In this video, I take a look at the Dell Chromebook 13. A mid-range Chromebook well worth taking a look at and possibly the best combination of price and build quality.
This review as well as some others, were key in my choice of the i5 touch. Just a props to you and your thorough review. My new Dell CB 13 has reinstated ny faith in "GEEK" humanity. :D Thanks for your diligent efforts.
Hey, just discovered your Chromebook reviews. Thanks so much. Great job. You detail and enthusiasm for this platform is great. May I offer one bit of supportive feedback? Perhaps a bit more prep on outline/talking points, and seek to trim the length of the reviews by, say, about 5 minutes. They all come in around 15 and your expertise would shine even more if sharpening/shortening the presentation. But excellent and helpful, thanks!
I agree. I'm constantly caught between giving nice, thorough explanations and being super concise. My aim is to get these reviews down to 8-9 minutes and go from there. I agree with you, though, UA-camrs have pretty short attention spans (me included)!
I would appreciate a reply from you Rob. Im totally lost between the Dell Chromebook 13 and Toshiba's Chromebook 2015 ! Money isn't a problem but I believe Toshiba has a better deal with money/value - What would you recommend ? Which one is a better overall chromebook ? ( Current owner of Toshiba Chromebook but the Baytrail )
You said you might stick with the toshiba chromebook 2? Do you prefer that laptop over the dell? Wouldn't the screen size issue be the same since the two are the same 13.3 inches? Or is it just its overall smaller footprint and lighter weight? Thanks!
I'm thinking of buying either the Pixel or dell 13. My employer will pay for either one. I live in Sweden where the Pixel is not available so I have to get it from the States when I visit later this year, or earlier from ebay. My concern is that if I experience some hardware issues while I'm in Sweden I won't be able to hand it in somewhere in Swede, but will have to send it back to the US. On the other hand, the dell chromebook 13 is available in Sweden and I could get it right away. What should I go for?
My understanding is all the Play Store apps will work with the keyboard and trackpad. I guess a touchscreen would be better if you're big into games, but a touchscreen isn't necessary.
Finally here! Thank you! One question though. When can you tell the difference between 8gb and 4gb of ram on a chromebook? A friend of mine tell me that even 2gb is more than fine.
I'm running a 4 GB Chromebook, and sometimes when I have multiple windows with multiple tabs open, I CAN run out of memory. Especially if any of the tabs are YT videos. In this case 4 GB of memory starts being an issue. But most of the time, 4 GB is plenty. So as long as you don't go crazy like I do sometimes, 4 GB are just fine.
I noticed you removed the blue Intel sticker. How did you remove it and did it leave any residue? Im looking to get this chromebook and plan on removing the stickers but dont want to ruin the palm rest.
Joshua Perez do not buy it, it is the worst laptop every it is slow and can't have more than 4 tabs open at ounce it is lag. Has not storage all in the could and no personal touch it's better to just burn the 260
if native resolution (1080p) is hard for you to read, why don't you just change it a lower one?? Does not make any sense to complain about the small font size :)
What would be the best Chromebook for me? I am going to college next year and want one i can take around. I wouldn't want a small screen tho 13-14 screen would be ideal for me. Would it be smart to get one right now or should I wait till new versions come out before school?
Well if your planning to get it for school wait unless you need to use it now. People say chromebooks are good for school but what I thought about is if you need to use a program not available for chrome os as part of your studies a chromebook can't be used. It depends on what your degree is that'll determine how much of a factor that will be, could see it working for something like history no problem but even if your doing something like psychology, statistics might be involved and you need a pc program. If your degree isn't heavily dependent on pc programs you could get away by using university computers when you need. But that is a reason I can't see a chromebook as anything more than a secondary device even if most of your computer usage is browsing the web and using an office suite because you just don't know when you need your pc.
You can install Ubuntu very easily on this Dell Chromebook 13 if you need to use more programs. All the Dell Chromebook 13 hardware works out of the box on Ubuntu as of 16.04
Mitchell Dixon do not buy it, it is the worst laptop every it is slow and can't have more than 4 tabs open at ounce it is lag. Has not storage all in the could and no personal touch it's better to just burn the 260
Toshiba Chromebook 2 is cheaper for similar specs, but I ordered the Dell instead because there is no touchscreen available for the Toshiba and the touchscreen may come in handy when more Android apps come to Chromebooks. Plus a touchscreen is nice just for scrolling pages and pinch to zoom. I also prefer smooth trackpads to textured trackpads. Premium build quality on the Dell is also nice, but if the Toshiba had a smooth trackpad and touchscreen and was still much cheaper than the Dell, I would have got the Toshiba despite the plastic case. I ordered the Dell i3 with touchscreen and 4GB RAM. I wanted 8 GB just so I could always open as many tabs as I wanted without thinking about it, but the price jump from 4 to 8GB on the Dell web site was way too much money.
Cliff Cameron do not buy it, it is the worst laptop every it is slow and can't have more than 4 tabs open at ounce it is lag. Has not storage all in the could and no personal touch it's better to just burn the 260
That's awesome! Thanks for replying. I would love it if it's possible in a separate video or a written listen of Chromebooks that can have the SSD swapped? Maybe a future video I would that would be a good and informative. Cheers, keep up the great work!!!
Technically, yes you can replace it. It is not a simple procedure unfortunately. It's not considered field replaceable so there is a lot of breakdown involved.
+Torrey Ellison (Highgear1) Power users.... imagine running multiple profiles (at the same time) using lots of extensions and keeping many tabs open. You just need all that RAM.
+Torrey Ellison (Highgear1) i'm a web developer, i connect to servers using google cloud (ssh on browser). UA-cam, news, forums, mail.... I always have an average of 20 tabs open. My toshiba chromebook 2 always end up using swap memory, 4gb is just not enough. If you use chrome on your linux, mac or windows pc, check your memory!!!. Chrome is really fast but it is not afraid of taking advantage of your hardware.
MessengerOfTruth do not buy it, it is the worst laptop every it is slow and can't have more than 4 tabs open at ounce it is lag. Has not storage all in the could and no personal touch it's better to just burn the 260
it is good to see high quality devices to represent the chrome os.
I went with the Core i5. 8GB of RAM model. Very happy with it.
This review as well as some others, were key in my choice of the i5 touch.
Just a props to you and your thorough review.
My new Dell CB 13 has reinstated ny faith in "GEEK" humanity. :D
Thanks for your diligent efforts.
Hey, just discovered your Chromebook reviews. Thanks so much. Great job. You detail and enthusiasm for this platform is great. May I offer one bit of supportive feedback? Perhaps a bit more prep on outline/talking points, and seek to trim the length of the reviews by, say, about 5 minutes. They all come in around 15 and your expertise would shine even more if sharpening/shortening the presentation. But excellent and helpful, thanks!
I agree. I'm constantly caught between giving nice, thorough explanations and being super concise. My aim is to get these reviews down to 8-9 minutes and go from there. I agree with you, though, UA-camrs have pretty short attention spans (me included)!
Still using my 2015 model! Gonna use it until the security updates stop in June 2021.
3 months later... Annnd you still straight rocking that LiveStrong bracelet.
I would appreciate a reply from you Rob. Im totally lost between the Dell Chromebook 13 and Toshiba's Chromebook 2015 ! Money isn't a problem but I believe Toshiba has a better deal with money/value - What would you recommend ? Which one is a better overall chromebook ? ( Current owner of Toshiba Chromebook but the Baytrail )
+Jameel Rahhal Toshiba is better value, but the Dell is the more premium, nicer option for if you can afford to splurge on nice hardware.
In the beginning of the video you mentioned you'd go with the Toshiba Chromebook 2 over this one -- Just wondering why.
Great videos by the way!
can you post a video. showing people how to install a ssd or flash into this machine?
good vid sir, what 128gb ssd did you go with?
You said you might stick with the toshiba chromebook 2? Do you prefer that laptop over the dell? Wouldn't the screen size issue be the same since the two are the same 13.3 inches? Or is it just its overall smaller footprint and lighter weight? Thanks!
chrome unboxed are you planning to sell used Chromebooks?? 50 or 90 bucks less than mkt price???
I don't understand that business about the 1080. So you can't use the full screen to view webpages??
You should review the chromebit.
Will you be doing a Acer chromebook 14 unboxing?
+chrome unboxed are you planning to sell used Chromebooks?? 50 or 90 bucks less than mkt price???
I'm thinking of buying either the Pixel or dell 13. My employer will pay for either one. I live in Sweden where the Pixel is not available so I have to get it from the States when I visit later this year, or earlier from ebay. My concern is that if I experience some hardware issues while I'm in Sweden I won't be able to hand it in somewhere in Swede, but will have to send it back to the US.
On the other hand, the dell chromebook 13 is available in Sweden and I could get it right away.
What should I go for?
The dell seems to be the best choice.
Can you answer a question? Can i install a game capture software, like elgato, or is it not able to use those files? Thanks!
I'm looking at buying one of these. When the Play Store comes to Chromebook, will you need a touch screen version to use the apps?
My understanding is all the Play Store apps will work with the keyboard and trackpad. I guess a touchscreen would be better if you're big into games, but a touchscreen isn't necessary.
Could you do a Dell 11 vs. Dell 13 video?
which has a longer battery life. the dell 13 or the acer r 13.
Finally here! Thank you! One question though.
When can you tell the difference between 8gb and 4gb of ram on a chromebook? A friend of mine tell me that even 2gb is more than fine.
+Stephan Osther Not OP, but I can tell the difference between 2GB and 4GB of ram but not 4GB and 8GB. Cheers.
Thanks.
I'm running a 4 GB Chromebook, and sometimes when I have multiple windows with multiple tabs open, I CAN run out of memory. Especially if any of the tabs are YT videos. In this case 4 GB of memory starts being an issue. But most of the time, 4 GB is plenty. So as long as you don't go crazy like I do sometimes, 4 GB are just fine.
I noticed you removed the blue Intel sticker. How did you remove it and did it leave any residue? Im looking to get this chromebook and plan on removing the stickers but dont want to ruin the palm rest.
Goo Gone. Miracle worker!
Joshua Perez do not buy it, it is the worst laptop every it is slow and can't have more than 4 tabs open at ounce it is lag. Has not storage all in the could and no personal touch it's better to just burn the 260
It is a metal build surrounding the keyboard, or is it plastic?
The metal build surrounds the keyboard.
if native resolution (1080p) is hard for you to read, why don't you just change it a lower one?? Does not make any sense to complain about the small font size :)
What would be the best Chromebook for me? I am going to college next year and want one i can take around. I wouldn't want a small screen tho 13-14 screen would be ideal for me. Would it be smart to get one right now or should I wait till new versions come out before school?
Well if your planning to get it for school wait unless you need to use it now. People say chromebooks are good for school but what I thought about is if you need to use a program not available for chrome os as part of your studies a chromebook can't be used. It depends on what your degree is that'll determine how much of a factor that will be, could see it working for something like history no problem but even if your doing something like psychology, statistics might be involved and you need a pc program. If your degree isn't heavily dependent on pc programs you could get away by using university computers when you need. But that is a reason I can't see a chromebook as anything more than a secondary device even if most of your computer usage is browsing the web and using an office suite because you just don't know when you need your pc.
Thank you so much!
You can install Ubuntu very easily on this Dell Chromebook 13 if you need to use more programs. All the Dell Chromebook 13 hardware works out of the box on Ubuntu as of 16.04
Great videos!
Does the newer version have the 8gb option? I'm so confused haha
what do you do with all these chromebooks after reviewing it?
I think he might return them for a refund
Is it good ?
Wich is the best between the Dell chrombook 13 & the Toshiba Chrombook 2 ?
I'd go with the Dell Chromebook, if it's in your budget. The build quality, and the performance, makes it worth it over the Toshiba.
Thank you dude !
Just bought one :D so good
Have you yet to catch a virus from any of your Chromebooks so far, for as long you have used them?
Is the $70 savings with the Dell 13 comparing the Dell 13 and HP 13 worth it?
Tough call. Look through the comments on the HP 13 review and unboxing. Good conversation there.
Mitchell Dixon do not buy it, it is the worst laptop every it is slow and can't have more than 4 tabs open at ounce it is lag. Has not storage all in the could and no personal touch it's better to just burn the 260
show the performance, man!!
Toshiba Chromebook 2 is cheaper for similar specs, but I ordered the Dell instead because there is no touchscreen available for the Toshiba and the touchscreen may come in handy when more Android apps come to Chromebooks. Plus a touchscreen is nice just for scrolling pages and pinch to zoom.
I also prefer smooth trackpads to textured trackpads.
Premium build quality on the Dell is also nice, but if the Toshiba had a smooth trackpad and touchscreen and was still much cheaper than the Dell, I would have got the Toshiba despite the plastic case.
I ordered the Dell i3 with touchscreen and 4GB RAM. I wanted 8 GB just so I could always open as many tabs as I wanted without thinking about it, but the price jump from 4 to 8GB on the Dell web site was way too much money.
+webcomment any amount of ram above 4gb would be more than you need on a chromebook anyway, it's smart that you didn't waste your money on it!!
Not true.
You can end up using more than 4GB RAM if you open a large amount of tabs on heavy web sites.
Chrome uses a lot of RAM per tab.
Could someone tell me how the keyboard backlight setting was done? What the hot key combo?
+Sandheep Rajendran Alt plus the brightness controls
Anibal Perez thank you. That worked for me.
Set my Chrome OS 'Web Content' settings ('Font Size' of Large and 'Page Zoom' to 125%) to deal with the small print problem mentioned.
Yeah, that helps a lot! :-)
Cliff Cameron do not buy it, it is the worst laptop every it is slow and can't have more than 4 tabs open at ounce it is lag. Has not storage all in the could and no personal touch it's better to just burn the 260
Have already bought it Griffin and am quite happy with what I got.
Cliff Cameron Pay no mind to him. He's just trolling.
can you swap the SSD out of the celeron version?
yep. pretty easy too!
That's awesome! Thanks for replying. I would love it if it's possible in a separate video or a written listen of Chromebooks that can have the SSD swapped? Maybe a future video I would that would be a good and informative.
Cheers, keep up the great work!!!
can i use twitch with a chromebook?
+Adexud Yes as it is web-based. I do not know if it would slow dow though on slower chromebooks.
is the battery replaceable?
Technically, yes you can replace it. It is not a simple procedure unfortunately. It's not considered field replaceable so there is a lot of breakdown involved.
Chrome Unboxed thanks a lot for the quick answer, love your channel btw :)
interesante canal, lo tendré en cuenta
My daily driver is called Mikhail. He drives the bus.
Great reviews but can't make up my mind between this and the hp Chromebook 13 g1....arrggghhh!!!!
craigw73 the g1 has heating issues, go for the dell
Neat!
Why the hell does a Chromebook need 8gb of ram?!?! My Samsung 13.3 CB2 run extremely fast even with the 1080p display
+Torrey Ellison (Highgear1) Power users.... imagine running multiple profiles (at the same time) using lots of extensions and keeping many tabs open. You just need all that RAM.
+Torrey Ellison (Highgear1) i'm a web developer, i connect to servers using google cloud (ssh on browser). UA-cam, news, forums, mail.... I always have an average of 20 tabs open. My toshiba chromebook 2 always end up using swap memory, 4gb is just not enough. If you use chrome on your linux, mac or windows pc, check your memory!!!. Chrome is really fast but it is not afraid of taking advantage of your hardware.
Font too small? Lower the system resolution, done.
+djayjp Lower the resolution and the fonts get fuzzy and blurry and it defeats having the better quality screen.
webcomment Very true, but my point was just that there's an easy fix for small font. I'm not even sure if windows has proper dpi scaling yet
I ended up getting the Dell and I was surprised to find that it handled lowering the resolution very well.
1536x864 still has sharp text.
webcomment Nice! Did you hear about Android apps coming to ChromeOS later this year?
NO WAY!!!..WHY?..I just purchased a LIKE NEW XPS 13 touch for 620. This is at the point where chrome don't get ya home...
Runnningonempty yes but this came out at the time of video and your model of xps prolly didnt..i bought one for 275£ and its awesome
Using chrome os
can you play mincraft
way too wordy. Keep it under 5 minutes dude!
MessengerOfTruth do not buy it, it is the worst laptop every it is slow and can't have more than 4 tabs open at ounce it is lag. Has not storage all in the could and no personal touch it's better to just burn the 260
Griffin Hermans I went with the Acer Switch Alpha 12.
Good enugh for what I use it for. My main is a HP Omni
+chrome unboxed are you planning to sell used Chromebooks?? 50 or 90 bucks less than mkt price???