celeron processor!Reply -
orlbuckeye I'm not sure how much with will affect chromebook performance since your not doing much local processing.Reply
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CPU Fan I've never had one but it has USB ports, so it should be doing *some* local processing. Though RAM is most important with these machines. All reviews I've seen say that they run much better with 4GB of RAM.Reply
Are the SSD's soldered to the board or can they be changed for something a bit larger, like a MX100? -
orlbuckeye Well chrome apps are mostly in the cloud which processing is done in thew cloud. I know Chrome has more offline apps but still the huge majority are online cloud apps. You can run those same apps on a windows machine inside the Chrome browser.Reply
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CPU Fan true. I guess I need to go to best buy and play with a chromebook for a while and see how I like the OS. or install it to my old laptop and get to know it before I make the switch.Reply
EDIT: If anyone is like me and interested in trying out Chrome OS before buying one of these or to just breathe new life into an old laptop, check this out: http://chromeos.hexxeh.net/
further edit: That is not an official build of Chrome OS so you don't get the full experience. It may not be possible to do this legally with the full version... :(