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Best early Chromebook deals for Prime Day 2024

0
PC World 

Amazon is gearing up for its Prime Big Deal Days this October, and some early Chromebook sales are already sneaking out.

Beginning October 8, Amazon will launch Prime Big Deal Days, the fall version of its Prime Day event each summer. Our Prime Big Deal Days hub offers deals in all sorts of categories, including special, one-off deals as they roll in. On this page, I’ll collects the best Prime Big Deal Days sales on Chromebooks, with deals from budget to premium models. Using our recommendations for the best Chromebooks as a guide, I explain all my choices.

I’ve worked as a consumer tech editor for 30 years and I’ve been at PCWorld for the last decade. During that time, I’ve been responsible for compiling the best Chromebook deals for Prime Day, Black Friday, and more, and I’ve done deep reporting on the Chromebook ecosystem. I’m confident I can find the best Chromebook bargains for you.

To compile PCWorld’s list of Chromebook deals for Prime Big Deal Days, I looked at the specifications, price, pricing history, the manufacturer, and any reviews we’ve published on a specific Chromebook. I even looked at what deals are being offered by Amazon’s competitors. Read on for all the best Chromebook deals.

First published on Sept. 24, 2024. Last updated on Sept. 24, 2024.

Best early Prime Big Deal Days deals on bargain Chromebooks

Best early Prime Big Deal Days deals on midrange to premium Chromebooks

The Asus C424 deal at Amazon is surprisingly good, pre-Prime Day. It’s a good all-around Chromebook at a surprising sub-$200 price. It’s clearly the best deal right now. HP’s deal at Best Buy looks somewhat similar, but I don’t like 768p screens unless the price is excellent, and at $160 it’s an okay price, but not great.

I think that the Lenovo Chromebook deal is quite good, for the price. Aside from the iffy 4GB of RAM, this is a very good Chromebook for the price. The discount isn’t much to speak of, but I think that you’ll be buying quite a lot for a reasonable price. I had to add the Asus deal from Walmart, but there’s an interesting caveat: The screen is monstrous, the size of a desktop display at 17 inches. But the weight — if correctly listed — is a relative brick at 5 pounds. You’ll want to leave this on a desk.

Midrange/premium Chromebook deals are a little skimpy right now, and Amazon can’t keep up with its competitors at the moment. You’re paying a bit more for the Chromebook Plus CX3402 to get a Chromebook with a 13th-gen Core chip inside it. (We’re moving onto the 14th- and 15th-gen Core chips now.) But that’s an otherwise ideal mix of features, with the 1080p display and 8GB of RAM I look for. The Spin 512 nudges the display quality a bit higher, but there’s also a decent price premium attached to it, too.

Do be aware that the Duet 3 is a tablet, and not a traditional clamshell Chromebook.

Chromebook FAQ

1.

How much should I pay for a Chromebook during Prime Big Deal Days?

Expect to pay between $170 to $250 or so, depending on the configuration. You’ll see bargain-basement options below $100 and more premium versions will cost $300 and above. We’ve used that advice for the past few years, and even with inflation that still seems to hold true.

While some of the early Chromebook deals were pretty solid, the best deals are usually reserved for the Prime

2.

How will I know a good deal on a Prime Big Deal Days Chromebook?

I always start first with the screen, preferring a large 1080p display if the deal offers it. I also look for at least 8GB of RAM to maximize the available open tabs in a web browser and run necessary apps. I worry less about the microprocessor, as Chrome OS is lightweight and can run on an Intel Pentium and Celeron chip, an AMD chip, or Arm chips from Qualcomm and Mediatek. Anything powered by an Intel Core chip or AMD Ryzen (not an A-series) chip should deliver solid performance.

It’s a little trickier now since Chromebooks are now supported for ten years and some manufacturers see that as a green light to dump ancient hardware. That’s the sort of thing I keep a wary eye upon. These produce what I call “trap” bargains. Here’s one: a Samsung 12.2-inch Chromebook, which at press time was 25% off for $300. The trap: the processor was discontinued seven years ago. Nope.

3.

What aspects should I consider in a Chromebook?

Generally, Chromebooks tend to fall into three categories: ultracheap models at about $100 to $200, which can offer solid discounts but can hide gotchas like a subpar screen; the typical midrange price of between $250 and $400; and premium Chromebooks at $500 or more. The latter are essentially PC laptops with Google’s Chrome OS on top, and might be too expensive for your tastes.

Our story recommending Chromebooks over Windows laptops may help you decide, as might our recommendations for the best Chromebooks. We have a more detailed comparison of laptops versus Chromebooks, too.

Chromebooks used to cut corners, especially where deals are concerned. Some still do. This $209 Asus Chromebook at Target uses an eight-year-old processor from 2016. I don’t want you to buy ancient hardware that won’t run well, so I pay attention to this. I also tend to avoid “renewed” hardware in favor of new, out-of-the-box devices.

I like to focus on the screen first, choosing deals that offer large, eye-pleasing 1080p displays. (A 768p screen can work, but it can be grainy). I like Chromebooks with at least 8GB of memory, but I’m less particular about the type of processor. You don’t need an Intel Core or AMD Ryzen chip, though you will see those in more premium Chromebooks. Arm chips from Qualcomm, Samsung, or Mediatek are more typical and offer longer battery life and decent performance. For a Chromebook, that’s enough.

Google Chrome OS-powered notebooks have a support window. Once closed, they will not receive any additional features, patches, security, or OS updates. However, Google recently extended this support window to a full 10 years, which really opens up the possibilities.

4.

Are the best Chromebook deals during Prime Day at Amazon?

Amazon would like to think so. But if we relied solely on Amazon’s deals, you’d miss out! Many retails offers competitive deals during Prime Days (or Prime Big Deal Days) and the week that event takes place. If we find a Chromebook deal from another retailer, we’ll include it.

5.

Does a Chromebook’s brand matter?

No. You may have a particular preference, but all Chromebooks that we cover are made by hardware makers with trusted reputations like HP, Samsung, Asus, and so on. If you trust a laptop brand, its Chromebooks should be equally trustworthy.