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Yesterday I published an opinion piece about the problems that arise when retailers continue to sell old Chromebooks, even as they near the end of lifespan as far as Google Auto Update Expiration date policy goes.
The article has generated a fair amount of discussion… but one point that came up is that instead of opting not to include old Chromebooks in Liliputing’s daily deals posts, I could just let you know when they could stop receiving OS updates.
So let’s give that a try. Right now Newegg is running is selling a refurbished Acer C720 Chromebook with a reasonably speedy processor and 4GB of RAM for just $60 after rebate… which sounds like a great deal. But Google only promises updates through June, 2019.
One nice thing about this model though, is that it’s relatively easy to replace Chrome OS with Ubuntu or another operating system and turn the laptop into a cheap Linux PC.
Or you could just buy a newer Chromebook that comes with another few years of official support.
Here are some of the day’s best deals.
Chromebooks
- Refurb Acer C720 11.6″ Chromebook w/Celeron 2955U/4GB/16GB (updates through June, 2019) for $60 after rebate – Newegg (coupon:Â EMCSPTPU3)
- Refurb HP Chromebook 14 G4 w/Celeron N2840/4GB/16GB (updates through Sept, 2021) for $155 – Woot
- Refurb HP Chromebook x360 11 G1 convertible w/Celeron N3350/4GB/32GB (updates through Nov, 2023) for $210 – Woot
Windows laptops
- Refurb HP ProBook x360 11 G1 convertible w/Celeron N3350/4GB/64GB/Win10 Pro for $290 – Woot
- Dell Inspiron 13 7000 convertible w/Core i5-8250U/8GB/256GB SSD for $649 – Microsoft Store
- Dell Inspiron 13 5000 convertible w/Core i7-8550U/8GB/256GB SSD for $699 – Microsoft Store
- Dell Inspiron 13 5000 convertible w/Core i5-8250U/8GB/1TB HDD for $599 – Microsoft Store
- Dell Inspiron 13 7000 convertible w/Core i7-8550U/16GB/256GB SSD for $900 – Best Buy
Tablets
- Microsoft Surface Pro for $671 and up – Amazon
- Refurb Amazon Fire HD 8 (2016) tablet w/16GB for $40 – Woot
eBooks
- Name your price for 10 sci fi eBooks – StoryBundle World SF Bundle
- Name your price for $215 worth of eBooks – Humble Bizarre Books Bundle
You can find more bargains in our daily deals section.
I decided to go ahead and buy that $60 chromebook. I’m not a huge fan of Chrome OS but figured I’d give it a try since I like to be well rounded with tech. It’s cheap enough too for that purpose.
Thanks for the compromise about Chromebooks and the expiration dates. That sounds like a good and perfectly reasonable idea 😀
Brad, it would be more accurate to say “(updates guaranteed through…)” since that’s the official Auto Update Policy and people have reported getting updates beyond the Auto Update expiration date on some devices. In theory, some Chromebooks could continue to get updates years after the guaranteed update expiration date.
Good point. I’m always trying to figure out the most economical (but accurate) language to use in these posts since I don’t want the individual item descriptions to get too long.
I try to keep everything simple to view at a glance, but I’ll see if I can figure out a better way to do this in future posts.
It’s also kind of a pain to have to look this up, so I’ll probably only feature older Chromebook deals when they’re *really* good.
I like the older Chromebooks being included…with the notation of update expirations. I will have to get one to play with at some point.
I think giving the auto update expiration date on refurb Chromebooks is a great idea. I got my first Chromebook used about two years ago because I wasn’t sure if I was going to like it or not. I wasn’t really ready to buy a new one just to find out if it was good enough, but the price of a refurb (I think it was $100) was low enough that I was willing to give it a try and I am very glad I did. Even today, a Sandy Bridge Celeron Chromebook with 4GB and an SSD performs very well for basic web browsing, and the update experience is so much better than Windows that I will probably never buy a Windows laptop again.
That positive experience with the used Chromebook for cheap and the availability of touchscreen Chromebooks that run Android apps has since led me to upgrade to newer, better, and more expensive model, but I never would have bought a new one without trying a cheap used one first.
I think that Refurb HP ProBook x360 11 G1 is supposed to be $290. That’s the price listed at Woot.
Says $209.99 when I follow that link.
Sorry, I was referring to the Windows 10 version. You have it listed for $90 up there.
Whoops, that was definitely a typo. Thanks!