CNN Money: Microsoft's next big headache: The Google Chromebook

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Cerb

Elite Member
Aug 26, 2000
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I've seen some out in the wild, but, that 1/5 number is based on shipments, which we all know is not directly indicative of what people are buying and using. It is the most optimistic number possible for their end user sales.
 

mm2587

Member
Nov 2, 2006
76
0
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I should have used many, not most to modify "people", as it is the case that most people are not getting Chromebooks, but rather a significant minority.

Chromebooks are simply too limited to ever become a primary machine for a person or household, and even as a mobile device, faces stiff competition. The user's is so usage pattern must be such that a specific application that needs a desktop OS("fuller" Linux distro or Windows) is simply unneeded for them both in the present and future, which is rarely the case. Even the college student might need Matlab, SimUText, or STATA if going into a certain field.

They are good for being an extra backup computer or easy-to-carry computer with keyboard, but not as a main computer.


If you think the average user will ever touch Matlab, SimUText, or STATA, you are way out of touch will the current market. I would guess less then 20% will ever even know those programs existed.

Lets not forget the average person has never even gone to college let alone been in a technical field where those programs would be used.

There is a large portion of the population that could use a chromebook as their primary and only machine
 

Lonyo

Lifer
Aug 10, 2002
21,938
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I've seen some out in the wild, but, that 1/5 number is based on shipments, which we all know is not directly indicative of what people are buying and using. It is the most optimistic number possible for their end user sales.

No, it's not based on shipments.

As I already posted in the thread:

What most tech reporters don't bother to explain is that NPD clearly says its measurement base is what it calls "US commercial channels." I emailed an NPD representative to ask exactly what this means, and was told that it's comprised of "US B2B sales using distribution partners."

That, my friends, is not exactly the global notebook market, or even the US one for that matter.

Interestingly enough, in its opening sentence, NPD noted that it had tracked sales of 14.4 million desktops, notebooks, and tablets through US commercial channels.

That's a very small piece of the overall PC and tablet pie.

There were 16.1 million US PC sales in Q3 alone, according to Gartner. US tablet sales data is not easy to come by, but you get the point -- this is not a comprehensive data set. But it is clearly labeled for what it is, and thus a lot of the headlines you're seeing are completely out of whack.

http://www.usatoday.com/story/tech/2013/12/31/google-chromebook-sales/4262961/
 

AznAnarchy99

Lifer
Dec 6, 2004
14,695
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If you think the average user will ever touch Matlab, SimUText, or STATA, you are way out of touch will the current market. I would guess less then 20% will ever even know those programs existed.

Lets not forget the average person has never even gone to college let alone been in a technical field where those programs would be used.

There is a large portion of the population that could use a chromebook as their primary and only machine

Could use? Yes but many people probably will not get them. At their price point people would be more attracted to the Nexus 7 or the iPad. Working at a computer company, I also see about 90% (personal experience) of laptop sales go to people going into college. Having a ChromeBook at that point is pretty limited.
 

Darknite39

Senior member
May 18, 2004
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I purchased an Acer c720 last week after trading in a few laptops to Best Buy during their deal. I like it quite a bit. I setup a USB 3 stick to boot linux so I can use VLC as desired; otherwise I'll just roll ChromeOS. The only thing I don't care for is the keyboard. It's actually not that bad, but since my daily driver is a thinkpad T61, it's kinda hard to go to this one (had to google for key combos to compensate for a lack of things like page-up/down, and I have now determined with certainty that I'll never get a "real" laptop without the traditional nipple mouse). Coupled with a MS Surface Pro, I'll be all set for short trips or a conference. :)
 

Cerb

Elite Member
Aug 26, 2000
17,484
33
86
I purchased an Acer c720 last week after trading in a few laptops to Best Buy during their deal. I like it quite a bit. I setup a USB 3 stick to boot linux so I can use VLC as desired; otherwise I'll just roll ChromeOS. The only thing I don't care for is the keyboard. It's actually not that bad, but since my daily driver is a thinkpad T61, it's kinda hard to go to this one (...)
I'm still working on key mappings, but unfortunately, it is that bad, and not just because I also came from an old Thinkpad (R60). Mine's already lost the down arrow key cap, and right arrow key cap is staying loose. The metal part of the keyboard's frame seems to be shaving off the nubs that hold the scissor parts, if the key isn't pressed straight down. Not the greatest design and/or QC (I know, it's got a $200 MSRP, but it's only a couple months old!). Spending a lot of time in text editors and terminals, and with shift+down/up replacing pgdn/pgup, I probably have more cycles on down, left, and right, each, than all the other keys combined :). Just in terms of feel, it is not bad, though, and definitely better than previous generation Acer netbooks and cheap notebooks I've used.

I'm using Ubuntu 14.04 (using this script), with Bodhi repos, to use a well-themed E17. Aside from the keyboard, it's working great, and I do consider the light weight, and Haswell-enabled battery life, worth most of the negatives (like low RAM, and small M.2 SSD). I get 3-4 hours to 50% under load (watching videos, playing Dwarf Fortress, compiling junk), and it uses under 1%/hr in S3. All the while, it's nice and snappy, unlike the ARM-based models (I don't care what GHz they can advertise, that Samsung is only barely competitive with a Jaguar (IE, x131e), and simply laughable compared to SB (C710) or Haswell (C720)), has plenty good enough IGP, and performs about like a ~2GHz C2D when CPU-bound.

I figured my first peripheral for it would be a USB hub/NIC, or trackball...but, it's a keypad, of all things, so I can (a) not destroy the remaining key caps, and (b) have some keys to map to useful missing keys (like ins, home, F11, and del).
 

Bateluer

Lifer
Jun 23, 2001
27,730
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http://www.zdnet.com/intel-unloads-...eviews-education-reference-design-7000029130/

All in all, Intel is gearing up to release at least 20 Chromebooks by the end of the year -- up from just four in September 2013. Intel further boasted that it will be involved in releasing the first to feature 64-bit Chrome OS.

I'll assume that to mean Intel's partners and not Intel itself.

Business customers on the road frequently might want to take a second look at these fanless machines being that the Bay Trail-M SoC promises up to 11 hours of battery life while supporting touch-enabled screens and 802.11ac wireless internet.

Acer along with Dell are also going slightly higher-end with their versions by embedding the fourth-generation Intel Core i3 processor.


Will Microsoft hit the proverbial panic button soon?
 

DaveSimmons

Elite Member
Aug 12, 2001
40,730
670
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They already did by deciding to offer Windows 8.x licenses for free to manufacturers on the 8" tablets.
 

ninaholic37

Golden Member
Apr 13, 2012
1,883
31
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Idiots at Google/Acer haven't even shipped the C720 to my country. All we have is the stupid C720P (touchscreen) everywhere for $349.
 

Lonyo

Lifer
Aug 10, 2002
21,938
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They already did by deciding to offer Windows 8.x licenses for free to manufacturers on the 8" tablets.

What do 8" tablets have to do with Chromebooks?
Even Google has them as different categories. They made another entire new OS (pretty much) for Chromebooks because 8" tablets with Android are a different market to Chromebooks.

How is MS making Windows 8 free for 8" devices anything to do with panic over Chromebooks?

I know you're just using idiotic hyperbole, but still, at least make it vaguely logical. 8" Windows is due to Android, not due to ChromeOS. If anything, Google is being stupid by having two different operating systems rather than trying to stick to one thing.