Google has upped the ante with its new Pixelbook and more robust Chrome OS. Can the platform take on a stellar Windows 10 laptop?
I've been using both the latest Dell XPS 13, released early 2018, and the Google Pixelbook, released in late 2017. Both are excellent laptops but offer two different approaches to computing.
So, which one is a good fit for you? Read on.
Windows 10 via the Dell XPS 13
Dell's latest XPS 13 is probably the best 13-inch Windows laptop out there right now. I've been using the "alpine" white XPS 13 9370 for about a month now (officially it's called "Rose Gold with Alpine White woven glass fiber palmrest").
The latest XPS 13 still maintains its small overall size courtesy of a thin display bezel: it's as close as a 13.3-inch laptop can get to the size of a typical 12.5-inch class laptop. The 2018 redesign also comes loaded with upgrades including improved fiber material in the palmrest, a new keyboard with more tactile feedback, a fingerprint scanner embedded in the power button, faster Windows Hello face recognition, and a higher-resolution 4K touch display on the top-of-the-line model.
Like many of the newest Windows 10 laptops, it also uses Intel's latest 8th gen quad-core processor, delivering a performance jump of 40 percent or higher over 7th gen Intel dual-core mobile processors.
Battery life is nothing short of incredible. I used it on a one-week road trip recently and it easily lasted all day, sometimes a day and a half.
The config many buyers will likely opt for is $1,200:
- 13.3-inch FHD (1,920-by-1,080) touch display
- 256GB PCIe solid state drive
- 8th Generation Intel i5-8250U-core processor
- 8GB RAM
- Intel UHD Graphics 620.
- 52 WHr battery
- USB Type C ports (total of 3), two of them are Thunderbolt 3, and MicroSD
- 2.68 pounds
- Price: $1,200 ($1,199.99)
Move up to a 4K Ultra HD (3,840-by-2,160) touch display and 512GB of storage and the price jumps to $2,000 ($1,999.99).
Windows 10 is a vast improvement:
Windows 10 is vastly improved over anything Microsoft has offered to date. It's a great gaming platform and of course, runs millions of applications. Many of those applications are crucial, must-haves for users.
I have a bevy of recent (late 2017 or early 2018) Windows 10 laptops that I use constantly and things like facial recognition (Windows Hello) and advanced chassis designs (like those on the XPS 13 and HP Spectre 13) put the platform ahead of the MacBook in those respects.*
But Windows 10 ain't the Chrome OS. With Windows, you still have to deal with the cumbersome update process, malware, and misbehaving applications.
Chrome OS via the Google Pixelbook:
The Pixelbook is a stunningly thin 2-in-1 (convertible with a 360-degree display hinge) design that can match anything the Windows and Mac world can throw at it. It runs all of the apps I use on a Windows laptop or MacBook -- and runs Android apps, too boot.
At a mere 2.4 pounds, it has excellent weight distribution (an underrated metric, imo). Despite this, the all-aluminum chassis feels very solid/durable.
The configuration that I've been using is the late-2017 Pixelbook with a 1.2-GHz Intel Core i5-7Y57 (7th Generation) 8GB of memory and 128GB of storage.
Despite its very-low-power 7th gen Intel processor, the Pixelbook is incredibly fast in day to day use with no lag. I've put it to the test running lots of Chrome tabs, a photo editing app, social media apps, and Microsoft Office/Word (now available on Chrome OS).
The 12.3-inch 2,400-by-1,600 touchscreen display is bright (400 nits) and beautiful. Yes, "beautiful" is subjective and very unscientific. But my impression nonetheless.
Battery life is excellent (all-day), even with its small battery. With intermittent use throughout the day (totaling 4-5 hours each day), it has lasted for two days without needing a recharge.
The config many buyers will likely opt for is $999:
- 12.3-inch 2,400-by-1,600 touchscreen
- 128GB solid state drive
- Intel Core i5-7Y57 (7th Generation)
- 8GB RAM
- 41 WHr battery
- USB Type C ports (total of 2)
- 2.4 pounds
- Price: $999
But what about Chrome OS vs Windows 10 and macOS?
Chrome OS now runs all of the apps that I use on my Windows laptops and MacBook. So, that's just not an issue anymore for me. True, it won't run some popular applications. But that list is getting shorter and shorter.
For me, the mobile app upside is bigger: it runs Android apps (basically all the apps I use on my Pixel 2 phone). The world has gone mobile (in case you haven't noticed) and a laptop that runs smartphone apps is the future.
Also, the Chromebook platform is secure (goodbye malware), stable, easy to use, and self-maintains. The latter point makes a big difference. You're not constantly hassled by updates and reboots. Pretty much everything is taken care of in the background.
The upshot: Chrome OS -- which is cloud-based -- is more like mobile operating systems such as Android and iOS -- a refreshingly clean break from the older DOS/Windows/Mac platforms.
Which works for you?
I think it's safe to say Chrome OS is where desktop (aka laptop) operating systems are headed. Microsoft, in fact, has designed Windows 10 S (or the S Mode) for that very reason -- to compete with Chrome OS.
As I said above, I find Chrome OS a very refreshing -- and necessary -- break from traditional operating systems. One of the telltale signs of its superior design is efficiency. A Chromebook with a relatively low-end processor is very fast. And you don't need tons of RAM or a ginormous hard drive. I still use an HP Chromebook with a 32GB solid-state drive that isn't even half full. Plus, Chromebooks are cheap, typically costing from $200 to $600.
And Windows 10? You can't argue with success -- and the need for legacy software. Windows is still by far the most widely-used desktop OS globally and, as I said above, runs business applications that are absolutely essential for millions of businesses worldwide. Not to mention gaming. So, if you fall into one of these groups, Chrome OS probably won't be a fit.
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*That said, I use a 15-inch MacBook Pro mid-2017 as my daily driver so there are strengths and weaknesses on both platforms.
