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Chrome OS / Chromebooks
Posted: Thu Feb 21, 2013 9:37 pm
by Grumpy David
What is Chrome OS?
(Tl;Dw: An operating system that is basically a Chrome web browser and web apps)
Up until now, Chrome OS has been on entry-level hardware to keep costs down.
Google are now however introducing the
Chromebook Pixel: a premium Chrome OS laptop shipping next week for
£1,049. 
Specs:
12.85-inch Gorilla Glass-covered touchscreen: 2560 x 1700 with a 3:2 aspect ratio
Ivybridge i5 CPU + Intel HD4000
4GB RAM
32GB HDD
LED-backlit keyboard
5 hour battery life
2 USB 2.0 jacks, Mini DisplayPort, a combo 3.5mm headset jack, SD card slot, dual-band 802.11 a/b/g/n Wi-Fi, Bluetooth 3.0, and a 720p webcam + dual mic
1TB of Google Drive storage, per user, for three years
Source:
http://www.theverge.com/2013/2/21/4013480/google-chromebook-pixelAt that price, I'd be getting a seriously high spec Windows laptop from PC Specialist or if I was one of those people, a Surface Pro or a Macbook Retina Display. Did Google just go full retard? I can't really see the market for it? The whole point of Chrome OS is: simple, fast, cheap.
Still, DAT SCREEN RESOLUTION.
Re: Chrome OS / Chromebooks
Posted: Thu Feb 21, 2013 9:40 pm
by coldspice
£1k for a Chromebook
Re: Chrome OS / Chromebooks
Posted: Thu Feb 21, 2013 9:43 pm
by Lagamorph
More than a grand and only an i5 with 4GB of RAM and a 32GB HDD?
Re: Chrome OS / Chromebooks
Posted: Thu Feb 21, 2013 9:43 pm
by more heat than light
Minty14 wrote:£1k for a Chromebook
Re: Chrome OS / Chromebooks
Posted: Thu Feb 21, 2013 9:49 pm
by Mafro
more heat than light wrote:Minty14 wrote:£1k for a Chromebook
Re: Chrome OS / Chromebooks
Posted: Thu Feb 21, 2013 10:20 pm
by Ironhide
Mafro wrote:more heat than light wrote:Minty14 wrote:£1k for a Chromebook
Re: Chrome OS / Chromebooks
Posted: Thu Feb 21, 2013 10:23 pm
by Holpil
Why such a high resolution screen when most websites are still confined to 960px width?
And touchscreen on a web browsing only laptop? Why?!
Re: Chrome OS / Chromebooks
Posted: Thu Feb 21, 2013 10:25 pm
by Lagamorph
Holpil wrote:And touchscreen on a web browsing only laptop? Why?!
Touchscreen is actually really useful on a laptop when web browsing.
Re: Chrome OS / Chromebooks
Posted: Thu Feb 21, 2013 10:30 pm
by massimo
It's not the price I'm surprised at, it's having the retina display only to be used on a web browser, of which hardly any of the web is retina ready.
Re: Chrome OS / Chromebooks
Posted: Thu Feb 21, 2013 10:31 pm
by Lagamorph
massimo wrote:It's not the price I'm surprised at, it's having the retina display only to be used on a web browser, of which hardly any of the web is retina ready.
Nobody complains when Apple do pretty much just that for even more money.
Re: Chrome OS / Chromebooks
Posted: Thu Feb 21, 2013 10:44 pm
by Mafro
Lagamorph wrote:massimo wrote:It's not the price I'm surprised at, it's having the retina display only to be used on a web browser, of which hardly any of the web is retina ready.
Nobody complains when Apple do pretty much just that for even more money.
Difference of course being that the Macbooks can run many other programs optimised for that resolution
Re: Chrome OS / Chromebooks
Posted: Thu Feb 21, 2013 10:58 pm
by Mogster
It's completely bonkers isn't it?
I can only assume Google intend it mainly as a show of intent, a way to promote Chrome OS as a "serious" OS rather than just something to chuck on creaky budget laptops. I mean, it's lovely, but for that price I could buy an amazing Windows laptop.
Re: Chrome OS / Chromebooks
Posted: Thu Feb 21, 2013 11:00 pm
by TigaSefi
Re: Chrome OS / Chromebooks
Posted: Thu Feb 21, 2013 11:28 pm
by massimo
Lagamorph wrote:massimo wrote:It's not the price I'm surprised at, it's having the retina display only to be used on a web browser, of which hardly any of the web is retina ready.
Nobody complains when Apple do pretty much just that for even more money.
algmorf pls
Re: Chrome OS / Chromebooks
Posted: Thu Feb 21, 2013 11:30 pm
by Wiggy G32
so apple and now google are making the surface pro look like a good deal
its nice but pointless at that price
Re: Chrome OS / Chromebooks
Posted: Fri Feb 22, 2013 6:41 pm
by Grumpy David
Tbf, I'm sure many people know that one person who just uses a macbook for web browsing, VLC and MS Office, making macbooks not drastically different from a Chromebook in that regard; a glorified 1k+ (mostly) web browser device.
This guy's Youtube channel is great:
He sees this Chromebook as being a halo product, or a proof of concept type device to encourage higher end Chromebooks and thus better and more Chrome OS apps.
If Chrome OS could play all the media codecs and containers I want (MKV is an open source container and popular for all HD vids, FFS, Google, get it integrated!) so Chrome OS's native media player could handle the good stuff, and there was a Chrome OS usenet/torrent option, then it'd be pretty ideal for the bulk of my usage.
Re: Chrome OS / Chromebooks
Posted: Fri Feb 22, 2013 7:19 pm
by Lagamorph
Grumpy David wrote:If Chrome OS could play all the media codecs and containers I want (MKV is an open source container and popular for all HD vids, FFS, Google, get it integrated!) so Chrome OS's native media player could handle the good stuff, and there was a Chrome OS usenet/torrent option, then it'd be pretty ideal for the bulk of my usage.
So would a windows laptop for a third of the price.
Re: Chrome OS / Chromebooks
Posted: Fri Feb 22, 2013 7:30 pm
by Grumpy David
I said Chrome OS, not Chromebook Pixel.
If all of those features I want existed, and a decent Chromebook was released (along the lines of 1920x1080, i3, 4GB, SSD) at the right price (undercutting a Windows laptop by a sufficient amount) then I'd find it ideal for the vast majority of my PC needs.
Re: Chrome OS / Chromebooks
Posted: Sat Feb 23, 2013 12:25 pm
by Lex-Man
I think the laptop looks fairly tasty. Although chrome os not so much I would install a new hd and install Ubuntu.
Re: Chrome OS / Chromebooks
Posted: Sat Feb 23, 2013 1:46 pm
by tomvek
That's a crazy price for what you get/would be using it for.