HP Chromebook 11a
Buying a laptop has always been a hassle or a tough decision time when it gets extremely overwhelming to be able to choose from the bunch of options that are available. And for some reason, we always have the notion that if you are looking for something in the budget segment/ something cheap, it is not going to be worth it because it will soon stop working or something along those lines. If one is looking for something with a reasonable price tag, it automatically means that the buyers would have to make a list of compromises on the specs sheet of the gadget. Either the battery is going to be small, or the RAM is going to be low, or the display will have issues or the processor would be old or slow. It has to be something.
Taking into this issue under consideration, there have been many companies and brands that took it upon themselves to offer a good range of laptops, Chromebook to the user that guarantees that just because they are cheap does not mean it asks for compromises or it lacks in something. HP launched the HP Chromebook 11a. The name in itself is enough to understand that it definitely does not run on Windows but on Google Chrome OS. There is just that undeniable simplicity about the Google Chrome OS that should have made the Chromebooks a really viable computing device for many. Educational and e-learning as well as basic work laptops are two scenarios that come to mind. Chromebook 11a is powered by the MediaTek MT8183 chip. The MediaTek MT8183 octa core chip to be precise. Alongside is 4GB RAM. Considering how light and frugal Chrome OS is, this combination is definitely a good one or rather an interesting one. Apps on Chrome OS simply fly along and the Chromebook itself takes hardly a handful of seconds to boot up and be ready for work. Think about it — 4GB RAM in a Windows 10 machine would be an absolute no-go. You get 64GB storage plus the memory card slot to add more. Then there is also the bundle of 100GB of Google Drive space for one year, post which you’ll probably get used to it and have to subscribe to a Google One storage plan.
The HP Chromebook 11a is a pretty laptop to look at. The design language as a whole is very similar to most other HP laptops. In fact, the blue colour looks really pretty. You’ll know it is not a Windows 10 machine but is instead an HP Chromebook because there is the Chromebook branding on the lid. Plastic build, but nicely put together and the materials feel good to touch. It’s a slim laptop too, measuring just 1.68cm in thickness. Much like the Apple MacBook series, the HP Chromebook 11a also powers on the moment you take this out of the bag, place it on a table or on your lap, and open the lid. There is a USB 2.0 port, a USB C port to which the charger also connects for power delivery, a headphone jack and a microSD card slot.
What HP could have done is given it a more compact power adapter, something that Asus has done with its laptops recently. Instead, you still get the massive brick with two long cables emerging either side of it, and that means really cool looking laptop sleeves are out of the equation if you also need a pocket for this bulky power brick. The experience is significantly enhanced with the really good keyboard that is a part of the HP Chromebook 11a experience. Its neatly laid out, very similar to what other HP laptops have had over time and is well placed if you need to type quickly and accurately. The trackpad isn’t the biggest in terms of the space that’s available for your fingers to manage the swipe gestures but should get the job done nevertheless once you get a bit used to it. The battery life stats that you should expect for most usage scenarios, is around the 14-hour mark, which easily means a day at work without having to carry that old-style brick charger too.
