What Is A Chromebook? Latest Updates, Specs And Everything You Need To Know

At the Google's 2011 developer conference, Sundar Pichai, then Google's vice president of Chrome, revealed a surprising new product from the search giant: an entirely new personal computing operating system, "Chrome OS". A Chromebook is a low-cost laptop running Google's Chrome OS as its operating system rather than Windows or Apple's OS X.

Why you should buy a Chromebook

These machines are designed to be used primarily while connected to the Internet, with most applications and documents living in the cloud. Google also throws in 100 GB of cloud storage for every Chromebook.

Pros: Chromebooks start up lightning-fast and are cheap to buy. They don't tend to get viruses and your files are stored online in the cloud. According to a review by Which.co.uk, they have bumper batteries - some last around 14 hours, which is double the average Windows laptop.

Cons: There's little storage space on a Chromebook, so you have to always be connected to the internet to access your files or to run the web apps. You may miss using traditional programs (such as Word and Excel), though Google has app equivalents like those available in the Google Drive that carry out the same kind of tasks, states Digital Trends .

Features & Specs

• RAM / Storage Size: Typically, Chromebooks have 2GB of RAM. But that's beginning to change. Chromebooks are beginning to ship with 4GB optional. All Chromebooks come with at least 16GB of storage. Some Chromebooks are available with a 32GB SSD, which will be handy for anyone looking to have a little more offline capability.
• Processor: Chromebooks mostly offer entry-level processors that can easily handle word processing, emails, and movies but lag in more sophisticated procedures like running 3D games and managing two tasks at once.
• Screen Size & Resolution: Chromebooks are offered in several different screen sizes. The kit common is 11.6-inch but there are also 13, 14, and 15-inch options. Most Chromebooks don't offer HD resolution.
• Battery Life: Chromebooks have long battery life. It's not uncommon to find a Chromebook that can last all day on one charge. However, the very best Windows notebooks can last longer.
• Price: This laptop invention may probably one of, if not, the cheapest, money-value laptop ever invented. Chromebooks can be bought for as low as $170 (sometimes, even lower). Although you could get a lower deal for a Windows laptop, the similar price range would probably be out of date or low in specs.

Gaming, however, is not really a Chromebook's thing. Due to Chromebooks' small storage and relatively weak specs, offline gameplay is usually limited to 2D games like Angry Birds.

Chromebook Offline

There are times when you can't find a Wi-Fi signal. Fortunately, There are more than 200 offline Chrome apps that can work without Internet connectivity, including Gmail, Pocket and Google Drive, and tons of the Android apps coming soon will also work offline.

A new update has been released which allows android apps to be run on Chromebooks. This year, Chrome OS machines outsold Macs for the first time. So in other words, Chrome has caught on big time.