Laptop, Netbook, Tablet, Chromebook?

We are used to the standard choices when choosing a new computing device. The laptop has been around for a long time and is generally big and clunky. The netbook is newer and just too small. The tablet is cool, but doesn’t have a keyboard. Now we have another choice: The Chromebook.

Just recently announced for formal consumer consumption at Google I/O last week, a handful of computer manufacturers will be offering the Chromebook, which lies somewhere between a notebook and netbook and is based on Google’s Chrome operating system. Leading the charge is Samsung with the release of their Series 5 WiFi Chromebook, which will hit shelves on June 15 for around $400. This version of the Chromebook has a 12.1-inch display, a dual core Intel Atom processor, 16GB solid state hard drive and a 1MP HD webcam. Not bad. So what is a Chromebook anyway?

A Chromebook is a computing device that varies in size from a laptop to a netbook. It runs the Google Chrome operating system which is based on the Google Chrome web browser. When you boot up a Chromebook, you are essentially looking at the Chrome web browser. No applications run locally as a Chromebook is designed to run totally from the cloud. The Chrome OS boots in about eight seconds and battery life lasts all day. Updates download automatically and Chromebooks will supposedly speed up over time, and not slow down as with traditional computers. The question for Chromebook buyers is: Can you live totally in the cloud? I’ve been lucky enough to be able to give this theory a try!

A while back, Google announced that they would be developing an operating system based on their Chrome web browser. Their goal was to have this OS boot quickly, be very simple in design and easy to use, and to have a long battery life. Once Google had a somewhat working product, they decided to push out an undisclosed number of beta units to potential testers that signed up for the opportunity on their website. I took the time to fill out their series of essay questions and, out of the one million applicants, I received a Google CR-48 test unit! I’ve been testing this unit for the past few months and I can say that Google has met their goals. My CR-48 Chromebook boots in under eight seconds, has a battery life of over eight hours and is very quick. But have I been able to live in the cloud?

A majority of my personal computing, on a daily basis, involves the Internet. I check email via gmail.com, post on Twitter and Facebook, use Google Docs, Picasa and, of course, update my blog. I had no real trouble adjusting to the Chromebook cloud concept. My only real issue was saving full-size digital pictures and videos from my digital camera and camcorder. I like to download them to my computer for storage and viewing. I then use a cloud backup service to create a secondary backup, in case my hard drive would crash. As more apps are built for the Chrome OS, I’m sure I’ll be able to bring this over to the cloud as well. That was my only real problem though. Is the general public ready for this new way of thinking and living in the cloud? I’m not convinced of that and think that I may be in the minority. I believe this will be the way that most of us will compute down the road, but, at this point, it’s a bit premature. I do think that the Chromebooks will have a niche popularity with the geek crowd, who are very open to the cloud concept, and who will love the price point.

I would love to hear your opinion about Chromebooks and living in the cloud!