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  1. Table of Contents
  2. Top
  3. Main Differences
  4. Design
    1. Style
    2. Build Quality
    3. Hinge
    4. Portability
    5. Serviceability
    6. In The Box
  5. Display
    1. Screen Specs
    2. Refresh Rate
    3. Contrast
    4. Brightness
    5. Reflections
    6. Black Uniformity
    7. Horizontal Viewing Angle
    8. Vertical Viewing Angle
    9. Out-Of-The-Box Color Accuracy
    10. Color Gamut
    11. Flicker
  6. Interface
    1. Keyboard
    2. Touchpad
    3. Speakers
    4. Webcam & Microphone
  7. Connectivity
    1. Ports
    2. Wireless Communication
  8. Configuration
    1. CPU
    2. GPU
    3. RAM
    4. Storage
  9. Performance
    1. Geekbench 5 (Synthetics)
    2. Cinebench R23 (CPU Rendering)
    3. Blender (3D Rendering)
    4. Basemark GPU (Game Scene)
    5. Storage Drive Performance
    6. Battery
    7. Borderlands 3
    8. Civilization VI
    9. Counter-Strike: Global Offensive
    10. Counter-Strike 2
    11. Shadow Of The Tomb Raider
    12. Thermals And Noise
    13. Performance Over Time
  10. Additional Features And Software
    1. Software
    2. Extra Features
  11. Comments

Microsoft Surface Go 2 (2020) vs HP Chromebook 14 (2021)

Side-by-Side Comparison

Products

Microsoft Surface Go 2 (2020)
HP Chromebook 14 (2021)

Tested using Methodology v0.8

Updated Feb 22, 2024 02:44 PM

SEE PRICE
Amazon.com

Tested using Methodology v0.8.2

Updated Feb 22, 2024 08:09 PM

SEE PRICE
Amazon.com
Microsoft Surface Go 2 (2020) Picture
HP Chromebook 14 (2021) Picture

Variants

  • Surface Go 2 (STV-00001) (Platinum - Pentium Gold 4425Y/4GB/64GB)
  • Surface Go 2 (TGF-00001) (Platinum - Pentium Gold 4425Y/4GB/64GB)
  • Surface Go 2 (STV-00003) (Platinum - Pentium Gold 4425Y/4GB/64GB)
  • Surface Go 2 (STQ-00001) (Platinum - Pentium Gold 4425Y/8GB/128GB)
  • Surface Go 2 (STQ-00003) (Platinum - Pentium Gold 4425Y/8GB/128GB)
  • Surface Go 2 (STR-00001) (Platinum - Pentium Gold 4425Y/8GB/128GB)
  • Surface Go 2 (TFZ-00001) (Platinum - m3-8100Y with LTE/8GB/128GB)
  • Surface Go 2 (STW-00001) (Platinum - m3-8100Y with LTE/8GB/128GB)
  • Surface Go 2 (RRX-00001) (Platinum - m3-8100Y/4GB/64GB)
  • Surface Go 2 (‎TFZ-00003) (Platinum - m3-8100Y/8GB/128GB)
  • Surface Go 2 (MHM-00001) (Silver - m3-8100Y/8GB/128GB)
  • Chromebook 14 (14a-na0060nr) (Ceramic White - FHD/N4000/4GB/32GB)
  • Chromebook 14 (14a-na0021nr) (Ceramic White - HD/Non Touch/N4000/4GB/32GB)
  • Chromebook 14 (14a-na0090nr) (Forest Teal - FHD/N4000/4GB/32GB)
  • Chromebook 14 (14a-na0010nr) (Mineral Silver - HD/Non Touch/N4000/4GB/32GB)
  • Chromebook 14 (14a-na0030nr) (Mineral Silver - HD/Touch/N4000/4GB/32GB)

Our Verdict

Microsoft Surface Go 2 (2020)

HP Chromebook 14 (2021)

The Microsoft Surface Go 2 (2020) is an ultraportable 2-in-1 Windows device with a detachable keyboard, whereas the HP Chromebook 14 (2021) is a Chrome OS laptop with a larger screen. The Surface is better for multimedia viewing, as its display has a better resolution, gets brighter, and has a larger gamut with far more accurate colors. Also, it's more portable, feels better built, and has a backlit keyboard and a better-quality webcam and microphone. On the other hand, the HP has a far better battery life, a more varied port selection, and a much better touchpad.

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Notice: Two or more of the products selected have been tested with different test methodologies, so some of the results below aren't directly comparable. Learn how our test benches and scoring system work, and read more about the latest changes to our laptops test methodology.

Main Differences for

Threshold 

0.10

School 

7.2
7.1

Battery 
 

6.2
9.5

Webcam & Microphone 
 

8.7
4.8

Build Quality 
 

8.0
6.0

Vertical Viewing Angle 
 

7.1
3.1

Portability 
 

9.6
8.7

Ports 
 

2.5
6.0

Keyboard 
 

7.8
6.2

Full Comparison

Design

Style 
 

Style Photo  

Microsoft Surface Go 2 (2020) Style Photo
HP Chromebook 14 (2021) Style Photo

Form Factor 
 

Tablet
Traditional (Clamshell)

Show text

Build Quality 
 

8.0
6.0

Build Quality Photo  

Microsoft Surface Go 2 (2020) Build Quality Photo
HP Chromebook 14 (2021) Build Quality Photo

Show text

Hinge 
 

6.9
5.4

Hinge Photo  

Microsoft Surface Go 2 (2020) Hinge Photo
HP Chromebook 14 (2021) Hinge Photo

Range 
 

170°
135°

Stability 
 

Good
Decent

One Finger Lift 
 

No
No

Show text

Portability 
 

9.6
8.7

Dimensions Photo  

Microsoft Surface Go 2 (2020) Dimensions Photo
HP Chromebook 14 (2021) Dimensions Photo

Size 
 

10.5"
14"

Thickness 
 

0.5" (1.3 cm)
0.7" (1.7 cm)

Width 
 

9.9" (25.1 cm)
12.8" (32.5 cm)

Depth 
 

7.1" (18.1 cm)
8.6" (21.8 cm)

Volume 
 

35.8 in³ (586.1 cm³)
73.5 in³ (1,204.5 cm³)

Weight 
 

1.2 lbs (0.5 kg)
3.1 lbs (1.4 kg)

Charger Size 
 

6.0 in³ (98.5 cm³)
6.9 in³ (112.8 cm³)

Charger Weight 
 

0.4 lbs (0.2 kg)
0.4 lbs (0.2 kg)

Show text

Serviceability 
 

0.0
3.0

Internals Photo  

Microsoft Surface Go 2 (2020) Internals Photo
HP Chromebook 14 (2021) Internals Photo

Ease Of Access 
 

0
4.0

RAM Slots 
 

0
0

Storage Slots 
 

0
0

Replaceable Battery 
 

No
Yes

Replaceable Wireless Adapter 
 

No
Yes

Show text

In The Box 
 

In The Box Photo  

Microsoft Surface Go 2 (2020) In The Box Photo
HP Chromebook 14 (2021) In The Box Photo

Show text

Display

Screen Specs 
 

Display Photo  

Microsoft Surface Go 2 (2020) Display Photo
HP Chromebook 14 (2021) Display Photo

Resolution 
 

1920 x 1280
1366 x 768

Aspect Ratio 
 

3:2
16:9

Pixel Density 
 

220 PPI
112 PPI

Panel Type 
 

IPS
TN

Touch Screen 
 

Yes
No

Screen-To-Body Ratio 
 

77%
77%

Show text

Refresh Rate 
 

5.9
5.9

Motion Blur  

Microsoft Surface Go 2 (2020) Motion Blur
HP Chromebook 14 (2021) Motion Blur

Refresh Rate 
 

60 Hz
60 Hz

Variable Refresh Rate 
 

No
No

Show text

Contrast 
 

7.3
5.4

Contrast Photo  

Microsoft Surface Go 2 (2020) Contrast Photo
HP Chromebook 14 (2021) Contrast Photo

Native Contrast 
 

1,282 : 1
591 : 1

Show text

Brightness  
 

7.8
6.3

Maximum Brightness 
 

368 cd/m²
243 cd/m²

Minimum Brightness 
 

6 cd/m²
12 cd/m²

Show text

Reflections 
 

6.9
7.6

Reflections Photo Off  

Microsoft Surface Go 2 (2020) Reflections Photo Off
HP Chromebook 14 (2021) Reflections Photo Off

Reflections Photo Max  

Microsoft Surface Go 2 (2020) Reflections Photo Max
HP Chromebook 14 (2021) Reflections Photo Max

Screen Finish 
 

Glossy
Matte

Total Reflections 
 

4.798%
5.04%

Indirect Reflections 
 

0.291%
4.22%

Calculated Direct Reflections 
 

4.5%
0.82%

Show text

Black Uniformity 
 

7.5
0.2

Black Uniformity Photo  

Microsoft Surface Go 2 (2020) Black Uniformity Photo
HP Chromebook 14 (2021) Black Uniformity Photo

Uniformity (Std. Dev.) 
 

1.014%
14.378%

Show text

Horizontal Viewing Angle 
 

7.2
5.6

Horizontal Viewing Angle Video  

Horizontal Chroma Picture  

Microsoft Surface Go 2 (2020) Horizontal Chroma Picture
HP Chromebook 14 (2021) Horizontal Chroma Picture

Color Washout From Left 
 

28°
24°

Color Washout From Right 
 

26°
25°

Horizontal Hue Picture  

Microsoft Surface Go 2 (2020) Horizontal Hue Picture
HP Chromebook 14 (2021) Horizontal Hue Picture

Color Shift From Left 
 

60°
33°

Color Shift From Right 
 

60°
34°

Horizontal Lightness Picture  

Microsoft Surface Go 2 (2020) Horizontal Lightness Picture
HP Chromebook 14 (2021) Horizontal Lightness Picture

Brightness Loss From Left 
 

29°
27°

Brightness Loss From Right 
 

28°
29°

Black Level Raise From Left 
 

60°
26°

Black Level Raise From Right 
 

60°
26°

Gamma Shift From Left 
 

33°
18°

Gamma Shift From Right 
 

32°
19°

Show text

Vertical Viewing Angle 
 

7.1
3.1

Vertical Viewing Angle Video  

Vertical Chroma Picture  

Microsoft Surface Go 2 (2020) Vertical Chroma Picture
HP Chromebook 14 (2021) Vertical Chroma Picture

Color Washout From Below 
 

25°
10°

Color Washout From Above 
 

26°
20°

Vertical Hue Picture  

Microsoft Surface Go 2 (2020) Vertical Hue Picture
HP Chromebook 14 (2021) Vertical Hue Picture

Color Shift From Below 
 

45°

Color Shift From Above 
 

45°

Vertical Lightness Picture  

Microsoft Surface Go 2 (2020) Vertical Lightness Picture
HP Chromebook 14 (2021) Vertical Lightness Picture

Brightness Loss From Below 
 

29°
26°

Brightness Loss From Above 
 

30°
25°

Black Level Raise From Below 
 

45°
10°

Black Level Raise From Above 
 

45°

Gamma Shift From Below 
 

29°

Gamma Shift From Above 
 

28°

Show text

Out-Of-The-Box Color Accuracy 
 

8.2
0.1

White Balance Screencap  

Microsoft Surface Go 2 (2020) White Balance Screencap
HP Chromebook 14 (2021) White Balance Screencap

Gamma Curve Screencap  

Microsoft Surface Go 2 (2020) Gamma Curve Screencap
HP Chromebook 14 (2021) Gamma Curve Screencap

Color Screencap  

Microsoft Surface Go 2 (2020) Color Screencap
HP Chromebook 14 (2021) Color Screencap

Avg. White Balance dE 
 

3.15
12.92

Avg. Gamma 
 

2.18
2.17

Avg. Color dE 
 

1.97
10.77

Avg. Color Temperature 
 

6,583 K
16,279 K

Show text

Color Gamut 
 

8.6
4.0

Gamut SDR  

Microsoft Surface Go 2 (2020) Gamut SDR
HP Chromebook 14 (2021) Gamut SDR

sRGB xy 
 

105.88%
65.04%

sRGB uv 
 

105.34%
52.82%

Adobe RGB xy 
 

77.7%
48.38%

Adobe RGB uv 
 

88.3%
45.59%

Gamut HDR  

Microsoft Surface Go 2 (2020) Gamut HDR
HP Chromebook 14 (2021) Gamut HDR

DCI P3 xy 
 

78%
48.11%

DCI P3 uv 
 

83.7%
42.36%

Rec. 2020 xy 
 

56%
34.51%

Rec. 2020 uv 
 

61.13%
30.87%

Show text

Flicker 
 

10
10

Flicker Graph  

Microsoft Surface Go 2 (2020) Flicker Graph
HP Chromebook 14 (2021) Flicker Graph

Flicker-Free 
 

Yes
Yes

Flicker Frequency 
 

No Flicker
No Flicker

Flicker Active Below 
 

0%
0%

Show text

Interface

Keyboard 
 

7.8
6.2

Keyboard Photo  

Microsoft Surface Go 2 (2020) Keyboard Photo
HP Chromebook 14 (2021) Keyboard Photo

Typing Quality 
 

7.5
7.5

Numpad 
 

No
No

Backlighting 
 

Adjustable
No

Key Switch Actuation Graph  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Operating Force 
 

66 gf
65 gf

Actuation Force 
 

43 gf
36 gf

Pre-Travel 
 

0.95 mm
1.00 mm

Total Travel 
 

1.41 mm
1.51 mm

Show text

Touchpad 
 

6.3
7.0

Touchpad Photo  

Microsoft Surface Go 2 (2020) Touchpad Photo
HP Chromebook 14 (2021) Touchpad Photo

Tracking Quality 
 

6.5
7.0

Size 
 

8.2 in² (53.0 cm²)
12.9 in² (83.5 cm²)

Material 
 

Glass
Plastic

Dedicated Buttons 
 

No
No

Show text

Speakers 
 

7.4
7.5

Frequency Response Plot  

See details on graph tool
See details on graph tool

Max Volume 
 

70 dB SPL
72 dB SPL

Standard Error @ Normal Vol. (65 dB) 
 

4.5 dB
4.5 dB

Slope @ Normal Vol. (65 dB) 
 

1.2
0.1

Bass Extension (Low-Frequency Ext.) 
 

250 Hz
320 Hz

Treble Extension (High-Frequency Ext.) 
 

13 kHz
17 kHz

Dynamic Range Compression @ Max Vol. 
 

1.8 dB
0.4 dB

Show text

Webcam & Microphone 
 

8.7
4.8

Webcam Video Sample  

Video Quality 
 

9.0
4.5

Resolution 
 

1080p
720p

Position 
 

Top Center
Top Center

Privacy Cover 
 

No
No

Face Unlock 
 

Yes
No

Show text

Connectivity

Ports 
 

2.5
6.0

Ports Photo  

Microsoft Surface Go 2 (2020) Ports Photo
HP Chromebook 14 (2021) Ports Photo

USB-A Ports 
 

0
1

USB-C Ports 
 

1
2

Thunderbolt 
 

No
No

USB-C Charging 
 

Yes
Yes

USB-C Display Out 
 

Yes
Yes

HDMI 
 

No
No

DisplayPort 
 

No
No

3.5mm Jack 
 

Combo mic/headphone
Combo mic/headphone

Card Reader 
 

MicroSD UHS 2
MicroSD UHS 1

Ethernet 
 

No
No

Proprietary Port 
 

Surface Connect
No

Security Lock 
 

No
No

Show text

Wireless Communication 
 

Wi-Fi 
 

Wi-Fi 6 (802.11ax)
Wi-Fi 5 (802.11ac)

Bluetooth 
 

5.0
5.0

Show text

Configuration

CPU 
 

Brand 
 

Intel
Intel

Model 
 

Pentium Gold 4425Y
Celeron N4000

Core Count 
 

2
2

Thread Count 
 

4
2

Show text

GPU 
 

Brand 
 

Intel
Intel

Model 
 

UHD Graphics 615
UHD Graphics 600

Dedicated/Integrated 
 

Integrated
Integrated

VRAM Size 
 

N/A
N/A

Show text

RAM 
 

Capacity 
 

8 GB
4 GB

Modules 
 

2 (Soldered)
4 (Soldered)

Type 
 

LP-DDR3
LP-DDR4

Speed 
 

1,866 MHz
2,933 MHz

Show text

Storage 
 

Advertised Capacity 
 

128 GB
32 GB

Usable Capacity 
 

91 GB
20 GB

Drive 1 
 

KBG40ZPZ128G TOSHIBA MEMORY
Kingston TB2932

Drive 1 Type  

SSD
eMMC

Drive 2 
 

No 2nd Drive
No 2nd Drive

Drive 2 Type  

No 2nd Drive
No 2nd Drive

Show text

Performance

Geekbench 5 (Synthetics) 
 

2.5
2.6

Geekbench Image  

Microsoft Surface Go 2 (2020) Geekbench Image
HP Chromebook 14 (2021) Geekbench Image

CPU Single-Thread 
 

420 points
426 points

CPU Multi-Thread 
 

962 points
790 points

GPU Compute 
 

3,858 points
N/A

Show text

Cinebench R23 (CPU Rendering) 
 

2.5
0.0

Cinebench R23 Photo  

Microsoft Surface Go 2 (2020) Cinebench R23 Photo
HP Chromebook 14 (2021) Cinebench R23 Photo

Single-Thread 
 

385 points
N/A

Multi-Thread 
 

970 points
N/A

Show text

Blender (3D Rendering) 
 

0.0
0.0

Blender Image  

Microsoft Surface Go 2 (2020) Blender Image
HP Chromebook 14 (2021) Blender Image

CPU Render Time 
 

42.3 min
57.1 min

GPU Render Time 
 

N/A
N/A

GPU Render Time (Optix) 
 

N/A
N/A

Show text

Basemark GPU (Game Scene) 
 

1.6
1.8

Basemark Image  

Microsoft Surface Go 2 (2020) Basemark Image
HP Chromebook 14 (2021) Basemark Image

Overall Score 
 

3,603
4,042

Show text

Storage Drive Performance 
 

7.9
4.2

Storage Performance Image  

Microsoft Surface Go 2 (2020) Storage Performance Image
HP Chromebook 14 (2021) Storage Performance Image

Sequential Write Speed 
 

422.9 MB/s
39.5 MB/s

Sequential Read Speed 
 

1,181.1 MB/s
235.2 MB/s

Random Write Speed 
 

32.0 MB/s
2.6 MB/s

Random Read Speed 
 

27.2 MB/s
12.5 MB/s

Show text

Battery 
 

6.2
9.5

Capacity 
 

27 Wh
47 Wh

Battery Life (Web Browsing) 
 

8.4 hrs
16.2 hrs

Battery Life (Video Playback) 
 

3.9 hrs
9.0 hrs

Battery Life (Gaming) 
 

1.6 hrs
2.7 hrs

Charge Time 
 

2.5 hrs
2.4 hrs

Show text

Borderlands 3 
 

0.0
0.0

Borderlands 3 Graph  

Microsoft Surface Go 2 (2020) Borderlands 3 Graph
HP Chromebook 14 (2021) Borderlands 3 Graph

Avg. FPS 
 

N/A
N/A

1% Low 
 

N/A
N/A

0.1% Low 
 

N/A
N/A

1% Low Delta 
 

N/A
N/A

0.1% Low Delta 
 

N/A
N/A

Avg. FPS On Very Low 
 

N/A
N/A

Show text

Civilization VI 
 

0.4
0.0

Civilization VI Graph  

See details on graph tool
HP Chromebook 14 (2021) Civilization VI Graph

Avg. FPS 
 

3 fps
N/A

1% Low 
 

2 fps
N/A

0.1% Low 
 

2 fps
N/A

1% Low Delta 
 

103 ms
N/A

0.1% Low Delta 
 

107 ms
N/A

Avg. FPS On Minimum 
 

12 fps
N/A

Avg. Turn Time 
 

28.49 s
N/A

Show text

Counter-Strike: Global Offensive 
 

2.2
0.0

CS:GO graph  

See details on graph tool
HP Chromebook 14 (2021) CS:GO graph

Avg. FPS 
 

14 fps
N/A

1% Low 
 

3 fps
N/A

0.1% Low 
 

1 fps
N/A

1% Low Delta 
 

323 ms
N/A

0.1% Low Delta 
 

1,744 ms
N/A

Avg. FPS On Low 
 

34 fps
N/A

Show text

Counter-Strike 2 
 

CS2 Graph  

Avg. FPS 
 

1% Low 
 

0.1% Low 
 

1% Low Delta 
 

0.1% Low Delta 
 

Avg. FPS On Low 
 

Shadow Of The Tomb Raider 
 

0.4
0.0

SOTTR Graph  

See details on graph tool
HP Chromebook 14 (2021) SOTTR Graph

Avg. FPS 
 

3 fps
N/A

1% Low 
 

1 fps
N/A

0.1% Low 
 

1 fps
N/A

1% Low Delta 
 

505 ms
N/A

0.1% Low Delta 
 

1,113 ms
N/A

Avg. FPS On Lowest 
 

5 fps
N/A

Show text

Thermals And Noise 
 

9.9
8.9

Keyboard Temps Picture  

Microsoft Surface Go 2 (2020) Keyboard Temps Picture
HP Chromebook 14 (2021) Keyboard Temps Picture

Keyboard Temp While Idle 
 

24 °C (74 °F)
26 °C (78 °F)

Keyboard Temp Under Load 
 

28 °C (82 °F)
41 °C (106 °F)

Fan Noise While Idle 
 

N/A
N/A

Fan Noise Under Load 
 

N/A
N/A

Power & Fan Control App 
 

No
No

Show text

Performance Over Time 
 

7.4
0.0

Performance Over Time Graph  

HP Chromebook 14 (2021) Performance Over Time Graph

Performance Over Time Image  

Microsoft Surface Go 2 (2020) Performance Over Time Image

CPU Temp (Cinebench) 
 

54 °C
N/A

CPU Perf. Loss (Cinebench) 
 

0% loss
N/A

GPU Temp (Heaven) 
 

63 °C
N/A

GPU Perf. Loss (Heaven) 
 

17% loss
N/A

Show text

Additional Features And Software

Software 
 

Operating System 
 

Windows 10
Chrome OS

Additional Software 
 

None
None

Show text

Extra Features 
 

RGB Illumination 
 

No
No

Touch Pen 
 

No
No

Secondary Display 
 

No
No

Biometrics 
 

Face Recognition
No

Show text

Microsoft Surface Go 2 (2020)

HP Chromebook 14 (2021)

Comments

  1. Comparison

Microsoft Surface Go 2 (2020) vs HP Chromebook 14 (2021): Main Discussion

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