Lenovo N21 Chromebook 80MG0001US 11.6-inch

One review on Lenovo N21 Chromebook 80MG0001US 11.6-inch

by Julianna on December 28, 2015

Pros


English keyboard
matte colouring, not a fingerprint magnet
Fast!
Carry handle is a plus
Excellent battery 9 hours

Cons

Charging plug is very small
Not able to charge through USB

Summary

The English keyboard is important to me, and this has the English only keyboard. I was concerned about the 1MB Cache, thinking it would be lethargic with all actions, but it is NOT! I find that pages open quickly, comparatively to my gen 1 hp chromebook (the one with the blue trim around the keyboard). This machine is very quick in all aspects of function. The N21 is lighter than my hp “snow white gen 3, 11.6” ” book. It is noticeable in the back pack. It is heavier than my gen 1 hp chromebook, but does not feel as fragile. The screen does have a slight bluish tinge to it but it is not bothersome…to me anyway. The screen is matte and is wonderful on the patio at the local cafe’. I get 9 hours when I turn the screen brightness down to 25%. It doesn’t matter if that is watching videos, surfing, writing or whatever. The keyboard is really great. Lenovo still has a way of making them feel great. The trackpad works really well and this surprised me. I usually use a wireless mouse, but found myself using the trackpad one morning and was pleasantly surprised at how well it works. It is large and comfortable to use, which is very different than that of the gen 1 hp, and the Acer C710.
This N21 is all plastic, but it is quite rigid and strong, as I found out after dropping my backpack and having a bicycle run over it. No issues. The rotating camera is interesting; it has good ambient lighting but lacks some definition (which for me is a plus to hide the wrinkles). Not terrible at all. On Hangouts video, no one has complained about the image, lighting or volume/microphone. All of those work sooo much better than that of the Acer C710. The speakers are decent, not powerful, but clear, with enough bass to sound accurate. The hinges are stiff and do not let the screen wobble at all when typing aggressively. Very nice.
The whole machine feels solid when in the hands. The large bezel surrounding the screen is for me, a tell-tale sign of the sturdiness this machine offers. I don’t mind it at all.
This chromebook is the one so far, that is always ending up in the backpack and travelling to and from wherever I go.
The fine people at NCIX were awesome when answering questions about the machine for me, even though it is a Chromebook. I am a stickler for quality and detail; this machine makes me happy.