91–100 of 425 posts
Earlier quoted context omitted.
What makes the Chromebook a disruptive innovation?
It's cheaper and simpler with less functionality. Isn't that the broad idea [1]? [1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disruptive_innovation
Can one wipe out a Chromebook and install Linux?
Look at the brand names. TRUE, XOLO, Nexian. Recognise them? Consumers in Thailand, India and Indonesia do - they are local smartphone brands. Look at the promo video. Notice how many Asian faces there are?
This isn't about cheap Chromebooks, it's about a major strategic effort to court the global middle class. As with the Android One initiative, Google are seeking to establish an affordable but capable gateway to their services for middle-income consumers. They're working with local companies to leverage local marketing and distribution resources. In these markets, the Chromebook isn't being pitched as a cheap substitute for a 'real' laptop, but as an upgrade from a smartphone or tablet.
If their strategy for Chrome OS works half as well as their Android strategy, then the industry is going to be unrecognisably transformed over the next few years. A whole generation of consumers could come to see the Chrome OS pseudo-thin-client model as the norm, with full-fat operating systems being a niche curio.
Where is the $149 Windows-Based laptop with SSD, 2-4GB RAM, and moderate graphics, that can run your usual Office to Minecraft software? The Chromebook-killer from Microsoft should be here, but all I hear about are the Surfaces. Honestly, the only reason my kids don't have Chromebooks is because they don't easily run Minecraft or downloadable games. Sure they can do their school work on them, but they also like to pl…
http://www.amazon.com/HP-Stream-Laptop-Personal-Horizon/dp/B... HP Stream 11 is likely the closest to what you're looking for $199 so slightly more expensive, but a year of Office365 included...
Chromebooks dominated in 2014, but they've been bumped and I'm not sure they'll ever be back at the top. Rather than a sea change, it looks like Google was just ahead of its competitors for a year, and now that year has come and gone.
I think the bigger news here is the Chromebit. A $100 device that turns any monitor into a computer? Fascinating.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
With Google, the product is you. You (your demographic profile) is sold, by Google, to their advertisers. This includes potentially identifying information.
That's completely untrue. Advertisers come to Google and say "we want to sell this, people in these demographics would like it" and Google shows it to me or you based on what it knows about us. Google knows lots about me; people who buy adwords don't.
Earlier quoted context omitted.
With Google, the product is you. You (your demographic profile) is sold, by Google, to their advertisers. This includes potentially identifying information.
That's completely untrue. Advertisers come to Google and say "we want to sell this, people in these demographics would like it" and Google shows it to me or you based on what it knows about us. Google knows lots about me; people who buy adwords don't.
You can easily validate this by checking all the "pixels" (in the RTB sense) that are being deployed by Google. In their defense, they do mask a lot of things so stuff like the full IP address are not available (last time I worked on that they just give you the three first segments) but still quite a few information was available to target your demographic segment.
Edit:
For downvoters and people curious about tracking pixels: - https://support.google.com/dfp_premium/answer/1347585?hl=en - https://support.google.com/dfp_premium/answer/2508388?hl=en
Where is the $149 Windows-Based laptop with SSD, 2-4GB RAM, and moderate graphics, that can run your usual Office to Minecraft software? The Chromebook-killer from Microsoft should be here, but all I hear about are the Surfaces. Honestly, the only reason my kids don't have Chromebooks is because they don't easily run Minecraft or downloadable games. Sure they can do their school work on them, but they also like to pl…
The HP Stream 7 and 8 has an x86 1.8ghz atom chip in it. BYOK. The Stream 11 has a keyboard but chimes in at $199. Games using DirectX and native libraries work. There are a lot of Stream 7 and 8 youtube videos showing gaming performance.
If anything, the Chromebook is overpriced. It really should be a $49 near disposable laptop. Even then, in the age of cheap tablets, it may not be more than an education market novelty.
More here: http://www.gizmag.com/five-windows-81-tablets-under-200/3497...