Asus Chromebook CM34 Flip review: 19 hours of battery life for $499

Price When Reviewed

$499

Best Prices Today: Asus Chromebook CM34 Flip

It’s no secret that I’m an enormous fan of Chromebooks. I like the simple nature of them. I like the shortage of bells and whistles, which fits me simply high-quality as a result of I primarily use mine as a piece machine. Nowadays, Chromebooks are available in nearly each sort of selection, from gaming machines to luxurious convertibles. Although convertible Chromebooks, aka 2-in-1s, aren’t new to the tech world, there are a few actual standouts. Asus’ new Chromebook CM34 Flip is one such instance.

The CM34 Flip is an effective laptop computer for the on a regular basis individual. You’ll discover AMD {hardware} below the hood in addition to a touch-enabled show with skinny bezels, a 360-degree hinge, and phenomenal battery life. As far as options and functionalities go, this particular machine checks off plenty of containers. Having used varied Chromebooks for the final couple of years or so (I take into account myself to be well-versed on this class), I can confidently say that the CM34 Flip is properly well worth the cash. Let’s get into it.

Looking for extra choices? Check out PCWorld’s roundup of the best Chromebooks accessible proper now.

Asus Chromebook CM34 Flip: Specs and options

Our evaluation unit got here geared up with an AMD R3-7320C CPU, AMD Radeon graphics, 16GB of RAM, and 128GB of PCIe SSD storage. It comes within the Ponder Blue colour scheme, which is fairly enticing. There’s only one configuration, which is designed with on a regular basis duties in thoughts. Check out the bulleted listing under for extra data on the specs and options:

• Display: 14-inch 1920×1200 touchscreen, 60Hz, 16:10, 300 nits

• Ports: 2 USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-C, 1 USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-A, 1 HDMI 2.1, 1 3.5mm audio jack, 1 Kensington lock slot, 1 microSD card reader

• Wireless: Wi-Fi 6 (802.11ax) (Dual band) 2*2 + Bluetooth 5.3 wi-fi card

Asus Chromebook CM34 Flip: Design and construct high quality

IDG / Ashley Biancuzzo

The darkish blue colour scheme is unquestionably delicate, however that’s not essentially a foul factor. There’s an air of sophistication right here. I do know I wouldn’t thoughts bringing this laptop computer to an necessary enterprise assembly. It’s not ugly, per se, however possibly only a contact on the boring facet. We function in a world of grey rectangular containers, so I like seeing a pleasant pop of colour every so often, even when that colour is extra understated. It’s nonetheless a pleasant contact.

What shocked me was the load of the machine. For a convertible laptop computer, it’s fairly heavy. When I eliminated it from the field, I might really feel all 4 kilos of it weighing down my arms. That’s not what I used to be anticipating. While I used to be dissatisfied within the basic heaviness, it will get brownie factors for sturdiness, because it undoubtedly feels well-made. When I flipped the display screen round 360 levels, the hinge holding the display screen to the remainder of the laptop computer was good and tight. I didn’t discover any creaking within the keyboard deck, both.

Asus Chromebook CM34 Flip: Keyboard and trackpad

IDG / Ashley Biancuzzo

Overall, the keyboard is sweet to make use of. It’s a full-sized backlit keyboard that enables for 1.4mm of journey. I’m of the thoughts that if I take advantage of a keyboard lengthy sufficient, I’ll get accustomed to it no matter whether or not it stinks or not. Fortunately, this keyboard is fairly good for a laptop computer keyboard. I like that it’s full-sized, which leaves a superb quantity of area between the keys and the backlighting is sweet for typing in low-light environments. It doesn’t embrace a numpad, however that’s extra frequent on gaming laptops.

The touchpad is phenomenal, nonetheless. It measures 5.55-inches and it sits proper within the middle of the keyboard deck. It registered my faucets and swipes with ease. I might additionally zoom out and in in a single clean, seamless movement. If there have been any misfires, they have been few and much between. I discovered that I tailored to it instantly.

Asus Chromebook CM34 Flip: Display, audio

IDG / Ashley Biancuzzo

I actually just like the show’s 16:10 side ratio in addition to the ultra-slim bezels. You’re getting a superb quantity of display screen right here. I discovered that it was tremendous straightforward for me to scroll by way of an extended article I used to be modifying. It’s additionally a superb display screen for watching Netflix, YouTube movies, and so forth. When I watched the trailer for the brand new Barbie film, the assorted shades of pink in Barbie’s fantastically outrageous world have been each vibrant and sharp. By the way in which, the show incorporates a decision of 1920×1080 and a refresh price of 60Hz. That’s completely appropriate for general-purpose use or workplace work.

My solely gripe with the show is that it’s tremendous reflective in outdoors environments. I wish to work from my deck on good days, however it’s virtually not possible to take action with the Flip as a result of it’s so tough to see the show below direct daylight. In time period of brightness, it measures about 300 nits, which is ok for indoor however outdoors is one other story. That stated, this isn’t uncommon for touchscreen laptops. If you don’t sometimes use your laptop computer outdoors, you then most likely received’t ever encounter this downside.

I don’t take into account myself a lot of an audiophile, however even I can respect clear-sounding audio system. The Flip is outfitted with Harman Kardon-certified audio system, which have a little bit of a punch to them (that’s a superb factor). I’m a baby of the ’90s, so I’ve acquired a fastidiously curated playlist taking part in always. When I began taking part in music from The Cranberries, Dolores O’Riordan’s (RIP) highly effective vocals sounded crisp and full. I’d say the audio system are highly effective sufficient to fill a medium-sized room with sound.

Asus Chromebook CM34 Flip: Webcam

The 1080p webcam is a pleasant perk, that’s for certain. With so many individuals working from dwelling (hello!) nowadays, it simply is smart to equip laptops with 1080p webcams as a substitute of the cheaper 720p fare. Frankly, I don’t need to look grainy in videoconferencing calls. Overall, I used to be happy with the standard of this webcam. Colors regarded wealthy and heat, and I didn’t discover any blurring round my face. Background particulars have been comparatively clear, too.

Asus Chromebook CM34 Flip: Connectivity

IDG / Ashley Biancuzzo

The Flip has a pleasant choice of ports. You’re getting one HDMI 2.1, two USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-C, one USB 3.2 Gen 2 Type-A, one audio jack, one microSD card reader, and one Kensington lock slot. That’s a superb selection proper there, so that you don’t really want to maintain an adapter with you. This is nice information for these occasions while you need to plug in an exterior mouse or monitor.

Asus Chromebook CM34 Flip: Performance

The Flip is without doubt one of the first to incorporate AMD’s new line of Chromebook-specific CPUs. The AMD Ryzen 3 7320C CPU incorporates 4 cores and eight threads, which implies it’s able to dealing with a number of duties and purposes without delay. I didn’t discover a lot slowdown after I was leaping from tab to tab throughout the browser. However, it’s necessary to taper your expectations, because it’s not the strongest performer on the market. It’s higher than these with Snapdragon CPUs, certain, however it’s not going to carry out just like the Acer Chromebook Spin 514, which boasts an AMD Ryzen 5 5625C.

The Spin 514 has a CPU with six cores and 12 threads, which implies it’s extra highly effective within the processing division. The extra cores, the higher. However, the Spin can be dearer attributable to that {hardware}. The Flip can deal with on a regular basis duties simply high-quality and if that’s all you’re on the lookout for, then it received’t disappoint. Here’s how the Asus Chromebook CM34 Flip carried out in our browser-based benchmarks:

• CrXPRT 2: 148
• Speedometer: 73.7
• Basemark Web 3.0: 725.03
• Kraken: 716.7
• Jetstream 2: 171.377

The Acer Chromebook Spin 514, for instance, earned a rating of 210 in our Speedometer benchmark, which measures the responsiveness of internet purposes. The Flip, alternatively, scored simply 73.7. If I needed to guess, it’s seemingly because of the Flip’s CPU, which doesn’t have as many cores or threads. In real-world use, I’m unsure you’d discover that a lot of a distinction between the machines so far as efficiency goes, except you deliberately run the Flip into the bottom by overwhelming it with a bunch of open tabs and purposes. It’s not a robust Windows machine, however then once more it’s not attempting to be.

Asus Chromebook CM34 Flip: Battery life

The Flip lasted a jaw-dropping 19 hours on a single cost, which is positively wild. In truth, I ended up operating the benchmark twice as a result of I used to be so shocked by the consequence and felt the necessity to confirm it. Here at PCWorld, we run the CrXPRT 2 battery benchmark on Chromebooks, which cycles by way of varied duties till the laptop computer dies. The Flip’s 60 watt hour battery is a bigger dimension, so I anticipated it to succeed in the 10 hour mark, however the remaining consequence exceeded my expectations. If you’re on the hunt for a long-lasting on a regular basis machine, you actually can’t get significantly better than this. Holy cow.

Asus Chromebook CM34 Flip: Should you purchase it?

With its vibrant touchscreen, 2-in-1 kind issue, and implausible battery life, the Flip has rather a lot to supply at this value level. It’s a superb possibility for faculty college students or those that simply want an on a regular basis machine. The touchpad is spacious and the 1080p webcam captures clear, colourful video. It’s heavier than most convertible laptops, which can be a deal-breaker to some people. You could find yourself with a sore shoulder in case you plan on lugging it round day after day. That stated, in case you don’t thoughts the extra heft, it’s a very good worth purchase.