ASUS Chromebook CX14 (CX1405) review

I haven't used the CX14. I'm working from ASUS's US store page and from one German test that ran twice. PC-WELT published it on January 9, 2026, and Computerwoche ran a version on January 24, 2026. Same author, same benchmark figures. So it's really one test.

There's a catch, too. That test used the CX1405CTA with 4GB of LPDDR4X and 128GB of eMMC. The model ASUS sells in its US store has 8GB of LPDDR5 and 64GB of eMMC. Same N150 chip, same 42 Wh battery, different memory and storage. The 6.8 is my opinion from all that, and it carries the gap with it.

The price on ASUS's US store is $559.99Not verifiedNot verified (checked November 1, 2026).

The storage is the dumb part

64GB. That's the whole drive, and it's eMMC. PC-WELT's verdict names eMMC as one of the two things that limit this laptop under heavy multitasking. The other was RAM, which this configuration fixes. Storage it makes worse, at half the 128GB on the tested unit.

It bothers me that ASUS doubled one number and halved the other. If you keep everything in Google Drive and live in a browser, you won't care much. If you download big files or keep a lot offline, I'd look elsewhere.

The 8GB is the good part

PC-WELT called its 4GB unit a balanced budget Chromebook that hits limits with heavy multitasking. This one has twice the RAM. My guess is that shows up most when you've got a pile of tabs open, more than in benchmark scores. Nobody has measured it.

What PC-WELT measured

Battery first. On the 42 Wh pack, PC-WELT got a little over 8 hours of Wi-Fi browsing. That's a school day, give or take a lunch break. Faster LPDDR5 and less storage could move it either way, and I won't pretend to know which.

PC-WELT's browser benchmarks on the 4GB unit:

• WebXPRT 4: 178
• Speedometer 3.0: 11.2
• Basemark Web 3.0: 729
• Kraken 1.1: 717.0 ms
• JetStream 2: 189,286

Computerwoche adds one useful line. It says the Chromebook Plus CX14, with an Intel Core 3 and 8GB of RAM, is roughly 10 to 20% faster. That's a separate model that sits above this one. It's the only number I have on what the step up buys you in speed.

PC-WELT weighed its unit at about 1.4 kg and measured 325 × 214 × 20 mm. ASUS says from 1.39 kg. Those agree.

The screen

ASUS lists a 14-inch non-touch panel at 300 nits. PC-WELT didn't measure brightness, so the 300 nits is ASUS's word only.

PC-WELT's unit had a 1920 × 1080 TN panel. ASUS doesn't list a resolution for the US model.

Ports and the small stuff

ASUS's spec row says up to 2x USB 3.2 Gen 1 Type-A plus a 3.5 mm audio jack. Other text on the same page lists the ports differently. Check the port list against your cables and charger before you order.

The rest is decent for the class. Wi-Fi 6E, Bluetooth 5.4, and a privacy shutter on the webcam, all per ASUS. ASUS doesn't give a release date.

Against the alternatives

These are placed by price only.

• ASUS Chromebook CX14 (CX1405): $559.99Not verifiedNot verified
• ASUS Chromebook CX15 (CX1505CKA): Not verified
• Samsung Galaxy Chromebook Plus: Not verified
• Microsoft Surface Laptop 13: $1,199.99Not verifiedNot verified

The CX15 is the bigger sibling from ASUS. The Samsung is the step up inside ChromeOS. The Surface is the cheapest Windows ultraportable we list, and a different class of laptop. If the gap to the Samsung looks small at today's prices, I'd stretch for it before living with 64GB. If it doesn't, the CX14 does the browser job.

Who I'd buy it for

A student or a parent who needs a laptop for web apps, docs and video calls, with files in the cloud. 8GB of RAM and a little over 8 hours on battery cover that, going by PC-WELT's numbers on a close cousin.

Anyone who wants local storage, a better screen or a test of this exact model should wait or spend more.