Archived version: https://archive.ph/vNSJa
5 years is such an extremely short lifecycle for a laptop
Given the condition of my kids’ Chromebooks, that lifecycle is just right, plus Chromebooks were a fantastic investment. I did spend over $400 for “nice” (but not high end) Chromebooks, so they were lightweight, excellent battery, durable, and good performance. After 4-5 years, performance and battery are still good for a full school day, but they’re all dinged up, bent and mangled. They’ve been dropped, kicked, stuffed into things, had various liquids spilled into them, etc. they e done well to survive a hard life, but it’s time.
I could have gotten cheap Windows laptops for a similar price, that would not have done nearly as well, by every measure. What a waste that would have been
I think they mean the software support lifecycle from the time of release, not how long the physical hardware lasts.
I also have relatively positive experiences with Chromebooks but also you can buy a Dell Latitude used on ebay and get the same experience. My $200 shop laptop from 2015 (Latitude 7450) which I only stuck an SSD into is going strong despite being kicked, stepped on, dropped, having oil and acetone spilled on it, melted a bit, and subject to other such garage abuse. (Though it is on its 3rd $15 keyboard)
