Keyboard and touchpad

Vital elements for any device.

The Chromebook R 13’s backlit keyboard offers a lovely typing experience. The convertible keys work so well because they feature 1.6 millimetres of travel and require 52 grams of force to actuate. Its 4.1 x 2.3-inch buttonless touchpad responded to input quickly and accurately. Two-finger scrolling was smooth and pressing down on the pad provided a comfortable click.

The island-style, backlit keyboard on the Flip C434 offers a solid typing experience, despite providing just 1.3 millimetres of key travel. The keys are large and well spaced while requiring a good 71 grams of force to trigger with a tactile click. The chromeoutlined 4.1 x 2.4-inch touchpad was a tad jumpy at times, but responded quickly to swipes and taps, while all the pinch-to-zoom and two-finger swipes responded well.

The Pixelbook Go has one of the best keyboards we’ve ever used: an ideal balance of quiet use and useful feedback. It’s also backlit, although the default setting is too low. The multi-touchpad is large and responsive, if a little skittish in use. If you want a backlight avoid the HP – it has none – otherwise it features a good keyboard and touchpad. The chiclet-style keys are well-spaced and large, apart from some undersized arrow keys. And while they travel only 1.2 millimeters, the keys actually feel quite bouncy, perhaps because of their aboveaverage 71 grams of actuation force. Its 4.5 x 2.3-inch touchpad responded quickly to pressure.

The Yoga C630’s island-style keyboard doesn’t live up to the Thinkpad’s lofty standards. The keys are a bit stiff but well spaced. The 4x2.7-inch trackpad is smooth and responded well to pressure.