101–110 of 425 posts
I'm also curious if the Chromebit will include Chromecast-like functionality as far as screencasting goes.
This is a colossal, market-moving play from Google. 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…
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Google is NOT in the business of selling information to advertisers. They're in the business of choosing who to advertise products to based on the information they collect and hold onto. There is a significant difference between the two.
Google is the advertiser. Just replace the word 'Google' with 'Doubleclick'. It starts to make sense. When you use mail.doubleclick.com for your email, and www.doubleclick.com to search the web, all from your DoubleClick based phone, its pretty easy to understand the situation.
Personally, I've got no issues letting them build a better profile in return for some of the best web services out there. I owe my career to the excellence of their search product.
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It's cheaper and simpler with less functionality. Isn't that the broad idea [1]? [1] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Disruptive_innovation
A disruptive innovation is an innovation that creates a new market. What market does the Chromebook create that a $200 netbook didn't already create?
"What market does the Chromebook create that a $200 netbook didn't already create?"
I prefer to think we mostly find markets rather than create them, generally speaking. Chromebook may find a market in India or Africa or China. Places where a mobile device was everybody's first experience with personal computing, so the idea of it being intimately tied to the network isn't so strange. And, just as importantly, where $50 is a weeks wages so it seems a lot more important to spend 25% less on the device.
I can see how me invoking Innovator's Dilemma here is possibly a stretch from some perspectives. Even if it is not disruptive innovation in the sense you prefer, it is still seeming more and more likely to continue to erode Microsoft's dominance in the places they have always been very, very strong: Cheap home PCs.
Also, I think the argument could be made that this is a better product for less money. Windows on such scanty hardware is a pretty rough experience. Chrome OS on tiny machines isn't so bad. And, for people who already only use their computer for Internet stuff, there are no benefits to the Windows experience and plenty of negatives.
So, this isn't a situation of, "Why would I get a dinky little fake computer if it's only $50 less than a good computer with Windows?" It's more of a "Why would I spend more for a computer that is slow, clunky, has a bunch of crap I don't need/want only so I can use also-ran webmail, online docs, etc. when I can get the market leading stuff for less?"
I dunno, really. I'm just trying to imagine this from the perspective of someone who didn't grow up in a world dominated by Microsoft, because that's the world we now live in. The world is now dominated by Google with Apple and Facebook as thought leaders on the periphery. Things are different now, and getting a computer with Windows on it just isn't a thing that (young) people care so much about.
This is a colossal, market-moving play from Google. 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…
The middle class can afford to pluck down a few more bucks and get a device with a real OS...
This is a colossal, market-moving play from Google. 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…
The middle class can afford to pluck down a few more bucks and get a device with a real OS...
The usual "word processing, research, facebook" student load, for instance? A dedicated physical machine powerful enough to run even MS Word locally is a waste of money in this instance.
Access to the global information network and ability to use things on it is step 0 in getting people into the modern era. All that other stuff that you get from a "real OS" is a step above that.
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.tinydeal.com/windows-tablets-c-997_1002.html?zeni...
These have the Quad Core Intel Atom Bay-Trail processor which is good enough for non compute demanding things and even some older games are running fine on them, also a quick search shows that Minecraft too runs playable on it:
I expect that, Chromephones would undermine Android, but Chrometabs could be good idea.
Chromebit is great idea! I am in process of searching what to buy for my father. His computer is broken down Athlon machine with Linux (I maintain it). I don't have time to properly maintain it (I don't have time and energy even to do it for my own computers). I am from Poland, so these prices have for me 4x multiplier attached to them. I now consider buying used workstation and try to maintain system myself. Or buy some Chromegadget and call it a day. My father can't put more than 100 USD on this and even 100 USD is stretching a bit. I will probably add few tens of dollars to this sum and maybe buy something like Chromebit or used Chromebook.
I want to buy Chromebook for myself also. I am thinking about used Pixel or Toshiba Chromebook 2. Or I will wait a bit longer for new greatness. My requirements: max 500 USD, 12-14", at least 1920p. I am not sure what I value more: performance (Pixel) or quietness and lightness (Toshiba).
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The middle class can afford to pluck down a few more bucks and get a device with a real OS...
I've never had a chromebook. How bad is it? What if I just want to browse the web and watch hulu, netflix, and youtube?