Google Chromebook

You can say all sorts of great aspects about Google's Chromebook laptop computer notion. You may well say it is ahead of its time. Or even that it is thinking way, way outside the box. Or that, as outages go, at least this swung for the fences.

Google's Chromebook is based on the premise that you can get on the World Wide Web anywhere.

Last year, Google engineered moderately limited quantities of the CR-48, a spectacular, smooth, prototype black laptop computer that it forwarded to correspondents & web guru, seeking comments. Their expectation was that, ultimately, actual laptop computer companies would manufacture Chromebooks. Tomorrow, the first goes on sale: the Samsung Series - $500 with cellular, $430 Wi-Fi only.

So what is the Chromebook notion? Assumption: These days, you can try to get online at any place. Supposition: Google's free online application can do everything standard application can do - e-mail (Gmail), Web browsing (Chrome), talk (Google Talk), photographs (Picasa), word processing, excel spreadsheets, slide shows (Google Docs).

Bottom line: A laptop computer doesn't require a hard drive. Doesn't require application programs on it. Doesn't require Windows or Mac OS X. doesn’t require a desktop, archives or directories. Much everything you require is on the World Wide Web, so all the laptop computer needs is a Web browser.

It is an alluring notion. Zero hard drive. That means no moving parts & long power supply life, 8.5 working hours on a charge. That also means lighter weight .3 pounds). The Samsung has only a 16-gigabyte SSD drive (fundamentally a huge storage chip, like on the iPad or iPhone).

Absolutely no Windows? That suggests no viruses or adware. There is also no serial numbers or content coverage. No need for payments to Microsoft for upgrades every couple of years. No two-minute start-up processes; a Chromebook gets under way up in under0 seconds.

No archives placed on the laptop computer computer computer computer computer? Which specialists state means you don't concern if your Chromebook is lost or damaged or thieved. People don't must worry about backups. You might log in to any other Chromebook, & find your whole application world waiting around for you.

The keying in experience is amazing. The simplicity & chastity of this laptop computer computer computer is innovative & unthreatening; it is like an iPad with a key pad.

Samsung/Google may possibly, in fact, have gone a little far in the pursuit of spartan luxury. In lieu of a row of functionality keys at the top level, you get concentrated keys for lighting, loudspeaker volume & Web browsing (Back, Forward, Refresh, Full Screen, Next Window). There is no Forward Delete button, Fn button, menu key, Print Screen key or Windows key.

Actually, there is not even a Caps Lock key. It is fantastic that Google likes to weed out buttons it doesn't think people use much.

The laptop computer computer computer offers USB jacks, a Web cam, a video output jack, a memory card slot & a headset/microphone jack - yet no Bluetooth, Ethernet jack, FireWire port or DVD & blu-ray drive.

It is truly unusual to make use of a computer where everything appears in your web browser. In case you place a hard drive or flash drive, you also see its material in a web browser window. You can never quit or minimize the browser.