Acer Chromebook 714 review

The Acer Chromebook 714 (starting at $499, tested at $649) is a premium-looking business laptop with a sleek, aluminum chassis that'll enhance your urbane and professional aura as you carry this refined device from one office meeting to another. 

The laptop has been MIL-SPEC tested, so if you're the clumsy type with butterfingers, you'll find comfort in knowing this Chromebook can withstand shock and other traumatic blows. The Acer Chromebook 714 also has a unique fingerprint reader that is rare on laptops with Chrome OS.

On the other hand, the Chromebook 714's display is dim compared with its competitors. Its speakers are unimpressive, too.

 Acer Chromebook 714 price and configuration options 

The base model of the Acer Chromebook 714 costs $499 and has a 2.3-GHz Intel Pentium 4417U CPU with 8GB of RAM, 32GB of flash memory and an Intel HD Graphics 610 GPU. 

I tested the $649 model, which sports a 2.2-GHz Intel Core i3-8130U CPU with 8GB of RAM, 64GB of flash memory and an Intel UHD Graphics 620 GPU. You can also snag a $799 configuration, which bumps you up to a 1.7-GHz Intel Core i5-8350U processor with 8GB of RAM, 64GB of flash storage and an Intel UHD Graphics 620 GPU.

If you're looking for something a little different, consider taking a look at our best laptops under $1,000 page.

Acer Chromebook 714 design

The Acer Chromebook 714 isn't trying to impress anyone, and I mean this in a good way. Sporting an all-aluminum, dark-gray chassis, this Chromebook says, "I’m a practical-looking Chromebook that means business; glitter and gold does not a great laptop make!" Its lid shows off a center-left, silver Acer logo as well as a top-left black Chrome logo. The laptop isn't susceptible to fingerprints, which I adore.

Open up the lid, and its interior reveals more aluminum goodness, and it feels quite nice, too. The island-style keyboard has big white characters superimposed on large black keys. The trackpad is surrounded by an attractive reflective trim.

The side bezels are superslim, but the top and bottom bezels are thick. The top bezel houses a webcam. Almost blending into the background, a muted, silver Acer logo is stamped on the bottom bezel.

• MORE: The best portable and premium laptops

At 3.3 pounds and 12.7 x 9.4 x 0.7 inches, the Acer Chromebook 714 is a little heavier than its competitors. The Asus Chromebook Flip C434 (3.1 pounds, 12.6 x 8 x 0.6 inches) and the Google Pixelbook Go (2.3 pounds, 12.2 x 8.1 x 0.5 inches) are both lighter and thinner. It's worth noting, though, that the Chromebook 714 still has that portability factor, as it fit snugly inside my everyday bag.

Acer Chromebook 714 security and durability 

The Acer Chromebook 714 is rated for military-grade durability, which means if you're accident- prone, you'll be happy to know that this laptop passed multiple MIL-STD 810G tests proving it can withstand rain, humidity, extreme temperatures, vibrations and shock.

The keyboard deck also features the cutest fingerprint reader I've ever seen; its small oval design is unique. Fingerprint readers are a rare find in Chrome OS devices, so it's refreshing to see the biometric authentication on this laptop.

I do wish, though, that the Acer Chromebook 714 sported a privacy shutter for its webcam.

 Acer Chromebook 714 ports 

The Acer Chromebook 714 is decently stocked with ports. 

On the left side, you'll find a USB 3.1 Gen 1 Type-C port, a USB 3.1 Gen 1 Type-A port and a headphone jack. The right side has a Kensington lock, a microSD card reader and another USB 3.1 Gen 1 Type-C port.

If you need more ports, check out our best USB Type-C hubs and best laptop docking stations pages.

 Acer Chromebook 714 display 

The Chromebook 714's 14-inch, 1920 x 1080 touch-screen display won't win any awards, but it is decent. 

I watched the Antebellum trailer, and as the camera zoomed in on a weary-looking Janelle Monae playing an enslaved character, the scene lacked the detail and crispness you may find on higher-end displays, which chipped away at the scene's poignancy. The colors emanating from the screen were passable; the bright-red lipstick of one woman popped and the display captured Monae's beautiful mocha complexion. The viewing angles on the display were pretty good.

According to our colorimeter, the Acer Chromebook 714's panel covered 66% of the sRGB color gamut, which fell short of the category average (76%). The Asus Chromebook Flip C434 (93%) and the Google Pixelbook Go (108%) crushed the Chromebook 714 on this benchmark.

At 254 nits, the Chromebook 714's display couldn't inch past the brightness category average (256 nits), and it failed to surpass the Asus Chromebook Flip C434 (286 nits) and the Google Pixelbook Go (368 nits). 

 Acer Chromebook 714 keyboard and touchpad

I rarely say the L word, but darn it, I love typing on the Acer Chromebook 714's backlit keyboard. My typical typing average is around 83 words per minute on 10FastFingers.com, but my average jumped to 93 words per minute on this clicky, feel-good keyboard. 

Students and employees working on the Acer Chromebook 714 will find themselves getting into a beautiful typing rhythm as they tap away on this productivity-boosting keyboard. Unlike the Acer Chromebook 715, this keyboard does not have a numeric keypad.

The Gorilla Glass touchpad is as awesome as the keyboard. The touchpad has a smooth, slick surface, so navigating the internet with the Chromebook 714's cursor was a breeze. The Chromebook's touchpad gestures, such as two-finger scrolling, also worked like a charm. 

 Acer Chromebook 714 audio 

I listened to The Weeknd's "Blinding Lights" and I was pleased to hear the song fill the room as the music emanated from the bottom-firing speakers. However, as the snappy tune continued, the Weekend's vocals sounded a slightly hollow and a bit rough around the edges. The music lacked that lush, smooth, full quality more premium speakers have. Overall, the dual-channel speakers were so-so — we recommend purchasing headphones for a better sound experience. 

 Acer Chromebook 714 performance 

If you're a tab-happy laptop user, you'll be glad to know that the Acer Chromebook 714 can handle your taxing internet activities. I swamped the Chromebook 714 with 28 Google Chrome tabs; three were playing 1080p YouTube videos. I opened up a new document on Google Docs and typed away without experiencing any system slowdowns. Don't worry; this herculean Chromebook can manage your heavy workloads just fine.

On the Geekbench 4 overall performance test, the Acer Chromebook 714 nailed 7,779, crushing the average Chromebook score (6,227). The Acer Chromebook 714 also whizzed past the Core m3-8100Y CPU in the Asus Chromebook Flip C434 (6,968) and the Core i5-8200Y CPU in the Google Pixelbook Go (6,516).

On our JetStream benchmark, which tests how quickly large web pages load, the 714 achieved 103.4, beating the Chromebook average (74.9), as well as the Asus Chromebook Flip C434 (76.7) and the Google Pixelbook Go (85.9).

 Acer Chromebook 714 battery life 

On our battery life test, which involves continuous web surfing over Wi-Fi at 150 nits, the Acer Chromebook 714 lasted 9 hours and 5 minutes. 

This is sufficient for a full day of work or school, but it falls short of the average Chromebook battery runtime (10:01). Both the Asus Chromebook Flip C434 and the Google Pixelbook Go outlasted the Chromebook 714 with runtimes of 9:58 and 11:29, respectively. 

• MORE: Laptops with the longest battery life

 Acer Chromebook 714 webcam 

Don't expect to start a YouTube channel with the 720p webcam installed in the Acer Chromebook 714. Now, I've seen a lot of terrible laptop webcams — a lot. The Acer Chromebook 714 doesn't fall into that category, but it also doesn't stand out from the hordes of other so-so laptop webcams on the market.

The camera has a tiny bit of digital noise and I can't make out the details of my curly hair, but the color accuracy is decent — the camera picked up on my bright-pink bathrobe and the colorful, patchwork curtains in my kitchen. Still, we'd recommend an external webcam.  

 Acer Chromebook 714 heat 

It's super cool under the Chromebook 714's hood. After streaming a 15-minute 1080p video for our heat test, the underside hit 85 degrees Fahrenheit, which fell nicely below our 95-degree comfort threshold. The center of the keyboard hit 83 degrees and the touchpad reached 79 degrees. The hottest temperature on the machine was 88 degrees, which was located on the bottom of the laptop, near the vents. 

 Acer Chromebook 714 software and warranty 

Packed with Chrome OS, you'll have easy access to your favorite Google productivity apps — Chrome, Google Docs, Gmail and more — right on your home taskbar. 

Click on the tiny far-right white dot and you'll open an extremely convenient Google search bar; you'll also find Google Assistant. You can add more apps to the Acer Chromebook 714 by accessing the Google Play store.

Acer Chromebook 714 comes with a one-year international travelers' warranty. See how Acer performed on our Tech Support Showdown and Best and Worst Brands ranking. 

 Bottom line 

 The Acer Chromebook 714 has a sleek aluminum chassis that I can't stop touching; its aversion to fingerprints and military-rated durality is another alluring draw of this professional-looking laptop. Worker bees will experience speedy productivity on this machine — its clicky keyboard and multitasking-friendly system will have users whizzing through assignments and tasks. Its snazzy-looking fingerprint reader is another interesting and rare feature.

However, the Acer Chromebook 714's display is dim compared with its competitors and the audio could be better. The battery life will last you a full day of work, but there are longer-lasting Chromebooks on the market.

For $569, you can snag the Asus Chromebook C434, which will give you an extra hour of battery life and a lighter, slimmer chassis.

Overall, the Acer Chromebook 714 is a great productivity machine for work-heavy users who depend on Google apps to fulfill their daily tasks and assignments.