Digital News Report – This week Google announced that their Chromebook will be available on June 15. The new Chromebooks, manufactured by Acer and Samsung, will be quite different from standard netbooks.
There are no hard drives. There are no bulky operating systems. The Chromebook will boot off a solid state chip within 10 seconds (the company says about eight seconds).
The operating system is the Chrome OS. Unlike other operating systems, the Chrome OS was developed after the Internet. This means it is optimized for web browsing and online applications.
Rather than running programs installed on the Chromebook, the small computer will install small apps and run programs through their Chrome App Store. Data, like spreadsheets and documents, can be saved on the cloud.
Acer and Samsung Chromebooks will include 3G and Wi-Fi. They both will offer a USB ports where users can plug-in mice, keyboards, and flash drives. They both will have an HD webcam and 4-in1 memory card slots.
The Samsung Chromebook will feature a 12.1 inch display and the Acer features a 11.6 inch display.
They will be available from Best Buy and Amazon and cost between $349 and $499.
By Tim Edwards