Samsung Galaxy Chromebook crushes MacBook Air on specs — and it’s coming April 6

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The Galaxy Chromebook is a sleek and powerful 2-in-1 laptop that has the features most workers need to get stuff done

Samsung Galaxy Chromebook
(Image credit: Future)

Now that many of us are remote working, we’re looking to upgrade to a better work-from-home laptop. And Samsung has just the ticket in the Samsung Galaxy Chromebook, a 13-inch laptop that delivers better specs and features than the new MacBook Air for the same price.

Now comes word that the Samsung Galaxy Chromebook has a release date of April 6, according to The Verge. Here’s where you can get this sleek laptop and what you’ll get for the money.

The Samsung Galaxy Chromebook will reportedly be sold both through Best Buy (which has a sign up page right now) and through Samsung.com, and it starts at $999. But when you stack it up against the identically priced MacBook Air, its almost no contest.

The Galaxy Chromebook starts with a 10th gen Core i5 processor, compared to a Core i3 chip for the MacBook Air. And Samsung’s system packs a more powerful U-Series chip, while the Air makes due with a less powerful Y-Series CPU.

Samsung Galaxy Chromebook tent mode

(Image credit: Future)

Both the Galaxy Chromebook and the new MacBook Air come with 8GB of RAM and 256GB of storage, but Samsung’s Chromebook wins in the display category. The Galaxy Chromebook sports a 13-inch AMOLED panel with a 4K resolution (3840 x 2160), which is more colorful and sharper than the Retina LCD on the Air (2560 x 1600)

Plus, only the Galaxy Chromebook offers a touch display, which allows you to interact with Android apps downloaded from the Google Play store. And because this Chromebook is a 2-in-1, you can use it in tablet more or tent mode, in addition to laptop mode.

Samsung Galaxy Chromebook right side

(Image credit: Future)

The Galaxy Chromebook is also considerably lighter than the MacBook Air. Samsung’s laptop weighs just 2.29 pounds and is 0.4 inches thin, compared to 2.8 pounds and 0.16-0.63 inches for the Air.

Both the Galaxy Chromebook and MacBook Air have 2 USB-C ports and a headphone jack, but only the Air’s ports support Thunderbolt 3 for faster speeds. On the other hand, the Galaxy Chromebook adds a microSD card slot for expansion.

The biggest question hanging over the Samsung Galaxy Chromebook is battery life. The MacBook Air lasted a pretty strong 9 hours and 31 minutes in our lab (our full review is on the way). The 4K OLED display on the Galaxy Chromebook is bound to take a toll on endurance.

Stay tuned for our full review of the Samsung Galaxy Chromebook after it arrives next week. 

Mark Spoonauer
Mark Spoonauer

Mark Spoonauer is the global editor in chief of Tom's Guide and has covered technology for over 20 years. In addition to overseeing the direction of Tom's Guide, Mark specializes in covering all things mobile, having reviewed dozens of smartphones and other gadgets. He has spoken at key industry events and appears regularly on TV to discuss the latest trends, including Cheddar, Fox Business and other outlets. Mark was previously editor in chief of Laptop Mag, and his work has appeared in Wired, Popular Science and Inc. Follow him on Twitter at @mspoonauer.

3 Comments Comment from the forums
  • y2kgtp
    I don't think ChromeOS is a MacOS killer just yet.....and at the same pricepoint? :confused_old:
    Reply
  • cnymike
    A Chromebook will never “crush” a real laptop because it can’t run serious applications. And for $1k? . I'll choose a MacBook Air any day of the week over a Chromebook.
    Reply
  • Xristfer
    Chromebooks are great; I have the Asus C434, but in no way can a chromebook -currently- crush a MBA at any stretch of the imagination. Even my late 2015 11” MBA comes out easily on top.
    Chrome OS still has a large number limitations for simple tasks for example with the Microsoft Suite or photo editing. Moreover being cloud-based, fine-tuned personalization is next to impossible such as adding specific fonts unavailable online by Google. Yes, Linux is an option, though not at all user-friendly, and LibreOffice looks mike Microsoft did 8 years ago.
    If your usage is Google-based, you do a lot of surfing with social,medi and you set your own visual guidelines, a chromebook is absolutely perfect and $999 is way too expensive. Professionals with specific guidelines or on Microsoft apps need to revert to Mac or Windows.
    Reply