Chromebooks

Fast, simple, secure, built for the Web, doesn't require administration. It's a Chromebook, a Chrome OS notebook that will be available starting from next month.

"Chromebooks will be available online June 15 in the U.S., U.K., France, Germany, Netherlands, Italy and Spain. More countries will follow in the coming months. In the U.S., Chromebooks will be available from Amazon and Best Buy and internationally from leading retailers," informs Google.

Google's simplified computing model puts the browser at the core and creates an operating system that revolves around Google Chrome. Samsung and Acer are the launch partners. Samsung's notebooks have 12.1" displays, Atom Dual-Core processors, 16 GB solid state drives, weigh 1.48 kg and get 8.5 hours of continuous usage. They're similar to the Acer notebooks, which have 11.6" displays, a higher resolution, but only get 6 hours of usage. Some of the notebooks include 3G support, while other notebooks are Wi-Fi only. "The Samsung Chromebook will cost $429 in the U.S. for the Wi-Fi only version and $499 for the 3G version. Acer's Wi-Fi only Chromebook will cost $349," reports CNet.

Here's one of the Samsung Chromebooks:


While Chromebooks don't require administration, businesses and schools need a way to manage hundreds or thousands of notebooks, so Google decided to offer a service that includes a cloud management console, support, device warranties and regular hardware refreshes for only $20/user (schools) or $28/user (businesses).

Chromebooks are actually the real netbooks, lightweight and inexpensive computers built for simple tasks like browsing the Web. Unfortunately, netbooks are no longer very popular and users replace them with tablets like the iPad, which have better displays, better battery and are easier to use. For now, Chromebooks will compete with Windows netbooks and it won't be easy to convince people to buy a Chrome netbook when they could run Chrome on a regular netbook. The good news is that Chromebooks will force Google to improve its web applications, to offer more advanced features, more free storage and all Google users will benefit even if they don't buy a Chromebook.

Chrome OS Is All About the Missing Features

Here's an interesting quote from Ted Power, a former designer for Google's mobile web apps:

"Chrome OS could potentially mark a profound leap forward. For the first time, all the layers between the network and the computer have been removed. The device itself is of little consequence; you can 'feel right at home' from any networked device. Chrome OS isn't so much about what has been added, but what has been stripped out; no more complicated file systems, software updates, etc."

Paul Buchheit, the ex-Googler who created Gmail, thinks that the ideal design of a computer that acts like a local node of a global super-computer matches the design target of Chrome OS. "It should be relatively cheap and reliable, secure (no viruses or anything), zero-administration (I don't want to be a sys-admin), easy to use, and fast." Paul says that Chrome OS is unnecessary because iOS and Android devices meet the same ideal and there are already millions of devices that run these operating systems.

There are already millions of people who use Chrome and some of them would like to buy a computer that's as fast as their browser. Mobile phones are not yet powerful enough to handle complex web apps, but that will change and, at some point, web apps will be indistinguishable from native apps. You'll be able to use your favorite web apps from almost any device, but why not use a device that removes everything that's unnecessary and slows you down?

Win a Chrome OS Notebook

When I started this blog, Google Operating System was just a metaphor for a future when Google's apps will make your operating system irrelevant. We're not yet there, but we're close and Chrome OS is an attempt to show what's possible right now.

If you'd like to try an early version of Chrome OS on a notebook that's optimized for Chrome OS, post a short essay on the future of computing in a comment and you can win a Cr-48 Chrome notebook.

Here are the rules:

1. This competition is only open to USA residents. Google can't ship the notebook outside USA due to product certification requirements.
2. You must be 18 years of age or older.
3. Your essay must be original and it must be written in English.
4. You should a include a way to contact you: a link to your Google profile, a link to your website, a link to your Twitter account etc.
5. If you win the notebook, you're expected to use it regularly and send your feedback to Google.
6. The competition ends 1:59pm Pacific Time on December 14.
7. Only one of you will win the notebook.

Good luck!



Update (December 14): Thank you for all your great comments. I'll announce the winner tomorrow.

Update 2: We have a winner.

Google Chrome OS and Disposable Computers

When you use a Chrome OS computer, most of your data and your settings is saved online, so it doesn't really matter which Chrome OS computer you're using. Just sign in with your Google account and you can find your bookmarks, your applications and maybe even your documents.

Chrome OS computers are actually designed for sharing and there's even a guest mode based on Chrome's incognito mode. "When you use web apps on your Chrome notebook, all your documents are stored safely in the cloud. But certain kinds of files, like downloads, cookies, and browser cache files, may still be present on your computer. Your Chrome notebook encrypts all this data using tamper-resistant hardware, making it very difficult for anyone to access those files. With Guest Mode, you can let friends use your Chrome notebook without signing in. They can use the web freely, but they won't be able to access your email or other data. And once they sign off, all their browsing data is permanently erased from your computer," explains Google.

Glen Murphy, who is a Chrome user interface designer, tried to show what happens when an inexpensive Chrome OS notebook is damaged. Your data is still available because it's stored online and you can resume your work using another computer.

Chrome OS, Google's True Operating System

After today's Chrome event, it became clear that Chrome OS is Google's true operating system and Android is just a placeholder. Google says that web apps are the native apps in Chrome OS and there are a lot of cool applications in the Chrome Web Store, which is now available.


Chrome OS is still an early project and it's not yet ready for primetime, so the first Chrome OS notebooks will be available in mid 2011. For now, Google focuses on notebooks, but that will change in the future.

Google realized that cloud computing wasn't successful 15 years ago because there weren't great Web applications. Now there are a lot of great apps and Chrome Web Store is the place where you can find some of them. We'll see a lot of iPhone and Android developers creating web apps that work in Google Chrome, but also work in other browsers.

Check the New York Times web app, which has a beautiful interface, it's customizable and also works offline.


Chrome now has 120 million active users, up from 40 million users one year ago. This number will grow next year, when people will buy Chrome OS devices. Google hopes that Chrome OS will become one of the top 3 operating systems in terms of usage, but it won't be easy to achieve this. For some people, a Chrome OS notebook will be the main computer, for others it will be a secondary device. What's important is that users will have a great platform for running web apps, a computer that doesn't require maintenance, it's really secure and easy to use.

Chrome OS is "nothing but the web". It may seem limited, but it's actually open ended. It's a platform that lets you access the web instantly, that's always connected and always in sync, it's built for sharing with other people, it's up-to-date and it's constantly improving.

Chrome OS is the obvious extension to Chrome. Why use a bulky operating system that requires maintenance, it's slow and insecure when you can switch to a lightweight operating system that's fast, free and refreshing? If Chrome can open in 3 seconds, why can't the operating system load so fast? Chrome OS is an operating system that doesn't need drivers to print, doesn't need an antivirus to be secure and doesn't need to store or process your data. Chrome OS could make computers exciting once again and the best part is that you won't have to use it to benefit from its influence.

Further reading and exploring:
* Google's blog post about the Web Store and Chrome OS
* Chrome Web Store
* Chrome OS website
* Chrome OS pilot program for US early adopters: get a free Cr-48 Chrome notebook.

Google Will Launch Chrome Web Store and Chrome OS Today

Today is an important day for Google Chrome: Google will launch Chrome Web Store, a marketplace for web apps, and Chrome OS, the first browser-centric operating system. Google has uploaded two introductory videos to the YouTube channel, but they're not yet publicly available. Here are some snapshots from the videos:

Chrome OS Tour

Chrome Web Store: Museum of Thieves (Flash game)

Chrome Web Store: Sports Illustrated

Google has already announced the launch event a few days ago: "On December 7, we will host an event in San Francisco where we plan to share some exciting news about Chrome. The event will be webcast live on YouTube at: www.youtube.com/googlechrome. Mark your calendars for 10:30 a.m. PST and tune in."

{ Thanks, Emanuele. }

Chrome OS Tablets, Only for Early Adopters?

Google's CEO, Eric Schmidt, made an interesting comment about Chrome OS and the potential users of a Chrome OS tablet:

Chrome OS, Schmidt said is focused on selling Netbook-class computers to early believers in cloud-based storage. The first devices, which he reiterated will come this year, will use either Intel or ARM chips, have a keyboard and won't have local storage beyond that needed to cache data.

"People who believe in cloud computing, believe in the benefits of Web computing and who are Chrome users will be the target market," he said. "It's probably a large market."

Google Chrome has more than 70 million users, but not all of them switched to Chrome because it's a good platform for Web apps. Few Chrome users will decide that Google Chrome is the only important application they use and migrate to a Chrome OS tablet. Google should promote the tablet as a complementary device for browsing the Web and running Web apps, a device that boots quickly, updates automatically, doesn't require maintenance or security software.


It's interesting to read Andy Rubin's blog post that explains why Google decided to close the Nexus One online store:

"While the global adoption of the Android platform has exceeded our expectations, the web store has not. It's remained a niche channel for early adopters."