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Head-to-head · Best Chromebooks Under $500

HP Chromebook Plus 14a vs Lenovo IdeaPad Flex 5i Chromebook Plus

Which is the better buy? Side-by-side on rating, price, strengths, and watch-outs — with the published ratings we averaged to get there.

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The short answer

Lenovo IdeaPad Flex 5i Chromebook Plus comes out ahead by a clear margin (3.8 vs 4.3). The gap is mostly about Buyers who want one versatile device for work, school, and entertainment, with a premium feel and tablet mode at a mid-range price. — read the strengths below before deciding.

HP Chromebook Plus 14a
Ranked #5 in Best Chromebooks Under $500
HP Chromebook Plus 14a
3 sources1 derived$354as of Aug 1

The HP Chromebook Plus 14a is a sturdy everyday Chromebook built around its keyboard and its cool-running chassis rather than its spec sheet. Laptop Mag rated it 3.5 out of 5, praising the typing experience while flagging a dim display and middling performance from the Intel Core i3-N305. It is a dependable clamshell for browsing and schoolwork that the higher picks here beat on screen, storage and speed.

Strengths
  • — Keyboard is comfortable enough to be the reason to buy the laptop
  • — Chassis is thick and heavy enough to survive a school bag
  • — Underside measured 77.5 degrees Fahrenheit after streaming video
Watch-outs
  • — Intel Core i3-N305 performance trails the best at this price
  • — The 14-inch 1920x1080 panel is dimmer and duller than average
  • — Only 128GB of UFS storage, a quarter of the Acer 514's 512GB
$354 · Check Price on AmazonFull review →
Lenovo IdeaPad Flex 5i Chromebook Plus
Higher ratedRanked #1 in Best Chromebooks Under $500
Lenovo IdeaPad Flex 5i Chromebook Plus
3 sources1 derived$649.99as of Aug 1

An aluminium convertible with a 14-inch 1920 x 1200 touchscreen and a Core i3-1315U behind it, a specification that reads a tier above what ChromeOS machines usually get. Tom's Guide, PCWorld and ITPro all scored it 4.5 out of 5, and PCWorld gave it an Editors' Choice. Battery life is the one ordinary number, at around nine hours. As a single device that works as a laptop, as a tablet and as a stand for video, nothing else in the category matches it.

Strengths
  • — Premium-feeling aluminum chassis with a sturdy 360-degree convertible hinge
  • — Bright, crisp 14-inch 1920x1200 touchscreen with a roomy 16:10 aspect ratio
  • — Snappy Intel Core i3-1315U handles heavy multitasking without lag
Watch-outs
  • — Battery life is good but not class-leading at around nine hours
  • — No included stylus despite the 2-in-1 tablet mode
  • — 128GB of eMMC storage is modest (a microSD card is bundled to help)
$649.99 · Check Price on AmazonFull review →

Derived means the reviewer published no score, so one was inferred from their written verdict. Everything else is a number the publisher printed. How we rank.

How they stack up

HP Chromebook Plus 14a

It shares the Intel Core i3-N305 with the Acer Chromebook Plus 514 but pairs it with 128GB of UFS storage rather than the Acer's 512GB SSD. Its 14-inch panel is dimmer than the Lenovo IdeaPad Flex 5i and ASUS Chromebook Plus CX34 screens, and the 16:9 shape shows less than the Flex 5i's 16:10 display, though it is faster and better built than the budget ASUS Chromebook CX15.

Lenovo IdeaPad Flex 5i Chromebook Plus

The Flex 5i is the only true convertible 2-in-1 in this group, where the ASUS Chromebook Plus CX34, Acer Chromebook Plus 514, HP Chromebook Plus 14a, and ASUS Chromebook CX15 are all clamshells. Its taller 1200p 16:10 display beats the 1080p 16:9 panels on the others, though its ~9-hour battery trails the 13-hour ASUS CX34.

Specs side-by-side

SpecHP Chromebook Plus 14aLenovo IdeaPad Flex 5i Chromebook Plus
CPUIntel Core i3-N305 (8-core)Intel Core i3-1315U
RAM8GB8GB
Storage128GB UFS128GB eMMC
Display14" 1920x1080, 16:914" 1920x1200 IPS touch, 300 nits
Weight3.2 lb3.52 lb
Battery~8 hours 50 minutes~9 hours
Webcam1080p—
OSChromeOS (Chromebook Plus)ChromeOS (Chromebook Plus)
Form Factor—2-in-1 convertible (360-degree hinge)
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