Every other week or so, there seems to be a good Chromebook deal to be had on Amazon and this is one that we’ve seen previously. You can snag what used to be the top-end Acer Chromebook Spin 13 for $699.99 (affiliate link), which is down from its standard $899.99 price. I say “used to be the top-end” model because earlier this week Acer added a Core i5 version of the Spin 13 with 16 GB of RAM and 128 GB of local storage.
Hey, if you need that much hardware under the hood, I say go for it! You’ll need a budget of $999.99, however.
That makes the current Acer Chromebook Spin 13 with the same Intel Core i5-8250U processor and half the memory and eMMC storage that much more appealing at $699.99 for the time being. Acer still sells this model direct at the full MSRP of $899.99.
I reviewed this very configuration of the Acer Chromebook Spin 13 and loved it for the most part. I’m not a fan of fans, but any Chromebook using an Intel U-series chip will likely have one to dissipate heat. And to be honest, I barely noticed the fan when surfing the web, running an occasional Android app or doing what I do for most of the day on my Pixel Slate now: Coding in Linux apps. The Spin 13 was more than powerful enough for all of my tasks; I benchmarked it with an Octane 2.0 score of 36,448, for those who are interested.
Just a recap of what you get, spec-wise, for $699.99:
- Intel Core i5-8250U quad-core processor with 1.60 GHz clock speed
- 8 GB of LPDDR3 memory
- 64 GB of eMMC storage
- A 13.5 inch IPS touchscreen display with 2256 x 1504 resolution and 3:2 aspect ratio
- Intel UHD Graphics 620 with that shares memory with the system
- 360-degree hinge for 2-in-1 usage in tent, display and tablet modes
- An EMR pen that is stowed inside the Chromebook
- 802.11ac Wi-Fi (2×2 MIMO) and Bluetooth 4.2
- A pair of USB Type-C (USB 3.1, Gen 1) ports, a USB Type-A (USB 3.0) port, a microSD card reader, headphone jack, microphone and stereo speakers
- Battery life expectations of up to 10 hours
In my review, I said this, which should tell you how impressed I was with the 2-in-1 laptop:
I’m saving my money for a Pixel Slate, but that’s not because the Acer Chromebook Spin 13 isn’t a viable option. Overall, it’s a great Chromebook with more power than most Chromebook users need; at least in the $899 configuration.
At $899.99, I was on board if there was no Pixel Slate because I felt it was worth every penny. At a price of $699.99? It’s hard to beat.
