2025
“Excessive” isn’t a qualifier I would use to demean the Lenovo Chromebook Plus 14. It’s merely a statement of fact. It’s a pretty device with surprisingly good audio and more power under the hood than the previous leading contender, the $700 Samsung Galaxy Chromebook Plus. But is taking the crown as king of ChromeOS enough to justify the $650 asking price? Even with a few exclusive software features, using it is not a distinct experience from using any other $400 or under Chromebook Plus model. It’s just a better experience than all those others on the market.
Lenovo Chromebook Plus 14 The Lenovo Chromebook Plus 14 is a great sounding, great looking, and great feeling Chromebook. But no matter what, it's still just a Chromebook Pros Excellent screen with nice contrast
Excellent screen with nice contrast Strong audio
Strong audio Top-tier battery life Cons Pricey for Chromebooks
Pricey for Chromebooks Few AI features make use of NPU
Few AI features make use of NPU Bends around center of keyboard
Gather around the fire. I’m about to tell you a story. I built desktop PCs in high school, but the computer I carried around everywhere from college onwards was a Chromebook. In my days on the journalism school assembly line pumping out articles for my degree, I found I didn’t need more than that simple 13-inch HP Chromebook I bought for under $300. I was a poor college kid, and if the choice was between me financing my way to South Korea for a three-week reporting trip or buying a working PC, I opted for the plane ticket. There, I broke my Chromebook’s keyboard, and instead of buying a new device, I opted for a cheap keyboard that had a combination of Korean and English characters. I would use that keyboard-Chromebook combo for the rest of my college career.
Cheap isn’t always worse, but cheap is the dancing partner of necessity. To me, Chromebooks were always a means to an end. If a Mac is a comfortable, bubbling hot tub, and a PC is a tumbling surf on an oft-crossed ocean, then the Chromebook is a lazy river, flowing in a lethargic and expected pattern. With its specs for its price, the Lenovo Chromebook Plus 14 feels like a friend who showed up at my door after a long absence, except it’s obvious they’ve been working on themselves and are in the best physical and emotional shape of their lives. They’re also the type to go to an expensive restaurant and order a Frito casserole.
More than any PC, the Chromebook becomes a companion. Lenovo’s device spent its days next to my bed, light enough for when I only wanted to watch YouTube or do some quick shopping, and made all the better thanks to its silent, fanless design. The Gen 10 Chromebook comes in two flavors: one with a touchscreen for $750 and another for $650 without it. While Lenovo sent me the more expensive version for review, this isn’t a 2-in-1, so you don’t necessarily need to feel like you’re missing out if you go for the cheaper option. It’s a device packing a 2K (1,920 x 1,200) OLED panel, and if that wasn’t enough, it has four 2W speakers and is one of the only Chromebooks to support Dolby Atmos sound. The sound can get loud, and while audio will feel more hollow than a good pair of headphones, it has a surprising amount of bass that will hold up for any Netflix and chill session.
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