Thinking of buying Chromebook!

[Panawe]

Hi, I am on the point of buying Chromebook and I wondered if there is a Linux equivalent that would fit the bill.

Basically, I need a small device (but with a keyboard) so that I can go on holiday and write. Don't need games or fancy apps - mainly word processing and email. And a browser.

Any suggestions welcome.

[mastablasta]

you can install linux on chromebook. yes there are a few smaller laptops that will also do what you want (netbooks or a bit bigger netbooks (about 13" size).

[hg-knight]

try a lighter distro though,Ubuntu can be a bit demanding.
elementary / xubuntu to name a couple

[Panawe]

Okay, thanks, I didn't know you could install Linux (and therefore LOpenOffice) on a Chromebook. All the reviews talk about Goggle apps.

[aysiu]

Okay, thanks, I didn't know you could install Linux (and therefore LOpenOffice) on a Chromebook. All the reviews talk about Goggle apps. I have a Chromebook, and I would highly recommend it.

However, if you want a laptop to install Ubuntu on, a Chromebook is not ideal for that.

In order to install Ubuntu (whether it's a dual-boot or a simultaneous installation using chroot to switch), you need to put your Chromebook into Developer Mode, and Developer Mode is very fragile.

Every time you reboot, it will warn you that you're in Developer Mode, and if you (or someone else using your Chromebook) accidentally hit(s) the Enter key, it will erase your Ubuntu installation and put your Chromebook back to factory settings.

If you're cool with that, I'd highly recommend using Crouton to have a simultaneous ChromeOS / Ubuntu installation. Ultimately, though, if you don't plan to use Google Drive for word processing or Chrome for your web browser, there's really no point in getting a Chromebook. More trouble than it's worth. Better to just get a normal laptop and install Ubuntu on that.

[kurt18947]

I have this in the back of my mind as well. Isn't there a distro optimized for installing Ubuntu on Chromebooks so you have a dual boot machine? You'd need a hard driver larger than the 16 GB. SSDs I see in Best Buy though.

[Linuxratty]

I have a Chromebook, and I would highly recommend it.

.

Do you have to use the cloud or does it have a hard drive you can use,or ports for a thumb drive if you don't want to use the cloud?

[aysiu]

I have this in the back of my mind as well. Isn't there a distro optimized for installing Ubuntu on Chromebooks so you have a dual boot machine? You'd need a hard driver larger than the 16 GB. SSDs I see in Best Buy though. Dual-boots are annoying for two reasons: you actually have to reboot in order to switch operating systems and (for the reasons I mentioned in my last post) as you note, 16 GB is not a ton of room, so the less you install, the better.

For that reason, I'd recommend any Ubuntu users wanting to get a Chromebook look into Crouton. It's quite amazing. It allows you to switch back and forth between ChromeOS and Ubuntu without rebooting and without virtualization. You have both installed and then use chroot (via a keyboard shortcut) to instantly change operating systems.


Do you have to use the cloud or does it have a hard drive you can use,or ports for a thumb drive if you don't want to use the cloud? There is about 16 GB of SSD, which isn't a ton of space. I'm not sure if Google's still offering this promotion or not, but when I got mine it came with 100 GB of Google Drive storage for 2 years. I generally keep my documents in Google Drive in the cloud anyway, but you have the option to keep some or all of your docs offline as well. There are two USB ports (one is USB 3.0) and an SD card slot. Keep in mind, though, that the SD card will jut out a bit when inserted.

[mJayk]

I've always wanted a chrome book just never found a reason to justify buying myself one, out of interest what are the battery life's like compared to laptops of their price / size?

[whatthefunk]

Hi, I am on the point of buying Chromebook and I wondered if there is a Linux equivalent that would fit the bill.

Basically, I need a small device (but with a keyboard) so that I can go on holiday and write. Don't need games or fancy apps - mainly word processing and email. And a browser.

Any suggestions welcome.

Where do you usually go for holidays? Is there fast internet everywhere you go? Chromebooks need the internet to properly function so when the internet is gone, theyre worth evaporates.

[aysiu]

I've always wanted a chrome book just never found a reason to justify buying myself one, out of interest what are the battery life's like compared to laptops of their price / size? The battery life on mine's pretty good, about 8 hours or so. I've never run it down fully, but it works for six-hour flights, no problem.


Where do you usually go for holidays? Is there fast internet everywhere you go? Chromebooks need the internet to properly function so when the internet is gone, theyre worth evaporates. I would highly recommend an internet connection if you're using a Chromebook, but ChromeOS does support offline files for Google Drive.

[mastablasta]

i am usign HP DM1. i have win7 starter (LOL) and Kubuntu 64bit installed on it. i know it's a bit older model but they have new one with similar specs. anyway it has strong battery that lasts over 8h if you turn off wifi. AMD E-450 with radeon GPU 11.6" screen, 500 GB disk, 2 GB ram (max 8GB), 1.6 kg - makes it a good purchase. the only complaint is that it has only USB 2.0 ports and i wish it had mate screen. i would have bought lenovo with similar specs i saw at the time, but they didnt' have strong battery. not even unnoficial.

[markbl]

Where do you usually go for holidays? Is there fast internet everywhere you go? Chromebooks need the internet to properly function so when the internet is gone, theyre worth evaporates.
If this argument was valid then it would apply to tablets also.

I would guess that most of us, particularly the type who visit here, pretty much have fast internet access nearly everywhere we go.

I have not got a chromebook (yet) but I certainly see they make perfect sense.

[aysiu]

Also, if you get the 3G Chromebook (US$329 instead of US$249 for the non-3G), it comes with 2 years of 100 MB of data per month. 100 MB isn't great for streaming video, but if you just want access to Google Drive for some docs you haven't yet put offline, 100 MB is plenty.

[whatthefunk]

I would guess that most of us, particularly the type who visit here, pretty much have fast internet access nearly everywhere we go.

I dont think thats true at all, especially when we're talking about vacations. Get out of the developed world and the internet you have grown to love and depend on evaporates rather quickly.

[orioles_fan]

Any idea which Chromebook available is the best? It sounds like the Samsung is the most popular but the lack of an ethernet port kinda deters me as I still use ethernet when I can. The Acer looks ok. The HP is right on the edge of "too expensive for a Chromebook". Too bad the Pixel is so expensive. Then you've got all of the new ones coming out this fall that are still unseen (Asus and Toshiba are both making one) with Haswell processors so I don't even know if now is the time to get one.

It's ironic that I find this thread right when I've been trying to justify a Chromebook for the past few days. Chrome OS seems to be making strides but I'm nervous that it's just not useful enough for my needs. I'm a web designer so coding and graphic work is required although this wouldn't be my main machine. Still unsure on how it will all play out.

[aysiu]

If you need an ethernet port, don't want anything expensive, and you have to do coding and graphics work, I would stay away from the Chromebook.

If you just want a web browser and a word processor, a Chromebook is excellent.

I've done some light coding (PHP) on my Chromebook, and it's not fun. There are some apps that do some syntax highlighting and FTP'ing, but it's not a great workflow. You're better off with Ubuntu, Mac, or Windows for that.

[orioles_fan]

If you need an ethernet port, don't want anything expensive, and you have to do coding and graphics work, I would stay away from the Chromebook.

If you just want a web browser and a word processor, a Chromebook is excellent.

I've done some light coding (PHP) on my Chromebook, and it's not fun. There are some apps that do some syntax highlighting and FTP'ing, but it's not a great workflow. You're better off with Ubuntu, Mac, or Windows for that.

That's pretty disappointing (albeit semi expected) to hear. I was hoping that enough "web" apps had popped up to make a Chromebook a viable option to not replace my Lenovo but at least compliment it.

Which Chromebook did you buy?

[aysiu]

That's pretty disappointing (albeit semi expected) to hear. I was hoping that enough "web" apps had popped up to make a Chromebook a viable option to not replace my Lenovo but at least compliment it. There are some tools... I wasn't a fan of them, but maybe you'll like them:
http://stackoverflow.com/questions/15367667/tools-for-a-good-web-development-environment-on-chrome-os


Which Chromebook did you buy?
This one:
http://www.samsung.com/us/computer/chrome-os-devices/XE303C12-H01US

[semaphore45]

I dont think thats true at all, especially when we're talking about vacations. Get out of the developed world and the internet you have grown to love and depend on evaporates rather quickly.You don't even have to get out of the developed work to be cut from proper internet access. In Canada I just have to do 20km to my parent's house, and their microwave access is so slow and capped that I wouldn't be able to stay online with a low latency. Don't think just about speed, but latency as well. Everything is much slower over the Internet.

[kostkon]

Just make sure you understand that it is an ARM device and as such if you install Ubuntu on it, some software won't be available, e.g. Flash, Steam, other 3rd party many games, etc. although most of the software in the repos is also available for arm. But I'm just saying..

[Brian_Rose]

I picked up a Samsung Chromebook a little while ago. I didn't have any aspirations of doing "real" work on it. For me, it fills a similar role to a tablet like an iPad. So, Facebook, Twitter, Youtube as well as the Google Apps all work very well. I was pleasantly surprised to discover that 1080p Youtube works flawlessly via the HDMI port at the back. I think it's a decent little machine, but obviously you need to manage your expectations.

[Duncan J Murray]

I've heard good reports about the chromebook for writers - they allow offline text editing, rapid to boot, and battery life should be good. I haven't used one, but for writing, I would recommend a thinkpad x series. You can get these refurbished for little money, install a simple linux os and should run pretty fast. The only problem is the battery life won't be as good as a tablet or chromebook, particularly if they've put in a non-lenovo battery (which they usually do). A new one is pretty expensive.

Failing that, how about one of these? ;) They have a nice leather cover, but internet access is a bit tricky.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Psion-Series-Colour-Mobile-Computer/dp/B000050ABY

D

[Copper Bezel]

Just make sure you understand that it is an ARM device and as such if you install Ubuntu on it, some software won't be available, e.g. Flash, Steam, other 3rd party many games, etc. although most of the software in the repos is also available for arm. But I'm just saying..
To clarify, since there's an intervening post, this is specifically in reference to the one that aysiu linked, not Chromebooks generally, most of which are Intel.

[Cubytus]

Also, if you get the 3G Chromebook (US$329 instead of US$249 for the non-3G), it comes with 2 years of 100 MB of data per month. 100 MB isn't great for streaming video, but if you just want access to Google Drive for some docs you haven't yet put offline, 100 MB is plenty.Are you kidding here¿

Considering even a tablet such as the iPad comes with already cramped 500MB plans and that many struggle to use a smartphone with anything less than 2GB plans, how do you expect to do any kind of significant work on 100MB? In 2012 the average webpage weight was 1.2MB (http://www.sitepoint.com/web-page-weight-2012/). In short, you will only be able to navigate shy of 84 pages a month before busting your plan, probably even less now.

[whatthefunk]

Are you kidding here¿

Considering even a tablet such as the iPad comes with already cramped 500MB plans and that many struggle to use a smartphone with anything less than 2GB plans, how do you expect to do any kind of significant work on 100MB? In 2012 the average webpage weight was 1.2MB (http://www.sitepoint.com/web-page-weight-2012/). In short, you will only be able to navigate shy of 84 pages a month before busting your plan, probably even less now.

Agreed. 100 MB is nothing. So far today, Ive used 187 MB. This is just from normal internet usage. I checked my mail, read the news, visited a few pages I regularly read, watched a couple Youtube videos, and downloaded a small program. 100 MB is laughable, especially with a Chromebook which relies so heavily on internet.

[aysiu]

Are you kidding here¿

Considering even a tablet such as the iPad comes with already cramped 500MB plans and that many struggle to use a smartphone with anything less than 2GB plans, how do you expect to do any kind of significant work on 100MB? In 2012 the average webpage weight was 1.2MB (http://www.sitepoint.com/web-page-weight-2012/). In short, you will only be able to navigate shy of 84 pages a month before busting your plan, probably even less now. I'm not kidding you.

I own an actual Chromebook with 3G, and it actually has 100 MB free (well, included in the price) per month, and it's saved me from a couple of jams.

The idea isn't to continually browse the internet with 100 MB. The idea is if you have a Google Doc that isn't yet offline, to connect long enough to save it offline, then disconnect, and then work offline with the document.

[Cyril380]

Just make sure you understand that it is an ARM device...I wait for an Intel version, 10-11in, under 2lbs...that we can install Ubuntu on.

[Copper Bezel]

There are a lot of portable Intel machines you can run Ubuntu on, and there's nothing special about Chromebook hardware. Individual Chromebook models can be special for unique reasons, but there's no reason to wait for "a" Chromebook with those specs, in favor of Windows machines that meet all the same hardware specs.

[Cyril380]

1- I don't want to pay MS Tax and/or stuck with the stinky UEFI lock 2- I want Broadwell/Haswell inside