Chromebook prices seem to be hitting an all-time low these days. Case in point: The Lenovo 100S Chromebook lists for $179 and features an 11.6-inch display, Intel Celeron power, and a decent array of ports and performance. It's not ruggedized for the thumps and bumps of schoolroom duty like the Lenovo ThinkPad 11e Chromebook or the Dell Chromebook 11 Non-Touch, and it doesn't have a touch screen like the Asus Chromebook Flip (C100PA-DB02), but it's priced well below those machines.

Don't confuse the 100S Chromebook, which runs Chrome OS and its mostly browser-based apps, with the Lenovo IdeaPad 100S (stay tuned for our full review), which is a value-priced Windows laptop akin to the HP Stream 11. The 100S Chromebook comes with 2GB of RAM and 16GB of flash storage, as well as the usual freebie of 100GB of Google Drive cloud storage for two years. If you're a chromebook power user, Lenovo also offers the 100S with 4GB of memory and 32GB of storage for $229.99.

Design and Features
Measuring 0.75 by 11.8 by 8.2 inches (HWD) and weighing 2.64 pounds, the 100S is noticeably sleeker and lighter than the 0.87-inch, 3.1-pound Lenovo 11e Chromebook. It's built of black plastic, with a finely textured lid with Lenovo and Chrome logos and a thin chrome strip around the touch pad in the keyboard palm rest.

If you were expecting a ThinkPad keyboard for this price, you'll be disappointed, but the square, chiclet-style keys have a snappy, albeit shallow, typing feel. The layout follows the chromebook standard, with a search key in place of Caps Lock and a top row of system functions. The touchpad glides smoothly, but requires a firm tap.

The 11.6-inch, 1,366-by-768 display is clear and bright (as long as you stick to the top three or four backlight settings), and if you're seated directly in front of it, you'll see crisp detail and lively colors. It's not an In-Plane Switching (IPS) panel like that of the Asus Chromebook Flip or the Toshiba Chromebook 2, however, so a viewer positioned to one side, or especially above or below, will see a washed-out, unreadable screen.

A grainy, noisy webcam and microphones above the display suffice for Google+ Hangouts (Chrome OS's answer to Skype). Sound is tinny, but adequate for multimedia apps like streaming video, with ample volume. The bundled AC adapter is a large plug instead of the traditional Power brick, which is handy for travel but can block an adjacent outlet.