REASONS TO BUY
Fast web browsing
Sensitive touchscreen
Great keyboard and trackpad
REASONS TO AVOID
No stylus
ASUS Flip C302CA Review
Great, but not the best in its price range
Credit: Jenna Ammerman
RELATED: Best Chromebooks
Our Verdict
The ASUS Flip C302CA was one of the first Chromebooks built with a touchscreen in anticipation for Android App compatibility, and it can still hang with some of the newer models. With a solid processor, 4GB of RAM, a great touchscreen, and a well designed keyboard, this Chromebook offers a great and versatile computing experience. If you're going to spend this much, we think the Samsung Chromebook Pro is a bit better overall. However, if you're looking for more onboard storage without shelling out lots of cash for the Google Pixelbook, the Flip C302CA does have 64GB of internal storage. That is double what most Chromebooks offer, including the Samsung Pro.
Compare to Similar Products
 This Product ASUS Flip C302CA | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Awards |  Great Value for a Large Screen | Excellent Bang for the Buck | |||
| Price | $500 List | $300 List | $350 List | $230 List | $230 List |
Overall Score  |
|||||
| Star Rating | |||||
| Bottom Line | Good if you can find it on sale or want a little extra internal storage | A great portable option for computing on the go | Perfect for those that want a large interface, and don't care about having to lug around a few extra pounds | Good browsing speeds but a slightly cramped feeling keyboard | Good for email and general web browsing, but not much else |
| Rating Categories | ASUS Flip C302CA | ASUS Flip C101PA | Acer 15 | Samsung 3 | ASUS C202SA |
| Performance (25%) | |||||
| Interface and Features (20%) | |||||
| Display Quality (20%) | |||||
| Battery Life (20%) | |||||
| Portability (15%) | |||||
| Specs | ASUS Flip C302CA | ASUS Flip C101PA | Acer 15 | Samsung 3 | ASUS C202SA |
| Weight | 2.65 lb | 2 lb | 4.3 lb | 2.54 lb | 2.65 lb |
| Dimensions | 11.97" x 8.28" x 0.54" | 10.4" x 7.2" x 0.6" | 14.88" x 10.08" x 0.75" | 11.37" x 8.04" x 0.7" | 11.57" x 7.87" x 0.89" |
| Touchscreen | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No |
| Screen Size | 12.5" | 10.1" | 15.6" | 11.6" | 11.6" |
| RAM | 4 GB | 4 GB | 4 GB | 4 GB | 4 GB |
| Storage | 64 GB | 16 GB | 32 GB | 32 GB | 16 GB |
| Processor | Intel Core m3 | OP1 | Intel Pentium N4200 | Intel Celeron N3050 1.6 GHz | Intel Celeron N3060 1.6 GHz |
| Screen Resolution | 1920 x 1080 | 1280 x 800 | 1920 x 1080 | 1366 x 768 | 1366x768 |
| Ports | Micro HDMI, Micro SD, 2 x USB 2.0, 3.5 mm Aux | 1 x USB 3.0, 2 x USB C, 3.5 mm Aux | 2 x USB 3.0, 1 x USB C, 3.5 mm Aux | HDMI, Micro SD, USB 3.0, USB 2.0, 3.5 mm Aux | HDMI, Micro SD, 2 x USB 3.0, 3.5 mm Aux |
| Reported Battery Life (hours) | 10 | 9 | 14 | 11 | 10 |
| Measured Battery Life (hours) | 5.5 | 7 | 7.5 | 4.5 | 4.8 |
Show full specification detailsHide full specification details
Our Analysis and Test Results
The ASUS Flip C302CA provides great performance, but the similarly priced Samsung Pro is better overall. For most people, we would suggest the Samsung Pro over the Flip C302CA.
Credit: Jenna Ammerman
Performance Comparison
We used a series of tests, divided into 5 testing metrics, to find which Chromebooks are the best for each application. The Flip C302CA's performance in those test earned it a high but not exceptional score. Below you can read exactly how it fared in all of our tests.
Performance
The Flip C302CA was one of the best performers in our testing, losing out only to the vastly more expensive Google Pixelbook.
The Flip C302CA's 4GB of RAM and Intel Core m3 processor delivered great overall performance in our testing. Everyone in the TechGearLab office is used to using a traditional laptop with 8GB of RAM during the workday. When we forced them to switch to the Flip C302CA nobody had any complaints. Even when browsing multiple google docs and sheets while streaming music the Flip C302CA remained responsive and lag free. As I type this now I have a google doc open, a couple of google sheets, 5 tabs I forgot to close form this morning, and a High definition Arctic Monkeys youtube video playing in the background, and the Flip C302CA isn't showing any signs of slowing down.
Overall the Flip C302CA's performance is effectively even with that of the Samsung Pro, and just a scotch behind the Google Pixelbook. For the vast majority of users, the Flip C302CA's performance is more than adequate.
Interface and Features
The Flip C302CA offers pretty much everything you'd want and does it with aplomb. The only thing it is missing is a stylus.
The Flip C302CA is able to fit a full sized keyboard and large trackpad into an impressively thin and light body. Our testers felt typing on the keyboard was nearly on par with typing on a desktop keyboard. The Flip C302CA also earned some brownie points for its touchscreen, which we found to be very responsive. Its screen can also flip all the way around into tablet mode. All in all its interface is comparable to those of the Samsung Pro and the Google Pixelbook. However, it doesn't have a stylus, something both of those models do have available.
The Flip C302CA's touchscreen can be used in any orientation.
Credit: Jenna Ammerman
Ports
With 2 USB-C ports, a MicroSD card slot, and a headphone jack, the Flip C302CA offers the same kind of connectivity as most other Chromebooks on the market.
The Flip C302CA lacks an HDMI port, but adapters are available.
Credit: Jenna Ammerman
Display Quality
The Flip C302CA's screen offers a good visual experience. It was just behind the top scorers in our screen quality testing.
The Flip C302CA has a 12.5", full high definition 1920 x 1080 screen that produces true, vibrant colors. This makes it a great model for streaming movies and watching TV shows. However, compared to a few of the other high-end models its colors are just a tad less vibrant. We doubt anyone would complain about this screen, but in side-by-side comparisons is clearly slightly behind the quality of the likes of the Samsung Pro and Google Pixelbook.
Battery Life
The Flip C3032CA was one of the many models that fell into the 5-hour range in our battery life testing. Our test was quite taxing, using a streaming video with the screen set on maximum brightness. This means the C302CA can easily last through a movie and would last significantly longer with a dimmer screen.
Portability
The Flip C302CA is impressively light considering its screen size, but there are some models out there that are thinner and lighter.
The Flip C302CA is quite slim. Despite its 12.5" screen size it weighs only 2.65 pounds and is only 0.54" thick. That is about the same size as the Samsung Pro, but the Pro is a bit lighter at 2.38 pounds. The Pixelbook is a bit thinner and lighter, 0.4" and 2.4 pounds, respectively. So, while other models are both thinner and lighter, the Flip C302CA certainly won't hog any space in your backpack.
The 12.5 inch Flip C302CA spooning with the 10.1 inch Flip C100PA. The Flip C302CA has about the same footprint as an average laptop, but is quite thin.
Credit: Jenna Ammerman
Value
The Flip C302CA is on par in price with the Samsung Pro. The Samsung Pro is a better deal. However, the Flip C302CA does often sell for a bit below its list price, so if you don't mind a slightly heavier machine and like that it has a bit more internal storage, the Flip C302CA can be a slightly better value than the Samsung Pro.
Conclusion
The Flip C302CA is a great Chromebook, but it loses out to the similarly priced Samsung Pro. If you can find the Flip C302CA on sale, or really want something with more than the standard 32GB of internal storage, the Flip C302CA is a good choice.
Accessories
Cable Matters HDMI Converter
Credit: Cable Matters
- Allows the Flip C302CA to be plugged into an external display with an HDMI cable
—
Max Mutter and Steven Tata
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