The Premium Chromebook Experience: A Review of the Asus C 436

For starters, what does it mean to be a premium Chromebook? In this case, the Asus C 436 embodies the concept with its magnesium alloy build, making it both lightweight and sturdy. Weighing in at just 2.5 pounds (1.1 kilograms), this laptop is designed to be portable and easy to carry around. The aluminum construction gives it a premium feel, setting it apart from those plastic cheap models that are commonly found in the market.

The display on the C 436 is a full HD screen with a glossy coating, which provides decent brightness but also suffers from reflection issues due to its smooth finish. The 2-in-1 design allows you to switch seamlessly between laptop and tablet modes, making it perfect for those who want flexibility in their computing experience. The touchpad supports gestures and has a comfortable full-size keyboard with backlighting, providing an excellent typing experience.

The fingerprint reader on the device is located at the top of the screen, allowing for quick and secure biometric authentication. It's worth noting that some users might find it confusing at first, as they initially thought it was the power button, but fortunately, the power button is located on the left side of the device with a volume rocker. The speakers are positioned in various locations, including two on each side and two at the top between the 360-degree hinges, providing clear audio in any position.

The Asus C 436 supports active pens, although it doesn't come bundled with one. However, users can still access Google Keep directly from the lock screen, allowing them to take notes or other actions instantly without having to unlock the device fully. This feature adds a layer of convenience to the overall experience.

One significant factor contributing to the premium price tag is the powerful hardware inside. The device comes equipped with a 10th Gen Intel Core i3 processor, 8 gigs of memory, and an NVMe SSD providing ample storage for your files and applications. While not everyone may need such high-end components, this level of performance ensures smooth operations even during resource-intensive tasks like gaming.

In terms of heat management, the fan in the C 436 kept temperatures under control even when put through rigorous testing, including gaming sessions. The fan noise was barely noticeable, allowing users to work without distractions.

The webcam is a decent feature on the device, capable of producing video quality that's fine as long as there's sufficient lighting and connection stability. Unfortunately, it lacks LTE connectivity, which might be seen as a drawback for some users who rely heavily on mobile data.

Wi-Fi 6 support provides future-proofing for those who want to stay connected with the latest network standards. Charging is quick, delivering up to four hours of runtime from just 30 minutes of charging, and both USB-C ports on each side offer flexibility in terms of connectivity options.

Battery life is a mixed bag, providing around 10 hours and 43 minutes of streaming video use but falling short of other Chromebooks with similar specifications. However, the actual battery life in general use can vary depending on display brightness and usage patterns.

If budget is not an issue, the Asus C 436 offers a premium 2-in-1 experience that justifies its higher price point. While some might find it unnecessary to spend such a significant amount on a Chromebook, for those seeking the best of the best in terms of build quality, performance, and features, this device is certainly worth considering.

"WEBVTTKind: captionsLanguage: enthis is the Asus Chromebook flip C 436 now if you're saying yourself hey that doesn't look like the generic commodity Chromebook I'm used to seeing well that's because it is it this is considered a premium Chromebook it's actually a two and one and at $800 it's more premium per premium premium er just more premium it's more premium than we're used to seeing in the category so usually a premium Chromebook is about four hundred five hundred dollars and this one starts at eight hundred so what exactly does it mean to be a premium Chromebook well for starters this one is made from magnesium alloy so it's a nice lightweight but still sturdy build compared to those plastic cheap models that you're used to seeing so on top of that the magnesium alloy makes it really lightweight it only weighs two and a half pounds of 1.1 kilograms so you're not going to notice this when you're traveling around with it in your bag so when you go and you lift the lid you've got a nice full HD display here unfortunately while the display does get pretty bright you're you're still dealing with a lot of reflections off the screen because of that glossy coating but that's pretty much par for the course with displays these days anyway it is a two and one so you can turn it back and forth like that anyway you get a big smooth touchpad down here with gesture support and comfortable full-size chrome keyboard and it's backlit too which isn't typical of cheaper Chromebooks there's not a lot of key travel while typing but they do have a satisfying pop enos to them and up in the right corner here is a fingerprint reader to unlock the Chromebook now at first I thought it was the power button too but that's actually here on the left side with a volume rocker there are four speakers one on each side and two at the top between the 360 degree hinges so you have clear audio in any position and they sound decent at moderate levels just don't turn them up too loud now since it is a two in one you can use it as a tablet and it does support usi active pens it's just that Asus doesn't include one so add that to your purchase price if you want one Asus does include a padded sleeve so that's something another nice feature is that if you do go ahead and get the pen you can access Google keep straight from the lock screen which means you can instantly just take notes or whatever you want and then go back to the lock screen and it will save to your system to your Google keep account so you don't have to worry about losing it now a big reason this one is more expensive is because of the components inside this one has a 10th gen intel core i3 processor in it 8 gigs of memory and 128 gig SSD nvme SSD inside now you can spend $1000 and get it with a core i5 16 gigs of memory and a 512 GB SSD which is a lot of components for a Chromebook you probably don't need that most people will be fine getting the core i3 model that I tested it didn't really slow down while I was using it ever and that included while I was gaming so all in all this is going to fit the needs of most buyers and if you're concerned about heat don't worry too much the fan in here actually kept it pretty cool even when I was gaming and it didn't even get too loud you can definitely work and not be too distracted by the fan noise also if you're one of the many that suddenly need to use your webcam to get through the workday the C 436 has a decent one at the top of the display video quality from it is fine as long as you have plenty of light and shrunk connection this does have Wi-Fi 6 by the way which is a premium bit of future-proofing no option for LTE though which is kind of a bummer considering Chrome's best when it has a web connection but really the biggest issue you might have with this model aside from the price of course is the battery life I've got 10 hours and 43 minutes of runtime on our streaming video tests which is good but in general use you're looking at more like 6 hours of straight use but that's going to depend on your display brightness what you're doing still it's not bad but something like a sirs Chromebook 7:14 lasts a couple hours longer with similar specs it does charge quickly though getting you up to four hours on a 30-minute charge and with USB C ports on both sides you have more flexibility when you plug in basically if you can live with its battery life which again isn't really bad and you can spend 800 or $1000 on our premium Chromebook 2 and one experience the C 436 is a good choice you might not want to spend that kind of money on a Chromebook and there's certainly plenty others out there including the earlier version of this that are a little bit less expensive and pretty good but again if you want a premium experience you're gonna pay a premium pricethis is the Asus Chromebook flip C 436 now if you're saying yourself hey that doesn't look like the generic commodity Chromebook I'm used to seeing well that's because it is it this is considered a premium Chromebook it's actually a two and one and at $800 it's more premium per premium premium er just more premium it's more premium than we're used to seeing in the category so usually a premium Chromebook is about four hundred five hundred dollars and this one starts at eight hundred so what exactly does it mean to be a premium Chromebook well for starters this one is made from magnesium alloy so it's a nice lightweight but still sturdy build compared to those plastic cheap models that you're used to seeing so on top of that the magnesium alloy makes it really lightweight it only weighs two and a half pounds of 1.1 kilograms so you're not going to notice this when you're traveling around with it in your bag so when you go and you lift the lid you've got a nice full HD display here unfortunately while the display does get pretty bright you're you're still dealing with a lot of reflections off the screen because of that glossy coating but that's pretty much par for the course with displays these days anyway it is a two and one so you can turn it back and forth like that anyway you get a big smooth touchpad down here with gesture support and comfortable full-size chrome keyboard and it's backlit too which isn't typical of cheaper Chromebooks there's not a lot of key travel while typing but they do have a satisfying pop enos to them and up in the right corner here is a fingerprint reader to unlock the Chromebook now at first I thought it was the power button too but that's actually here on the left side with a volume rocker there are four speakers one on each side and two at the top between the 360 degree hinges so you have clear audio in any position and they sound decent at moderate levels just don't turn them up too loud now since it is a two in one you can use it as a tablet and it does support usi active pens it's just that Asus doesn't include one so add that to your purchase price if you want one Asus does include a padded sleeve so that's something another nice feature is that if you do go ahead and get the pen you can access Google keep straight from the lock screen which means you can instantly just take notes or whatever you want and then go back to the lock screen and it will save to your system to your Google keep account so you don't have to worry about losing it now a big reason this one is more expensive is because of the components inside this one has a 10th gen intel core i3 processor in it 8 gigs of memory and 128 gig SSD nvme SSD inside now you can spend $1000 and get it with a core i5 16 gigs of memory and a 512 GB SSD which is a lot of components for a Chromebook you probably don't need that most people will be fine getting the core i3 model that I tested it didn't really slow down while I was using it ever and that included while I was gaming so all in all this is going to fit the needs of most buyers and if you're concerned about heat don't worry too much the fan in here actually kept it pretty cool even when I was gaming and it didn't even get too loud you can definitely work and not be too distracted by the fan noise also if you're one of the many that suddenly need to use your webcam to get through the workday the C 436 has a decent one at the top of the display video quality from it is fine as long as you have plenty of light and shrunk connection this does have Wi-Fi 6 by the way which is a premium bit of future-proofing no option for LTE though which is kind of a bummer considering Chrome's best when it has a web connection but really the biggest issue you might have with this model aside from the price of course is the battery life I've got 10 hours and 43 minutes of runtime on our streaming video tests which is good but in general use you're looking at more like 6 hours of straight use but that's going to depend on your display brightness what you're doing still it's not bad but something like a sirs Chromebook 7:14 lasts a couple hours longer with similar specs it does charge quickly though getting you up to four hours on a 30-minute charge and with USB C ports on both sides you have more flexibility when you plug in basically if you can live with its battery life which again isn't really bad and you can spend 800 or $1000 on our premium Chromebook 2 and one experience the C 436 is a good choice you might not want to spend that kind of money on a Chromebook and there's certainly plenty others out there including the earlier version of this that are a little bit less expensive and pretty good but again if you want a premium experience you're gonna pay a premium price\n"