ARM-based Chromebooks have been around for many years, but they've been limited to the slower offerings from MediaTek and Qualcomm. But according to a discovery by Chrome Unboxed, there are mentions of Qualcomm's flagship Snapdragon 8cx Gen 2 chip in the Chromium Repository. The palmrests and touchpad are cooler than skin temperature with a maximum of 28.8 °C / 83.8 F and are therefore cool to the touch.

READ NEXT: These are the best Chromebooks you can buy Google Pixelbook Go review: What you need to know The Pixelbook is a convertible 2-in-1, meaning you can flip the screen beyond the traditional clamshell design in most laptops. Google followed up with the Pixel Slate which is a detachable 2-in-1, another word for a tablet with an optional keyboard that combines to make a laptop. The Pixelbook Go, then, is just a traditional clamshell laptop. In this sense, Google covers all three laptop styles under the Pixel umbrella. I've appeared on CBS News, in USA Today, and at many other outlets to offer analysis on breaking technology news.Overall, with its different design and cheap build quality, the Pixelbook will remain the go-to for high-end Chromebooks, at least for now until the Pixelbook 2 arrives, while the Pixelbook Go seems better value in its cheaper configurations. We've also decided to run Android-based benchmark tools on the Pixelbook and have recorded the results below for the sake of curiosity. Note that these numbers should be taken with a grain of salt as the Play Store apps are not designed to run in a virtual Chrome OS environment or test Chrome OS performance. That said, we think that the Google Pixelbook Go should have some form of biometric login at this price, like most other laptops do – Chromebook or not. It’s not enough to assume users have an Android phone to log into their laptop with, especially in the US where iPhones are absolutely everywhere. With such compromises, is the Google Pixelbook Go even worth taking a look? It’s not without merit. It boasts a 1080p webcam, great battery life, and an impressive keyboard, and they’re more than enough to convince those looking to move on from their tablets or very dated laptops. And, it’s still the most affordable way into the Google product line. As a writer, my favorite aspect is possibly the 235-ppi resolution on the 12.3-inch screen, as text in Google Docs and the iA Writer app looked crystal clear. 4K video isn't abundant at the moment, but details in a 4K nature video I streamed on YouTube were wonderfully clear, allowing me to see every scale and bead of water of a luxuriating snake. However, both Google's video player and the VLC video app need a little more tweaking to support 4K video.

While Google promotes the Pixelbook's fast-charging battery, its claim of up to 2 hours of use after 15 minutes of charging (when the notebook has at least 5 percent of its battery life left) didn't bear out in my testing. After charging for those 15 minutes, I managed to eke out 1 hour and 18 minutes from the Pixelbook, though my activity mixed both Chrome web surfing and Android app usage. Screen: 12.3-inch QHD (2,400 x 1,600, 235 ppi) LCD touchscreen (400 nits, 72% NTSC color, 3:2 aspect ratio) Chromebooks aren't for everyone. As detailed on our list of what Chromebooks can and cannot do, its environment does not cater to the everyday needs of most Windows or MacOS users and is instead made to serve as a SSH client with heavy dependence on Google's cloud services. As a result, Chromebooks are often very inexpensive since Chrome OS is laser-focused on web browsing and remote work. Recent examples include the Acer Chromebook 14, Lenovo Flex 11, and Lenovo ThinkPad 13 each retailing for less than half of Google's latest convertible. Weirdly, the most eye-catching part of the Pixelbook Go is its crinkle-cut underside. Aside from adding a little extra bit of grip, though, and giving you a talking point on the walk between meetings, it doesn’t have much point. The rest of the design is unfussy yet appealing. Its gently curved corners and flat lid feel friendly and approachable and I particularly like the smooth matte finish, which Google calls “finely painted magnesium”; it feels lovely under the palm. The Pixelbook Go's scores were average for its category of high-end Chromebooks, which includes models like the Acer Chromebook 714 and Lenovo Yoga Chromebook C630 in addition to steeds from Google's own stable. Less-expensive Chromebooks perform far worse—around 200 on WebXPRT and around 100 on CrXPRT.Still, we’d feel much more confident editing photos on this laptop screen than most other Chromebooks. As for the 4K Molecular Display option, while we haven’t experienced it in person, we find it to be completely unnecessary for a Chromebook. The Pixelbook Go can get up two hours of battery charge from just 20 minutes connected to the outlet. (Image credit: Future) Battery life Surface temperature is largely symmetric down the center of the notebook. The gradient is very similar to a classic point source since there are no fans expelling and drawing away waste heat. As shown by our temperature maps below, the hot spots are towards the rear of the notebook directly above the first row of keyboard keys where users are less likely to touch when typing. It will, however, make tablet mode warm on the hand if handling in landscape mode. In addition to the weight-saving glass construction, part of the reason for the Pixelbook Go's light weight is that it doesn't need a lot of room to cool powerful, heat-generating components. My review unit is equipped with an Intel Core i5-8200Y CPU, a dual-core processor that consumes just 7 watts of power, compared to the 15-watt CPUs common in today's thin laptops. The base model is equipped with a Core m3 CPU, while the top configuration boasts an Intel Core i7. Other component options include either 8GB or 16GB of memory, and 64GB, 128GB, or 256GB of solid-state storage.