Asus Chromebooks have been a popular choice for buyers thanks to a mix of low price and solid fit and finish. The company’s latest model is the Chromebook Flip CM3, also known as the CM3200. It’s an ARM-powered convertible laptop, not the detachable, Lenovo Duet-style tablet we were expecting, though that model may come later.
The Flip CM3 uses a 12-inch touchscreen with a trendy 3:2 aspect ratio, which sounds a lot better before you get to the 1366×912 resolution or 220 nit brightness. The screen works with a stylus, but you’ll have to supply your own. Inside is a MediaTek 8183 processor, an octa-core mobile chip that also powers Chromebooks like the Acer Spin 2-in-1 and the Lenovo 10e. You get 4GB of RAM and either 32 or 64GB of storage (the promo page includes a 128GB option), plus a MicroSD card slot, and it comes with one USB-C and one USB-A port (though both are limited to USB 2.0 speeds). A 32 watt-hour battery isn’t capacious for a laptop, but it should power this hardware for quite a while.
The laptop includes a 720p webcam with a manual privacy shutter, and it’s compatible with Google Assistant and Android apps from the Play Store. Beyond that, there isn’t much to it. It has a fetching silver finish and it’s relatively lightweight and 2.51 pounds, but with that MediaTek chip, it’s probably only going to appeal to those on an extremely low budget. How low? You tell us—though the Flip CM3 has appeared on the Asus website, there’s no mention of a price or release date. I’d expect something under $400, based on the hardware.
