One of the main shortcomings of this model is the backlit keyboard, which is disappointing if you want to use it in the dark. Older CX34 models came with a backlit keyboard, so Asus curiously chose not to include it in this updated version.
The good news is that despite the lack of backlighting, the keyboard is comfortable to use for long periods of time. It has a decent amount of travel and never feels heavy to type on. If I had to find a downside, it would be the small size of the slots for the “F” and “J” home keys, which make typing without looking at the keyboard a little difficult.
The touchpad is large and spacious, though the material it’s made of creates more friction on my finger than I’d like. I also encountered one bug with the touchpad during testing: it became unresponsive after waking the CX34 from sleep mode. This seemed to be an isolated issue and was fixed with a reboot (a quick process for Chromebooks), but it’s worth mentioning.
For everyday work and web browsing, the CX34’s touchscreen is fantastic. It’s a 14-inch, 1920 x 1080 pixel panel that looks sharp and reduces a considerable amount of glare thanks to a matte finish. It’s not the brightest display on the market, though, and may struggle when working outside on a sunny day.
Photography: Daniel Thorp-Lancaster
While the 16:9 screen aspect ratio is pretty standard for laptops, I would have liked to see Asus opt for a slightly taller 16:10 display in this case. The increased vertical space on a 16:10 display is ideal for the productivity work the CX34 is aimed at. You can see this in action on competitors like Acer’s Chromebook Plus Spin 714.
The port selection on the CX34 is pretty good, with two USB-A ports, two USB-C ports, an HDMI slot, and a standard headphone jack. The USB-C ports can charge the laptop using the surprisingly compact 45-watt charger Asus includes in the box, but they can also be used for DisplayPort over USB-C connections to external monitors.