Pros
- 14-inch ultrabook design
- Low-power Intel processor
- Wi-Fi 5, USB-C connectivity
- Up to 13 hours of battery life
Cons
- 32GB of eMMC storage
- The screen is not Full HD
Sometimes you don't need a state-of-the-art processor with 8 GB of RAM and a dedicated graphics card. Sometimes you're just looking for a portable laptop with a long-lasting battery life that will allow you to browse the web, edit documents, stream movies and chat with friends.
If that's the case and if you rarely find yourself with more than 10 browser tabs open at any given time then we're happy to inform you that you don't need to spend a fortune on your next laptop, you can get the HP Chromebook 14a-na0021nr instead.
The HP 14a-na0021nr is one of Amazon's best-selling Chromebooks and part of the extremely popular HP Chromebook 14 laptop lineup thanks to its lean price and specs as well as its generally positive reviews that appreciate and see this laptop for what it is: a budget computer for simple tasks and not a powerhouse designed for power users.
Index
- Technical specifications
- Who's it for?
- Design
- Panel
- Performance
- Ports and Connectivity
- Battery Life
- Wrapping up
HP Chromebook 14a-na0021nr Tech Specs
| Make model | HP Chromebook 14a-na0021nr |
| Dimensions | 12.82 x 8.60 x 0.70 inches |
| Weight | 3.21 pounds |
| Panel | LED | Anti-glare | 14 inches | 220 nits |
| Resolution | HD (1366 x 768 pixels) |
| Processor | Intel Celeron N4000 (2 cores up to 2.60 GHz) |
| RAM | 4 GB (LPDDR4) |
| Graphic Controller | Intel UHD Graphics 600 |
| Storage | 32GB (eMMC) |
| Drums | 2 cells (Li-Po) |
| Operating system | Chrome OS |
| Connectivity | Wi-Fi 5 Bluetooth 5.0 USB-A USB-C | DisplayPort 1.2 | Power Delivery (x2) Audio combo jack HD webcam Dual digital microphone microSD card reader |
Who's it for?
The HP Chromebook 14 laptop is specifically geared towards those looking for that ideal computing tool for editing documents, making video calls, browsing the web, watching multimedia, and performing other very undemanding everyday tasks.
Its ultrabook design, complemented by a long-lasting battery, allows you to finish your tasks anywhere , without those mobility and autonomy restrictions associated with your standard 15-inch budget Windows laptops which rarely surpass the 5-hour battery life capacity.
Likewise, its commitment to Chrome OS as an operating system ensures really productive computing sessions, under a modern, intuitive, and, above all, very fluent environment.
Having said that, if you don't mind spending some extra money and would rather work with Windows we would urge you to consider the ASUS VivoBook 15 F512JA-AS34, a laptop that packs an i3 CPU, 8 GB of RAM, 128 GB of SSD storage, a Full HD display and a fingerprint reader amongst many other virtues that have made it a fixture amongst the best-selling laptop lists alongside the ever-popular and slightly cheaper Acer Aspire 5 A515-43-R19L which swaps the 8 GB for 4 GB of RAM.
Design
Following the current aesthetic trends of the market, this notebook bets on a plastic chassis with a silver finish on all its surfaces, except for the black frame of its bezels, which stands out especially for its thin profile ( 0.70 inches ) and light weight ( 3.21 pounds ) which quickly reminds us of a certain fruity laptop manufacturer.
Keyboard and Trackpad
Although it does not have a numeric panel or backlight - typically absent within this price range -, the white QWERTY keyboard incorporated between the two speakers offers a comfortable typing experience, thanks to its moderate key-travel distance ( 1.2 mm ) and spacing of its chiclet keys.
Despite its compact size, the 14a-na0021nr boasts a large trackpad and smooth surface, which guarantees a quick response during daily browsing, and is also compatible with Chrome OS touch gestures.
Panel
Framed by very thin side bezels, the screen on the HP Chromebook 14 reviewed today packs an HD resolution (1366 by 768 pixels) and 14-inch diagonal that will allow you to watch multimedia content, surf the web, and work with a definition, calorimetry, and viewing angles that are acceptable for a budget laptop such as this one but that is far from the screens we see on higher-end Chromebooks like the Lenovo Chromebook Flex 5 (82B80006UX) reviewed a few months back.
For those brightly lit workplaces, this panel features a matte surface and a 220 nit brightness level to counteract uncomfortable reflections.
This is ok but we would've appreciated a 300 nit display. Then again, the display is typically where manufacturers attempt to reduce costs and this screen is proof of that.
The HP Chromebook 14a-na0021nr incorporates the entry-level microchip, Intel Celeron N4000, consisting of 2 real cores, 2 virtual cores, and a 4 MB cache, reaching frequencies of 2.60 GHz at specific demanding moments and keeping a modest 1.1 GHz clock-speed when not.
In addition, thanks to its TDP of just 6W, its energy consumption will not represent any problem, so you will have greater autonomy during your daily workday; while its passive cooling makes it a fairly silent processor as it does not require a dedicated fan.
And to allow you to perform multiple simple tasks at the same time, it has a 4 GB RAM memory (soldered onto the board), running at 2400 MHz through the LPDDR4 architecture, known for its minimal consumption compared to conventional DDR4 memories.
As stated by its buyers , this processor offers the necessary horsepower to carry out such ordinary tasks as: editing documents, spreadsheets and presentations; multi-tabbed web browsing, social media management, easy photo editing, and even 4K (60Hz) video streaming on external displays (though we don't encourage this because the specs are a bit tight for that kind of activity)
Wrapping up the performance segment of this review, HP has opted to implement a 32 GB flash memory module (eMMC), which, although it is insufficient to store big files, stands out for its low consumption and practically non-existent noise level, in relation to typical HDD hard drives.
In any case, you can always opt to use a microSD card to extend the storage and define it as external storage within the Windows settings.
Ports and Connectivity
The selection of connections of this Chromebook is quite varied as it offers you wireless technologies, Bluetooth 5.0 and Wi-Fi 5 the latter operating under high-speed 5 GHz frequencies, compatible with newly released routers that use both 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz bands.
Moving towards the wired connectivity, we appreciate the inclusion of 2 reversible USB-C inputs, with DisplayPort 1.2 and Power Delivery interfaces, to facilitate the connection of monitors and charging of compatible devices in this way.
There's also a USB-A input, the aforementioned microSD reader, a 3.5 mm connector for headphones and microphones, and a webcam with HD resolution and dual digital microphone. Though if we're being totally honest here we would not say this is a good webcam, just a decent one.
Battery-life
Beyond the portability that this laptop offers in terms of size if there's one thing clients have unanimously loved about the 14a-na0021nr is its battery life. Specifically, this HP Chromebook laptop packs a 2-cell battery that promises up to 13 hours of mixed usage and according to users, HP is actually being honest here with many clients pointing to 10+ hours of battery life as the standard in this notebook, something that quite simply blows Windows laptops out of the water.
Verdict: is the HP Chromebook 14a-na0021nr worth buying?
This efficient ultraportable laptop from the HP Chromebook 14 laptop series, represents that ideal work companion for those who are looking for an easy-to-use computer, with the basic features to get through your day without having to deal with the hurdles of an underperforming notebook.
Some of its pros include a manageable design perfect to carry around, a decent processor, an ergonomic keyboard optimized for office editing, unbeatable battery performance, and balanced connectivity which -coupled with a budget-friendly price- lends itself as the perfect notebook for students, teachers, and casual users who aren't looking to program the next Facebook on it but rather to just have a simple go-to laptop for your everyday tasks.