Laptops and notebooks have been a forgotten thing but the new Chromebooks may be trying to rekindle an old fire. With most phones and tablets proving to be sufficient to provide consumers the ample computing without much hassle, could Chromebooks possibly change all that?

Apparently the entry of the Google Chromebook which debuted just last month may get some techies thinking. Would it be worth getting? How does it pan against tablets or Apple's MacBook?

Like most mobile devices, it may all boil down to price, brand, specs and of course capabilities. Functionality is of course important, bringing into mind the forgotten realm of laptops and notebooks. Can these new batch of devices named Chromebooks provide all that?

From the looks of it, it would all depend on the brand at this point. Google has the Chromebook Pixel 2015, a successor to the 2-year old Chromebook Pixel, there is the Acer Chromebook 13 and the Dell Chromebook 11. There are of course many other options to choose from but for now, let us focus on the ones in mention.

The Google Chromebook Pixel 2015 seems pretty interesting to consider. Encased in an all-metal shell, the Chromebook Pixel 2015 packs a CPU of Core i5-5200 (2.2 GHz) and a GPU of Intel HD 5500. It also comes with a built-in memory of 8GB, 32GB SSD, and 2560 x 1700 IPS. It measures 11.7 x 8.8 x 0.6 inches and comes backed with a 59W battery good for up to 12 hours of use.

In all the Google Chromebook Pixel 2015 seems to be something to consider but folks may be held back by its hefty price tag starting at $999.

The Acer Chromebook 13 could be another option. Aside from a familiar and proven brand name in the business, the device boasts of features that include an NVIDIA Tegra K1 4-Plus 1 quad-core ARM Cortex A15 CPU, an NVIDIA Kepler architecture-based GPU, 2GB/4GB RAM and 16GB or 32GB SSD options.

The Acer Chromebook 13 weighs just 3.31 pounds and is just 0.71 inches thick. It has a battery that is good for up to 13 hours of use, an hour better than the Google Chromebook Pixel 2015. Pricing for it starts at $280.

Finally there is also the Dell Chromebook 11. This device comes with features that include an Intel Core i3-4005U (1.7GHz), 16GB built-in storage and RAM which is available in 2GB or 4GB variants. It comes with a battery good for only 9 hours, something justified due to its reportedly excellent performance.

The Dell Chromebook 11 is priced a bit higher than the Acer Chromebook 13 at $379 but is very well cheaper compared to the Google Chromebook Pixel 2015.

Preference may vary and the immediate conclusion would be to go for the cheapest one available. But then again, wise users may want to consider the specs to make sure that they do get the Chromebook that is able to render the proper performance parallel to how an owner plans to use it.