Anybody Gettin a Chromebook?

[lukep]

I currently have a CR-48, in fact it's my only laptop because a hinge broke on my Lenevo. I enjoy the battery life and it really is nice for getting things done on the web. There are some downsides of course, but for the price I paid (Free) and $20/month for 1Gb of data I'm happy.

Cool, someone with experience!

Tell our good friends here if you will kind sir that you can actually get work done through chrome... It seems most people here have blinders on and think that using a terminal to the web means browsing facebook and playing angry birds all day with no hope of working...

 

[Hyphen]

I'll be getting one.

 

[lukep]

The more I think about it; the more I'm convinced that Chromebooks will do exactly the following:

Nothing at all to phones and Tablets.
DESTROY the entire industry of Netbooks, bar none.
Steal ~ 20% of the full-powered Laptop market, mainly the cheapos.
Nothing at all to the high-end laptop market.
DESTROY the entire industry of cheapie desktops for offices and schools.
Nothing at all to the high-end desktop market.

Bookmark this thread and come back in a year... This is the way it's going down.

 

[jdougal]

Cool, someone with experience!

Tell our good friends here if you will kind sir that you can actually get work done through chrome... It seems most people here have blinders on and think that using a terminal to the web means browsing facebook and playing angry birds all day with no hope of working...

I must say I get a fair bit of work done, and in fact on it now. I'm designing my sites, using google docs for my spreadsheet/word needs, and a lot more all from it. Like I said there are downsides, but it's very functional. As more and more applications appear online you'll be able to do even more. I'm just starting to get into more SERP tracking and stuff and haven't found a good online program (suggestions anyone?). Google is also trying to get an "app store" started for even more functionality for the device. I didn't check the press release to see prices, but if they're cheap I'd defiantly suggest checking them out.

 

[jdougal]

The more I think about it; the more I'm convinced that Chromebooks will do exactly the following:

Nothing at all to phones and Tablets.
DESTROY the entire industry of Netbooks, bar none.
Steal ~ 20% of the full-powered Laptop market, mainly the cheapos.
Nothing at all to the high-end laptop market.
DESTROY the entire industry of cheapie desktops for offices and schools.
Nothing at all to the high-end desktop market.

Bookmark this thread and come back in a year... This is the way it's going down.

I have to agree with this. The phone/tablet market is mostly about consumption on the go, where this won't fit those needs. Netbooks are done, as they're also consumption only and these are full sized with a usable keyboard and a screen you can actually see. High end stuff is going to be around for awhile just for the computing power. You're not going to be large editing of photos or video "in the cloud" anytime soon. There are only a few times a day where I wish I had more functionality of a full blown PC.

 

[kingfish]

Here's the problem with chromebooks. Other than this thread I've never heard of them. Even with this thread I don't really know wtf they are besides crappy versions of netbooks.

 

[jdougal]

Here's the problem with chromebooks. Other than this thread I've never heard of them. Even with this thread I don't really know wtf they are besides crappy versions of netbooks.

How do you make an assumption that something is a crappy version of something without any actual knowledge? I mean I could care less if you like them, love them, whatever. Just seems silly to judge it without knowing what it is.

 

[Ar Scion]

Until google docs becomes as good or better than MS Office, chromebooks suck.

 

[johnmatrix]

Until google docs becomes as good or better than MS Office, chromebooks suck.

MS Office Live is pretty much exactly like the software version, Welcome to Windows Live

 

[Dark Cognitive]

LOL Again. -Smartphones are a PERFECT example of running software on the web. They're called Apps now, like they will be in Chromebooks.
.

The majority, if not all, of the 'Apps' i use on my smartphone actually install themselves onto my phone.

They work just fine when my phone has no internet access at all. they dont need the net, because they are not all web based. Infact none of the apps i have are 'entirely' web based.

 

[yellowarrior]

The more I think about it; the more I'm convinced that Chromebooks will do exactly the following:

Nothing at all to phones and Tablets.
DESTROY the entire industry of Netbooks, bar none.
Steal ~ 20% of the full-powered Laptop market, mainly the cheapos.
Nothing at all to the high-end laptop market.
DESTROY the entire industry of cheapie desktops for offices and schools.
Nothing at all to the high-end desktop market.

Bookmark this thread and come back in a year... This is the way it's going down.

Totally agree.

 

[justo_tx]

And does anyone here think MS can come out with a product that boots in under 5 seconds and requires no training nor tech support? (Their very lucrative side business of certifying engineers would not indicate so.)

Boot from SSD (probably what chrome does too) and wipe out the need for backward compatibility by locking feature scope (just like chrome does) and yes Microsoft can put out a product just like it.

Just the fact that MS would have to do so would be groundbreaking. -But I don't think they have it in them, really.

I called it....

More Details Emerge on Microsoft's Windows 8 ARM Plans

^^ Cliff notes: Windows 8 will come in a version that doesn't offer backward compatibility. Bye bye legacy support headaches, boot from SSD and you have a ChromeOS killer that isn't hobbled by being browser/cloud only.

 

[lukep]

The majority, if not all, of the 'Apps' i use on my smartphone actually install themselves onto my phone.

They work just fine when my phone has no internet access at all. they dont need the net, because they are not all web based. Infact none of the apps i have are 'entirely' web based.

This leads me to believe that even when a Chromebook is offline, it's still a bit useful.

Windows 8 will come in a version that doesn't offer backward compatibility. Bye bye legacy support headaches, boot from SSD and you have a ChromeOS killer that isn't hobbled by being browser/cloud only.

Of course MS will try to play catch-up... But they certainly aren't coming out with Windows 8 in 2012, probably not even in 2013. -It'll be too late for them IMHO.

 

[lukep]

Samsungs Sales page for their 4 models of Chromebook is up. (Not yet on sale though.)

Nutshell: White or Graphite, wifi-only or wifi & 3G. (Exactly like Kindles)

All 4 variations have same guts:

Intel® ATOM Processor N570
2GB Standard System Memory
16GB SSD (mSATA)

-Plenty enough to run HD movies without glitch, and still run 8.5 Hours on 1 charge.

Check out the film(s) on that page if you are still unsure of the concept.

 

[-God-]

So I watched the videos and it's basically a web browser that costs shit loads and provides a conduit along which all your information is passed straight to teh googleplex without any issue. Nice. I know you're a google fanboi luke, but it's far from headline making shit.

To save others watching the videos here is a quick summary of what the Chromebook can do:

You can watch videos online
You chat with your mates online
You can use this thing that looks like excel online
You can check your email online
You can upload your photos online
It's secure coz everything iz on teh cloud
Itz easy
It haz got teh USB 2
It haz got a power cord
It haz got a card readurr
Its 40% brighter than most laptops
It haz got big keyboard and large mousepad
It is only cost $499. Bargain.

I'm buying 14.

 

[JMan1234]

So I watched the videos and it's basically a web browser that costs shit loads and provides a conduit along which all your information is passed straight to teh googleplex without any issue. Nice. I know you're a google fanboi luke, but it's far from headline making shit.

To save others watching the videos here is a quick summary of what the Chromebook can do:

You can watch videos online
You chat with your mates online
You can use this thing that looks like excel online
You can check your email online
You can upload your photos online
It's secure coz everything iz on teh cloud
Itz easy
It haz got teh USB 2
It haz got a power cord
It haz got a card readurr
Its 40% brighter than most laptops
It haz got big keyboard and large mousepad
It is only cost $499. Bargain.

I'm buying 14.

I don't understand the appeal. Sounds very similar to a netbook to me, except a netbook can be had for $200 less, with a 250gb hard drive.

 

[lukep]

...it's far from headline making shit.

What's your definition of headline making shit? Seems like you're just stuck on the specs of the system...

Up until now, headline making shit was all about having the fastest system at the lowest price... Usually when the best CPUs came out, like my i7-2600k.

What's such a headline maker about this is that this little 2gb of Ram 1-Core Atom processor system is ALL that will be needed anymore to do EVERYTHING online.

-It's pretty incredible if you think about it. The headline should read: "Powerful Computers No Longer Needed- All Processing is Now Done Online."

To save others watching the videos here is a quick summary of what the Chromebook can do:

You can watch videos online
You chat with your mates online
You can use this thing that looks like excel online
You can check your email online
You can upload your photos online
It's secure coz everything iz on teh cloud
Itz easy
It haz got teh USB 2
It haz got a power cord
It haz got a card readurr
Its 40% brighter than most laptops
It haz got big keyboard and large mousepad
It is only cost $499. Bargain.

I'm buying 14.

I detect just a bit of tongue in your cheek there.

While you are correct, what you left out says loads... Since pretty much all biz apps are in the process of, or already have, migrated online, as have all games and services like banking, shopping, etc., the bottom line is that there is nothing it CAN'T do.

HD Movies it can play already.

Need Photoshop? -> Try Pixlr.com

Need Proprietary office apps in a secure environment? -> Have your programmer put them on a web server available through https and save millions in hardware costs. Many fortune 1000 companies have been doing this for a decade now.

Bottom line: While you think you're watching the next failed Google project that won't catch on because PEOPLE won't understand it, you're going to feel foolish when you realize that COMPANIES & Government drove these things mainstream because they are cheap and sooner or later Chromebooks will be the STANDARD format of computing for the masses.

I don't understand the appeal. Sounds very similar to a netbook to me, except a netbook can be had for $200 less, with a 250gb hard drive.

This will become cheaper, it's guts certainly cost less than a netbook's. -And it's brain-dead easy.

 

[-God-]

What's your definition of headline making shit? Seems like you're just stuck on the specs of the system...

Up until now, headline making shit was all about having the fastest system at the lowest price... Usually when the best CPUs came out, like my i7-2600k.

What's such a headline maker about this is that this little 2gb of Ram 1-Core Atom processor system is ALL that will be needed anymore to do EVERYTHING online.

-It's pretty incredible if you think about it. The headline should read: "Powerful Computers No Longer Needed- All Processing is Now Done Online."

I detect just a bit of tongue in your cheek there.

Bottom line: While you think you're watching the next failed Google project that won't catch on because PEOPLE won't understand it, you're going to feel foolish when you realize that COMPANIES & Government drove these things mainstream because they are cheap and sooner or later Chromebooks will be the STANDARD format of computing for the masses.



This will become cheaper, it's guts certainly cost less than a netbook's. -And it's brain-dead easy.

There was a lot of tongue in cheek and I've not once said it'll be failure, although I hope it is. (I fucking hate Google. Not for what they are now, but for what they could be in 5 years or a decade from now.)

You say it costs less than a netbook but $499 is not cheap considering it has low specs, because "All Processing is Now Done Online." I also think it's speed is cheated a bit by running an ssd, my mates OSX boots in about 15 seconds using OSX with his SSD.

<devil's advocate>Perhaps I'm going to be considered old fashioned in a years time, but relying on the internet to do you work seems a bit arse about tit to me. I still argue that computing is quicker away from your browser than it is through your browser. Also, don't forget a server might be doing some of the leg work, it's not doing it all and it's certainly not without it's limitations. (As things stand anyway.)</devil's advocate>

The whole idea of "the cloud" (I fucking hate that phrase now) fills me with dread. I suppose in some kind of agreement with you, perhaps we will all run shitty little webbrowsers and pay M$ and google monthly fees for the right to edit a word doc, which they hold on to for us as well. It's almost hinting at some sort of totalitarian internet controlled by these despised corporate monsters in a protection racket like scam.

 

[Staccs]

Do high schools have computer labs these days? I assumed they did but that might be a wrong assumption.

Yes. The high school I went to had 2-3 computer labs of about 30 computers plus ~30 laptops for use in the library. This is far from a rich school either, quite the opposite actually.

what public high school and middle schools provide a computer for each student?

maybe it's just me in broke CA - but this is unheard of. Private schools where tuition (at least here) runs $8000-18,000/year/kid can spring for a real computer (and most distribute macs).

Most private schools don't provide laptops for students either.

There was an elementary school near me that offered laptops to all students to focus on "modern learning", I almost went to it when it first opened because of that. Students were given laptops to use (and take home) during their time at the school and were offered to purchase the laptop at the end of the year at a discounted price.

There is also a program for kids with "learning disabilities" who receive a laptop for free all through high school with the same ability to purchase the laptop for cheap when they're done. I believe this takes place in all schools in my region.

 

[lukep]

There was a lot of tongue in cheek and I've not once said it'll be failure, although I hope it is. (I fucking hate Google. Not for what they are now, but for what they could be in 5 years or a decade from now.)

I can't decide if I'd rather live in a world where things got more totalitarian and Easy (our present course) or they simply got harder, which is our future without tech like this to make it easier. -There is no such choice as "Easier v/s not," there are always trade-offs.

I do of course agree that google's going to have near-godlike (no pun intended) control over our lives after this becomes mainstream. -But it won't be everyone, just those that use these chromebooks (and adroid tablets) most of the time. -The higher-end laptop & desktop markets isn't going away.

You say it costs less than a netbook but $499 is not cheap considering it has low specs, because "All Processing is Now Done Online." I also think it's speed is cheated a bit by running an ssd, my mates OSX boots in about 15 seconds using OSX with his SSD.

But look what's in these things... about a buck fiddy worth of hardware... They'll be GIVING Chromebooks away before too long, this is just a market test price for the honor of 1st gen equipment.

...& 15 seconds is still way too long... My win7 PC boots in 19 seconds flat but I'm still yearning for instant-on.

Perhaps I'm going to be considered old fashioned in a years time, but relying on the internet to do you work seems a bit arse about tit to me. I still argue that computing is quicker away from your browser than it is through your browser. Also, don't forget a server might be doing some of the leg work, it's not doing it all and it's certainly not without it's limitations. (As things stand anyway.)

Things are rapidly changing. Look at Pixlr.com... High-load image processing... And your processor never has to think about it.

Pixlr.com, a thousand other apps like Zoho Docs and every smartphone game you've ever seen are all fully processed in "the cloud."

The whole idea of "the cloud" (I fucking hate that phrase now) fills me with dread. I suppose in some kind of agreement with you, perhaps we will all run shitty little webbrowsers and pay M$ and google monthly fees for the right to edit a word doc, which they hold on to for us as well. It's almost hinting at some sort of totalitarian internet controlled by these despised corporate monsters in a protection racket like scam.

Yep. I see it coming, just as you say. (With M$ a minor player, Google and Facebook both larger.)

Since Amazon is so advanced in the ways of 'the cloud,' I'd guess they are going to somehow step up and be a bigger player than M$ is too... Perhaps by letting everyone have a free hard drive there or even do processing via E3 inbetween websites.

Whatever is coming, it's going to be fast, powerful, interesting, and with no signs of privacy anywhere at all.