I finally ditched my fancy laptop for a cheap Chromebook while traveling

I spent 6 months in Lisbon with my $2,000 MacBook Pro, constantly stressed about theft and damage. Last month in Bangkok, I switched to a $300 Chromebook that does 90% of my web dev work. The battery lasts all day, and I can work from a beach bar without a care. Has anyone else found that less gear actually means more freedom on the road?

3 comments

3 Comments

grace9262mo ago

My $400 Acer Chromebook got me through a year in Mexico City. That feeling of not worrying about it is the real luxury.

amy_reed792mo ago

My buddy left his cheap laptop at a cafe in Lisbon and didn't even realize for two hours. He just walked back, it was still there, and he just wiped the crumbs off. That total lack of stress is the vibe @grace926 is talking about. He wasn't scared of a repair bill or theft. It just did its job without being a source of worry.

gavinwood24d ago

That "total lack of stress" part really hit home for me. A buddy of mine had a similar thing happen with his old ThinkPad in a hostel in Budapest. He left it on a table in the common area, went out for the whole day, came back and it was just sitting there untouched. He told me later that with his old laptop he would have been panicking, but with that cheap thing, it was more of a mild inconvenience. It's like the price of the machine sets the ceiling on how much you can stress about it. It just worked, got dropped a few times, and never felt like a fragile treasure. That relaxed feeling is way better than any spec sheet.