Chromebooks are often described as lite laptops. They’re meant to provide decent processing power and storage to their users that mainly use the cloud to store files. However, for most folks, they’re full-fledged laptops that can do most of what other regular laptops can. So here are 10 awesome things you can do with your Chromebook.

What Can You Do with a Chromebook?

Chromebooks aren’t just machines that connect to the internet and use the Google suite of apps. You can use them to watch films, play games, do office work, etc. Most of them have decent battery life that lasts throughout the day and enough ports to make do. So they’re not really lite laptops as much as tablets built for expanded use. So here are a few things you can do with them.

Productivity Uses for Chromebooks

Chromebooks are well suited for the modern working individual. You can access your files anywhere from the cloud and work with all day battery life and decent processing power. They’re also pretty portable and lightweight to carry around anywhere.

Chrome Remote Desktop

This is a golden opportunity to take your work anywhere with you. Just download Chrome Remote Desktop to your home PC. Then leave it running in the background. This way you can run any program straight from your PC on your Chromebook. You can even run high-end stuff like Adobe Premiere, Microsoft Office, and Blender.

With Chromebooks running on Chrome OS you get the full library of Android Apps. These include all the productivity apps you need for reminders, scheduling, text editors, presentation apps, etc. You can also manage your finances, use specific accounting software, or any other app on the Play Store.

Entertainment Uses for Chromebooks

Great entertainment uses for Chromebooks include watching videos, playing games, etc.

Games

As mentioned before, with the full library of Google Play Store apps, you get the games too. With the storage and RAM on the Chromebook, you can run any game you want. This includes Angry Birds, Fortnite, PUBG, COD, etc. Other games like Cut the Rope, Warhammer, and The Walking Dead are also all available.

Movies and TV Shows

With streaming apps like Amazon Prime Video, Netflix, Hulu, Disney+, etc. you can stream all the content you want. Also, Chromebooks have USB ports, so you can transfer films and TV shows to watch offline.

And of course, how can you forget YouTube? The largest streaming site on the internet is waiting for you to fire up that Chromebook and search for endless content. So what can you do with a Chromebook for entertainment? Pretty much anything.

Small Tweaks that Make Your Chromebook Experience Better

Here are just a few tweaks and tips that you should try for on your Chromebook to maximize your user experience.

Set Up a Shelf

Your Shelf is your main program access panel. You can customize it to launch your favorite apps.

• To remove apps, you can right-click the icon in question and select “Unpin”.
• To add apps, open up the app in the Chrome browser and right-click the webpage tab. Select “More Tools> Create Shortcut”. Click Confirm on the pop-up window and check the box “Open as Window”. Then click “Create”.
• To rearrange apps on the Shelf, just click and drag.

Pair with Your Smartphone

Pairing an Android Phone with your Chromebook will help you unlock it faster. This happens via Bluetooth.

Click the clock in the lower right corner of the desktop. Select “Settings”. Select “Connected Devices” in

the left rail and click “Set Up” in the Android Phone Section.

Then select “Accept & Continue”. Enter your Password, and then you’ll be done.

Customize Google Sync

Trackpad Gestures

• Two-finger tap reveals the Context Menu
• Two-finger swipe to the left or right can move back or forward through the browser history of a tab.
• Two-finger swipe up or down can scroll through a page.
• Three-finger swipe left or right can switch between tabs.
• Three-finger tap can open a new link in a new tab.
• Three-finger swipe down opens windows on a desktop.

Customize the Search Key

Some people would rather the search key be remapped to work as Backspace or Caps Lock. For that, you need to open “Settings” and choose “Device”. Select “Keyboard” and you’ll see a drop down menu next to “Search”. Choose the functionality from there. You can do the same with Ctrl, Alt, Esc, and Backspace keys.

Enable Offline Functions

• You’ll need to access Google Drive for this and specify the files you need offline. Select the three-dot icon in Google Drive and activate “Available Offline” for those files.
• For Google Calendar, download the app and store the reminders offline.
• You can even enable offline mode on Gmail by selecting the cog icon in the upper right corner and click the Offline Tab. Then check the box “Enable Offline Mail”.

With so many things you can change and use in a Chromebook, no wonder they have been gaining in popularity since their release. Using these 10 awesome tips and tricks, you can take full advantage of your Chromebook.