Chromebooks to get 'extra-long battery life' thanks to new MediaTek Kompanio 1380 chip — here's why

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MediaTek's new chip will make Chromebooks more hip

MediaTek Kompanio
MediaTek Kompanio (Image credit: MediaTek)

Laptop Mag frequently tests Chromebooks in our lab, and according to our data, Chrome OS devices have an average battery runtime of 10 hours. Sure, that's enough to get you through a school or workday without being tethered to an outlet, but we're human — we can't help but crave longer battery life.

This is where MediaTek swoops in to save the day with the new brand spankin' new Kompanio 1380 chip. The leading chipset manufacturer claims that the new system-on-a-chip (SoC) will usher in a new wave of better-performing, longer-lasting Chromebooks. 

MediaTek promises better-performing Chromebooks with Kompanio 1380

MediaTek's new Kompanio 1380 chip, based on a six-nanometer architecture, features an octa-core CPU with four high-performance ARM Cortex-A78 cores with speeds up to 3.0 GHz. All of this hardware goodness manifests positively for Chromebooks in the following ways:

  • Longer battery life. Runtimes on ultra-light, super-thin Chromebooks will get a boost.
  • Support for 4K HDR displays. The Kompanio 1380 chip can handle two 4K, 60Hz displays, or one 4K 60Hz display and two 4K 30Hz displays.
  • Better 4K streaming. The new MediaTek chip features advanced decoding features, allowing users to stream 4K content with the best-quality settings. 
  • Powerful multi-core AI processing. Kompanio 1380 chip features optimizations for AI voice and camera applications.
  • Super-fast connectivity. The SoC assists with fast, wireless transfers via Wi-Fi 6/6E and Bluetooth 5.
  • Voice-assistant ready. Kompanio 1380 packs a dedicated audio digital signal processor (DSP), enhancing the voice-assistant experience.

On top of that, Kompanio 1380 has a five-core, ARM Mali-G57 GPU that supports zippy, vivid visuals, so gamers may get some extra "oomph" playing on Nvidia GeForce Now or Google Stadia. Also, the chip's quad-channel 2133MHz LPDDR4X RAM guarantees that there's plenty of data bandwidth.

MediaTek claims that the Kompanio 1380 is set to provide "best-in-class features" for "premium" Chrome OS devices with compact form factors like the Acer Chromebook Spin 513. We're excited to test and validate MediaTek's assertions as Kompanio 1380-packed Chromebooks flow into our lab.

Kimberly Gedeon
Kimberly Gedeon

Kimberly Gedeon, holding a Master's degree in International Journalism, launched her career as a journalist for MadameNoire's business beat in 2013. She loved translating stuffy stories about the economy, personal finance and investing into digestible, easy-to-understand, entertaining stories for young women of color. During her time on the business beat, she discovered her passion for tech as she dove into articles about tech entrepreneurship, the Consumer Electronics Show (CES) and the latest tablets. After eight years of freelancing, dabbling in a myriad of beats, she's finally found a home at Laptop Mag that accepts her as the crypto-addicted, virtual reality-loving, investing-focused, tech-fascinated nerd she is. Woot!