Chromebooks made by 10 manufacturers are sold as of June 10, 2025. •
Acer Inc. •
Asus •
Dell •
Fujitsu Client Computing Limited: Only sold in Japan. •
HP Inc. •
Lenovo •
LG Electronics: Only sold in South Korea. •
NEC: Only sold in Japan. •
Samsung Electronics •
Sharp Corporation: Only sold in Japan. Further, there are four manufacturers that ended making Chromebooks before 2022. •
AOpen •
Haier •
Hisense •
Toshiba Google Cr-48 At a December 7, 2010, press briefing, Google announced the ChromeOS Pilot Program, a
pilot experiment and the first Chromebook, the Cr-48 Chrome Notebook, a
prototype, to test the ChromeOS operating system and modified hardware for it. The device had a minimal design and was all black, completely unbranded although it was made by
Inventec, and had a rubberized coating. The device was named after
Chromium-48, an
unstable isotope of the metallic element Chromium (chemical symbol
Cr), and the participants were named Cr-48 Test Pilots. Google distributed about 60,000 Cr-48 Chrome Notebooks between December 2010 and March 2011 for free to participants and in return asked for feedback such as suggestions and bug reports. The Cr-48 was intended for testing only, not retail sales. The Cr-48's hardware design broke convention by replacing certain keys with shortcut keys, such as the function keys, and replacing the caps lock key with a dedicated search key (now called the "Everything Button"), which can be changed back to caps lock in the OS's keyboard settings. Google addressed complaints that the operating system offers little functionality when the host device is not connected to the Internet, demonstrated an offline version of
Google Docs, and announced a
3G plan that would give users 100 MB of free data each month, with additional paid plans available from Verizon. The device's USB port is capable of supporting a keyboard, mouse,
Ethernet adapter, or USB storage, but not a printer, as ChromeOS offers no
print stack. Adding further hardware outside of the previously mentioned items will likely cause problems with the operating system's "self knowing" security model. Users instead were encouraged to use a secure service called
Google Cloud Print to print to legacy printers connected to their desktop computers, or to connect an
HP ePrint, Kodak Hero, Kodak ESP, or Epson Connect printer to the Google Cloud Print service for a "cloud aware" printer connection. The Cr-48 prototype laptop gave reviewers their first opportunity to evaluate ChromeOS running on a device. Ryan Paul of
Ars Technica wrote that the machine "met the basic requirements for Web surfing, gaming, and personal productivity, but falls short for more intensive tasks." He praised Google's approach to security but wondered whether mainstream computer users would accept an operating system whose only application is a browser. He thought ChromeOS "could appeal to some niche audiences": people who just need a browser or companies that rely on
Google Apps and other
Web applications. But the operating system was "decidedly not a full-fledged alternative to the general purpose computing environments that currently ship on netbooks." Paul wrote that most of ChromeOS's advantages "can be found in other software environments without having to sacrifice native applications." In ongoing testing, Wolfgang Gruener, also writing in
Conceivably Tech, said that cloud computing at cellular data speeds is unacceptable and that the lack of offline ability turns the Cr-48 "into a useless brick" when not connected. "It's difficult to use the Chromebook as an everyday device and give up what you are used to on a Mac/Windows PC, while you surely enjoy the dedicated cloud computing capabilities occasionally." The Cr-48 features an Intel Atom N455, a single-core processor clocked at 1.66 GHz, with 512 KB of cache and hyperthreading enabled. It also features 2 GB of removable DDR3 memory in a single SO-DIMM, integrated chipset graphics (Intel GMA 3150), and a 66 watt-hour battery. It has been found that the Intel NM10 chipset can get very hot during operation due to lack of a proper heatsink, but this has been fixed in production Chromebooks.
Pixel Launched by Google in February 2013, the Chromebook Pixel was the high-end machine in the Chromebook family. The laptop has an unusual 3:2 display aspect ratio touch screen featuring what was at its debut the highest
pixel density of any laptop, a faster CPU than its predecessors in the
Intel Core i5, and an exterior design described by
Wired as "an austere rectangular block of aluminum with subtly rounded edges". A second Pixel featuring
LTE wireless communication and twice the storage capacity was shipped for arrival on April 12, 2013. The machine received much media attention, with many reviewers questioning the Pixel's value proposition compared to similarly priced Windows machines and the
MacBook Air.
Pixelbook In 2017, Google launched the Pixelbook to replace the Chromebook Pixel. Like the Chromebook Pixel, the Pixelbook has a 3:2 aspect ratio touchscreen with a high pixel density 12.3" display. Unlike the original Chromebook Pixel but like the second generation, the Pixelbook excludes an option for LTE. Instead, it implements Google's "instant tethering", which automatically tethers a Pixelbook to a Pixel phone's mobile connection.
Pixelbook Go Announced in October 2019, The Pixelbook Go was released as a budget version of the Pixelbook, notable for its comparatively low price of $649 and light weight of 2.1 pounds. A version with a 4K display and Intel Core i7 processor followed in December.
Samsung Samsung Series 5 Series 5 Reviewing the Samsung Series 5 specifications, Scott Stein of
CNET was unimpressed with a machine with a 12-inch screen and just 16 GB of onboard storage. "Chrome OS might be lighter than Windows XP, but we'd still prefer more media storage space. At this price, you could also get an Wi-Fi AMD E-350-powered ultraportable running Windows 7." On the other hand, MG Siegler of
TechCrunch wrote a largely favorable review, praising the improvements in speed and touchpad sensitivity over the CR-48 prototype, as well as the long battery life and the fact that all models are priced below the iPad. In June 2011,
iFixit dismantled a Samsung Series 5 and concluded that it was essentially an improved Cr-48. They rated it as 6/10 for repairability, predominantly because the case has to be opened to change the battery and because the RAM chip is soldered to the motherboard. iFixit noted that the "mostly-plastic construction" felt "a little cheap". On the plus side they stated that the screen was easy to remove and most of the components, including the
solid-state drive, would be easy to replace. iFixit's Kyle Wiens wrote that the Series 5 "fixes the major shortfalls of the Cr-48 and adds the polish necessary to strike lust into the heart of a broad consumer base: sleek looks, 8+ hours of battery life, and optimized performance."
Samsung Series 5 550 In May 2012, Samsung introduced the Chromebook Series 5 550, with a Wi-Fi model and more expensive 3G model. Reviews generally questioned the value proposition. Dana Wollman of
Engadget wrote that the Chromebook's keyboard "put thousand-dollar Ultrabooks to shame" and offered better display quality than on many laptops selling for twice as much. But the price "seems to exist in a vacuum—a place where tablet apps aren't growing more sophisticated, where Transformer-like Win8 tablets aren't on the way and where there aren't some solid budget Windows machines to choose from." Joe Wilcox of BetaNews wrote that "price to performance and how it compares to other choices" is "where Chromebook crumbles for many potential buyers." He noted that the new models sell for more than their predecessors, and while the price-performance ratio is quite favorable compared to the MacBook Air, "by the specs, there are plenty of lower-cost options."
Samsung Series 3 In October 2012, the Series 3 Chromebook was introduced at a San Francisco event with the Samsung Chromebook XE303. The device was cheaper, thinner and lighter than the Chromebook 550. Google marketed the Series 3 as the computer for everyone, due to its simple operating system (ChromeOS) and affordable price. Target markets included students and first-time computer users, as well as households looking for an extra computer. The lower price proved a watershed for some reviewers. New York Times technology columnist
David Pogue reversed his earlier thumbs-down verdict on the Chromebook, writing that "$250 changes everything." The price is half that of an "iPad, even less than an iPad Mini or an iPod Touch. And you’re getting a laptop." He wrote that the Chromebook does many of the things people use computers and laptops for: playing flash videos, and opening
Microsoft Office documents. "In other words, Google is correct when it asserts that the Chromebook is perfect for schools, second computers in homes and businesses who deploy hundreds of machines."
CNET's review of the Series 3 Chromebook was even more favorable, saying the machine largely delivered as a computer for students and as an additional computer for a household—especially for users who are already using Google Web applications like Google Docs, Google Drive, and Gmail. "It's got workable if not standout hardware, its battery life is good, it switches on quickly, and the $249 price tag means it's not as much of a commitment as the $550 Samsung Series 5 550 that arrived in May." The review subtracted points for performance. "It's fine for many tasks, but power users accustomed to having more than a couple dozen browser tabs open should steer clear." thinner (0.7"),
Samsung Chromebook 4 and 4+ In October 2019, Samsung announced the Chromebook 4 (11.6") and 4+ (15.6") models. Both continue the budget model Chromebook line with a dual core Intel Celeron N4000 processor. The 4+ has a larger display and has model choices up to 6 GB RAM. Reviews praised the cheap price and comfortable keyboard but criticized the terrible displays.
Samsung Galaxy Chromebook 2 The follow-on to the Galaxy Chromebook, the Galaxy Chromebook 2 was introduced in 2021. With a cheaper price, lower FHD QLED display, lower Core i3 processor, and no stylus, it is largely a downgrade from the previous model. It is intended that these changes improve the battery life.
HP HP's first Chromebook, and the largest Chromebook on the market at that time, was the Pavilion 14 Chromebook launched February 3, 2013. It had an Intel Celeron 847 CPU and either 2 GB or 4 GB of RAM. Battery life was not long, at just over 4 hours, but the larger form factor made it more friendly for all-day use. HP introduced the Chromebook 11 on October 8, 2013, in the US. In December 2013, Google and HP recalled 145,000 chargers due to overheating. Sales were halted, resuming with a redesigned charger the following month. The HP Chromebook 14 was announced September 11, 2013 with an Intel Haswell Celeron processor, USB 3.0 ports, and 4G broadband. An updated version of the Chromebook lineup was announced on September 3, 2014. The 11-inch models included an Intel processor while the 14-inch models featured a fanless design powered by a
Nvidia Tegra K1 processor. HP Chromebooks are available in several colors. == Desktop variants ==