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Chromebox

google.com

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Re: Chromebox

#241

Post by WiseWeasel »

chaostheory wrote: post #116

I think this would be a great product, in a world where iPad and tablets with Android and Windows Mobile don't exist. Google should work on fixing and polishing Google TV instead instead of this if they want to work on set top boxes. Even with the updates late last year, Google TV compared to the competition is still lagging especially in the UI / UX department.

You mean that weird box that's way more expensive than others and ships with a kludgey qwerty keyboard for use in your living room? They should just call it a wrap on that one too.

Re: Chromebox

#242

Post by no_more_death »

cooldeal wrote: post #29

Looks like there's major spin on this on that page. Whats a Intel Core(TM) processor? Dig deeper and it's an anemic Celeron, not a Core i3 or i5 or i7 as the name implies. Why is there no mention of storage AT ALL? Because it's a 16GB(!) SSD. The Amazon page says "No Blue Screens"? What happens to ChromeOS if RAM gets corrupt? It doesn't crash and magically keeps running? Most BSoDs nowadays are due to hardware issue…

This is totally cloud and totally browsing. 16G is probably more than you'll ever use. You're thinking "desktop."

Re: Chromebox

#243

Post by dangrossman »

sp332 wrote: post #188
GFischer wrote: post #152

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's still not good enough for me, though it is a million times better. "Go fast". The set top Androids are also pretty fast. Also, as someone said, who reboots these days? (though it's a selling point for a media player replacement) "Stream HD movies without a hitch", ok, that's a selling point, though my cheap Android phone does well enough on "good enough" quality, so I'd expect the Android set top boxes or equiva…

Why are you comparing this to Android? Also, I've never heard of an Android set-top box.

> Also, I've never heard of an Android set-top box.

Google TV (aka Logitech Revue, Sony Internet TV, LG Smart TV). They've been at your local Best Buy type store for years.

They're Android 3.0 STBs, or in the case of the Smart TVs starting to come out, built into the TV.

Re: Chromebox

#244

Post by WiseWeasel »

xxqs wrote: post #195

nice specs, I would put Debian on it and use as a portable network analyzer. I'll probably do so as soon as it's available in my country

You would have to flash the BIOS to get past the Verified Boot security.

Re: Chromebox

#245

Post by koide »

tbundy wrote: post #228
koide wrote: post #215

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I see two main targets: Grandmas (sorry to stereotype the tech savvy grandmas out there) or rather tech savvy sons of grandmas which want something that just works for their mothers and that automatically backs things up for them. And enterprises who want to kick Microsoft prices in the nuts.

I see the Grandma use case, but it's so niche I can't see that being viable. As for enterprise, you'd have to have a pretty "progressive" company... and one that would be very sure that you'll never need a desktop app. Again, I would think very small numbers. I realise Chrome OS is somewhat still a market experiment, but I think it would've gone a lot further at a better price point. For ~$200 I would put one in my l…

I can tell you that a huge international bank (as far as "progressive" as you can get) went Google Apps and ditched Office, so your thinking might be a bit off.

Re: Chromebox

#246

Post by dangrossman »

genwin wrote: post #201
jyap wrote: post #96

Earlier quoted context omitted.

It's marketing. The emphasis is on the simplicity of the product. That being said, it's a 1.9ghz Celeron CPU. That can give negative connotations since Celeron is Intel's cheap line of processors.

Good to know. I just got a quad-core desktop for US$377. The Chromebox w/ Celeron would have to print gold to compare to that.

Most likely, your desktop would have to print gold to make up for the difference in your power bill compared to a ChromeBox too. My desktop needs a couple hundred watts; my Google TV box needs closer to 10. Running a full-size desktop where you don't need the power is equivalent to a voluntary subscription fee versus a one-time payment.

Re: Chromebox

#247

Post by xxqs »

WiseWeasel wrote: post #244
xxqs wrote: post #195

nice specs, I would put Debian on it and use as a portable network analyzer. I'll probably do so as soon as it's available in my country

You would have to flash the BIOS to get past the Verified Boot security.

hmm. I saw somewhere it was characterized as highly hackable

Re: Chromebox

#248

Post by llgrrl_ »

jyap wrote: post #90
llgrrl_ wrote: post #7

It'll be a very capable PC or thin client if that's at all possible. I wonder how feasible it is to put a Linux distribution here and get it working. I know it is possible with the Chromebook, and if it's gonna work for the Chromebox, then shut up and take my money.

16gb SSD of hard disk spare really limits your options if you're loading up a Linux distribution. But seriously you can something with cheaper and better specs for less that $329 to run Linux.

There are several things that puts the Chromebox ahead:

1, It is as small, slick and quiet as a Mac Mini. 2, It is designed to run Linux. 3, The hardware is backed by Smasung/Google. 4, It has a freakin' SSD? Unless you're compiling AOSP or put all of you music on it, 16GB is some space to spare. I guess there are ways to expand the internal storage too.

Re: Chromebox

#250

Post by Groxx »

hollerith wrote: post #117
Groxx wrote: post #2

Interesting. Too bad the 'specifications' tab is so anaemic - I'm curious how this stacks up against e.g. a Mac mini, or other mini computers. edit: Amazon has a lot more info: http://www.amazon.com/Samsung-XE300M22-A01US-Series-3-Chrome... edit the second: it seems pretty competitive with a Mac mini, actually. 1.9ghz Celeron instead of 2.3 i5, same RAM, and same graphics card. The 16gb SSD vs 500gb HDD might make th…

>it seems pretty competitive with a Mac mini, actually. . . . same RAM Actually, the Chromebox has 4 GB of RAM whereas the mini with the $599 list price has only 2 GB. So, technically your statement "same RAM" is incorrect even though upgrading the RAM on the mini to 4 GB will not cost very much.

Ah, thanks - not sure how I missed that.
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