chromebooks

Google releases 11.6-inch, $199 Chromebook from Acer

The Chromebook family of devices welcomed its cheapest member yet into the fold today when Google announced an 11.6-inch netbook from Acer for $199.

The Acer C7 Chromebook joins the Samsung Chromebook and Samsung Chromebook 550 in the current lineup of computers running Google's cloud-based Chrome operating system.

The latest model boasts an Intel processor, full-size keyboard, and clickable trackpad. It has a 320GB hard drive and 100GB of additional storage, free for two years, on Google drive. The C7 boots in 18 seconds and gets 3.5 hours of battery life, Google says.

There are trade-offs involved … Read more

New Samsung Chromebook's 3G model costs $330

The latest Samsung Chromebook does, in fact, come with a 3G version. And it's more expensive than the Wi-Fi-only model.

Samsung today posted the Chromebook 3G on its Web site for $329.99. For that price, customers get all of the features available in the Wi-Fi-only model, including an 11.6-inch screen, 2GB of memory, and 16GB of storage, but will have the ability to get on the Interwebs when away from a Wi-Fi signal.

That said, there is a caveat: Samsung is offering only 100MB per month of free 3G data. And that's only for a period … Read more

AOL's twist on e-mail: You've got stacks

Thursday's CNET Update is checking your away message:

Just when you've given up all hope of having an organized inbox, along comes AOL with a new e-mail client called Alto. Today's tech news roundup looks at how Alto manages multiple accounts and sorts messages into stacks. The service is in beta test now (so you have to sign up for an invite to try it), but it could be open to everyone by February.

In other news, Yelp is cracking down on companies that pay for reviews. If Yelp sees that a business is trying to inflate … Read more

Hands-on with the new Samsung Chromebook

After using the new Samsung Chromebook for the better part of a workday, I have to say I'm impressed -- as long as you consider the constraints of its $249 price tag.

Google announced the Samsung Chromebook today along with new ambitions to spread its browser-based, cloud-focused Chrome OS laptop much more widely. Google envisions it as good for an extra machine that lies around the house or as a laptop for students.

I find it a reasonable device for those categories, especially for people like myself who already have their head in the Google cloud with Google Docs, … Read more

Google offers low-budget ARM-based Chromebook

Google introduced a new 11.6-inch $249 Chromebook today that lowers the entry price and raises the expectations for its Chrome OS products.

Chromebooks are cloud-computing laptops use Google's Chrome OS, which is built on Linux under the covers but which actually runs applications in the Chrome browser. When Google released two second-generation Chrome OS products, the $550 Samsung Series 5 550 Chromebook and the $330 Series 3 Chromebox in May, it aimed for increased processing horsepower.

If the Chromebook Series 5 550 drew inspiration from a MacBook Pro, the new Chromebook did so from a MacBook Air. It'… Read more

Teardown reveals Chromebox Series 3 isn't your average desktop

The Samsung Chromebox Series 3 is the first desktop computer designed specifically for Google's Chrome operating system. And despite its resemblance to Apple's Mac Mini, the Series 3 isn't your average desktop. On this week's episode of Cracking Open, I take you inside the first Chromebox and show you how it's different from a conventional desktop computer.… Read more

Hands-on: Offline Google Docs makes a better Chromebook

OK, I'll admit it. I was a little harsh when I reviewed the newest Google Chromebook from Samsung. Why? Because no matter how snappy or quick-booting the Chromebook feels, it's a computer that needs an online connection for most apps. Or, it was.

Now that version 20 of the Chrome browser has been released and Chrome OS 20 is also available, a key app update to Google Drive enables offline Google Docs editing and writing, a feature I sorely missed when I reviewed the system. Now it's here, bearing promises of finally taking Chromebooks where they've never easily gone before: offline.… Read more

Episode 3: Where Google has more money than sense

The debate about "unboxing" rages on, so in this week's Always On episode, I actually get down to using a pocket knife to open up the new Google Nexus 7 and Nexus Q. And I try to bring back some of that old Molly snark so many of you have been asking for. Sometimes it's hard to put together a whole show and then remember to write in the personality! I'm working on it, though.

I had a pretty great time running around Google I/O, mainly because of the food, and of course, the … Read more

Google exec: "Surface is a very complicated strategy to pull off"

Google's senior vice president of Chrome and Apps, Sundar Pichai, gave Microsoft some credit for innovating with its new Surface platform. "I think form factors need a lot of innovation," he said in reference to Surface. "It looks like they put serious effort into it."

But he was more dubious about Microsoft's odds for success, and seemed to welcome the potential disruption Windows 8 might cause among long-time Microsoft users.

"The Surface is a surprising announcement, to say the least," Pichai said at the GigaOm Structure conference in San Francisco. He … Read more

A new polish for Chromebook and Chromebox

In today's show, we test Google's new operating system, chirp goodbye to Nextel, and pay our Russian bills with green pigs:

The reviews are out for Samsung's new Chromebook and Chromebox, running on the newly updated Chrome OS. And the bottom line is that it's better than the last version, but still not all that impressive. (Especially since the Chromebook has limited capabilities and costs more than a tablet.)

The Nextel network will officially be killed-off in June of 2013, and Sprint is pushing Nextel customers to use Sprint Direct Connect devices.

There's a new … Read more