Asus Chromebook Plus CX34 review: Unbelievably premium for just $400

The Chromebook platform has evolved so much over the years to include high-end, budget, and mid-range hardware, and the new Asus Chromebook Plus CX34 shakes that up. It's one of the many fresh Chromebook Plus models that makes picking up a great ChromeOS-powered device at your local retailer so much easier.

With the Asus Chromebook Plus CX34, you won't have to worry about speeds, the webcam being bad quality, or the lack of features like a backlit keyboard. Meeting a strict set of performance and other standards set by Google, the Asus Chromebook Plus CX34 had it all to be my daily driver for two weeks. It has a fast Intel Core i3 CPU (our review unit had an i3-1215U), 8GB RAM, and 128GB of storage, along with a 1080p webcam with AI-backed features.

Coming off of using a Windows laptop, I found that not only is this Chromebook fast, but it's also one of the most beautiful-looking laptops I've ever used. Of course, no Chromebook is perfect, and it's held back by mediocre battery life. Otherwise, starting at just $400, the CX34 is an unbelievably great addition to the Chromebook catalog.

About this review: Google provided us with the Asus Chromebook Plus CX34 (CX3402 model) after a media event in New York City. It had no input into the contents of this review.

Asus Chromebook Plus CX34: Pricing and availability

The Asus Chromebook Plus CX34 was announced at the end of September. It's not yet for sale, but product pages are live on the Asus and Google websites. Google told us this device would start at $400. If you want to purchase one, you can sign up for alerts on Asus.com.

Design

It's plastic and white, but it feels so premium

For $400, you'd expect the Asus Chromebook Plus CX34 to feel "cheap," but it's anything but. While it might be made entirely of plastic, it's the good kind of plastic that feels "premium." Though the underside is traditional brushed plastic, the best place to feel that uniqueness is with the lid, which is polished and feels like touching a pearl. Running my hands on the lid actually fooled me into thinking this Chromebook had a glass lid. Even the palm rest feels similar. The lid and the keyboard deck don't flex much compared to other $400 Chromebooks like the Lenovo IdeaPad Slim 3.

Though the underside is traditional brushed plastic, the lid is polished and feels like touching a pearl.

I also love the color of this Asus Chromebook. You can pick it up in either white or black, but the white is something special to behold. A lot of other Chromebooks are gray or black, but the white is shiny, vibrant, and stands out among the rest of my desk setup.

Generally, this is a portable Chromebook, too. It's a 14-inch clamshell laptop that's only 0.74 inches thick and weighs around 3 pounds. It's pretty comparable to even an all-aluminum Chromebook like the HP Dragonfly Pro, which weighs just over 3 pounds. The CX34 also passed US MIL-STD 810H durability standards, so it seems like it'll stand the test of time should you put it through extreme conditions.

The Asus Chromebook Plus CX34 is also very well-connected. If you plan to take it with you on the go or even use it at your desk, you'll never have to worry about dongles. Asus packed plenty of ports into this device. The left side has a single USB-C port for charging. Then, on the right, there's a headphone jack, two USB-A 3,2 ports, another USB-C port, and an HDMI 1.4 port. Don't expect Thunderbolt for this price.

I do like the location of these ports. Having the USB-C ports on either side means connecting a power cable for charging is easier. I didn't have a mess of cables on my desk when I connected to other things like my flash drive or even my headphones while they were charging.

Do note that as part of the design, the speakers are to the left and right undersides of the laptop. I mainly used this Chromebook with my Pixel Buds Pro, but when I was going with native audio, the quality was decent, and the bass wasn't too deep. For the basics like YouTube and streaming, it's good enough.

Keyboard and trackpad

Big and comfy

Usually, when you buy a $400 Chromebook, you expect some sacrifices with the keyboard and trackpad, but there is none of that here. The Asus Chromebook Plus CX34 has a great plastic trackpad and an even better keyboard.

The trackpad isn't small, like on something like a $600 Acer Chromebook Spin 513 or even the $1,000 HP Dragonfly Pro. Asus has widened it to 5.7 inches. This large size makes scrolling through Google Chrome and clicking through ChromeOS so much easier. My fingers have so much room to move.

It's pretty rare to see a bright and comfortable keyboard on a Chromebook device that costs $400.

The keyboard is a chiclet-style, with square keycaps. These keycaps are nice, light, and super soft when retracing into the chassis. It's not a loud keyboard, and the 1.4mm of travel means I easily jammed my way through this review. Importantly, the keyboard is also backlit on five different levels. It's pretty rare to see a bright and comfortable keyboard on a Chromebook device that costs $400, but that's what Chromebook Plus is all about.

Software

Special ChromeOS features

As expected, the CX34 uses ChromeOS, but there are a few special software features here that you only get on Chromebook Plus models. A button in the system shelf gives you access to webcam features like background blur and lighting improvements regardless of the app. You'll also get to see Google Drive files offline through File Sync.

Other than that, you get a magic eraser feature in the Google Photos app and access to partner apps, including a free three-month subscription for Photoshop on the Web, three months of GeForce NOW's priority tier, and up to 25% off LumaFusion's one-time cost of $30, all through the ChromeOS Explore app. You also get unique dynamic wallpapers and screensavers.

Display

Still has FHD resolution, but plenty bearable for this price

The thing with Chromebooks in this price range is that you'll run into devices that have obscure display resolutions. Typically, you'll see 1280x720 resolution, better known as HD resolution. Chromebook Plus changes that by promising you devices that have two times as much resolution as before. The CX34 packs in a 16:9 aspect ratio, FHD 1920x1080 resolution non-touch panel that's still a delight to work and play on, despite the lack of touch for playing Android games.

Of course, premium Windows laptops have stopped using these FHD panels for a while now and shifted to 16:10 1920x1200 or higher panels, but you'll only see that on really more expensive devices. It's why I can't knock this Asus Chromebook for its FHD panel. For $400, the FHD resolution is great, and if you want something with a better screen, there are other options that cost closer to $800 that pack in more resolution and support for touch and pen.

The CX34 packs in a 16:9 aspect ratio, FHD 1920x1080 resolution non-touch panel that's still a delight to work and play on.

Despite the smaller resolution, I could still stack my Chrome browsing windows side by side with display scaling. The bezels along the side and top are all right, giving the screen an 80% screen-to-body ratio, which is more than enough for basic multitasking.

Asus claims this panel can hit 250 nits of brightness, covering 45% of the NTSC spectrum. I can't support that since my colorimeter is incompatible with the device, but visually, I think this display is better than Asus claims. I turned up the brightness to 100%, and when looking at the default wallpaper, the orange rocks and purple hues in the sky looked pretty vibrant. Even when web browsing, the text was super crisp and clear at maximum brightness. And the new Material You effects that come with ChromeOS 117 are gorgeous. You'll really notice the vibrancy of sliders in the quick settings area as it reflects your wallpaper color.

Do note the webcam atop the display is a 1080p webcam, which helped me look crisp and clear on my calls. The camera is backed by some AI-powered features in ChromeOS unique to Chromebook Plus, like blurring the background or improving the lighting, so I looked good even when I wasn't in the best conditions. It's pretty impressive that Google is able to do this on such a budget device without an NPU. If you want that on a Windows laptop, you'll have to spend $1,000 for something like a Surface Pro 9.

I can't forget to mention it, but Asus highlights how the display is a 180-degree lay flat screen. I'm not sure who uses a laptop like that, but it is a thing if this is important to you. Perhaps for showcasing presentations?

Performance

Good for the price

My Asus Chromebook Plus CX34 came with a 12th-generation Intel Core i3-1215U CPU, paired with 8GB of RAM and 128GB of flash storage. The CPU has six cores total, with two performance cores and six efficiency cores, and it runs at 4.40GHz maximum. This is quite a change from other budget Chromebooks, which typically feature Intel N-series Celeron CPUs that don't benefit from these performance and efficiency cores. Google claims the performance that a Core i3 offers can be nearly double that of a similar budget Chromebook.

Benchmarks put this Chromebook closer to more expensive Core i5 and Core i7 Chromebooks

This might indeed be true since benchmarks put this close to much more Chromebooks and Windows laptops with Core i5 and Core i7 CPUs, but you'll still need to keep expectations in check. While this is a fast Chromebook, it's not designed for high-end video editing or serious gaming on Steam, since it still sports Intel UHD graphics. It's just an everyday Chromebook for web browsing, light gaming with older titles, or quick video editing in Luma Fusion.

For how most people will use their Chromebook, the performance of Asus Chromebook Plus CX34 will be more than enough. It handled 10+ tabs in Chrome (with a few Android apps in the background) without issue. Even running Linux apps like GIMP worked fine. Playing an Android game like GTA: III also netted smooth results, though it was awkward because of the lack of a touchscreen. Minecraft ran without issue, too. But once I stepped things up and tried out the beta version of Steam, things weren't too good. When I tried Counter-Strike: Global Offensive, and I had to tune things down to low to medium settings to get good gameplay.

The Intel UHD graphics limit the true capabilities of this Chromebook, along with the 8GB RAM and the UFS storage. A faster traditional SSD might have benefited this device for high-end tasks. Still, it's great for non-demanding tasks and everyday things like web browsing, using Android apps, and messing around with Linux.

All that power does mean the battery life suffers a bit, though. Though Asus quotes 10 hours, I only got to about half that. It depends on how you'll use your Chromebook, but on mine, I had it with the screen at a respectable 80% brightness.

Should you buy the Asus Chromebook Plus CX34?

You should buy the Asus Chromebook Plus CX34 if:

• You're on a budget and need a solid Chromebook
• You want a Chromebook that looks unique
• You want a Chromebook for everyday things like web browsing and using Android and Linux apps

You shouldn't buy the Asus Chromebook Plus CX34 if:

• You need a Chromebook for heavy gaming
• You need a Chromebook with a touchscreen

The Asus Chromebook Plus CX34 is one of my new favorite Chromebooks. Starting at $400, it's a steal. It handles heavy web browsing without issue, and it's even good for running Android and Linux apps. It just looks so cool, too, and it has a great webcam backed by AI features. It's certain to be a great Chromebook for you too.