Acer has the cheapest Googlebook, here's what you get

Googlebooks were launched today as a new Android-based platform supported by major laptop makers. The first batch of laptops has been made official, with pre-orders already live. While they fail to hit the MacBook Neo price point, they are relatively budget-friendly offerings, with Acer having the cheapest one, despite being the only 2-in-1.

Acer Googlebook 14 features

The Acer Googlebook 14 features a 14-inch WQXGA+ OLED panel with 2,880x1,800 resolution, a 120 Hz refresh rate, and 100% DCI-P3 coverage. It is a touchscreen panel with a 16:10 aspect ratio and support for a stylus (USI 2.0 protocol). Being a convertible or 2-in-1 device, the screen can fold back all the way for a tablet-like experience.

Unlike some of the other Googlebook offerings, this is powered by Intel Core Ultra 5/7 Series 3 (Panther Lake) processors, but like all the rest, they come with 16 GB RAM as the baseline. Acer says the Googlebook 14 can be equipped with up to 32 GB LPDDR5X memory and up to 512 GB of NVMe storage, though the 16 GB + 512 GB configuration seems to be the only option for now.

All this is backed by a 71 Wh battery that supports fast charging. Per Acer’s numbers, the Googlebook 14 can last up to 16 hours with web browsing and 14 hours with video playback, a baseline for Googlebooks. For connectivity, you get Wi-Fi 7, Bluetooth, three USB Type-C ports — one of which is Thunderbolt 4 — and a 3.5mm headphone jack. The backlit keyboard offers 1.3 mm of travel, and there’s a fingerprint scanner as well.

Acer is using an aluminum and magnesium chassis to keep the weight down, resulting in a laptop that weighs 1.14 kg with 13.9 mm thickness.

Of course, like the others, the Acer Googlebook 14 is “Designed for Gemini Intelligence” and, thanks to the Android-based Googlebook OS, offers some nifty features when used alongside an Android phone.

Acer Googlebook 14 price and availability

The price for the Googlebook 14 with 16 GB RAM and 512 GB storage is $899, and that includes all of Google’s standardized specifications for the Googlebook platform. Plus, it is a lightweight convertible laptop that can be used as a tablet. There is only one color option, at least for now. Pre-orders are live via select online retailers and the Google Store, with sales starting October 5. Other regions, including Canada and EMEA, will get the Acer Googlebook 14 later in October, with Australia having to wait till November.