Five Reasons I Prefer My Chromebook Over Windows or macOS

As a tech journalist, I have Windows, macOS, and ChromeOS devices at home, not because I’m particularly wealthy, but because I need to write on all of these platforms, all the time, and it’s my trusty Chromebook that I turn to most often.

The usual argument against Chromebooks is that they’re just a Chrome browser: Windows and macOS give you the same Chrome browser, and more. However, sometimes less is more, as I will return to below.

Unfortunately, it seems Google is less interested in Chromebooks than I am. The last Google-made Pixelbook launched in 2019, and it’s been left to Asus, Acer, HP, Samsung and others to keep new Chromebooks coming. If you’re reading, Google, it’s about time we got a new Pixelbook.

Chromebooks reduce clutter

There’s the argument that Windows and macOS give you the Chrome browser and much more, but most of the time I don’t really need the “plus” – unless I have detailed image edits to do or want to play games. Almost everything I need is on the web.

There are far fewer software updates, background programs, application wizards and system utilities to think about. Although ChromeOS has updates, they are usually done transparently in the background and applied the next time your Chromebook restarts.

Another task I don’t have to deal with regularly on my Chromebook is tidying up the desktop or my local folders, because there’s really nothing to download, save, or sync. The laptop’s file system and internal storage are tidier by default, since I never use them.

Chromebooks record everything instantly

No save button required.
Credit: Lifehacker

All the work I do on my Chromebook is done in a browser and usually in Google apps like Google Docs and Gmail. This means everything is instantly backed up: in the event of a power outage or system crash, I don’t have to worry about losing what I’ve been working on.

I don’t have to search in the background for open programs and files that I might have forgotten about, and if I need to do something else quickly, I can just close my laptop and I’m done – I don’t click through dozens of save dialogs first.

Chromebooks put everything on the web

When you’re constantly working in web applications, without the option of locally installed tools, syncing is seamless. To work on a document that I need to access on Windows and macOS, for example, I need to think about saving, synchronization and application compatibility.

When I work in Google Docs on a Chromebook, everything syncs automatically. I can even open a document on ChromeOS, Windows, and macOS simultaneously, and switch between them as needed to make changes, saving me a lot of time.

Chromebooks are closely linked to the Google ecosystem

Android phones and Chromebooks work well together.
Credit: Lifehacker

I can understand that Chromebooks may be less appealing if you don’t always use Gmail, Google Maps, Android, Google Docs, Chrome, and whatever else Google offers, but for someone who is heavily invested in the Google ecosystem (like me), they make a lot of sense.

If you have an Android phone, for example, you can use it to set up a Chromebook, share files on both devices, respond to ChromeOS text messages, and access hotspot with one click. There is a level of integration that you don’t get on other platforms.

Chromebooks actually function as distraction-free devices

One of the criticisms of Chromebooks is that they’re pretty much useless without an Internet connection, but that’s only partly true. Google Docs, Sheets and Slides, and even Gmail now work perfectly offline.

If I’m traveling without a stable Wi-Fi connection, I like to use my Chromebook as a distraction-free device, getting through a ton of writing and responding to email without constantly switching tabs. When the Wi-Fi comes back, everything I did is automatically synced with the web.

While we’re talking about ChromeOS being useless when not online, I think it’s fair to say that Internet access is now almost ubiquitous (via public wifi or phone hotspots), and Windows and macOS aren’t particularly useful when the web is down either.