Things just got interesting in the personal computing space. [By personal computing, I mean portable computing because a stay at home PC is just so yesterday, right?] This morning, Google officially took the wraps off of its ChromeBooks: two notebooks that run Chrome OS, one each from Samsung and Acer.



In a packed auditorium somewhere on the west coast of America-land, Google announced what anyone who cared already knew—severely web-enabled Chrome OS laptops that aim to enhance the way we do everything. From the claimed fast boot-up time (EIGHT SECONDS) and the instant-on wake-up to the 3G-ever-connectedness of Google cloudy world where your whole life is (going to be) stored, ChromeBooks look set to shake shit up in the sub $1000 market. My favourite feature? Anyone can log into any ChromeBook and have access to their own profile. Gone is the concept of your stuff just being on your computer.



The pricing seems to be a nice surprise: Samsung’s Series 5 ChromeBooks are US$429 for the Wifi only model and US$499 for the 3G, while Acer’s ChromeBooks start at $349. But it gets surprisier: Google is pushing into the corporate, government and education sectors in a big way. This is made clear by its new subscription model, which appears to be relatively simple:

Corporate subscription: US$28 per user per month
Education/government subscription: US$20 per user per month

And that’s for everything folks: hardware AND software.

Wow—can it get any easier? Have you ever seen the tiered matrices of corporate/education pricing models? No? Neither have I, but I can only assume they are so complex that they just dazzle Doris in the accounts receivables department.

Netbook makers, computer makers, IT makers and Microsoft BE WARNED… if the iPad and OSX (as examples) weren’t enough to completely erode your market share—these things will take you out if you don’t react fast. I can imagine a flurry of strategic activity in the boardrooms of mass-vendors across the world: *Checks Blackberry* "Need you at the office now—and yes, bring coke Coke."

When can you get one? Well, right now you can’t—it goes on sale on June the 15th in seven lucky countries, none of which are our lucky country. No word yet on when we'll get luckier.

In the near future, I’d like to see premium models that have more grunt and more of an Apple-like finish. Am I excited? Well, lets just say that I’ve added ‘ChromeBook’ to my Mac’s dictionary (sorry).

Finally, I’ll sign off with this quote from the above video that really drives home the net effect of this concept and also has a massive dig at Microsoft:

"Everything can be saved to the web. That's crazy! I could throw this into a river, and I won't lose my stuff. No need for virus protection. No annoying updates. No patches. No patches for the patches."

Specs: Samsung Series 5 ChromeBook
0.79-inch thin case designed for comfort and mobility
Full-size Chrome keyboard
Oversized multi-touch trackpad
Intel® Core™2 Duo N570 1.66Ghz Processor
16:10 resolution
12.1-inch SuperBright Display – 36% brighter than standard display
Starts up in less than 10-seconds
Resumes instantly from standby
Up to 8.5 hours battery life*
HD Webcam, built-in digital microphone and stereo speakers
Two USB ports capable of charging mobile phones and accessories, connecting digital cameras and media storage devices
Support for removable media cards (SD, SDHC, MMC) for photos, videos, music and documents

Specs: Acer ChromeBook
11.6" HD Widescreen CineCrystalTM LED-backlit LCD
2.95 lbs. | 1.34 kg.
6 hours of continuous usage 1
Intel® AtomTM Dual-Core Processor
Built in dual-band Wi-Fi and World-mode 3G (optional)
HD Webcam with noise cancelling microphone
High-Definition Audio Support
2 USB 2.0 ports
4-in-1 memory card slot
HDMI port
Fullsize Chrome keyboard
Oversize fully-clickable trackpad