A cheap laptop with a stonking 11-hour battery life.
At first glance, the Asus Chromebook C200 may not seem very different from the manufacturer’s other budget laptops, except that it runs Chrome OS not Windows 8. But what really sets this apart is its quality. Basically, Asus has made the best Chromebook yet by getting a few key design choices right.
Keyboard design is often overlooked in favour of more eye-catching features, but not here. The C200’s keyboard is one of the best we’ve used. Ihe large keys have plenty of travel and feedback, so typing is fast, accurate and comfortable. The touchpad is also first rate - large, precise and smooth. Although Chrome OS still doesn’t support the otherwise ubiquitous pinch-to-zoom gesture, other basic gestures are recognised, such as swiping two fingers up or dowrn to scroll, and swiping two fingers sideways to go backwards or forwards through pages in the Chrome web browser.