The Acer Chromebook 514 is a great choice for anyone looking for a Chrome OS laptop. It has excellent build quality, a full HD screen, and the ability to run Android apps. The only real issue with the machine is its lack of storage and RAM, both of which don’t matter much for Chrome OS. It would have been nice to see Intel Core M or Core U at this price point, but overall the Acer Chromebook 514 is a great choice for anyone looking for a Chrome OS laptop. ..
The Chromebook 514 is a powerful laptop-like device that costs less than $500 and is more powerful than low-cost Chromebooks. It is also bulky, so it might not be the best choice for people who want a Chromebook that is both lightweight and has a sleek design. However, if you are looking for a Chromebook that can handle the most demanding tasks, the Chromebook 514 is the perfect choice.
Design
The Acer Chromebook 514 is a budget-friendly laptop that is designed for minimalists. Its understated design will appeal to those who like pizazz in their laptop designs, but those who are more interested in the overall look of their device may not be impressed. Almost the only distinguishing feature of the lid is its silver color, and while it appears generic, the shiny sleekness is urbanely appealing. This is enhanced by a dark grey Chromebook logo that sits above it and a reflective Acer engraving that can reflect your face if you peek into it. Two speakers can be seen on the left and right sides of the black keyboard when the lid is opened.
The laptop has a silver touchpad with a shiny accent and a sticker in the bottom right corner that lists all of the functions of the laptop. This includes claims of a 15-hour battery life and 720p webcam. The left and right bezels are not huge, but they are neither tiny.
We found it interesting that the bottom bezel of the display on the Acer Chromebook 514 sports a dazzling sticker that reads “FULL HD 1080.” It may just as well have a “WILL RUN CHROME” sticker next to it. The dimensions of the Acer Chromebook 514 are 12.7 x 8.9 x 0.7 inches, and it weighs about 2.87 pounds. The Acer Chromebook Spin 514 (12.7 x 8.9 x 0.7-inches, 3.64 pounds), although being the same size, manages to be substantially lighter than the Lenovo Flex 5 (12.2 x 8.4 x 0.7-inches, 2.97 pounds). ..
Keyboard and touchpad
The 514’s 14-inch screen is encircled by a plastic frame that slightly raises it away from the keyboard, which you will unavoidably coat in skin oils and grime. Although we can see the benefit of keeping them better apart, the front frame also means that dust and other debris can collect around the screen’s borders in a way that displays made entirely of glass cannot. The touchscreen’s responsiveness and matte “non-glare” coating make it easier to read in some environments, but they also have the drawback that if you’re working with a strong light source behind you, like a skylight or bay window, the screen may occasionally become unreadable until you turn off the lights or move.
Acer Chromebook 514 is a laptop that has a non-touchscreen display and a backlit keyboard. It is a laptop that is good for people who are not used to using a touchscreen display or have average typing experience.
The trackpad and touchscreen are amazing. They make using the computer incredibly easy and comfortable. We haven’t had to use a wireless mouse at any point during the course of our evaluation because of their smoothness and size.
Acer Chromebook 514 review: Display
The Acer Chromebook 351 had a contrast ratio so low (341:1) that everything appeared washed out and grey. Contrast in this instance is a much more respectable 885:1.
Chromebooks are not great for graphics designers. The panel only supports 57% of the sRGB color gamut, which makes your colors appear a little flat. Additionally, the Chromebook 514’s peak brightness of just 272 cd/m2 makes it difficult to use in direct sunlight. ..
The Lenovo Yoga Book is a convertible laptop that works as a touchscreen, but we’re not sure it really contributes that much. Since the screen cannot rotate 360 degrees, poking it only causes the screen to shake. You can, if you’d like, have it flush with the keyboard, but your keys will merely get in the way. ..
Audio
The Acer Chromebook 514 has great sound quality, even in songs that don’t work well with its built-in speakers. If you’re willing to spend a bit more, you can get better speakers that will make the Chromebook even better.
We listened to Kate Bush’s song “Running Up That Hill,” and what first struck us was how loud and clear Bush’s voice sounded when it came through the speakers. The ethereal quality of the ambient synths was perfectly captured in contrast to her highs and lows, but as the track’s intensity increased, some sounds began to blend together. Even nonetheless, the listening experience was enjoyable. The Ninth Wave’s “Unspoken” followed, which had comparable strengths.
The Acer Chromebook 514 was able to translate voices quite well without completely drowning out the rest of the recording. We were completely astounded by how the speakers handled the music as it continued to weave in more and more instruments without skipping a beat. Each percussion strike, guitar strumming, synthesiser tone, and vocal note combined to create an amazing translation of this fantastic song. We were in awe of how great this sounded as we stared at the Chromebook. ..
We were disappointed with the sound of the song “dying on the inside” by Nessa Barrett. The production, which combines a variety of electronic instruments, sounds fine but doesn’t sound as clear as we had hoped. Every component of the production, especially Barrett’s voice, has a distinct raspiness that doesn’t exist when played through high-quality speakers.
Acer Chromebook 514 review: Performance
The Chromebook 514 from Google is a budget-friendly option that is good for the bare minimum. Despite this, the Intel Pentium Gold 7505 within this Chromebook provides a good performance. Whether it’s web browsing, email reading, or video streaming, you should be able to complete these chores at a respectable pace.
This Chromebook has an increased performance and storage capacity thanks to its eMMC storage.
ChromeOS is a lightweight and ideal OS for productivity and casual computing. It’s perfect for little ones and people who don’t want to download complicated software. The built-in MicroSD card slot allows you to increase the storage capacity if you need more space. Additionally, the fact that ChromeOS runs on it makes it particularly advantageous given that the OS is lightweight and ideal for productivity and casual computing.
Battery life
The Acer Chromebook 514 appears to be sailing along just fine so far, but sadly it stumbles when it comes to battery life. It barely lasted for seven and a half hours in our video loop test before giving up. This costs about half as much as some of the Chromebooks we’ve tested in the past, and a tone of less expensive laptops outperform it as well. If endurance is important to you, it won’t be difficult to locate an alternate laptop that can run for at least 10 hours. However, the Chromebook 514 should last a full working day, making it a viable option for students and office workers as long as the battery is regularly charged. ..
Heat
The Acer Chromebook 514 is not particularly hot, but several areas were too warm for us to tolerate. While in use, its touchpad only reached a comfortable 79 degrees, while its underbelly reached a chilly 85 degrees. Our tests revealed that it reached a maximum temperature of 101 degrees at one point on its underside, which is a little bit higher than our suggested 95-degree comfort threshold. Regardless, during our tests we didn’t notice this Chromebook getting excessively hot. ..
Configuration options
Acer is asking $379 for the device, which offers a better model with an Intel Pentium N4200 processor in place of the Celeron. Given the outdated processor, you might balk at that price, and if you’re satisfied with Windows 10 already, we don’t blame you. You can most definitely get greater power in that pricing range, especially if you’re willing to try out devices with AMD Ryzen processors. ..
The cheapest model costs $400 and has similar specifications to the device we tested. The most costly model, which costs $530 and has 8GB of RAM and 128GB of storage, is available. ..
Acer Chromebook 514 review: Conclusion
The Acer Chromebook 514 is a low-cost laptop that is ideal for people who don’t want anything particularly complex. It boasts a spacious trackpad, a comfortable keyboard, and a vivid screen that doesn’t strain the eyes too much. It won’t blow you away, but it will do its function consistently. Consider whether Chrome OS will have everything you require; keep in mind that some programs, such as the Adobe Creative Suite, won’t be available for download. As this laptop won’t be able to handle extremely heavy workloads or large games, you’ll also want to make sure you don’t need more performance. ..
