Acer Pushes Premium Chromebooks as Budget Options Persist

Acer used the IFA technology show this week to push Chromebooks further upmarket, unveiling a premium convertible model that it says will deliver long battery life and higher-end components, even as retailers keep heavily discounted refurbished and budget Chromebooks easily within reach for students and casual users. The contrast highlights a split in the Chromebook market between experiments in premium hardware and the enduring appeal of inexpensive, cloud-focused machines.

Acer said the new convertible will ship in North America in October starting at 699. The Spin 514 pairs an ARM-compatible Kompanio Ultra processor with an option for 16 gigabytes of LPDDR5X memory, up to 256 gigabytes of UFS 4.0 storage, and a 2.8K WQXGA IPS touchscreen available with a 120 hertz refresh rate. Acer is promoting up to 17 hours of battery life and a lightweight aluminum chassis with a 360 degree hinge and a broad port selection, including two USB-C ports with DisplayPort support and power delivery, two USB-A ports and a Kensington lock slot.

Some reviewers welcomed the stronger specs and the potential for long runtimes. One writeup noted the device's ports, memory configuration and battery...